there are two sorts of "infrared communications" in common use these days.
There is IRDA, a bi-directional moderate-speed serial communications link
common on laptops and PDAs.  IRDA transceivers tend to be SMT, to match
the size requirements of those common applications.

The second is the protocols used by IR remote control devices.  These are
unidirectional, generally using IR LEDs for tranmitters, with through-hole
"receivers" generally resembling to220 type packages (unless they're in little
metal boxes.)

(the initial message said "transceiver", but didn't really contain enough
info  to tell whether you really needed a bi-direectional part, or were
just mis-using the term to mean "any IR part more complicated than an
individual phototransistor."  I think we have everything cleared up now!)

BillW

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