The first RF remote controls adhering to the emerging Radio Frequencies for Consumer Electronics (RF4CE) standard were demonstrated at the cable industry’s annual show.

Remote control maker SMK Electronics Corp. (Tokyo) showed its RF4CE-compliant remote controls using technology provided by Freescale Semiconductor (Austin, Texas). Other members include Panasonic, Philips, Samsung, Sony, OKI and Texas Instruments.

“We still have some customers who want a proprietary solution, but for consumer electronics devices we [are] emphasizing the RF4CE standard,” said Brett Black, commercial wireless manager for Freescale Semiconductor. “We believe that SMK’s adoption of Freescale’s RF4CE protocol will help make RF4CE the universal standard in RF for consumer devices.”

During the cable show, SMK demonstrated a remote control with a display that could wirelessly download playlists from an iPod and display them on a TV. The same remote control was also used to control lighting in the room.

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