Date: March 8th, 2004
Article by: Roger (Owner,
Head Editor & Hardware Reviewer)
Edited by: Nathan Glentworth
(Owner, Head Editor)
Product was donated by: ATI Technologies
<----Shop for ATI Videocards & Accessories Here
Founded in 1985, ATI Technologies Inc. is a world leader
in the design and manufacture of innovative visual processor solutions.
A pioneer, an innovator and a market leader in the graphics industry,
ATI provides cutting-edge visual processor technologies for the PC,
Macintosh, workstation and notebook markets plus consumer markets including
hand-held, set-top box and digital TVs.
ATI's revenues for the fiscal year ending August 31, 2002
were in excess of US $1 billion. ATI has over 1,900 full-time employees
supporting customers from its headquarters in Markham, Ontario, Canada,
as well as from offices in Barbados, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland,
Japan, Malaysia, The United Kingdom and The United States.
With the growing popularity of HTPCs (Home Theater Personal
Computer), many people are straying away from traditional VCRs and DVD
players, choosing instead to base their entertainment center around
their PC. You honestly do not need a state of the art system to accomplish
this either, although there are some particulars which you do have to
For me, one of the most important has always been the
remote. I know this may seem silly to some, but it certainly is not
to me. There is nothing more frustrating than having to get up to change
the channel or even to pause a DVD. Especially if your PC isn't in the
same room as your TV (perhaps separated by a wall, as mine is).
Intro the Remote Wonder II (RWII) from ATI. I have had
the pleasure of using the Remote Wonder I (RWI) which came with my ATI
All-IN-Wonder 9700Pro for some time, and I have fallen in love with
it. When the chance came to review the RWII, I jumped on it. The original
RWI was introduced with the All-In-Wonder 8500DV, several years ago.
It served its purpose well, and I've no doubt the RWII will also. The
remote operates on radio frequency instead of an infrared signal, which
means that you do not need a line of sight to use it. The RWII has a
new range as well, which means you can actually use it up to 60 feet
away from the base (as opposed to the RWI's range of 25 feet).
The remote isn't just for couch potatoes, however. PowerPoint
users will find it quite useful when they are presenting their slideshows.