Customer Reviews

Logitech Harmony 670 Universal Remote

5 star:		(213)
4 star:		(113)
3 star:		(31)
2 star:		(34)
1 star:		(40)

 

 

Prior to getting this remote, I have had a separate remote to control my TV, VCR, DVD Player, AV Receiver, and Cable box. I had gotten used to having to switch between remotes to do different things. My TV, DVD, Receiver and VCR are all Sony, so I did get multiple uses out of some, since each remote could be programmed to control another Sony device; however it was still a bit cumbersome.

That was until I got this remote. I have messed with universal remotes in the past, and only got so-so performance and functionality out of them, but this one was different. The set up was long, but was pretty easy to do; the hardest thing in fact was getting behind my entertainment center, and having to lift up some of my peripherals to get the model numbers which is essential in order to have this remote work properly. Another thing about the setup is that you need to be a bit technically savvy because the software does ask you questions about what input your TV needs to be on for different devices to work, as well as what settings the receiver needs to be on. It was pretty simple for me, but others who are not familiar with how the devices work together will have problems. The literature says that it has over 5000 models, and for me all of my devices were recognized, even my XBOX 360 is now able to be controlled from this remote, something I did not expect it would be able to do. For me I can control every one of my devices directly from one remote, while all buttons on the remote do not match up directly with all the buttons on my receiver remote, the Harmony has a bright LCD screen to control every function on my receiver and every other device in my setup, for example because of the DVD player model number I supplied it, it knows my DVD player is a 5 disc changer the remote's LCD screen has the ability to switch between each DVD.

The Harmony comes with setup software and a USB cable so you can connect it directly to your PC in case you need to run the setup software again to tweak the settings and actions on the remote. If you want to control a different device in your setup, all you have to do is press the "Device" button on the remote and scroll through the LCD screen to select the device you want to control, and the remote basically turns into the remote for the selected device. If you choose to control the cable box, then remote knows to turn the channels through the cable box, and not the TV, if you control the DVD player, the remote can play the DVD, eject, go to the DVD menu...you get the point. While this is cool, the coolest thing about the Harmony is the one touch activity buttons, which is perfect for people who are tired of having to do many things just to do one thing, or for people who simply don't know what to do. These "Activity" buttons do everything that needs to be done by only pressing a single button. For example, before the Harmony, if I wanted to watch a movie on my TV, I had to have

1) The receiver set to DVD,
2) The TV set to input 5
3) DVD player needs to be turned on.

Now I am able to do all of this with the simple press of the "watch movie button" on the remote, pressing this button will do all the above steps for you. The default action for these buttons is turning all other devices off, so pressing the "watch movie" button turned my cable box off, which is not what I wanted to happen, no problem, I just went into the setup software and tweaked the DVD action to leave the Cable Box on. Plugged my remote to my PC, pressed "update remote" and after few moments, the new actions are programmed to the remote.

What about other activities that don't have a specific button on the remote for it, say for example, I want to play the XBOX 360. No problem, Just press the "More activities" button and the LCD screen displays all the actions you can do with your given devices. So for me to play the XBOX360, I just press "More Activities" scroll down to and select "play XBOX360", and the Harmony does the following automatically

1) The TV goes to Input 5
2) The Receiver goes to "TV"
3) The XBOX 360 turns on
4) The Cable box stays on
5) And if they are on, the DVD, and VCR player turns off

pretty cool huh?

I am very satisfied and pleasantly surprised with the performance and functionality of the Harmony. It is literally replaced all of my other remotes, which will save me in batteries. I originally thought I would still need my other remotes for not so obvious things I might want to set, but it seems like the Harmony can control everything you might need to do. Of course there would be a slight learning curve in figuring out the buttons, but all of the basic and even some not so basic things can easily be controlled through the Harmony.

If you are getting this for someone who has no idea how TV's, receivers, DVD, VCR players work together then they will have problems setting the remote up, and if you are able, do them a BIG favor of setting it up for them. After its set up properly, I think anyone would be able to use it with the ease of the one touch activity buttons. Now even my wife can watch a DVD when I'm not in the house without having to call me all the time.

I originally was going to give this remote 4 stars because of the potentially complicated setup process for some consumers, but once the remote is set up properly, I don't think it could get any simpler. The ease of use and functionality after the setup process is near perfect, therefore the Harmony 670 gets 5 stars! What a great product.

I purchased this item at the local store because I was tired of doing the remote control shuffle. All of my remotes are multi item programmable but none of them carried all the codes for all my devices. Store had it on sale for 129 so a comparable device. Programming was very easy. A few clicks, entering model #s. It only choked at my receiver which is a slightly older one. But after a few questions and pressing a few buttons on the original remote it was set up and ready to go. I am controlling a SDTV, Satellite box, 2 dvd Players, cd changer and a A/V receiver. I frequently use both DVD players for DVD-Audio or SACD playback so going into advanced functions for both players and the Receiver is a must. Very easy to find what I was looking for and using the remote is very easy to learn.

My drawback is the volume. I use the receiver for volume on everything and if I use the programmed activity keys it is ok, but once I have to get into the advanced features of each device I lose volume control until I go back to the receiver, but than at that point I lose dvd/cd control. Pressing one of the smart keys tends to solve the problem but I wish there was a way to make the volume always locked onto the reciver, no matter what the device.

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.

I like the Harmony remotes. They're easy to program, easy to use. I bought the 670 to replace a several year old Harmony model SST-659, which basically has the same functions. My complaint with the model 670 is that the buttons I use constantly: play, pause, fast forward, rewind, and stop, are all small and squished together around a central "select" button. This makes them hard to find and hard to differentiate them from each other. Since I mainly use the remote to watch TV or movies with either a DVR or DVD player, often in the dark, these buttons (together with volume) should be BIG and easy to find. They're not. My understanding is that the layout is trying to mimic the layout of a TiVo remote; I would have preferred that they came up with their own better-thought-out layout. If you can find the older model SST-659 I would recommend that; the layout is better, it does the same functions, and it is a good deal cheaper.

I searched Amazon and about a dozen other sites for weeks, reading reviews, comparing features, looking for sales, and even though I found this off Amazon for a special deal several weeks back, I love Amazon and wanted to share my experience with other potential buyers since this is where I come for product info and reviews.

I chose this model over the higher end Logitech models because this has slightly larger buttons, even though it isn't as fancy (it's also less expensive). After a few searches, I realized that the Logitech Harmony brand was the only remote really worth looking at for ease of use, both the remote itself and the software used to set it up.

I liked the design of this remote as the layout of the buttons most closely resembles my TiVo remote. My biggest concern was whether my wife could use the remote. We have an older TV, newer odd-model Onkyo AV receiver, TiVo, cable box, DVD player, VCR, and an old Technics Tape deck and CD player. I needed something that could be used for everything easily. This purchase was much more for my wife than for me. If you could read her review of the remote from the standpoint of someone who fears new technology and hates having to use complex remote controls, you would buy this remote instantly.

I am what you would call a Power User, where I like to customize everything in extreme detail and this remote lets me do this. It also is very easy to use once it is configured. One of my devices was not found in the Logitech database, but I pointed the old remote at the back of the Harmony and it figured out what it needed to do. Now, instead of using two remotes for most things and three or four if we want to do something other than watch basic TV or TiVo, this remote does everything with minimal button clicks.

I've read a couple of complaints that people feel the software is too confusing or takes too long to set up - it's not for complete novices or people who want something to work out of the box with no setup, but I challenge you to find a remote that will work as well as this one without some configuration. Some slightly less than obvious features need to be brought closer to the main configuration screens, such as leaving my TiVo and cable box on when I turn everything else off, but all in all, this remote is really fantastic. Mac users - the software works beautifully in Mac OS X, but I expected no less from Logitech. Using the software makes it obvious that adding or removing a device and/or activities (such as "Watch TV" or "Play VCR" or "Watch DVD") should be easy, and if I need a replacement remote, I can simply plug the remote into the computer and click one or two buttons and be off with a fully customized remote again in two or three minutes. My guess is that the remote stays configured when the batteries die, but even if it doesn't, you can simply plug it in with the new batteries and the software will reconfigure it.

I also heard a few people complain about battery life. I have had it working for about six weeks straight and it is still going strong. Even if the batteries don't last forever, how much do 4 AA batteries really cost when compared to the convenience of this remote? It is an excellent trade-off in my mind.

Now that it is set up, it is so easy to use, it's not even funny. You point the remote at your stuff, press a button and leave it pointed until the indicator light on the remote says it's done turning everything on or off (1-3 seconds). My in-laws and a couple of friends have seen it in action and now want the same model for themselves. My biggest complaint with this remote from the entire experience of taking it out of the box to using it every day for over a month now is that it takes some getting used to when you are so used to using other remotes, especially TiVo. The placement of the rewind, forward, pause and play buttons is a bit different than I am used to with the TiVo remote, but the other day, I went to my in-laws house to fix their TiVo and it took me a few minutes to get used to the TiVo remote which I used to think was the best remote ever. So if that is my biggest complaint, I have to think I made the right choice.

The remote has a built in Help screen which is really easy to use. My wife accidentally pointed the remote away from the screen too quickly the other day and it only turned on the TV and not the Receiver. So I told her to hit the Help button and within about twenty seconds, she had figured out (on her own) what to do, and now she doesn't need my help if the same thing happens again.

I highly recommend this remote if you are a DVR user with a lot of system components with the need for an easy to learn, easy to use remote, but be prepared to spend a good 30-45 minutes setting it up for the first time, and even longer if you are a power user like me or if you have a lot of system components. Being this was my first universal remote, based on what I have heard from friends and family who have had others in the past, this experience has been vastly superior to theirs.

Seriously, this is the best purchasing decision I have ever made, and I could not recommend a product any more highly than this.

After reading countless reviews on the Harmony 670 and other Harmony models, I was a little apprehensive about buying one. Many people say the setup is difficult and the Logitech software is very buggy. I've had my Harmony 670 for a couple of weeks now and I just don't agree. Both the online setup and the physical software from Logitech have worked flawlessly for me and I use a 5 year-old laptop to accomplish it. Yes, it does take some time to make the remote absolutely perfect for your situation, especially if you have alot of component but you will have a functional remote controlling everything within an hour or so and it's easy to do. The key thing is that the Harmony remote CAN control every single function of every single remote that you own. I have 7 components (and 7 remotes) and the Harmony controls each one completely and perfectly, even older components. The activity-based tasks are a godsend to your family members that don't quite understand the finer points of universal remotes and the necessary steps that need to be taken to get a DVD movie to play with the home theater on. My wife loves this thing, no intimidation factor whatsoever! Also, no pulling out the old remotes for a single function that can't be programmed onto the Harmony. Again, I'm baffled why many people don't love these things, I will always own one now.

I have previously owned the original Philips Pronto and Harmony 880 universal remotes. The Pronto was nice, but it took a lot of time and effort to program, and it didn't have "events" like the Harmony models. Ultimately, the touchscreen died and we junked it.

The Harmony 880 was okay, but it has several flaws, too. The volume and channel buttons are small and located in a weird place. The rocker-type volume control often couldn't decide if you were trying to turn it up or down; eventually it stopped working altogether. The color screen was nice, but not really necessary, and the rechargability was a mixed blessing. It was nice not having to buy batteries, but the remote didn't fit the cradle very well, and Logitech eventually had to replace a lot of charging cradles.

OK, so why is the 670 so much better? For one thing, it is about half the price of those others. It works better than the 880 at keeping track of the state of each component - with the 880 we were always using the "help" screen; with the 670 we almost never need it. I like the button layout, the nice blue backlighting, and the solid feel of the volume and channel controls. Having to replace batteries is only a minor drawback. They last a long time and it's nice not having to put the remote in the charger all the time.

I have no reservations about recommending this remote to anyone who needs to control several components.

I thought I would share my opinion on this nifty remote so buyers know what they are getting into. Having had "universal remotes" in the future, I was skeptical since I inevitably had to dig up one of the several remotes I had to change or undjust some functions, but not with this.

Out of the box, you will spend at least an hour connecting it to the USB, getting model numbers and configuring it, but it does do what it promises (almost) and has a nifty help interface to assist you when things get a bit off. If you are not comfotable configuring things through a computer, look elsewhere. But the software was pretty good. I was able to get my TV, DVR, DISH, Receiver, DVD, PS2 and PC stereo (including iTunes) to all run from ONE remote, which was a MAJOR accomplishment. The only thing I could not configure was the remote control ceiling fan (yeah, I know, but I am REALLY not that much of a potato).

Great product and almost perfect...now we will see how I like it in a few months..

I bought this after some serious research into the nearest replacement for a TiVo remote with some added features. This one fit the bill and came highly recommended by other users.

Electrically, the Harmony 670 is fine. It does everything it's supposed to do and can control my hard-to-control plasma screen, TiVo, Comcast (Motorola) DVR, stereo, and so forth.

Alas, the mechanics are poor. The buttons are too small and too wobbly to be comfortable, or even reliable. They seem loose and poorly connected, so that some button pushes register and some don't. I get too many unwanted "double clicks" and too many clicks are ignored.

It's a shame, because the electronics and software are fine. The one thing you CAN'T change, the buttons themselves, are the only drawback. Logitech could have made them about 50% bigger and wasted less "white space" between the buttons.

As with many items, this remote seems to get 4-5 stars or 0-1. People seem to love it or hate it. I was a little worried after reading things like: "buttons so small I can't read them." The button size and text size are comparable to any other remote out there. If you can read a newspaper you could easily read the buttons. If the buttons are too small, you must have large fingers. I have 4 remotes I hoped to consolidate with this unit. They are: 27" Hitachi TV, RCA DVD, XBOX 360, Dish Network DVR-510. Surprisingly the Dish receiver/DVR was the only problem. Since it is such a common unit I thought it would be set up easily. I picked the unit out from the wizard and it seemed like everything should be fine. It asked me to beam my old remote at the rear of the Harmony. I tried this, but it would never pick up any signals. I thought this might be due to the fact that the Dish remote is UHF in addition to being IR. I could never get it to work no matter how many times I tried. I tried several different configurations with the wizard to no avail. I finally decided to try having the Harmony sense the old remotes output again and it finally picked it up after quite some time trying. This solved all problems but skip forward and skip back. I used the learn function, and although the software predicted that it wouldn't work, it did. I can easily see how someone would become annoyed if they have such setup trouble; I was quite annoyed myself until I figured it out. The overall quality of the remote seems to be about 4 out of 5. Probably 90% of people will experience no trouble whatsoever. Even if you do, you are likely able to solve the problem if you persevere.