Mac mini infrared remote12/16/2023 There is an article here which describes the remote being used on a Windows PC, and here on a Mac running Windows, but I imagine these are not common usages for this system. As the owner of an Apple TV, DVD player, VCR, and AV receiver with AM and FM tuner, was this all necessary? Did turning the Mac mini into a media center enhance my multimedia life in significant ways? Tune it to find out.This article, by and large, is for Mac owners, as it describes the Apple infra-red (IR) remote control system that’s been used on and off in Apple machines for about 7 or 8 years. In our final installment, I wrap up with a look at the big picture. All without me having to move my keister an inch off the couch. My Mac mini now plays and rips DVDs, plays and records television programs, plays all the media on my network of Macs, streams videos and audio from across the globe, and flashes my pictures across my HDTV. Two-Fisted Control: With an iPhone or iPod touch and universal remote control, you’ve got all your Mac and AV bases covered. If your TV table is littered with remote controls, you owe it to yourself to get a Logitech Harmony remote. It’s relatively easy to program and update, handles every bit of gear I own, doesn’t require batteries (it has a rechargeable battery and charging station), and makes sense to my family. For that, I returned to the Logitech Harmony 880 Advanced Universal Remote. (Not surprising, given that the iPhone and iPod touch lack IR, the invisible light that most AV components are controlled by.) Much as I desire a complete Apple solution for controlling everything-Mac mini, TV, and AV receiver-it’s just not in the cards. There are plenty of VNC applications for the iPhone and iPod touch too, including Jugaari’s $25įull of applications though the App Store may be, and capable as the iPhone and iPod touch are, there’s no good universal remote application for the iPhone. These VNC applications allow you to see the mini’s screen on your Mac as well as control the mini’s functions remotely, just as if you were sitting down at that Mac. Similar to Air Mouse Pro, you need to install a free server application (calledīeyond Apple’s Remote: RowMote provides functionality similar to Apple’s hardware Remote Control, but works with far more applications.Īnd, while not exactly family-friendly, you’re welcome to remotely control the mini from the couch, another part of your home, or across the Internet with a Mac and Leopard’s screen sharing feature, Back to My Mac, or a VNC application such as Patrick Stein’s free Unlike with Apple’s remote, however, you can pick applications to control. It mimics Apple’s remote with its four direct buttons, central Play/Pause button, and Menu button. Rowmote: Remote Control for Mac can both launch and control Boxee and a host of other Mac applications including Front Row, DVD Player, iTunes, iPhoto, Keynote, PowerPoint, QuickTime, Plex, and VLC. Regrettably, the Boxee Remote application won’t launch the You can also control Boxee with a Gesture control-a large Boxee icon that you drag around the iPhone’s screen to highlight and activate objects in the Boxee interface. The arrow pad corresponds to the Mac keyboard’s four arrow keys, the OK button equals the Mac’s Return key, and the Back button is the Mac’s Escape key. The first is a four-way arrow pad with a central OK button and a Back button. This app doesn’t support networked iTunes libraries.)īoxee Remote application for iPhone and iPod touch. (You can’t, however, play the contents of these libraries through the mini’s speaker connection using the Remote application. And, if you have other Macs in the house, you can control their iTunes libraries as well. Just pair the iPhone or iPod touch with the mini’s copy of iTunes, and you can control playback of audiobooks, music, music videos, TV shows, movies, and podcasts. Remote ( ) application is a great way to play media stored in the mini’s iTunes library. IPhone and iPod touch applications (and the accompanying Mac-based server apps required by some of them) do. And Apple’s remote-cute as a button though it may be-can’t handle keyboard and mouse-like chores. While a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse would certainly get the job done, such input devices are on the bulky side. Logitech Harmony 880 Advanced Universal Remote to mimic the Apple remote’s functions, but some of today’s media applications require keyboard input and a measure of mousing. In the past I might have used Apple’s remote control or configured my $250
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