Universal remote recommendations?

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with bluetooth

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the harmony remotes are the obvious choice, but because one of your devices uses bluetooth, i might be wrong but i think you have to splurge for the "hub" system which is more expensive.

and yea it'll control fans and lights and such:

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Combine entertainment, lighting, blinds, locks, and more to create unique experiences like “Welcome Home” or “Good Night.”
- Control connected home devices such as Philips™ and LIFX lights, August™ smart locks, Nest® and Honeywell®, thermostats, and more.
- Works with SmartThings?, INSTEON®, and IFTTT smart home platforms.
- Compatible with advanced home entertainment devices like Apple TV®, Roku®, and Sonos®.
- Use with popular IR or Bluetooth game consoles such as Xbox One™, Xbox 360®, PlayStation®4, PlayStation®3 or Wii®.
- Replace up to eight home entertainment remotes.

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https://www.logitech.com/en-ca/product/harmony-companion?crid=60

device compatibility

sorry for the canadian links

Definitely Logitech Harmony.

Probably cost more than $100 though.

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1 Sharp smart TV Suddenlink TiVo cable box Vizio sound bar with bluetooth PS4

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a picture of your set up would actually help a bit here. Especially because:

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I also have 2 pairs of ceiling fans/lights in the house that are remote controlled. Do universal remotes usually control something like this as well?

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Are these infrared or on something like a "smart" fan/light?


This will change the rec/answer. But basically, you have two choices: IR or RF

IR = line of sight control. You could carry the remote with you and control the fan in the bedroom with it as well as the entertainment system. But are you really going to do that? And if it IS in the same room, do you realize you'll have to point the remote at the receiver (so control the TV in front of you, but the fan on the wall on your left/right/behind you probably needs a more direct line of sight). Logitech is the king of IR universal remotes in terms of function + simplicity. They make simple remotes (350 controls 8 devices, every button on the remote can be programmed to do whatever you want. For instance- 9 could turn the fan on/off, you could make "volume up" the "Channel down" button. It's super easy to do with the software. Every button can be assigned literally any available function on any assigned device. Even some "hidden" functions (ex- an Apple TV remote doesn't have a "home" button. You must go back through 5-6 menus to get from a Netflix episode to the home screen, but Logitech has a command that goes straight to the home screen. Same with changing your TV from HDMI 1 to HDMI 4. You don't have to cycle through the menus on most- one button gives you the result you want).

Logitech then has some fancier IR remotes- models 650 and 750 (which is basically the 650 with rechargeable batteries). These have screens which let you add even more buttons to the remote (the screen can hold something like an extra 16 pages of 4 commands if I remember correctly). They also have the Harmony One. its out of your price range, no longer made, and adds nothing to your specific setup.



Flip side- they have RF remotes. Logitech also makes these. Typically; these are wildly expensive ($250-350 usually). Here's the thing- your devices aren't controlled by RF (TiVo may allow it. Fans may allow it. The rest don't). Because of that, basically all RF remotes have a "receiver" which "blasts" an IR signal to the devices. Depending on your setup, it may/may not be feasible to have a single blaster vs requiring you to set up an IR distributor which receives the first signal and sends it over to the rest of the devices through little cables/blasters. I'm explaining this because for some weird reason, Logitech (I receive no money from them) just happens to make the only cheap RF version I know of- the Harmony Home Hub and remote. It can be found $70-130 depending on when it's on sale and if you do/don't like refurb. There's also an available keyboard (like for a desktop computer but thin, sleek. Probably comparable to the Mac keyboard without numpad in terms of size + a trackpad). I've never laid hands on the device myself, but last year for some reason, you could get the keyboard + home hub for $70 or the remote + home hub for $100. The remote alone is $30, so you could actually get all three as cheap as just the remote and hub. I didn't. But I did set this up in my parents' house. It comes with the hub which is an IR blaster itself + 1 extra blaster. You can buy a second IR repeater/blaster or a "chain" of them separate, but it's probably cheaper to buy an IR distribution device if your setup can't be controlled with the 2 you're given. The blaster is powerful enough to control a TV about 35ft away, even when people are walking around the room.
Added bonus with this setup- it's a Bluetooth remote and the device can be controlled over wifi by your phone/tablet, so you gain a new way to control everything and all the added functions of the previously mentioned screen remotes from a device you already own.

Added added bonus: it's on wifi and can control several "smart" devices. So if your fans are indeed "smart" you'll gain control from the remote and your phone/tablet. If they're not, you need an IR flasher from the base on each of them (wildly impractical).



I'll wrap up here. I don't have your number for some reason. Shoot me a message on Facebook for mine if you want to talk about it in real life sometime. I've got a Harmony 650 set up on a similar number of devices as you've got doing much of what you want if you want to see/try it in action first over a beer. But device placement is very much key.

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Definitely Logitech Harmony.


Probably cost more than $100 though.

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Not at all!

Basic Harmony (1 macro function + 8 devices)- $25 refurb, $35 new
650 (touchscreen, still 8 devices but either 4 or 8 macros)- $45 refurb, $55 new
700 (same as 650 but with a USB port that recharges the batteries and black instead of silver)- ~ $55 refurb. Not sure if you can get it new though.
Harmony One (touch screen) no longer made, but ran ~$300

That's the IR side.

RF side is:
Basic remote + phone function - $~100
Keyboard + phone function- $70 refurb (just confirmed), $120 or so new

Then the fancy touch screen one is about $300

Everything is IR. One pair of fans are in the living room where the TV etc are. The other pair of fans are on a screened porch adjacent to the living room. The fans in my bedrooms are not remote controlled

You're correct, mine is the same. The only time I use the Bluetooth button is to link new devices

Best bang for your buck is the entry level harmony hub remote for about $100.

It's worth it alone for being rf over ir. It can also control Bluetooth.

The only crappy thing about the entry level model is no backlight on the remote, which makes it really hard to use at night with dark viewing.

Because of this I spent an extra $70 or so to get a refurbished touchscreen model(with backlighting) on Amazon.

Be sure to get a line of credit for the purchase of batteries. My Harmony eats up AAA's like crazy.

Just got the Harmony Smart remote and hub this week. Didn't need RF, but did need Bluetooth for Fire TV. Might be more than needed for the situation in this thread, but would give some flexibility for use with future purchases. You can eBay or refurb for less than $70.

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But when you have AV equipment on 3 shelves, where do you place the hub?

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I have all my equipment on a wide, 2 shelf base. Roku, PS3, cable box, receiver and of course tv. The hub is at the right edge and comtrols everything flawlessly without even using the ir extenders.

Trust me, I'm not against the 650 at all, it was my first entry into the harmony ecosystem and the layout is fantastic, much better than the remotes that are offered with the hub. I just think being able to get the entry level hub system for $20-40 more is a much better value. I upgraded to the hub for PS3 compatibility, but found the rf experience to be much more enjoyable than relying solely on ir.