RC User Reviews: Harmony 550 Remote Control (1)

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User reviews for the Harmony 550 from Logitech.

Ratings	Reviews	MSRP (USD)
Average: 4.47/5.00 Median: 4.67/5.00	5	$130

The Harmony 550 upgrades the economical 520 with more buttons. It features the same new format, backlit LCD screen with 4 adjacent hard buttons, fully backlit keypad, code learning, USB communications and online setup.

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Written by Sam In North Cakalakey from Raleigh, NC.

The reviewer has used this remote control for under 1 month.

Review 5 made on Saturday December 1, 2007 at 12:13 AM.

Also owned:

RM-VL600
SIMA SUR-20

Strengths:

Ease of installation, use and depth of devices supported.

Weaknesses:

Have to use the web enabled product for any changes which makes quick changes difficult.

Review:

As of right now, I love it. It supports all of my devices and every control on them (that I've needed so far). The Sony RM-VL600 did not.

Tactile buttons that are different sizes is a lot better than using an LCD panel (especially in the dark).

Very wife friendly. Good weight to it but looks fragile. I will post if it dies after the first drop.

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Written by JoelG from Salem, VA.

The reviewer has used this remote control for under 1 month.

Review 4 made on Wednesday January 10, 2007 at 3:39 PM.

Also owned:

"Universal" remote that came with Dish STB

Strengths:

Size
Style
Easy to program

Weaknesses:

Size of buttons

Review:

I've had my Harmony 550 since Christmas and have grown to love it. It controls each of my components in every way I want giving me a truly universal remote. The sleek design and small size is something I liked from the beginning. Because of its size and button placement it did take a while to get used to it and I even considered exchanging it for the 670. Now I'm glad I didn't. The 670 is advertised to be especially good for DVR (PVR, Tivo) replacement and that was of real interest to me. However, I've been able to program the 550 to control the DVR portion of my STB and all is wonderful.

The only characteristic of the 550 which is taking some getting used to is the size of the buttons, especially the numbered ones. I often change channels using the numbered buttons and since they are located at the bottom it's natural for me to use my thumb. Because of the smaller size and location it's taken a bit of getting used to and occasionally I'll miss "dial" a channel. This was a real concern for me the first week or so, but I'm slowly becoming accustomed to this. In the end the size and style of the 550 is really appealing to me and that overcomes the button size and placement.

It also occurred to me that since I had used the "universal" remote which came with my STB for over 3 years, changing to any new remote would take some getting used too. I have no doubt that before long I can work with the 550 blindfolded just as I could with the other one.

I should mention that the software was a bit unusual and it took me a while before I really understood it well. I did work for me with no glitches at all. Also, I called Logitech support with questions a couple of times and found the wait time was never longer than about 5 minutes. These were daytime calls so I can't speak to what it's like in the evenings. The level one support answered all my questions.

Panasonic Plasma
Dish VIP622 STB
Samsung DVD
Yamaha A/V Receiver
(as you can see I'm brand loyal :)

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Written by Bierboy from East Moline, Ill..

The reviewer has used this remote control for under 1 month.

Review 3 made on Tuesday January 2, 2007 at 11:40 AM.

Also owned:

Harmony SST-659

Strengths:

Size
Weight
Transport button location
Number of buttons

Weaknesses:

Only four LCD screen buttons (as opposed to the option of six on the 659).
Backlighting does not light up the entire remote except with the push of only a couple of buttons (activities is one). Finding the volume and channel buttons is a bit more challenging than with the 659.

Review:

Really like the weight, feel, and slimness of the 550. Much more attention to functionality with its design than the "peanut-shaped" Harmonies. Looks much more like a remote and operates as such. Button pushes are positive.

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Written by thebandit from AZ.

The reviewer has used this remote control for under 1 month.

Review 2 made on Sunday December 24, 2006 at 12:11 AM.

Strengths:

This is a great remote for the money. I just got it about a week ago and it is just awesome! I like the user friendliness it offers by just plugging it into my MAC notebook and letting it do the rest. E-A-S-Y. I remember ehwn I had to do all the macro programing myself and let's be honest...I could have done something more productive like watching a movie! But honestly, great remote and I highly suggest it to anyone.

Weaknesses:

There are some quirks I really didn't mind too much but it did have one problem so far. When the remot was learning one of the codes, particularly thre previous chapter button, it kept on saying it was learning thr code but for 5-7 minutes! So finally I gave up and pressed update. I tried it and it actually worked anyways. I think it's a programming issue because it is running on a MAC and not a PC. Who knows? But that's the only thing so far.

Review:

Like I said, I don't know if this is a problem with PCs but on MACs I think it is has some compatability issues

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Written by eengert from Buffalo, NY.

The reviewer has used this remote control for under 1 month.

Review 1 made on Thursday October 26, 2006 at 5:32 PM.

Also owned:

One-For-All

Strengths:

- Lots of hard buttons
- Thin
- Well-lit
- Very customizable
- Easy to use (Help system is actually very useful)
- Affordable

Weaknesses:

- No custom macro programming (most people won't need this because the activities are macros themselves)
- Online setup UI is a bit in flexible (but it works once you get used to it)
- Glossy finish picks up fingerprints easily

Review:

I really like the concept that logitech uses to setup their remotes. No remote-based code learning etc. You just use their online interface and get everything setup before uploading the configuration to your remote. The software could use some re-design, but in the end it works. From there you have the ability to do quite a few customizations, although this doesn't include custom macros. As I mentioned, though, most people won't have need for custom macros since that's really what the activities do for you - turn everything on and to the right inputs/modes with the press of one button. I think this may be one of the best remotes available when you consider value (functionality for the price). More expensive remotes have more features, but I probably wouldn't agree that those extra features are worth several hundred more dollars. I'm very happy with the 550.

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