Logitech Harmony Smart Keyboard, Harmony Hub and app review setup exclusive at Best Buy
Tags :Harmony Logitech product review AV
The Logitech Harmony Smart Keyboard partnered with the Harmony Hub and the iOS and Android application make a powerful control center for your home AV needs.
The Harmony Smart Keyboard is specially designed for to simplify text entry on internet-connected entertainment devices. Touch the “Movie” Activity button and the right devices switch to the right settings. Plus, it has integrated DVR and set-top box controls, playback and volume buttons, and a touchpad for cursor control on a PC or Mac.
There are 3 one-touch activity buttons along the top of the keyboard that allow you to customize actions for both quick and long press. This made the keyboard useful but the application can do everything except the ease of typing.
What brings all of this together is the Harmony Hub. The hub connects to your wifi to control devices like Smart TV's and Roku that are on the same network. Using IR, RF (radio frequency) and Bluetooth you can also controls PCs, XBox, Apple TV and a slew of home entertainment devices. They have a catalog of about 225,000 now. Pretty endless in what you can control.
Remember that anything you do via the app or keyboard will have a small delay in getting to the device. You are speaking directly to the hub which then has to bounce the signal via one of the communication channels to the device itself. So some lag is expected.
Harmony App turns iOS & Android smartphones into personal universal remote and does the entire setup of the system for you. In the video I show how they walk you through adding devices and then creating activities. activities are combined steps into a single click in the app or keyboard. Such as turning on the TV, setting the right input for the device and having the device go to a certain channel. You can get complex or simple in the activities. Having one click for common things is a great tool and makes ease of use. I also found I could control any device connected to the wifi from the app. Bluetooth, IR and RF devices must be in the same toom as the Harmony Hub. The app required Android 4.0 and higher and iOS 6 and higher.
See the video for all the details. I did not like one of the setup steps and really did not have an IR devices to test with anymore. Everything is Bluetooh, RF or wifi.
This combo kit is only at Best Buy (valid 3/5-6/21/2014). You can order online here http://idonot.es/lhsmartkey
Disclosure: This was sent by Logitech and Best Buy for free for review. No guarantee of complimentary review was given, and shows in the video.
Please see all the product reviews here on IdoNotes and subscribe to the SpikedStudio channel or product review playlist on YouTube.
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On Tuesday, April 22nd, 2014 by Chris Miller
