The Caavo universal remote control promises to be one of the "smartest" universal remotes available. It performs above most devices of its class, but it still has some issues that need to be ironed out for it to be the perfect television companion.
Caavo uses machine vision to detect all of one's viewing devices and operate them seamlessly. The universal remote is the ultimate convenience for a night of watching movies and TV shows, although it does take some effort to set up before first time use.
The Caavo's main unit is actually a rather large box wherein the user connects all their viewing devices via a variety of cables. The back panel has 8 high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) inputs and an HDMI output. There are also two universal serial bus (USB) ports, and infrared blaster, and an Ethernet outlet. The company recommends connecting online via Ethernet, but an option to connect via Wifi is still available.
For first time setup, the user has to unplug everything from their TV and then plug them in appropriate ports on the Caavo unit.
The Caavo should then be connected to the TV via output. Once the device goes up and running, the user will be prompted to create a Caavo account. This is where the machine will store all login data for Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, and other services the user is subscribed to. This is so that the remote can have access to controls for actions such as channel switching, building watchlists and schedules.
Initial tests with the Caavo are impressive. A review from The Verge reported that issuing commands like "Watch 'The Handmaid's Tale'" will spur the remote into appropriate actions. It first activates the device to watch the show on and then picks the right episode to play.
However, one notable con is that the universal remote does not support high-dynamic range of color (HDR). It does support 4K, but as most modern TVs support HDR nowadays, it is a shortcoming that will hopefully be addressed in future versions of the product.
