Logitech Harmony 880 Advanced Universal Remote Control

A very good, but not perfect universal remote

By Ciemo  Jul 5, 2005 | 15 out of 15 found this Logitech Harmony 880 Advanced Universal review helpful

Pros: First true Universal remote I've owned, Web updatable

Cons: Ergonomics, Web UI, No Macros, Help

I've owned several other "universal/
programmable" remotes, all under $250. This one is the best so far. However, it's not perfect. What I do like is that the buttons are a good set and work well with Tivo (many other remotes don...9;t), my DVD player, my Cable set-top box, and my TV. Another likable attribute is that the Web programmable UI is pretty comprehensive and that there are many many opportunities to remap buttons. Okay, now the downsides: 1) Less than stellar ergonomics. The oval arrows (up, down, left, right) ring is too small for my hands (and I have small hands). It's uncomfortable to operate Tivo menus using this ring. The volume and channel buttons are too stylistic to operate comfortably with your eyes off the remote. Logitech designers should take styling cues from the Sony Tivo remote. 2) The WebUI is very clunky. All programming operations must be done via the Web UI. The UI is appallingly slow. There is no reason for the UI to be as slow as it is. 3) The default key mappings are not always correct and will take multiple iterations with the slow Web UI to get it right. But atleast you can eventually "get it right". 4) The Activities menus and Help features are interesting and more "intelligent" than most other remotes -- they remember the operating state of all components. However, if the state is not correct for any reason (a component is on when the remote thinks it is off), you can end up in 20-questions hell as the Help walks you through each component one-by-one-by-one-by-one. I really want a menu of buttons for changing power and A/V inputs on a component by component basis. You can add these virtual buttons to the menu yourself, however, there is no macro feature for programming a sequence such as "TV/Video menu, 5" to get your Tivo input set up correctly on the TV. So, should you buy it? Well, the wife and baby sitter can now operate the AV system with a single remote. I've yet to teach my 6 year old to operate the system with the remote (he has, however, mastered the Tivo remote). Maybe Logitech will listen and a future software update will get me the features I want. It's a tough call. At the price, it's a bit expensive. It does work as advertised, but there is certainly room for improvement. Read more Less