|
...Continued from Page 8.
The top of the Customizer is dominated by a medium-sized LCD touchscreen measuring 1.45� wide and 1.93� high (3.7cm by 4.9cm) with a 2.35� diagonal (6.0cm). The touchscreen has 6 lines of text and a total of 10 touch sensitive keys. The top line, again larger than the rest, displays the active device or mode. The next 4 lines are broken up into 8 touch keys, each with a 5 character label. The very bottom status line displays 8 characters and is mapped to a further 2 touch keys, representing [Page Up] and [Page Down].
You may have noted earlier that 2 pages of 8 labels would work out to 16 devices, not the 15 reported... and you�d be right! The bottom right position on the first page, labelled �FAV�, is not a device and instead jumps to the Favorite Channel macros section � more on this later.
Both LCD screens offer excellent contrast ratios. Contrast levels are adjusted digitally and, instead of offering just a few preset levels, can be ramped smoothly from �slightly light� to �a bit too dark�. Although the screen�s character size is smaller than that of the MX-500, labels are still very readable.
One questionable decision made on the URC-200 was to not have the buttons on the right line up correctly with their text labels. The top and bottom positions are approximately one half line out of sync, a real ergonomic no-no. The issue is not as bad as on another �asymmetric� remote (which shall remain nameless), where the second button down matched up perfectly with the first button�s label, however one of the nice things about the company�s earlier MX series is that the hard buttons and LCD labels all meet up perfectly. Perhaps Universal Remote could have used a bigger screen, and/or placed those buttons closer together.
Of course that isn�t a problem with the touchscreen-based URC-300 (which fits 4 lines of text in the same space as the URC-200 wedges 5) � just tap the text and you�ve already found the right key. Although touchscreens usually require little pressure to register a press, I found that the Customizer�s soft plastic touch layer actually needs to be pressed down a bit before it�s sensed. A light touch that was sufficient to register on a random sampling of a half dozen other touchscreen remotes wasn�t firm enough for the Customizer. During normal use commands were sensed reliably, but what I initially thought was a mild amount of key lag turned out to be inadequate pressure.
A mutual keypad.
Beyond the screen region, both remotes are identical with the exact same arrangement of buttons. Close below the LCD display is a grouping of three uniquely shaped buttons: [Off], [Main] and [On]. The [Off] and [On] keys don�t need further explanation, but the [Main] key is used to jump back to the home screen from a device, or back to a device from the Favorite Channels screen.
Continuing down we come to the [Volume] and [Channel] toggle keys, with [Mute], [Previous Channel], and [Guide] buttons centered between. The URC-200 and URC-300�s volume toggles look very similar to the ones used by the MX series, but are slightly smaller. Nevertheless they�re bigger than the URC-100�s versions, and fall perfectly under my thumb. The menu cursor cluster is next, featuring a 4-way directional ring with separate [Select] button in the middle, surrounded by 5 transport and 3 other menu-related controls. Beneath that at the bottom of the remote is a standard 10-digit numeric keypad, with [+10] and [Enter] buttons.
| 
Previous page
