Logitech Harmony 880 Advanced Universal Remote Control
by Logitech
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Logitech Harmony 880 Advanced Universal Remote Control
Customer Review: Couldn't live without the Harmony 880
Summary: 5 Stars
I've been using the Harmony 880 Advanced Universal Remote Control for the past 4 months now, and it has become an indispensable part of our home theater setup.
The Manufacturer's Suggest Retail Price (MSRP) is ridiculously high. Even at Amazon's usually-great prices, it's still a tough purchase to make for a "TV remote." But it's like air-conditioning and peanut butter: you don't know how much you need it until you've experienced it for the first time. If mine ever breaks, I will replace it, even at normal prices.
It took me three weeks to set up the remote; I was making it much more complicated than it really is. To simplify the product and understand how it works, you need to know this: The Harmony 880 works around "Activities." Examples of Activities are "Watch a DVD," "Play XBox 360," "Play Zune," "Watch TV," or "Watch Netflix."
Each device has a default state of either on or off. An Activity will turn on any device needed for a particular Activity and assign the controls to the appropriate device, e.g., volume controlled by home theater system and channels controlled by cable box. Switching between activities is easy, and doing that will turn off any device not needed by the new activity unless it's an always-on device.
There are five things I really like about the Harmony 880.
One is the level of customization. Each Activity can be customized so that the buttons you use the most are displayed on the main screen. You may have to program some sequences, but it's not difficult. The Activities that are auto-created do a fairly good job, but the power of this remote comes with its ability to customize it to how YOU use it. For example, I have set up a Widescreen button and a Normal button that change the aspect ratio. On the original TV remote, it's a three-step process that requires me to press FORMAT, 4, and then EXIT, and it takes about 3-5 seconds. On the Harmony 880, it takes less than 1 second and requires only a single button press.
The second thing I really like is that it can learn infrared (IR) codes for any IR device. If the Logitech Harmony database doesn't know about your device, use the included software to learn the IR codes. Everything I have, though, is able to work with the Harmony just fine, including my RCA Composite switcher, which makes switching between my N64, Xbox, and DVD player, as simple as a button press in the Activities menu.
The third thing I like about the Harmony 880 is the software. The software and firmware are updated fairly regularly to support new features and new devices. In addition, when installing the software for the first time, you will be asked to create an online account at Logitech. Your Harmony 880's settings will be stored online, so if your computer ever crashes and your data is lost, you do not have to reprogram the remote to make minor changes. Instead, just download the latest version, install it, and you're ready to customize.
The fourth thing I like is the back-lit keys and display, which make it easy to use in low-light settings.
The fifth thing I like is the charging cradle. This in itself has many benefits. First, it keeps the wife happy because we don't have a gazillion remotes laying all over the living room. Second, we always know where the remote is. And third, we never have to replace batteries.
I could go on and on about this remote, and I think I already have, but I can't stress enough how much easier it is to control our electronic equipment. There's even a Help button that will ask you whether or not certain devices are on to troubleshoot why an Activity may not be working when it worked before.
I don't recommend it to people who don't have a good understanding of technical things. If you can't set the time on a microwave, this is probably not the device for you. But for those of us who do understand, enjoy this remote. I know I do.
Customer Review: 5 stars for Combination of Functionality and Price
Summary: 5 Stars
At the ~$150 price point that the 880 is now selling at, I would give this product 5 stars. It's not perfect (I'll get into the areas of improvement in a bit), but it's a very flexible and configurable universal remote.
The pros:
* Able to replace all the remotes in your system: I was initially skeptical that it could really do this, but it did the job in my case. In addition to the TV, I have an HD-DVD player, HD tuner, HD-DVR, receiver, CD player, DVD player, DVD recorder, and a VCR. Even with all of these sources, the Harmony 880 enables me to not have to touch any of the individual remotes
* Ability to configure activities: Using the on-line utility, you can configure the exact sequence of keystrokes necessary to switch from one activity to the other. For instance, using my HD-DVD player, I use the multi-channel input of my receiver, which has to be toggled again to enable switching to another audio source. I've configured the 880 to toggle multi-channel when I enter the "Watch HD-DVD" activity and toggle it again when I exit the activity, freeing up the receiver to receive inputs for the next activity. You can set up to 8 activities, which is more than some of the lower-end Harmony products.
* Ability to set delays on a per device basis: This feature allows you to configure and optimize the remote to the individual IR "receiving" characteristics of your component. Some take longer between consecutive remote commands, some take longer to recover from receiving a command meant for another component. You're able to configure all of these settings to optimize performance of each component in the system.
* Charging base: Recharging the remote in the attractive charging base (with cool blue LED-lit symbol) means you never have to replace batteries
* On-line Utility: A comprehensive library of supported devices enable you to minimize the amount of 880 to original remote learning (pressing key on your original remote so 880 can "record" the IR signal for later use)
Room for Improvement:
* LCD quality: For this price point, the LCD should have been upgraded by now. The resolution is fairly low (120 x 160 I believe) and it's using CSTN technology (you'd find this in low end color-display cell phones). The price of LCD displays has come down significantly and a QCIF+ or QVGA TFT display would look awesome by comparison and enable the slide show feature to have meaning.
* Default activity soft-keys: I found the default soft-key options associated with each activity was too small a subset of the full array of keys available on the original remote. Therefore, for almost all activities, I had to add more keystrokes to support my desired activities. Easy enough to do, but took extra time. With more thought, this could have been more seamless
Caveats to take into consideration:
* Because the activity macros require multiple keystrokes, you have to hold the remote in front of your system for several seconds in most cases to assure that all commands reach their components. Otherwise, you're stuck in a limbo mode where some components are set, and some non-set. And because the remote doesn't know any better, it can't easily recover. You have to manually correct the components that didn't receive their commands to get back "in sync"
* Significant use of soft-keys: Soft-keys are the keys that are labelled on the LCD according to the activities you need. They are not devoted keys like Play, Menu, etc. Therefore, you'll have to scroll through different pages of soft-keys to find what you need (8 per page). This makes things less intuitive than the original remote, but ultimately usable.
Overall, a great product. At >$200, I'd give it 4 stars, but at the current price point, it's a 5-star item.
Customer Review: I started skeptical, I am now impressed
Summary: 5 Stars
The main feature of Harmony 880 is its ability to set up 'activities' which allow you to seamlessly control all the devices required to do things such as watching TV, listening to music or watching a DVD movie.
I was quite skeptical when I ordered this device - having lived all my life with half a dozen-plus remotes on the coffee table, sofa, under the sofa... where one changes the channels on the satellite receiver, another controls the sound and a third turns on the TV (that's actually how my system works) and then there's the DVD player, the Playstation/Blu-ray player. But, let me talk about the Harmony.
You get:
- the remote
- the charger/stand
- a rechargeable battery that goes inside the remote
- a power adapter that plugs into the electrical outlet
- a USB wire
- a setup CD
- a very basic 'paper' manual
You need:
- an Internet-connected computer with an USB port and a CD drive
The setup preparation:
- you insert the battery into the remote body
- you connect the power adapter to the stand
- you place the remote on the stand and wait for the battery to charge
- you connect the remote to the computer through the USB wire
- you insert the CD into the computer's CD drive
The initial remote configuration:
- you agree to the license terms
- you provide some information such as your name and email address
- you open an account with Logitech (password is optional)
- the setup utility updates the remote with the latest and greatest
Setting up devices:
You are asked to name the devices that you wish to control with the remote. It's best if you can provide the exact manufacturer, brand and model number. I did that for the first 3 devices I wanted to register and the setup utility was happy with the TV and the satellite receiver but, for some reason it did not recognize my little Bravia home theater. What followed was a series of interactions between the Bravia remote and the Harmony. I was asked to press certain buttons and, after a few minutes, the setup utility was able to recommend a close model.
Setting up activities:
Once I was done with the devices, the setup utility suggested some standard activities, such as 'watching TV' or 'watching a DVD'. For each activity, I had to answer some very specific questions having to do with the exact settings required for the TV, the Satellite receiver and the home theater device - I had to tell it which device changes the channels, which one controls the sound, which input are used by the TV and so on. Once all desired activities are configured, and up to 8 activities are possible, the computer updates the remote and you are ready to go.
Some nice touches:
- There is a page where the remote can be customized. You can actually upload a specific image for the background, you can select the way the time is displayed (time is updated from the computer). I even notice the ability to set up a slide show on the remote display.
- The display turns itself off after a while (time for it to stay on is configurable) but it lights up as soon as you pick up the remote.
- Most buttons that you are likely to need are already on the remote but the display makes up to eight 'soft buttons' available and they change depending of the context of your activities.
Overall, I started skeptical but I am now impressed.
My only regret is that blue-tooth is not supported so my PS3 can't be controlled but, even for the PS3, the remote will be quite useful, properly configuring the TV and the home theater.
I recommend this device and, contrary to my initial inclination, it gets 5 stars.
Customer Review: Best Universal Remote I have Owned
Summary: 5 Stars
Pros:
- Has rechargable lithium battery, with a good looking dock.
- Uses Logitech's online database for device IR codes.
- Highly customizable soft and hard keys.
- Customizable activity startup and shutdown.
- Easy to reach and intuitive hard button placement and layout.
- Can select controls by Activity (e.g Watch TV) or by Device (e.g. TV).
- Sends a strong IR singnal.
- Once configured it is easy to update using logitechs online tool (via usb).
Cons:
- low screen resolution on display
- Some of the funcitonality on the online tool are not intuitively implemented (hard to find).
- soft keys are a little hard to reach.
- Customizing activity startup and shutdown can require a little trial and error, although default behavior requires little effort and will work.
- After owning this remote for almost a year, I have another con. The remote does not always make good contact with it's cradle. This means that it isn't always charging when it should be and requires additional pressure for the charging contacts to touch. (added 12/10/2008)
Comment:
This is the second logitech remote I have owned. The last one got dropped one to many times by the kids onto the tile floor. I tried several universal remotes prior to Logitech and was never able to rid myself of my dependancy on the original remotes. There was always some functionality that, on occasion, I would have to go to the original remotes for. With this Logitech remote, I am able to put the original remotes away and forget that they exist.
Logitech sets up default key assignments based on activities and the equipment involved in those activities. At anytime, if you shold want to get the all the controls for a particular device, you can always hit the 'Device' key and then use the soft keys to select the device you want to control from the list presented on the screen. Once a device is selected all functionality for that device is presented by either the hard keys or the soft keys on the remote. To return tot he activity constrols, simply press the device button twice and the remote will be mapped to the prior activiy once again.
I will note that users do have to be patient when pressing an activity button. Sometimes an activity will require many IR signals to be sent. These signals are sent one at a time. While the activity is starting up you should remember to keep the device visible to the equipment so that all IR signals can be received.
I will say that the remote is easy to setup if all you do is use the Logitechs setup wizard and then use the remote. But, customizing the behavior might be moderately difficult, but not hard.
Regarding the use of the remote, 95% of the time you press an activity button, use the remote then you press the off button when you are done with your activity. On occassion a device might not get an IR signal for some reason, either the remote was not in clear view or God commanded it to be so, ... or whatever the case maybe. So on occasion you might need to use the help button or make use of the 'Device' key I mentioned earlier. I generally don't have a problem with missed IR commands, the 5% of the time that does not go smoothly is usually one of my kids, and it is because they aren't as conscious about where the remote is pointing. My wife has no problems using the remote either, but she would probably have some difficulty setting it up and customizing the configuration.
Well, I did not intend to say this much, but I hope this review is helpful to someone.
Customer Review: Comprehensive Review
Summary: 5 Stars
You set this remote up on the website using the included USB cable. There are a few reasons that users are able to set this remote up for any configuration, briefly, I will try to explain how this actually functions.
Their website can be annoying. Try to ignore the wizard questions, they are time wasters. Instead you should attempt to go right to the 'more options' home page. It will take a little time before you are able to set up your remote correctly, so be ready to invest some time on it at first. Once you learn their website, and how to skip past the wizard questions, it will become easier.
There are no instructions for programming this remote, nor are any needed! Everything is done on the webpage instead.
Buttons are easy to find by feel most of the time due to a good design, although none of them are soft touch. All of the buttons also glow in the dark, activated by a tilt feature which is very nice.
You will eventually find that there are two ways to control your stuff. Using the remote's activities button or using the remote's device button. The activities button is much more useful, because you can assign buttons freely from among more than one of your remotes as well as having it turn on the power buttons and switch inputs for you automatically. You can also assign all of the remote's buttons completely differently for each activity if you need to, even if the activities are for the exact same devices.
The devices button is not as useful as the activities button, because you are restricted to just one device's remote. Apparently, manufacturers provide Logitech with all of their codes, not restricted to just the remote you have. I found that the majority of these extra options, which are also not on my original remotes, don't work. In a few cases, however, one or two options that were not on my original remote are now available to me!
The notion that this remote does not have any of the 'macros' that have bedeviled idiot users of other remotes is false. You can create an activity and then, using their website, program your needed series of steps. They don't call it a macro, however, and their website interface makes programming steps easy enough so that anyone should be able to do so.
You also have complete freedom to assign any button from any of your remotes to any of this remote's buttons. This will allow you to cluster frequently used buttons together to make your remote more ergonomic if you wish. You can also add missing buttons, that don't match any of the included physical buttons, to the digital display buttons - eight per page. Changing buttons at will using their website is well thought out, complete and very easy once you get to the right webpage, getting to the right webpage at first can be hard. You also have complete freedom in assigning as many devices as you want to an activity.
Their website pops up whenever you plug in the USB cable to your remote, which is convenient.
I am sure it is becoming clear to you just why you can do anything with this remote!
There are a few drawbacks, however. They had several of the buttons wrong for my new HD TV's digital remote! No problem, it is easy to teach their website the needed buttons. You will be overwhelmed at first before you begin to realize that the remote is operating as advertised.
As a final note, the IR beam seems a little weak compared to my original remotes, forcing me to give up on using the remote from the kitchen and, of course, do some arm waving on occasion. I'll probably get the RF one next time for this reason.