Touch screen lets you control home entertainment system
Jim Jamieson
Province
With the number of electronic entertainment devices steadily growing in our living/TV rooms, most of us acknowledge we’re fighting a losing battle with clicker sprawl.
How many times have you cursed as you sifted through that midden of remotes on the coffee table in an attempt at making your new video-game console work with the surround-sound system?
Electronics maker Logitech wants to make the digital life easier for you, and that’s the intention behind the Harmony One, the latest release in the company’s line of remotes.
The Harmony One’s 2.2-inch colour touch screen uses capacitive technology, which responds to tiny electrical charges from the fingertips rather than pressure.
The touch screen provides control of any home entertainment device with an infrared receiver, including digital video recorders, high-definition TVs and other household appliances.
It can also display icons of specified TV stations for quick access to favourite stations.
It’s not hard to see why the product recently received the CES 2008 Design and Engineering Award: Best of Innovations in Home-Entertainment Accessories.
The Harmony One can automate nearly everything about firing up your various electronic components in the right order.
For example, you simply touch “Watch a DVD” on the touch screen and the Harmony One turns on the TV, the DVD player, and the A/V receiver.
Available at electronics retailers.
What is it? Logitech Harmony One universal TV remote control
Price: $279.99
Why you need it: You had to knock out a wall in your TV room to accommodate the growing number of remotes.
Why you don’t: You’d rather play musical remotes than put out $300 just to control your TV.
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