Logitech Harmony 950 controls all devices with color touchscreen

Having used a pair of Logitech Harmony One universal remote controls in my home for years, I can tell you from experience that they are huge time savers with their activities function. Logitech has announced a new universal remote that will replace the Harmony One Ultimate in its line up and that new remote is called the Harmony 950. The Harmony 950 is available now in the US and it looks very much like the Harmony One line it replaces.

The Harmony 950 has a color touchscreen that provides controls for up to 15 devices and supports gestured including swipes and taps to change channels. Gestures can also be used for fast forward, rewind, and adjusting volume. That is a cool feature if you are into your movie and don't want to look away.

The Harmony 950 is an IR remote and is able to control over 270,000 devices including Apple TV, Roku, and TiVo devices along with gaming consoles. With so many devices in the programming database, odds are your devices will be there but if not the Harmony 950 can be taught commands using the remote that came with your device.

All of the keys and the screen are backlit for use in dark rooms and lighting is motion activated. The touchscreen measures 2.4-inches. One of the things I like best about this compared to my original Harmony One remote is that it has an upright charger, the horizontal charger of the original takes up a lot of space better used for holding popcorn and Dr. Pepper.

The remote has a sleep timer so you can watch your flick and set the timer to turn everything off when it's time for bed. The battery in the 950 is replaceable and has 20% more capacity than previous devices in the line. One of the best things about the Harmony line is that you don't need to enter codes and hope it works for your device, you program them using software on your PC and a USB cable. The Harmony 950 will sell for $249.99 and can be pre-ordered now.

SOURCE: Logitech