Is Harmony Still An Option For 2023?

I see a lot of articles talking about The Best X Harmony Replacements. But what about Is Harmony still an option for 2023? The concern isn’t so much about the hardware. You can still find lightly used Harmony remotes around. My concern was the setup. Harmony has always required some sort of app or PC interface for setup of their more complicated and powerful options. If you got a new (to you) Harmony remote, would you even be able to download the software or app and get it working? Well, I picked up a used Elite and Hub and set it up last weekend. Maybe Harmony is still an option! Let’s discuss. 

The Elephant In The Room 

So, let’s get this out there. Harmony is dead. We have written several articles on this. Harmony discontinued their line of remotes but promised to continue support for years to come. Harmony has a proven track record for this, supporting the Slingbox (introduced in 2005, and discontinued in 2014) well after its demise (2022). But that said, Harmony could pull the plug tomorrow with no warning. 

Setting Up The Harmony 

With the Harmony, there are two options for setup. The first is via the PC, and the second is the Harmony App, still available via Apple App Store or Google. Here is the cool thing. Harmony updated the Apple app six months ago despite discontinuing the remote in 2021! 

Since the app is the easiest, I tried that first. The good news is the app found my Hub right away. That is a good sign, for sure. So, I logged in and tried to add the hub. And that’s where I met my first roadblock. It would see my new Hub and add it to Wi-Fi, but it wouldn’t allow me to edit. I tried a lot of options, but no luck. But what if I used the desktop software? 

Well, guess what? Logitech still allows you to download the desktop software! I downloaded the software, logged in, and it asked me to connect my new remote. From there, I added my vintage gear, added routines, and synced my remote via USB. 

Here is the cool thing. Once the remote synced via the desktop software, the iOS app found it and allowed me to make changes to the app. I don’t know if this is a quirk for iOS or if you need to do the initial setup with the desktop software. Either way, I was up and running with my remote in less than 30 minutes. 

Our Take 

I think I have answered the question: Is Harmony still an option for 2023? The big question was about the software. Can you still access it and download it to a new device? The answer is yes! The setup was just as easy as I remember. Aside from needing to use the PC software, nothing was especially complicated. So, I think that if you can get a used remote for a decent price, it will be worth getting and using until the battery dies.