The simple yet effective remote for true universal control of your wireless world is at hand with the Logitech 890 Universal Remote Control.
Ease of Use, Performance: 24/25, Look & Feel: 23/25,
Features 24/25, How much I enjoy 25/25
Total: 96/100
Using a universal remote should not be a universal pain and getting those codes put in for all the various electronic gadgets you have can take precious time. If you need a simple easy to use remote that not only works but helps you when it has a difficulty and learns from these mistakes you need one of the Logitech Universal Remotes.
Logitech has a unique universal remote line and they continue to make improvements and help you get the most from this true universal remote. I found out you can even use the old universal remote setup from one model number to the next for real support of your electronics.
I had reviewed the Advanced Universal Remote for the Xbox 360 some time ago and found out when I installed the Logitech software for my current review of the Harmony 890 my old devices were still listed on their database. I went into the setup and there on my area of the database were the devices I had installed and checked out while using the Xbox 360 remote. All I had to do was update some of the newer devices I had and change things around a bit with how my various activities now work and I was good to go.
If you are clueless to what I am talking about fear not, I will go through how these remotes work and make everyday life with your cherished home entertainment and even everyday appliances a joy. The remote is simple to use and starts with connecting to a computer to setup and work all the various activities so you need a PC for starters.
The system requirements are pretty basic and just about any PC with an internet connection is all you need, a MAC works as well as Windows and the program is very small with very low system requirements as far as processor and Windows version. Once you have installed the software your preferences and devices with their activities will be saved online so even if your computer goes down or you use a different one all your information is still there just like from several months ago for me.
The Harmony 890 remote does a great job of not using codes and inputting things individually into your remote but you categorize things by activities using manufacturer and model numbers of your devices. Once you find your device and enter the model number you can simply tell the program what activity you want to accomplish and the program will step you through how you normally go about doing this with your other remotes.
The nice thing about all this is not only do you have the ability to stash away all those other remotes you can even use things like an air conditioner remote, light and fan remotes and other appliances. If your appliance or device does not have a listed manufacturer or the model number does not register you can program the Harmony 890 remote by pointing the device remote at the Harmony and they will communicate and the Harmony will learn from the other remote.
This allows many devices with a remote the chance to be used with the Harmony 890 remote and not having to use separate remotes for all these devices. You can also use the Harmony 890 by rooms for your activities like master bedroom and living room; you just have to fight over the remote. The Harmony 890 also learns even when it does make a mistake and this means that you don’t reprogram the remote; you simply have it learn from its mistakes using the help button.
When you set up an activity you can choose a room and then say Watch TV, Watch a DVD or Watch a VCR tape. In my bedroom I have a DVD/VCR player with a digital to analog converter for my analog television. I set up the Harmony 890 to have several activities in my bedroom like Watch TV, Watch a DVD, Watch the VCR and the air purifier for cleaning the air in my bedroom/office.
When I want to watch TV I simply press the Watch TV button that is beside the Watch TV on the screen and the remote will turn on the TV and the Digital Stream Converter and set the TV to channel 3 for the television signal coming from the converter that is set to channel 3. If I want to watch a DVD or the VCR the remote will switch the converter off, turn on the DVD/VCR and turn the TV to AV Input that has my VCR cables connected to.
I can turn everything off in one simple click by hitting the Off button on the remote at the top center and the remote has a whole slew of common buttons like channel numbers, media play buttons, channel and volume as well as the guide and menu. The guide when watching TV will show the Electronic Program Guide through the digital to analog converter that is part of that system. The menu will depend upon which activity you’re watching and what device is currently the highest priority.
Using the remote is nice and simple but it does make mistakes, especially right when you first start using it so they have included a Help button and Remote Assistance. The Help starts up a help for the current activity and tries to fix whatever problem you are having using a simple yes no question scheme. The Help is a learning type setup that will not only solve your problem but learn what it did and correct and store that information for later use in remote functions. It will use the corrected problems later when you are using the same devices to try not to have the same problems occur again.
This Help function is available anytime you are using the remote but the Assistance is also available to have an always on help when you are starting to use the remote right after programming. When you program your remote the remote will come to a point in the programming where it tells you to unplug the remote from your computer and try it out. The remote will have the Remote Assistant turned on and ask you to perform the functions you just programmed to see if they work.
The remote will have on screen the activities and after performing an activity will ask you if it did work, if it did not it will start up into the Help questions and try to fix the problem. If it does fix it you can continue to check out all the activities you programmed and then turn off the Remote Assistance. If it does not fix the problems after many tries you can try to reprogram the remote by reconnecting it to the PC with the USB connection and use the onscreen help on your computer to figure out what went wrong.
This is not necessarily a problem with what you programmed but some simple problems with the remote and using several devices. I tried out several things with the remote with about a dozen devices in my home and have had no problems that the remote could not fix on the Harmony 890 itself except for one. I just reconnected it to the PC and reprogrammed the actions by removing the activity and setting it up again and it fixed the problem.
The Digital to Analog converter was not turning off or on and after some time of using the Help function I gave up and reprogrammed the activity. It worked fine after reprogramming and I have found that a simple use of the Help usually fixes things. Even after several times of using the Help on the remote this usually fixes things for good and corrects any problems like turning things on and off repeatedly.
Having several devices and occasionally using the actual remotes that came with these devices can confuse the Harmony 890 but after a few times of fixing errors and problems it usually learns from its mistakes and corrects things. Using the Help is just as easy as finding all those separate remotes and the use of one remote simplifies things considerably.
The Logitech website not only stores your profile for each remote you register but also has over 175,000 devices currently in their database and they add more each day with updates. The site remembers your settings and devices and makes it easy for you to add more to your remote configuration simply by adding the manufacturer and model number.
The Harmony 890 Advanced Universal Remote works with Z-Wave and most IR controllable devices and also works with an RF extender available from Logitech. The Logitech Harmony 890 Advanced Universal Remote costs about $350 and is a real expense but one that is worth it for the hassle free use of your home theatre setup.
If you’re spending thousands on a good home theatre why not control that theatre easily and without problems using one of the Logitech Advanced Universal remotes. One really nice feature is the auto shutoff that turns off the remote when not in use and to turn it on simply pick up the remote, it has a motion sensor that turns it on.
The Logitech Harmony 890 Advanced Universal Remote is a great way to control all those various devices and keep things simple and neat. I highly recommend the Harmony line of remotes for the simplest way to control all those electronics.
