And we're about to buy one more set as a backup. YES you can use one remote for every set and they work that way out of the box, no complicated configuration involved. So every set of 3 candles comes with one remote, but if you only want one remote to control multiple sets of candles, you can safely toss the rest of the remotes or keep one as a backup. We bought the Sandblast Blue color and it's *actually* nice, not just kinda nice. We bought 4 sets to go around the bathtub (see photos to get a sense of their actual size, not too big or too small to decorate a bathtub, imho), but one candle got bumped and fell in the empty tub and broke, so now we're buying one more to replace the broken one and to have a couple spare candles for the future. The "flame" on these is really nice, they even look good when off because of the black wick. And yes the candles are real wax not plastic, so make sure you don't order them during an Arizona summer or anything because they could potentially melt in the mail, but it's worth it because they don't look cheapo. They're electronic so it's not a real flame and there's no actual heat given off or fire risk. The way the remotes work is they're directional, which means if you put all 3 candles together you can point and turn them all on/off with one button press; or if you space them out you will have to point and click at each one (and the "flames" won't be synchronized because you turned them on at different times which I think makes them look more realistic). The candles don't have an IR sensor anywhere I can see, so you don't have to point the remote at them "exactly right" like an old TV to turn them on/off. You just point in the "general direction" of a candle and it works. And if you actually DO enjoy messing with settings, the remote comes with some good ones to play around with. Come to think of it, you could probably set each individual candle a bit differently so the "flames" aren't all perfectly synchronized if you want a more realistic look, but I haven't tried it out yet. If you do get 4 sets like us, just make sure you restock your AAA batteries too, because each candle takes 3 of them so that's 9 batteries per set of 3 candles (or 36 AAAs if you get 4 sets of candles like we did). It is what it is, and I don't call it a con, because the alternatives are: using flame candles which don't last, start to look crappy after a while, and come with a fire risk; or, rechargeable batteries which, let's be honest, I'm never going to waste my time charging 12 candles with 12 little USB cords. So disposables actually make sense for these candles. You can buy cheaper sets out there but are they real wax? Do they have the black wicks? Are the sconces real glass and do they actually look good? Do the "flames" actually look good? If you need to expand your collection are you going to need 5 different remotes in your bathroom to control all of them or is just one going to work? Since these check all my boxes, I say $20-$25 is a good value for these. You'll end up spending more on cheaper sets when you eventually realize they suck and they're ugly and you want to replace them with something nicer, and you'll definitely spend more on real candles as you burn through them.