Hello,
This reply is cc'ed to TidBITS-Talk. I hope that's OK.
>I don't believe that Andrew Laurence gave a proper review of the Harmony
>remote. He really should have compared it to a *good* traditional universal
>remote to show the pros and cons of each kind.
I considered doing that, and my first draft had a paragraph which
mentioned Pronto, the MX-700 and One for All. However, the article
was a review of the Harmony, not a comparison piece.
>I have shopped -- and I mean SERIOUSLY shopped -- for remotes that can
>control all of my equipment gracefully.
>
>There is a brand that does everything well. One For All remotes provide
>comprehensive programmable solutions with intelligently grouped keys at an
>excellent price.
I agree - I've owned a few One For All remotes. They work remarkably
well, particularly for the price. However, I've never cared for how
they feel in my hand, and I grew tired of reevaluating my remote
based on my new devices. A given model may or may not have enough
device buttons to cover my devices, and over time I found it
burdensome to explain to people that a given button has three
different functions, depending on what "mode" the remote is in. I
far prefer to leave the state tracking to the remote.
>For example, the One For All model #8910 that I purchased for $25 dollars
>recently allows me to control a Yamaha receiver, Sony TV, Sony VCR, General
>Instruments cable box, Sungale DVD player, Daewoo CD player and my computer
>through a Keyspan Multimedia IR unit... and I still have one device key
>unused.
Harmony supports up to 15 devices on a single remote, and up to 255 activities.
>If the appropriate codes aren't already present in the remote, their tech
>support personnel can program new codes into the remote through the phone in
>a matter of a few seconds.
>
>If you don't like which key does what, then you can easily re-map them. If
>the device has an arcane function on its remote then the One For All remote
>can learn it. Almost every key is programmable. Key-functions can be swapped
>between devices. As with the Harmony, you can program macros for switching
>on and off and setting multiple devices at once. It isn't necessary to hook
>it up to a computer to reach the advanced functions, but with the
>appropriate cable, you can hack this remote from a PC.
Likewise, the Harmony can remap any function to any button, or learn
any new remote code. I should point out, however, that Harmony's
device tracking and activities aren't macros, and there's no
programming involved. Adding a function to an activity is a simple
click on the web page, and through state tracking the remote only
executes the function if it's needed.
For instance, if I move from "Watch TV" to "Watch DVD", the Harmony
turns on my receiver and DVD player, and turns on surround sound.
The devices are needed in the activity, so the remote knows to turn
them on. If I then switch to "Watch Video", the reciever switches to
the VCR input, but (and this is key) doesn't bother turning on
surround sound because it's already on.
Functions aren't steps in a macro, they're criteria that must be met
in an activity.
>Here is what my remote doesn't do: It doesn't "remember" the state of my
>equipment as the Harmony does. But remotes that "remember" states have to be
>reset whenever someone turns a device on or off or changes a setting
>manually. I suspect that moving through the menus to reset the Harmony is a
>greater annoyance than is indicated in the article.
Not so much. You can press "Help" and go through the questions, or
"Device", select the device and then press the function on either a
mapped hard button or one of the soft buttons. It's quite easily
dispatched.
>Because no comparisons were made to good universal remotes, the Harmony
>review hasn't addressed the fundamental question of whether purchasing a
>Harmony provides value over other reasonable choices. Given the information
>in the review, I can't see how the price is justified.
Again, the review was only of the Harmony, not a market comparison of
universal remote controls. I expect we'll hear from Pronto
enthusiasts as well. :-)
In the review I didn't mention the Harmony's physical design. It
emulates TiVo's wonderfully ergonomic "peanut" design, and nestles
into my hand quite nicely. I also appreciate that the physical
buttons are intelligently named so that they apply to similar
functions on multiple devices - "Menu", for instance, applies to a
DVD as well as the TiVo home screen. In addition, the remote isn't
hideously unattractive, and most importantly it has a high SAF
(Spousal Acceptance Factor). Between the physical design, activity
buttons and device intelligence, I can leave it on the coffee table
and be reasonably sure that my mother-in-law will be able find Regis.
Ultimately, remote controls are human input devices, and whether one
works for you is just as subjective as selecting a keyboard or
pointing device. (I love Kensington TurboMouse trackballs, for
example, but hate every other trackball I've tried.) Having used a
number of remotes over the years, I find the Harmony to be well worth
its price.
(Incidentally, street prices are about 30% below MSRP.)
>-Andrew Moses
>moses925
comcast.net
Thanks for reading,
Andrew
--
Andrew Laurence
atlauren
uci.edu
![[F]](/Images/i7/site.gif){kind=small}
TidBITS 
TidBITS 