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Need advice on Harmony remote


gillmacca

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gillmacca

I'm looking to get a harmony remote to replace my currently 5 remotes, but there seems to be so many options, I am lost.

I am looking to control the following:

 

A sharp dvd/video combo unit

Sky+ HD (satellite TV)

Amazon Fire TV (2nd Generation)

Samsung TV (mainly to change the source)

Philips soundbar

 

Can anyone recommend one that will control all of these, and are they easy to set-up?

 

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Spaceboy

Can't recommend harmony remotes enough. Had a One and now on an elite as it can control Bluetooth devices as well. Didn't really find anything it couldn't control

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jasonmcroy

I'm looking to get a harmony remote to replace my currently 5 remotes, but there seems to be so many options, I am lost.

I am looking to control the following:

 

A sharp dvd/video combo unit

Sky+ HD (satellite TV)

Amazon Fire TV (2nd Generation)

Samsung TV (mainly to change the source)

Philips soundbar

 

Can anyone recommend one that will control all of these, and are they easy to set-up?

 

One great thing about Harmony remotes is that if you have a device that doesn't already have a profile you can download (there are a LOT) you can learn remote commands from an existing remote. 

 

I have a simple 650 model that only does IR which works for my purposes. 

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gillmacca

The 650 sounds good, but the amazon fire tv is bluetooth.

Which models should I be looking at that supports bluetooth?

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jasonmcroy

Yes, that is an issue if you use the Fire TV box. I actually happened to own a Flirc dongle that I could plug into the Fire TV and use the Harmony remote with it that way. However, it's not the best way to do it to be honest. I never did the bluetooth Harmony remotes because they were too expensive in my opinion for my limited use. 

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Spaceboy

The elite was expensive but worth it imo. It's the one thing that brings everything else together

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I use a Home hub and find that I really don't need direct support for the FTV or Shield as both of them will work fine using CEC.  So I just program my hub to use my TV controls.

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swhitmore

I have the 650 and 700 and both are great. The main benefit of the 700 for me is that I can charge the batteries will they are in the remote.

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gillmacca

I've now brought the 650, and can say that I am more that impressed.

So easy to setup and use

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Best Buy has the Harmony Hubs for $70 today only. I have two and love them especially for controlling inside AV equipment while outside on the deck.

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ice pube

I love love love my harmony smart controls. I have 2, and my mom and sister both have them. I prefer the huge battery life over having to charge a remote with a LCD. If I need fancy controls i just use my phone / ipad. 

Edited by ice pube
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raven-au

The Harmony hub has Bluetooth.

I have a Harmony Companion (http://www.logitech.com/en-us/product/harmony-companion?crid=60) and it works well with my FireTV Stick.

CFC

 

I too have used Harmony remotes for years.

 

Very expensive but really the only way to get comprehensive device coverage and the only way to get both IR and Bluetooth support.

 

It's worth considering whether you really do need the Bluetooth support (and hence a package with a Harmony Hub) or whether you combine HDMI-CEC with a lower cost Harmony package with IR only.

 

Mind you the Harmony that comes with a Hub and a simple Harmony remote, expecting you to use a mobile device for most of your device control, gives the least expensive alternative if you really do need both IR and Bluetooth and your willing to use a mobile (phone or tablet) app as your remote.

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Mind you the Harmony that comes with a Hub and a simple Harmony remote, expecting you to use a mobile device for most of your device control, gives the least expensive alternative if you really do need both IR and Bluetooth and your willing to use a mobile (phone or tablet) app as your remote.

 

The one that came with my Harmony Hub is absolutely perfect.  It is small, light and very easy to use and has every button I could ever need.  I've never even installed the app as a hard-button remote works much better for me.

 

harmonyhub5lg.jpg

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MrWebsmith

thats the model i think i'm going to end up replacing my old 900s and harmony one's with as they die (starting to be a bit finicky at this point sometimes)

 

good info in this thread.. thanks all

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