What BLEShark Nano Looks Like as a Universal Remote
The BLEShark Nano is a wireless security tool. It is also a genuinely good universal remote. The same infrared hardware that security researchers use to clone access systems is equally useful for controlling your TV, air conditioner, projector, and any other IR-controlled device in your home or office.
If you bought a BLEShark primarily for security work, the universal remote capability is a useful side benefit. If you are considering a BLEShark and wondering whether it has any day-to-day utility beyond security testing - the answer is yes, and this article covers it in detail.
What the IR hardware actually is
Infrared communication uses pulses of infrared light modulated at a carrier frequency (typically 38kHz for most consumer devices). The BLEShark Nano has both an IR LED for transmitting and an IR receiver for capturing signals.
On the receive side: point any IR remote at the BLEShark, press a button, and the device captures the raw signal timing. It records the exact on/off pulse pattern, which encodes the command according to whatever protocol that remote uses (NEC, Sony SIRC, RC5, Panasonic, Samsung, and many others).
On the transmit side: the BLEShark replays that captured timing through its IR LED. The target device receives the signal identically to how it would receive it from the original remote. The TV or AC unit cannot tell the difference - IR signals have no authentication, no pairing, no device identity. A correctly timed IR signal is a correctly timed IR signal.
The coverage range is comparable to a standard remote: roughly 5-10 meters line-of-sight, less around corners. Pointing the BLEShark directly at the device's IR receiver gives the best results.
Capturing your existing remotes
The most useful first step is capturing signals from all of your existing remotes. Once captured, the original remote becomes optional.
sequenceDiagram
participant Remote as Original Remote
participant Nano as BLEShark Nano
participant Storage as Signal Storage
participant Target as Target Device
Note over Remote,Target: Phase 1 - Signal Capture
Remote->>Nano: Point remote at IR receiver
Remote->>Nano: Press button (IR signal)
Nano->>Nano: Decode protocol (NEC/Sony/RC5/RC6)
Nano->>Storage: Save signal with label
Note over Nano,Target: Phase 2 - Replay
Nano->>Nano: Load saved signal from storage
Nano->>Target: Transmit IR signal
Target->>Target: Execute command (power/volume/input)
Note over Nano,Target: Phase 3 - Universal Remote
Nano->>Storage: Store multiple remotes
Nano->>Target: Switch between device profiles
Note over Storage: Signals persist across reboots
IR signal capture, storage, and replay workflow on BLEShark Nano
The BLEShark's IR Receive app handles capture:
- Navigate to the IR menu on the BLEShark and select Receive (or IR Receiver).
- Hold your remote 5-15cm from the BLEShark's IR receiver (the small sensor on the device face).
- Press the button you want to capture.
- The BLEShark confirms the capture and stores it.
- Give the captured command a descriptive name (e.g., "TV Power," "AC Cool 22," "Projector HDMI1").
- Repeat for each button you want to replicate.
For a typical home setup, capturing the most-used buttons takes about 10 minutes: TV power, volume up/down/mute, input select, AC on/off and temperature controls, projector power and input.
Captured signals are stored in the BLEShark's flash memory and accessible via the File Portal. You can download them, back them up, and they persist across reboots. If you replace a remote, the signals remain in the BLEShark.
The Remote app
The Remote app provides a customizable button layout on the BLEShark's OLED display. You assign captured commands to buttons and navigate between them using the device's physical buttons.
The layout is customizable via the File Portal. Upload your configuration, and the Remote app reflects it. This is practical for everyday use where you want direct access to the 5-6 commands you use 90% of the time without navigating through menus.
For a more complete remote layout with many commands, the Transmit app is the better choice.
The Transmit app
The Transmit app shows a scrollable list of all captured IR commands. Navigate with the physical buttons, select the command you want, and it fires. No button layout to configure - just a flat list of every signal you have captured.
This is more flexible than the Remote app for situations where you need access to less-common commands (projector aspect ratio, AC timer, AV receiver input settings). For daily use, the Remote app's direct-access button mapping is faster. For occasional use of many different commands, Transmit's searchable list is more practical.
TV-B-Gone
TV-B-Gone is a separate feature that cycles through IR off commands for a large database of TV brands. It tries every known power-off code in sequence, which means it will eventually turn off almost any TV it is pointed at - typically within 60 seconds.
The BLEShark includes US and EU code sets (the power frequencies differ slightly by region). For everyday use, TV-B-Gone is most useful in situations where the original remote is gone and you do not have the specific brand captured yet, or as a demonstration of how brute-force IR enumeration works.
The name is a reference to Mitch Altman's original device from 2004, which had the same basic function. The BLEShark's implementation is one of many features on the device rather than its sole purpose.
Practical use cases
Replacing lost remotes: If you have captured the remote's signals before losing it, you have everything you need. If you have not, many TV and AC brands have IR code databases available - NEC protocol codes for major brands are widely documented. You can also capture codes from the manufacturer's app if it supports IR (some phones have built-in IR blasters).
Conference room AV control: Conference rooms often have projectors, displays, and audio systems with remotes that go missing. Capturing all the relevant commands once and storing them in a BLEShark that lives in the room (charging on a USB cable, for example) provides a reliable backup. Because it operates standalone without a phone app or network connection, it works even when other AV control systems fail.
Server rooms and equipment closets: Some legacy equipment - KVM switches, certain PDU models, older network hardware - uses IR for control. Having the BLEShark available in a server room means IR commands for that equipment are accessible even when the original remote is in the wrong place.
Projector control in presentations: If you are presenting and the projector remote is not working (dead batteries, missing, other person's equipment), a BLEShark with the projector's power and input commands captured can be a quiet backup. It is small enough to keep in a laptop bag without thinking about it.
Home theater setup: In a home theater setup where multiple devices need controlling (TV, AV receiver, streaming box, projector), building a BLEShark Remote layout with the most-used commands for each device is a reasonable alternative to buying a dedicated universal remote controller for $80+.
Older AC units: Many window AC units and split systems from the late 2000s and early 2010s use proprietary IR codes with no smart home integration. Capturing those codes and building a Remote layout for them means you can control the AC from your phone via the BLEShark's WiFi connection without buying a new smart AC unit or a separate IR bridge.
Tips for reliable IR operation
Distance and angle matter. IR is line-of-sight. The emitter needs a clear path to the receiver on the target device. Most IR receivers on TVs and ACs are at the front bottom edge. Aim the BLEShark at that point from within 5-7 meters for reliable operation. Reflective surfaces can sometimes provide indirect paths if direct line-of-sight is blocked, but direct is always better.
Capture distance. When capturing from a remote, hold it 10-15cm from the BLEShark's receiver. Too close and you can overdrive the receiver; too far and weak signals may not capture cleanly.
Ambient light interference. In some conditions, direct sunlight or certain fluorescent light sources can interfere with IR reception - both during capture and during transmission to the target. If a command is not being received reliably, try from a slightly different angle or position.
Label signals clearly. When you capture many signals across multiple devices, naming them clearly ("LG-TV-PowerOff" vs "TV Power") saves confusion when looking at the Transmit list six months later. The File Portal lets you rename stored signals.
Back up captures to the File Portal. Download your captured IR signals through the File Portal and keep a local copy. If you ever need to reset the device or migrate to a new one, you can re-upload the captures rather than recapturing everything.
The BLEShark Nano at $36.99 is priced well below dedicated universal remote controllers with fewer features. If you are already buying one for security work, the IR universal remote capability is free. If you are on the fence about whether a security-focused device has any everyday utility - the IR remote is a genuine answer.