Universal Remotes....the good....the bad and the.....ugly

[Timothy E Smith]

I have a rather simple separates based 5.1 HT and 8 million remotes!!! With a Sony 550 AVR w/ AM and FM tuning, Vizio 49" Smart HDTV, Sony Smart Blu-ray player, with space to grow, please help me decide on a tried and true Universal remote, the tiny LCD screen would be a nice feature, HEELLPPPPP Please!

 

[1AGOFST]

I have a rather simple separates based 5.1 HT and 8 million remotes!!! With a Sony 550 AVR w/ AM and FM tuning, Vizio 49" Smart HDTV, Sony Smart Blu-ray player, with space to grow, please help me decide on a tried and true Universal remote, the tiny LCD screen would be a nice feature, HEELLPPPPP Please!

Hey Tim, I have used the Logitech Harmony One+ for years and it has been the best money ever spent. Very easy to setup through "MyHarmony" software. All buttons are customizable in each activity and device. There is NOTHING I haven't been able to set up (well, except PS4 because there isn't an interface yet). I did have an issue with my Sony BPD-S6500 blu-ray player not showing up. I emailed them at around Midnight. I received an email at 3am saying they added the device and to go ahead and upload it to the remote. Awesome results and couldn't be happier!

 

[Hocky]

Agreed with Harmony. Good stuff.

 

[cpd]

Depending on your budget, the Harmony Ultimate is a nice remote. It contains a wi-fi hub so you can control your gear via smartphone/tablet based apps (useful feature for when the battery in the remote needs charging).

It also has bluetooth control of the PS4 (does everything but turn the PS4 on).

 

[fmw]

Harmony for sure. The One was the best unit they ever made but discontinued it. I only have one left. You can get most of the One in the 650. The main thing you lose is the rechargeable battery. However, you can and should use rechargeable AA batteries with it. I also have a touch screen Harmony but frankly it is a hassle and poorly designed. It is currently stored in a drawer. I highly recommend the Harmony 650.

 

[Latent]

Which model harmony remote you need can depend on your room and the location of your equipment. There are much cheaper models that only output IR so you need line of sight to the devices and have to remember to point the remote in the right direction every time you use it.

The secret with these smart universal remotes like the harmony range is they remember the last state of the devices were in so when switching between modes they turn the right thing on at the right time. But there are some downsides to this method. If you keep using the old remotes or walk up to your equipment rack and push the power buttons by hand the remote may get out of sync and things don't work right sometimes. There is a 'Help' button that fixes these issues quickly but it may confuse some secondary users when it doesn't work. The other issue can be if you don't point the IR remote correctly the TV for example may not switch on but the remote thinks it should be on and you are stuck pushing the help button or trying to power everything off and on again.

The higher end units have an external RF base station which allow you to point the remote in any direction you want and the base station will send the required IR codes via carefully positioned IR senders next to your equipment. This solves most of the problems but be aware that the RF remote is limited in range to the RF base station so you can't control it in another room unless it is very close.

And the latest models also support wifi remote control from iOS/android devices which means if you are in wifi range (which is longer) you can control your equipment fine but its not as easy to unlock and fiddle with your phone to get the right app. remotes with hard buttons are often more convenient. Maybe they will make a wifi version of the hard remote at some point.

 

[3db]

Harmony for sure. The One was the best unit they ever made but discontinued it. I only have one left. You can get most of the One in the 650. The main thing you lose is the rechargeable battery. However, you can and should use rechargeable AA batteries with it. I also have a touch screen Harmony but frankly it is a hassle and poorly designed. It is currently stored in a drawer. I highly recommend the Harmony 650.

+1 on the Harmony 650. I use two of them, one for my main system and one for my secondary system. See my signature for the equipment list that it controls. If going this route, buy yourself and extra pair of AA rechargeable batteries and a battery charger so you can swap them out when the ones in the remote die out.

 

[herbu]

If you keep using the old remotes or walk up to your equipment rack and push the power buttons by hand the remote may get out of sync and things don't work right sometimes.

Right. The first thing I do when turning my system on in the morning is press the Power Off button. Everything is already off, but it sort of resets the remote so it starts w/ the correct state.

Also, think carefully about whether you want a touch screen on your remote or not. The touch screen takes up a fair amount of room, eliminating some of the buttons. And it limits the ways you can hold and operate the remote.

I really like our Harmony. Just not sure I got the right model for us.

 

[Timothy E Smith]

Hey Tim, I have used the Logitech Harmony One+ for years and it has been the best money ever spent. Very easy to setup through "MyHarmony" software. All buttons are customizable in each activity and device. There is NOTHING I haven't been able to set up (well, except PS4 because there isn't an interface yet). I did have an issue with my Sony BPD-S6500 blu-ray player not showing up. I emailed them at around Midnight. I received an email at 3am saying they added the device and to go ahead and upload it to the remote. Awesome results and couldn't be happier!

Thanks, I am going with the same remote, ordered it today...

 

[MR.MAGOO]

I tried the Logitech Harmony Ultimate One. A pain in the neck to setup and use. It's being returned for a refund. Has anyone used the Neeo?

 

[Timothy E Smith]

I tried the Logitech Harmony Ultimate One. A pain in the neck to setup and use. It's being returned for a refund. Has anyone used the Neeo?

I bought the Logitech Harmony 650 from Crutchfield, works like a champ, that's what you ought to get if they give you a swap out offer. PLUS you get an email form Logitech support weekly with tips and tricks, well worth the $$

 

[MR.MAGOO]

I bought the Logitech Harmony 650 from Crutchfield, works like a champ, that's what you ought to get if they give you a swap out offer. PLUS you get an email form Logitech support weekly with tips and tricks, well worth the $$

The Harmony 650 seems like the Ultimate One minus a charging cradle. Not going to risk the aggravation again.