Logitech Harmony 550 Universal Remote Control
by Logitech
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Our Price: $175.99 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $70.00 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Logitech Harmony 550 Universal Remote Control
Customer Review: Oh yes it can!
Summary: 5 Stars
I had my reservations towards buying this product after reading other reviews about how it was sluggish, difficult to program, and couldn't recognize when certain components were on or off. After purchasing this remote, I can confidently say that most of those statements were not exactly accurate.
It understands whether components are on or off
First of all, it does seem to notice when certain components are on or off. For example, if I am watching TV and then want to watch a DVD, it does not simply send the Power on/off command to both my TV and DVD player. It realizes my TV is already on so it only turns on my DVD player. However, it has failed to turn a component on one time when I forgot to keep the remote pointed to the system. All you have to do is press the help button, and it turns on the component that was left off and asked me if the problem was fixed just to be safe.
It is not slow
There were mentions of it being slow, however you can only be so fast when you are turning one component on at a time and then setting each one to the right setting. When I watch TV, I have to turn on my Dish receiver, Stereo receiver, and Plasma TV; then I have to make sure each is set to the right input, etc. The entire process takes about 3 seconds for the remote to cycle through all those commands. Yes, 3 seconds would be long for doing one command, but since there is no way to send all those signals at once, 3 seconds is pretty darned quick for activating about 8 commands.
The Software is Awesome
How much easier do you need it to be? You enter all the equipment you want to control, and it asks you how you use each one (for example, when you are watching TV do you control the volume with the TV or the Stereo), and then you press update and it is ready to go. You can then go back and match whatever command you want to any button on the remote. And if the remote does not have a button that is similar to the one on your device's original remote, you simply point that remote to the Logitech, press the button on the original remote that you want to duplicate, and the logitech "Learns" the command. You can then assign that command to any button on the logitech. Furthermore you can program any sequence of commands to one button.
The Software is quick
I noticed no delays whatsoever from the software or the remote web site. The only delay whatsoever is when you update the device after configuring all your settings. This took about 30 seconds to one minute, which is pretty quick for the amount of configuring that takes place during that brief time.
How about that customer support department?
The great thing is that if any of the above is too difficult, you simply call the telephone support number. There is ZERO Hold time and the hours of availability are pretty extensive. The support staff is polite and knowledgeable, and the greatest thing about it is that as soon as you give them your details they have full access to your remote and all its settings through the software. Just tell them what you want to do and THEY WILL DO ALL THE PROGRAMMING FOR YOU.
Conclusion
Overall, this thing is amazing. It looks and feels like a million $$$, the buttons are laid out very ergonomically, and the back-light comes in handy when the room is dark and you are still getting familiar with the button placements. One press of a button and all the buttons glow in a nice blue color. Everything is fully customizable and it knew all of my components with only the need for a couple of minor tweaks after the initial programming. It has replaced 4 remotes of very high end items such as my Onkyo Stereo/HDMI pass through receiver, Dish network HD DVR, and Sony Blue Ray player and Panasonic 58" plasma. I can even control my second listening zone without a hitch ...something I could not even do with the original stereo receiver remote. My wife loves it too because she can finally control everything without me having to first give her a few training sessions like before. You just select what activity you want to do and the remote takes it from there!
The only cons I could think of are that I wish there were a few more buttons such as "eject", "aspect", and "record", but I was easily able to use some of the bonus buttons and assign them with whatever commands were not present in the button layout. I also could do without the click sound it makes whenever your press anything, as it is something I am not used to. Overall, this thing is amazing and at an exceptional value when considering the features and functionality, quality materials and craftmanship, user-freindly software, and phenominal customer support.
Customer Review: featureful, attractive, and completely customizable
Summary: 5 Stars
I nearly purchased the 510, or whichever one is designed to work with the XBox 360, until this one went on sale for even less and I realized that it only controls up to 5 devices and this one can do up to 15. I also love the cool blue glow on the buttons and the LCD backlight.
I've got this remote controlling my TV, cable box, XBox 360, and my computer (for listening to music with Winamp and Pandora). It regularly turns off my Samsung flat CRT TV when controlling my 360, but that's a problem with conflicting device codes, not the remote. I've also found that if something gets messed up when the remote starts an activity, about 90% of the time the first press of the "help" button will fix it.
Do not get this remote expecting a quick setup. The setup software is very easy to use and intuitive, but it can take some work to get the buttons all customized just the way you want them. Personally, I spent about 4 hours programming the remote, because I wanted it just right. The most difficult part was programming the controls for my computer; finding the right software settings and button functions in my IR receiver software (IMON) on the computer and finding the right "device" to use in the remote settings.
I also set one of these up for my parents, controlling a TV, DVD player, VCR, receiver, and a very old CD player (which the software didn't have the codes for, but it only took about 2 minutes to teach it the codes). One thing that my parents didn't like about it was how small the numbers are on the number keys, for entering channel numbers. Also, it's too bad this version doesn't have the ability to do RF as well as IR, because their receiver is often closed behind a solid door in their entertainment system, and the RF extender would work nicely to allow the door to stay closed. But that would probably add a bit to the cost.
Overall, an awesome, featureful, extremely customizable remote.
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UPDATE (Sept 2009):
Recently, I needed to install a Comcast digital adapter on my second TV (without a full cable box) which resulted in needing a second remote to control the adapter and TV which was unable to do some of the advanced TV controls (menu, energy-saver, timer, input slection, etc), so I setup this Harmony remote to also control the devices in the second room, including a TV, digital cable adapter, and Playstation 2 (for DVDs). So now, I can either use the three remotes in the second room, or bring the harmony back with me and not worry about juggling remotes. I have also added a remote-controllable fan to the devices, so I can continue to be lazy and techy even when I just wanna cool off. The software was unable to find the correct fan controls, and the original fan remote worked in a strange, additive way, seeming to have a completely different control code for every possible combination of settings (not just oscillate on/off, fan hi/med/low, but fan-hi-osc-on, fan-hi-osc-off, fan-low-osc-on, etc), so it took some creative custom button programming and IR learning, but it works quite well now.
CON: One minor con that I've come to find quite annoying is that, while you can program in macro commands (so the remote can do more complicated multi-command procedures), you are limited to 5 commands in each macro. That's not "multi" to me. I set up a macro to turn on the energy-saver feature of my second TV and it's enough commands to get into the menu and turn on the feature, but I have to manually exit the TV's menu. And 5 commands is far from enough to turn off my XBox 360 the way that I want to: I know I can program in the power-off code for the XBox, but for fear of turning it off while in the middle of playing or saving a game, I have a bogus ("#") code set to the power-off command, so I have to manually power it off either with the button on the 360, or in the 360's menu, and I'd like to set up a macro to do the menu shut-down, but it takes way more than 5 button presses to do that. (For me, this is not enough of a con to hurt the 5-star rating I gave this remote, since it's got everything else going for it, just a slight inconvenience, just be aware of this issue if you buy it planning to make use of the macro-programming function).
Customer Review: Look no further for a remote - EVER!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
Want to watch TV but all you have is sound with no picture? Then you have picture but no sound...after several more button presses you now have no sound and no picture!? Or the parents are in town and you're leaving the house but have to spend 30 minutes teaching them how to use your complicated home theater setup? This is the remote for YOU!! I am a huge fan of this product. I've owned it for 6 months now and highly recommend it IF you have a home theater setup with several different components. If all you have is a TV and DVD player than don't spend your money.
What this remote does is this: It turns on your TV, sets the TV to the correct AV input (i.e. Video1 for DVD, Video2 for cable box, whatever your set up is) sets the A/V to the correct input (DVD/DVR, TV/SAT, etc) turns on the DVD player or cable box (again whatever you select as wanting on) all with one touch of a button. AND makes sure that any device you aren't using for a particular activity is turned off. Why have the cable box on while watching a DVD? You can customize how each activity is labeled (i.e. watch TV, watch television, watch cable) customize what buttons are displayed in the lcd based on a particular activity (in my case the surround sound and subtitle options are available when I'm watching a DVD or surround sound and movie on-demand options available when I'm watching cable). You can customize the key press delay (useful for equipment that takes a few seconds to read a key press - keeps it from losing a key command when several buttons are pushed sequentially); customize the inter device delay (useful for when a device takes a moment after receiving an IR signal to be ready for the next signal and signals are being sent to several different devices).
I could go on forever. Suffice it to say, if you want your system to do a particular function this remote can make it happen - even the specialized functions like "record" or "Chapter set" on your DVD recorder.
All you have to do is input the correct brand/model of your unit in the computer software and Logitech finds the correct codes for you. If for some reason your unit is not in the Logitech database the remote has a learning feature that lets you upload every function of your original remote into the Logitech database. You also get to name the button- no more trying to figure out that SSS means "Standard Surround Sound". May not sound like a big deal but when toggling through the LCD buttons on the remote and you have a complex Surround sound machine, the abbreviations other users come up with can be crazy!
As for flaws - not enough to knock off a star. The load time takes longer than I expected - every time you set up your remote on the computer you have to "synch" it with the computer to upload your settings. This takes awhile as the software actually stores your remote profile on a Logitech database. You don't have to enter your personal information to register the remote, just a log-in and password. The good of the online database is that if your computer crashes you don't lose your remote settings. I have a 3mb/sec connection and it is slow; very frustrating when "tweaking" the remote but once you're done does not become an issue (so not worth knocking down a star).
Some users might argue that it is too hard to figure out the software but consider this: with every new software program there is a "learning curve". I did have to spend a few hours getting to know the software, playing with settings, getting everything "perfect" but now I am pretty familiar with the software and can do about anything with the remote. My remote can control my home theater system (TV, cable box, DVD recorder, A/V surround sound system), my bedroom TV and DVD player, Mutlimedia PC and PC speakers - even my remote controlled fan!
I will never be without a Logitech Universal remote again!!! I highly recommend this to anyone with several components in their home theater system. Put those 8 remotes you were thumbling around with out of sight!!! Just remember - if you only have a couple devices in your setup this may not be worth the initial setup trouble. Keep that in mind while you shop.
Customer Review: The best Universal Remote and here's why:
Summary: 5 Stars
I have researched and purchased several universal remotes and have not been happy with any of them until now. The only warning I have is that this remote is not for the technologically unsavvy as you must set up the functions of this remote on a computer, then download the settings to the remote. If this sounds ominous to you, be assured that the program to set it up is user-friendly and easy to navigate. You can download the remote settings with one click of a button.
1. Smart design: the buttons are ergonomically placed. The bottom of the remote has raised numbers for channel changing. The mute and prev (previous channel) button are well placed and for the night owls, all the buttons glow for late-night channel surfing.
2. Incredibly well-thought-out utility: The remote has an "Activities" button that lets you choose which activity you want and sets up your home entertainment system for it. EXAMPLE - I want to play Xbox 360. Before I bought this remote, I would have to turn on the Xbox, turn on the TV and set it to AV1, turn on the receiver and set it to Video 1 (for stereo sound), turn off the cable box or any other peripheral device.) Once programmed, the remote does ALL of this for me, I just grab the controller and Halo3 is already loaded up.
You can set up custom activities or fill in the settings for standard ones such as Watch a DVD, Watch TV, Listen to Radio, Listen to CDs, etc. Once the remote knows what to turn on and for what purpose, it does it with one click of a button.
Even if you want to switch from one activity to another, the remote will change the settings from Play Xbox to Watch TV in one press of a button. The remote is smart and figures out what it needs to change in order to change the activity. If for some reason, one component misses the signal from the remote, you just press the "help" button on the remote and it walk you through a brief series of steps to correct the problem.
3. Just punch in the model number of your component and it downloads the settings! EXAMPLE - when setting up the remote, it asks for the make and model of your home entertainment components. I punched in my TV's make and model number and it automatically downloaded everything it needed to know about the remote functions. It knew all of the TV's functions. Plug and play. This is true for all of the components of my entertainment system, and I have components from all different manufacturers.
4. Yes, it will work with your cable box and the menu settings if your cable box has a recording function - like TIVO.
5. No, it will not work with devices that use blue-tooth technology for remote control. EX: Wii and PS3 use bluetooth for their remote control functions and cannot be controlled by the Harmony. I GUESS I can actually walk UP and turn those two devices on or scramble for their remotes...
6. "Devices" button permits you to switch from device to device and enter custom commands.
7. Surprisingly light-weight and smaller than most universal remotes. I was actually quite surprised by its small size and weight. Good show Logitech!
After giving multiple universal remotes a test drive, I was highly impressed and satisfied with this one.
$Money saving tip: though the listed price is in the $75 range, I got this remote for $49.99! Here's the trick: place the remote in your shopping cart then "save for later." Each time you view your shopping cart, amazon alerts you to price increases or decreases for items in the cart. When I saw the price had been reduced by $25, I jumped all over it. After a day, however, the price jumped back up to $75. I would easily pay $75 or more for this remote but getting it for 65% off retail was icing on the cake.
Happy couch-potato-ing!
Customer Review: this remote is so great I could cry
Summary: 5 Stars
This remote is absolutely fantastic.
In my life, pre-Harmony, I had to use 4 different remotes to control all aspects of my entertainment system, I easily and quickly combined every process into one remote with the Harmony. I was even amazed to see a couple of my remote A/V switches such as my HDMI and RCA switches were fully compatible and worked right off the bat with zero tweaking. These switches are made by very small and obscure companies and I was very impressed to see support for these devices.
Presently, living post-Harmony, I don't even have to move anymore. This remote has become like my life control panel where like I said I don't even have to move. Being a vegetable has never been easier.
I have read many reviews with people complaining about this product, and a lot of their arguments against this product are unfair.
This is the lower end Harmony and does what it is intended to extremely well for the price. The software runs like butter, and the remote couldn't be easier to use and program. You absolutely 100% get what you pay for and as far as I'm concerned even more.
I've read people complaining about the lcd screen (which is plenty bright and easily viewable), but it is somewhat small. Basically this is the lower end Harmony so for those complaining about the screen should go to their nearest fire dept and take the jaws of life and open their wallet and purchase one of the higher model Harmony's that meet their needs. The package clearly shows the screen size and giving a negative review based on the screen is wrong. I love this remote and will not allow any false views of it.
As far as I know I think the software is web based. How a computer handles that is based on the computers specs. The software works very well and from what I have seen their are constnatly updates available. I don't think saying the software is slow is a fair judgement of this remote either and giving it a lower rating because of that isn't justifiable as every computer is different.
Naturally their may need to be some effort put in to program this remote if things don't work perfectly, but comparable to other remotes it's still 100x easier.
This remote can learn from other remotes and you can also fully customize things if so inclined. People have complained about this remote taking too long to program and that things dont work 100% smooth, but again, this should not take away from the rating of the remote as similar to the software, its usage and programming is mostly dependent on the specifications of what's running it. For the software its the specs of the computer and in this case the specs of the person running it.
If you have an IQ above 10 you will have absolutely no problem getting this to work, and quickly.
This product is amazing and fantastic and I am so fired up about this thing I tell everyone I know to get it. Do not hesitate to buy it as long as it suits your particular needs. Perhaps if you have some vision trouble and difficulty seeing, you may want to consider shelling a little extra for the higher model which may work out better for you because of the screen. The main difference between this and the 890 is a bigger display and rechargeable battery, both of which do not matter to me, but may to someone else.
Buy this remote I promise your quality of life will improve greatly.