![]() Not only is it nice to have a recharging option to save dough on batteries, another benefit of the dock is that if you're good about leaving the remote in its cradle, you'll always know where it is when you need it. The Harmony 900 ships with a docking station for juicing up the included rechargeable lithium ion battery you simply place the remote in its cradle (unlike some earlier Harmony remotes, this model fits securely in its charging station). The touch-screen portion of the remote is responsive and easy to use. ![]() ![]() The remote is essentially divided into five zones of operation (they're designated by faint, silver lined), with the color LCD at the top constituting the fifth zone. While the remote does appear to be loaded with buttons, it actually has fewer of them than previous Harmony remotes. A lot of thought has been put into the button layout, with hard, backlit buttons that are differentiated in size and shape, so you can navigate by feel without looking down at the remote (at least when performing basic operations like changing channels, adjusting volume, and play/pause). The remote is sleek and sits comfortably in your hand. Thankfully, there's now a workaround: Logitech offers a PS3-specific IR-to-Bluetooth converter module for $60.Īs we said in our earlier review of the Harmony One, Logitech's done an excellent job with the cosmetics and ergonomics. In an ideal world the Harmony 900 would offer Bluetooth connectivity, but we can't fault Logitech for Sony's stupidity. Alas, the only unit that we couldn't control was our PlayStation 3, which uses Bluetooth and has no IR receiver. However, it turned out we had no problems controlling all our components, even though the system was in an open rack with three levels and included seven components (not including the TV). Because we had one IR adapter on a lower shelf next to the AV receiver, we were a little worried that it wouldn't be able to control the cable box on a higher shelf. We decided to let IR control the TV and RF control the rest of the components. The system we used to test the RF with wasn't in a closed cabinet with doors and the TV sat on top of the horizontal component rack. If two blasters don't cut it for your setup, you can buy additional RF modules and blasters. The IR signals reflect off surfaces, so the two IR blasters should cover all your components, except perhaps your TV (which is always within your line of sight anyway). If your components are in a cabinet with shelves, you can stick one blaster on a left shelf and one on a right shelf. You then plug two mini-IR blasters into the back of the RF module (there are A and B ports) and place the blasters just in front of your components. The half-hockey-puck-size RF module is powered by a small AC adapter (it's a duplicate of the adapter that charges the remote) and is designed to be tucked into the back of your cabinet, behind your components. (These buttons are also useful for mapping to various confirmation buttons that appear on DVRs and cable/satellite boxes.) (We assume additional themes will be available for download).Īdditionally, Logitech has added a row of buttons in the middle of the remote that correspond to the red, blue, green, and yellow tabs you'll find on Blu-ray player remotes to control interactivity options during playback of Blu-ray Discs. You can now choose between four color "themes" that put a new skin on the interface, though the looks aren't radically different from theme to theme. For starters, Logitech has increased the sharpness of the screen this isn't a huge deal, but it does give the interface a cleaner look. ![]() The remote looks almost identical to the Harmony One except for some small-but-notable improvements. Well, Logitech has given us what we asked for-and even a bit more-in its Harmony 900. When we reviewed the Harmony One last year, we gave it an enthusiastic Editors' Choice and lamented only the fact that there was no RF option for people who had components hidden in cabinets or closets. ![]()
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