Kameleon 8 Remote Control

How many times do you settle comfortably on your couch with your television remote in hand and realize that the DVD player or satellite remote is on the top of your TV? Better yet, how long does it take you to play a DVD and adjust the volume comfortably having to use more than one remote?

Today’s market is filled with universal and learning remotes of many shapes and sizes. Some remotes will let you take control of all the components from the same manufacturer. Other more sophisticated ones, will allow you to control all your components regardless of who manufactured them. Prices of these remotes start at about $10 and can go into the hundreds of dollars.

Having experienced a fair share of universal/learning remotes myself, I must say that not one has impressed me as much as the Kameleon 8.

At $100, the remote has a blue face and is encased in a die-cast aluminum housing. A velvet-like black bottom with a rubbery feel rounds out the design. The remote has a very sleek ergonomic design, like no other. Here’s something you have to understand about the remote - when not in your hand, its face is completely blue with no buttons on it. Once you pick it up, that’s when the light blue buttons appear. Talk about a futuristic design and feel. The buttons disappear when the remote is left alone for a few seconds to preserve batteries. Four AAA batteries power the remote.

After the initial surprise - where are the buttons? (the packaging makes it seem like the remote has permanent buttons on it) - I began to program the remote for all my equipment. Following the simple steps from the user’s guide, the setup was very quick and easy. In less than 10 minutes I could control all my components from the single remote. The instructions in the manual are easy enough to follow even if it’s your first time programming a remote.

Perhaps the Kameleon 8′s dynamic display is what really makes it the most incredible remote. By selecting the device that you want to control (TV, DVD, satellite, etc.) at the top of the remote, the blue face displays only the keys and functions of that specific device. This means you won’t have to deal with a remote cluttered with buttons you don’t even need. In this price range, you will not find another remote that does this. Only expensive, much bulkier LCD remotes carry this feature.

The universal remote also has learning capabilities. If your particular component is not listed in the code section of the guide, you can teach it the command straight from the original remote of the component.

Five user macros allow you to program a sequence of several buttons into a single button. Up to 15 button presses can be programmed into each macro. For example, to watch a DVD may normally require pressing six buttons - DVD, Power, Play, TV, Power, and Input. This repetitive, lengthy process can be programmed into a single macro button.

The soft-touch buttons of the remote provide a surprisingly easy and quick control of the remote. By soft-touch I mean the buttons don’t even appear as buttons - the face of the remote is completely flat. You don’t have to worry about any dust or dirt sticking to the buttons or around them because they don’t exist. Cleaning the remote simply means wiping its blue face.

Because the buttons light up, you’ll never have to “feel” your way to the correct button on the remote while watching a movie with the lights dimmed or off. Five levels of brightness of the buttons can be chosen from to suit your taste.

So after just a few days of owning the Kameleon 8, I can honestly say that it works as incredibly as it looks. My whole family enjoys its ease of use. It also makes an interesting conversation piece!

Quick Info

Manufacturer:Universal Electronics Inc.
www.oneforall.com

Price (MSRP):$99 (Canadian)