SPDF Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 Interested to hear from forum members who have any of the Harmony range of remotes and what your experiences/thoughts are of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Struan Posted May 21, 2005 Share Posted May 21, 2005 Interested to hear from forum members who have any of the Harmony range of remotes and what your experiences/thoughts are of them. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I recently got a Harmony 680 - and it's absolutely brilliant. You create an account online at http://www.logitech.com/harmony/ (try their test drive) and configure your devices from their massive database, then link them to 'activities' like 'Watch DVD'. You can have multiple of the same activity to do different things, and rename them accordingly. Once you're done, click to download the config to the remote via the included USB cable. If you need to make manual changes to the button mappings or learn from another remote, you can do that too. But mostly it gets it right. I've only had one issue - the Toshiba HDD-J35 STB/PVR has a very basic config file on their database - only around 27 of 59 or so buttons on the Toshiba's remote are in the Harmony config file. So I've reported it to Harmony/Logitech, and am in the process of teaching it the commands from the Toshiba remote. That is also web driven and very easy. Having said that, every other device in the house was recognised perfectly - even our kid's ancient steam-driven Hitachi TV. Configs are stored on the remote in flash memory so they're safe, and it's also on their web site so you have an offsite backup. Great stuff, you won't be disappointed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dir Posted May 21, 2005 Share Posted May 21, 2005 Does anyone know if I'd have problems with ordering in the Harmony 880 from the US? Assuming the recharging cradle uses DC, I can just get a 220v adapter locally. But could there be any other problems, like infrared signals are different here or anything? Dir Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPDF Posted May 21, 2005 Author Share Posted May 21, 2005 Does anyone know if I'd have problems with ordering in the Harmony 880 from the US? Assuming the recharging cradle uses DC, I can just get a 220v adapter locally.But could there be any other problems, like infrared signals are different here or anything? Dir <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Check the thread which compares the Logitech Harmony 680 with the MX500 (below) and you will seeCzzer has an 880 ordered. Yes you can order from Bluedo (or buy one here) a proper power adaptor. From Bluedo, think they are @ $28US or thereabouts. If you can wait a couple of months, the 885 will be available with 240volt power. Since starting this thread, I ordered and received the 680 and find that absolutely superb. Best remote ever! And for me, no hassles with docking stations etc. The 680 does everything the 880 does, except the 880 has a prettier screen. So if you don't mind paying a fairly high premium for a prettier screen without any tangible extra functional differences, then order the 880. For me though, the 680 is spot on the money! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gadgarra Posted May 21, 2005 Share Posted May 21, 2005 BlueDo's current price for the universal power adaptor, suitable for the 880, is $US18.95. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPDF Posted May 21, 2005 Author Share Posted May 21, 2005 BlueDo's current price for the universal power adaptor, suitable for the 880, is $US18.95. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Well, there you go! Even better! Be interesting to know if the 885 which does have our power supply is same pricing as the 880, or if it is more. If more, then it may be better to go with the 880 + the power adaptor. Time will tell, no doubt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
czzer Posted May 22, 2005 Share Posted May 22, 2005 UK sites are taking pre-orders for the 885 at around 170 pounds, with one place as cheap as 125 pounds, which works out to about A$302. Bluedo has the 880 for US$175, which works out to about A$230, and some places have it as cheap as US$148,or A$195. So it's still quite a bit cheaper for the 880 plus a converter. You'll still need a plug adapter for the 885 anyway, as it will have the UK plug on it. I have checked with owners of the 880 on AVS forums and they told me it is a low voltage DC lead from the plug pack to the charger base, so a Jaycar plug pack of the right output voltage should work fine. As far as IR signals, they are all the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gadgarra Posted May 22, 2005 Share Posted May 22, 2005 Will the 885 be exactly the same as the 880, apart from the voltage? I thought I read somewhere on one of these posts that it was supposed to have some extra facilities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
czzer Posted May 22, 2005 Share Posted May 22, 2005 It's going to have 4 coloured buttons in place of the 880's page up & page down (^v) buttons to suit the teletext system in Europe. I think that's the only difference Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deang Posted May 22, 2005 Share Posted May 22, 2005 Oh my God! SPDF I see what you mean about these Harmony remotes. i just went through the set up process on the Logitech site and its awsome. Is it really that easy? Why don't they all do this? I'm going to order an 880 and keep the MX-500 for the setup in the bedroom and give the URC-8811 to the parents. The GF will love this remote. Dead simple. Cheers, Dean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gadgarra Posted May 22, 2005 Share Posted May 22, 2005 It's going to have 4 coloured buttons in place of the 880's page up & page down (^v) buttons to suit the teletext system in Europe. I think that's the only difference <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Could those coloured buttons be used as the red green blue and yellow we need for Toppy and Austar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
czzer Posted May 22, 2005 Share Posted May 22, 2005 It's going to have 4 coloured buttons in place of the 880's page up & page down (^v) buttons to suit the teletext system in Europe. I think that's the only difference <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Could those coloured buttons be used as the red green blue and yellow we need for Toppy and Austar? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I don't have a Toppy or Austar, so I don't know exactly what you need the buttons to do. I know you can get any button you want to perform any function you want on the Harmony, so I assume it would do what you want. EDIT: I just found a picture of the 885, and the colours are red, green, blue and yellow. See here: http://www.pixmania.com/ie/uk/104176/art/l...te-contro.html# Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fattchoi1503559854 Posted May 22, 2005 Share Posted May 22, 2005 I almost put in my order for the 880 plus that adaptor from bluedo yesterday. Glad I held off because this 885 is more for me as I too want those colored buttons. Very useful for Foxtel Skynews active... Guess I better be patient and just wait for the 885. One question for those that ordered from bluedo. Can you tell me which shipping you select? Is it that UPS that cost $33? and is there is any special discount coupon available to us? Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPDF Posted May 23, 2005 Author Share Posted May 23, 2005 I almost put in my order for the 880 plus that adaptor from bluedo yesterday. Glad I held off because this 885 is more for me as I too want those colored buttons. Very useful for Foxtel Skynews active... Guess I better be patient and just wait for the 885. One question for those that ordered from bluedo. Can you tell me which shipping you select? Is it that UPS that cost $33? and is there is any special discount coupon available to us? Cheers. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Looking at the photo enlargement of the 885, it looks very much like a pic of the 880! I couldn't see the extra coloured buttons. From all accounts at this stage, the 885 looks like being dearer (initally) than the 880 with adaptor. From Bluedo, ensure it is standard shipping (to avoid customs import duty levied on stuff brought in by couriers). Think UPS is normal shipping so should be okay, but email Bluedo to confirm. The discount coupons are not available on the Harmony products, apparently, but are on some MX remotes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPDF Posted May 23, 2005 Author Share Posted May 23, 2005 Oh my God!SPDF I see what you mean about these Harmony remotes. i just went through the set up process on the Logitech site and its awsome. Is it really that easy? Why don't they all do this? I'm going to order an 880 and keep the MX-500 for the setup in the bedroom and give the URC-8811 to the parents. The GF will love this remote. Dead simple. Cheers, Dean. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Yeah Dean, they are dead set simple to set up, however you may get tricked up depending on your gear. I did, and found fixing the problem a little difficult, but that's where tech support take over. You tell them what you need to do, they fix it and then you download the results. It took me a few goes to get mine just right, but hey, now it's just awesome! When you get used to their way of working on their website, it is pretty basic and straight forward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fattchoi1503559854 Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 Looking at the photo enlargement of the 885, it looks very much like a pic of the 880! I couldn't see the extra coloured buttons. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> The extra colored buttons are there just under the screen. Very good because most of my remotes such as the Hitachi plasma, LG STB and Foxtel, all have those colored buttons. Just look carefully. Oh...you have to click on the 'Zoom In' to get a bigger picture to see them. Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest EZYHD Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 Is it possible to run 4 sets of devise setups with the Harmony 680?. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ldu Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 Here is a great pic. of the 880 It even tells the time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
czzer Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 Is it possible to run 4 sets of devise setups with the Harmony 680?. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I'm not sure I understand the question foxtail. Do you mean can you have 4 seperate complete setups, ie for use on 4 different HT systems? If so, you could make 4 user accounts, but you would have to upload a different account each time you change system. Or you could just have extra activities under the "More Activities" button for the different setups. I'm not sure of the maximum number of activities you can have, but I think it's around 100. In any case, there should be plaenty of room for just about any setup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bacco|007 Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 are there any australian resellers of them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taggartc Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 I've had the 659 for around a year and love the unit as does the wife. It is just so easy to setup and use. As for Aus resellers, www.idt.com.au should be able to put you in contact with a reseller in your area. (I don't think they sell direct to the public). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ldu Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 HOw many people would be interested in a group buy? What savings could we expect other than saving on postage? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenncol Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 HOw many people would be interested in a group buy? What savings could we expect other than saving on postage? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> On what item Land_down_under? The 880? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PVR guy Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 more here http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?showtopic=18145 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
czzer Posted May 23, 2005 Share Posted May 23, 2005 I would be in for a group buy on the 880, but wouldn't we start running in to customs issues if we got more than 2 or 3? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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