MacDailyNews reader Eric L. received his brand new Apple Remote (US$19) via FedEx as part of a 27″ iMac order and sent along some unboxing photos and first impressions:
Still waiting on the loaded i7 Quad Core!
The remote is as solid as a Unibody MacBook. It doesn’t want to bend at all.
The minimalist plastic case is curved to fit the remote. Perfect alignment.
The menu & play buttons are scalloped, as is the center button.
The aluminum appears to have exactly the same texture as the Unibody Macbook.
So well executed.
I actually hit the Menu button with the MacBook nearby on the table (while closed), and I heard it waking up. I said, “No way”. But it worked.
So as to signal-angles etc, I can say that not even pointing at the laptop, it works great. (Unlike our stupid DirecTV remote).
The new Apple Remote (US$19) lets you control your Mac, iPod, or iPhone from afar: Play, pause, adjust volume, move forward and back, and access menus while playing music and video.
More info about the new Apple Remote here.
Thanks, Eric L.!
What a ridiculous amount of shipping material!
Nice looking remote! I’ve used the one that came with my first MacBook Pro exactly once, so there’s not much point in springing for one.
There’s a cool $4 iPhone/iPodtouch App called TouchPad that let’s you control your Mac via wi-fi. It uses multi-touch and has a key pad, too. Very Slick!
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=297623931&mt=8
Not that I’m in for a new remote or so, but I had to look because of the title: ‘unboxing’ of a ‘remote’?
I’ve always found the ‘unboxing’ series a bit weird, but of a ‘remote’??
However, what struck me is the texture similarity between the remote and the laptop: this is really the Apple signature: attention to detail, a lot of attention to detail and then some more.
They could have gone with nearly any kind of enclosure, and the functionality and ease of use would have been exactly the same – but no: it had to look and feel exactly, _exactly_, as the unibody laptop look and feel.
This shows that you’re not buying some piece of junk.
My only problem: all of my older Apple stuff just keeps on working, so I cannot justify upgrading…
@Mr. Reeee
“What a ridiculous amount of shipping material!”
Really? I see mostly air inside the box and a minimal amount of plastic shrinkwrap. The rest is the retail packaging, which is about as minimalist as they come.
If you’re talking about the cardboard, well first off, that’s recyclable, and second, as others have posted, they don’t want to make the package too easy to steal. Any other company would have a box just as big, but it would be full of styrofoam and there would be 3 layers of plastic to get through, numerous twist ties, the battery would be wrapped seperately and the manual would be 10x larger along with a quick start guide sheet, a 10 page warranty booklet and thin plastic decals covering the product’s shiny parts that you’d have to pick at with your fingernail to remove. You know the ones that some people either don’t notice are on their product or purposely leave on to protect the product from scratches.
What people are paying for the new iMacs and MiniMacs this remote should be included in the package. It’s ridiculous that we should have to pay additional money for a remote.
Does anybody know if it will work on other additional Macs you may have in the house?
The box is too big for such a small piece. Where is the “greener” package?
Still Infrared? Is that the same as the old plastic remote just with aluminum or it is a whole new tech with new functions?
Looks like it would feel good sitting the hand and the buttons are more obvious that the original.
I’d like Apple to make more use of this by keping Front Row up to date with the Apple TV interface and also allowing remote control of Macs in the normal OSX interface.
Sometimes it’s nice to be in iTunes or iPhoto from a distance when you’re doing something else or just showing someone something.
@You’ve got to be kidding
“There are “unboxing” photos of a remote control?!”
That’s the FIRST thing I thought of when I saw the MDN headline.
It’s a freaking remote!
LOL
@DD from Belgium–I have the same problem I did get a 15 MBP 2 years ago but my 12 inch powerbook G4 867! just keeps going and going and going 10 years now–I’m not sure if or when it will quite, but I do use for keynote, I love the size of that thing for travel and keynotes, just no remote bummer
I’d probably buy one if it was a bluetooth remote, but I have several of the older white ones that all work fine and this new metal one gives me no new functionality.
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