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Hello, new guy here. Getting a home theater set up slowly. My question is this. I have LG led tv, Sony bluray, Onkyo surround reciever products that id like to use one remote to opperate on. Any ideas where or what brand to look into buying? Thanks!
Drew
I would avoid the Harmony line of universal remotes because I've heard bad things about them both on this forum, and from friends who have bought them. Far cheaper and better in my opinion are the "Kamilion - One for all" remotes. They are learning, programmable remotes and back lite. Once you have back lite, you can NEVER go back to standard, non lite remotes. Another amazing thing about the Kamilion series is that even if the code book does not contain the correct IR frequency for the device you wish to control, the unit itself contains a 'modem' and you can phone the company and a representative will program the code you need live over the phone via the modem. You just go through some steps with the rep, then they ask you to hold the remote against the phone earpiece. You hear some modem style squeaks and burps and all of a sudden, the remote flashes a few times and the new code is learned and will now operate your device.
I've seen these units at radio shack and at The Bay here in Canada but I have not seen any lately. I would call the Mfr to find out who sells them now. For a unit that will operate 8 devices, you can expect to pay about $70-100 bucks for it. Well worth it and super easy to operate. I've had mine for at least 7-8 years now with no issues.
I think you're mistaken Madmac, lots of people on here love Harmony remotes my self included. The consensus is the same on other forums. The only real downside of the Harmony line of remotes that many people complain about is the fact you don't have complete control over the software and what not like in a Universal Remote (the company). Of course the difference is that the Harmony remotes are MUCH easier to program for the end user. Most of the Universal Remotes generally can only be purchased from dealers that program them on site. The "Kamilion" remote you speak of does not have nearly the device support or functionality of the Harmony line.
I just picked up a Harmony One. I love it. Easy to set up. It also controls all my equipment in my HT.
The range is quite good for me. I have a projector that is ceiling mounted behind the seating position. All the other quipment is on the other side of the room and sits low. I was concerned that the remote would not handle that line of site for the projector. No worries. The remote works perfectly.
I've been using an Harmony 890 for about 4.5 years.
Good things:
Very easy to program.
Easy [for the wife] to operate.
On the programming side it has been able to do about 90% of what I want it to.
RF extender means I never have to aim.
Not so good:
The ergonomics are poor. Remote rests in hand a little awkwardly.
The plating that covers the charging contacts on both the remote and the base wear off after some time, making it difficult to charge at time.
The battery is poorly engineered. They bubble over time and fail. I'm on my third.
The LCD doesn't have a long life. 2 years or so. I'm on my second. Luckily they can be found for $20 on ebay.
I will probably look at alternatives next time the screen or battery goes.
The ergonomics on the One is much much better and probably why most of their newer remotes now use that style.
I've had my Harmony One for about 3.5 years, I got it pretty shortly after they were released and I haven't experienced any of your other issues at all. My LCD is still working flawlessly, and battery is as well. The contacts for charging show no signs of giving me trouble, I drop it in the base and it charges. The only real negative is the rubberized coating on the back started peeling recently. That could be due to some sort of neglect on my part though.
I've been using an Harmony 890 for about 4.5 years.
Good things:
Very easy to program.
Easy [for the wife] to operate.
On the programming side it has been able to do about 90% of what I want it to.
RF extender means I never have to aim.
Not so good:
The ergonomics are poor. Remote rests in hand a little awkwardly.
The plating that covers the charging contacts on both the remote and the base wear off after some time, making it difficult to charge at time.
The battery is poorly engineered. They bubble over time and fail. I'm on my third.
The LCD doesn't have a long life. 2 years or so. I'm on my second. Luckily they can be found for $20 on ebay.
I will probably look at alternatives next time the screen or battery goes.
Hmmm.. This is interesting.. I have the 880 and the "One", and I prefer the 880. I have had it for 4 years and it has been excellent.. Even with my kids dropping it regularily I have not experienced any of the "bads" you refer to. I love the peanut shape. Mine is still on its first battery and LCD. In fact I have never had an issue yet.. The remote gets charged every night, but I have never once ran out of juice.
I do like the "One's" help a little better. It is much faster at figuring out issues..
Anyways.... I will give another +1 to the Harmonies...
Thank you all. Ordered a Harmony directly from Logitec today. Opted for the 700 model that was in my price range with Christmas coming soon. It was refurbished at $49
The "Kamelion" totally lights up (ie...all of it), has no LCD screen and uses 4 AAA batteries that last about 3 months or so with regular usage. It also has a neat 'tilt' function whereby when you touch it or pick it up, it automatically lights up, turns on making it instantly accessible and easily seen in the dark.
Hdale85 is incorrect about the Harmony decoding more than the kamilion. The Kamilion "one for all" will learn and can operate any audio or video device with a maximum of 8 devices on it's best model. It also will do "macros", which in other words will do a series of operations with various devices with 1 push of a button (ie..with one push of a button will....turn on the TV, then the receiver, then the DVD player and pop the drawer)
The harmony will do pretty much any device that uses a remote period, and can do a lot more then 8 devices, and also turns all it's back light on when you pick it up. It does very complex macros with pretty much all your devices at once as well. But it's not limites to audio/video devices, mine is programmed to my living room lights, AC, and other devices around my home. The database for the Harmony is likely multitudes of times bigger then the Kamilion, they are both learning remotes but it's nice to just find a pre made setup a lot of the time. And I believe having the LCD makes doing macro's and controlling that many devices a lot easier.
@Hdale85........True enough..... If the the Harmony does your lights and AC etc....then that's a different bird altogether!!. All I am talking about is a dude that wants to control his/her AV setup with an easy to use, relatively inexpensive universal, back lite, learning remote that's easy to use, program, and get great customer service when new codes are necessary via the units modem capabilities.
Yeah the Kamilion is a decent little remote, just was saying I don't think it's quite on the same playing field as the Harmony remotes. I remember when the first Kamilion came out.
My problem with standard remotes that come with gear...TV's and Receivers is that the buttons used most often ware out!!. So far, my Kamilion has worked flawlessly for years but now, my TV remote is not responding properly to channel up and down due to ware!!. Now, we are using the kamilion to change the channels which I fear will ware out those buttons on this beautiful remote quickly, which depending on what you want to operate is also a volume button for the amp, or a track changer for the CD player!!. Luckily, I found another Kamilion on sale about a year ago, bought it with the thought that my existing Kamilion might ware out one day!!. I'm thinking of firing that one up and using it to only operate the TV. :T
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