Tech Blog

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It's not a surprise that I'm a strong proponent of universal remotes. As soon as you start building a home theatre that goes beyond a simple TV/Blu-ray combination, things get complex enough to warrant a little help from technology.

Logitech has been top of the heap for a long time; their Harmony remote system does just about everything right. Ergonomic remote profiles, simple setup, and compatibility with over 225,000* devices make them an easy choice when you're looking for a universal.

I've been using the Harmony One in my main home theatre for over a year now and it's a life saver. That said, I've been struggling with four remotes in my living room - cable, my HDTV, a Blu-ray player, and an Xbox 360. It was time to wrangle these remotes and find a better way. Enter the Harmony 700.

Simple and effective.
I like the Harmony One - the touchscreen is large and easy to use - but I didn't need something quite so elaborate for my living room. The Harmony 700 was a great choice - buttons take the place of the touchscreen, though the screen is still colour and large enough to be usable (it is quite a bit smaller than the Harmony One, however). The 700 will replace up to six remotes, which is fine for me as I've only got four devices. If you've got more than six remotes you're going to want to step up into a more powerful Harmony to keep everything in line.

The 700 is roughly the same shape as the Harmony One, minus the small speed bump in the back. It's very comfortable to hold and is weighted towards the back of the unit, letting it rest naturally in your hand. This puts the primary controls (directional, OK, channel up/down and volume up/down) under your thumb. Mute and channel return are close by as well, and it's an easy extension (depending on the size of your thumbs) to hit guide or exit. The missing speed bump from the Harmony One also means that the 700 slides a little more easily in your hand, making it quick work to get to Menu and Info. You'll still want to use two hands to select activities - but that's not something you'll be doing very often, so it doesn't affect how the remote is used.

Recording and playback controls are easily accessible, but access to the number pad is awkward - far more so than on the Harmony One. The interesting thing about this is that it's something I actually had to think about, as I rarely enter numbers directly. I'm far more used to bringing up the guide and surfing through there to the channel I want. It's gotten to the point where you could remove the number buttons from my remote and I'm not sure I'd notice for a good long time.

Getting set up.
I have four devices that I planned to use with the Harmony 700; my Hitachi 42HDS52 plasma, my Shaw DCT6416 III HD-PVR, the Sony BDP-S560, and my Xbox 360.

Setting them up took eight minutes from start to finish. I clocked it - and even I was impressed. From the moment I set up my new account for this remote, it took only eight minutes to input the type of product, manufacturer, and model. I selected my inputs and how I wanted the units to work (if the cable box is on, everything other than the TV should be off - and so on). I transferred the information to the Harmony 700, a process that took about a minute, and that was it - job done.

The Harmony software asks you to test it out - which I did. Other than a slightly slower than normal start-up time for the TV, the remote worked perfectly first time. Control of my cable box was as good as the Shaw remote, I was able to navigate Blu-ray discs easily, and even my Media Centre Extender for my 360 responded quickly. In short - from out of the box to usable remote in less than 15 minutes.

Bells and whistles.
The Harmony 700 may seem basic in comparison to the Harmony One or the 900 - but it's a full featured model. The remote is backlit - which is a noticeable relief in comparison to the remotes for the BD player and the cable box. The backlight is intelligent - turning off when not in use and illuminating when the remote is picked up. You've got three dedicated activity keys at the top of the remote that you can designate for certain activities (Listen to Music, Watch TV, and Watch a Movie are the suggested activities, but you can set them up for anything). You've also got a full range of choices as to what you'd like the four contextual screen buttons to do, as well as four coloured buttons in the middle of the remote that you can designate for functions you'd like to use.

So what's the word?
The good word is that it's good: the Harmony 700 has successfully replaced four remotes for me. The unit takes AA batteries and comes with rechargeables (Sanyo Eneloop in my particular unit) in the box. It recharges via USB - which is a bit disappointing coming from the handy cradle for the Harmony One - but it charges fast. Harmony says that the charge lasts a week, but I haven't been able to dent the battery life hard enough to notice - higher than average users will probably have to stick to a once-a-week charging schedule though*.

Despite a few minor issues, I feel secure in recommending the Harmony 700. It's a smart, solid, easy-to-use piece of hardware that will make your life easier. It's quite wrappable, has a high holiday-shakeability factor ( "what's in there?" "no idea!" ), and the inclusion of cable, batteries, and easy-to-follow instructions will make it a pleaser on your holiday morning.

Pros:
Light, strong frame - feels good in your hands.
Fast setup - worked with everything I wanted it to, with no problems in setup.
Frequently used buttons are easy to reach.
Priced well for the full featured remote that it is.

Cons:
Screen is a touch small.
No charging cradle*.

Verdict: The 700 is a good value and is recommended.

*UPDATE:

Just a few quick updates to help clarify the article.

• The number of compatible devices is 225,000, not 25,000. The odds of finding an uncompatible device are pretty low.
• Battery life is grossly understated. Like all Harmony products, the battery lasts way longer than advertised. It removes the sting of "no charging cradle.

Message Edited by Graham on 11-12-2009 10:13 AM