Universal Remote Control MX-350 Osiris IR/RF Remote Control (8056)

Back in 2003 I bought the MX-500 to go with the my first home theater setup. Having rebuilt my second home theater I was looking for a remote that handles the newer devices yet still retained the best features of the MX-500 (since the MX-500 is no longer being sold.) I was considering the MX-850 but ordered 2 cheaper alternatives: The MX-350 and RF20 since the images and description were inadequate.Within minutes I had the MX-350 learn my Panasonic VT60 plasma and my Denon AVR-3313CI essential buttons. The UI on the LCD screen is minimal but functional. Higher end and newer remotes will display the UI on the TV -- these two remotes don't but instead make excellent use of the small LCD screen.Both manuals are written in a easy to follow step-by-step guide. The RF20 manual is thicker because it includes two languages: English and Spanish.You can have the power button toggle the power on multiple devices. The UI shows Step# so you have visual confirmation that the remote is remembering each device/button press.Both the RF20 and MX-350 come with remote, batteries, and manual. The RF20 includes an extra useless instructional DVD. It doesn't tell you anything that can't be found in the manual.What are the differences between then RF20, MX-350, and MX-500 ?Price: * RF20 Inexpensive $ (This is "good enough" for 90% of use cases.) * MX-350 Medium $$ * MX-500 Medium/Expensive $ (discontinued) * MX-850 Ultra Expensive $$$The RF20 and MX-350 have the exact same dimensions.= The MX350 Advantages =When you upgrade from the RF20 to the MX-350 the notable difference include:+ The MX-350 has white plastic "aqua/gel" keys. The RF20 has soft rubber plastic keys which surprisingly feels very good but lacks the tactile feedback that a button has been pushed. While the MX-350 has harder keys which are not quite as comfortable there is never any doubt if a key has been pushed.+ The MX-350 has the entire keys are backlit with a soft blue light. While the RF20 has the entire keys backlit orange it is much fainter since only the text glows. I greatly prefer the MX-350 since it is easier to see in the dark.+ The MX-350 directional D-pad is a nice black soft rubber and has much better ergonomics. The RF20 directional D-pad is silver color, hard plastic, and concave which is poor ergonomics as your thumb doesn't rest naturally.+ The MX-350 power ON button is on the right side which feels more natural is more convenient. The RF20 power ON button for some strange reason is on the left side.Apparently their UI designer completely failed the class on "Scrolling and Paging" because sadly both remotes have the page up, page down inverted, which no option to "reverse the 'natural' paging."Both remotes completely failed to learn my Comcast DVR HD Motorola DCX 3400 remote buttons. The remotes say "GOOD!" on capture but playback doesn't work at all. Fortunately I was able to use one of the pre-programmed codes, 110, to set all the functionality of the "Cable" page. I would hate to have a device that isn't supported.The Volume controls are perfect. Some people have complained that there is no "hold to increase/decrease volume", but I found that when I was in "learn" mode to hold the original Denon remove volume up/down longer. You get the best of both worlds: Tap the volume button once to change the volume by 0.5 dB, or hold the button to continuously change the volume.= Comparision to MX-500 =I really loved my MX-500 but with it being discontinued and not supported the newer XMP protocol it is no longer the "king of custom universal remotes." The MX-500 is bigger then the RF20/MX-350 and while I normally like a bigger controller the slightly smaller size of the RF20 / MX-350 feels right. The MX-500 has 10 buttons: 5 on the left, 5 on the right, so the MX-850 is the upgrade if you "need" all 10 buttons and don't want to page up/dwn. The MX-500 back lighting is excellent which thankfully the MX-350 replicates.= Cons =The UI is good considering each LCD line is 5 characters but lacks finer UI details such as:- All remotes allow you to "hide pages" but strangely there is no option to hide a master category such as SAT, CD, VCR2, DVR, AUX. I will never use page 2 of the main menu! Why am I unable to hide it??- Double tapping Main while in Page 2 doesn't return you to the 1st page. You need to manually press the up/down key. The MX-350 really should have an UI/UX designer spend some time polishing that last 1% of "flow."- There is no way to directly enter in hex codes for the XMP protocol.- There is no functionality to copy a key from one page to another page. I'm "stuck" with the VOD / OnDemand key on page 2 of the cable since I has to use one of the pre-programmed codes and not "learn" each button separately.- While you can "punch" through buttons in one device to another device there is no way to punch into the "Main" mode buttons such as "Channel Up/Down" from one of the sub-categories. For example, if you press "Main" to be in "Generic Device Mode" and want to use the "Channel Up/Down" to operate as a "Cable Page Up/Dn" that is not an option.- There is no option to "swap" the behavior of the left-side Page Up / Page Down keys.- Still too many "hidden key presses", such as Main+Enter to enter customization mode, that should be included in the main menu, or have a dedicated "Setup" key.= Amazon Thoughts =NOTE: The Amazon description is wrong. There is NO "Windows-based PC software" for the MX-350.NOTE: Amazon really needs to include pictures of the boxes so people can see what is included with each package.NOTE: Is it really _that_ hard for Amazon to include a link to the OEM page so potential customers can download the manual .PDF and verify their devices are supported??[...]= The Bottom Line =Considering the price the RF20 definitely is "good enough" and will cover 90% of the use cases. I prefer the harder keys, and the better back lighting of the MX-350.While it is annoying that the RF20/MX-350 doesn't offer 100% complete customization overall I'm very happy with the MX-350. It is a great replacement for the "classic" MX-500 !

I purchased this item on Dec. 17th 2009, just before Christmas as a gift for my brother as he was getting a new home theater system for his new home. When he finally got everything hooked up in mid January, he realized that the remote LCD screen was black in one main spot and that it looked as it may had been used! When we contacted the online merchant to see if we could return the remote and get a replacement, we were told that this had to be done within the first 30 days of the purchase of the item... However, his gift was not opened until it was time to program the complete system and unfortunately it was 2 days past the 30 day time slot!!!! What a waste... No one would even respond to make an exception for the purchase!!!! Universal Remote Control MX-350 Osiris IR/RF Remote Control ( 8056 )

Easily able to clone 7 of 8 remote controls to this remote either by device codes or remote to remote learning. Easy to operate. No issues after 4 weeks. Rated only a four because of no adequate documentation for macro programming.

I purchased this as a replacement for a Logitech remote that was giving me a hard time. I'd heard good things about URC so even though it would require a manual set-up I thought I'd give it a go. Wrong! Trouble began when none of the "codes" worked for one particular piece of equipment. Started the process of teaching the URC using the original remote, but soon ran out of time and energy as well as decided if I'm going to spend a lot of time on a remote it might as well be on fixing the Logitech. The manual process of having to write macro's seems so old school...and didn;t work on it long enough to find out the benefits.

This remote is high quality, and relatively easy to program. The problem is that it does not control all newer devices, even by this company. Some can be programmed by the "learning" method, others cannot. If you have a complex home system, you might want to move up to the MX-450, which is able to control newer devices, updateable, and user programmable. The problem is that the company really does not want you to program these, and it is difficult to get the needed software. If you have a complex system, maybe more time efficient to go with the higher end models that require professional program. If not, the cheaper RF-20 is probably more than enough for a simpler system. The RF system works very well for hidden components.