The Media Center Showdown Part 6

2012 has arrived and it's time to round up the media center showdown with the last part. Part 6 I'll be covering the remotes.

The Remotes

Apple TV

The Apple TV's remote is very small and thin. It reminds me off my MacBook Air with it's aluminum body. With that said I like it a lot. However, one drawback is that it uses Infrared signals to operate the device which means you have to point the remote to the Apple TV in a right angle. I would've preferred an RF remote that operates through Radio Signals which lets you use the control however you like without pointing and so on.

There's a solution to the IR. You can download the free remote app from Appstore which will enable you to control your device through a WIFI network using an iPhone, iPod or iPad. It works wonderful! You can now control your Apple TV much easier and faster and if you wanted to make a search the keyboard of your iPhone, iPod or iPad will appear in front of you. Then just type the search you want.

Score 8 out of 10

WD TV Live

The WD TV Live remote is very simple but logical. The buttons are well placed and you will get used to the layout in only a few days. The remote is very small and thin which is good. However, the buttons feels a bit cheap. It's made of rubber and when they are pressed you won't get that nice feeling that you'll get on the Apple TV. The Apple TV makes an clicking sound when pressed upon while the WD TV doesn't give you any feedback.  Like the Apple TV this control uses the IR technology which means you need to point in the right angle in order to operate the device. 

There is a remote app for the WD TV Live. To be honest I haven't tried it out but I have made some research. First of all it costs $1.99 or 22SEK. I think that's a high price. With the app you don't navigate through menues you simple see the shares that is available. For instance if you have a share named Movies you just choose a file in that share and it will start playing on the WD TV.

Score 7 out of 10

D-Link Boxee

The Boxee remote is quite cleverly built. On one side you have the actual control and the other side contains a QWERTY keyboard which come in handy for text input. The Boxee remote is the only that runs under RF signal which is very good. However, I've been having a lot of issues with the remote. It took only a few months until the batteries ran out. I mean, come on! A battery draining only a few months of usage? In my world I would think a remote would last at least one year? 

The construction feels very cheap. It's all built with plastic and doesn't feel very good. It squeaks and makes odd noises when your pressing it. Sometimes it doesn't register when you press the different buttons which will get very frustrating after a while.

Luckily there's a remote app for the Boxee. This apps works very well. Not quite as good as the Apple TV remote app but it comes close. A neat feature is the gesture option. With this on you can choose to scroll up and down in you media library or websites without using the up and down arrow keys which will save you time. There are however some issues with the remote app. Sometimes I'm having problem finding the device through my WIFI. Rebooting the Boxee usually solves the problem though, but the generally idea of having a remote loses it's function when I need to get up on my feet to reboot my device don't you think? 

Score 6 out of 10

Conclusion

The Apple TV win this round quite clearly. The remote is sleek and feels great. The remote app makes it even more enjoyable and easier to navigate. Spot on really! 

The WD TV Live's remote is good. It's small and feels great in your hand. However, pressing those buttons feels awkward which is a shame. If only Werstern Digital wouldn't have placed rubber buttons on the remote it would have been much much better. 

The Boxee is clearly the looser in this part. I've had problems with the remote. As I mentioned the battery problem. Even after I changed the battery some problem still existed. Scrolling down with the arrow keys the remote would sometime get stuck a few seconds until it started to work again. With some tweaks I've managed to get it to work quite well now. I did a Macgyver trick on it. Putting a piece of paper between the battery and the battery hatch made the remote respond better. 

Apple TV : Total score 38 out of 60

Interface 6 out of 10
Apps/Features 7 out of 10 

File Formats Supported: 3 out of 10

Network capabilities: 6 out of 8

Price: 8 out of 10 

Remote: 8 out of 10

WD TV Live : Total score 36 out of 60

Interface 4 out of 10
Apps/Features 5 out of 10 

File Formats Supported: 8 out of 10

Network capabilities: 6 out of 8

Price: 6 out of 10 

Remote: 7 out of 10

D-Link Boxee : Total score 45 out of 60

Interface 8 out of 10
Apps/Features 9 out of 10 

File Formats Supported: 9 out of 10

Network capabilities: 7 out of 8

Price: 6 out of 10 

Remote: 6 out of 10

The other parts can be found here:

>> The Media Center Showdown Part 1: Covering the interface

>> The Media Center Showdown Part 2: Covering the Apps and Features 

>> The Media Center Showdown Part 3: Covering the File Formats Supported 

>> The Media Center Showdown Part 4: Covering the Network capabilities 

>> The Media Center Showdown Part 5: Covering the prices