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Function101 Offering Alternative Apple TV Remote Control for $30

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Apple unveiled its ‌Siri‌ (or ‌Apple TV‌) Remote with touch surface in 2015 alongside the fourth-generation ‌Apple TV‌, and it's never been a particularly popular accessory.

101-Function-Feature.jpg

Last year we saw Swiss telco Salt launch an alternative remote control for the Apple TV 4K set-top boxes that it includes in its domestic broadband TV bundle, and yesterday AppleInsider surfaced another potential alternative for anyone frustrated with Apple's native Remote.

Function101's "Button Remote for Apple TV" costs $30 and looks very similar to the Swiss model, but this one will be available in the U.S. later this month, providing another option for anyone watching one of the Salt models on eBay, where they sell at a hefty premium.

The Button Remote includes directional arrows in place of the Siri Remote's glass Touch surface, a power button in addition to a Menu button, along with separate volume and channel rockers and traditional media playback buttons. There's no Siri button included, however.

If that omission is a deal breaker but you can't live with Apple's own remote, you could always control your Apple TV using an iPhone or via your Apple Watch.

Article Link: Function101 Offering Alternative Apple TV Remote Control for $30
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2020/07/21/function101-alternative-apple-tv-remote-control/
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ChromeAce said:
OR you could just do what every power user does... add the TV device control into your existing Logitech Harmony universal remote and customize any button you like.
Click to expand...


Scrubbing is a problem with a button remote, whether it is a Logitech remote or likely the above Button Remote too. With the current software versions, fast forward and review do work but the speed maxes out at a relatively slow or at best moderate speed on button remotes. In order to get full speed scrubbing, you need to swipe on the Apple touch remote or an iPhone/iPad.

I know this because I prefer to use my Logitech Harmony remote over Apple's disaster of a remote. This mostly works, except if you want to get maximum scrubbing speed. BTW, it doesn't work properly with Apple's old button remote either.
 
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This has the same cons as the Salt, it is IR and no Siri button. I really hate the Siri Remote, but those are two features I'd miss. It also means I'd have to put my AppleTV visible whereas now it is hidden.
 
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I never use the physical remote. I use the remote app on my phone. It doesn’t have volume controls. I use my TV remote for that.
 
The Apple TV remote is honestly the worst invention Apple invented. Seriously bad user experience design. Too much overthinking, not enough practicality.

Hey Apple: Buttons were invented for a reason. USE THEM.

Also, the first immediate problem is the lack of any directionality in the ergonomics. You NEVER know if you're holding it upside down or not, until you actually look at it, because physically, it's just a flat rectangle.

A good remote should be able to let you know what you're doing with it without even looking at it.
 
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Kornbeef24 said:
Useless without a CC button. It'd spend good money on a CC button, wife loves them and I can't stand them. Constantly getting toggled.
Click to expand...

Is there a discrete button code for that (for example, to make a CC toggle a top-level menu item on a Harmony universal remote)? I'm in the same situation exactly: my wife always turns it on, and I want it off.
 
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I've noticed this to be a generational issue. My parents struggle with the touch/gesture functions that are incredibly intuitive to me. I also keep IR codes for some common soundbars/TVs in my settings in case I ever need to move the device, whereas some people might just get mad their "volume isn't working". In my experience, the voice capability in Apple TV isn't perfect, but its worlds better than Roku and most other competitors in usability. But the best upgrade to the Apple TV remote is still a $5 silicon cover to add some grip and keep people from holding it upside down in the dark.
 
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I am sure this will be good for some people, but it looks like they just stole Salts design, change the buttons a bit and slapped a huge logo on it.

It reminds me of a remote my grandfather had from radio shack. The buttons were so gooey and that made it hard to use because you never could feel when a press occurred.

Also, I am a tad confused. The website says it's IR. Is it just another IR remote being advertised as supporting the Apple TV? All IR remotes can do that. What is wrong with just using an old IR remote you already have?
 
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Kornbeef24 said:
Useless without a CC button. It'd spend good money on a CC button, wife loves them and I can't stand them. Constantly getting toggled.
Click to expand...
bluespark said:
Is there a discrete button code for that (for example, to make a CC toggle a top-level menu item on a Harmony universal remote)? I'm in the same situation exactly: my wife always turns it on, and I want it off.
Click to expand...

Same here. We compromised and left it on.
 
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bluespark said:
Is there a discrete button code for that (for example, to make a CC toggle a top-level menu item on a Harmony universal remote)? I'm in the same situation exactly: my wife always turns it on, and I want it off.
Click to expand...
The best stealthy way I've seen is activating voice and quietly saying "Captions (or subtitles) Off". I prefer the swipe-down method in whatever app I'm using, but some apps (looking at you Adult Swim) love to lag or crash when you're attempting to use those context menus. Maybe in tvOS 14 Apple will make the swipe down menu less intrusive to the video playing (like how they're shrinking FaceTime/Call notifications in iOS 14. Good luck.

Edit: For Harmony's, yes, you can usually add it into the device/activity settings manually, buried down deep in one of those 128-page menus. You can move it up higher in priority. Also: most TV's are intelligent enough to handle this at the OS-level "above" the Apple TV, but, then you might get ugly 1980s black-bar closed captions instead of clean, customizable ones in Apple TV.
 
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The Appletv remote is the greatest ever. Simple, easy to operate, gets it done. I hate those legacy remotes with all the buttons that you can't see in the dark, and practically have to study just to find a function. It is nice that you can use a conventional remote with AppleTV, I guess, for those who don't like the easy to use one
 
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ChromeAce said:
OR you could just do what every power user does... add the TV device control into your existing Logitech Harmony universal remote and customize any button you like.
Click to expand...
people don't like to spend money. theyll complain about the remote to death and have 18 remotes laying around.
 
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Rogifan said:
I never use the physical remote. I use the remote app on my phone. It doesn’t have volume controls. I use my TV remote for that.
Click to expand...

You can use the iPhone volume buttons while the Apple TV remote app is open to change volume.

What I generally don't get, though, is why people don't just use their TV remotes and HDMI CEC. Since tvOS 13, the Apple TV will even wake up when receiving an HDMI CEC source selection signal. The only thing that no longer works (it did in tvOS 12) is long button presses, so you can't bring up the home menu (with user change and suspend options) by long pressing home on the TV remote.
 
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bluespark said:
Is there a discrete button code for that (for example, to make a CC toggle a top-level menu item on a Harmony universal remote)? I'm in the same situation exactly: my wife always turns it on, and I want it off.
Click to expand...
there is in the harmony app and hub. the companion remote is much nicer than this thing.
 
MauiPa said:
The Appletv remote is the greatest ever. Simple, easy to operate, gets it done. I hate those legacy remotes with all the buttons that you can't see in the dark, and practically have to study just to find a function. It is nice that you can use a conventional remote with AppleTV, I guess, for those who don't like the easy to use one
Click to expand...

So... I take it you’re a fan of the MBP Touchbar as well?
 
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There is also no “TV” (or Home) button, if anyone even cares. I guess that’s because there is no IR code for that, or Siri.
 
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