Anyone who knows me knows I love gadgets. I love features. I love add-ons and accessories. And I try to use my stuff to its fullest potential. Well, imagine my excitement when I learned that Sony released a Media remote, with dedicated Netflix and YouTube buttons, for their fancy new PS5.

We cut the cord on the cable company several years ago. For a while we watched The Netflix and friends on Chromecast. We tried using the Wii U (yeah, we had one of those) and the PS4 but I never liked the video game controller interface. Then we got an Android TV and everything changed. We were able to stream directly to the TV without any other devices, AND, I could use my fancy Logitech Harmony 650 universal remote to control everything. One remote to rule them all! Netflix app, Hulu Live app, YouTube App, Peacock and Disney+ and even Amazon for some reason. I know, it seems like I just created a picture of a perfect streaming service utopia. Just dont look too close.

I like the idea of Android TV, but its not there yet. They arent putting enough power into the TVs. Certainly not at the price Im willing to pay. Enter the PS5. A veritable powerhouse of raw, unbridled video and audio processing power. And, all the apps are there too! But, theres the issue of the video game controller. Its, at best, fine. But the interface is not intuitive and all of the apps use the buttons for different things. Sure, if we were way back in 2017 and I was only streaming on Netflix I could get used to it, but this is 2021. My steaming needs change with the seasons. So I need a controller that has a play/pause button. I want fast forward and rewind. And I want directional navigation and enter buttons.

Well, they did all that. PLUS, there are dedicated launch buttons for several services. The remote is small and has a nice curve to it. I dont like how slippery the material is. Its almost as bad as a damp jar of pickles. And you know how I hate dropping the pickles. The buttons are very responsive and have a good click when you press them. There is support for controlling your Sony TV. It will turn the TV on and adjust the volume. Regrettably, it does not control my sound bar. Though, I think that if I could set it up so that the TV could control the sound bar this remote would do that. It is not rechargeable but thats ok. I really dont need to plug in ANOTHER devices at night just so I can use it tomorrow.

So, the bottom line is that I like the Media Remote. I hate having multiple remotes, but Ill make the sacrifice to be able to easily use the PS5 as my streaming machine. Plus, being able to one touch and be on the YouTube is pretty fancy.