Universal remotes?

Sami

What's the best out there in their price range?

$500 and up?

$300-500?

$150 - 300?

< $150?

I have Harmony 659 and like its easy setup, but hate to use it. I also have Sony RM-AV2000 and love to use it but it does not support all the equipment I have. I'd like to find something that's a crossover between the two (large LCD display and easy programming).

MADGSF

I have a Harmony 1 which is the first PC programmable remote I've had. I love it, no problem programming it to do what I want and it works great with my equipment. The touch screen is big to me, bright and very repsonsive. Comfortable to hold and is rechargeable. I only needed it to learn one command for my DVR box otherwise it knew everything. It can be had a Best Buy for 199.00 and probably less online.

wingnut4772

MADGSF wrote: »

I have a Harmony 1 which is the first PC programmable remote I've had. I love it, no problem programming it to do what I want and it works great with my equipment. The touch screen is big to me, bright and very repsonsive. Comfortable to hold and is rechargeable. I only needed it to learn one command for my DVR box otherwise it knew everything. It can be had a Best Buy for 199.00 and probably less online.

Ditto.

AsSiMiLaTeD

Sami, may want to take a look at the Harmony One. I know you're not a big fan of their remotes, but this has very little in common with your 659 - it's a much better remote. i have one of those and a 880, which has more in common with the 659. I like both, but I really like the One.

Grimster74

I've owned quite a few remotes and probally the most user friend remote out there would be the Harmony One that I have now. If your looking to go all out, look into the URC remotes. I owned the MX-950 Aurora and absolutely loved it as well but as much as I change gear around, needed something that was quick to intergrate into my system so I went with the Harmony.

MikeC78

I absolutely love the Harmony One. It was a huge step above the 880 that I previously owned.

rayslifecycle

+1 on the Logitech Harmony 1- especially useful if the wife has called you at work to ask "How do I watch TV again?" Most people really dig them.

The Denon's Universal Remote (which I use) looks cool, is quite ergonomic, and is very complicated........and that was what I liked about it - keeps the guests from messing with the gear...........seriously though - it only took a few months to get comfortable with it......hahaha...but the price is unknown as it came with the receiver and a little sister.....

bobman1235

I have an 880 and have no real complaints about it. Setup was relatively painless and it seems to do almost everything I want or need it to do.

shack

This has always been one of my favorites....but it's very expensive and very high maintenance. Not sure how well the mute button works…but the ergonomics and design are outstanding.

dpljr

I have a Harmony 670. Works great. The only issue I have is I wish the center buttons were bigger to enable my arthritic old fingers to easily push the correct button.

zingo

I also vote for Harmony One. It's very easy to use and has high wife factor.

mark090852

I have the Harmony 1000. Works great with all my equipment. The only drawback is that it usually takes two hands to operate it. My wife loves the look of it sitting on the charger so all is good.

Kex

The Harmony remotes are fabulous, and you will truly be able to put away all your existing remotes. I have got several of the 720 from Costco and amazon.com for friends. They really have a huge database of gear, and if it becomes faulty, from what I have read, they replace it for free, even if the warranty has expired sometimes. They are very versatile and easy to use, although perfecting the setup 100% does require some effort. It is so easy to change and add equipment though.

Until the One came out, some people did tend to criticize the button layout. URC does seem to pay more attention to button layout, but they are more expensive, and all but the newest models use quircky abbreviated text names such as TVPWRON, whereas most Harmony models allow full custom text labels with a color LCD. URC programming can be very advanced, probably more so than Harmony, but you'll only get access to the software updates if you buy from an authorized dealer, and even then, some people find it impossible to comprehend. It certainly is not nearly as simple to add or modify hardware as it is with Harmony.

Either way, neither Harmony or URC would be a mistake. For URC, one of the best online sources is http://surfremotecontrol.com/. They're not allowed to advertise their special pricing, so you have to ask to get the heavy discounts available. For Harmony, amazon.com will do, as well as some of the other well known sites.

One final point worth noting: not many of the Harmony models are RF, so some require line of sight to your equipment, or an IR repeater such as http://www.hot-link.com/. Check amazon.com for Hot Link Pro pricing below MSRP. Most of the URC models are RF.

Those would be the two most popular brands that do not require an installer.

AndyGwis

I have several URC remotes, including:

MX-700
MX-800
MX-850

And love them all! I have a few I'm not using if you'd like to purchase and/or try one out for a while. Breeze to program and work wonderfully!

mrmusicman

I recently purchased a Logitech Harmony 670 which is my first universal remote and I couldn't believe how easy it was to set up and use.:D

Kex

AndyGwis wrote: »

... I have a few I'm not using if you'd like to purchase and/or try one out for a while. Breeze to program and work wonderfully!

Andy, I would love to try one if I may, depending on what models you have to spare of course. If I like it, I'll send it right back to you, or pay the price you deem reasonable. PM me if you want to tell me to stuff it, so I don't get too embarassed in front of my peers here ...

AndyGwis

Kex - PM coming with details. Happy to send you one of them to try / buy.

garyinct

Another vote for Harmony One, best remote I've ever had or used

disneyjoe7

I use a 880 remote which I love never played with the newer Harmony One, but the 880 always impresses me for what I can do with it.

I use a Ku dish MPeg2 sat receiver which I like to play with find wild video feeds, so I have a button for this input. When I searching for wild feeds, I sometimes like to see what's on the other DirecTV feed or like to listen to XM radio. I now have button macros which switch tv and or avr for proper signal with a touch of a button without switching activities.

Way cool.... I already rated it the highest rating of 5 stars a year ago I give it more stars if I could today.

Face

Having tried a 880, I prefer the original manufacturer's remotes instead.

I just pull out the one or two remotes I will need(stereo or tv), and put the rest on a nearby shelf.

disneyjoe7

I got way too many remotes AVR, TV, Mpeg2, DVD, CD, XM, TiVo.

okiepolkie

I stopped selling/installing the Harmony remotes about 2 years ago. The 880's all seemed to crap out after about year, mostly due to battery issues and the remote losing the ability to update properly. The 1000 died within 2 months. The 659 was the most reliable remote I sold at the time, and there are still a few that seem to work.

$500 and up? URC MX-3000, RTI T2, Control 4(simple, but reliable), there are several from AMX and Crestron that fall into this category.

$300-500? RTI T2+ , MX-950

$150 - 300? RTI T1, URC MX-850, URC MX-900

< $150? - Still haven't found a reliable one that I would install.

brettw22

Grimster74 wrote: »

I've owned quite a few remotes and probally the most user friend remote out there would be the Harmony One that I have now. If your looking to go all out, look into the URC remotes. I owned the MX-950 Aurora and absolutely loved it as well but as much as I change gear around, needed something that was quick to intergrate into my system so I went with the Harmony.

When I get all of my stuff set back up and running, I was looking at doing this remote.......did you get rid of yours already? It's fully customizable, so are you just saying that the interface for the end user is easier on the Harmony vs. the URCs?

Grimster74

brettw22 wrote: »

When I get all of my stuff set back up and running, I was looking at doing this remote.......did you get rid of yours already? It's fully customizable, so are you just saying that the interface for the end user is easier on the Harmony vs. the URCs?

That is correct. Don't get me wrong, the software for the URC's is pretty easy to use once you get used to it but the Harmony seemed to take fewer steps to end up with the same results in the end. Yes, I did get rid of mine already, as a matter of fact, sold it on the forum here.

Rob

MikeC78

okiepolkie wrote: »

I stopped selling/installing the Harmony remotes about 2 years ago. The 880's all seemed to crap out after about year, mostly due to battery issues and the remote losing the ability to update properly. The 1000 died within 2 months. The 659 was the most reliable remote I sold at the time, and there are still a few that seem to work.

Still use my 3 yr/old 880 on the kids basement rig with no problems, use the One on the main rig, they worked the bugs out on that one. The charging cradle is a totally different design, the 880 has issues charging unless it's sitting just right on the cradle. The One is just wayy more refined and easier to use.

unc2701

I'm with Zach on this on- I really don't care for Harmony. My brother's and dad's both have battery issues. Maybe they're easier to set up, but URC is way more reliable and powerful.

Call me old school, but my favorite is the MX-500. You can find them on ebay for $25-$30 any day and they've got a 50 foot+ range. I've got 3, all set up to look about the same as my B&K wallplates, so the wife never has issues finding anything. Maybe it's a little big, but if someone breaks into my house, I can can hit 'em with it.

ntculenuff

been using the 880 pro for awhile LOVE it haven't played with the H1 yet. Harmony is one of the more user friendly universal remotes i have programed

shawn474

I have an 880 and love it. The charging issues are easily fixed by placing a piece of card stock or something to secure the battery. The company issues a spacer for 880 owners to address this. Over time, the battery becomes loose and doesn't seat correctly losing contact. The spacer fixes that; since I got the spacer I have had no problems at all.

dholmes

I vote for Shacks remote,I cant afford it!!!

stebesplace

I had the Harmony 670 and sold it because it sucked batteries like no tomorrow! So after selling it, I downgraded to nothing right now, but would get the new Harmony One based on reviews. The 1000 is extreme, and out of my price range. All other Logitechs i am not a fan of their button placement/feel other than the One which I tried in a BB the other day. The setup and use of these is second to none as far as I am concerned. The whole concept of "Activity" based remotes is really good, and management of power in terms of turning things on and off when not being used is key. This is something that other universals that are sub $50 can't handle.

stebesplace

shack wrote: »

This has always been one of my favorites....but it's very expensive and very high maintenance. Not sure how well the mute button works…but the ergonomics and design are outstanding.

I'm afraid I might need to investigate that remote a bit further. I need to see that the buttons are actually going to be large enough to operate with and that the screen is legible.