Why are remotes black?

Today I spend 15 minutes looking for a tv remote. It ruined my day. Why are the vast, vast majority of remote controls pure black or very dark grey? It makes them very easy to lose. Making them bright orange like traffic cones would be a better idea I feel.

Because most TVs are black.

Was your father abusive?

Well that escalated quickly.

they evil :o

^ this.

likely because it is harder to see dirt and such on it.

market a bright orange one then

Hey don't be a racist! :D

Reading some of these threads makes me happy that something like this is even considered a "problem" (so to speak). Not being condescending, either...I just remember not having money to eat or for gas for a hot shower; at that time something like this (if I had a TV =P) would have never occurred to me =)

"African-American"

I don't like where this is going

So you're telling us you've had a very slow and dull day today.

LMAO

uninspiredcup a racist confirmed.

Because most tvs are black. Most tvs are black because it goes with everything and a black tv will struggle to look out of place in any home decor environment. Then again there was that period in the early 2000s, when preferences in interior design shifted to more simplistic decoration with brighter colours; archaic black boxes looked out of place amongst lavender wall paint and laminate floorings, adorned with dried sticks in pale brown vases; thus the preference in television aesthetic design tended toward modern silver schemes, reflecting their position in the modern home as CRT TVs reached their technological peak. Thus, during this period, remotes became a much brighter shade of grey, a scheme which is sliding out of fashion once more as new televisions on the cutting edge of technology prefer to portray themselves as sleek machines of the future, and only a glossy black remote is acceptable.

At least It comes with a smile

It puts less effort to colour the remotes that way.

Seconded

Because they've conditioned us to associate black, long, remotes as tv remotes.

Mine is grey

I like the color black

If you look over the history of technology like tvs, music players, etc. you'll find that the popular colour alternates between black and silver every few years.

I put glow or reflective tape on the back of mine. They always get lost in my blankets which are, for the most part, also dark.

Here's the much more important questions -- Why did looking for something for 15 minutes ruin your day? And second, if losing things has such a detrimental impact on your emotional well-being, why aren't you more careful about where you put your belongings?

Because white or grey remotes will get dirty or look dirty with regular using , thats why black colour is used in remotes as dirt won't be noticiable on black surface. You might notice white switches in your home often get dirty.

the old age question! I've often wished the remote control could have one of those devices you attach to keys, and when you whistle or something, it sounds an alarm. mine is always going missing!

That's actually the best answer and makes the most sense. My old white 360 controllers look grey now from all the hours of playing and sweating.

You still watch TV.. ?!

but how does one deal with such shitty looking remotes then

I'm not overly concerned with the aesthetic appearance of my remotes.

Put a button on the tv, that when pressed, cause the remote to light up and make noise.

I have a grey remote and it's not a very dark grey either. I never really lose my remotes, whether they are black or not.