Every Monday, Paula Light, with her The Monday Peeve prompt, gives us an opportunity to vent or rant about something that pisses us off. What pisses me off today is the fact that I have four TV remote control devices sitting on my coffee table in my living room. Four!
Back in the day, all anyone really needed was one TV remote control. A single device to turn the TV on and off, to change channels, and to adjust the volume. Easy peasy.
Things are different today. Take a look at the picture above. The remote on the left is for the TV itself and I use it to change the signal source from the satellite dish to the streaming channels. I also use it to connect to the Bluetooth headphones I wear when watching TV.
Next to that is the remote control for Dish, the satellite service we use. Other than when we’re streaming, we use Dish for watching live TV and for programs we recorded on our DVR. Then there’s our Roku remote control for when we’re watching streaming channels like Netflix, Hulu, Prime, Apple TV, and Discovery Plus.
The device on the right is for Flex, the streaming service from Comcast, although truth be told, we rarely use that device.
There is a silver lining, though, to this whole remote control overload situation. My wife and I used to fight over control of the remote control, but now she has ceded control of the remote controls to me. I feel like the all powerful Oz!
I am just curious about how much you are paying for all of your TV services each month and if that is none of my business, then you can just delete my comment.
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Dish: $95/mo
Apple TV: one year free when I bought my iPhone 12 last November
Hulu: $11.99/mo
Prime: free with Amazon Prime membership
HBO Max: $14/mo
Discovery+: $6.99/mo
Netflix: $11.99/mo
Peacock+: Free with Xfinity’s internet service
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That sounds reasonable. My nephew has a two year old and he spends $250 a month on his cable TV bill so his kid can have the Disney Channel, Cartoon network, the WB and some others, which I think is way too much.
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I am with your wife. That’s too many to keep track of.
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Now I feel better because I have only THREE! Yeah, there should be a way to have them all in one…
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Garry will NEVER give up control of the remotes. Unless something isn’t working. Then, suddenly, it’s all mine. Funny how that works.
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With great control comes great responsibility
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Ha!
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The silver lining… 😒😏🥴
I have four remotes, as well, but… they aren’t all needed. Actually, I still own a Roku remote (and box which has been set aside); so five. I don’t use the Roku at all. (In a different room, I’ve had a Chromecast and switch installed — that room has two controllers [one standard Samsung and one specific to the Chromecast; I’ll call this six remotes… sort of]. The reason I put the Chromecast in there, for my mother to use YouTube on something other than a phone, is something I can do with my Apple box on the main tv too.) I use appleTV. There is a Samsung remote that works if the main tv is on plain old cable tv; no pause or rewind or saving a show is available even though the remote has those buttons. That remote will also work for volume control no matter what. I don’t use said controller at all (unless simply for volume or mute if it’s the nearest to me in a particular moment). Now, the other three are almost versions of the same as each other. One is an app on my phone. I basically don’t use this unless my mother has walked off with the the main controller I do like to use. I don’t know why she owns the particular remote I like, but she can walk off with it since it’s hers (however, it doesn’t do volume, and she likes to walk off with her Samsung remote that dyes volume at the same time). Meanwhile, there is the remote that came with the appleTV box. It’s just fine and does handle volume control on top of everything else. I’ve hidden this one so that she won’t walk away with it while disregarding the fact that it’s not hers. I can use this for the Apple TV box or for switching away from the regular tv (the one I like that she walks away with is another that can switch away from the cable function to the Apple box function, not to mention an aspect I haven’t looked at really… straight television, if I’m not mistaken). I seldom have seen a value in the regular cable function; I can access streaming services as well as live tv through the Apple box avenue. And this is where I schedule recordings. So… I only need one remote. But the ordinary Samsung one is still used because my mother is familiar with the numbers of the local stations she wants to try, to see if there’s anything good on, and because it can do volume. Finally, her cable service is tuned to Saint Louis. My Apple box is aligned with a different city (and, too, doesn’t access channels via numbers).
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I don’t use AppleTV, for live tv and recording my favorite shows; I use YouTubeTV on an Apple box. That’s where I’m watching Carlson bat, right now.
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Sorry. I know you were pulling for the Cards. Tough loss.
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Yeah 😕. What a tight game that was, all the way to the end. I enjoyed some of the plays and pitching and so on. Thank you for the thought.
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You gotta problem. I’m even reeling with the names. Hula, Apple, Prime, HBO max, Discovery, Netflix, Peacock. …….
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Yeah, I watch too much TV.
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I gotta reverse problem. Too much blogging no TV. I’m doomed. Am I headed for an early grave?……
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Yeah, blogging will surely kill you! 😏
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Aargh!…….
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I’d find it was too confusing, luckily I don’t watch TV
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The Roku TV we have negates the use of the other remote. Actually, now that I think of it, why do we even have that remote handy? 😏
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Haha! Who wants to deal with so much remoteness? 🙂
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We have two, one for the TV, and one for Sky. Although if you don’t use them the TV will turn off. Generally my husbands panics when he can’t find the remote even though the other gadget will turn it back on as well.
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Lol! So many remotes! I have only 2! one of them for my regular tv, and one for my apple tv!
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I have three… and currently am not 100% certain where they all are. 🤔
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