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Topic:
MX-500 or Harmony
This thread has 2 replies. Displaying all posts.
Post 1 made on Thursday February 7, 2002 at 13:31
derlor
Founding Member
Joined:
Posts:
January 2002
5
I was all ready to get an MX-500 but then stumbled across the review of the Harmony. It looks *very* interesting and I'm having a difficult time deciding between two somewhat different kinds (and methods) of remotes.

Most people seem to highly recommend the MX-500 and I like the fact that there's buttons on it. While the Pronto looks really "cool", I think I need the tactile feel of buttons. Since I got my TiVo, it seems like I'm holding that a lot (to FF through commercials, watch my backlog of shows, etc.).

The Harmony looks interesting because things are grouped into "actions": watch TV/TiVo, play a DVD, listen to a CD, etc... something that my girlfriend can easily figure out.

I don't mind tinkering with things (setup) but I sometimes find myself getting lazy and wanting the easy way out. The idea of going on the Internet to setup a Harmony in some ways seems more appealing... and since I have a wireless laptop I can stick in front of my TV, it seems like it would be easier than others have reported.

Any comments on how you chose one over the other would be greatly appreciated.

Here's my setup:
* TiVo [hdr-312?]
* Sony 32" [KV-32S42]
* Kenwood VR-507 A/V receiver
* Apex DVD [600A]
* Standard nalog cable box (Panasonic? Pioneer?)
* Panasonic 4-head VCR (I *think* I remember using it once or twice in 2001)
Post 2 made on Tuesday February 12, 2002 at 19:48
edgrood
Founding Member
Joined:
Posts:
January 2002
5
I have not used an MX500, but I do have an opinion. The "activity" based approach used by the Harmony is much superior to "macro" based approaches for anyone (read wife and kids here) who does not know the details of your system. More buttons would be nice, but the loss here is minor compared to the gains with the Harmony. Specifically, the implementation of "Help" button function on the Harmony is great for resynchronizing the remote and the system. You simply provide a yes or no answer a set of simple questions. In other remotes you need to figure out which component is out of sync, know the specific setting that needs to be changed, and know how to use the remote to change just that setting.

Bottom line, my wife can now use our home theater system without asking me a lot of questions and without getting angry at me all the time for making her life so difficult.

Ed
OP | Post 3 made on Wednesday February 13, 2002 at 19:27
derlor
Founding Member
Joined:
Posts:
January 2002
5
Ed,

Thank you very much for the info. I *know* the Harmony would be great for the non-tech heads that come to my house (girlfriend, parents, my cats), but *I'm* the one that's going to be using it the most. Besides the approx. $100 difference between the Harmony and the MX-500, I haven't heard that using the Harmony with a TiVo is very easy... and I'm not sure if using the Harmony *and* a TiVo remote makes sense.


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