Mad Men fans might have noticed that in the last season or two, the television remote control has made an appearance on the show. The series began in 1960. But the current season takes place in the late '60s, and that’s when TV remotes were becoming standard. (In fact, they had been around since the '50s, but hardly anyone had one.) The show is notorious for historical accuracy. And it’s funny that these “clickers” actually make a clicking sound when characters change the channel.



Those early remotes did very little. They turned the TV on and off, changed the channel and adjusted the volume. Those were the days. Now TV remotes have to do a lot more, because entertainment systems are more complex. They have to control hundreds of channels, as well as cable boxes, smart-TV boxes, Internet connections, DVRs and more.



Consumers tend to have a lot of ambivalence about remotes. They’re a major convenience. But they’re also overly complex. Every major component of the TV system comes with its own remote. And there are just too many buttons. Plus, remote controls are known to vanish inexplicably and are the source of countless domestic power struggles. Whoever has the remote has the power.



The good news is that new universal remote options have come on the market recently that really are easier to use, and that also extend control to nonentertainment appliances, such as lights.



Let’s take a look at three totally different alternatives. Click!