Crazy Remote Review

Our Review by Ryan Wood on July 17th, 2010

Rating:

:: ALMOST

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Crazy Remote is a novel attempt at computing from the couch or bed, but ultimately doesn't execute as well as it should. Major issues kept it from really standing out for me.

Developer: Scienpix
Price: $4.99
Version Reviewed: 1.1.1
Device Reviewed On: iPod 3rd Gen

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I went into this app really wanting to enjoy myself, but came away feeling like there was so much more that could have been accomplished. Crazy Remote, in the most basic terms, is intended to be a portable option for controlling tasks on your computer. The developer even champions the idea of playing World of Warcraft from the couch, with nothing more than an iDevice as a controller. Unfortunately, it’s not so simple.

Let’s start with the good things Crazy Remote does. It’s super easy to set up, and provides an excellent set of instructions to walk even the most networking illiterate person through the set up process. It also has amazing response time. I was able to watch my curser move around almost as if I was using the mouse itself. It allows for multiple devices to be supported, and stores the information for quick use. All the computer needs is a free program from Crazy Remotes website in order to make it work.

There are quite a few customization options when it comes to button format on the app itself. These can get a tad clunky at times, but it only takes a short while to get the hang of it, even if it never quite feels natural. Alternatively, it’s easy to just use the screen as a mouse if you never need the keyboard for anything.

The problems start in the execution of the app. The first MAJOR issue I had with the app is that it changed my native resolution on my desktop, and failed to change it back once I was finished with the app. I have a 24in, orientation adjustable monitor (basically I can turn my monitor so it’s wide horizontal for document reading), and it’s not easy to get the adjustments back for my native resolution. This was a major setback for me.

While I have once, and hopefully forever, broken my World of Warcraft addition, I did try Dragon Age, and a point and click game, and both of them seemed to operate poorly. Not only did I have to go in and adjust their resolutions or switch them to non-windowed mode, but the screen on my iPod flickered and failed to REALLY be usable.

It’s a really great idea, and has a lot of effective uses. If they can fix a few of their more damaging issues, I could see this app being a must have on any iDevice it’s supported for. As of right now though, it’s just not polished enough.