Logitech Harmony Express New universal remote relies on Alexa Ars Technica

• This is Logitech's new widespread faraway, the Harmony Express. Note the big honking Alexa button on the top there.
  Jeff Dunn
• It comes with this hub that works with IR, Bluetooth, and WiFi, in addition to a mini IR blaster for extending that variety if needed.
  Jeff Dunn
• Aside from the directional pad around the Alexa button, this is it from a bodily button perspective.
  Jeff Dunn
• It costs over micro-USB as opposed to USB-C.
  Jeff Dunn
• You'll pay attention Alexa respond via this little speaker on the lower back.
  Jeff Dunn
• Logitech's new Harmony Express app makes setting up the far flung pretty sincere, though it does not do any controlling of its very own.
  Logitech

Logitech on Tuesday announced the Harmony Express, a brand new time-honored far flung that features the Alexa voice assistant.

Amazon’s more and more ubiquitous helper comes constructed into the device and is available via a huge round button at the top of the far flung. The concept with the Harmony Express is to use Alexa to govern the numerous gadgets in your own home theater. Past Logitech Harmony remotes were usable with an related Alexa ability for people with separate Echo devices, but right here the voice controls are baked in.

The Harmony Express charges $250 and is available beginning Tuesday.

All about Alexa

The faraway itself is small, light, and minimalist from a design attitude, emphasizing the newfound focus on voice commands. There’s no integrated show and most effective a handful of bodily buttons: simply basic playback, quantity, and navigation controls. There’s a microphone and speaker constructed into the device, certainly, and the Alexa button glows its acquainted shade of blue when activated. The few bodily buttons are all backlit.

In some approaches, using voice controls with the Harmony Express is much like what Amazon has completed with its Fire TV Cube streaming box. As with that device, you can use Alexa at the Harmony Express to music to particular channels on a cable box; pronouncing “go to ESPN,” for instance, will coach the cable box to enter the channel numbers associated with that channel on its personal. You don’t have to mention “Alexa” to activate the assistant, however the Harmony Express handiest is familiar with a restrained set of terms—announcing “transfer to ESPN,” to retain the instance above, won’t do some thing. The assistant can flip a TV or streaming tool on or off thru voice instructions, in addition to access a cable field’s DVR recordings. Logitech says you may use comparable commands to track to precise channels via an antenna as well.

This being a commonplace faraway, you could also use Alexa to govern diverse other home theater devices. At launch, Logitech says the Harmony Express can be capable of without delay release Netflix and “similar apps”—consisting of Amazon Prime, Hulu, and HBO Now—on an Apple TV (4th gen or later), Roku, Fire TV, Sony Android TVs, and a pick out quantity of Samsung and LG TVs. It gained’t be capable of do this on sport consoles just like the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One, although you may nevertheless use voice commands to exchange to HDMI inputs related to the ones devices after the proper setup.

Since the Harmony Express is an Alexa tool, it also works somewhat like a transportable Amazon Echo. You may want to use the Harmony Express to reply general information questions, element the climate, see what’s developing to your calendar, or other normal Alexa obligations. It can control diverse clever domestic gadgets, too. The fundamental exclusion, according to Logitech, is that it doesn’t aid track and audiobook commands, because it’d be a drain on battery and the built-in speaker isn’t designed for music.

Regarding battery existence, the organisation says the Harmony Express ought to final at the least a month per rate. (You charge it through a micro-USB port, and we are a touch disenchanted it lacks USB-C.)

Logitech says it plans to feature extra voice manipulate talents post-launch. During a demo in New York City earlier this month, the agency stated it's miles trying to upload the capacity to launch precise shows or music to unique carrying events by call, among different matters.

Still a Harmony

Having the integrated voice functionality is the huge reason you’d buy the Harmony Express over one in every of Logitech’s greater trendy frequent remotes, however the business enterprise says the device works with all the equal gadgets as past Harmony remotes, sans voice commands. That includes a ton of TVs, A/V receivers, Blu-ray gamers, speakers, game consoles, etc, although it’s well worth looking the company’s compatibility list if you’re unsure in case your gear could work.

The remote comes with a %-shaped blaster that makes use of infrared, Bluetooth, and WiFi to control some of these devices, as well as a mini-blaster for extending IR variety if wanted. Having Bluetooth and WiFi permits the Harmony Express to control gadgets like the PlayStation 4 that aren’t controllable by older Harmony remotes that depend completely on infrared. When you’re paired with a like minded device, the Harmony Express’ on-device controls will automatically map to the tool presently in use. The remote doesn’t want line-of-sight to manipulate those gadgets, both.

All of that is set through a brand new Harmony Express app made in particular for the new far off. This manner the new far flung isn't always well matched with Logitech’s current Harmony app or the hubs which are designed for older Harmony devices. But it does make the setup technique a chunk more honest: the app will scan for the devices in your private home—though you can have to upload one or two manually—then have you drag and drop little icons for each determined tool onto the corresponding HDMI ports for your TV. It then has you accomplice streaming apps with sure devices, in order that while you tell the remote to “visit Netflix,” it is aware of which tool to mild up. Unfortunately, you can’t use the app to actually control your own home theater; it’s specifically there for setup and the nifty potential to set off an alarm at the far flung if it ever is going lacking. Again, Logitech really wishes you to use your voice here.

For what it’s really worth, Logitech says it isn’t taking any facts for advertising functions itself and that the Harmony Express does not file some thing while the Alexa button is not being held down. But you may expect Amazon to do the equal facts collection it typically does with Alexa devices here.

If you have no hobby in being a part of that, or in the usage of voice controls first and essential, it’ll likely be secure to miss the Harmony Express in prefer for the less expensive Harmony Companion. If you pick having a touchscreen, the higher-quit Harmony Elite is a higher fit. Personally, for the reason that Alexa is already baked into such a lot of clever home gadgets these days, my first affect is that the Harmony Express market could be a niche one. It’s now not hard to imagine the voice commands right here getting blended up with different Alexa-enabled gadgets in a domestic theater. At $250, the faraway really doesn’t come cheap, either. But when you have a complicated home theater and smart home setup and would choose to use your voice extra than physical buttons, here you go.

Listing photograph by means of Jeff Dunn

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//arstechnica.com/gadgets/2019/04/logitechs-ultra-modern-regularly occurring-faraway-gives-alexa-the-keys-to-your-domestic-theater/
2019-04-16 13:10:00Z
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