|
The Harmony’s main hard buttons are small and firm, finished in an etched metallic coating. Beginning at the top is a pair of skinny [Channel] and [Volume] toggles, with small round keys for [Previous Channel] and [Mute] below. Directly beneath these is a circular 5-way cursor control, made up of a single outer ring for the four directions with a separate [OK] button in the center. Two small round buttons marked with [Left] and [Right] arrows finish off the right side. “Left” and “Right” aren’t standard A/V functions, but the Harmony uses these keys for anything with a “+” and “–” concept, such as Chapter Skip, Page Up/Down, Thumbs Up/Down and so forth.
Almost hidden in the black bezel surrounding the screen are two other hard buttons. In the top left corner is a tiny [Power] button – no concerns over accidental pressing of this one – along with a wide [Activities] key centered below the screen. Picture this as the equivalent of “Home” or “Main Menu”.
On display for all to see.
Of course a touchscreen remote control isn’t anything without the touchscreen, and in this case the Harmony 1000 uses a 3.5” (8.9cm) TFT model with a native resolution of 320 by 240 pixels and support for 65,000 colors. Given the size of the remote and the expansive bezel around the display a slightly larger screen could have been used, however the one chosen has great brightness and an excellent range of viewable angles.
All hard buttons are backlit by blue LEDs, with the light illuminating brightly around the outer edge of the keys and somewhat dimmer through the laser-etched labels. When any key is pressed only the hard button backlighting will illuminate, but if the remote is tilted upwards both the screen and backlight will activate automatically thanks to a ball bearing pickup sensor (that soft rattling sound is normal for all ROHS-compliant remotes with a motion pickup sensor). The blue LED backlighting is almost overwhelmed by the amazing brightness of the screen, but it’s still enough to see which key is which in a dark room.
Bundled with the Harmony 1000 is a stylish docking cradle used to recharge the remote’s user-replaceable lithium ion battery. The minimalistic station is complementarily finished in black piano gloss and holds the remote at an approximate 40 degree angle. It measures 3.88” wide, 3.75” deep and 2.53” high (9.9cm by 9.6cm by 6.4cm). Thanks to four rubber feet and a weight that’s identical to the remote control (6.8 ounces or 192 grams) it remains firmly planted on your tabletop and won’t wander around when touched. The docking station is a true “set it and forget it” design, with the remote simply dropping into place with no latching mechanism to bother with. A small (and not excessively bright) blue LED on the cradle indicates when the Harmony is seated and receiving power, but does not shut off when it has finished charging.
The look and feel of “stylish”.
From an ergonomic standpoint the Harmony 1000’s hard buttons do not hold up nearly as well as the rest of the design. Save for the 5-way menu cursor, they feel undersized for everyday use with the all-important [Volume] and [Channel] toggles positioned a little too high for comfort. The metallic silver buttons on the right barely protrude a half millimeter above the case surface (0.02 inches) – which is also the maximum extent of their travel when pushed, as they end up flush against the front surface. In their favor these keys do have some tactile response, with a medium level “click” that’s as much audible as it is a physical sensation.
| 
Enlarge this photo.
Enlarge this photo.