looks like some sort of IR transmitter
What do you mean?
"I mod therefore I am"
the LEDs look lie infa-red LEDs. Like a remote control or something. For and old PDA probally.
most likely for an old VCR, i had a vcr that had a cord 100% identical to that one.
The flat pieces get 2 sided tape and get mounted so that their beams hit your cable box's electronic eye...
The plug goes into the back of your TiVo...
When you change chanels on the TiVo, it sends a signal so that your cable box channel gets changed.
"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, con a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyse a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects"
Robert A. Heinlein