The best universal remote controls can help tidy up the clutter on your coffee table. Instead of using one remote to turn on the TV, another to turn on the sound bar, and another for the streaming device, a universal remote can let you control everything from a single device.
Better yet, the best universal remote controls allow you to automate a number of tasks, such as turning on all components and changing them to the correct settings, all with the push of a button. Some universal remotes also have smart home controls, as well as voice search, so you can search for shows, movies, and more across multiple streaming services.
Among the best universal remotes, the options are less than universal. In recent years, Logitech, which made the best universal remotes, discontinued its product line, so there are far fewer options than before, but you still have some options.
Read on to learn about the best universal remote controls.
The quick list
The best universal remote controls you can buy today
Better overall
The closest you can get to Harmony’s universal remotes is the SofaBaton X1. The remote control itself has an attractive and comfortable design with just the right number of buttons, which are also backlit. There’s a small scroll wheel just below the screen that allows you to switch between activities and devices; You then use the circular d-pad below to control your system. We liked the X1’s smooth, rounded edges and its buttons offered just the right amount of resistance and feedback.
The X1 has a built-in battery (there’s a USB-C port on the bottom of the remote), but it will last for weeks before needing to be recharged. I wish it came with a small charging base, which would make things a little easier.
Like the Harmony Elite, the SofaBaton X1 sends its commands to a hub, so you can hide everything behind a cabinet for a cleaner look. Because the hub is connected to Wi-Fi, you can also link it to Alexa and Google Assistant for hands-free operation.
You can program the X1 with a series of macros to automatically switch your entertainment center to the correct settings. However, it took us some time to program everything correctly; Getting it to change the inputs on our Vizio TV was the hardest part. but after that everything worked fine.
Best budget
The SofaBaton U2 looks an awful lot like the now-discontinued Logitech Harmony Elite, and it also does its best to serve as the best universal remote. However, when your remote costs just $49, a fraction of the Harmony, you have to take some cuts. For starters, the SofaBaton doesn’t feel as good as the Logitech and pressing the buttons isn’t as smooth.
There is also a bit of a learning curve to programming the SofaBaton U2; We’ve tried several universal remotes and it took us quite a while to figure it out. However, once we got things sorted, it worked out pretty well. Check it out if you’re looking for a universal remote control that costs less than $50.
The best voice control
The Amazon Fire TV Cube includes one of the best streaming devices and Alexa in one package, so you can use Amazon’s assistant not only to search for shows and programs you want to watch, but also to control your TV, cable box and HDMI switch. tickets and more.
Plus, as a streaming device, it offers excellent 4K HDR picture, fast response times, and more. The Fire TV interface could use some improvements, who doesn’t? – but it gives you access to almost every streaming service you could want. It also comes with a physical remote, but you can’t use it to replicate everything you can do with your voice.
Read our fullAmazon Fire TV Cube Review (2022).
The best alternative to Apple TV
Let’s face it: the worst thing about Apple TV is its remote control. It prizes form over function, which with its minimalist design is a real nuisance. The Function101 remote may not look as fancy as the Apple TV remote, but it’s a hell of a lot easier to use. And its larger size makes it more comfortable to hold.
However, the Function101 remote doesn’t have a Siri button, so you can’t use Apple’s voice assistant to search for shows or enter passwords. But at $39, it’s a worthwhile trade-off until Apple designs something better.
Read our full Function101 Button Remote Control for Apple TV Review
What is a universal remote control?
Generally speaking, a universal remote is a device that can control all of your home entertainment devices: your TV, sound bar, streaming device, cable box, A/V receiver, etc.
More importantly, the best universal remotes can be programmed to control multiple devices at once. Say you want to watch a show on your Roku device: just press a single button on your universal remote and it will turn on your Roku streaming device, turn on your TV, set it to the correct input, and turn on your sound bar or A/V receiver. in the correct configuration.
Universal remote controls have become less popular in recent years, as TV manufacturers have more widely adopted HDMI and CEC (Consumer Electronics Control). This technology allows the remote that comes with your TV to control more devices on its own, eliminating the need for a third-party universal remote. Still, universal remotes can be useful, especially if you have older components.
How to choose the best universal remote control
If you’ve made it this far, you already know that really good universal remotes aren’t that common. Logitech’s Harmony remotes were pretty much the only game available and they work fine, but now that they’ve been discontinued you’ll have to look elsewhere unless you can get them at a discount.
When it was available, the Harmony Elite, at the high end, was about $250 and let you control everything you wanted, and it has a small touchscreen on top that makes it easy to switch between watching, say, cable TV and your Fire TV Connects to your game console. Below it was the Harmony Companion, which originally sold for around $149. It doesn’t have a touchscreen, but we liked that it has a physical number pad on the bottom, which is better suited for those who like to enter channel numbers. Both the Elite and Companion have dedicated smart home controls, so you can easily dim the lights, and you can also use the Logitech app to control everything if you lose your remote.
If you’re looking for something a little different, Caavo Control Center is a nifty universal remote that acts in many ways as a super-smart HDMI switch. It also has its own universal voice search, so you can search across multiple devices and services for the show you want.
How we test the best universal remotes
To test the universal remotes, we set them up in our home entertainment system and connected them to several streaming devices (an Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV Cube, Roku Stick), as well as a Dish TV receiver and a sound bar.
We look at how easy it is to set things up (programming a universal remote is often the hardest part of any of these systems) and once everything is up and running, how quickly and accurately the remote can send commands to all of our devices.
We also take into account the feel of the controller in our hands, as well as the ease with which we can reach all the buttons.
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