Difference between revisions of "MX3 Air Mouse Remote"
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− | [[Image:Airmouseremote.jpg|300px|right|thumb]] | + | [[Image:Airmouseremote.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The original MX3 has no backlight but has more colorful keys and an F2 key.]] |
− | This | + | This is an excellent all-in-one [[USB]] [[HID]] that appears to Linux and MythTV as a keyboard and mouse. It has everything we need in a remote: navigation, media control, numeric keypad, mini QWERTY and even a mouse and 5 learning IR buttons! Many features work automatically but it may be necessary to tell MythTV about the multimedia keys as detailed below. |
− | As a bonus, the unit also has an Infra-red (IR) interface with a learning function which can emulate many proprietary remote controls for other appliances. Note that this is a computer peripheral, not a universal remote. The power button and the four colored buttons at the bottom are the only ones which can generate IR outputs. It | + | == Hardware Description == |
+ | |||
+ | This combination of a remote control, keyboard and pointing device is a product made in China and most often listed as an '''MX3''' model under various brands. [https://www.amazon.com/s?k=MX3+Air+Mouse+Remote Amazon] and [https://www.newegg.com/p/pl?d=MX3+air+mouse+remote NewEgg] are common sources. It can be recognized by its rectangular shape, the large, round “OK” button and the row of four colored buttons at the bottom of the numeric pad. It sells in the $12 to $20 range. It is a hand held device which has a good set of remote control buttons on one side and a small QWERTY keyboard on the other side. It also incorporates a gyro mouse which allows the mouse cursor to be moved by waving the unit around. It connects to the computer by a microwave (2.4 GHz) radio link to a tiny receiver which plugs directly into a USB port and sticks out only about 1/2”. It does not have to be pointed at the receiver and the signal should go through non-metallic barriers at least up to a point. The range is about 30 feet/10 meters. The Linux kernel recognizes it as a keyboard and a mouse when the receiver is connected and no system configuration or extra software is required. The keyboard and pointer work immediately but MythTV will need to be configured to use most of the remote keys, see below. | ||
+ | |||
+ | As a bonus, the unit also has an Infra-red (IR) interface with a learning function which can emulate many proprietary remote controls for other appliances. Note that this is a computer peripheral, not a universal remote. The power button and the four colored buttons at the bottom are the only ones which can generate IR outputs. It is possible to turn a TV set or sound system on and off and control a few functions such as volume levels with these buttons. It can learn from remotes that use the NEC protocol. The “TV” button is used to program this function. | ||
If the unit is held with the remote side up, the keyboard shuts off to prevent buttons from being pressed accidentally. If the keyboard side is upwards, the mouse function shuts off so that the cursor position is not affected by moving the unit around while using it as a keyboard. | If the unit is held with the remote side up, the keyboard shuts off to prevent buttons from being pressed accidentally. If the keyboard side is upwards, the mouse function shuts off so that the cursor position is not affected by moving the unit around while using it as a keyboard. | ||
− | The unit has a quirk in that it shuts down if a button is not pressed for a minute or so. This obviously saves the battery but it is necessary to press any key to get it started again. In practice, this means that a key is pressed and, if nothing happens, it is pressed again. On some units (probably older ones), the mouse function comes back on when it wakes up, even if it had been turned off earlier. This is annoying if the | + | The unit has a quirk in that it shuts down if a button is not pressed for a minute or so. This obviously saves the battery but it is necessary to press any key to get it started again. In practice, this means that a key is pressed and, if nothing happens, it is pressed again. On some units (probably older ones), the mouse function comes back on when it wakes up, even if it had been turned off earlier. This is annoying if button control is preferred. Pressing and holding the mouse control button for about 5 seconds (until the LED stops flashing rapidly) seems to fix this temporarily but it comes back on at some point. Buying from a fairly high-volume dealer such as Aerb may increase the chances of getting a current unit. There seems to be some ongoing development. |
+ | |||
+ | There is a new version which features a back-light but it has other minor refinements and it is nicer looking as well. It is worth paying a few dollars more for this unit. | ||
+ | |||
+ | There is a magic trick to opening the battery compartment which should be in the instructions. Hold the keyboard side up and put a thumbnail into the center of the gap in the case next to the "Enter" and "Backspace" keys. The cover will pop back slightly and can then be lifted up and off. To replace it, set it in just slightly back from its closed position and make sure it is all the way down on both sides. Push it towards the keyboard to engage the latch. | ||
+ | |||
+ | == Remote Key Layout == | ||
+ | |||
+ | The back side is a miniature 4 row QWERTY keyboard while the front side is a remote control of Key Names in this layout: | ||
+ | |||
+ | [[Image:MX3.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Backlight versions exist in white or RGB. The F2 key is replaced by the backlight toggle button.]] | ||
+ | |||
+ | {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" | ||
+ | |- style="color:#cb0000;" | ||
+ | | [Power] | ||
+ | | colspan="3" | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Media Rewind | ||
+ | | Media Fast Forward | ||
+ | | Media Previous | ||
+ | | Media Next | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Search / F3 | ||
+ | | Media Play | ||
+ | | ''zoom+'' | ||
+ | | ''zoom-'' | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Menu | ||
+ | | colspan="2" | Home Page | ||
+ | | Back<br />(3) | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | colspan="2" | Up | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Left | ||
+ | | colspan="2" | Return<br />(1) | ||
+ | | Right | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | colspan="2" | Down | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Volume Up | ||
+ | | colspan="2" | | ||
+ | | PgUp | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Volume Down | ||
+ | | Mute | ||
+ | | (mouse) | ||
+ | | PgDown | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | 1 | ||
+ | | 2 | ||
+ | | 3 | ||
+ | | Tools | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | 4 | ||
+ | | 5 | ||
+ | | 6 | ||
+ | | Launch Mail | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | 7 | ||
+ | | 8 | ||
+ | | 9 | ||
+ | | F2 / light | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | style="color:#cb0000;" | [TV] | ||
+ | | 0 | ||
+ | | Backspace | ||
+ | | WWW / Mic | ||
+ | |- style="color:#cb0000;" | ||
+ | | [red] | ||
+ | | [green] | ||
+ | | [yellow] | ||
+ | | [blue] | ||
+ | |} | ||
+ | |||
+ | The keys in red [brackets] are programmable Infrared except for [TV] which is used to program the 5 others from an IR remote. These keys can be used for powering on the TV or a sound bar or adjusting its volume. Per the manual, only the NEC protocol is supported. | ||
+ | |||
+ | The (mouse) button toggles the air mouse. When on, the center "Return" button becomes mouse button(1) while "Back" becomes mouse button(3). | ||
− | + | The ''zoom'' buttons are not available to Linux by default. F2 is a light toggle on the backlight models. WWW is a speak button on the microphone models, probably not useful to MythTV. The rest of the keys are available to MythTV with the names given in the table. | |
− | == | + | == Edit Keys == |
− | + | All keys not listed below should already work as they are also found on all standard keyboards. As MythTV predates the newer Media keys, these may not work by default. With some patience we can bind all available keys to work well as in the table shown here. | |
− | + | In MythTV's Setup menu select "Edit Keys". Use the arrow keys to navigate to a "Context" column and "ACTION" below. Then right arrow to an unused key binding slot (to preserve all current keys) and hit Enter. Then hit the remote key from column 1 and Enter to save it or Escape to cancel. Move left to return to the ACTION/context and work on more entries from the grid. Upon Escaping out, be sure to save the changes! | |
− | + | {| class="wikitable" | |
+ | |- | ||
+ | ! Remote Key | ||
+ | ! act<br />like | ||
+ | ! Global | ||
+ | ! TV Frontend | ||
+ | ! TV Playback | ||
+ | ! Music | ||
+ | ! Gallery /<br />Images | ||
+ | ! Browser | ||
+ | ! Video | ||
+ | ! Main Menu | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Media Rewind | ||
+ | | < | ||
+ | | PREVIOUS | ||
+ | | PAGELEFT | ||
+ | | RWNDSTICKY | ||
+ | | RWND | ||
+ | | ZOOMOUT | ||
+ | | ZOOMOUT | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Media Fast Forward | ||
+ | | > | ||
+ | | NEXT | ||
+ | | PAGERIGHT | ||
+ | | FFWDSTICKY | ||
+ | | FFWD | ||
+ | | ZOOMIN | ||
+ | | ZOOMIN | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Media Previous | ||
+ | | Home | ||
+ | | PREVVIEW | ||
+ | | DAYLEFT | ||
+ | | SKIPCOMMBACK | ||
+ | | PREVTRACK | ||
+ | | HOME | ||
+ | | PREVIOUSLINK | ||
+ | | HOME | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Media Next | ||
+ | | End | ||
+ | | NEXTVIEW | ||
+ | | DAYRIGHT | ||
+ | | SKIPCOMMERCIAL | ||
+ | | NEXTTRACK | ||
+ | | END | ||
+ | | NEXTLINK | ||
+ | | END | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Search / F3 | ||
+ | | Ctrl+S | ||
+ | | SEARCH | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Media Play | ||
+ | | P | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | PLAYBACK | ||
+ | | PAUSE | ||
+ | | PAUSE | ||
+ | | PLAY | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Menu | ||
+ | | M | ||
+ | | MENU | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Home Page | ||
+ | | I | ||
+ | | INFO | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Back | ||
+ | | Esc | ||
+ | | ESCAPE | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | EXITPROMPT | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Tools | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | SCREENSHOT | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Launch Mail | ||
+ | | D | ||
+ | | DELETE | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | F2 | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | Backspace | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | STOP | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | WWW | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |} | ||
− | + | Volume and Mute keys should already be bound to MythTV Global actions. Sometimes they are trapped by the desktop or something like a pulseaudio plugin and therefore don't make it to MythTV. This can be preferable as then the volume keys control the volume of all applications, not just MythTV. | |
− | + | Clearly Tools, Launch Mail, F2 (without back-light) and WWW (without microphone) can be used for any ACTIONS you wish. SCREENSHOT and DELETE are given as examples. | |
− | |||
− | |||
[[Category:Remote Controls]] | [[Category:Remote Controls]] |
Latest revision as of 06:28, 20 May 2024
This is an excellent all-in-one USB HID that appears to Linux and MythTV as a keyboard and mouse. It has everything we need in a remote: navigation, media control, numeric keypad, mini QWERTY and even a mouse and 5 learning IR buttons! Many features work automatically but it may be necessary to tell MythTV about the multimedia keys as detailed below.
Hardware Description
This combination of a remote control, keyboard and pointing device is a product made in China and most often listed as an MX3 model under various brands. Amazon and NewEgg are common sources. It can be recognized by its rectangular shape, the large, round “OK” button and the row of four colored buttons at the bottom of the numeric pad. It sells in the $12 to $20 range. It is a hand held device which has a good set of remote control buttons on one side and a small QWERTY keyboard on the other side. It also incorporates a gyro mouse which allows the mouse cursor to be moved by waving the unit around. It connects to the computer by a microwave (2.4 GHz) radio link to a tiny receiver which plugs directly into a USB port and sticks out only about 1/2”. It does not have to be pointed at the receiver and the signal should go through non-metallic barriers at least up to a point. The range is about 30 feet/10 meters. The Linux kernel recognizes it as a keyboard and a mouse when the receiver is connected and no system configuration or extra software is required. The keyboard and pointer work immediately but MythTV will need to be configured to use most of the remote keys, see below.
As a bonus, the unit also has an Infra-red (IR) interface with a learning function which can emulate many proprietary remote controls for other appliances. Note that this is a computer peripheral, not a universal remote. The power button and the four colored buttons at the bottom are the only ones which can generate IR outputs. It is possible to turn a TV set or sound system on and off and control a few functions such as volume levels with these buttons. It can learn from remotes that use the NEC protocol. The “TV” button is used to program this function.
If the unit is held with the remote side up, the keyboard shuts off to prevent buttons from being pressed accidentally. If the keyboard side is upwards, the mouse function shuts off so that the cursor position is not affected by moving the unit around while using it as a keyboard.
The unit has a quirk in that it shuts down if a button is not pressed for a minute or so. This obviously saves the battery but it is necessary to press any key to get it started again. In practice, this means that a key is pressed and, if nothing happens, it is pressed again. On some units (probably older ones), the mouse function comes back on when it wakes up, even if it had been turned off earlier. This is annoying if button control is preferred. Pressing and holding the mouse control button for about 5 seconds (until the LED stops flashing rapidly) seems to fix this temporarily but it comes back on at some point. Buying from a fairly high-volume dealer such as Aerb may increase the chances of getting a current unit. There seems to be some ongoing development.
There is a new version which features a back-light but it has other minor refinements and it is nicer looking as well. It is worth paying a few dollars more for this unit.
There is a magic trick to opening the battery compartment which should be in the instructions. Hold the keyboard side up and put a thumbnail into the center of the gap in the case next to the "Enter" and "Backspace" keys. The cover will pop back slightly and can then be lifted up and off. To replace it, set it in just slightly back from its closed position and make sure it is all the way down on both sides. Push it towards the keyboard to engage the latch.
Remote Key Layout
The back side is a miniature 4 row QWERTY keyboard while the front side is a remote control of Key Names in this layout:
[Power] | |||
Media Rewind | Media Fast Forward | Media Previous | Media Next |
Search / F3 | Media Play | zoom+ | zoom- |
Menu | Home Page | Back (3) | |
Up | |||
Left | Return (1) |
Right | |
Down | |||
Volume Up | PgUp | ||
Volume Down | Mute | (mouse) | PgDown |
1 | 2 | 3 | Tools |
4 | 5 | 6 | Launch Mail |
7 | 8 | 9 | F2 / light |
[TV] | 0 | Backspace | WWW / Mic |
[red] | [green] | [yellow] | [blue] |
The keys in red [brackets] are programmable Infrared except for [TV] which is used to program the 5 others from an IR remote. These keys can be used for powering on the TV or a sound bar or adjusting its volume. Per the manual, only the NEC protocol is supported.
The (mouse) button toggles the air mouse. When on, the center "Return" button becomes mouse button(1) while "Back" becomes mouse button(3).
The zoom buttons are not available to Linux by default. F2 is a light toggle on the backlight models. WWW is a speak button on the microphone models, probably not useful to MythTV. The rest of the keys are available to MythTV with the names given in the table.
Edit Keys
All keys not listed below should already work as they are also found on all standard keyboards. As MythTV predates the newer Media keys, these may not work by default. With some patience we can bind all available keys to work well as in the table shown here.
In MythTV's Setup menu select "Edit Keys". Use the arrow keys to navigate to a "Context" column and "ACTION" below. Then right arrow to an unused key binding slot (to preserve all current keys) and hit Enter. Then hit the remote key from column 1 and Enter to save it or Escape to cancel. Move left to return to the ACTION/context and work on more entries from the grid. Upon Escaping out, be sure to save the changes!
Remote Key | act like |
Global | TV Frontend | TV Playback | Music | Gallery / Images |
Browser | Video | Main Menu |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Media Rewind | < | PREVIOUS | PAGELEFT | RWNDSTICKY | RWND | ZOOMOUT | ZOOMOUT | ||
Media Fast Forward | > | NEXT | PAGERIGHT | FFWDSTICKY | FFWD | ZOOMIN | ZOOMIN | ||
Media Previous | Home | PREVVIEW | DAYLEFT | SKIPCOMMBACK | PREVTRACK | HOME | PREVIOUSLINK | HOME | |
Media Next | End | NEXTVIEW | DAYRIGHT | SKIPCOMMERCIAL | NEXTTRACK | END | NEXTLINK | END | |
Search / F3 | Ctrl+S | SEARCH | |||||||
Media Play | P | PLAYBACK | PAUSE | PAUSE | PLAY | ||||
Menu | M | MENU | |||||||
Home Page | I | INFO | |||||||
Back | Esc | ESCAPE | EXITPROMPT | ||||||
Tools | SCREENSHOT | ||||||||
Launch Mail | D | DELETE | |||||||
F2 | |||||||||
Backspace | STOP | ||||||||
WWW |
Volume and Mute keys should already be bound to MythTV Global actions. Sometimes they are trapped by the desktop or something like a pulseaudio plugin and therefore don't make it to MythTV. This can be preferable as then the volume keys control the volume of all applications, not just MythTV.
Clearly Tools, Launch Mail, F2 (without back-light) and WWW (without microphone) can be used for any ACTIONS you wish. SCREENSHOT and DELETE are given as examples.