Use your phone as remote control for your PC

One of the coolest mobile phone hacks is to use the phone as a remote control for your PC. Why would anybody want to do that? Isn't the keyboard and mouse enough to "control" the PC? Well, as it turns out, there are at least a couple of reasons you'd want to control your PC via a wireless device:

You can use the PC to run PowerPoint presentations, software demonstrations, and/or photo slideshows for an audience. To capture the audience's attention and convey your messages effectively, it is important that you control the presentation PC remotely while you are walking across the room. Dedicated presentation remote control device are available for purchase; however, the mobile phone eliminates the need for those separate gadgets.

With a remote control, you can turn the PC into a fully functional media player in your living room. The PC plays DVD, CD, MP3, and many other media formats. More importantly, you can update the PC software to support future media formats. The major obstacle that currently hinders the adoption of media PCs in living rooms is the lack of a good remote controla keyboard and mouse attached to the media console are simply not acceptable.

Wireless local connectivity technology such as infrared or Bluetooth is included in most Nokia mobile phones to allow the transfer of data between devices over short distances. Phone applications can use this same technology to remotely control computers. Unlike traditional remote controls for TVs and presentations, smartphones are generally much higher-quality devices with high-resolution, full-color displays. This opens up a whole host of possibilities when it comes to interactivity and the overall user experience.

Using Bluetooth allows you to communicate with devices without requiring direct line-of-sight. So, unlike with an infrared remote control, you can be in another room and still control your device. Bluetooth connections also allow for bidirectional communication of data at higher speeds than infrared, and they support the option of being encrypted to prevent anyone nearby from "listening in" on what you are doing.