Logitech Harmony 670 Universal Remote
by Logitech
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Our Price: $159.99 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $50.00 (click here) 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 670 Universal Remote
Customer Review: As good as can be expected
Summary: 5 Stars
It is amazing what some reviewers can find to whine about. This remote does as advertised but it has to be set up correctly. To start with you will have to go online and create an account so that after setup your settings will be saved. The software that you must install on your computer will guide you through setup for all activities that you have devices for. Once you have setup your activities you will download them to the remote via a supplied usb cable. If you want to watch TV you press the watch TV button.This will turn on the TV, change the TV to the correct input if you were watching a movie the last time you used it, turn on the satellite receiver if you have one, turn on the AV receiver also changing it to the correct input. If you want to watch a movie and you are currently watching TV, press the watch movie button and it will turn off the satellite receiver,turn on the DVD player, and change the inputs on both the TV and the AV receiver to the proper one. You must however give the remote enough time to send out all the signals to each device. If you get in a hurry and the remote doesn't switch everything correctly,there is a help button on the remote that takes you by the hand and asks you a series of questions that will rectify the problem. The buttons feel solid and have a crisp feel to them when used. The only caveat is if you are recording on the dvr or have backed up the program and are not watching live TV when you press the off button it will not shut the dvr down. That is not the remotes fault just a function of the dvr. When you turn everything back on if the dvr was on the power toggle will turn it off. Just hit help and the problem will be taken care of or you can press device and turn the dvr back on from the dvr onscreen menu.For the price on Amazon this is a great remote. There are better remotes out there if you want to pay the price but this remote performs pretty well for the average setup.Customer Review: took some work, but love Logitech cust. service
Summary: 4 Stars
We had some trouble getting this thing working at first... it turns out our TV (an HP MD6580n) is a bit non-standard when it comes to source inputs and power-on delays. But after about a week of working with customer service, we got it working great. And I have to say... their customer service is VERY good. First of all, I never had to wait for a service rep. Secondly, even their first level responders are very competent. I love how they can just look at your online account, reconfigure your remote from where they are, and then have you upload the new configuration without you having to do anything except describe whether or not it worked. My first call didn't solve the problem, so they had a third level person look into it. It was a Friday, so they said the third level person would call me back on Monday or Tuesday. Well... on Sunday we got a voicemail saying they'd been working on it, and we should reprogram again and call them back. It worked *better* but not perfect, but we were too lazy to call back right away. After a few days, they called us again, just to make sure we were happy! Then they stayed on the phone with us, very patiently, and worked out the rest of the kinks. Rarely have I seen service this good for any product. Wow.
So... the remote. I really like it. I love the LCD screen (although the text can sometimes get cut off for some functions), I love how it lights up so I can use it in the dark. I like the "watch TV" and "WAtch Movie" button that's on the top of the remote that allows you to totally switch configurations with the touch of a single button. I like that the volume controls the volume on my AV system (just as I programmed it to), while the DVD buttons control the DVD player, etc, etc. I was so sick of having four remotes! I would definitely recommend this product.
If it doesn't work right away, those guys will MAKE it work.
Customer Review: Good for basic use
Summary: 4 Stars
Overall it does what it's supposed to do. I do like the "over the web" programming, and it set itself up to do most common tasks without me having to punch in a bunch of four digit codes blindly trying to get the right model for each of my components. I went to the Logitech website and had all my models of equipment punched in while I was waiting for the remote to show up. (This way you can go and make sure your model of tv or receiver is listed before you buy.) I use it with the usual "what's on sale" mix of equipment: Polaroid lcd tv, Sony receiver, R15 Directv satellite dvr, Sony dvd and MS Xbox 360 and it works fine for all of them for basic things. I've been using it daily for a month now and still has the batteries in it that came with it, so the battery life seems good. The small lcd screen on the remote is easy to read.
The best feature for me is the "one button" selection of actions. I hit the "watch tv" button and the remote turns on my tv, satellite dvr and reciever and sets the proper inputs (svideo on the tv, input #2 on the reciever). If I decide to play some xbox, I just hit the "other functions" button and then the button next to "xbox" on the lcd and the remote turns off the satellite dvr, switches the reciever to input #1 and the tv to component input #1 and turns on the xbox. Unlike the old universal remote I had, I don't have to keep hitting the button for the machine I want to control, then the on/off button, then the input select (if it's even on there), etc. etc. etc.
Overall, if you have four or more remotes and don't need to do a lot of "special button" use for each of them, this critter is a good deal. If you need more flexibility, you might want to look a model further up the line. Later on I'll probably be getting a more flexible model, but for now I refuse to spend more on a remote that my tv cost me!
Customer Review: Controls my TV, COX DVR, DVD/VCR Recorder, Receiver
Summary: 4 Stars
I have Sony 52inch KDL-52V4100 LCD, Onkyo TX-SR605 receiver, Cox Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8240HDC, and a SONY combo recorder DVD/VCR RDR-VX560.
PROS: Great product. My wife loves it (she says you mean I don't have to press the INPUT button on the tv anymore to tell it I'm watching tv or COX cable box or the DVD player?).
CONS: The software 7.5 has a bug: The WATCH MOVIE button only points to the DVD ACTIVITY (which is fine) even though the software says it can be mapped to ther activities -- tech said new software version will be released around Dec 2008. Tech support is wonderful... waited less than 30 seconds. Techs from India are hard to understand but very polite. Sometimes I get an American tech so I don't have to struggle to understand what's said.
- When I press the MORE ACTIVITIES button, there's only the NEXT buttons and no BACK button (although I can click the MORE ACTIVITIES button to go back to the first screen).
- In the MORE ACTIVITIES button, the other activities can't be sorted the way I want, I would have to delete my activities in the software and recreate them in the order I want to see them sorted.
- There are only 6 buttons for the LCD screen choices instead of 8 like the Harmony 880 or 890 which means I have to flip to the next page.
- The LCD screen resolution is low so I have to abbreviate my labels. (The Logitech Harmony 880 or 890 have a better LCD with higher resolution so I don't have to abbreviate.)
- Difficult to see the buttons in dimly lit room so I always have to press the lite on the remote first.
- When controlling my DVD player, the REWIND button is on the other side far away from the FORWARD button which forces me to use my left hand to press the REWIND button.
Customer Review: HighDef TV / Cable / DVR / Stereo users will love it - great gift item
Summary: 5 Stars
If you were like me you resisted getting a universal remote, much less paying almost $100 to replace your existing remotes which function perfectly (but separately). I was also highly skeptical (based on past experience with "programmable remotes" from the cable co) that one remote could really handle all the complicated functions for each component such as:
- changing the "aspect ratio" on your HDTV
- browsing your cable and DVR listings
- programming your DVR
- and controlling your stereo which provides sound for everything else (including DVD and CD players).
Much to my surprise the Logitech does it all. As other reviewers have noted, the online setup takes about an hour and is a bit more complicated than the cheapo universal remote where you just plug in a 3-digit device code. But the Logitech database is pretty extensive, right down to suggesting the proper model number format for each component manufacturer. And you can then customize the device though I found the default settings were adequate for most options.
Logitech now controls:
- Panasonic 50" HDTV (c. 2006)
- Phillips HD-DVD player (c. 2006)
- Comcast/Motorola DVR (c. 2005)
- Sony Stereo (c.1994!)
Alas my old Pioneer CD and Tape players (c 1988) never had remote capability - but I am loathe to toss them as my wife still loves her cassette mix tapes.
The best part is that I now simply push one button to turn on/off both the TV and Stereo. Or TV/DVD/Stereo. Not sure what I am going to do with the 4 old remotes, but our babysitter is sure going to be happy.
Thanks Mom and Day for a great birthday gift that will keep on giving even if I buy new equipment or change to Sat TV.