New Logitech Harmony Remote Spotted at Best Buy

[newfiend]

Check out the Harmony Touch... http://www.htpc-reviews.com/logitech-ha ... uch-screen

More pic's and info here as well: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/29/logi ... -buy-leak/

New Harmony Touch

Can't wait to see the entire new line up...
newfiend~

[adam1991]

What stupid button placement.

[bobbob]

looks good, i love my harmony one but its due to be replaced soon and this could be the candidate. thankfully i have normal hands so the button placement will be ok!

[CyberSimian]

What stupid button placement.

And where are the "Skip Forward" and "Skip Backward" buttons?

The universal remote control that I use at the moment (a Universal Remote Control MX-850) does not have dedicated buttons for the skip functions, and I ended up redefining the "Menu" and "Exit" buttons to perform the skip functions. (I chose to redefine these buttons as they are in a cluster with the other transport buttons, and not a great deal of use for Media Center.)

Lack of skip buttons is definitely a backward step in my view.

-- from CyberSimian in the UK

[makryger]

Make it communicate with a computer over IP or using Logitech's unifying receiver, and I'd consider it. IR is so last-century.

[STC]

That's a strange design concept right there...

Me no likey.

And if their current range of remote programming software is anything to go by,- good luck!

$250 ?

[barnabas1969]

What stupid button placement.

Agreed... and a lack of hard numeric keys too. You would think that with all the comments they receive about their other models, that they would learn what people really want... transport keys that are right where your thumb rests while holding the remote... and all of the most frequently-used keys as hard keys instead of touch keys. I'll keep my AR-RX18G, thank you.

[newfiend]

Yeah I really am not too excited about this remote in particular.. It is nice to see new hardware from them though.. I just hope the other designs they have in mind are better laid out...if not I'll look into picking up another harmony one for back up when they start clearing out the old remotes to make room for the new ones.

Sent from my SGH-i937 using Board Express

[epete]

looks like an old style cordless phone

[richard1980]

[newfiend]

looks like an old style cordless phone

never thought about it but I think your right..lol
I agree with most that the button layout sucks. I do hope that they have something better than this planned..

[Motz]

I am very interested in this as I don't have a harmony one, but the transport controls are throwing me off a bit.

[Venom51]

I've got a lightly used, well taken care of 890 that doing a good job of holding down the bottom of the drawer I threw it in.

No IP means no interest from me.

[STC]

2 - 5 - 0 ?

[Venom51]

2 - 5 - 0 ?

Absolutely...for $2-5-0 it's yours.

That'd be a tidy $100 profit.

[Motz]

I have the harmony for xbox 360. I think I spent like $70 on it back in the day. I <3 it.

It is now discontinued and expensive: http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Harmony- ... B000CCXCYC

[werds]

Horrible layout, I prefer my current harmony where the navigation and channel buttons as well as play pause are all close together so no need to readjust my hand and how I hold the remote - but the buttons have distinct feel to them... I foresee me being fairly angry a few years down the road when I have to replace one of my 700's due to wear and tear

[mdavej]

I have the harmony for xbox 360. I think I spent like $70 on it back in the day. I <3 it.

It is now discontinued and expensive: http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Harmony- ... B000CCXCYC

I've got a bunch of these collecting dust in my closet. They're my favorite harmony of all time (that's why I hoarded them). But it's hard to say no to that kind of money. Looks like it's time to sell.

Werds, I like the 700's layout better too. But the 700 has some drawbacks of its own, like having only 6-8 devices versus 12, no sequence capability (unless you use the old software) and so-so battery life.

Anyway, back to the original topic, as more details emerge about the Touch, it's not looking half bad. Still too rich for my blood. But it does have some nice unique features like 10 step sequences (with adjustable delays on every step) and gestures so you don't have to look a the screen to use it. When returns and refurbs start hitting the market, I might pick one up.

[carljanderson]

My One is a bit long in the tooth, and some of the keys are no longer working and so I took the plunge with the Touch. Let me tell you, Logitech is on the clock.

Yes, the button placements will take some getting use to. I can manage that. I should be able to change the FF and REW buttons to act as skip.

However, BEWARE.... You can not program the number pad for ANY activity EXCEPT for Watch TV.

In my setup, I have XM Radio using the native Yamaha Passport (?) radio, so there isn't an additional unit. I set the activity to power on the Yamaha and set it to XM. Nice and easy, and it works. However, when I try to use the number pad to change the XM Channel (I mean who would want to change channels on XM???), the number pad DOES NOT work. I then go Myharmony.com, thinking I could change the behavior on the buttons on the keypad. I go to activites and change how I want the screen to work. I can not get to the Keypad. I then back out and go to Button thinking I could change the commands for the keypad there. NOPE.

I spent one hour on the phone with Logitech (the guy was trying). Finally, he was able to speak with a product engineer who told him that you can not program the KEYPAD for any activity EXCEPT Watch TV. This is a known issue that they are aware of. No ETA for a resolution.

I have not yet tried a 2nd Watch TV activity yet, but I may or I may have to use the URC R-50 and learn how to program that or find a ONE and return this Touch. I have 45 days to return the Touch.


p.s. I do like how the remote feels in my hand and the screen is responsive. I have no idea what I am supposed to do with Gestures. Also, i had to create yet another new MyHarmony ID.

[adam1991]

I can fix those One keys for you.

I have officially had it with this mania for touch screens. Just because you CAN make a touch screen, doesn't mean you SHOULD. And just because you can make a touch screen do X number of things, doesn't mean you should.

That entire remote is ridiculous. FIFTY WHOLE CHANNEL ICONS!!! Wow. You know, if I want customized channel listings, I can do that in Media Center in MULTIPLE ways. Mom, Starz/Encore, Kids, Dad--all right there at my fingertips. And I can have more than 50.

And as you point out, the ridiculousness of the keypad being limited to TV. And for that matter, a touch keypad is not easy to use when entering text on my MC screen (searching for shows, etc.). Touch screens are NOT the be-all and end-all of consumer electronics, and yet this iPhone mania has people believing that "well, even if it does suck, it must be right".

The next "big thing" is no doubt going to involve shouting at my TV and waving my arms to get the thing to work--and idiot gadget freaks are going to be all over with their lunacy talking about "oh, look at how cool this is!" and idiot companies are going to believe that "that must be the best way" and we'll suffer years of that insanity.