Harmony 720 Official Thread. For all info and FAQs - Page 50

You can set the up/down arrows to anything you please, I'm using them as "Favorite channels scroll" and "return to previous" on "watch HDTV mode" on "DVD recorder mode" they are setup as "15 sec skip" and so on..

To me the 'click' noise is not important, what bothers me more is that these buttons don't have the same "feel" as the rest.......

What do you mean by the keys becoming flaky? Thanks everyone for your responses. I would like the Harmony 1 just to much money. What about the 880 in comparison? I need to choose one soon here just not sure which. I like the look of the 720 but the 880 looks a little more functional. I just want to make sure that the 720 is as good as people say. I know there have been mixed review on both the 720 and te 880. Thanks.

SNSGUY

Keep in mind that "your mileage may vary" and everything depends on your usage and how hard you press on the keys and/or how many times it falls on the floor and/or how many times you drain the battery before remembering to charge it....lots of stuff like that. Which is why you'll see so many different reviews here in this forum for how each of us who owns one, likes or dislikes it. For some the button clicks are big deal, others, not so much.
Others have issues with the brightness of the LCD screen, others the location of the buttons. It's really YOU who has to judge best. Buy it from a dealer who will let you return it if you don't like it.

I've had mine for many months now and I can't think of how I'd be without it. Actually, I can, but it's too painful to remember the juggling act of using up to 5 remotes to watch a DVD or HD broadcast.

I'm trying to remember if the Harmony site had a 'test drive' web page for the remote. It may be in this thread in the beginning somewhere or do a search on test drive in this thread and see if pops up.

-t

In the center of the remote, there are 4 arrow keys surrounding an "OK" button. On mine, the left arrow and the OK do not always "click" - meaning that when you press them, they do not activate the function. It feels like the spring mechanism under the keys is ajar or loose - sometimes causing those buttons to be non-responsive.

The 720 is as good as people say - rest assured. It is a great remote and well worth the money. In fact, it's a bargain!!!!

I've had mine over a year and I do really like it. Now that it needs replacing (all things eventually do) - I got the One. If the One were not available... I'd get another 720 in a heartbeat!!!

Is the One worth $100+ more than the 720???? You have to make that call, I can't do that for ya. For me... it was. But, again, if the One was not available, I'd have a brand new 720 right now.

Between the 880 and the 720... another no brainer - the 720, hands down! It feels good, looks good and has all the functionality of the 880. When I first got my 720, I compared it to the 880.

You'll be very happy with the 720

Before I pull the triger and buy the 720 I have another question. When I select an Icon suck as watch DVD will it automatically turn on the tv change it to the correct input on my Samsung 650 turn the Bluray player on then turn the reciever on and change it to the correct input also? Or will I have to manually change the inputs on the tv and the reciever?

SNSGUY

The 720 will do exactly what you want it to do.

It will change to the correct input on a TV and also on a receiver/controller.

Nifty thanks for all your input. I think I'm gonna go ahead and get a warranty for it to since people seem to have buttons stop working. It's 15 bucks for a year or 22 for two years so if anything happens to it they will either fix it or give me the money that I paid for it. That way I can use it towards a better one down the road. Thanks for everyone's help. You'll probably see me soon with some questions about the unit.

SNSGUY

Forogt one last thing. Is the remote backlit. I've read some things say it is some say it isn't. Thanks.

SNSGUY

Edit: I figured out it is finally from some real reviews of the thing.

You may want to pass on the warranty. I say that because Logitech will replace the remote if it breaks. The left arrow stopped working on my 720 (I have 3 kids, do the math), called Logitech, they sent me a brand new one.

Just my two cents.

Ummm... they will replace it - within the one year warranty - for free. After the warranty period runs out, you are on your own!

My 720 started crapping out after about 16 months... they offered to "fix" it for a fee. I spoke with several levels of support and supervisors... no luck. No complaints, mind you. It would have been nice if they did something, but I am not upset. It was, after all, out of warranty.

I'm not a big fan of extended warranty. But, I got bit on this one

So, I lit $12 on fire and purchased the 2 year extended warranty (3 years total) on the replacement H-1 that I just got. If that keeps the gremlins away for 3 years - LOL - it was worth it (not really, I know). Generally, extended warranties are a waste of $$$.

I went for the warranty due to the fact it's a refurbished one and they only covered 3 months. I saved a butload on the remote itself. $55!!! So I went ahed and spent the 20 to have it covered for two years. Tha way I feel like I'm safe just in case.

SNSGUY

Sounds like a good deal!!!

Good luck,you're gonna love the 720

Thanks I thought so. Should be getting it sometime this week. I'm looking forward to it and spending hours on fine tuning it. I got My LCD TVa montha and a half ago and I'm still fine tuning it.

SNSGUY

Ebay. I did the 25% off cash back through Microsoft Live. I have to wait to see the money back but no biggy for me. I actually just got the remote in the mail about an hour ago. I'm letting it chare and then I'm on my way.

SNSGUY

Have fun! It's a great remote!! You'll spend the rest of the weekend trying different scenarios and not even notice the time lost.

-t

So I got the 720 and so far it's awesome. Only compplaint is the screen has some clouding that's kind of annoying. I am having problem with only one thing. My tv Sammy 650, take a few seconds to start so when it tried to do the input the remote is trying to do it before the television even gets tot he inputs. So then I have to constantly press help for it tio change the input. Is there a way to delay when it's trying to change the input when the tv turns on? Thanks.

SNSGUY

Try different Power On Delays. Keep increasing the delay time until it works well for you.

If you still have problems, call Logitech/Harmony's techs for help.

Enjoy the 720 - I have one and love it!

How do you do that I can't find a manual for this thing.

SNSGUY

The user's manual can be accessed via the Logitech/Harmony Web site you use to
set-up the remote.

Thanks I found it.

SNSGUY

Is it okay to leave the remote in the cradle over night or will that decrease the life of the battery? What about using the slideshow while it's on the cradle, will that hurt the screen being left on for an extended period of time? By the way I love the remote and It was pretty easy to setup once I knew where stuff was. Thanks.

SNSGUY

Once again, all the answers are on the Logitech/Harmony's Web site.

The answers are:

1. Yes - it's OK

2. No.

I know what the manual says I did read though it and researched this. But there has been conflicting answers. So therefore I was asking those who have the remote. The manual can say one thing but in reality it may not be that way at all. That's why I asked. Thanks for the response though.

SNSGUY

Just me but...I only charge it for as long as it takes for the battery indicator to show full charge. Usually within 3-4 hours. Yes, I have left it on there for say 24 hours a couple of times but those were exceptions. I'm sure you've read the various messages in this thread about it.

The slideshow doesn't last long on mine but I think that's configurable and I may have set it that way. It's a cool feature but only works while charging. Again, I think that's configurable. Could be mistaken.

So, have you had fun programming it to do all you want it to do? Minus the dishes??

-t

If it could do the dishes that would be awesome!!!! Thanks I think I will only charge it when it needs it. I have left it for a night so that it would fully charge when I first got it. I thought that the slideshow might be configurable. I need to check that out. It's been a lot of fun already getting it working.

SNSGUY

The remote is 'smart', it will only charge the batteries until they are fully charged.

Leaving it charged all the time is the best thing you can do to a modern Li-ion rechargeable battery. Doing it otherwise, e.g. drain it down and then recharge, will actually harm the battery. This applies to your laptop battery, cell phone battery, iPod battery etc.

Interesting since I did this with my first Ipod Mini and the battery life dimished to only a few minutes within the 1st year. Took it to the Apple store and they replaced the unit, but the tech explicitly said I should only charge it when it needs it - doing what I had done harms the battery.

Also my old Compaq laptop was left plugged in constantly - when I finally unplugged it literally 2 years later (it was my 1st htpc so it never moved normally) the battery no longer worked at all.

There is a similar discussion going on in the 880 thread right now.

I found an article about Li-ion batteries that states:


Perhaps the iPod mini didn't use a Li-ion.

As far as your Compaq, the article goes on to state:


Given that the computer was plugged in for two years it's hard to say when the battery gave up the ghost, but at two years you were on the low end of the standard life expectancy anyway.

The article also states that if stored for prolonged periods the battery should be charged to about 40%. In the Guidelines section of the article it states: "Consider removing the battery from a laptop when running on fixed power." This is probably due to that essentially being long-term storage and you're keeping the battery at 100%.