It’s Just a Remote. And Yet I Think About It More Than I Should.
Let me tell you something slightly embarrassing.
I spent a lot of time thinking about which Phantom speaker to buy. Read every review. Watched every YouTube video. Drove myself slightly mad comparing the 95 dB to the 98 dB to the 103 dB. Obsessed over specs for weeks.
And then I got the Phantom home, set it up, sat down to actually listen and within twenty minutes I was annoyed. Not at the sound, which was extraordinary. At myself, for having to get up every single time I wanted to change the volume. I kept reaching for my phone, navigating to the app, adjusting, putting the phone down, picking it up again. It broke the experience constantly.
The Devialet Phantom Remote was, I’ll admit, an afterthought purchase. Something I grabbed almost out of frustration.
It is now, without any irony, one of the most satisfying objects in my home. And I want to explain why because if you own a Phantom and you don’t have this, you’re living with unnecessary friction every single day.
What It Actually Is
At its most basic: it’s a circular wireless controller, roughly the size of a large coaster, that sits on your table and lets you control your Phantom volume, play/pause, skip tracks from anywhere in the room.
But describing it that way is like describing a Swiss watch as something that tells you the time. Technically accurate. Completely misses the point.
The Remote is made with the same obsessive attention to craft that Devialet brings to the Phantom itself. The control wheel is constructed from bead-blasted Inox steel that’s a type of stainless steel with each ring individually moulded and finished. It feels substantial in your hand without being heavy. It feels like something engineered, not something manufactured.
The surface you touch to adjust volume has what I can only describe as a satisfying resistance. Not sticky, not loose, just calibrated. Turning it feels like adjusting a precision instrument. Which, technically, it is.
The Design: Small Object, Big Presence
The Remote is 80mm wide and 21mm tall, slightly smaller and thinner than you probably imagine. It comes in Matte Black and Iconic White, matching the two main Phantom finishes so the pair looks intentional together.
The Inox ring around the edge catches light in a way that gives it a quiet premium quality. It doesn’t look like a TV remote. It doesn’t look like a smart home gadget. It looks like it came from the same design language as the Phantom which it did, because Devialet designed them as a pair.
My Phantom is Iconic White. The white Remote sitting next to it on the side table looks like it was always supposed to be there. Which, again, is the point.
Using It Every Day
Here’s what the Remote actually changes about how you listen.
Before the Remote, adjusting the volume on a Phantom means one of two things: walk up to the speaker and touch the top controls, or open the Devialet app on your phone. The first is fine occasionally. The second is a tiny but relentless friction unlock phone, find app, adjust, exit. Forty times a day, it adds up.
With the Remote, you reach over without looking, turn the wheel a fraction, and the volume changes. That’s it. You don’t interrupt the conversation, you don’t miss twenty seconds of a song, you don’t break the flow of whatever you’re doing. The Phantom just responds.
The connection uses Bluetooth 5.0 BLE with a range of up to 20 metres. In practice, it works through walls. I’ve adjusted the volume from my kitchen while the Phantom is in the living room. Zero lag, zero missed inputs.
Pairing is remarkably simple: you bring the Remote close to the Phantom for a few seconds. The Phantom acknowledges it with a woofer movement and a tone. Done. It stays paired reliably after that. I’ve never once had a disconnection issue in daily use.
The Battery: This Is the Part That Surprises People
Most wireless accessories in this price category either need charging every few days or take replaceable batteries that run out at inconvenient moments.
The Phantom Remote has a built-in rechargeable battery with a three-month autonomy. Three months. You charge it via the included USB cable roughly four times a year and forget about it otherwise. The LEDs on the face dim slowly when the battery is getting low, giving you plenty of warning.
I’ve owned the Remote for well over a year now. I charge it when I happen to remember to, which is infrequently. It has never once died on me unexpectedly.
One Remote. Everything It Controls.
This is worth being clear about because the compatibility is broader than most people realise.
The Devialet Phantom Remote works with:
Phantom I (all models including 103 dB and 108 dB)
Phantom II (all models including 95 dB and 98 dB)
Devialet Dione soundbar
Devialet Mania portable speaker
If you have a Phantom I and a Dione in the same home, the same Remote controls both; you just pair it to whichever device you want to use at the time.
If you have a stereo pair of Phantoms, one Remote controls both simultaneously. You don’t need two remotes for a stereo setup. The pair acts as one, so volume changes apply to both speakers at exactly the same level. If you want, you can add multiple Remotes to the same system; they auto-sync with each other, so two people in the same room can both adjust the volume from wherever they’re sitting without conflict.
Is ₹24,999 a lot for a Remote?
Honest answer: yes, in the context of what remotes usually cost. No, in the context of what you’ve already spent on the Phantom.
If you’ve bought a Phantom I 108 dB at ₹3,67,999, adding ₹24,999 for the Remote is a 6.8% addition that genuinely completes the experience. The alternative is getting up to adjust the volume twenty times a day for the next several years, or constantly reaching for your phone. Neither of those is free, they cost you attention and convenience every single time.
The Remote also isn’t a necessity for people who primarily use the Phantom in a fixed listening position where the speaker is close at hand. If your Phantom sits on a desk two feet away from where you always sit, the top-panel touch controls are perfectly accessible and the Remote is genuinely optional.
But if your Phantom is across the room in a living room, a bedroom, an open-plan space and you listen while doing other things, cooking, reading, having people over, this small object will change your daily relationship with the speaker in a way that’s disproportionate to its size and price.
Who Should Buy This
Definitely buy it if: You use your Phantom as your primary home speaker in a living room or bedroom. You listen while cooking, working, or socialising. You value the experience of controlling your music feeling as refined as the music itself sounds.
Probably buy it if: You bought the Phantom and find yourself reaching for your phone constantly. You want the setup to feel complete and considered, not like a speaker with a missing piece.
Maybe skip it if: Your Phantom is on a desk right next to you. You primarily use it as a desktop speaker at close range. You’re genuinely fine with the app.
Final Thought
There’s a particular kind of product that you don’t fully appreciate until it’s part of your daily life. Products that don’t announce themselves, they just quietly make everything slightly better, every single day.
The Devialet Phantom Remote is that product.
It doesn’t add any sound quality. It doesn’t unlock new features. It just makes the experience of using an extraordinary speaker feel as complete and considered as the speaker itself. When everything in your setup is this carefully made, the friction of reaching for a phone feels out of place. The Remote removes that friction.
It’s a small thing. It matters more than it should.
The Devialet Phantom Remote is available in India through The Den India in Matte Black and Iconic White, with nationwide shipping and official manufacturer’s warranty.
Quick Specs
Connectivity – Bluetooth 5.0 BLE / 2.4 GHz
Range – Up to 20 metres
Battery Built-in rechargeable – 3 month autonomy
Charging – USB cable (included)
Controls – Volume, Play/Pause, Skip/Repeat
Ring Material – Bead-blasted Inox steel
Dimensions – 80 mm × 80 mm × 21 mm
Weight – 140g
Colors – Matte Black, Iconic White
Compatible With – Phantom I, Phantom II, Dione, Mania