My father considers buying an Android TV box. Initially, I thought that’s a bad choice as a mini pc has much greater capabilities and control.
However, he does have a point that Android TV boxes are cheaper (~60) and work with tv cable which most mini PCs don’t have a connector for.
What are your thoughts on this?
There are various bluetooth remotes that can be paired with computers, as well as air mice with remote-like features. There are also IR receiver USB dongles you can buy which allow you to use an IR remote with them with some 3rd party software installation and configuring. (FLIRC for one makes one of those).