Getting all my odds and ends taken care of, and am at the stage where I am deciding on a remote.
Panasonic 58"
Yamaha HTR5960 Receiver
Sony disc changer (CD)
SONY dvd player
Scientific Atlanta Cable box
all of these are going to be behind doors so i wanted to get an RF remote
the question is since i dont have that much stuff, but want the benefits of RF, which will do the job better for the money?
I like the look of the harmony better...and my wife will have to use it while im not there...suggestions?
Recommendations?
I appreciate the help
thanks
j

...
I like the look of the harmony better...and my wife will have to use it while im not there...suggestions?
Recommendations?
...
Firstly, you need the RFS200, I think, if you want an RF base station (otherwise the RF20 will just work by IR). This is still less than $100 on amazon.com. Otherwise, both will do what you want but

The RFS200 (with base station) is less than half the price of the Harmony.
Setting up the Harmony will probably be a lot simpler.
You will have as many screens of full text (not cryptic abbreviations) labels as you need on the Harmony, telling your wife what the soft buttons will do.
The Harmony has a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, not AAA batteries that need replacing.
The Harmony has an automatic tilt sensor, not a "light" button push.

Again, both will get the job done. Some will argue the URC is sturdier, others will argue it's styling is totally outdated. I would expect the WAF to be much better with the Harmony, but I could be wrong. Either will be a good remote, so it's really up to you.

I'm also deciding between these two remotes. My main concern at this point is how the RF20 handles macros/activities. Will the RF20 remember that TV and receiver are already on when I press 'DVD' if I had already pressed 'TV' before? If I were to switch from DVD to TV would it turn my DVD player off switch inputs on the receiver but leave the receiver and TV on? I've read the 890 does this. I'm tempted to buy the much cheaper RF20, but the main reason for this remote is so that my gf can use the TV without me being present. If the RF20 doesn't remember what state everything is in I guess I'm going have to spend an extra hundred on the 890.

I wish the new Harmony One had RF or there was an announcement that a remote similar to the One with RF was forthcoming. It would make my decision much easier, because I like the ergonomics of the One and RF20 better than the 890.

bump^^

No, the RF20 doesn't remember the state of the components, no remotes but Harmony's do that.

Edmund,

Can you program discrete power codes into the RF20 (or other URC's)? If so, that's a good alternative to state tracking. Worst case you could get a URC and a UEI remote and program the discretes into the UEI and teach them to the URC. A $10 UEI would be good enough in most cases.

For the record, JP1 remotes can remember states if you program toadtog macros to do it. Don't some higher end remotes do this too (RTI, etc.)?

Edmund,

Can you program discrete power codes into the RF20 (or other URC's)? If so, that's a good alternative to state tracking. Worst case you could get a URC and a UEI remote and program the discretes into the UEI and teach them to the URC. A $10 UEI would be good enough in most cases.

For the record, JP1 remotes can remember states if you program toadtog macros to do it. Don't some higher end remotes do this too (RTI, etc.)?

Sure it can be taught, from another remote which has the discretes, because there are no discretes on board the RF20.

No, the RF20 doesn't remember the state of the components, no remotes but Harmony's do that.

Thanks but I bought my Harmony 890 a year and a half ago, so this is a little late.

I like it alot, but have had issues with the battery and programing it for my HTPC has been a serious PITA. But overall its pretty good. There is however room for improvement.

Little bump here...

Honestly, I think having AAA batteries (although AA would be better) is an advantage. I like not having to worry about replacing some unique, proprietary battery if/when the packaged one dies.

I have a question, though. I'm hearing some confusing things about the RFS200... It won't "remember" what state your media center is in, right? But it still has programmable macros? So I can set up a button that will put my TV to the correct input, my receiver to the correct input, and power on/off all the necessary devices in a single button press? And I can set up multiple such buttons?

Thanks for the help.

EDIT: One more question, just to be sure -- the RF-to-IR receivers for both the 890 and RFS200 are AC-powered, not battery powered, right?

Sure it can be taught, from another remote which has the discretes, because there are no discretes on board the RF20.Many pieces of A/V gear that have disrete ON/Off signals do not have those discretes on the OEM remote.

The Harmony RF wireless extender is A/C powered.

Many pieces of A/V gear that have disrete ON/Off signals do not have those discretes on the OEM remote.

The Harmony RF wireless extender is A/C powered.

I never said anything about the oem remotes, just that commands won't be originated on board the RF20. But can come from remotes like a cheap UEI made remote, a learning remotes best friend.

The Harmony RF wireless extender is A/C powered.

Cool, thanks. Is the 890's extender the same way?

Also, does the RFS200 support macros? From the product descriptions I'm finding, it looks like it does, but I'm just wondering if it does it in the same fashion as the 890, or if there are any limitations.

Cool, thanks. Is the 890's extender the same way? ...
I was talking about thenHarmony 890's RF wireless extender. :)

I never said anything about the oem remotes, ...
Nor did I see anything about you mentioning the OEM remote.

Chill.

My post was meant to help the person that might plan to learn the discrete ON/Off commands or discrete input commands from their OEM remote.

Again, my post was meant to helpful, not to suggest that you were somehow wrong.

I was talking about thenHarmony 890's RF wireless extender. :)

D'oh... I totally misread that. Well I think the PowerBlaster's product description says it's AC-powered, too, so I guess that answers both parts of that question.

... Still unclear on if one remote supports more macro functionality than the other, though.