Logitech bows out of the Harmony Universal Remote market (1 Viewer)

[Neil S. Bulk]

I'm a recent convert to Harmony having only bought my remote and hub at the end of 2017. It could be the component I'm happiest with in my home theater. It's a delight to use. Set up can be cumbersome, but once that's done it works perfectly and I've come to rely on it. The integration with Google Home also works well. I just bought a spare remote and hub in case something happens to mine. Now I'm hoping Logitech keeps the servers going. The idea of relying on CEC sends shivers down my spine.

 

[Citizen87645]

I have mixed feelings to this news. Mainly, "it's the end of an era."

If my household is any example, the primary TV is dominated by kids shows being run off a FireTV. Audio is through a soundbar that comes on automatically and volume adjusts through the TV remote and HDMI CEC. A universal IR remote has no purpose there.

I do have a Harmony 665 that I use on secondary setup, but that's a cobbling of older components so the IR remote fits in there, but still is not used to the max.

I remember the first universal remote I had was a Sony touchpad thing about the size of a 6-inch Fire tablet. I learned pretty quickly I preferred hard buttons to navigate by touch in dim lighting. It was backlit LCD, but the backlight was too bright and when it came on there was an audible, high-pitched whine.

After that, I had a universal learning remote from Universal Remote Control. Worked great for many years, but I wound up e-cycling it in favor of the easy programmability of the Harmony.

 

[DaveF]

I’ve used the Harmony iPhone app remote, and it confirmed I much prefer a dedicated, hard-button remote control. Apps are helpful, but I don’t relish that being my only option in the future.

 

[DaveF]

... I couldn't imagine going back to doing the "remote control shuffle" with a coffee table full of remotes. My wife would really hate it, as the Harmony is so easy for her to use. She wouldn't have a clue on how to use multiple OEM remotes to control the home theater system in our family room.

This, a thousand times.

Logitech Harmony One probably saved my marriage, early on.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I just read another article on this topic that begins with the question of whether most people can walk into a store and justify the price of a $350 remote.

And here is an article from The Verge that gives the ultimate explanation on Logitech's predicament...

But with the rise of streaming services over the past few years, universal remotes are no longer as crucial as they once were. Logitech CEO Bracken Darrell told The Verge in 2019 that Harmony was a small business for the company; he said the remote business was only about 6 percent of the size of Logitech’s massive keyboard business, for instance.

“I think over time, you’ll have fewer and fewer people who feel like they really need that universal remote,” Darrell said at the time. He added that the company appreciated hardcore Harmony users who love the device: “it’s so rare to have users that love something as much as a lot of our Harmony users do. We’ll always take care of them because we really believe that that’s part of the responsibility of the brand,” Darrell told The Verge. “So we do love Harmony for that reason. How long it will be out there, I don’t know.”

 

[Neil S. Bulk]

The next step is to find someone that can make sense of CEC and get that to work as flawlessly as Harmony did.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

I just read another article on this topic that begins with the question of whether most people can walk into a store and justify the price of a $350 remote.

And here is an article from The Verge that gives the ultimate explanation on Logitech's predicament...

But with the rise of streaming services over the past few years, universal remotes are no longer as crucial as they once were. Logitech CEO Bracken Darrell told The Verge in 2019 that Harmony was a small business for the company; he said the remote business was only about 6 percent of the size of Logitech’s massive keyboard business, for instance.

“I think over time, you’ll have fewer and fewer people who feel like they really need that universal remote,” Darrell said at the time. He added that the company appreciated hardcore Harmony users who love the device: “it’s so rare to have users that love something as much as a lot of our Harmony users do. We’ll always take care of them because we really believe that that’s part of the responsibility of the brand,” Darrell told The Verge. “So we do love Harmony for that reason. How long it will be out there, I don’t know.”

But, the thing is, you don't have to spend $350 on a Harmony remote in order to get rid of the "remote shuffle" and the "coffee table full of remotes". I just ordered a Harmony 665 for $60 as a backup for my current Harmony 650.

Now, whether Logitech could make any money selling $60 remotes is an entirely different discussion.

 

[DaveF]

I just read another article on this topic that begins with the question of whether most people can walk into a store and justify the price of a $350 remote.

And here is an article from The Verge that gives the ultimate explanation on Logitech's predicament...

But with the rise of streaming services over the past few years, universal remotes are no longer as crucial as they once were. Logitech CEO Bracken Darrell told The Verge in 2019 that Harmony was a small business for the company; he said the remote business was only about 6 percent of the size of Logitech’s massive keyboard business, for instance.

“I think over time, you’ll have fewer and fewer people who feel like they really need that universal remote,” Darrell said at the time. He added that the company appreciated hardcore Harmony users who love the device: “it’s so rare to have users that love something as much as a lot of our Harmony users do. We’ll always take care of them because we really believe that that’s part of the responsibility of the brand,” Darrell told The Verge. “So we do love Harmony for that reason. How long it will be out there, I don’t know.”

“Most people”, no. But there are $5,000 and $20,000 projectors in the those same stores that “most people” won’t buy. But enthusiasts will. And they buy those $300 remotes.

This is classic big-business business thinking: they’re giving up 6% of their revenue because they don’t want “singles”, they need “home runs”! But they risk giving up product lines with strong cachet and that distinguish their company with everyone else making cheap $20 PC speakers and Bluetooth keyboards.

I don’t know. It’s a pretty niche product in the niche-y world of home theater and home automation. I wouldn’t be so bothered if there was a higher-quality, higher-cost product I could consider upgrading to. But Logitech had amazingly designed the best remote controls but for the best price. The high-end, high price URC remotes aren’t as well designed.

 

[John Dirk]

I’ve used the Harmony iPhone app remote, and it confirmed I much prefer a dedicated, hard-button remote control. Apps are helpful, but I don’t relish that being my only option in the future.

Guess I'm the odd man out here because I love IP control and apps for my devices. On a decent-sized tablet they work petty well. The better ones also offer two-way feedback and media synchronization. I don't think any Harmony product could do that.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Guess I'm the odd man out here because I love IP control and apps for my devices. On a decent-sized tablet they work petty well. The better ones also offer two-way feedback and media synchronization. I don't think any Harmony product could do that.

If I can control everything from a single app with the simplicity of a Harmony remote, I would be all for it. It is hard to beat the elegance of pressing "Watch TV" and having the remote handle turning on the AVR, setting it to the proper input, turning on the display and cable box, too. Then later pressing "Watch a Movie" and having the remote change the AVR input, maybe changing the TV input (if necessary), and turning on the UHD player. Then finally pressing "system off" and having the remote turn off the UHD player, TV and AVR.

If I have to use separate apps to control the AVR, cable box, TV, UHD player, streaming box, etc and have to keep track of which inputs to switch the AVR and TV to, then no thanks on IP control. It seems like this is a market waiting for someone to develop an Android and IOS app similar to the Harmony remotes.

 

[DavidJ]

Well, this is a bummer. I've been looking at adding a second and possibly third Harmony and I was hoping new models might be on the horizon, not the end of the line.

 

[JohnRice]

If I can control everything from a single app with the simplicity of a Harmony remote, I would be all for it

You can do that now. Unfortunately it's with a Harmony Hub and the Harmony App.

 

[DaveF]

Guess I'm the odd man out here because I love IP control and apps for my devices. On a decent-sized tablet they work petty well. The better ones also offer two-way feedback and media synchronization. I don't think any Harmony product could do that.

Can’t pick it up and simply change the volume by touch, without looking at it.

Using a tablet / phone adds extra friction for me: Gotta unlock it, swipe, search, launch the app, look at the screen, tap the button. And gotta keep it plugged in a charged.

Remote: pick up and press volume. Change batteries every few weeks.

It’s a workable solution, but not my preferred solution. And terrible SAF for living room.

 

[JohnRice]

Guess I'm the odd man out here because I love IP control and apps for my devices. On a decent-sized tablet they work petty well. The better ones also offer two-way feedback and media synchronization. I don't think any Harmony product could do that.

You sound like some kind of techno freak, like maybe a Network Engineer.

 

[John Dirk]

If I can control everything from a single app with the simplicity of a Harmony remote, I would be all for it.

Touchsquid can do all of that with it's activity functions but there hasn't been any new development on the platform in years.

It seems like this is a market waiting for someone to develop an Android and IOS app similar to the Harmony remotes.

Harmony did just that and, sadly, now considers it unviable. Touchsquid came to the same conclusion back in 2016 I think.

As enthusiasts, we see the potential but, as usual, we're in the minority.

 

[John Dirk]

Can’t pick it up and simply change the volume by touch, without looking at it.

Using a tablet / phone adds extra friction for me: Gotta unlock it, swipe, search, launch the app, look at the screen, tap the button. And gotta keep it plugged in a charged.

Remote: pick up and press volume. Change batteries every few weeks.

It’s a workable solution, but not my preferred solution. And terrible SAF for living room.

I agree for living room use. The standard TV remote is fine for that.

For my HT Room I use a Samsung tab. True it requires a swipe to unlock but after that the buttons are right there. No need to search or launch repeatedly. I will continue to use Touchsquid as long as I can but Harmony leaving the market definitely bodes poorly for the future.

 

[John Dirk]

You sound like some kind of techno freak, like maybe a Network Engineer.

LOL - Guilty as charged but I'm not the only techno freak here.

 

[TonyD]

I have a harmony, I think it’s called a Harmony Hub.

Had it for at least ten years maybe more.
All the buttons have lost the writing on them as I’ve worn them off.
I know where the buttons are just from memory.
My wife, not so much, she hates it.
Tried to get her to use the app on her phone but she isn’t having any of it.

I used to be able to use the Amazon Devices to control all the tv gear but after we switched from Dtv to Comcast we discovered that the Harmony was never updated to include control for the Comcast X1 box.

he Amazon voice commmds don’t work and I can’t control the cable box so I use the Hub to turn everything on and have to use the Comcast remote to control the tv watching, channel changing etc.

My wife would love for us to get a remote that controls everything again but I haven’t researched remotes and don’t want to pay much at all for a New one.

I guess my next remote isn’t going to be a Harmony.

 

[TonyD]

Did anyone have a pronto?

I had two.
My brother cracked the screen so I had to buy another one.

I think I spent more time programming that thing then I spent actually using it.
Hours and hours on Remote central.

 

[Lord Dalek]

And I just bought a Harmony 665 too because this new Vizio's CEC hates my Yamaha....

You're welcome. =/