Introduction Home
theater systems are increasingly complex. In the old days of
audiophilia, you likely had a tape deck, stereo preamp, power amplifier
and two speakers. Maybe you even had a television in the same room.
Well, those days are long gone and systems today likely include a
digital cable box, digital video recorder (TiVo), audio/video preamp
processor, DVD and/or CD player, VCR and television. Throw in a
high-resolution disc player (SACD or DVD-Audio), music server (Apple
iPod or ReQuest) or video processor (Faroudja), and if you can
successfully make it all work seamlessly, you deserve an honorary
engineering degree from Radio Shack. If you are anything like me, you
yearn for a simple, one-stop solution to control it all and rid your
living area of those unsightly remotes.
There can be little debate that modern technology has spurred a
revolution in quality and functionality of home theater gear. This
revolution has been driven by consumer demand and intense competition
between hundreds of consumer electronics manufacturers competing for
your hard-earned buck. While undoubtedly home theater has benefited,
another result has been that most audio/video systems are comprised of
components from many manufacturers, each with its own remote control.
Universal remotes are nothing new. In fact, they range from $10 models
that have learned and preprogrammed codes, to models costing as much as
$500 that will control lighting, macro functions and sequenced
commands.
In the middle of all that is a range of universal remotes in the $300
range that can do sequenced macro commands and have many of the
controls of the big boys. The problem to date is that they are hard to
program, often requiring hours, if not days or weeks, of dedication to
learn how to make them do what you want.
Most audio/video salesmen will try to convince you that universal
remotes are the cure for all ills. But get that remote home and you
will likely discover the most universal fact about universal remotes:
they are surprisingly dysfunctional and difficult to use. Despite all
the technological advancements in home theater and the intense
competition between manufacturers to create products that cater to
every conceivable facet of home theater, it is shocking that few
manufacturers have attempted to conquer consumers’ appetite for a
functional universal remote.
Harmony
Remote has a new way of attacking the issues that have plagued
lower-priced universal remotes. All of the universal remotes in their
line are programmed via the Internet. No more complex macros to
program. You connect the Harmony Remote to the USB plug-and-play port
of any Internet-enabled computer, install the software, tell Harmony
the components in your system and how they are connected, and
preprogrammed "Smart State Activities" that control your components are
downloaded to the remote. Any changes to your custom configuration are
updated on Harmony’s website and synchronized to your remote. Even if
you upgrade to a new version of a Harmony product in the future, your
system settings are saved to your account on their website.
Harmony Remote makes several different universal remotes and all are
available for direct purchase on HarmonyRemote.com or from most leading
consumer retailers. The model they sent for review was the SST-659,
which sells for $199. I found the SST-659 to be lightweight,
thoughtfully organized and comfortable in my hand. The remote is
backlit and contains a liquid crystal display (LCD), which while
helpful for advanced functions, is a little small for my tastes. Text
is often compromised or cut off due to the limited space on the screen,
but other than the smallish display, I would characterize the SST-659
as a well-constructed product.
Home
theater systems are increasingly complex. In the old days of
audiophilia, you likely had a tape deck, stereo preamp, power amplifier
and two speakers. Maybe you even had a television in the same room.
Well, those days are long gone and systems today likely include a
digital cable box, digital video recorder (TiVo), audio/video preamp
processor, DVD and/or CD player, VCR and television. Throw in a
high-resolution disc player (SACD or DVD-Audio), music server (Apple
iPod or ReQuest) or video processor (Faroudja), and if you can
successfully make it all work seamlessly, you deserve an honorary
engineering degree from Radio Shack. If you are anything like me, you
yearn for a simple, one-stop solution to control it all and rid your
living area of those unsightly remotes.
