How is the IR beam of Homey or Which remote shall I choose?

honey

We need to simplify the remote chaos we have so we needed a universal remote. Amazon had a great Black Friday deal for two of the Logitech remotes.  As the stock and the timeframe was limited I had no time to proper decision I bought both remotes. They are still unopened but soon I should return the unwanted one. I believe I understand the most of pros and cons but not sure which one would work with/complement better Homey.  So I have this two:

  

	Harmony companion	Harmony touch
	Has WiFi connection	Decorative
	Strong IR	Minimal visual and actual footprint
	Wide IR characteristic	More `buttons` as it has touch screen interface
	Long battery life
	The API is limited (I haven`t seen it but been told)	Lower battery lifetime
	The IFTTT does not have trigger channel	Less impact/scratch resistant
	Not too decorative
	1-2 extra things taking space on the shelf

Personally I like the Harmony touch as in that case the (not too nice) IR blaster(s) would not take extra space on the shelf. However I am concerned about the IR characteristic of the Homey. Does it have good vertical signal (as most of the chips are on the horizontal plane)? Is it strong enough to send/receive indirect signals (bounced back from walls or ceiling)?
I have no closed cabinet everything is open but the TV would be well above Homey. Also media center has the IR window on the front so if Homey is on the same shelf would not have direct view on the media center`s IR receiver. If you got your Homey could you please help me? It would be greatly appreciated.

DaneeDeKruyff

I own a Touch since it was introduced, like it a lot!
You mention 'Lower battery lifetime' for it, but I think you shouldn't worry about that. We generally put it in its charger overnight, but sometimes we forget that but we never had it failing because the battery was drained.

Fire69

They showed a video of Homey's IR, a d it has avery long range. That means the signal is very strong so it should bounce of the walls very well. 
But I have a Harmony Smart Control and tbe range of the hub and blasters is incredible, so that would be a great choice also 

honey

Yes I know the video. But please consider that the ring has a tilt and the guys climbed up to a gallery so that could mean that Homey has a very tight beam. In this way Homey could have a direct view on the TV:

Of course it was a prototype and not the mass produced Homey, so that is why I would like to know how is the final product. This exercise is strictly not about questioning the quality of Homey or anything like that. Just want to know if has a narrow beam meaning no good vertical IR distribution or how strong the IR beams when it does not have straight view (if it is good than the first question is irrelevant). This would help to decide if I need the IR blaster or not.

Just because something can shoot 7m in straight line that does not mean it can do 3.5m+3.5m with bouncing as there is serious absorption factor.

 This is why the indirect IR strength is important for me. I don`t think that my situation is unique:

 

Athomey

+1 for an answer to the question for the transmission angle of the beam for Homey

Fire69

@honey, this is my home situation



My blaster is facing down onto the cupboard.  The beam is maybe (probably?) wider then Homey's but still...
It has to blast onto something to reflect back to the front of my tv.
If it goes to the opposite wall and back, that's 4m + 4m.  If it goes down, it has to reflect on the cupboard, then up to the ceiling and then back to the tv.
Either way, it's normally not a straight narrow line, so you should always have enough surfaces to bounce off I guess.

honey

@Fire69  Thank you. Actually I had a similar idea to mount the IR blaster aka Hub under the shelf facing down ward. Shelf is already overcrowded don`t wish to have it on the top. The pack comes with a miniblaster and could place it somewhere on the shelf/wall or behind Homey.
However this is what I wish to avoid as the functionality of the Harmony companion is limited. Just as @DaneeDeKruyff ; I would also like the Touch (which does not have hub or blaster). And here I need help: @Athomey How strong is the bounced IR beam of Homey? If for example standing before homey can it still turn on the TV?

Athomey

@honey I've not had opportunity to test IR yet. First I'm testing all kinds of combinations of sensors and flows. I want a proof-of-concept foor essential living conditions first, then the secondy like IR and such. Sorry. Due to lack of time and very busy business. Maybe later on, or maybe another first-batcher can test it for you!

honey

That`s all right, completely understand. I thought it is worth to raise the question. Thank you for getting back to me.

MarcoWijk

@honey Like Athomey i haven't had the chance to test the IR yet, but Homey emmits  6 beams (at least) over 360 degrees. Although your sketch is the most common, Homey will beam the signal over 5 other routes. I Figure that in theory at least 1 beam will be received by your mediaplayer (in this instance). Same goes for @Fire69 .

honey

Thanks Marko for your comment and for the picture you have posted. Looks really awesome!
Seems like you have the perfect arrangement, the sort of I was talking about as you home sits behind front plane of the TV and don`t have direct view on you DVD player/amplifier/not sure what is it. If you decide to pair your remote with homey, could you please let me know your findings? Thanks again.

MarcoWijk

honey said:

Thanks Marko for your comment and for the picture you have posted. Looks really awesome!
Seems like you have the perfect arrangement, the sort of I was talking about as you home sits behind front plane of the TV and don`t have direct view on you DVD player/amplifier/not sure what is it. If you decide to pair your remote with homey, could you please let me know your findings? Thanks again.

Paiting the IR-remote is still a bit tricky. I had to asign most of the keys for my remote. Still tinkering with it