Logitech Discontinue Harmony Remotes

Logitech announced on Friday that they will discontinue their line of Harmony universal remote controls and no longer make or develop them. Their harmony line was a range of consumer all-in-one remote controls and hubs, that could be programmed to control all of your audio/visual and home cinema equipment.

Long In The Tooth

We have previously used the Harmony Elite range with some level of success although it was always a fairly clunky experience to initially set them up. Once they were up and running they were a nice entry level control system for the time. The setup system was improved with later Professional versions of remotes with different software and better equipped hubs, which made it a more rounded experience as an installer - although the remotes were getting a bit outdated by then.

Logitech Harmony Elite

Would I specify them today for home cinemas?

Regardless of the announcement, No, there are better options available that offer much better performance, resilience and a nicer user experience. Things have come on…

Logitech obviously stopped investing in the line after they released the Harmony Elite, which was close to 5 years ago, that’s a long time in the fast moving technology world.

So it’s really only a bit of a feeling of nostalgia, having installed hundreds of their various remotes over the years, that I feel a glint of sadness at Logitechs announcement.

What Do We Use Now?

The RTi range of remotes is cutting edge, looks and feels great and what we are specifying for most of our home cinemas now.

RTi T4X Remote Control

Compared to the Logitech Harmony image above you can see RTi’s T4X is literally years ahead, whilst logitech have been resting on their laurels for the last 4-5 years RTi have not. The result is a stunning looking remote that feels great in your hands, not only that but it can control Zigbee, RF (433Mhz), Wifi and IR and with 2 way control.