Tom's Views

I just purchased the  Philips SRP5107WM/17 universal remote  for use with my Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300 DVR supplied by Atlantic Broadband cable company.  I’ve spent a few hours playing around with the SRP5107WM/17, and so far, I’ve only found it to be very easy to set up and the buttons have a very easy-to-press feel.  Yet I do not typically find myself pressing the wrong key too often. So my preliminary assessment is that this universal remote works as well as I had hoped, and it serves quite well as a replacement for the Universal Remote CLIKR-5 remote that the cable company provided originally.

Benefits Of The Philips SRP5107WM/17

• The Philips SRP5107WM/17 can control up to seven devices.  That’s great, particularly since I only have three devices in my entire entertainment system.  Hey, it’s always nice to have some room for expansion, and the SRP5107WM/17 certainly provides enough for any devices that my budget could afford.
• The number keys on the SRP5107WM/17 are pretty easy to read (bold white print on a glossy background).
• The two AA batteries will likely last a long time, particularly since this unit incorporates no backlight.
• The buttons that specifically activate DVR functions on the SRP5107WM/17 have blue text labels while most of the rest of them are white.  This is a neat feature especially for someone new to digital video recorders (DVRs).
• Philips has rearranged the device and video control keys (forward, play, back, record, pause, and stop) into an easy-to-use ring format that’s similar to the iPod Nano wheel.  However unlike the iPod Nano, this ring still has individual buttons.  I find these bigger buttons in this ring arrangement easier to work on the SRP5107WM/17.
• The battery access door on the SRP5107WM/17 comes off with little effort but does not open unless you intentionally access it.  So far, it’s remained in place throughout the few jolts and bumps I’ve given it.
• Compared to my SRU4208WM/17 universal remote, this SRP5107WM/17 appears to be a later and enhanced version.  They made this newer model a bit thicker with more rounded corners.  This helps in gripping the unit.
• I only paid $13 for the SRP5107WM/17 at Walmart; perhaps $10 less than the earlier SRU4208WM/17 remote I bought a couple years back. So they’ve  lowered the price significantly with this improved version of their universal remote.
• The infrared transmitter in the SRP5107WM/17 appears about as strong as most other remotes I’ve tested.  I’ve successfully operated my DVR from twelve feet away with this remote, and while I’ve indeed seen more powerful remotes, the SRP5107WM/17 works well for my needs.
• I like the command learning feature of the SRP5107WM/17.  I worried that this remote does not include the LIST key that my DVR requires to see the list of recorded programs.  This specific button on the other hand, is found on the CLIKR-5.  But this is not an issue however, as the SRP5107WM/17 offers instead, lots of extra keys; buttons that I do not normally use.  So with the command learning feature, I may program one of these available keys to emit the LIST command.  Plus, should a button fail, I can easily program its function on another key. Now that I’ve gotten used to this feature, I don’t think I’d buy a multi-function universal remote that did not include it.
• I did not need the device codes to set up the SRU4208WM/17, as this remote includes a code search feature, which allows quickly scanning through the entire library of device brands supported, until you discover the codes that work with your devices.  This process too but a minute or so in my case.
• They added the new yellow, blue, red, and green generic function buttons that have recently begun appearing on universal remotes to accommodate HD television operations.  These represent extra buttons that can be programmed individually.  I’ve done two of them already, to simplify control of my DVR with the SRP5107WM/17 remote.

What I Dislike About The Philips SRP5107WM/17

• The SRP5107WM/17 has no backlight.
• The print on the number buttons is smaller and less bold than I’d prefer.  So I would not recommend the SRP5107WM/17 to anyone vision impaired.
• My usual complaint about these remotes applies to the SRP5107WM/17 as well.  It should have bigger buttons.
• The SRP5107WM/17 does not include the   all-on   and   all-off   feature of the CLIKR-5.  So you cannot press just one button to turn on or off all the devices in your entertainment system.  Instead, this remote requires you to press the device button for each device you’re controlling in turn, and then press the power button to power up each device.  To avoid these extra keystrokes, I’d love to see a single power button to turn on and off all devices controlled by the SRP5107WM/17.
• Neither does the SRP5107WM/17 include basic setup instructions printed either on the unit’s back or on the battery compartment door.  Thus, I might be unable to reprogram the SRP5107WM/17 if I lose my users manual.

I found the SRP5107WM/17 universal remote nearly effortless to set up and operate, and as cheap as it was, I would certainly buy another. The SRP5107WM/17 is a decent universal remote.

I’ll add any new information I discover to this post, about the Philips SRP5107WM/17 universal remote control.

Tom Hesley

Related Posts

• Universal Remote CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L
• Universal Remote CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB
• Philips SRU4208WM/17 Universal Remote
• US Electronics ENT-EXPL-3005 Universal Remote

For two years, I used the  CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L universal remote control  from Universal Remote  company to actuate  the Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300 DVR as provided by our cable company, Atlantic Broadband.  Until I upgraded to the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB, the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L worked very well.  I might have never upgraded if not for some of the buttons failing to register when pressed.

The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L is a substantial-sized unit, which is powered by two AA batteries.  It has decent-sized backlit buttons, and can control up to five devices in a home entertainment system.

Benefits Of The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L

• The infrared signal that the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L emits is quite strong, as I’ve successfully operated my DVR from fifteen feet away.  This remote is among the strongest I’ve ever owned.
• The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L has a red-colored backlit key panel and all buttons light up with fairly even uniformity.  But though the buttons at the left and right edges of the unit light significantly more brightly, the buttons in the center of the keypad are still easy to read.
• The number keys on the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L can be read fairly easily (bold semi-white print on a black-white background). The keys are best seen when the bright red backlight discussed above is activated.
• The batteries in the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L last about a year with heavy use.
• The battery access door on the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L never came off inadvertently, though I dropped this remote many times.
• Indeed, the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L withstood lots of drops without developing any defects.  I don’t believe however, that the key problem was from the dropping, since it affected only the key that I used most (Play).
• I did not, if I’m recalling correctly, need the device codes to set up the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L, as this universal remote included a code search feature.  This allowed me to scan through its entire library of device brands until hitting on the codes that worked with my devices.
• The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L offers the   all-on   and   all-off   feature that supported less button presses to turn on or off all the devices in my home entertainment system.  Unlike the Philips SRU4208WM/17 that requires you to press the device button for each device you’re controlling in turn, and then press the power button for each device, all of that could be accomplished on the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L with just one button press.  I could program the chain of on/off commands sent by the power button as well, to exclude some of my devices from being turned on and off with this button.
• The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L remote offers three macro-programmable buttons that allow you to create command sequences up to ten commands in length.  You can use this feature to create one-press access to your favorite channel or to start your VCR recording.  This feature became very handy once some of the normal buttons assigned to these operations began to fail.

What I Dislike About The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB

• I wish the backlight remained lit longer when you press the light-up button.  As it is, the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L only glows for roughly ten seconds.  It’d be better if this light duration time was programmable, or stayed on for at least thirty seconds.
• Some of the keys on the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L eventually developed a hard-to-press behavior about a year after I obtained this remote. Since most of the buttons cannot be individually programmed to issue specific commands, I could not reassign one of the other keys to take its place except for the macro keys (M1, M2, and Help).  This is not a bad alternative, though these keys are located a but “off the beaten path” for easy DVR operation.  Sot it would be nice to be able to reprogram ALL the keys if desired.
• The device and video control keys (forward, play, back, record, pause, and stop) could be just a bit larger on the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L.  They’re only slightly larger my pinky fingernail.  This can encourage wrong-button presses, which is likely one reason that several of the buttons on my copy stopped working well so quickly.  Bigger buttons all around would be better.
• The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L  cannot learn button commands from other remotes.  This would be a great feature though, should any of the preprogrammed keys malfunction.  You could then program a new key to use instead if this feature had been included.

I found the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L  to be quite adequate for my DVR and TV needs.  So I would definitely purchase another if I actually had to buy one; our cable company provides them free.

A great size for a universal remote, the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L achieves a nice balance between size and function.  This unit is among the best overall universal remotes I’ve played with.

I’ll add any new information I discover to this post about this universal remote control.

Tom Hesley

Related Posts

• Philips SRP5107WM/17 Universal Remote
• Universal Remote CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB
• Philips SRU4208WM/17 Universal Remote
• US Electronics ENT-EXPL-3005 Universal Remote

For over a year, I’ve used the  CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB universal remote control   from  Universal Remote  company to control  the Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300 DVR as provided by our cable company, Atlantic Broadband.  It works very well.  The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB is a hefty-sized unit, requiring two AA batteries, good-sized backlit buttons, and can control up to five devices in an entertainment system.

Benefits Of The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB

• The infrared signal that the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB emits is quite strong, as I’ve successfully operated my DVR from fifteen feet away.  This remote is among the strongest I’ve ever owned.
• The number keys on the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB can be read fairly easily (bold semi-white print on a black-white background). The keys are best seen when the bright red backlight is activated.
• The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB has a red-colored backlit key panel and all buttons light up with fairly even uniformity.  But though the buttons at the left and right edges of the unit light significantly more brightly, the buttons in the center of the keypad are still easy to read.
• The two AA batteries in the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB last me about a year with heavy use.
• The battery access door on the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB never comes off inadvertently, though I’ve dropped this remote many times.
• Indeed, the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB has withstood lots of drops without developing any defects.
• I do not need the device codes necessarily to set up the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB, as this universal remote includes a code search feature.  This allows you to scan through its entire library of device brands until you hit on the codes that work with your devices.
• The basic setup instructions appear on the outside of the battery compartment door on the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB.
• The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB offers the   all-on   and   all-off   feature that allows you to press less buttons to turn on or off all the devices in your home entertainment system.  Unlike the Philips SRU4208WM/17 that requires you to press the device button for each device you’re controlling in turn, and the press the power button for each device, you can do all of that on the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB with just one button press.  You can program the chain of on/off commands sent by the power button as well, as you may not wish the universal remote to actuate all devices in range.  You can omit some devices from powering if you wish.
• The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB remote offers three macro-programmable buttons that allow you to create command sequences up to ten commands in length.  You can use this feature to create one-press access to your favorite channel or to start your VCR recording.

What I Dislike About The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB

• The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB cannot learn button commands from other remotes.  This would be a great feature though, should any of the preprogrammed keys malfunction.  You could then program a new key to use instead if this feature had been included.
• I wish the backlight remained lit longer when you press the light-up button.  As it is, the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB only glows for roughly ten seconds.  It’d be better if this light duration time was programmable, or was at least thirty seconds.
• Some of the keys developed a hard-to-press behavior about a year after I obtained this remote from the cable company. Since the buttons cannot be individually programmed to issue specific commands, I could not program one of the other keys to take its place except for the macro keys (M1, M2, and Help).  This is not a bad alternative.  But it would be nice to be able to reprogram ALL the keys if desired.
• The device and video control keys (forward, play, back, record, pause, and stop) could be just a bit larger on the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB.  They’re only slightly larger my pinky fingernail.  This can encourage wrong-button presses, which is likely one reason that several of the buttons on my copy stopped working well so quickly.  Bigger buttons all around would be better.

I thought that the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB was quite adequate for my DVR needs.  So I would definitely purchase another.  A great size for a universal remote, the CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB achieves a nice balance between size and function.  The CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB is among the best overall universal remotes I’ve examined.

I’ll add any new information I discover to this post about this universal remote control.

Tom Hesley

Related Posts

• Philips SRP5107WM/17 Universal Remote
• Universal Remote CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L
• Philips SRU4208WM/17 Universal Remote
• US Electronics ENT-EXPL-3005 Universal Remote

I’ve used the  Philips SRU4208WM/17 universal remote  with the Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300 DVR from the Atlantic Broadband cable company for nearly two years.  This universal remote works as expected, serves adequately as a replacement for the Universal Remote CLIKR-5 remote that the cable company provided originally.

Benefits Of The Philips SRU4208WM/17

• The SRU4208WM/17 can control up to eight devices.  Nice!
• The number keys on the SRU4208WM/17 can be read easily (bold black print on a semi-white background), which eases this universal remote for the visually handicapped. This is especially true when the backlight is on.
• The SRU4208WM/17 includes a backlit button panel and all buttons light up with decent uniformity.
• The two AAA batteries last a surprising amount of time (nearly two years) and I used the SRU4208WM/17 quite a bit for many hours of television viewing and DVR operating.
• The battery access door stays put through all the drops and jolts I’ve put the SRU4208WM/17 through.
• In fact, the SRU4208WM/17 seems to withstand lots of drops without developing any ill effects at all.
• The infrared signal that the SRU4208WM/17 emits is reasonably strong, as I’ve successfully operated my DVR from twelve feet away.  I’ve seen stronger remotes.  But this power level does nicely.
• I appreciated the command learning feature of the SRU4208WM/17.  I was concerned that the SRU4208WM/17 does not include a  LIST   key found on the CLIKR-5.  But the SRU4208WM/17 instead offers lots of keys that I do not normally use.  So with the command learning feature, I could program one of its available keys to emit the LIST command when pressed.  Plus, should a button wear out, I can easily program that function on another key.
• I do not need the device codes necessarily to set up the SRU4208WM/17, as this remote includes a code search feature.  It allows you to scan through its entire library of device brands until you hit on the codes that work with your devices.

What I Dislike About The Philips SRU4208WM/17

• The infrared transmitter strength of the SRU4208WM/17 is not quite as strong as other universal remotes I’ve tried, and does not work from very far away unless you point it right at the controlled device.  With some of my other remotes, I’m able to point them at walls and even dark-colored furniture, yet still properly control the DVR.  But not so much with this Philips universal remote.
• The SRU4208WM/17 does not include the   all-on   and   all-off   feature of the CLIKR-5.  So you cannot press just one button to turn on or off all the devices in your entertainment system.  Instead, the Philips SRU4208WM/17 requires you to press the device button for each device you’re controlling in turn, and the press the power button for each device.  It would sure be nice to have a single power button to turn on and off all devices controlled by the SRU4208WM/17.
• I wish the backlight remained lit longer when you press the light-up button.  As it is, the SRU4208WM/17 only glows for roughly five seconds.  It’d be better if this light time was programmable, or was at least thirty seconds.
• The play developed insensitivity to presses less than a year after I purchased the SRU4208WM/17, which was rather disheartening because I paid over $22 for this remote.  But at least I was able to program one of the other keys to take its place.
• The device and video control keys (forward, play, back, record, pause, and stop) are too small on the SRU4208WM/17.  They’re only about the size of my pinky fingernail, and about half the size of the number keys on the SRU4208WM/17.  This can cause frequent wrong-button presses, which is likely one reason that the play button on my remote stopped working well so quickly.  Bigger buttons all around would be better.
• The SRU4208WM/17 does not include basic setup instructions printed either on the back of the unit or on the inside of the battery compartment door.  This means that a lost users manual could mean that you cannot program your remote.

While I found the SRU4208WM/17 adequate for my purposes, I would probably not buy it again, particularly if I could get my hands on a CLIKR-5 instead, which is a significantly larger universal remote with a much brighter and longer-lasting backlight.  But the SRU4208WM/17 isn’t a bad universal remote.

I’ll add any new information I discover to this post, about the Philips SRU4208WM/17 universal remote control.

Tom Hesley

Related Posts

• Philips SRP5107WM/17 Universal Remote
• Universal Remote CLIKR-5 UR5U-8520L
• Universal Remote CLIKR-5 UR5U-8700L-AB
• US Electronics ENT-EXPL-3005 Universal Remote

I’ve used the  US Electronics universal remote, model  ENT-EXPL-3005  with set-top boxes from Atlantic Broadband and Comcast cable companies through the years with very good results.

Benefits Of The US Electronics ENT-EXPL-3005

• The   all-on   and   all-off   feature, that allows the user to press a single power button in order to turn on and off all devices controlled by this universal remote.
• The number keys are in the same of each number, which makes this universal remote more accessible to the blind or vision impaired.
• The batteries last a very long time (well over a year) and I used the ENT-EXPL-3005 a lot.
• The ENT-EXPL-3005 has proven to be quite durable, as I’ve never experienced any of its buttons failing to register when pressed.
• The infrared signal from the ENT-EXPL-3005 is unusually strong.  I’ve successfully operated my cable boxes from fifteen feet away, and I need not point this universal remote directly at the cable box either.  Pointing it at an adjacent wall or even at dark-colored furniture still properly actuates the cable box.

What I Dislike About The US Electronics ENT-EXPL-3005

• The battery access door falls off frequently; even when the remote is lightly dropped onto a carpeted floor from just a couple feet up.  This remote can still be operated with the missing door. However, the battery door contains instructions on how to program the remote, and without it, you’re dead in the water if you wish to use the remote with a different set or cable converter box, and
• The programming instructions were not easily located on the Internet.  So I’m including them beelow, just in case I lose the door in the future, or someone else needs them.

Programming The US Electronics ENT-EXPL-3005 

1. Turn on the device you want to operate with this universal remote (TV, VCR, Etc.);
2. Press and hold the matching mode key on the ENT-EXPL-3005 until mode keys flash;
3. Press power key on the ENT-EXPL-3005.  You will shortly see the mode key  stop blinking and stay lit;
4. Press and hold up-arrow key on the ENT-EXPL-3005 until the device turns off;
5. When the device turns off, press OK/SELECT on the ENT-EXPL-3005 to save the code.
6. Your universal remote is now set up and ready to use to control your desired device.

I’ll add any new information about this control I discover, to this post.

Tom Hesley

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