Advanced remotes that include Wi-Fi and Bluetooth can control an even greater number of devices and help manage your smart home. Others feature hubs that will sit at the heart of your TV stand. And, with some of the most capable remotes, you'll be able to control entertainment devices and smart home gadgets alike. Here are our top picks for universal remotes that'll help you tame your home theater.
TL;DR – These are the Best Universal Remotes:
- Logitech Harmony Companion
- SofaBaton U1
- GE Universal Remote
- Logitech Harmony Elite
- Sevenhugs Smart Remote X
- Logitech Harmony Hub
- Caavo Control Center
1. Logitech Harmony Companion
Best Universal Remote
The Logitech Harmony Companion pulls this all off by including the IR blaster found on traditional remote controls as well as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity and a specialized hub. Unfortunately, with Smart TVs and streaming boxes doing a lot of the work themselves, universal remotes are losing ground, and even the king of universal remote controls has announced its departure from the market. If it's still a product you want, Logitech has indicated that it will continue to support the devices, though.
2. SofaBaton U1
Best Budget Universal Remote
The SofaBaton U1 can remember and control up to 15 devices at a time, letting you control your TV, Blu-ray player, AV receiver, soundbar, Apple TV, and plenty of other devices you might have in your entertainment center. It can control devices over either IR or Bluetooth, letting it support hundreds of thousands of different products. Switching between devices is extra easy as well, as the SofaBaton U1 has a scroll wheel for switching devices and an OLED display to show your list of devices. You don't have to worry about that OLED display burning through the batteries too quick either, as the remote has a motion-activated function to limit brightness when you're not using it.
3. GE Universal Remote
Ultra Cheap Universal Remote
This remote can control your TV, Blu-ray player, sound system, and even some streaming media players like Roku boxes. If you don't need any more features than that, then this remote can save you a whole bunch of money with its sub-$10 price tag.
4. Logitech Harmony Elite
Best High-End Universal Remote
This combo will let you control a wide variety of devices, and you can set it up to manage 15 devices at a time. Whether you want to control your TV, Blu-ray player, soundbar, AV receiver, or some other miscellaneous smart home gadget, you'll find the Harmony Elite is more than capable. With a few clicks, you can start a movie, turn out the lights, and lock the front door. You can even program automations to perform multiple actions with a single click. With the Harmony Hub, you also can use your phone as a remote in case you misplace the Harmony Elite controller (though you shouldn't run into that too often, as this kit includes a charging station to hold the controller and keep the battery topped up).
5. Sevenhugs Smart Remote X
Best Point and Click Universal Remote
Sevenhugs Smart Remote X
On
Best Buy
What's more, it shoots out IR, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth signals to work with a variety of home entertainment and smart home devices. It's greatest trick though is its point mode, which allows you to control any device simply by pointing at it rather than having to tap around the screen to pick another thing to control.
The Sevenhugs remote uses a combination on a motion sensor, accelerometer, gyroscopes, and three external sensors to map your living room and know which way you're pointing the remote. So you can go from changing the channel on your TV to lowering the temperature in the room and then changing the mood lighting in the room with ease.
6. Logitech Harmony Hub
Best Smarthome Integration Universal Remote
The hub connects to your wi-fi network and can control devices via Bluetooth for you PS4 users. (The PS4 can still not be turned on without pressing the button on its front or with the PS button on a controller.) Since it’s connected to your Wi-Fi network, it can also control smart home devices that are on your network as well, such as lighting, security, etc. This will allow you to set a macro to adjust your home's lighting to the desired level, which is pretty cool. Even better; it is compatible with Alexa for voice activation.
7. Caavo Control Center
Best Universal Remote Hub
Since this device has to pass through your HDMI signals, it's fair to worry about quality. But, the Caavo Control Centrer has you covered with HDMI 2.0 and support for 4K HDR content
You can connect TV tuners, game consoles, and smart streaming devices like a Roku or Apple TV. From there, you'll be able to use your voice to ask for channels, shows, and movies, then the Caavo Control Center will do the work of pulling up the content you want. You can even control it with an iOS device whether you're at home or on the other side of the world, and smart home assistants work with it as well.
What to look for in a Universal Remote
So what do you need to consider when choosing the best universal remote? In my experience, it really comes down to two things: what type of signal is used to control the products and how easy it is to set up and use daily.There’s also a limit to the number of remotes a universal remote can replace, but even the most affordable remote can control up to eight devices, which is more than sufficient for most people. Beware though, as some cheap options will only control two devices. These cheapo models can also be frustrating to use and don’t have enough features to make them worth the money—even if they're just $10.
As far as the signals used by remotes go, the overwhelming majority of components are controlled through IR (infrared) signals. For IR to work, you need to have a clear path to the IR sensor on the device – so don’t have closed cabinet doors on your component shelving, unless the doors are made of glass. IR signals will also bounce off of some surfaces though. For instance, my projector is mounted on the ceiling, but I can point the remote at the screen and it will bounce off the screen and turn on my projector if the angle is right.
PS4 users might notice an issue with IR remotes, in that the PS4 doesn’t have any IR sensors. The PS4 needs to be controlled by either Bluetooth or through HDMI CEC (Consumer Electronics Control). This severely limits the universal remote options for PS4 users. However, there are some solutions that I’ll mention in my picks. You might also see RF (radio frequency) remotes. They have the benefit of being able to send their signal through objects, which is helpful if you have components stacked up in a closet.
...it just comes down to how easy is it to set up and use. Logitech has this part down.
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One last note about my picks above for the best universal remotes - they're almost all from Logitech. The reason is simple; they're practically the only good ones left. The cheap universal remotes on Amazon ($15 and under) are terrible. And there are a few in the $30 range, but at that point, it's better to buy the low-end Logitech Harmony. The other companies that were making universal remotes over the past 10-20 years either stopped selling to consumers and only now sell to installers, or they realized they couldn't compete with Harmony and stopped.
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Kevin Lee is IGN's Hardware and Roundups Editor. Follow him on Twitter @baggingspam
Mark Knapp is a regular contributor to IGN and an irregular Tweeter on Twitter @Techn0Mark
Originally posted:
Apr 19, 2021 10:45 pm
