Hi everyone

I'm a Brit coming over to NY, NY later this month and I'd like to pop into a store and buy a RC9800i. The only problem is that I can't find one on the web.

Plan B is to buy one through eBay and Paypal and have it shipped to my hotel, but I'd really rather not...

Thanks in advance for any help and advice offered.

This message was edited by pembers on 10/31/05 05:46 ET.

I think somewhere in these threads someone said the US one won't work over there. Something about the macros, do a search and check it out before buying!

Assuming you find out they work in the UK, you should be able to pick one up at J&R.

I know they did have them available online. (I purchased mine there)


[Link: jr.com]

Thanks, but J&R are so expensive...

How much you looking to spend? MSRP is $599

J&R is $449. Cheapest I saw on Ebay is $399 for a new unopened one. Can't really see you getting it much cheaper than that for a relatively new niche item.

The version you buy in the US will only have a US database of devices included. You could still use it, but you'd probably have to "learn" most of the codes on your remotes. The forthcoming European version will have a European device database.

$389 at Digital 1234 in New Jersey.

US and european equipment are not so different. Most of the devices are japanese anyway. I, for one, live in France, and I only had to learn codes for very specific equipment, such a cable box.
But my Sony, Harman Kardon, Kiss, pioneer, thomson, Xbox and of course Philips devices' codes worked fine the first try.
The TV guide is suited for european countries as well. The upnp system works perfectly wherever it is located (provided you use philips equipment right now :-()
I guess all the so called issues when using a US bought remote in Europe are only a matter of marketing and sales policy.

Dear All

Thanks for your replies. I'll pick one up from J&R and I'll let you know how I get on.

Background:
In the study:
Wanadoo 2Mbps broadband
Belkin pre-N MIMO
iTunes
Dell PC (cable to router)

In the kitchen:
Sony Vaio (wireless)
Apple Airport Express

In the lounge:
Toshiba Picture Frame TV
JVC S-VHS video
Toshiba DVD player
Sky+ (the best technology in the house!)
Soon to be RC9800i

Setting up the AE was a nightmare with my old D-Link 802.11b, the Belkin was great. Now I want to stream music to two rooms.

All I have to do now is convert 4,000 AACs to MP3. Lovely!

I'll let you all know how I get on. I've already registered for the UK EPG successfully.

Regards

This message was edited by pembers on 10/31/05 05:45 ET.

I think one of the issues here is the 'built in' macros that this thing has that are 'hardwired' a certain way.

Yes indeeed. The wiring in Europe is oftenly based on the "Peritel" cable, which is basically a multiwired cable that can carry any type of signal, from composite to Y/C to RVB, ans has added trigger functions (4/3 to 16/9).
But this is kind of a minor issue here. Mainly because it doesn't involve a lot of functions, and because you can easely bypass any trouble that might come from it.
Most of my devices do not use these no-so-useful european only things anyway.

This was driving me crazy so I finallly found the post that I was trying to remember. Here it is:
------------------------------------------------------------
Jerome, HIDEF,

The RC9800i is built with logic onboard to keep the status of the equipment. The US model does not contain the necessary logic to deal with products connected through a SCART cable in europe as it triggers input switching. Secondly the US model contains the code database for the US and not for Europe.

We are writting the software as we speak and the European RC9800i will be available in September.

Regards
The RC9800 Team

The SCART cable is what I called "peritel" in my last post.
I use the RC9800i I bought on ebay on a daily basis and everything works fine, despite the fact that I live in France and bought all my equipement here.
I really do not know what the european firmware will add, apart from french translation (hopefully) and a few more devices, such as cable boxes.
We are still waiting for the RC9800i to be sold in France, by the way. It should have been in september, but Philips shows no sign of any release anytime soon.

Sounds good, the RC9800 team made it sound like a very big deal at the time. Anyway, that's good news to users over there, they might also be able to save some money.

So I decided to hold on and wait...

...and the day that I got back from NYC this arrived in my inbox. Sod's law applies.

S


Recently you have asked us regarding a RC9800I/17 iBoard.

Yes the US version of this porduct will work in the UK as well. It might be that the extender needs a country adapter, but these should also be available there.


We hope we answered your question satisfactorily. Should you have further questions on this subject please refer to: XS0310050303

With kindest regards,

Frans van Triest
Philips Customer Care Centres

This message was edited by pembers on 10/31/05 05:45 ET.