Last week at a DIRECTV conference, we were able to see several new and upcoming products, and the new DIRECTV RC71 remote was one of the best.
For many, the current line of DIRECTV remotes (see top three remotes here) leaves a little to be desired. This is especially true for many of our customers who’ve had TiVo DVRs in the past, with their excellent peanut-shaped remotes.
This new remote has an entirely new shape, and it’s a shape meant to fit in the user’s hand. It may not be as defined as the TiVo remotes, but it’s curvy, and it really had a nice feel to it.
In addition, this new remote reduces the number of buttons, removes the slider switch, and generally reduces the complexity of the remote. It’s like DIRECTV started from the ground up asking “what do users need?” instead of “how much can we cram in here?”
This one model, the RC71, has both IR and RF. But it’s important to note that the RF uses a new protocol called RF4CE. Unfortunately, that protocol is not compatible with older DIRECTV receivers. So this remote will only operate in IR mode with older receivers.
Initially, this remote will ship with three units: the upcoming HR44 Genie, the new version of the Genie Client called a C41, and the C41W which is a wireless Genie client coming sometime this year. The RC71 will work with any of these in RF or IR mode. And when it’s in RF mode, it’ll produce faster and more accurate channel changes due to two-way technology that confirms between the receiver and the remote when a button has been pressed. It’s really responsive.
We don’t yet have firm pricing on the new remote. But more info, pictures, and a manual can be found on our DIRECTV RC71 Remote page.
