This is my quick review of Harmony's new universal remote, the Harmony One, MSRP $250
So I needed a new universal remote, my HTM-MX500 was not really accomplishing what I needed it to do. I hated having to scroll through my inputs on my TV whenever I wanted to change what I was watching, and the wife was getting frustrated. Plus it was damaged from when I threw it last year after a Louisville bball game.
I don't really have that many components to control, here is my list of equipment:
TV - JVC LT32X667 32" HDTV
A/V - Marantz SR4600
DirecTV - HR20 HD DVR
Sony PS3
I read about how easy it was to set up, just plug it into your computer, enter the models of the equipment you have, and you're off and running.
Well, it wasn't that easy for me, not really sure if I have "off the wall" devices or what, but it just wasn't that simple.
Initial setup is fairly straightforward, install the CD on your computer that came with it, create an account with Logitech, connect the remote via USB and you're ready to go. Keep in mind that you have to have your computer connected to the internet to program the remote because it downloads all the commands from the internet.
I went through my list of entering all my models and answering simple questions such as what component do you want controlling the volume while watching TV? Naturally, if you have an A/V receiver, that is what you select. After running through the setup and updating the remote, I hit the Watch TV button on the touchscreen LCD and it turned my components on, although everything wasn't set correctly. It then has this nifty help feature built into the LCD that asks you if everything is correct. I pushed no because it wasn't and it asked me specific questions, such as "Is the TV on the correct input", "is the A/V receiver on", and so forth. After answering a couple of the questions it automatically changed everything to the correct input except for the receiver would never change to the correct input I specified in the setup portion.
So I connected it back to the computer and had to manually learn the command for the input I was using on my receiver. Not that big of a deal, but a pain in the *** nonetheless. Tried it again, and voila, set up perfect. While watching TV you can set up Favorite channels to display as well. The great thing about these is that you can add the specific icons for the channels you want. Want to change to ESPN HD, just hit the ESPN HD logo on the LCD Screen. You can add up to 4 pages of favorites for a total of 24 channels.
Next up, the PS3. I knew the remote would not control the PS3 directly because the PS3 uses bluetooth technology and this remote uses IR, but I still wanted it to go directly to the correct input on the TV without me having to scroll through the input 6 times to get to Digital 2. So I hit Play PS3 button (The activities are all customizable as well) and sure enough it went straight to correct input on my TV and switched to the DVD input on my receiver. Switched back to Watch TV and it worked like a champ. No need to set up complicated macros anymore.
I set up the same activity for my Wii as well and sure enough worked perfect.
So in conclusion after the initial speed bump I had with the setup it's a terrific remote, accomplishing everything I need, including keeping the wife happy. Although it's a tad on the expensive side, it works great.
So I needed a new universal remote, my HTM-MX500 was not really accomplishing what I needed it to do. I hated having to scroll through my inputs on my TV whenever I wanted to change what I was watching, and the wife was getting frustrated. Plus it was damaged from when I threw it last year after a Louisville bball game.
I don't really have that many components to control, here is my list of equipment:
TV - JVC LT32X667 32" HDTV
A/V - Marantz SR4600
DirecTV - HR20 HD DVR
Sony PS3
I read about how easy it was to set up, just plug it into your computer, enter the models of the equipment you have, and you're off and running.
Well, it wasn't that easy for me, not really sure if I have "off the wall" devices or what, but it just wasn't that simple.
Initial setup is fairly straightforward, install the CD on your computer that came with it, create an account with Logitech, connect the remote via USB and you're ready to go. Keep in mind that you have to have your computer connected to the internet to program the remote because it downloads all the commands from the internet.
I went through my list of entering all my models and answering simple questions such as what component do you want controlling the volume while watching TV? Naturally, if you have an A/V receiver, that is what you select. After running through the setup and updating the remote, I hit the Watch TV button on the touchscreen LCD and it turned my components on, although everything wasn't set correctly. It then has this nifty help feature built into the LCD that asks you if everything is correct. I pushed no because it wasn't and it asked me specific questions, such as "Is the TV on the correct input", "is the A/V receiver on", and so forth. After answering a couple of the questions it automatically changed everything to the correct input except for the receiver would never change to the correct input I specified in the setup portion.
So I connected it back to the computer and had to manually learn the command for the input I was using on my receiver. Not that big of a deal, but a pain in the *** nonetheless. Tried it again, and voila, set up perfect. While watching TV you can set up Favorite channels to display as well. The great thing about these is that you can add the specific icons for the channels you want. Want to change to ESPN HD, just hit the ESPN HD logo on the LCD Screen. You can add up to 4 pages of favorites for a total of 24 channels.
Next up, the PS3. I knew the remote would not control the PS3 directly because the PS3 uses bluetooth technology and this remote uses IR, but I still wanted it to go directly to the correct input on the TV without me having to scroll through the input 6 times to get to Digital 2. So I hit Play PS3 button (The activities are all customizable as well) and sure enough it went straight to correct input on my TV and switched to the DVD input on my receiver. Switched back to Watch TV and it worked like a champ. No need to set up complicated macros anymore.
I set up the same activity for my Wii as well and sure enough worked perfect.
So in conclusion after the initial speed bump I had with the setup it's a terrific remote, accomplishing everything I need, including keeping the wife happy. Although it's a tad on the expensive side, it works great.
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