Multisystem IR Remote Control

1. Introduction

This is an inexpenive infrared remote control that will work with four different systems (Pentax, Nikon, Canon, and Konica-Minolta).

This unit is sold under a number of different brands, including Jianisi, Jue Ying and Phottix. Prices vary between vendors. I bought mine on eBay from Hong Kong based ndbirdhk and paid USD 3.49, including postage. In the auction, the unit was branded “Jianisi”, but the unit I received was branded “Jue Ying”. I think all these brands are interchangable.

This inexpensive remote is marketed as a low cost replacement for manufacturerer's dedicated infrared remote controls, such as the Pentax F, the Nikon ML-L3, and the Canon RC-5.

As far I am able to tell, it is functional equivalent to the original units, but unlike the original Nikon ML-L3 or Canon RC-5, there is no holes in this unit for attaching it to the camera strap.

2. Instructions

As seems to be the norm with Chinese units, the original instructions included in the package are very brief, and sometimes confusing. They tell you very little about how to operate the unit, and leave out important details, such as how you open the battery compartment to change batteries.

I've reproduced the original instructions that were included in the package below. However, I've corrected punctation and spelling mistakes, put strikeout over text that I don't think make sense, and added some extra material (in square brackets).

Original

To Use the Remote Control

1. For the first time use, please pull out the plastic separator at the battery holder.
2. Mount the camera on a tripod or place the camera on a stable, level surface.
3. Press the button and rotate main command dial until delayed remote or quick response remote is displayed in the control panel. [To turn on the wireless remote control function on your camera, see your camera's manual. On a Nikon camera, you press the shooting mode button repeatedly until the symbol for delayed remote or quick response remote is displayed in the camera's LCD panel. On a Canon camera, you press the shooting mode button repeatedly until the symbol for self-timer/remote appears in the camera's LCD panel.]
4. Aim the transmitter on the remote control at the infrared receiver on the camera ([it is] usually within +/-30 degree of the lens axis, from the left to the right and from the top to the bottom) and press the remote. Outdoors, make sure that the subject is not backlit and that the line of sight between the transmitter and the infrared receiver is not blocked by the lens or other obstacles. [Certain types of fluorescent light may interfere with the signal from the wireless remote. Try to avoid having fluorescent light hitting the receiver directly.]
5. How the camera focuses and shoots depends on the option selected for your camera's custom setting. For futher information, check your camera's manual.
6. Infrared cannot be seen by human eyes. So you will see no visible light from the LED on the front end of the remote control when operating.
7. Battery:CR2025.

3. General Impression

Infrared remotes, including those made by the camera manufacturer, are very basic units that only fires the shutter once, when you press the button. There is no continuous shooting mode, and no way to emulate the half-press click of the main shutter button.

The remote has a glossy plastic finish. A plastic film protects all new units. Simply peel of the plastic film once you've taken the remote out of its box, remove the plastic separator the prevents the battery from discharging when the unit is stored, and it is ready to use. There is no on-off switch.

The buttons on the unit are membrane buttons. This is not the most durable of technologies, but at least in my case, this is not an item that will see constant use.

I have only tested it with Nikon and Canon cameras. As far as I am able to tell, it works as advertised.

4. Operation

As you can see from the photo, the unit's control panel is divided in four different segments, marked (from top to bottom) “P”, “N”, “C” and “KM”. This is for the four different camera systems the unit will work with. For details, see notes for each system, below.

Pentax (P)

[Not tested.]

See compatibility chart for models the unit is compatible with.

The Pentax segment on the remote control consists of two buttons labeled “S” and “W/T”.

On a compatible camera, pressing the “S”-button trips the shutter.

To make sure that a Pentax DSLR focus before firing the shutter, you must enable the AF with Remote option in the custom setting menu, and also make sure it is in single drive mode (AF-S).

The “W/T”-button will let you zoom in and out on a compatible Pentax Optio compact camera. This button cannot be used with a SLR or DSLR camera.

Nikon (N)

Tested with a Nikon D80. See compatibility chart for models the unit is compatible with.

The Nikon panel is the simplest one, and only contain a single button, marked “S”. You press this button to remotely trigger the shutter on a compatible Nikon camera.

You select delayed remote mode or quick-response remote on the camera. On my D80, this is done with the shooting mode button on the right side of the top panel.

In delayed remote mode, the self-timer lamp will light for about two seconds before the shutter is released. In quick-response remote mode, the self-timer lamp will flash after the shutter has been released. If the camera is not pre-focused and is in focus priority mode (on a D80, this is when AF-A or AF-S is selected in autofocus mode), the camera will return to stand-by mode without releasing the shutter if it is unable to lock focus. In manual focus mode, if the camera is in release priority mode (on a D80, this is when AF-C is selected in autofocus mode), or if the camera is pre-focused, the camera will release the shutter without pausing to focus.

Like the Nikon ML-L3 infrared remote control, this remote unit can be used for exposures up to 30 minutes. To do this, select exposure mode M, set whatever aperture you want and set shutter to “bulb”. Then select quick-response remote shooting mode. This will display the shutter time as “––” on the top display. The shutter will open with the first press on the shutter-release button on the remote control, and will close when the button is pressed a second time, or after thirty minutes (whatever happens first).

The D80's IR port is located on the front of the camera, at the one o'clock position, directly above the “D80”-badge. There are reports that infrared remotes work less well without a direct line of sight to the camera's IR port, for instance when you are positioned behind the camera. However, testing this in my living room in the evening, the remote worked fine from all positions – front, behind, left and right. If I did't have a line of sight, I just aimed the remote at a wall (my living rom has bright walls) in front of the camera, and the shutter fired.

Bouncing off walls will not work outdoors, where there are no walls the infrared light can bounce off.

To fire the camera from the infrared remote outdoors, while positioned behind the camera, I constructed a simple bounce card from a piece of cardboard, a paper clip, and a brass strip salvaged from a document binder. The home made bounce card in use is shown on the photo to the right.

After fitting the bounce card as shown, I had no problems using the remote while standing behind my D80 and aiming it had the bounce card outdoors, in the sun.

Here is how I constructed the bounce card assembly: The paper clip holds together the cardboard and the brass strip. One end of the brass strip is attached the card, and the other end is fastened between the camera and the tripod plate. The brass is rigid enough to hold the weight of the card, but flexible enough to be bent to position the bounce card in the right place and angle.

No range was given in the specifications for the remote, but Nikon says that their ML-L3 remote has a range of “approximately 16 feet in front of camera” (≈5 meters).

To test the maximum outdoors range of the “Jue Ying” remote, I placed the camera on a tripod and walked away, while trying to trigger the camera with the remote at various distances. The test was conducted in dull weather, and with fresh batteries.

The image to the left shows me standing in the middle of the frame around 30 meters (≈100 feet) away from the camera. This was as far as I could go from the camera, and still be able to fire the shutter.

Canon (C)

Tested with a Canon EOS 300D DSLR and a Powershot G5 compact digicam. See compatibility chart for models the unit is compatible with.

The Canon segment on the remote control consists of two sets of buttons. The top row (labeled “S” and “2S”) is used to remotely trigger the shutter on a DSLR. The second row of buttons (labeled “S”, “W” and “T”) is meant to be used with Canon compact digital cameras.

To be able to use the remote, you select self-timer/remote mode on the camera. On my 300D, this is done with the shooting mode button positioned on the right side on the camera's top panel.

On a compatible DSLR, pressing the “S”-button in the top row trips the shutter immediately. Pressing the “2S”-button introduces a 2-second delay before the shutter is tripped.

Like the Canon RC-5 infrared remote control, this remote unit can be used for exposures up to 150 minutes. To do this, select exposure mode M, set whatever aperture you want and set the shutter speed to “bulb”. Then use the drive mode button to select remote control. The shutter will open with the first press on the shutter-release button on the remote control, and will close when the button is pressed a second time, or after 150 minutes (whatever happens first).

On a compatible compact, pressing the “S”-button in the second row starts the timer that will trip the shutter after some delay.

The “W” and “T” buttons allow wireless remote operation of the built in zoom motor. “W” to zoom wider, and “T” to zoom towards the tele end.

Konica-Minolta (KM)

[Not tested.]

Konica-Minolta was taken over by Sony in 2006. The unit will work with a number of legacy models from the Konica-Minolta era. Sony does not officially offer a infrared remote unit, but it is at least compatible with the Sony α100, which was based on the Konica-Minolta Dynax 5D. See compatibility chart for models the unit is compatible with.

The Sony segment on the remote control consists of two buttons labeled “S” and “2S”. On a compatible camera, pressing the “S”-button trips the shutter immediately. Pressing the “2S”-button introduces a 2-second delay before the shutter is tripped.

5. Battery Compartment

There is no on-off switch, so if the unit is stored for a long time with the battery activated, it will discharge. For that reason, I prefer to store it without the battery inserted.

It is tricky to open the battery compartment. You have to pull the small square tab (arrow) towards the centre of the remote. At the same time you have to pull the whole battery slot out of the remote. If it feels stuck, just pull the first tab as hard to the centre as you can. I find it easiest to push my thumbnail between this tab and the body of the remote to lever the tab inwards, then using the index finger of the same hand pull the battery compartment out.

It is possible to put the battery compartment in the wrong way. When you are facing the rear of the unit, the square opening tab should be on the left, and the “+” side of the battery should be up. Also see photo above.

6. Compatibility Charts

I received my unit in august 2009. The list of compatible models included in the package appears to be last updated in 2006. I expect that the remote also will work fine with newer camera models not listed that was launched after 2006, that use the same IR protocol.

The compatibility charts below is reproduced verbatim from the package. I have not tried the models listed for compatibility, so I don't know how reliable this data is. The package I received also included a compatibility chart for Olympus. I've left it out. The unit is not adverised as being Olympus-compatible, nor is it. (Yes, I've testet.)

Remote Control for Pentax

Pentax	*ist DS	*ist DS2	*ist DL	*ist DL2
	K100D	K110D	K10D
	Optio S6/S60	Optio S5z/S5n/S5I	Optio S4i/S4	Optio SV/SVi
	Optio 550/500	Optio 750Z	Optio 330/430(rs)
	*ist	MZ-6

Remote Control for Nikon

Note that the Nikon Dx00-series (D100 – D300) does not have an IR port and will not work with any IR remote unit.

I expect that it will also be compatible with newer camera models that can be triggered by the Nikon ML-L3 infrared remote, such as D90 and D5000.

Nikon	D40	D40x	D50	D60	D70	D70s	D80	8400	8800
	F55	F65	N65	F75	N75		Nuvis S	Lite Touch	Pronea S

Remote Control for Canon

Note that the Canon EOS x0D-series (10D – 50D) does not have an IR port and will not work with any IR remote unit.

I expect that it will also be compatible with newer camera models that can be triggered by the Canon RC-5 infrared remote, such as 450D, 500D, and EOS 5DII.

Canon	EOS 300D	EOS 350D	EOS 400D
	G1	G3	G5	G6	S60	S70
	S1 IS	Pro1	Pro90 IS
	EOS 10	EOS 30/33/30V	EOS 50/55	EOS 100	EOS 300V	EOS 300X
	ELAN 7	EOS kiss III	EOS kiss III L		EOS IX	300VQD
	IXUS Jr/II/III		Rebel T1/T2 Date		SureShot Z180u
	Z155	120Z	370Z	370Z

Remote Control for Konica-Minolta (Sony)

Konica-Minolta A mount cameras were marketed as Dynax in Europe, Maxxum in the USA, and Alpha in Japan. Similarly, Minolta compacts were marketed as Riva in Europe, Freedom in the USA, and Capios in Japan. To save space, I've only listed the European names.

Konica-Minolta / Sony	α100	DiMAGE F100	DiMAGE F200	DiMAGE F300
	DiMAGE A200	DiMAGE S414	DiMAGE S404	DiMAGE S304
	Dynax 3(L) Date		Dynax 4 Date	Dynax 5 Date
	Dynax 40	Dynax 50 Date	Dynax 60	Dynax 70
	Riva Zoom 20	Riva Zoom 75W	Riva Zoom 115 Date
	Riva Zoom 125 Date		Riva Zoom 130
	Riva Zoom 140/160(A)

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