Logitech Harmony 659 Advanced Universal Remote Control - Refurbished
by Logitech
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List Price: Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Logitech Harmony 659 Advanced Universal Remote Control - Refurbished
Customer Review: I love this remote
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased this remote as a refurb model, but it looks brand new. I couldn't find any marks on it. It works perfectly. Setup was easy after I found my model #'s, but it took some use to find some buttons I wanted to add. And that was easy too. Just plug it into the computer, run the program, and it has easy to follow instructions. It's amazing what you can program this remote to do.
So here's the few negative things: it doesn't always turn off everything that was on (the TV has stayed on 2 or 3 times after hitting the master OFF button), to switch between devices on the menu can be annoying- I have to switch to my AV receiver to turn on surround sound sometimes while watching a movie, then have to switch back to DVD player to control it, then back to control volume. But if you have it programmed to turn on your surround sound for a movie all the time, then it shouldn't be a problem (and it asks this during setup- which devices to turn on to watch a movie, and which device controls sound).
My wife has trouble with it sometimes, but I think it's because she doesn't leave the remote pointed toward the entertainment center after pushing a button. It controls several devices and may take a second to send all the signals. She may push a button and toss it in the couch cushions. It's IR signal only, so it works best when pointed at the device (and works really well).
Overall, it was a great investment for the price. I couldn't imagine spending so much on a remote, then I found this item, and IT'S AWESOME!
Customer Review: Easy to program, use, and provides sticker shock relief!
Summary: 5 Stars
I was skeptical about purchasing this remote. Would it be to difficult to set up? Would it be functional with my system? Would it be a good value? Could it live up to the hype of what others have said about it? The answers are NO, YES, YES & YES. Out of the box the unit looked brand new. Setup was fairly simple but I had to make some modifications on the fly, but no major problems. If you are unfamiliar with the Harmony and wonder how it works, it's unique because it controls functions and not single units. No longer use 1 button for TV, 1 for receiver, etc. If you want to watch TV, it will control the TV, cable box and receiver, all under 1 activity. The same for HD DVD, and with the Ryko Blu Wave remote, it will control the PS3 as well. It will even control my first generation JVC CD changer purchased in 1989.
However, it's not perfect. The lighted keys are a blueish tint and is difficult for me to read, and there are a bunch of 'em too. The LCD screen is not color like some other models, but the same blue color. Finally, it took me several attempts to get the keys programmed correctly, but I still got it right the second time through.
All in all, I'm very pleased with this purchase. The negatives I've found should not be enough to distract a buyer from making this purchase. This unit is a great addition to any home theater, and at the entry level price, an apprehensive buyer has nothing to worry about. Now about that upgrade to the color screen model...
Customer Review: Buy the 670 instead.
Summary: 4 Stars
While I have no problems with the "refurbished" part of the product, There are some problems with the functional design of the unit itself. Overall it works well, and does replace five remotes for us, however there are times when one part of a sequence of steps doesn't work. I have not tried tweeking the settings (somewhat confusing), and I hope to get everything working smoothly soon (I can adjust timming of events, and I suspect this will fix my problem). I would not characterize this as plug-and-play. There is some fine tunning required.
UPDATE: Okay, I wrote this review waaay too soon. The remote stopped working after a few weeks. Fortunately Amazon was great about shipping out a replacement (within 30 days). Now my second one has also stopped working (after 45 days), So I'm going through Logitech for a solution.
I know its a "refurbished" product and therfore subject to a higher rate of problems, however I'm batting 0-2 right now and I'm ready to throw in the towel on this product. I'll update this after I get through the Logitech help desk procedure.
Bottom line: Should have been a great product, but with 2 crash and burns, I'd recommend going with something else (maybe not the refurbished version).
UPDATE UPDATE: Well Logitech has been wonderful about standing behind their product. They replaced my unit with a brand new 670, which works fine. Thanks Logitech.
Customer Review: Good remote, not for XBox 360.
Summary: 3 Stars
I bought this remote to replace the four very bulky remotes in my new home theater setup. Setting it up to watch a DVD (Toshiba HD-A2, Onkyo TX-SR605) or play XBox 360 was cake. The software is somewhat painful to work with, but you can at least get around. I then spent an additional 2 hours last night attempting to get the remote to start media center on my XBox 360. When I was finally able to get it to start media center, none of the other functions on the remote would work in media center so it was useless.
I also tried to get the remote to 'learn' every function of the XBox media center remote. I had the two remotes locked in a mating ritual type dance for 10 minutes, pressing button after button as I was prompted. Surely this would work. In the end, the software said that it seemed to be a lot like the Microsoft Ultimate TV PVR and did some magic. Again, nothing worked. The remote has basically all of the appropriate buttons to run Media Center through the XBox, but all my tweaking had no effect.
Would I buy this remote again? Given my hardware I most definitely would not. Would I buy it for my mother? Absolutely. As I said, setup for my dvd player was a breeze. This thing even turned on my projector (Mitsubishi HD1000U), which is above and behind my sitting position. I can't even do that without special pointing with the real projector remote.
Customer Review: after 2 years going downhill
Summary: 4 Stars
Forget the all in one remotes you have seen before. This one is the real deal. The 659 is on the low end of the Harmony line but it uses the same software to set it up, just less buttons on the remote itself. This means a bit more menu hunting on the LCD if you have a complex home theater. I must say I have loved this remote, up until a couple of months ago the only down side I could find was how quick it would go through batteries (4 AAA) But you could probably extend that if you were willing to turn off the back light option.
Over the past couple of years the remote has withstood a lot of use and abuse (I have a toddler) and recently several buttons have either stopped working altogether or only work intermittently. Luckily there is a work around for most buttons but now I am a bit wary of shelling out this much money again (though I got a deal on my first one.) It has been out several years but the price has never really dropped. I may have to though as I don't know if I can go through the "turn the tv on, switch to input 1, switch remotes, turn the receiver on, switch to dvd input, turn the dvd player on and now use this remote for volume and this one to push play" with my wife and child again. It was just one button on the 659, guess we are spoiled now.