Customer Reviews

Logitech Harmony 300 Remote Control (Black)

5 star:		(81)
4 star:		(50)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(12)
1 star:		(23)

 

 

I have a 42" Vizio HDTV, a TiVo HD Series 3, and a PlayStation 3, and for the longest time, I've been making do with 3 remotes--one for each item. It was a nightmare, but I couldn't justify the $200+ price of the nicer Harmony remotes to my wife, so we suffered through it.

When I heard about the 300, it was heaven-sent. Sure, it doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the nicer, more expensive models--no backlit keys, no touchscreen (or any other screen, for that matter), no activities, etc. But the individual remotes didn't have any of that, either. All I needed was one remote that could control all 3 pieces of my humble little set-up, and that's what the Harmony 300 is. (Note: to control the PlayStation 3, I had to buy the Harmony PS3 Bluetooth Adapter for another $50, because the PS3 doesn't support IR).

Set-up was a breeze. Put in the make and model numbers of the devices, sync the remote, and done! (I use a Mac with OSX 10.6.3). Without any additional input from me, the remote did just about everything it needed to. Five more minutes to make a few personal preference adjustments and to add one or two functions that weren't automatically programmed, and the Harmony 300 has replaced the 3 manufacturer's remotes, plus one cheap Phillips universal remote that would only control the TV and the old DVD player. The drag-and-drop button programming couldn't be easier.

I only gave it a 4 on the wife acceptance factor because not all of the labels match up exactly to the functions they perform from one device to the next, so there is a little memorization involved. Short of getting the all-touchscreen model, though, there's not really much anyone can do about that. You can only print so many labels on/above each key, after all.

All in all, I am very pleased with this remote. It does exactly what I need it to, and for a very reasonable price. If you have to have the biggest and baddest remote, or if you've owned one of the nicer Harmony remotes and you expect this one to be the same, it's probably not for you. But if you just want a remote that can actually control your TV and a few peripherals without paying through the nose for it, then this is the remote for you. I give it my highest recommendation.

Devices used: 3
TV: Insignia NS-PDP42
Satellite box: Dish-network HD VIP612
Game Console: Xbox 360

If you're like me, you've struggled with your standard, out of the box remotes to do what you want them to do. The problem with most universal remotes is that they're limited on what they can do. Our Dish-Network universal remote would turn our TV Off & On, raise the volume, but after that, we had to use our TV's remote to change the input to play games or watch a DVD. Hoping perhaps to use the TV's universal quality on the Dish-Network receiver was a waste because it wouldn't understand things like "My recorded programs" from Dish-network.

My father in law has a top of the line system in his home, including the touch screen harmony 1100. Personally, I don't need or want a $400 remote control. The touch screen, while nice, is not a mandatory for me. Enter the Harmony 300 remote.

Out of the box the look & feel is sleek & a bit slick to the touch. The buttons are in a decent position and is understandable after about 5 minutes of use at the most. The best part of the remote is that it is truly "Universal." With no confusing codes to try out, you simply plug the device into your computer with the included USB cable and wait. From that point the software will ask you some basic questions like "What is the model number of your device?" etc.. and you just fill in the data. From there, you're set to use the remote. Very simple.

Now, here's the great part.... Don't like what a particular button does? You can change it. Through the software, you can make any button do any function! Want the 1 button to be 2? I'm not sure why you'd do it, but no problem. Want the "return" button to be an "exit" button? Easy peasy. It's great. Does your particular remote have a special function not listed by the software? It can be trained by aiming the remotes together & pressing the needed button. Again, so simple. We probably spent 30 minutes in total getting the buttons to do exactly what we'd like it to, but we haven't connected it since. There are nine (9) custom buttons with no specific intent, #1-5 at the top and four (4) colored buttons (A-D) in the middle. The colored buttons are the same color as the Xbox 360 remote & that may be intentional. Personally I use #1-4 for our TV input options and the colored buttons are used when in Xbox 360 mode.

Using the XBox 360 for DVDs, and Netflix online streaming is so simple! I love not having to find the game remote to watch a movie and use trigger buttons to fast forward or rewind.

If you're like me and have a basic system and don't want to spend $100 on a universal remote, this is the remote for you. It's a very streamlined version from Logitech and I'm glad they developed it. If you're concerned they don't handle your model of device, go to Logitech's website with your model number handy & see if they support it. You'll be surprised.

It's a decent enough remote, and probably great if you've never had a Harmony remote before. Bought this to replace the Harmony 550 that my daughter spilled milk on (which now works again BTW), and figured we didn't need the display. There are a couple of things I didn't realize about this remote. The first and biggest was that it only had one activity (Watch TV), and it is hard-coded to use the "TV" device. The only buttons I use on my TV are the power and input buttons, that's it. So that means I have to hit the "DVD/Aux" button to control my Sage TV media center box, which isn't the worlds biggest deal, but now we're getting very close to having a standard universal remote here. Another issue which was strictly my oversight was that the remote isn't backlit at all, should have seen that before, and it would have prevented me from buying it. I was thrown off for a few hours by the fact that my existing Harmony software wouldn't see the remote, until I realized that you HAVE to use the website to configure. There are many more configuration options available in the software that aren't on the website, but it still was fairly quick and easy to get a 100% configured remote using the website. I just wish I had the activities and backlight. I'll hang onto this remote, but it will probably go up to the bedroom and I'll get a refurb 550 for downstairs.

I was a little concerned, reading some of the reviews here, but thought I'd give the Harmony 300 a chance and I'm glad that I did.

For the record, I have a Direct TV HD-DVR Receiver, a Sony DVD/Surround Sound Theater System, and a Philips HD TV. At best I would have two remotes out, one for operating Direct TV, and the other to adjust the volume on the Sony... If, however, I wanted to play a movie or switch to my Xbox 360, I needed a third remote to switch Inputs on the television. That's a lot of clutter.

The Harmony 300 replaced all three. As advertised, setup did indeed take just minutes. The only adjustment I had to make was switching the volume from the TV (which is the preset), to controlling the Home Theater system. This was extremely simple to do, despite what other reviewers have reported.

I'm not a tech friendly dude, but had no problem whatsoever. You do need a computer to attach the remote to for programming, but I'm assuming that wouldn't be an issue for many.

It'll take a little time to adjust to the button layout, but I've tested everything from switching inputs, to recording with the DVR, to accessing my recorded shows... And, from what I can tell, I'm all good to go.

I've always been happy with Logitech products, and I'm glad they now offer a more moderately priced universal remote.

***EDIT***

Well, I'm bumping this sucker up to 5-stars after a little time with it. A couple of additional comments: I should have pointed out that you can go to the Logitech website to check and make sure it supports all of your devices. Secondly, it's amazingly customizable. I found myself thinking, gee, I wish I could hit one button and turn on my TV, theater system, and Direct TV at the same time... Turns out I can. Same with some other tweeking I've done with the button mapping. You just go to the "MyHarmony" website, and you can customize the remote however you see fit. A process which is very simple to do, even for a low-tech guy like me. Great, great product.

I have a Vizio HDTV, Vizio Blue Ray DVD, Vizio Soundbar System, and Directv HD DVR and the Harmony Remote has exceeded all of my expectations! This was literally the easiest remote to set-up and use. Plugged supplied USB into the remote and my laptop entered in my equipment and 15 minutes later I'm putting away all of my old remotes! I would highly recommend anyone looking to eliminate the remote control clutter purchase this Logi-Tech Harmony 300 Remote Control. No codes to remember or write down just use it and enjoy all of the new technologies with one remote!! No problems whatsoever since day one!

Great starter remote for new users. I bought it to control three different devices, including an obscure Argosy media streamer, and it works as described. Web setup is a good way to customize the remote, including for Mac users. Highly recommended. Could be backlit, but that's an upgraded model.

This Harmony really has only one programmed activity... "Watch TV". As long as that's what you're looking for, it'll do the job very well. Buttons are intuitive and programming is easy via Logitech Harmony's website. If you're using it with a DVR box, you will need spend a little extra time getting the interface right, but I did it get it to do exactly what I wanted.

One button to turn on the TV, DirecTV HD DVR and surround sound system? Priceless. Being able to assign the volume control to whatever device I want (surround for me - but TV for basic TV-cable setup), a big sigh of relief.

I didn't realize I needed a universal remote until I received the Harmony 300 to review. I had looked at universal remotes a few years ago, and the cheap ones were awful, and the ones that might do what I wanted were really expensive and involved a lot of programming.

Enter the Logitech Harmony line, an eye opener for me. Instead of entering arcane codes and pointing remotes at each other, you program the Harmony by plugging it into a USB port on your Mac or Windows computer. (Note: you can not program this remote without a computer - so borrow a friend if you are not computer savvy.)

The setup program retrieves information from Logitech's vast database of device codes to do all of the basic programming for you. That database even included a low-end RCA receiver that neither my Sony BD remote nor my DirecTV remote could be programmed to control, with their limited built-in device code options.

But, then you can customize. The web interface lets you drag and drop commands onto the buttons of an image of the remote to change the functionality. And, for volume control, you get to specify for each of the four controlled devices, which other device's volume should be adjusted when you use the volume control.

My DirecTV remote easily handled both the DirecTV HD DVR and my Sharp TV, but I had to use a separate remote for my surround sound system. With the Harmony, the power button now automatically powers all three devices on or off (selected by checkboxes in the web interface) and the volume control adjusts the surround system volume if I am in DirecTV or Blu-Ray mode (and the TV volume when in TV mode) - all my choices.

I found the buttons a bit small and not organized in a way to do frequent tasks without moving my hand around. Color-coding functional sections of the remote would help usability tremendously. The ergonomics of the DirecTV remote are superior, I think, although the Harmony body nicer in the hand.

Like another reviewer, it was nice to see Duracell batteries included, instead of some weak no-name. The IR (infrared) signal seems more powerful than my other remotes, so perhaps the Duracells are required. It will be interesting to see how long the batteries last before needing replacement.

I have only a few disappointments so far:

1. The web interface requires you to type in your model number: how hard would it be for Logitech to provide a drop-down list of models? Because of this, I had to look up the exact model codes for each device. (Pleasantly, the web interface then displayed nice photographic images of the correct devices to confirm my entry.)

2. The Harmony 300 only uses IR (infrared) to control your devices. It does not offer RF (radio frequency) control, as does the DirecTV remote. Switching the DirecTV remote to RF was necessary since my dog lies down in front of the IR port on the DirecTV receiver, blocking the light. Fortunately, radio waves go right through him. ;-) You have to pay 8 times more than the 300 to get the Harmony 900 if you want or need RF control. That this is only an IR remote is not mentioned anywhere on the Harmony 300 package.

3. The Favorite Channel buttons are a joke. They are supposed to let you quickly jump to a favorite. But, each digit is sent with a huge delay to the device, so when I press a button for 202 (CNN) for example, I can eat a snack while I watch "2" (one thousand and one) "0" (one thousand and one) "2" (one thousand and one) <enter>. I'll reassign these buttons to something useful. (The DirecTV receiver's own 'favorites accessed via the arrow up button are instant - I'll stick with them.)

4. The ergonomics of the button layouts is not great. With the DirecTV remote, the shape and layout of buttons is such that I can always press the right button without looking. Might be my own limitation, but I cannot choose any but the most obvious buttons on this unit in the dark. (I'll post a photo comparing key shape/size/layout of this unit vs DirecTV after the holiday.)

5. The web interface customization screen could use a bit of a makeover IMHO. You drag commands onto buttons to assign them (nice), but looking at the command list, you have no idea which commands are already assigned and to what. This should be done like shortcut keys on computers - and the currently assigned button should be listed next to the command if the command is already in use. Similarly, you cannot tell which button does what without hovering your mouse over each. That's great as far as it goes, but it would be nice to see a listing (or enlarged graphic) that shows the assignments of each button that you could print out.

Edited June 8, 2010 to add:

6. The web programming interface does not allow you to "unassign" a button if you accidentally assign a command to it, or later change your mind and want the button to do nothing. Your only choice with the current release of the web-based software is to reset the entire remote for that device and reprogram all of the other buttons that you might have customized. I would drop a star from my review for this hassle.

Initially, my Harmony 300 did not work with my DirecTV HR22 receiver, either when added as a device, or when directly programming the 300's keys using the DirecTV remote.

The direct key programming (teaching) problem was apparently due to use of Mac OS 10.6 Snow Leopard, and I don't know if this has been fixed, since I switched to use of a PC running XP to do direct programming of keys.

Logitech's customer care responded the same day (a copy of their email is in the comments), and suggested entering HR20-100S (instead of HR22), and this worked, so I now have a fully functioning Harmony 300 (DirectTV, PS3, TV, DVD).

Since I'm using the 300 in a bedroom, and was aware of its limitations, I was not disappointed like other posters, and, in fact, find it to be almost exactly what I need. Logitech certainly had the right idea (lower cost Harmony for lower-end needs), and I hope they can make this product succeed with a few improvements and bug fixes.

I was hoping that with this remote I could set the video inputs for multiple devices but this is not the case. You do get one button on/off for controlling the TV and cable set top box at the same time, but if you switch to other devices I have to use the remotes change video input button.
Considering the set-up was so well programed I would have thought the video input issue could have been easily resolved.
As others have noted, placement of channel number buttons is a little awkward.
All that said, I am able to work the TV, cable box, Roku box, and DVD player with this one remote. So I guess for the price it is not a bad deal, just not a great deal.