Worst remote nomination...

1) Original Music Hall CD-25 CD Player. Remote worked fine, but talk about FUGLY.

2) My current Pioneer DV-C503 5-DVD Carousel -- once or twice reviewed as one of the best DVD changers at the price. Fine player for the price (< $300), but the remote is something else. Skipping right to the point, there's no "Disc Skip" button, and it's a freaking carousel. Second, the remote would be small even for a pixie, and the layout is unnatural. No backlight or glo either (can't shoot the moon for under $300, but if ever a remote needed one, THIS ONE DOES!) Put it this way - I have to use the backlight feature of my B&K Ref. 30 in the dark to try to illuminate the strange keypad of this beast to attempt to operate it* and even when I succeed, it's always a rocky ride. This player has given me reliable service, but the controls are still foreign.

*(ps - any other remote I've ever owned, I could operate
in the dark)

The few remote controls I own are alright, what really bugs me are the miniscule buttons and tiny lettering on my Sony ES 9000 SACD player.

I hate it when I press the wrong button causing the CD or movie to stop when I only wanted to jump to the next song or pause play.

MBL's top transport. This transport runs like $17k or so, and the remote is so horrible ergonomically that it is sad... Great transport though!

Cary 306/200 CDP. This remote tries to do way WAY too much. It also has a very narrow angle that it works at.

Most Pioneer remotes... They tend to be as ergonomic as a lefty using regular scissors. Sony remotes at least have some sort of consistancy from with replacement models (I am on my 3rd Sony DVD player, and the remotes of each generation have been almost identical).

Any remote that has more functions on it than can be done by the front panel of the component it goes to. If you cannot do it on the component, you should not be able to do it with the remote. You end up breaking or loosing the remote and you are screwed.

KF

Yes, I have 1. The remote that came with my Directv!
It`s the universal model (HA, IF you can call it that)!
It works 6 units, BUT the 6th one is a dvd player button,
and YOUR dvd player HAS to be a RCA, or PROSCAN,
OTHERWISE, IT WON`T CONTROL YOUR DVD PLAYER.
Second, when you use the VCR1 and VCR2 buttons,
the antenna button works the VIDEO/TV on your vcr,
BUT when you use the TV button, the antenna button WON`T switch to TV, Video1, Video2 on MY TV. What good is a UNIVERSAL REMOTE, IF it doesn`t work as well as
your other remotes! I STILL have to use 2 remotes!
One JUST to turn on my tv to Video1, then the directv remote, to turn on my 2 vcr`s and directv unit.
BUT HEY, GUESS WHAT: IF I WANT TO WATCH A DVD, I HAVE
TO USE MY SONY REMOTE! AND IF I WANT TO WATCH A
LASERDISC, I HAVE TO USE MY PIONEER REMOTE.
OH, AND BY THE WAY: IF I WANT TO WATCH A VHS VIDEO,
I HAVE TO USE MY JVC REMOTE, BECAUSE directv
DIDN`T INCLUDE TRACKING OR EJECT BUTTONS ON THEIR
(UNIVERSAL REMOTE)!

Albertporter: Have you noticed that some chimp at Sony decided to make you push the button TWICE to actuate the function??? This bugs the bejeezus out of me (Japanese mind games?)...