The first thing I noticed about the 3.5-inch portrait-oriented touchscreen is its sharpness and color resolution, which is better than I’ve seen before on a handheld. One shouldn’t have to squint (or pull out reading glasses) to operate an LCD remote, but even fine point, single pixel width type is clearly visible on the T3’s screen. The screen’s color depth is also better than I’m used to seeing, and even tiny logos embedded within button icons for sources such as DirecTV and XM satellite radio are faithfully reproduced and easily recognizable despite their diminutive image size.

The T3’s screen layout, button sizes, and other visual characteristics can be customized to any look the user prefers. The remote itself is shipped “bare,” and the programming software (available only to dealers) includes a variety of colorful predesigned desktop templates and a plethora of button icons in various shapes, sizes, colors, and shadings for equipment functions, touchpad layouts, and cursor/menu keypads. It also offers logo-accurate buttons for literally hundreds of TV, cable, and basic and premium satellite channels—including digital radio and HDTV.

Dedicated hard keys feature a comfy, rubberized texture with easy-to-see amber backlighting that activates (with the screen) when you pick up the remote. This makes common tasks such as changing channels easy.

The programmer’s PDF manual is 100 plus pages, but as I’m a masochist, I ignored it from the outset and instead launched the program to see how far I could get before I had to “RTFM.”  Within an hour or two of fiddling around, I’d gotten the T3 configured to operate my entire home theater system. I didn’t bother to create new icons or desktop graphics as the programming software provides all the custom button icons that one needs for a setup like mine, and I was happy with the seven supplied desktop styles. Even button click sounds can be customized via imported WAV files, if one wants to go that far.

The software has extensive help capability and a macro programming wizard. For gearheads, the program displays the actual IR waveform, the carrier frequency, and even the hexadecimal control code, which allows you to make precise modifications to IR codes, if you’re into that sort of thing.

I saw no evidence of corner-cutting in the software design or the remote itself. The latter is equipped with lithium-ion batteries, as opposed to the usual (and shorter-living) NiCad or NiMH types. The specs call out a 30-foot IR range, but that’s a conservative figure, as I was able to control my A/V equipment from 36 feet away and out of line of sight, bouncing the IR signal off a nearby wall.

The list of ancillary devices RTI offers is extensive. For example, there’s a USB IR code reader for installers to quickly capture remote IR codes for a new piece of equipment that appears on the market, instead of waiting for RTI’s online IR library to be updated. The T3 itself cannot learn IR codes from other remotes. Additional items include IR-wired transcoders, RF adapter/ transmitters, and other interface adapters that allow the remote to control lighting, home security, and HVAC systems, just like the big boy touchscreen remote control systems do.

This is one impressive remote control package. RTI emphasizes that the T3 is only available via dealers and installers who do the setup and programming, usually at additional charge. Although it isn’t an over-the-counter retail item, I’d be willing to bet that an ambitious do-it-yourselfer could probably walk into a sympathetic RTI dealer and walk out the door with the remote. Given that I had the T3 programmed for my A/V system in a couple of hours with no formal RTI installer training, I can easily recommend it for those willing to go it alone. For users with more sophisticated system control demands, such as hidden A/V racks and control of ancillary systems such as A/C, lighting, and screen control setups, I suggest standing aside and letting the dealer do the full installation and programming. Either way, the T3 Universal System Controller seems more than capable to handle any task.