Logitech Harmony RF Wireless Extender

by Logitech

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 1 x 1 x 1 inches ; 14.4 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000ILIHTC
• Item model number: 915-000044
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (75 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
  • #10 in Electronics > Accessories & Supplies > Audio & Video Accessories > Remote Controls > Remote-Control Extenders
• Date first available at Amazon.com: July 7, 2004

Product Description

Gain complete control of components that are hidden behind cabinets or walls. With a range of up to 100 feet, you can place your equipment out of sight, or even move it to the next room. Designed for use with the Logitech® Harmony® 1000 or 890 Advanced Universal Remotes, Z-Wave (RF) Technology enables remote control of audio, visual, lighting, climate, and security systems without direct line-of-sight. Use additional receivers to control multiple entertainment systems.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

161 of 165 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars works extremely well on both Mac and PC setup - using latest firmware, January 6, 2007

By 

Paul Christensen "gadget geek" (West Chester, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Logitech Harmony RF Wireless Extender (Electronics)

The Logitech Harmony RF Wireless Extender allows your RF-equipped Harmony Remote (the 890, 895 or new 1000) to control components without having an IR "line of sight" to the components. One RF Wireless Extender is included with the Harmony 890, but it is unfortunately not included with the Harmony 1000.

Make no mistake, this device is an absolute REQUIREMENT for any large room or complex setup. In my configuration, the Harmony 1000 didn't have the strength to power all of my components through IR from 20 feet distance. The RF extender solved this problem, and now I can control my entire setup even from another room.

One RF Wireless Extender can control up to 8 components within the line of sight of the unit, or within line of sight of the 8 included IR emitters. You can add multiple extenders to your configuration if you have components in different rooms or areas that could not be served by one unit. Annoyingly, even if you have more than 8 components within the reach of the unit or the emitters the Harmony software won't let you assign more than 8 devices to a single extender.

IMPORTANT: You should try to setup and verify your Harmony configuration using IR-only if possible before adding the extender, even if you have to sit near your components or have cabinet doors open. This is because the Harmony software makes you connect and disconnect both the extender (which must be unplugged from AC power) and the remote each time you make a change. Setting up the Harmony first, by itself, with IR is much easier to make changes to the configuration.

After verifying I could control my components using IR-only, I added the RF Wireless Extender to my setup. The Harmony software updated to the latest firmware, and I have had no problems configuring it using both Mac OS X and Windows clients.

Setup is very easy. If all of your components are behind a cabinet, you can simply mount this "blaster" unit inside, at least 10 inches from the front of your components. Or, you can attach the 8 included wired emitters (in 4 pairs of 2) near the IR receivers of each component. The wires for each of the 4 pairs are roughly 7 feet long, splitting into 2 emitters that must be placed within 25 inches of each other. Also good to note is that the tape is strong enough to attach to your component, but not strong enough to leave any residue should you need to remove them.

Within the Harmony setup, you then assign each component to either IR or RF Extender control. Optionally, you can assign each component to a channel (A,B,C,D,blaster) which corresponds to the 4 sets of 2 wired emitters and base, or all channels which sends all commands to all emitters. I chose to specifically assign each component to its channel, which seems to give better performance. (TIP: label your emitter wires!)

Once configured, you connect the RF Extender and the Harmony Remote to your computer to download the configuration. Then, you must plug the RF Extender into the wall, and optionally attach the IR emitter wires. The Harmony remote must initially be "paired" with the RF Extender, which is done by pressing the "Connect" button on the extender, and following the prompts on your remote.

Operation was flawless. I could control all components from around my house! And, the performance of startup was much faster, I believe because I had assigned each component to a specific channel on the extender.

In my configuration, I was pleasantly surprised to find the RF extender is fast enough to send the repeated command sequences needed to accelerate up and down through the menus in my AppleTV. Great job, Logitech!

If there was one area where Logitech could make improvements it would be the supplied documentation, which attempts to be user friendly but in the process is so oversimplified it is of little use. Since Amazon doesn't allow half-star increments, I stand by my 5-star review, documentation withstanding.

Based on the large number of problems people had when this was first released a year ago, I was expecting issues, but it would appear that the latest firmware (RF Extender v2.4, Harmony 890 v4.7) and Harmony client software (v7.0.2) have resolved all issues for both Mac OS X and Windows users.

All in all, a highly recommended product - and a great value bundled with the matching Harmony 890 (see my review there). I have since upgraded to the Harmony 1000, but kept this extender to use with it. It's a shame that Logitech doesn't include the extender with the 1000, as it really is a requirement.

I would recommend this without hesitation.

36 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Needs hardware change, July 10, 2007

By 

Full Score - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Logitech Harmony RF Wireless Extender (Electronics)

Works well with both the Harmony 890 and 1000. Fairly easy to set up, though there are two HUGE drawbacks which Logitech should fix.
1. They have hard-wired the cable to the Extender so that you have to unplug the unit whenever you want to upgrade the settings - a royal pain when it's plugged in behind your components.
2. Even if you want to make a tiny change to the Harmony settings (e.g. changing a couple of icons) you have to update BOTH the Harmony and the Extender. This takes much longer and, because it's hard-wired, is very annoying.

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars RF Extender Works and Can Save You Money, January 29, 2007

By 

Masaki Lee (USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Logitech Harmony RF Wireless Extender (Electronics)

I really like this RF Extender. I've used it on the H890 remote as well as the new H1000 remote. All I can say is that it really works. You do have to hook it up to your computer and program it separately from your remote. It has its own firmware. It's easy to do though. I haven't encountered any problems yet setting one up. I'm a professional A/V designer and installer. This is the new way to go. I've installed many hardwired remote IR systems in the past by Xantech and Russound. Those systems cost upwards of $125 on there own. Why not pay a little more and get a great universal remote to boot (H890 for around $250). It comes with a power adapter and IR blasters that plug into this unit then stick on the components you want to control. You can use a flashlight to shine on the face of those source components to help you in locating the IR receiver windows on your cable box/receiver/DVD player etc. (look for a round hole or LED shaped device) Anyways, this is a great product in my opinion.

Update, I will have to say this. I wish they made the transformer have a connector at the Extender instead of hardwiring it in. I do not like having to reach thru many wires in different A/V racks to pull out the transformer and then plug it back in every time the remote gets updated. It would be far easier to unplug the ir emitters and a power jack all at the same location!