Why does the 'quality' of infrared remote controls vary as much as it does?

Question

Infrared remotes have been around for a few decades now. Still: The variance in efficiency appears to be more than just enormous. While I for example have a few (one from 1994 that came with my not very expensive akai amplifier and one that belongs to my old xbox) that work very well even if no direct line of sight to the sensor exists there are others that don't do anything unless aimed at the sensor precisely. (From my Philips DVD Player for example)

You would think about 30 years would be enough to figure out how to do it right ... especially when some already did it right 15 years ago on low end products.

So is there a particular reason why some IR transmitters (or recievers?) are useless c**p after all that time?

Answer 1

Because we are Americans.

We buy the cheapest piece of c**p with a brand name we feel we can trust.

Electronics has always gotten cheaper. Can you imagine paying $1500 for a cd player or a video recorder?

Well people have done just that in the 70's.

Chinese and Korean imports have enabled electronics companies to build a cheaper product and lets face it , if quality is so important,where are the American built electronics?(or even the Japanese built electronics?)

Answer 2

Interesting question. There are a couple of issues here:

- Ambient light

Many rooms are too bright and are flooded with infra-red so it is hard for the devices to detect the signals from all the noise.

- "Invisible Equipment"

Way too many people want 'stealth' systems and enclose the box's in a rack, then close a door and wonder why their remotes dont work.

- "Power"

You CAN blast the room with IR - but at greatly reduced battery life.  They may have been reducing the light output to conserve battery life.

- "Add in vs third-party"

I have noticed the remote that came with my cable box is very sensitive to being pointed right at the box.  But my Logitech smart remote is not.  Buying a good remote from a company that specalized in remotes might make a difference.  My Dish remote - you can point 180 degrees away and it works. It uses both IR and RF.