It's called the MK1 Premium Media Remote by a company called Gioteck, and the only disappointing thing about is that it doesn't seem to be available in North America. In Europe, I picked one up from Amazon for £25, and I'm really impressed by it.
The kicker is that on the back of this media remote is a full QWERTY keyboard. But it's also a very good media remote, and another example of a third-party one-upping Microsoft's own official offering.
It looks the part
The MK1 was designed with the standard Xbox One S in mind, hence the white paint job. It's actually a little reminiscent of the old Xbox 360 official Media Remote, just not quite as tall. It's pretty chunky, but no more so than a regular TV remote at least.
It's plastic all over and very light, with rubber buttons throughout aside from the round navigation and OK buttons. All the buttons have great tactile feedback and are spaced out sufficiently that there's no chance of ever hitting the wrong one.
All of the main controller buttons are replicated, with the only absentees being the shoulder buttons and triggers. Additionally, you get a dedicated button for OneGuide as well as an eject button for popping those discs out.
Dedicated volume and channel changing buttons are also a welcome addition for folks who watch their TV through their Xbox. And when it comes to power, it just takes a pair of AAA batteries. No recharging, but battery life should be pretty decent.
The keyboard
What sets the MK1 apart from the rest is the QWERTY keyboard built into the back of it. It's also illuminated, with the lighting turning on when you flip the remote over to that side.
To use the regular remote features you just point and press, but to use the keyboard you'll need to attach a wireless dongle to one of the USB ports on your console. You also still get the onscreen keyboard popping up, but functionally the one on the MK1 works perfectly well. When you're not using the dongle, it slots away neatly into the bottom of the remote.
It's really well designed, too, with the battery compartment acting as a split in the keyboard. This makes using it with two hands comfortable, much more so than something like the Xbox One chatpad.
You're not going to be going into the browser and hammering out emails with it, but for searching for content and redeeming codes, it's infinitely better than using the onscreen keyboard.
The bottom line
The only negative thing about this remote is that it seems it's only available in Europe. That's a shame, because it's truly an excellent accessory and has made interacting with my Xbox One so much better than fiddling with a controller when I'm not actually gaming.
Microsoft's official remote was always too small and basic, and some of the other third-party choices I've looked at over the years didn't scratch the right itch either.
The Gioteck MK1 has everything you could possibly want from a remote when you're feet up on the sofa. All the media controls you need are right there, and when you need to enter some text just flip it over and get cracking with the keyboard. And at less than £25 it's very affordable, too.
