Philips Pronto Pro SBC RU970

A remote handset with mouth-watering features but an eye-watering price.

These days almost every element of your home entertainment set up can be controlled remotely, and that's just dandy. However, there's a downside to such laziness. Stationed in every living room in the land is a garrison of remote control handsets, one for each device that needs zapping.

That's why Philips has come up with the Pronto Pro. It's a remote control handset that can do the job of dozens of others, removing the usual need for juggling skills. All-in-one remotes like this are not a new idea but the Pronto Pro is the first to feature a touch-sensitive colour screen and PC connectivity.

The Pronto Pro isn't quite a brick of a handset but its bulk means the device sits a little uncomfortably in the hand, like a large Pocket PC.

However, we can forgive it that because of the clever way the unit powers up: rather than forcing you to fumble for a power button, the Pronto bursts into life as soon as you angle the display towards you.

As it lights up, the bright colour screen displays icons naming common home entertainment devices, like TV and VCR. Tap one of these and the display flips to controls pertinent to the chosen gadget: at a basic level, that's really all there is to it.

However, before you get to that stage, you may need to teach the Pronto Pro a lesson or two. The handset is able to emulate the actions of some 549 different controller brands and can learn the operations of the few it isn't familiar with by trial and error.

When not in use, the unit can be slid into a recharging bay, which also doubles as a docking station. Connect the Pronto Pro to a PC, install the supplied software and you can then customise the look and feel of the interface to the nth degree. It's even possible to create lengthy macros, allowing you to issue a pre-set series of commands with a single touch.

It would be fantastic. However, Philips is pitching the Pronto Pro at the kind of customer who demands the best of everything, the kind of customer prepared to pay £750 to flip channels. Call us tight, but our television would have to be on the moon before we'd spend that much on a remote control.

Contact: Philips 020 8665 6350 www.philips.com

Also consider: Marantz RC5000I.
Customisable, friendly and powerful learning remote control.
£330 - Worth it. Computeractive Issue 72.