Logitech Harmony 1100 RF Touchscreen Remote

At CES Unveiled yesterday, we got a sneak peek of Logitech's newest touchscreen remote, the Harmony 1100. Of course, we weren't allowed to report about it until today. The new remote differs from the original Harmony 1000 in a number of ways. First, it's black, not two-tone silver. Second, Logitech promises it won't randomly freeze up like the 1000 did (though I'm not sure that's something that was ever actually admitted to...) A customizable, 3.5-inch full-color touch screen adorns the front and hard buttons are limited to Volume, Channel, Mute, Replay and Navigation controls (less than the 1000). This remote is more configurable than the 1000 in that Logitech is claiming users can do more to customize the LCD screen and arrangement of buttons and controls.

Featuring fully redesigned software, the QVA resolution (320x240) 3.5-inch touch-sensitive screen the new Harmony allows users to select the commands they use most and put those features on the screen. If you love to watch movies, for example, and are always using the Play and Pause buttons, you can tell the Harmony 1100 to make those commands immediately available on the screen once you start your movie.

In addition to the customizable touch screen, the Harmony 1100 offers simple details that also make it easy to use, such as tactile guides, which are located around the touch screen and help position your fingers so that you choose the right command. The brushed-black aluminum top case and soft-touch bottom case make it comfortable to hold. And of course the Harmony 1100 contains a lithium-ion battery and is rechargeable, so you never have to replace the batteries.

The Harmony 1100 is, like the 1000 before it, an RF-capable remote. A Harmony RF Extender (sold separately) lets you control devices that are behind the closed doors of your entertainment cabinet or even in another room (from up to 100 feet). 

Logitech uses an Internet-based setup that is improved over prior software and makes getting the Harmony 1100 setup and customized as easy as possible. Fr those of you who have never used Logitech's Harmony remotes, a setup wizard allows you to enter your components’ make and model numbers and then automagically matches that to the characteristics, discrete codes and infrared commands of the more than 225,000 devices from more than 5,000 manufacturers contained in Logitech’s online database. Any devices that aren’t in the database can be quickly added and the remote can learn any IR code, provided you have the original (source) remote.

This looks to be a rather nice (and much-needed) update to their flagship remote control. We're excited to test it out and see how well it performs in one of our reference systems. The Harmony 1100 is expected to be available in the U.S. and Europe beginning in February for a suggested retail price of $499.99.

For more information visit www.logitech.com.

Unless otherwise indicated, this is a preview article for the featured product. A formal review may or may not follow in the future.