I was surprised to be picked to share a user-review for the Yamaha NeoHD. I had no idea what NeoHD was, and just thought that it was one of those average things that just makes an entertainment system look good. For a hefty price of US$500-US$800 I said “this has got to be a joke” because there are universal remote controls for under US$20 at RadioShack, Walmart and even Walgreens. I soon found out that it wasn’t just a remote, not even a super-remote, but a high tech entertainment system that doesn’t only look good but ACTUALLY MAKES my entertainment system work a whole lot better! And silly me to think that Yamaha will join the average tech product line. Silly silly me.

Four days after being picked, the UPS van parks in front of our home, the NeoHD delivery. Thinking it was just a small package I motioned the UPS guy to come in. He says “no… I need to get my dolly, you’re getting a box.”

The Yamaha NeoHD comes as an entire system which includes the neoHD (YMC-500), and the neoHD System 2.1 (YMC-S21), a complete surround sound and system control solution that matches the YMC-500 Media Controller with two high-quality speakers and a subwoofer. You read it right…. it’s not JUST A REMOTE. It’s a system console, a media controller and a speaker set! Un-boxing it was a glee, setting it up was really, really easy: connect the neoHD to the TV and connect all my devices to the neoHD… done. There’s a great video introduction and set-up tutorial right here. And the package comes with a comprehensive easy-to-use manual too.

Powering up the neoHD automatically turns the TV on. I was presented then with 3 convenient menu options of “Watch”, “Listen”, or “Play”. Oh my, even my 11-year old would easily use this. Hitting any of these 3 options allowed me to be more specific with my choice (such as Watch Movie, Watch LiveTV, Listen CD, etc) at which time icons for the appropriate video, audio or video game components (such as Blu-ray players, CD players, cable boxes, iPods, game consoles, etc.) will appear. Selecting the component choice powers it up and is fully operational via the NeohD remote and on-screen interface. Yes, your TV becomes your menu screen. No need to use separate remotes (keep them in your drawers), no hassle in setting up the remote with codes too, because it does it all automatically as most component remote control codes are embedded for immediate compatibility and control. NeoHD controls them all.

I’m an iPod fanatic, when I buy a movie DVD I watch it on my iPod. Sometimes I connect my iPod directly to the TV and watch it there too (a little troublesome though as I have no way of remote controlling my iPod if I want to stop, rewind, fast forward to a scene). NeoHD allowed me to do that, which I thought was really convenient for me.

My daughter loves her Wii, dad though hates to be called to set it up for her. :) With the NeoHD, I think my 11-year old will quickly navigate thru the on-screen menu to play her Wii… while dad in delight goes “weeeee”.

I love the sound, for a 2.1 system the Air Surround Xtreme System is probably one of the best I’ve experienced. While there is a NeoHD model for a 5.1 audio system setup, for my basement entertainment area the 2.1 audio system setup is exactly what I need.

Over-all impression… an excellent product!

You can get the chance to win your own Yamaha NeoHD. There’s a great contest running, just visit this website for the contest rules. Getting the chance to win starts by leaving a comment regarding this post saying why you desperately need a Yamaha NeoHD. Easy eh? You can also enter the contest by tweeting “I just entered to a win a #neoHD b/c I have too many remotes, visit this link for more details!”.

Product link: Yamaha neoHD
Participate to the free give-away competiton: official sweepstake rules.