MCE Controller

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Ed Blown Vert

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 21, 2007
Messages
418
I was searching hoping for a good answer but...

I am building my first HTPC on Windows 7 using Media Center.

What is a great controller to use? I am looking for something better than just a remote.
Maybe a touch screen?? Anyway to have a remote screen?
 
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i always thought having a remote touch screen (like vnc) would be awesome. vnc wouldnt work of course though, im not sure how you would do it.

i think youll probably end up with a high end harmony remote. youll need a IR receiver though too.
 
krupted said:
i always thought having a remote touch screen (like vnc) would be awesome. vnc wouldnt work of course though, im not sure how you would do it.

i think youll probably end up with a high end harmony remote. youll need a IR receiver though too.
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Yeah. Too bad MS fucked up so badly with Vista. Maybe if they hadn't Sideshow devices would have actually made it to market and we'd have MC compatible touchscreen "remotes."
 
well thats the other device i want. a hardware volume mixer. maybe there is one by now, but to have a little touchscreen that i can control all the open volume sliders would be way too cool. i do too many things, and i like to do them all at once. play game while listening to radio, watch tv while listening to music.... it all requires seperate volume control, so i was thrilled when vista came out with its audio capabilities. as to why there is no hardware devices for it though, i have no idea. it could even be implemented into harmony remotes, that can all be done now for existing models through their web interface:rolleyes:
 
krupted said:
i always thought having a remote touch screen (like vnc) would be awesome. vnc wouldnt work of course though, im not sure how you would do it.

i think youll probably end up with a high end harmony remote. youll need a IR receiver though too.
Click to expand...

Hmm... never thought about RDP. I do have a older Pentium machine. Just hook up an ELO :)

I saw the Harmony. Good looking unit, just not sure its the way I want to go. Don't you need a remote for it to work?


I envision a unit with a touchscreen what would control the MC.
 
you need a IR revciever.... either the MCE IR reciever that comes with the MCE remote or a USB-UIRT

then you can add another remote... like my harmony 890

for touchscreen control isnt the 900 touchscreen.

I have a ELO touchscreen that i just installed, but there isnt really a good way ATM to control the HTPC with it other than IR control.... with girder and a USB-UIRT or something.
 
Adidas4275 said:
you need a IR revciever.... either the MCE IR reciever that comes with the MCE remote or a USB-UIRT

then you can add another remote... like my harmony 890

for touchscreen control isnt the 900 touchscreen.

I have a ELO touchscreen that i just installed, but there isnt really a good way ATM to control the HTPC with it other than IR control.... with girder and a USB-UIRT or something.
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Thats what I thought. I may have to go that route with a IR receiver and the Harmony.

I wonder if you can run a second monitor on the second DVI port of the video card??
 
you can but it has to be the same resolution as the primary for clone to work.... so if you have a 1080p touchscreen you are good to go :D

but i am guessing it is a 1024x768 res if it is a 15"
 
yeah because you have to run identical resolutions, a small screen cant be directly attatched, and if you run RDP, you cant see media center because they both use video drivers. logmein does a decent job of vnc'ing media center, but its really slow and would be terrible as a remote.

the harmony is really the way to go... and touchscreen controls honestly suck for remotes. you want physical buttons so you dont have to look at the screen all the time.
 
well i have a harmoney one remote that i use for my tv,receiver, cable box and dvd player. i tried it with mce 2005 on my old setup and quite honestly i found it to be a pain in the ass. when they were still available i got an ms mce remote with the ir receiver. i like the dedicated buttons in the right places. i find it much easier to use. the harmony one is great, but its not as intuitive as the mce remote for htpc use imo. im sure there are other remotes around, but i havent seen any others that are worth the money they ask for them.
 
old harmonys on old software doesnt mean anything today. they dont even make any windows media center edition harmonys anymore, because theyre all suited really well for anything as it is.

i should say that even with my harmony, i would still like a tochscreen to keep next to the couch as well. mainly, because there are times when you want to use a smaller interface, like hulu desktop, and a real wireless fullscreen touchscreen would be ultimate.

but as far as the best harmony right now, im not sure. i do know that you really cant go wrong with the last few years worth of models, so if say the 1100 looks like something you want then go for it. id let others chime in if they can though first... (honestly i would go with the harmony 900 or the harmony one)
 
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hulu desktop and media studio give you good remote control of hulu from WMC

my wife and I only use a harmony 890 RF remote with out HTPC

media browser, hdhomerun tuner, and hulu desktop
 
it looks like it could be a all in one PC but its just a HD capable touchscreen....

looks nice....
 
$900 isnt crazt actually. if you look at lilliput or xenarc 7"-10" LCDs they are $200-$700 and most of them are not even 1080p let alone a larger size.

now all of the all in ones that are touchscreen are like $500-$1200 and that comes with a $300-$500 PC with the screen....

touchscreens should be cheaper than they are but right now that $900 price isnt all that crazy for the market....
 
If you have an iPhone/iPod touch lying around, take a look at HippoRemote. Works on vnc. Pretty useful for $5.
 
smythe97 said:
If you have an iPhone/iPod touch lying around, take a look at HippoRemote. Works on vnc. Pretty useful for $5.
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I have a Droid and just found a similar app.

Still looking for a good IR remote. Will most likely add on the Harmony 1100
 
This will be tethered by a USB cable though. I think he was looking for something portable.
 
what about the new iPAD with a RedEYE

it would cost a decent amount but you could use your iPAD as a large touchscreen remote

RedEYE is a WIFI to IR bridge and it works well for what it is
 
Adidas4275 said:
what about the new iPAD with a RedEYE

it would cost a decent amount but you could use your iPAD as a large touchscreen remote

RedEYE is a WIFI to IR bridge and it works well for what it is
Click to expand...

I really hope some cool Home automation apps show up for the iPad. Home Automation and some network based media center controllers.
 
anyone actually get that monitor? they have the touch model back in stock, and i think i want to order one. it would be a godsend if it works as advertised... being able to have a small little touchscreen i can plug in to anypc, even ones without working video. its exactly what ive wanted for many years...
 
i decided to go with this- http://www.amazon.com/9IN-LCD-1024X...4?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1265227467&sr=1-4
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its a 9" doublesight USB LCD monitor. whats nice is it only needs 500ma of power, so most single usb ports is all it needs. and its much better resolution then the 7" screens, and still comes with a protective cover. the only missing part is the touchscreen, but thats just a luxury anyway.
 
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