Is there a reason why PCs don't come with remote controls by now?

[Triggeravus]

I have a gaming PC hooked up to an OLED.  It sits beside the TV and I shut it down after use to save power/components.  When I go to game I have to actually walk over to it and press the power button.

 

That process feels so outdated at this point.  I'd like to be able to lay in bed and turn it on with a remote, or at least have it turn on automatically when HDMI 1 is selected like a console.

 

I know this sounds lazy but that's why remote controls were created.

[Middcore]

There have been apps that allow you to control your PC using your phone for years. 

 

Beyond that, the number of people who use PC's in the fashion you're describing is marginal, and the range of functions a PC is capable of much broader than what a TV-style remote control can handle, so such a thing has never caught on. 

[Triggeravus]

6 minutes ago, Middcore said:

There have been apps that allow you to control your PC using your phone for years. 

Will they turn it on when it's powered down? 

[WalkerOfTheDay]

Yes. You can by using wake-on-lan, if it's connected wired at least. Don't know if it would work over WiFi.

There are quite some guides online about it.

 

I even use it over a OpenVpn server connection on my RPI so I can turn on my PC remotely from anywhere in the world.

 

[wONKEyeYEs]

6 minutes ago, Triggeravus said:

I have to actually walk over to it and press the power button.

This was $25 when I bought it...

https://www.amazon.ca/SilverStone-Technology-Wireless-Computer-ES02-USB/dp/B0859PKPKT/ref=sr_1_148?crid=2W3IID6KK3ANN&dchild=1&keywords=pc+remote&qid=1620406161&sprefix=pc+re%2Caps%2C160&sr=8-148

 

Another...

https://www.amazon.ca/Silverstone-Wireless-Function-Feedback-ES02-PCIE/dp/B075ZMPKW6/ref=sr_1_6?crid=2W3IID6KK3ANN&dchild=1&keywords=pc+remote&qid=1620406069&sprefix=pc+re%2Caps%2C160&sr=8-6

 

Or hardwired...

https://www.amazon.ca/Uxcell-a13112600ux0340-Computer-Supply-Button/dp/B00HG7HO22/ref=sr_1_83?crid=2W3IID6KK3ANN&dchild=1&keywords=pc+remote&qid=1620406093&sprefix=pc+re%2Caps%2C160&sr=8-83

[Latvian Video]

10 minutes ago, Triggeravus said:

I have a gaming PC hooked up to an OLED.  It sits beside the TV and I shut it down after use to save power/components.  When I go to game I have to actually walk over to it and press the power button.

 

That process feels so outdated at this point.  I'd like to be able to lay in bed and turn it on with a remote, or at least have it turn on automatically when HDMI 1 is selected like a console.

 

I know this sounds lazy but that's why remote controls were created.

I think you can turn on a pc with Wake On Lan, I don't know how to do it exactly, but it is possible

[CT854]

27 minutes ago, Middcore said:

There have been apps that allow you to control your PC using your phone for years. 

Good lord. I wandered into this thread out of curiosity about why manufacturers are skimping out on a remote control of all things and this realization made the fact that I haven't had a new TV in about 12 years painfully obvious. Oh what technology can do...

[CerealExperimentsLain]

31 minutes ago, wONKEyeYEs said:

This was $25 when I bought it...

https://www.amazon.ca/SilverStone-Technology-Wireless-Computer-ES02-USB/dp/B0859PKPKT/ref=sr_1_148?crid=2W3IID6KK3ANN&dchild=1&keywords=pc+remote&qid=1620406161&sprefix=pc+re%2Caps%2C160&sr=8-148

 

Another...

https://www.amazon.ca/Silverstone-Wireless-Function-Feedback-ES02-PCIE/dp/B075ZMPKW6/ref=sr_1_6?crid=2W3IID6KK3ANN&dchild=1&keywords=pc+remote&qid=1620406069&sprefix=pc+re%2Caps%2C160&sr=8-6

 

Or hardwired...

https://www.amazon.ca/Uxcell-a13112600ux0340-Computer-Supply-Button/dp/B00HG7HO22/ref=sr_1_83?crid=2W3IID6KK3ANN&dchild=1&keywords=pc+remote&qid=1620406093&sprefix=pc+re%2Caps%2C160&sr=8-83

It's a shame that these IR units are not programmable.  So instead of using the specific remote it came with you couldn't flash it an IR signal from any remote and have it learn that that will be the specific signal it will use to trigger soft shut down or reset.

[CerealExperimentsLain]

10 minutes ago, CT854 said:

Good lord. I wandered into this thread out of curiosity about why manufacturers are skimping out on a remote control of all things and this realization made the fact that I haven't had a new TV in about 12 years painfully obvious. Oh what technology can do...

Well, those apps only do requests for shut down restart from a software perspective, so if the OS is hung for some reason, they won't respond.  The Silverstone ones are wired into your mobo's PWR pins, so you can hold the power button for 4 seconds and force a shut down from the motherboard, even if your OS is locked up, just as if you had held the button on your case after the OS crashed terribly.  Oh and powering ON is harder without those pins.  Depends on the mobo but a lot of mobos won't 'Soft On' from just any USB device, at least not from S5 or S4.

[da na]

Simply because they aren't needed. Yes for some users, but companies would lose money including a remote with every PC.

[LogicalDrm]

The technology has been available for year on years. But there are still very niche markets for those who use PC with their home entertainment systems. Most PCs and laptops are meant for other things. And those TVs coming out are more capable to handle stuff that PCs for TVs were used. Gaming maybe not one of them, but then again, if you want to use your PC for that, there are options to do it. Power of being a PC user.

[whm1974]

4 minutes ago, LogicalDrm said:

The technology has been available for year on years. But there are still very niche markets for those who use PC with their home entertainment systems. Most PCs and laptops are meant for other things. And those TVs coming out are more capable to handle stuff that PCs for TVs were used. Gaming maybe not one of them, but then again, if you want to use your PC for that, there are options to do it. Power of being a PC user.

I wonder if Valve can adapt that Gaming Streaming Box that they had for this purpose. Include a Remote Control with it that can also control a TV a well.

[Middcore]

18 minutes ago, whm1974 said:

I wonder if Valve can adapt that Gaming Streaming Box that they had for this purpose. Include a Remote Control with it that can also control a TV a well.

 

Valve discontinued the Steam Link a couple years ago and seems to have no plans to make a follow up. I think they are out of the hardware business aside from the Index. 

[whm1974]

6 minutes ago, Middcore said:

 

Valve discontinued the Steam Link a couple years ago and seems to have no plans to make a follow up. I think they are out of the hardware business aside from the Index. 

To bad they discontinue their Steam Controller. I wonder if the only People who purchased them were all Linux Gamers?

[Triggeravus]

1 hour ago, wat3rmelon_man2 said:

Simply because they aren't needed. Yes for some users, but companies would lose money including a remote with every PC.

Not if they charge a few bucks extra for the feature. When you're paying $1000+ for an item, $20 or so more wouldn't be noticeable.  It doesn't have to be anything fancy.

 

Gaming PCs using TVs as a monitor are becoming more mainstream as TV manufacturers are gearing them towards the hobby.  

[Kid.Lazer]

Nowadays, S3 sleep uses only marginally more power than S4/S5, if any. As such, convoluted Mobo pin crossing or Wake-On-LAN setups shouldn't be necessary. Just put your PC to sleep, then wake it up with a keyboard or mouse click. Or if you really want an honest-to-goodness remote, get a old media center IR remote on ebay.