There are few homes in North America today that do not have a television set or home theater system. Watching television has become a North American past time for relaxation. In fact, it may be one of the top rated past times for Americans and Canadians alike. How many of you can remember the last time however when you had to get up from your couch to turn on your television, or even change the channels manually? Now if we tried to do that, we would mess up the settings and functions of our cable box, satellite dish, or home theater system. Very few if any people can get away with watching television without remote controls, and even the elderly are being forced to switch to this technology because few TV’s can be used without them. Today, the remote control can be used on a wide variety of machines and technologies, and they aren’t just restricted to your television set any more. Today, you can use remote controls on almost anything; some people even use them to start their cars in the morning! Air conditioners, TV systems, garage doors, and so many other devices can be started with the simple press of a button. But what was life like before we had remote controls?

Some people can remember a life without a VCR, DVD player, or even air conditioning. Many people grew up in a home with a black and white television that had to be adjusted manually. Today we don’t have to disrupt our couch potato lifestyle if we don’t want to so long as we have a remote control. But we haven’t used remote controls forever, so how did this new technology come into the market?

You or your parents may have owned a Zenith television at one point in your life, and Zenith is the company that brought the remote control for television to life. The earliest remote controls were much different than the ones that are used today. In 1950, the Zenith Radio Corporation developed a remote that would enable television watchers to watch television without having to get up from the couch. Wireless technology had yet to be invented though, and so this technology was cumbersome to say the least. The first remote control was connected by wires to the television set, and the remote would work electronically. Some people that frequently lose their remote controls and experience the associated anxiety with that would probably think today that going back to that technology isn’t the worst idea in the world!

It was five years later in 1955 when Zenith would perfect their wired remote to a wireless one. How this new remote control worked would be with a remote that would beam light onto a specialized cell on the television that would enable the channel changes or the power turned off or on. This first remote was not the most reliable either, as it frequently interfered with additional sources of light in the room and changing channels was anything but easy.

Today remote controls have advanced in a way that you can use them to turn on, well, anything.

Author Resource: – Mike Martin is an expert on electronics, and related topics. To learn more please visit www.ElectronicAdventure.us today.

This is the first wireless remote control ever, from Zenith in 1955,

the FLASH-MATIC remote control !

Please visit ElectronicAdventure.us for all your remote control needs !

You couldn’t possibly love a mother more that I love my mother. She is 82 years old and her name is Ruth, but everyone calls her Rudy. She lives with me, my wife Yvette, and our daughter Steff. My wife loves my mom more than her own parents and Steff and she are great friends.

Rudy doesn’t get out as much as she used to, and one of her favorite things is watching TV. Her favorite shows include COPS, America’s Funniest Video’s and of course MASH. I think I have seen every episode of MASH with her at least a billion times. My mother loves Alan Alda so much that she is convinced that he grew up near our house and that we are friends, I don’t remember that, but if it makes her feel good I always go along. Every year at the holidays I tell her I tried to get Alan Alda to come, but he was busy filming somewhere.

I love watching TV with Mom, but there is a tiny problem with that also. The problem is when the rest of us are at work or school, Rudy is in control of the TV and more importantly, the TV remote control.

This causes a problem because, let’s face it, the TV remote is not the easiest thing in the world to understand for most people. There are too many functions and too many buttons, and all of this can be very hard to operate. Add in that I bought a high tech remote control for hundreds of dollars, and that works everything I have including TV. VCR, DVD, and my Home Theater system.

Now I must admit that I know how to program and use the remote, but both Yvette and Steff sometimes have problems. But poor Rudy is a mess. I wish I had a nickel for every time my cell rang, and it was Rudy complaining the stupid TV remote was not working. I usually have to stop whatever I am doing and spend at least a half an hour trying to help her. Sometimes it works, and sometime Mom has to wait until I get home.

I have tried several of the Universal remote controls in the stores, but I find most lacking. Either they do not program for my TV, or the buttons are too small and there are still too many buttons in general.

I wish I could find a remote control that could be simple to program and use, and would have nice big buttons so my mother could see them and use them easier. But until I find such a remote control, I guess I will be getting my daily phone calls. Maybe I will at least be able to Get Alan Alda over the house this year!

Contributing Editor: C. Kikel