Harmony 720 vs 880

There is only one real difference:
- The 720 has 6 "soft" buttons.
- The 880 has 8 "soft" buttons.

6 should be enough for most people in each activity, otherwise, 8 is better (to avoid having to scroll to another page of soft buttons). I prefer the 720, but it's mostly about personal preferences and button layout.

On the 880, the are 4 buttons on the left and 4 on the right side of the LCD screen. Withthese 8 "soft" buttons, you can add any command from any device in your setup and have the text say anything you want.

They are "soft" because they are not hard labeled like the other buttons on the remote.

They allow you to use full text custom labels for extra functions not covered by lthe hard buttons (that have fixed labels). Your cell phone probably has soft buttons that change according to what menu and/or screen you are on. It's the same principle: increases WAF and ease of use. You don't have to remember that the same "tools" button changes the aspect ratio for the TV, but switches between AM and FM for the radio, or modifies the surround sound parameters when using the AVR, etc. etc. (just an example). Very important IMO for anyting over $30.

How many soft buttons you REALLY need on one screen is up to you. For example, if you need a lot of special features on one screen for a PVR, eight might be more convenient than 6. But if you chose the 720, you would simply have to press the arrow to see the next six LCD commands.

I think the main reason you should pick the 720 or 880 is the actual button layout and shape of the control. They are very different even though they do the same exact things.

I use them quite a bit. There are some functions in my setup that I want easy access to on my 880 remote and I assign them to one of the soft buttons. Without the soft buttons, I would be constantly looking for my original remotes and trying to remember where the button is for the "TV Aspect" mode function.

I find them very valuable, in my reality anyway. Your reality may differ.

- Yes. After the Activity is run, the LCD screen displays whatever custom commands you programmed.


- If you've already tested the 880 and the 550 (almost identical to the 720), you should have an idea of which remote you prefer.

A whie back I tested the 720 vs. the 880. The biggest difference to me was the fact that the 720 had better separation of the buttons, thus making it easier to use the remote without looking at it. That's not to say that over time someone couldn't get used to the placement of the 880s buttons, but out of the box the 720 was much easier in this catagory (I mention this since it seems to be important to many users). It was only being used for a bedroom remote, so 6 activities was enough. On the other hand, if someone had a more complex system with more "activities", the 880 might suit them better (also for future upgradability). It's been a while, but if I remember correctly one of them had a brighter screen (can't remember which).
None of this matters now, since I found a great deal on a URC MX-700, and at the time we were using an MX-850 for the main system (which meant no learning curve), but I thought I'd throw in my $.02.