Excellent Universal Remote OneForAll URC 8308 Kameleon 8

Hi,
Just started using the universal remote control Kameleon 8 from Oneforall.
Its excellent & what a great value for money!!!!!!!!!.
i hv presently 6 devices:
1.Philips lcd
2.Philips upscaling dvd player
3.Sony dvd player
4.Tata Sky set top box
5.Denon AV receiver
6.LG DVD/VCR Recorder
so wanted to go for a universal remote to remove the clutter.I narrowed down to 2 brands :Logitech & One for All.
i wanted to purchase the logitech harmony one (was priced reasonably in the US ;200$ which would amount to Rs 10000 approx.) But the launch price in India was a shocker Rs 18499!!!!!!!! i did not want to go for the cheaper Logitech 525 as it had nothing new to offer (no touch screen,no rechargeable dock etc.)
Thus i decided for the Kameleon 8 & what a right decision it has been.
It has an EL tactile touch panel which lights up on touching & looks really cool space age stuff.the keys light up according to the modes which is really convenient as the record,play,rew,ff functions are not available in the tv mode & vice versa. the respective key has to be pressed (remember its a touch panel) to use the function.personally i liked the tactile effect.
I configured all my devices in half an hour or so.there was a problem with the philips lcd code which was corrected the next day with a new code by the customer service.....prompt & quick.i also programmed a few macros yesterday (switching on the tatasky setop&tv together;dvd,amp&tv together)
The only minor problem which i hv faced till now is that you cannot customise the labels of the keys but as almost all the common keys are present so its not very inconvenient.it does not hv rechargeable batteries(powered by 4 alkaline AAA batteries) so will update later regarding its battery life.
And Now comes the clincher................the price: Rs 5999.You cannot really expect a touch panel full featured universal remote at this price!!!!!!!!
Three cheers to OneForAll.
U can check it out at :| Universal Electronics.

That was an excellent for about an exciting stuff . BTW where did you buy it from?

I am myself interested in a univeral remote, but i not well versed with how to get it to work , as u need to input codes and other stuff, for various devices to work with it, if someone can shed some light on the process, it will be great.

i have the following devices which i would want to configure on the same -

Denon 1907 amp
Samasung Q9 plasma
Samsuing HD 860 dvd player
DM500S
Yamaha DSP A 496 Amp

will i be able to run the above devices with this single remote, and will all features works

hey DUshie, universal remotes work in two ways 1) codes and 2) learning. Most of the new generation universal remote controls can do both. Most universal remotes come with massive databases of codes supplied along with them, which can be programmed onto them for them to be able to almost fully replicate the particular remote control for which the code has been entered. Chances are most of your devices would be on this list.

Now if the codes are not available these remotes are capable of "learning" using the infrared signals from your original remote. essentially you have to point the infrared transmitter of your original remote to the IR transceiver on the learning one and press the original button on the original remote, and the corresponding button on the learning one (or some combination of actions like that) and voila, the learning remote would have "learnt" the function of the original remote. It's quite simple.

So although I am not specifically aware about the Kameleon (i hear very good things about it), most contemporary universal remote controls should be able to take care of all your needs. Do look at picking them up abroad though....much much cheaper there....there are even a few Sony models that cost in the region of 2-3k INR.

hi,
U can easily buy it online from the various portals like : rediff,itdepot,etc.

Hi Dushie,
i was also in a great dillema regarding the buying of a Universal control. But this one has been quite good for me till now.The code list given in the user manual is quite extensive & the toll free customer support will be able to provide the exact code for the device if u tell them the model.Moreover as Psychotropic rightly pointed out that the learning feature is present on these universal remotes which will easily allow u to program the non working buttons on the universal remote according to the original remote of your device.
Hope this helps you.

By the way I did a little digging around. The OneForAll guys also have a proper hard button universal remote (5 devices) and it is available for 1600 bucks. That sounds like a bargain. It doesn't have a display and stuff, but that you can really live without. Or else the Logitech Harmony 525 is available for about 5500 bucks. THis is again a very good remote.

All the Kameleon remotes seem to have very bad reviews with battery life. They need 4AAA batteries and depending on usage, can drain within a week. There was also a problem with the motion sensor on the remotes being very sensitive to movement, thereby draining battery. The new versions seem to have a firmware option to disable the sensor. So make sure you get a 2008 model which has this upgrade.
Any One4All remotes which have rechargeable battery and are affordable? I don't much care for screen but would like a learning function.

Any idea regarding the model no of the hard button remote , what make is it and what's the review for the same ,

This is the hard button remote that I saw. Products : URC 7556 Digital 5 | Universal Electronics . can't seem to find any reviews, but I doubt it would have a battery life issue, as it does not have an LCD screen or a motion sensor...two things that would cause battery drain......it has a learning function....and it costs 1600.......sounds like a good value proposition....i may buy it but not immediately.....probably once i get my hi fi setup as well....