 "logitech 550" | 2008-11-25 |
| - Reviewed By ironskull |
| I have a Harmony 1000 that I use for my main theater surround system,i.e. LCD TV, Bluray DVD, Pioneer CD player, NAD M-15 preamp, Dish SAT Dish, & Velodyne SPL1200r sub. It instantly powers any combination of items I want on.
I also have a Harmony 550 for the bedroom, TV, DVD player, and sat dish. The 550 works as well and is cheaper.
Both work as advertised
Advantage goes to the 1000 for an easier-to-see display for night watching.
I see other ratings on this site panning these remotes: My advice is if you're too stupid to program these remotes or not tech savvy, stick to your old remotes. |
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 "Great remote (once you spend a day configuring it)" | 2008-10-04 |
| - Reviewed By alekdavis |
The first time I tried to configure this remote, I almost gave up: I could not make it do what I wanted, the interface was confusing. After a few weeks, I tried to configure it again, and once I got a grip on the basic (the modes of operation, standard buttons vs. custom buttons, the Sound and Picture buttons), I was finally able to set it up to do exactly what I needed.
I agree with commenters lamenting the software. The software could be more user-friendly. For example, my default menus contained dozens of pages for custom buttons, which I did not need, and important buttons (such as power toggle) buried somewhere on page 15, and there is no easy way to rearrange the buttons: you must click the up/down arrow going one step up/down at a time. Deleting buttons will cause blanks on the screens (I would rather have the buttons shift to take the freed space). The wizard-based configuration could be less confusing. A manual explaining the remote basics would be helpful.
Once I spent a few hours and configured the remote to my taste (I changed most of the default settings for custom buttons), it turned out awesome. I like that all of my device and remote settings are stored online. I like the way the remote looks and feels (actually like the design better than the more expensive models). The remote seems more responsive than some of the native remotes it replaced (e.g. my Philips DVP5960/37 DVD remote, which takes up to 10 seconds to power on the DVD player).
I would definitely recommend this remote, but warn potential users that it may take them a while to figure the basics of the remote operation, master the software, and configure the devices. |
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| "New software works on Mac" | 2008-10-03 |
| - Reviewed By lorenzo457 |
Some of the reviews here say that this software doesn't work on a Mac. Those were probably written before the release of 7.5.0. This version works with the mac, although I did notice a flaw that eventually went away: You have to register with Logitech in order to set up the remote and sometimes the fields where you input your information would not become "active," and I could not get the software to accept any keystrokes. After fiddling around and pressing every link in sight, the problem worked itself out and I was able to continue.
As far as how the remote works, I like it. It has replaced all my remote controls except the DVD remote for the PlayStation 3 (which is bluetooth so that is to be expected).
The set up is done with the software via a usb cable. That is very convenient. It does take time, and it takes a little back and forth between the software and testing out the remote to make sure everything is the way you like it. But once you're done, that's it. You will have a remote that does everything the way you like it. Pretty much everything is customizable so if you're a tweek head, you should be satisfied with how this remote will allow you to put everything the way you want it. The only down side is that if you're more of a casual user and not big on computers, it might be a little frustrating to get the remote the way you want it.
One observation: This remote is intended to be used in "activities" mode, rather than in "device" mode. What this means is that if you select a "device" such as TV and you use a receiver/amp to control the volume, since you're in "device" mode, there is no way to have the volume control "punch through" to the receiver/amp. You will have to switch back and forth between TV and Receiver/Amp to control channel changing and volume control. Not very convenient. BUT, if you use the remote the way it was intended in "activities" mode, this is not an issue and the remote works the way you would expect (the volume "punches through"). You just have to set up the remote this way and that is what takes the most time. Logitech should have included a little more printed literature on this and a few other issues.
Overall, this is a great remote that could still use a little more polish on the software end, and some printed literature on how to use the remote would have been helpful. |
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| "good product" | 2008-10-03 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3BLUY5JKPUMZT |
| Good product, easy to set up. Definitly better than having 5 remotes to deal with. |
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| "gets the job done in ease" | 2008-10-02 |
| - Reviewed By User: ABGMO01QIOPWN |
| this is my first high end universal remote so i don't have anything to compare it to, but i can't imagine operations being any easier elsewhere. you just touch one single button if you want to watch tv, a dvd, listen to the radio, etc... you don't have to fiddle around switching all the setting on your receiver, then your tv, then the cd player, etc... easy to read and depress buttons as well. |
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| "Works - but many problems" | 2008-09-26 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2ABBGZ5P6OEYE |
| The Harmony 550 can do the job but you need patience.It took more than a week and about 6 calls to support to fine tune my remote so it would work on my equipment.Support was very helpful and the remote did the job well after all this. |
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| "Best remote I've had, but not without flaws" | 2008-09-24 |
| - Reviewed By User: AN24ATCW3AY5C |
| This is my first Harmony remote, so I don't know how it compares with its more expensive siblings, but this is hands down the best remote control I've had. The nice price drop I got ($50) is nice too. Nothing is perfect though, so here are some plusses and minuses.br /br /+ This remote has a strong signal, I can use it at longer distances and sharper angles than my original remotesbr /+ The setup is very easy, anyone can do it in just a few minutesbr /+ The "activities" organization of the remote is great. Members of my family had a difficult time with other remotes that had the feature because they still required lots of button pushing, but were able to use this one easily right awaybr /+ The remote is highly configurable from the computer incuding learning new functions and reassignig functions between just about any key you choosebr /br /- For some reason the remote wants to turn your TV to "tuner" input as the first step whenever it turns on your tv. It then sets the correct channel, but you're forced to listen to static for a few seconds every time. This is not configurablebr /- Not very ergonomic as you can see, this is compounded by somewhat awkward placement of the buttons. br /- Some buttons, like the ring in the middle and the vol and channel buttons around it look great but feel a bit flimsy, an abvious aesthetics over functionality choice, but I am worried how long they will last.br /br /After this remote wears out (hopefully not soon), I definitely plan to stay with the Harmony brand, maybe I'll check out the more expensive ergonomic models. |
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| "Best piece of equipment I've bought in a long time." | 2008-09-24 |
| - Reviewed By kerry1973 |
| Really, if you have any TV in the house that has more than one piece of AV equipment attached to it, you should get yourself one of these. Once you get the thing set up, it really makes life easier. I'm able to replace 5 separate remotes with the Harmony--including a remote that controls lights. It doesn't get any better than that. |
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| "I ask, it does!" | 2008-09-21 |
| - Reviewed By User: A312RO7Y3LF8UE |
| I have two 550's and they are outstanding. They run both systems and one has some really old components and work like a charm. I had one item not where I wanted it, so I call Customer service and they set it up exactly as i wanted in a matter of minutes. Outstanding Logitech service. Take your time programing and be sure of your connections and it's money. |
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 "Loved it but after about a year..." | 2008-09-19 |
| - Reviewed By User: A27H84A1RTZ05G |
| After about 1 year, the programmable button on the lower left of the display screen stopped working. Now I'm going to have to move the functions I've programmed for that button off to other buttons. I have remotes that are 10 years old and all of the buttons still work. |
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