These days homes are filled with various electronic entertainment units and each one require their own remote to operate them. Universal remotes enable you to control each entertainment unit with just one controller.

There are a wide variety of universal remote controls, ranging in price and functions. At the low end, the remotes will control only the TV and some associated entertainment devices. At the higher end, there are LCD touchscreen models that are able to control a large range of electronic devices such as your PC, stereo and lights.

Usually, a remote will have codes inbuilt and the user will cycle through them to select the one corresponding to the device to be used.

Just about every universal remote includes preprogrammed codes for a broad range of manufacturers. In addition to preprogrammed codes, remotes with learning capabilities are able to copy the signals of your old remotes, thus "learning" the proper signal to send to your A/V gear.

However, someone -- or something -- has to tell it what brands of entertainment gear you have so it knows what codes to use.

Unfortunately, programing a universal remote can be challenging at time, especially if you are not born with the technical gene. However, remotes are becoming more and more user friendly, and the effort you put in to programing your remote will be worth it once it is completed.

If you chose manual programming then typically in the remote's instruction book is a list of codes for different manufacturers. You can get remotes where the programming can be done in your PC and downloaded to the remote. While using a universal remote programming solution can seem daunting at first, you'll find that it ultimately makes your use of electronic devices much easier, as well as future proof.

If you have some many remotes that you are frustrated every time when you pick up the wrong one or have it go missing, then a universal remote is sound idea. They also make fantastic gifts for those people who love their entertainment devices.