I'm looking at the Harmony 550 right now I'm looking to get it discounted somewhere since its being discontinued. There is also the URC remotes that I've heard al ot about and I don't know what to do. Is there something about the URC remotes that people like better than the Harmony remotes? If I'm comparing the two brands which URC model will compare with the 550.
Harmony 550 vs. URC or other
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What components do you want to control?
I picked up a Harmony 550 right before Christmas for $50. I got it to replace a
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URC-8820 that didn't have codes for the HR22 DirecTV HD DVR that I had just added to my system. I had previously been using the 8820 to control two DTiVos, a Toshiba TV, Toshiba DVD player, Sony VCR and Pioneer receiver. It's macro capable and has lots of memory.
As a matter of fact, before getting the Harmony 550 I decided to learn all the main buttons of the HR22 to the 8820 which it handled easily, with memory to spare.
If the Harmony 550 wasn't so cheap at the time I'd still be using the 8820 in my living room (I still use one in the bedroom)....it's a great remote for the price.
As you've mentioned, it looks like the great deal on the Harmony 550 is gone but I've heard that www.pcrichard.com still offers it for $50 but only on the weekend. I agree, this sounds a bit odd and I don't know if it's true or not but if you could hold out until the weekend you'll know for sure.
BTW, I happened to get my Harmony 550 from a PC Richard location near me.
What components do you want to control?
I picked up a Harmony 550 right before Christmas for $50. I got it to replace a
As a matter of fact, before getting the Harmony 550 I decided to learn all the main buttons of the HR22 to the 8820 which it handled easily, with memory to spare.
If the Harmony 550 wasn't so cheap at the time I'd still be using the 8820 in my living room (I still use one in the bedroom)....it's a great remote for the price.
As you've mentioned, it looks like the great deal on the Harmony 550 is gone but I've heard that www.pcrichard.com still offers it for $50 but only on the weekend. I agree, this sounds a bit odd and I don't know if it's true or not but if you could hold out until the weekend you'll know for sure.
BTW, I happened to get my Harmony 550 from a PC Richard location near me.
There are probably other remotes in that price range. I use the "professional series" URC remotes. I don't have any experience with the consumer line. But the MX-810 is very configurable, "activity based" -- like the harmony, and relatively inexpensive (though it is over $100). It is also RF ready if you ever want to add the base station.
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I had the harmony 550 for a while, it was OK. I switched to the URC MX-810. Get a used one if possible, the retail is alot. It was a gigantic hassle to program, but now that I have it up and running its great. It even passed the ultimate test: My fiance's dad came over, picked it up for the first time, and got the rose bowl on without asking any questions or any experience beforehand. 550 never passed that test.
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