Nextgen IR Remote Repeater 100 ft Range Infrared Extender Kit, Radio Frequency IR Blaster Extends Control for Cable Box, Chromecast, Roku, Fire Stick

I just plugged this little guy in, so I can't comment on the battery life, but since it comes with a 2nd battery that stays charged in the base unit, I imagine it will not be an issue. But as far as first impressions:I hid my simple components (cable box and DVD) in a cabinet to the side of my fireplace after mounting a plasma over the fireplace. Problem was, I had to open the cabinet to watch TV because of the IR remotes. The guy who installed the TV (that is a whole other story...pick your AV guy carefully or better yet, do it yourself) tried to sell me a $300+ dollar, complex, RF remote system. While I'm sure that system is great for a true video nut, my need was simple: watch cable with the cabinet closed.Enter the Next Generation Extender. You charge the two batteries in the base for 36 hours, then put one of them in your remote. Next, place the "flying saucer" base where it can "see" your IR sensors, and plug it in. Works like a charm, and as simple as anything I've seen.The unit comes with a little eye you can tape to the IR sensor if you put the flying saucer behind the component, but I had enough room in my cabinet to set it right in front of the cable box and DVD player, so I didn't even need that part.I am amazed and thrilled with this little gem, especially after listening to all the head-spinning, complex, expensive solutions the AV guys tried to pitch me.UPDATE November 23, 2009: After almost 2 months, I've had to swap the battery one time. Pretty impressive. And since they are rechargeable and there is a spare, it takes about 30 seconds and I was back in business. This remains one of the most useful, simplest electronic products I've ever owned.UPDATE April 16, 2010: I still haven't had to swap the battery yet. It's been 5 months. And when I do, the newly charged one is just waiting. I am so impressed with this little product I put a 2nd one in my basement.YET ANOTHER UPDATE, August 9, 2010: DO NOT BUY TWO!! Okay, I still love this device, but you can't use two of them at the same time, even in different rooms. I have a TV in the basement pretty far from the one where the original unit was installed, and if both TV's are being used, the remotes change channels on both TV's at the same time. For example, I was watching a baseball game in the basement, and when my kids upstairs changed channels, it changed the channel on my TV too. The RF works too well....it goes through walls and everything else.UPDATE, February 11, 2011. The little guy still works great, can't believe how long the batteries last; but I've got a problem now. Someone else in my neighborhood must have one too, because every so often the TV just starts changing channels. I unplug the extender and it stops; so the device is clearly picking up a radio signal from something. Kind of frustrating, but it doesn't happen all the time, and for the money you can't beat it.UPDATE, April 21, 2011. So I guess you get what you pay for, because as much as I love the functionality of this little guy, every evening about the same time, my channels just start changing. It is therefore not working for me anymore, which is a bummer. They should have a way to use different channels like a cordless phone, but not sure infrared works that way. So alas, I can't say with confidence to buy one anymore, unless you live in a very isolated area where there is no chance someone else's remote will change your channels.UPDATE: They sent me a new one on a different channel. I'm back up and working great. They need to make one with the ability to change channels.

The family loves it. It works as promised.I started off thinking the reviews were unbelievable good, but there were enough good/excellent responses to convince me to buy it along with my new HT equipment. I bought it and left it on the shelf for a while since aiming the remote was not a nuisance for me. Well the complaints started when my wife started using the Harmony 700 remote and was frustrated with having to aim the remote to get remote to work. And when my kids left components on after not remembering to point the remote correctly to turn them off. The problem with aiming came in when we added the satellite receiver which was put on the lowest of the equipment shelf, behind the couch. There was no good option to move equipment or furniture around to fix it. Also, the lights controls were sensitive to the angle and where in another part of the room separate from the HT cabinet. I finally put in the work and added this remote extender to my system without a problem.When I added the extender, I was a little impatient in getting the batteries charged and the remote died. My advice is to fully charge them first and avoid problems with weak batteries. Luckily I had the fore site to consider the repeaters placement and the light path to each device, and I bought the 3 IR wire extender. With the light controller on the wall, I knew the stronger IR signal should come from the repeater which was placed on top of the HT equipment cabinet and in line of site the the light controller. However, it had no way to reach the components inside the cabinet without good reflection of the IR signal, therefore, it required the additional IR wires for each component. I attached each IR wire to each components IR port (though it was sometimes difficult to find the IR port on each component - which surprised me). Once it was hooked up, and the batteries were charged, I put the transmitter/battery into the remote, and started testing it. It worked with every device without a problem. I was amazed. It worked in every corer of my 14x19 room, and even when I blocked the IR on the remote. No complaints on the functionality, nor the setup.As for improvements to the device, none in the area of functionality, it is great and a great value. The weaknesses are in the area of style and procedure, which does not bother me, but may bother others. The device could look a little more professional. It looks like a throwback from the 60s with UFO shape, and FM hand held radio antenna. In my case, I can not hide it since it is needed to shine directly at the light controls. Procedurally, the battery charger within the repeater is a little of a nuisance with the wires connected to it, and could cause for failed connections. Luckily, the Next Generation company has released a USB charger for the batteries, which is a great idea to avoid this nuisance.So if you need an remote control extender, this is a amazing device that works as promised and of great value. When buying it, consider the number of IR ports you need. I suspect most people will not find the 1 IR extender wire included with the repeater sufficient, unless the IR base can shine direct, or reflect onto your components which mine could not. The optional USB Charger is also a great idea to buy and simplify the battery charging process.