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The new 890 Pro will retail for $449, while the RF basestation – which is not included in that price and needed for RF control of IR equipment – will sell separately for $99. In addition, users can also opt to purchase a USB wireless PC transceiver for $99 which will allow a PC to communicate with the remote wirelessly, wherever it is located in your house (no more dragging the remote back to the PC for updates). A special version of the 890 Pro with TeleText buttons will be sold in Europe as the 895. Both models should be available this November.
Logitech is targeting the black-cased 890 Pro model towards custom installers, so there will be no internet sales of this model. Instead, consumers will be able to purchase the silver Harmony 890 (no “Pro” badge) for $399.
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Niles Audio |
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Niles is most famous for their IntelliControl remote control and back end system, the handheld part of which has matured so well that it’s practically gained antique status. Now, the company has completely revamped their offerings with the new IntelliControl ICS system, which incorporates a new handheld remote control: the iREMOTE.
Details on the new iREMOTE are sketchy at best. We know it’s RF, supports 2-way live feedback, and should cost $799 MSRP by itself (remember that it also requires other supporting hardware to function).
The rest has to be guesstimated by photographs of the remote itself: it’s long, has 8 customizable source buttons, features a medium-sized black-and-white backlit dot matrix LCD display with 3 custom labeled buttons below, and sports a total of 24 additional buttons including 5-way menu, volume, channel, plus a numeric keypad. It includes a rechargeable battery along with a docking station that displays the remote vertically while charging.
Calling this product the iREMOTE is somewhat surprising, however, seeing as Proton has been marketing a remote control in North America under that name for some years now.
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