Digital Trends

Diamond Multimedia XtremeTV PVR600

July 14th, 2005 | by Brandon King

Snapstream FireFly Remote Control

The next component is the Snapstream Firefly remote.  The receiver plugs into a third USB port.  At this point, we were asking ourselves why they didn't just tie all the USB components into one box with an internal micro hub.  As mentioned earlier, we were not able to install the Firefly remote on a PC with ATI's Remote Wonder software, even though the Beyond TV software supports the ATI remote as well.  So choose one remote and stick with it.

The remote itself is ergonomic and comfortable to hold.  The thin plastic feels a little flimsy and did not give us the impression that it could take more than a few drops.  The remote has buttons for all the standard universal commands, such as numbers, DVD navigation, play control, and device selection.  In addition, there are PC-centric buttons for maximize, close, mouse clicks, and the 'Firefly" button.  The PC mouse can be operated via the remote, using the directional buttons and mouse click buttons.  Because the directional buttons are four separate buttons, navigation can be tiresome for anything but the simplest tasks.  The Firefly button is like a "Home" button, returning the user to the main menu of their media application, whether it be Snapstream's Beyond Media, Windows Media Center, or myHTPC.

One thing to note is that the Firefly remote is not a universal remote.  It will not control your stand-alone DVD player, cable box, etc.  With that in mind, it might be better to get a great learning remote and the Firefly, and teach the high end remote the missing PC commands.  This not only makes things easier by allowing one remote for your home theater and PC, but it avoids any confusion in volume levels.  With the PC system volume hidden in submenus, the volume control with the Firefly can be annoying, and the remote's volume buttons control only the active applications volume.  In other words, pressing volume up will increase the volume in your DVD application, but your system volume may not be set high enough when the DVD application is set to maximum. 

Image Courtesy Diamond Multimedia

If you opt to take our advice using a single remote, set the media players' volumes to max.  Then, switch your receiver over to the most used input (probably cable/satellite box) and adjust the volume to a comfortable level.  Switch back over to the PC and adjust the system volume to the same comfortable level.  Finally, tie the home theater remote's volume buttons to operate the receiver's volume for all devices.  This is sometimes called locking the volume to an input.  Now you can disregard the PC's volume entirely!