Logitech Harmony 676 Universal Remote Control
by Logitech
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Logitech Harmony 676 Universal Remote Control
Customer Review: Highly customizable remote
Summary: 5 Stars
Probably the most overlooked aspect of a home A/V center is the remote control. Instead of having to deal with a host of remotes (4 in my case), with Harmony 676 you get a fully customizable single remote to control all of your components. The online configuration tool is flexible and gives you almost full control for programming the remote the exact way you like it. The activity-oriented interface saves you time and frustration when changing from one device to another. And the online database is so extensive, chances are slim your components won't be there. Note that the free web tour on Logitech's web site does not do justice to the actual interface once you purchase your remote.
Some very useful unadvertised features:
- Explicit control over timings per device: pause between commands, boot time, pause between commands for different devices, duration for input switch
- Dual mode of operation - activity mode and device mode to control an individual device
- Three sets of layouts for each activity - activity, sound control and picture control
- Multiple tabs of programmable buttons (in groups of 6 or 4 plus title for the Harmony 676) and you can cycle through them; this is very useful if you need more than the provided number of extra buttons, which was the case for my Cox Scientific Atlanta 8300HD DVR
- You type the title for each programmable button - you are not constrained to the predefined device function names
Some small gripes I have with the remote are:
- The default timings for my Olevia 237V TV were very far from reality and needed radical adjustments (I still haven't found the right ones it seems since the TV sometimes doesn't switch the input correctly on power up)
- There's no control over the duration of each IR signal and as a result my TV always increases and decreases the volume by two notches (accepts two presses for every one); this also leaves a feeling of slight general sluggishness, but not very pronounced (you'll only notice if the original remote is faster as was the case with my Olevia remote)
- Harmony 676 is advertised as targeting DVRs, but it lacks a C button in addition to A and B for my Cox Scientific Atlanta 8300HD DVR, thus I ended up reprogramming the Prev button to be C; the other important and missing DVR buttons from my original remote were: DVR list, Live, Replay, Page- and Page+, which while I assigned to the programmable buttons, are still cumbersome to reach
Other observations:
- No support for macros aside from the activity buttons (I haven't needed macros myself for now, just mentioning in case it's important to others)
- Supports multiple modes for switching inputs based on device capability
- Supports multiple modes for direct channel input based on device capability
- Intended for tech savvy users; don't go for it unless you like tinkering with the settings
Customer Review: Simply Awesome
Summary: 5 Stars
I have a very complicated A/V system, with 9 devices in it - includinga Mac Mini. The web site knew most of them completely - includingcommands that weren't on the manufacturers remote but the devicesunderstand. I had to train it on a few commands, and one completedevice (the Apple Remote for the Mac). That was a little bit more timeconsuming than other learning remotes, but not bad in total.The one thing to understand is that this is an *activity* orientedremote. If you treat it like a conventional device oriented remote,you'll be unhappy with it, because accessing commands via the devicesis clumsy. You'll also be missing the best feature of this remote: theactivities.The device configurations are all well and good, but you shouldn't beusing them very often. If you find yourself hitting the device buttonto get to some command a lot, reconfigure the activities you use it onto add that command to those activities. You get *three* completeremote configurations for each activity: the main one, which cancontrol everything, one to control the device that displays thepicture, and one to control the device(s) that play sound. While ittakes some imagination, I can usually find a way to get a command intoan activity.For instance, I like to pause a movie or tv show to check imdb ortv.com for information on it (usually something like "Where have Iseen them before?"). To do that, I pause the show, switch the TV tothe Mac input, and then use the Mac to hit the web. All my activitieswith picture output now have buttons to switch the TV input to the macand then back to their proper input, just to help satisfy this quirkof mine.The one downside is that the configurations are shared in some strangeway, and can create confusing results. For instance, I like to use theTV "Display" command from the DVD, so I assigned it to an unusedbutton. It showed up on the PVR activity, where the button issued boththe TV and the PVR command. I called tech support, and they had memove it to the Picture configuration. This works fine with the DVDactivity, but is slightly more work. It doesn't interfere with the PVRactivity, but if I forget that I'm in Picture configuration, I'll getboth buttons again. On the other hand, setting the same function onthe Mac activity worked with no problems.All in all, it's simply awesome. Configuration is usually straightforward, tech support has always solved the problem, or provided awork around. The web configuration seems a little convoluted, butmakes very complicated things much easier. The activity orientationis simply wonderful, once you "get" it.Customer Review: Outstanding product and customer service
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this remote 11 months ago. It is everything everyone mentions and more! I had bought some of the cheap universal remotes and they died quickly, were a pain to set up, and never had quite enough buttons for the features I needed. I took the plunge into the higher price range and haven't regretted it. In fact I'm trying to justify getting a few more entertainment system items in my other room just to buy another remote, pathetic I know.
This past week the LCD screen stopped working. The light works, but no text. I called up tech support and got through in no time. I spoke to a great customer service rep who was very quick and helpful. He recommended a firmware and software upgrade and also let me know that I had about 30 days left while it was still under warranty and that if that didn't work I should call back and they'd replace it. Skeptical, I upgraded everything and it still didn't work. I called back today and they are going to send me a new one. Unfortunately they no longer sell this model so they're sending the 670 which looks almost identical but the DVR buttons have been flopped with the ffwd, rec, etc buttons. Hopefully it will be just as good.
Pros
- Excellent customer service reps and no hassle replacement
- Everything handled online so customer service knows software, firmware, OS information and you don't have to bother supplying all that info
- rugged, dropped on a wood floor many times with no issues. No, a drop didn't cause the problem I encountered.
- rubber buttons, easy to use
- Incredibly easy to program
- Makes turning on any combination of options a one touch operation and no additional buttons need to be pushed to control the different components. On most remotes you have to constantly push Receiver, DVD, and TV buttons when watching movies and trying to adjust volume or skip
- built in help is incredibly easy to use and always solves the problem from the comfort of your couch
Cons
- number buttons on the bottom of the remote make it a bit difficult to hold in one hand and hit the numbers. Takes some getting used to.
- Center select button ring can sometimes go in the wrong direction if not hit perfectly. minor gripe
Bottom line is you can't go wrong if you're using this with your system and a DVR. I am tired of watching my parents and in-laws tape their remotes together so I think they will each be getting one of these for Christmas.
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Customer Review: Best Remote I have ever owned!
Summary: 5 Stars
I have owned this remote for over a year now, so I have really put it through the test. During this period, I changed TVs, receivers, and DVD players, and each time the online interface tool was simple and flawless in helping step me through the process. I also changed computers, going from a PC to a Mac, and found the software works equally well on both platforms.
Having read some folk's frustrations with the set-up process, I would have to discount these as severely "technonlogy challenged" individuals...the kinds of people who probably had problems figuring out how to turn their electronics on or off with their old remotes...people like my 75 year old mother-in-law who used to call me long-distance to help her figure out how to turn off her sat box and turn on her VCR.
The only issues I have encountered are that sometimes when you press an activity button, such as to watch TV, my Directv sat receiver might not come on. This is usually the first sign that the batteries need replacing. My second issue is that to go from watching TV to watching a DVD, you basically have to power everything off, then power back up with the watch DVD activity button. Since HD TVs take a while to go through a power down, this is a bit of a hassle. But nothing that one can't live with.
On the extremely positive side, aside from the fact that it controls evey device you have and turns them on in the right order and with the right settings to do any activity you want, I love the fact that it is a) backlit (makes it much easier to see and control features when you are watching a movie and have all the lights out!) and b) battery powered (I want my remote to be remote and not always sitting in a charger!). I also like how it asks you questions to see if everything is working properly. If not, it steps you through the process to get everything in sync. I also like the interchangable face plates, although I admit that I have never changed from our red plate since we got the remote...just nice to have the option.
All-in-all, like most Logitech products I have owned, this is a very well designed product with terrific online support and tools. I cannot imagine a better remote for the money.
Customer Review: Very easy set up for my 8 devices at home
Summary: 5 Stars
This was a breeze. It updated its own firmware, and then the cd installed program updated to a newer version. I followed the instructions, and as long as you enter the exact model number as written on the back of the units to be controlled it works great. There is a built in help menu right in the controller itself, for example, it wasn't turning on the TV with the DVD and the A/V receiver. I pressed help and it asked if the TV was on. When I said no, it turned on the TV. From that moment on it never failed to turn on the TV.
I also like the changeable faceplates. I use red for the living room and blue for the bedroom. This allows you to have a couple in the house and easily distinguish them.
Logitech has the best tech support I ever spoke too. Free, and very knowledgeable. The guy spent ten minutes before I bought the remote explaining how with Logitech, 99 percent of the time, learning is not required (although it can do it fine). I just entered the model numbers of the units, and it asked how the wires were situated in the back of the A/V, and WHAM, it figured the rest out and it works great now. I push on button and the vcr is playing. I press another and the DVD is going. I push another and everything turns off. It even tunes the TV to channel 3 or 4 when the vcr mode is selected.
Very easy to setup and use, and the wife loves it!
BY THE WAY: I saw a review written around the same time as mine that you need to power down everything when switching between different activities. This is not true in my case. If I am in TV mode and hit DVD, it simply turns on the DVD and selects the correct video input automatically. If I were to then hit VCR, the DVD will turn off, the VCR turns on, and the TV automatically goes to channel 3 without turning off (what my VCR to TV input is) . If you find yourself having to power down everything between different activities, you most likely have a timing issue with the device delay (time between sending each device the correct command in a multi device sequence) Either goto the help menu right in the control or call logitech TECHNICAL assistance. You can get it right and it will save the life of that expensive TV.