Just noticed a new remote on the harmony website specificaly for he 360. Looks a lot like the 520 with some color and screen changes and of course the addition of the YXAB buttons. Might be a good choice for somone who doesnt have a harmony yet..

http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/products/details/US/EN,CRID=2311,CONTENTID=11250
http://www.logitech.com/lang/images/0/9737.jpg

I'm pretty sure that I want to get a harmony remote...I just don't know which one....

What's this lacking that the other comparably priced harmony's have? Recommendations?

A functioning website.....

I can't do anything with this remote right now other than control the Xbox 360 that I could do with the included remote....

http://www.harmonremote.com/ servers were overloaded today.

Tim

I have this remote and love it just as much as my 658. This one can control more than enough components for me and it matches the 360 perfectly. I picked it up with a $30 rebate from BB last week. So it costs $100 in the end.

I've got a Scientific Atlanta 8000 HD DVR....which is the only thing I'm worried about it being able to control as easily as the native remote...

How does this thing do w/DVRs?

The remote for xbox 360 / logitech feels kind of cheap and the buttons are very "clicky" stiff, not very smooth feel to it.
I recommend instead getting the 880 model.
I returned the above remote.

Mo

The remote for xbox 360 / logitech feels kind of cheap and the buttons are very "clicky" stiff, not very smooth feel to it.
I recommend instead getting the 880 model.
I returned the above remote.

Mo

To add to what Mo said above, the remote is FRAGILE. Make sure you don't drop it by accident. The LCD died on my 520 when it had an unfortunate tumble. I don't know how much better the buttons on the 880 feel, but I did not like the creaky rickety feel of the 520's buttons. Looks great, but it is not a rugged piece of 'tronics.

Very cool remote but I loathe the software. It takes forever to program of all of the functions from your current equipment and if the servers are getting hit a lot or are down you cannot program your remote through your PC? What's up with that?

Very cool remote but I loathe the software. It takes forever to program of all of the functions from your current equipment and if the servers are getting hit a lot or are down you cannot program your remote through your PC? What's up with that?

I agree the convenience of the web update is nice, but it's inefficient. Couldn't they simply give a data DVD in the packaging with the remote that has all the settings. Doesn't seem like it would be THAT much data. I would think it could fit on a 9GB DVD.

Tim

Once again it is very slow to get the programming done and now I am getting the page about the servers again. So like, when can I actually program my remote? Shall I wait until next week?

HIGHLY ridiculous.

Once again it is very slow to get the programming done and now I am getting the page about the servers again. So like, when can I actually program my remote? Shall I wait until next week?

HIGHLY ridiculous.

Are you all referring to the 360 version of the remote, or the 520 in general? I had to program for 6 devices ranging from Sony to Rega, and everything setup fine just from the DVD. I did not need to access the net other than for registering the remote.

Are you all referring to the 360 version of the remote, or the 520 in general? I had to program for 6 devices ranging from Sony to Rega, and everything setup fine just from the DVD. I did not need to access the net other than for registering the remote.

Really? that's interesting. I installed from the disc too, but it kept trying to access the internet to setup the devices. Wouldn't let me do anything. I was setting up Sony, Pioneer equipment with one SA 8300HD box.

Hmmmm....

Tim

Yes, I am trying to set up the harmony 360 remote that I just got for Christmas.
It has a disc for the PC and you connect it via USB and it walks you through the set-up procedure.

This is the messaage I get as I try to program my remote:
Experiencing High Traffic
Thank you for visiting the Logitech Harmony Member website, we are presently experiencing high volumes. Please try again later.

Copyright - 2005 Logitech Harmony Remote.

Just noticed a new remote on the harmony website specificaly for he 360. Looks a lot like the 520 with some color and screen changes and of course the addition of the YXAB buttons. Might be a good choice for somone who doesnt have a harmony yet..

http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/products/details/US/EN,CRID=2311,CONTENTID=11250
http://www.logitech.com/lang/images/0/9737.jpg

The question is: Does it work with Sharp AQUOS TV sets?

I have a LC-37D5U and I could not find a universal remote that could handle it.

Theoretically it should work with any TV since it has learning capability. The question really is, when will you GET to use it? After traffic dies down on their site??

We were discussing this in a thread (http://hdtv.forsandiego.com/messages/2/4246.html?1135614714) in the local A/V forum, hdtv.forsandiego.com. One difference between the 520 and the 360 is that the 360 has 8 more hard buttons. I can't comment on the 520 or 360, but I've been using a venerable pre-Logitech 768 for years and I love it. It is time for an upgrade, though.

The guy who started the discussion got a Harmony 360 for Christmas and has not been able to program it yet due to the site traffic (he opened it on Christmas Eve). You'd think that sales numbers would have allowed them to anticipate this.

I'll repost some of my experiences with this remote from the Betraythis forums. Dean sorry to hear about your programming difficulties. On that same note, for those taking the Harmony/Logitech test drive from their site, make sure you actually follow through with the actual test drive itself and not make up some non-existant hardware that you don't have. When I took my test drive, I inputted different equipment than I really had. And when I installed the software for the Harmony remote on my laptop, I recovered my test drive account. As a result, it automatically programmed my Hamrmony 360 with the bogus equipment from the test drive. I spent an extra 30mins removing/adding the proper equipment back in through the harmony software. So in other words, if I did it right the first time, my remote would have been programmed immediately when I plugged it into the PC for the first time:D Anyways. here's my quick and long winded view on the remote thus far:

Day .5:
I spent a ton of time with the Harmony 360 the first night I got it configuring the LCD buttons and 3 activities I needed.

But so far, I like it. It will be replacing my Tivo, TV, DVD, AV receiver, 360, and xbox1 remote. The buttons are where they should be, near my thumb in the middle of the remote and so far it's doing everything as advertised.

Controlling the 360 is a snap too. Having the Y,B,X,A buttons there just makes it so much easier. The LCD buttons are configured for 360 guide, media center, eject, and on/off. Now I have one remote to control my Tivo, 360, and media center extender that changes my AV equipment as well.

Day 1:
After one nights worth of use on the remote. Some initial impressions:

1. My Mits TV is not universal remote friendly. It has that stupid scroll through the available inputs menu to switch inputs. The idiot that I am thought that the remote needed all of the inputs enabled and as such now when I switch from the DVI input for the Tivo which is last on the list, to the component 2 input for the 360, it takes it a good while to cycle through the list as it goes through ant1, ant2, blah blah blah. I'll be fixing that tonight and only enable the inputs that are active.

2. Some of the buttons require a bit of pressure to push down on (volume/channel) while the device and help buttons have that "squishy" feel. I'm sure I won't notice this after a while.

3. In terms of looks, I already got used to the white color of the remote. The silver makes it match pretty closely to the rest of my equipment with the exception of the big black tv. However, some of the buttons are white. I can easily see these things discoloring in time after use. They remind me of the iPod headphones. For the long time ipod users who throw the headphones in their pocket, they know that the white soon turns into a wierd offwhite color on the cord and maybe even a little yellowish.

4. Navigating through the 360 blades and media center is perfect so far. I just have to remind myself not to look for the green button on this remote when in media center and use the LCD button instead which I programmed.

Day 5:
I've been too busy to re-program the remote my TV to use only the inputs I am currently using: Component 1, Component 2, Input 1, Input 3, VGA, and DVI. (may be a good thing too as it seams like the servers are overloaded) The lesser input selection will save me 3 important button pushes when switching through inputs. However PHSJason had noted that the Mits does have discrete input code commands. If he can help me locate one for my set, then I am golden.

So far 80% of the remotes use is to replace my HR10-250 Tivo Peanut remote. So far, I am surprisingly happy about the switch. It is taking me a little time to remember where all of the FF, play, etc buttons are but I'm sure that will change over time. I have left the default delays on the Harmony 360 at the moment but will more than likely play with them later as I think the delays for the Tivo may just be a tad bit too slow. All of the Thumnbs up/down and aspect ratio buttons from the tivo peanut have been accounted for in the Harmony 360.

The other 20% of use on the remote has been for the 360 itsef. When I hit the activity "XBOX 360" on my remote, it turns on the 360, cycles my TV to the approriate input, and then finally switches my receiver to Video 2. At the same time, it keeps my Tivo on just in case theres a show thats on the current channel that I may want to rewind back to when I switch back. :D Within the 360 itself, navigating is a snap. With the inclusion of the X,Y,A,B buttons, I can navigate through anywhere I want. I've used it to play my music through the media blade and it has been great. I also used the remote within the 360 media center extender and it felt like I had complete control of my PC and equipment at the same time now with this remote. Another great use I have found for the 360 remote itself for is when playing PGR3 or any other game where I like custom music paying. Even though I use playlists when listening to music in my games, there are some songs I still want to skip. I have tried to figure out how to skip songs on the 360 controller itself but couldnt find it. So I tried the Harmony 360 remote's FF skip button and voila! I can now FF songs in the my custom in game music without having to pause my game by hitting the 360 guide button. This works great when I'm in last place in PGR3 trying to make sure that when I get lapped, I cause the most amount of chaos to Team AVS' racing line. ;)

The only small quirk I had noticed so far is that the tilt/motion sensor is very sensative. I have had the remote sitting on my sofa and before I could pick it up, the remote had started to glow as I had stepped rather roughly on the floor next to the sofa. *Maybe I'm just putting on too much weight :p* Anyways, this could be a good and a bad thing. Good as in it is almost like a full on in room motion sensor when you turn it on for the firts time, but bad if you're sitting with the remote on your sofa and is expecting it to turn on and glow when you pick it for the first time of no use after the set delay (forgot the actual minute time).

Bottom line, I am very very happy with this remote. For around $60 after the $30 XBOX 360 system purchase rebate, it has been the best accessory I have purchased for the 360 and my system thus far. :D

thought about getting it, but fo 200$, its not worth it. I won't be using any of the HT functionality of the 360 anyways.

The guy who started the discussion got a Harmony 360 for Christmas and has not been able to program it yet due to the site traffic (he opened it on Christmas Eve). You'd think that sales numbers would have allowed them to anticipate this.

Hey Mike,

Yeah that was me that started that thread. This has been a frustrating experience. I have now managed to add my components to the list and set up about half of the activities. About every 3rd screen I get the "High Traffic" page, which eventually times out or crashes IE causing me to have to relog in to the harmony webpage.

Needless to say.... my "How Do You Rate This Remote So Far" option at the top is set to POOR. Funny how the website worked perfectly to let me put in that option. hahahah

I got a Harmony 880 for the holidays. I had no issues performing the setup last week. I was unable to tweak a few things yesterday, due to the high volume problems already discussed. The problems were over with by last night, though, in my experience.

Best thing I can suggest is to email Logitech and express your dissatisfaction. The remote itself is wonderful, once you get it setup (coming from a Sony RMAV-3000)

Theoretically it should work with any TV since it has learning capability. The question really is, when will you GET to use it? After traffic dies down on their site??

In theory only, Sharp AQUOS sets have composite commands to select inputs. You first press the "Input" button, then you cycle through the list of inputs until you reach the one you need.

This lack of "discrete" command to select an input throws off most universal remotes.

The Harmony 880, for instance, can't handle Sharp AQUOS sets of the LC- series.
Mine is model LC-37D5U and I wish I could find a remote where I could press 1 button to set up my entire system for a specific activity.

I am still looking.

In theory only, Sharp AQUOS sets have composite commands to select inputs. You first press the "Input" button, then you cycle through the list of inputs until you reach the one you need.

This lack of "discrete" command to select an input throws off most universal remotes.

The Harmony 880, for instance, can't handle Sharp AQUOS sets of the LC- series.
Mine is model LC-37D5U and I wish I could find a remote where I could press 1 button to set up my entire system for a specific activity.

I am still looking.

It appears that there are macros to account for this as I saw such questions in the walkthrough.

Dralt, thats exactly how my Mits works. To change inputs on the original rempte, I hit the input button, then either input up or input down to cycle through my inputs, then hit enter to activate that input.

So my Harmony 360 goes through those steps when swithing inputs, changes the audio source on my reciever, and powers on the right equipment.

I have the 520, which is the same remote as the one in this thread (albeit, without the XBox buttons). Great remote, easy to program great value.

With any universal, you will have to spend a fair amount of time configuring it to your personal preferences. It's a headache, but once it's done, you'll be glad you did.

The website is decent - it could use better navigation tools. The ability to download the info, is a godsend.

Anyone know if this remote can control an MCE box like the regular x360 remote?

I've got a Scientific Atlanta 8000 HD DVR....which is the only thing I'm worried about it being able to control as easily as the native remote...

How does this thing do w/DVRs?

Still waiting to hear some reviews myself.
I was about to pick one up yesterday but am concerned about how it will control my Motorola HD DVR.

Still waiting to hear some reviews myself.
I was about to pick one up yesterday but am concerned about how it will control my Motorola HD DVR.

controls my motorola hd cable box just fine. the dvr shouldn't be that much different :)

the harmony remotes are superb in my opinion.

i have the 880 and im very happy with it. i dont over like the shape of the channel shift and volume buttons, but otherwise im really really happy.

sure it takes some time to set up perfectly, and sure it might be frustrating if you cant access the server easily (i have had no problems in this respect by the way... make sure u turn off the anti virus software when updating if u have a problem), but what do u expect for your money, a personal assistant to come over and program it for you????

people can be a bit too fussy about what they expect. i think this is a great product, and ive hear great things about logitechs support on these products.

all my other remotes hide in the cupboard now. and even my gf can use it, so it must work well!!!!

krlock2

Does anyone know if you can download the profile to use the Fusion HDTV Remote for the Dvico Fusion PC HDTV capture card? I did the test drive and it found all my other components, but I never thought to look for the fusion remote. Now it won't let me go through again. If it is not listed will I be able to program the Fusion remote buttons manually for the xbox 360 Harmony?

Rhetoric: It can control MCE.

rader: If the Fusion HDTV remote is not officially on the Harmony codes list, you can program the remote to learn each of one of the specific IR commands.

Thanks FourDoor... I'll definetly be picking this up.

the harmony remotes are superb in my opinion.

i have the 880 and im very happy with it. i dont over like the shape of the channel shift and volume buttons, but otherwise im really really happy.

sure it takes some time to set up perfectly, and sure it might be frustrating if you cant access the server easily (i have had no problems in this respect by the way... make sure u turn off the anti virus software when updating if u have a problem), but what do u expect for your money, a personal assistant to come over and program it for you????

people can be a bit too fussy about what they expect. i think this is a great product, and ive hear great things about logitechs support on these products.

all my other remotes hide in the cupboard now. and even my gf can use it, so it must work well!!!!

krlock2

I agree that is is an excellent remote but it was holiday server traffic that made it difficult. I have to disagree about the money part though, it's still 100 bones retail after the rebate and I expect something to work right. Charge more and beef up the servers if you have to.

I wanted to weigh in here since I have had the 360 remote for about 3 weeks. It has worked flawlessly since day one. My initial wizard configuration went well but I sooned returned to the configuration tool to do more customization and add a few features. I am currently controlling the following without any issues to date:

Toshiba 57HX81 TV
Yamaha 795a receiver
Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300 HD
Xbox 360

Someone earlier had asked about the Scientific Atlanta Explorer. It conrols all the features the roiginal remote does including the PiP features. You may need to customize to your liking but it's all there.

I have gone in a tweaked a few of the functions for the DVR to make it a little more user friendly. Example, on the original DVR remote, the DVR button is green so I mapped that feature to the green 'A' button on the 360 remote.

I have not dabble in all my receiver functions yet but I am sure i will be able to do just as much customization as I feel is needed.

The nice thing about the Activities feature is that I can have two activities for the Xbox 360; one for playing in surround sound with receiver on, and one if I just want to play through the TV speakers. This goes for all functions as well.

I am so glad I purchased this remote especially with the $30 rebate for a final cost of $63.

I also purchased the remote for $93 shipped from an online retailer I found through froogle.com. I was a little skeptical of this remote because I wanted to use it to control my HTPC. The product information does not give much detail on how flexible the programming is on this remote. Also most people using an HTPC opt for the much more expensive Logitech 880. After one night with it I can say that I am very happy with the purchase. Right now I have it doing 90% of what I need, and the other 10% I know I can do but have just not gotten around to.
Here is my setup:
Hitachi 57" HD RPTV
HTPC running Zoomplayer for DVD/video, WMP for music, and FusionHDTV for TV/PVR duties
Dvico Fusion remote control for HTPC
Xbox 360
Denon 3802
Kenwood CD changer
Everything else was fairly straightforward except for the HTPC. It took me about an hour of messing around with the Logitech software before I really figured out how it worked. Once you know where to go the process is a snap. One thing that is cool is that it allows you to send multiple commands when powering on a component or changing an input. For example when I change inputs from playing a game to watching a DVD I can have it send another command to change my video presets automatically. Another example is when changing from my DVD program to my HDTV PVR program my remote software needs an extra button press to change the remote profile. The Harmony software makes this really easy.
I have found that the IR transmitter is a lot more powerful that the standard xbox 360 media remote. From my seating position the IR receiver on the xbox 360 is blocked by the corner of my TV. The standard remote had problems with this, but the harmony remote is able to work every time.
The remote is slim and sexy. The buttons have more of a cell phone type feel to them. I imagine they will soften up with some use.
Overall I would say it is a bargain for $63.

I have recommended this remote to a couple of friends who have a 360 and they are all loving it as well. It's their first universal remote just like me and it has solved a lot of their problems.

An update on my side with the remote. Jason had pointed out to me that Logitech actually already had in their database the discrete video input commands for my Mitsubishi. I didn't actually have to do any special coding to get my TV to go to Component 1 from the DVI input with just one button.

Maybe this is old news for some, but for me, discreet input commands for the Mits is a godsend. I had originally programmed the remote to function exactly like my original Mits remote (cycle through the available on screen inputs, then press enter to select the input). But now, my Harmony remote does something that my original Mits remote could never do. One button input source changes!!!

I'm loving my latest activity I added "Media Center". It turns on my TV and changes it to my the component input with one button ;), turns on my receiver and changes it to the appropriate digital input, then turns on the 360, waits 10 seconds as the 360 boots up, then sends the green media center button command and I am greeted by the MCE extender load screen by the time my equipment is all turned on.

I'm sure I would have said the same thing if I did go with the Harmony 6xx series instead but the Harmony 360 remote is just so sexy looking. :D

I was also pleasantly surprised to find commands available for devices on this remote that aren't on the device's own. Namely, a Freeze feature for the Infocus 4805, so you can freeze the image and take nice screenshots of videogames. It's not on the 4805 remote or in the menu and was not mentioned anywhere in the manual.

The only complaint I have with this remote (which I LOVE!!!) is that the channel keys, FF and PLAY functions for the DVR (Scientific Atlanta 8300HD) are very, very slow. I changed the interkey delay to 0 and it still is very slow. Using the original remote I could hit FF on a recorded program, and hitting PLAY would stop it immediately. With the Harmony, there is a 1 second lag before the FF stops. Anyone have ideas on how to fix this? I already tried the interkey delay, so that didnt work.

Just got mine tonight - half an hour and it was up and running flawlessly! I was quite impressed that it goes to the correct inputs on my TV since the TV doesn't have discrete inputs. I'm very pleased, to say the least. My only concern is going to be battery life as it looks like it'll probably run through batteries fast so I'll probably pick up some rechargable ones.

I have the 880 --

I have everything I control pretty much how I want it and love the remote, but my question is, does anyone know of a way to get a Harmony remote to not control the power of the 360. If I'm d/ling a demo and I want to shut down everything else with the off button, its annoying that it turns off the 360. OTH, I love that I can move through the menus and select music with it while doing other things and such... .just want to control the power with the 360 controller instead. Any ideas?

How about creating an new activity that will send a power off signal for each component you want turned off, except for the 360 instead of using the all encompasing power button on the remote?

I think there's a way to do it with just the power button itself, but the acitivty way would be the first method I would try.

I have the 680 and if the 880 has a similar setup there is an easier solution. Login to the harmony setup page and then go to More Options. This should bring you to the Home Page with Devices on the left and activities on the right.

On the left side find the Xbox 360. Click the "More Options." On the next page click on "Adjust power settings." On the following page choose "I want to leave this device on all the time." Then leave the other settings the same and save changes.

This will make the Harmony think the 360 is alwasy on and will never send it a signal to power on/off when changing activies.

I'm contemplating geting the harmony 360 and am curious as to how some of you who have lived with this remote for 4-5 months now truly feel about it. Has it met all your expectations? What about battery life? Would you do it all over again and pick the same remote or go for a different Harmony remote?

Any thoughts greatly appreciated.

Happy clicking.

The Harmony Xbox 360 remote rocks. It is the best universal remote I have ever owned, and it doesn't get saddled with an irritating recharging cradle or a large and unwieldly interface like some of the other Harmony remotes.

Sometimes the best things do come in small packages...

Just noticed a new remote on the harmony website specificaly for he 360. Looks a lot like the 520 with some color and screen changes and of course the addition of the YXAB buttons. Might be a good choice for somone who doesnt have a harmony yet..



First there is another thread about this remote here (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=623545). As I state at length (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=7311225&&#post7311225) several times at that thread I like the remote but I have major issues with what Logitech did with its configuration software (A recurring theme with them). The primary issue is their config ap uses over 200 megs of main memory on either a Windows XP or MCE 05 PC. It also installs itself as a startup service, be sure if you get this remote to uninstall their software from your PC after you are done configuring the remote.

Someone asked about battery life, this remote is far and away the most battery hungry remote I have come across, I'm thinking of getting rechargeables for it.

So 4 months into using the remote, I'm still very pleased with it. I use the remote daily for Tivo use and the remote works a lot better if you enable the 30second skip on the tivo as the ff/rw buttons do feal a little squishy when using them. This is still my first and only Harmony remote and I have not had to reprogram it since the intial tweaks and settings I had to to with it the first month I got it.

Battery life is still going strong for me, although I am unsure if the battery life indicator is correct on the 360 as it states that there is about half of the battery life still on the remote when I hit the guide button (no other controllers connected to the 360). My guess is that there is at least 2-3 months of at least positive use on the original batteries. So 6-7months battery life works for me.

I've owned the 520 for about six months. My impressions:

1) I agree that the website is inefficent and somewhat annoying. That being said, it only took a few tries to get it right.

2) The website has EVERYTHING on it. I have a Tivo, Moto DVR, Marantz Receiver, Panny TV, Nakimichi CD changer, etc. It even had the 360 on the website a month before it was released.

3) I've dropped it several times onto hardwood floors without any problem.

4) The remote is great. I can control everything and my wife finds it easy to operate.

The remote for xbox 360 / logitech feels kind of cheap and the buttons are very "clicky" stiff, not very smooth feel to it.
I recommend instead getting the 880 model.
I returned the above remote.

Mo

I recommend the 880 as well. You can get them for about $150 now. If you want one that isn't infrared so you don't have to point it there's always the 890, but it is still a little pricey.

I got the 659. Very easy to program. I've never had an issue getting to the website. It was semi confusing to try and replace my XBOX with the 360 as on of my game consoles when I was navigating the website. But once the setup was done it controls and programs everything perfectly. I was tempted to buy the 360 version for pure aesthetics, but for the price there didn't seem to be any benefit since it costs only about $10 less than my 659. All in all harmony has been the ultimate universal remote of remotes. I've been through roughly 10 or 11 universal remotes always being fooled into thinking they were truly universal. This remote was clearly designed by someone who was sick and tired of those 10 in 1 remotes that controls all your devices except the play button on your dvd player.

I've had the 360 harmony remote since Christmas. I love every minute with it.
Just recently the glow button stopped working on it though. The back light still turns on when using the remote, it just doesn't turn on when I press the glow button for some reason.
This is the only problem I've had though. I find it very easy to program, and if you have any problems at all, the customer service is outstanding and can walk you through anything you can't figure out yourself.
Also, the batteries haven't died on me yet, so they can't be that bad.

A friend of mine hates the 360 remote, cuz the buttons are too small for him. So, despite owning an Xbox 360 too, he's getting the Harmony 880.

Personally don't like the layout (and lack of 360 buttons) on the 880, and I hate the fact that it requires a recharging cradle. The buttons are a little small on the 360, but then again my hands are small too so I don't mind.

To each his own.

The thing to note though is that I've tried a couple different universal learning remotes, and he's tried many, many, many of them too. None of them satisfied our needs.

It seems that Harmony really has set the bar for the competition.

The only complaint I have with this remote (which I LOVE!!!) is that the channel keys, FF and PLAY functions for the DVR (Scientific Atlanta 8300HD) are very, very slow. I changed the interkey delay to 0 and it still is very slow. Using the original remote I could hit FF on a recorded program, and hitting PLAY would stop it immediately. With the Harmony, there is a 1 second lag before the FF stops. Anyone have ideas on how to fix this? I already tried the interkey delay, so that didnt work.

I just got this remote last week and notice how annoying this is. Anyone figure out a solution to speed up the delay? When changing channels with the number pad you press a button and almost a second later it registers into the 8300 HD. Very strange and SLOW!! =\

Thanks.


UPDATE: Never mind I found this thread helpful and it should solve my problems I hope. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=623320

I'm glad this thread was resurrected...as it seems that for the most part, people are happy with the remote and battery life seems to be decent.

My Xbox 360 is in the mail and when it arrives I will be looking for cheapest harmony 360 i can find!

Thanks everyone.

I'm glad this thread was resurrected...as it seems that for the most part, people are happy with the remote and battery life seems to be decent.


Yea, me too. Now I'm trying to decide between the 360 remote and the 880. I'm leaning toward the 880 but the cradle is a problem in my HT room.

I would say that this is probably the best remote I have ever owned. I have it controlling my Sony lcd, 400 disc cd changer, Motorola DVR, receiver, Sirius Sportster Replay, 360, and dvd player. The ability to control the Sirius unit without having to teach it anything really sold me on this remote (the supplied remote for it is way too small). The only the function I have had to teach the remote was switching between tuners on my dvr. Also, I've only had to change the batteries once since I bought the remote in December. For anyone having battery problems, you should update your firmware. That was definitely one of the problems they addressed and fixed through firmware updates.

so most people would agree that the harmony 360 remote is the better buy instead of the 880?

If I didn't have a 360, I probably would have gotten the 880. But in all honesty, I love my 360 remote because of those X-Y-A-B buttons. It makes navigating the dashboard so much better since I have a big red B button to always hit back with as instructed by the dashboard.

I know you can program the LCD buttons up on top of the other Harmony remotes but having the conveince of having the physical buttons there helps me out quite a bit. :D

I recently got an 880, love it! Dell recently had it for $109, keep an eye on the deal websites.

Now that I use the 360 to watch dvds, my HT is pretty simple. The 880 was probably overkill. Maybe it will come in handy when I add a PS3 and Series 3 Tivo later this year...

I also picked up an 880 from Dell. I had an MX500 HT remote that I was fond of, but wanted the stronger programming of the Logitech. I must say, it's a real good remote.

I would rather have a mushier volume button over than the clicky one on the 880, but that's just a personal preference. And the remote's button layout doesn't do justice to the Tivo's near-perfect remote... so I still find myself using the Tivo remote for my recorded stuff. But for everything else it does the job nicely - I'm especially impressed with the 880's docking and computer setup.

Do we know if this remote will be a perfect match for the upcoming HD-DVD add on, or will there be a new edition of this remote? I ask because there is a $30 rebate on it now which tells me something new is around the corner. Thanks!

misterjensen,

No idea about hd plug in compatability or new model release but this remote has had a rebate for 30 bucks since it came out. Regards, Keenan

Do we know if this remote will be a perfect match for the upcoming HD-DVD add on, or will there be a new edition of this remote? I ask because there is a $30 rebate on it now which tells me something new is around the corner. Thanks!

I'm wondering the same thing... has any one used this remote since adding the HD-DVD drive to your 360? I just bought a 360 with HD-DVD for Christmas and am considering this remote. Since I now need a Harmony remote for my bedroom to work with an Olevia LCD, I'd like to use my Harmony 859 in there and maybe get this Harmony for the 360 for the living room. I'd appreciate your comments.

I'm wondering the same thing... has any one used this remote since adding the HD-DVD drive to your 360? I just bought a 360 with HD-DVD for Christmas and am considering this remote. Since I now need a Harmony remote for my bedroom to work with an Olevia LCD, I'd like to use my Harmony 859 in there and maybe get this Harmony for the 360 for the living room. I'd appreciate your comments.

Anybody?

My Harmony 360 remote works perfectly with the HD-DVD player. My only small gripe is that there isn't (or I haven't found) the code to remotely eject the HD-DVD drive. The eject command is still connected to the 360 dvd drive.

The other thing to note is that having an hd-dvd disk in the drive will delay your bootup times. With the combination of having the vision camera, a game disk, and a hd-dvd disk all in when the 360 boots makes the boot up times significantly longer. This was an issue for me since I have one of my main activity buttons as a script to turn on the 360 and go immediately to the Media Center extender. So either adjust your delays accordingly or just make it a habit to remove the hd-dvd disk after each use.

My Harmony 360 remote works perfectly with the HD-DVD player. My only small gripe is that there isn't (or I haven't found) the code to remotely eject the HD-DVD drive. The eject command is still connected to the 360 dvd drive.

The other thing to note is that having an hd-dvd disk in the drive will delay your bootup times. With the combination of having the vision camera, a game disk, and a hd-dvd disk all in when the 360 boots makes the boot up times significantly longer. This was an issue for me since I have one of my main activity buttons as a script to turn on the 360 and go immediately to the Media Center extender. So either adjust your delays accordingly or just make it a habit to remove the hd-dvd disk after each use.

Great! Thanks! I just ordered one from Buy.com... with the $20 discount for Google checkout... it's a great deal! (I know, no price talk... but you can go see for yourself)

The other thing to note is that having an hd-dvd disk in the drive will delay your bootup times. With the combination of having the vision camera, a game disk, and a hd-dvd disk all in when the 360 boots makes the boot up times significantly longer. This was an issue for me since I have one of my main activity buttons as a script to turn on the 360 and go immediately to the Media Center extender. So either adjust your delays accordingly or just make it a habit to remove the hd-dvd disk after each use.

There might be an easier way of doing this. I have mine set up to not turn the 360 on or off. If you do this and then edit the activity to add a button press of "Media Center", the 360 will turn on and go directly into the media center. The drawback would be that switching the activity or turning off the system will not turn off the 360.

There might be an easier way of doing this. I have mine set up to not turn the 360 on or off. If you do this and then edit the activity to add a button press of "Media Center", the 360 will turn on and go directly into the media center. The drawback would be that switching the activity or turning off the system will not turn off the 360.

Hmmm, I didn't think about using the "Media Center" button as the on button for the 360. But I definitely do not want to have to press on extra button to power down the 360 after all is said and done. I'll have to check later but doesn't including the 360 buttons in the activity automatically forces the activity to turn on the 360 first when the activity is pressed?

Right now I have the remote set to:

Change TV to Component 2
Change Receiver to Video 2
Change component switcher to Video 2
Delay 15 seconds (I forgot the exact delay setting)
XBOX360 Media Center button

My Harmony 360 remote works perfectly with the HD-DVD player. My only small gripe is that there isn't (or I haven't found) the code to remotely eject the HD-DVD drive. The eject command is still connected to the 360 dvd drive.

The other thing to note is that having an hd-dvd disk in the drive will delay your bootup times. With the combination of having the vision camera, a game disk, and a hd-dvd disk all in when the 360 boots makes the boot up times significantly longer. This was an issue for me since I have one of my main activity buttons as a script to turn on the 360 and go immediately to the Media Center extender. So either adjust your delays accordingly or just make it a habit to remove the hd-dvd disk after each use.

You can program your remote to use the directional buttons on the harmony as the directional buttons on the gaming remote. That's what I did with my 880..so if I ever want to eject the HD DVD all I do is scroll down on the dashboard and voila "open hd dvd tray."

...if I ever want to eject the HD DVD all I do is scroll down on the dashboard and voila "open hd dvd tray."

Does this work if there's a disk in the HD-DVD drive?

You can program your remote to use the directional buttons on the harmony as the directional buttons on the gaming remote. That's what I did with my 880..so if I ever want to eject the HD DVD all I do is scroll down on the dashboard and voila "open hd dvd tray."

Yes, the arrow buttons is automatically part of the default programing on the remotes. But it is not the same as having a dedicated button to hit eject. ;)

So say for example, you are done watching the your HD-DVD movie. If I wanted to eject the disk while sitting down from my sofa I would have to:

1. Hit the 360 guide button
2. Press Y to go to the dashboard
3. Say yes when it asks me do I really want to exit
4. Scroll down 4/5 times to get to the eject hd-dvd drive option
5. Hit enter

At this point, it is much easier to just get up and hit the eject button which I am ok doing for now.

I would much rather condense the 5 steps with 8 button pushes above into one single button push so I can change my hd-dvd disks. :cool:

I'm sure there is an IR code that is out there or will be out there soon that will automatically eject the hd-dvd drive. But for now, getting up to push the eject button isn't so bad.

Edit: And if DaverJ is right, if a hd-dvd disk is still inserted while in the dash, I think the only option it may give is play movie.

^^ Yes, it is not a dedicated ejct button. You'll have to be on the dashboard to use it. I thing I'll try to IR the eject button from the original remote... has anyone tried this?

I picked up the Harmony 360 remote when it was on sale at Amazon so I would not have to use 32 remotes just to watch TV. I like it for the most part, but I can't get all the buttons just how I want then. I sent an email to Harmon;y support, but never heard back so I thought maybe the great guys at AVS can help.

When I go in add add Custom Button Labels under one activity for my AV Receiver (Volume Control) it adds them to all activities. Is there a way to have them only on that one activity I specified?

If not, is there a way to have them be at the end of the list of the Custom Button Labels like I have it laid out on the Customize Buttons section? In all of my activities I have 2 Custom Button Labels for my AV Receiver (Volume Control) listed at the end of my Custom Button Labels basically to switch from the "movie" and "default" setting on my receiver. For my Activities of Watch TiVo and Watch DVD these buttons show at the end of the list when I'm in those activities. However, for my Activities of Play Xbox360 and Play CD it puts these 2 Custom Button Labels at the beginning Custom Label Buttons on the remote instead of at the end like I have setup in the Customize Buttons section. Why would it be doing this?

I an using version 7.0.2 of the Remote Software and I check that I have the latest Firmware.

Any help would be appreciated.

I picked up the Harmony 360 remote when it was on sale at Amazon so I would not have to use 32 remotes just to watch TV. I like it for the most part, but I can't get all the buttons just how I want then. I sent an email to Harmon;y support, but never heard back so I thought maybe the great guys at AVS can help.

When I go in add add Custom Button Labels under one activity for my AV Receiver (Volume Control) it adds them to all activities. Is there a way to have them only on that one activity I specified?

If not, is there a way to have them be at the end of the list of the Custom Button Labels like I have it laid out on the Customize Buttons section? In all of my activities I have 2 Custom Button Labels for my AV Receiver (Volume Control) listed at the end of my Custom Button Labels basically to switch from the "movie" and "default" setting on my receiver. For my Activities of Watch TiVo and Watch DVD these buttons show at the end of the list when I'm in those activities. However, for my Activities of Play Xbox360 and Play CD it puts these 2 Custom Button Labels at the beginning Custom Label Buttons on the remote instead of at the end like I have setup in the Customize Buttons section. Why would it be doing this?

I an using version 7.0.2 of the Remote Software and I check that I have the latest Firmware.

Any help would be appreciated.

There should be, as I have completely remapped buttons as well on the remote to do different things under different activies as well as to function differently in device mode.

From memory, it should be fairly easy to do when you have the button layout for the given activity. By easy I mean intuitive...but maybe it isn't. I haven't gone back and reconfigured my remote in a while, but I do remember it being somewhat simple with only an occaisonal glitch that I feel was due to my use of OS X.

I picked up the Harmony 360 remote when it was on sale at Amazon so I would not have to use 32 remotes just to watch TV. I like it for the most part, but I can't get all the buttons just how I want then. I sent an email to Harmon;y support, but never heard back so I thought maybe the great guys at AVS can help.

When I go in add add Custom Button Labels under one activity for my AV Receiver (Volume Control) it adds them to all activities. Is there a way to have them only on that one activity I specified?

If not, is there a way to have them be at the end of the list of the Custom Button Labels like I have it laid out on the Customize Buttons section? In all of my activities I have 2 Custom Button Labels for my AV Receiver (Volume Control) listed at the end of my Custom Button Labels basically to switch from the "movie" and "default" setting on my receiver. For my Activities of Watch TiVo and Watch DVD these buttons show at the end of the list when I'm in those activities. However, for my Activities of Play Xbox360 and Play CD it puts these 2 Custom Button Labels at the beginning Custom Label Buttons on the remote instead of at the end like I have setup in the Customize Buttons section. Why would it be doing this?

I an using version 7.0.2 of the Remote Software and I check that I have the latest Firmware.

Any help would be appreciated.
Question 1: If you add any Custom buttons to a device for an Activity, those Custom buttons appear every time that device is used in an activity. So if you put in a PIP button for your TV, that will be there when you're watching cable, when you're watching a DVD, and when you're playing XBOX. Even if you don't want it.

Question 2: Harmony groups Custom buttons by device. And then decides for itself (don't think there's a good rhyme or reason to it) what order it is going to list the devices. So whatever order you put them in in your own web config only matters for the sorting of the buttons within a particular device.

Logitech Support told me the remote was Activity oriented, so any Device-related issues like what order they appear when the Device button is pressed is not important. If they feel like it, they'll add Device reordering, like the Activity reordering, someday.

I wish the round buttons didn't stick. In PVR activity I have X as Next Favorite and every few days it catches or something and sends a bunch of commands before I get it to stop.

And it's so easy to have the 360 left powered on by not pointing precisely, I had to add the 360 to ALL activities and have it power up then power off for the Activities it's not involved in. Makes me wonder when it'll go bad on me to retaliate...

99.9999% of the time, I am in one of my custom activities on the Harmony remote. Watch Tivo, Play 360, Watch DVD, etc. I am rarely ever using the remote in device mode as it doesn't make sense to me to use the harmony remotes lcd buttons to find the one obscure command in page 9 of the lcd buttons.

jigsawhc: I don't have this additional unwanted custom buttons issue with my activities. I updated my remote/software in dec to add the Wii but that was kind of pointless as the Wii is only bluetooth. Within each activity, I am able to sort the custom buttons the way I want to.

Thanks for the info. I found that since I only want the extra buttons under the activities that involve my TiVo (Watch TV & Watch DVD) I can map the buttons to the TV instead of the receiver and then they don't show up for the Xbox 360 activities. Not perfect, but once the remote is setup you'd never know the difference.

If the additional custom buttons are showing up for the other activities, you should be able to go into the other activities and manually remove them from your list of buttons.

I like the Harmony 550 it is the same thing but it has more buttons

I got one of these about a week ago. I love it, replaced about 5 remotes. Now my wife can watch the TV without trying to figure out my setup. Just hit an activity button and there you go! I'm still trying to fully customize it, it's a slow trial and error process. But once you have it setup the way you want, it's a very convenient remote for the family! I have 360, but I would recommend it to non 360 owners too!

I like the Harmony 550 it is the same thing but it has more buttons
i am trying to decide on the 2 i like the looks of the 550 better but will it operate the 360

i am trying to decide on the 2 i like the looks of the 550 better but will it operate the 360

They'll all operate the 360, so get the one with the buttons and shape you like.

They'll all operate the 360, so get the one with the buttons and shape you like.
Exactly.

I use my 550 to control my A/V receiver, my TV, my CD player, and my 360 + HD-DVD add-on. All of the Harmony remotes will control basically every A/V equipment you might have (the command database is user-generated so as long as anyone with your particular piece of equipment has put it into their Harmony remote... or even a similar piece of equipment by the same manufacturer... it's in there). The choices between the remotes is strictly personal preference on what features, designs, and stylings that you like. There's a board here dedicated to remotes (it's near the bottom) if you want more 411.

How are you guys getting $20 off the Harmony 360 from buy.com using Google Checkout? I'm only getting an offer for $10 off. Yeah, it's just $10, but if a quick question/answer saves me $10...

I believe the original GCO offer through Buy.com had already ended.

well i decided on the 550 so far i like it still needs a little fine tuning to get it where i want it i was looking at it and the 360 one but basically liked the look of it better

Has anyone tried setting up a macro for listening to music through their 360? I tried it myself and it turned out to be 37 commands.

Anyway, when I try to start my new activity 2 problems occur.
1) None of the macro commands get sent
2) The remote gets stuck on the "Starting listen to music. Please keep remote pointed at your system" screen and I have to take out a battery to fix it.

Anyone here able to setup a macro for their music successfully?

My Harmony remote doesn't seem to be using discrete on/off codes for my 360.
When my 360 is already on, and I press the activity key, it turns the 360 off. If I hit the activity key again, it turns it on. I have tried setting the power settings to "always on" but that doesn't help.

This doesn't make any sense to me, I know the 360 has discrete on/off codes. Anyone else run into this? Or do I need to call Logitech?

PROBLEM: Controlling both MCE and XBOX360

I've had the 520 over a year now and love it (Just wish I had a later
model with the extra buttons). It even handles the complicated
switched between my Panny 50lc15 single DVI slot, a 2X1 Gefen DVI
switcher and my HTPC.

I've run into one problem, however, now that I've got an XBOX 360
sitting next to my HTPC, which is a non-MCE box running Windows XP SP2
with Mediaportal and the Microsoft MCE IR receiver.

I set up the new device as a "Xbox 360 w/ DVD". The Xbox 360 powertoggle
code is the same as the MCE IR powertoggle so I get both devices firing
up (or if I'm unlucky they get out of sync). I've read that the MCE and Xbox 360
ir codes are accepted by both devices.

Anyone have a good solution for this issue? In the Xbox 360 setup I configured
the console to respond to the XBOX 360 codes only and not the Media Center
remote codes, but this had no effect. For now I just removed the
power commands from the XBOX 360 remote setup and use the game
controller to handle the power toggle.

Thanks,
Colin

My Harmony remote doesn't seem to be using discrete on/off codes for my 360.
When my 360 is already on, and I press the activity key, it turns the 360 off. If I hit the activity key again, it turns it on. I have tried setting the power settings to "always on" but that doesn't help.

This doesn't make any sense to me, I know the 360 has discrete on/off codes. Anyone else run into this? Or do I need to call Logitech?

I have the same thing where if it is already on it turns it off. I thought the 360 had a PowerToggle and not separate on/off options. I don't have the issue to often anymore because I set it to leave my 360 on when I go to other activities (so it can download in the background)

Has anyone tried setting up a macro for listening to music through their 360? I tried it myself and it turned out to be 37 commands.

Anyway, when I try to start my new activity 2 problems occur.
1) None of the macro commands get sent
2) The remote gets stuck on the "Starting listen to music. Please keep remote pointed at your system" screen and I have to take out a battery to fix it.

Anyone here able to setup a macro for their music successfully?

I'm bumping this b/c I have the same question (crafty AVS veteran...I used "search" first :p ). I want to add an activity which takes me straight to the music streaming off my windows PC but I can't seem to figure out how to do it.

Any help from the remote experts?

I wish this was a default activity available through the wizard...the wizard tells me I can't stream music with my 360... :rolleyes:

Is there any way I can send a "play" command instead of a "power on" command when I turn on my HD-A1? The only way the player will remember where you left off is if you press play instead of power.

i did something similar with my 360, but you have to teach the "tv device" the play command for your hd-a1, and put that in the activity. So you activity would be something like this

Turn on TV
Set input to HDMI1
Issue "Play" command (from the tv)

when i tried it, it worked sporatically. it was wierd. you also might have to send the play command multiple times before it works