The perfect smart remote is an elusive beast indeed.
For many years a multi, or ‘all-in-one’ remote sufficed my needs. This was a simple IR (infra-red) remote that controlled several pieces of equipment, alleviating the need for a glut multiple remotes to control individual units strewn all over the coffee table.
Then came programmable remotes, such a the Philips Pronto range (of which I owned two, namely the RU940 and latterly the RU960/TSU7000). These ‘Universal’ sets took remote control to another level, able to be programmed using desktop software with macros enabling you to send a complex sequence of signals to do just about anything you could imagine with your system. Again, these Universal remotes served all my purposes for many years, and they did it robustly and reliably. However, they were only limited IR signals, i.e. line-of-sight control; You had to be able to ‘zap’ your equipment with no obstructions between.
Then came the advent of the ‘smart home’. HiFi, DVRs, CD players etc, become Wi-Fi enabled. The Pronto became somewhat obsolete and in October 2009, Philips announced the range would be discontinued. I persevered with the Pronto for another few years until the Logitech range of programmable remotes was released in 2015. Again, these remotes took control to another level, being able to connect through WiFi, as well as infra-red so that items such as lights and smart thermostats could be controlled (in theory at least). My replacement of choice – and the only (affordable) enthusiast’s option, TBH, was the Logitech Harmony Elite.
The Elite was easily programmed via Logitech’s ‘MyHarmony’ web interface, or on a mobile phone with the Harmony app. Both options were fairly easy, compared to the clunky and somewhat geeky software of the Pronto units. Once programmed, my Harmony Elite worked flawlessly day after day and served me very well for about eight years.
Fast-forward another few years – 2021 to be precise – and Logitech inexplicably decided to discontinue its line of remotes, leaving millions of customers in the lurch with few viable alternatives. To be honest, the Elite was becoming a little long in the tooth as, once again, it was getting left behind in as much as equipment was starting to be controlled by Bluetooth, which the Harmony units lacked. Again, I did much research on the web for a Remote to replace the trusty Elite, and the only like-for-like replacement pointed to the Sofabaton X1S.
The Sofabaton offers IR, WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity so that it could control to my units that utilised Bluetooth handsets, namely two Google Steaming boxes, two Roku sticks, Nvidia Shield and no less then four WiiM units. Good start!
Now, you’d think that a new startup would take all the best design features introduced from a global company like Logitech over the last 10 years of so and incorporate it into their own design, right? Wrong!
For a £189 piece of kit, the build quality of the Sofabaton is at best, average. The small LED panel at the top, unlike the Harmony’s, isn’t a touch screen. Instead it’s controlled by a clunky scroll wheel situated just beneath it. The wheel’s action is er, to put it nicely, erratic to say the least. In fact it’s shite, sometimes not scrolling at all and then jumping several lines at a time and back, making precise selection of options difficult. And whoever put that ‘back’ button right at the top of the remote out of thumb’s reach needs stuffing with a tin of dried egg.
The remote can only be programmed via a phone app , a process which is again quite tedious. A PC interface would’ve been preferable. I only programmed the Sofabaton with three different activities containing, at most, three different pieces of equipment: TV, AVR, and Android box and I have never been able to get it to consistently carry out its commands correctly. The Pronto or Harmony would carry out these simple tasks flawlessly.
Why a manufacturer can’t look at what has gone before and incorporate the best ideas and ergonomics into their own designs is beyond me. Anyway, for the moment I’m stuck with the Sofabaton as there’s no real alternative on the market.
Another new startup – Unfolded Circle – looks very promising, but the product is in beta on a kickstarter pre-order. The search continues…
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