Even if programming it wasn't garbage (which it was, but let pretend) none of them were long lived or well thought out till harmony. They never got new firmware, so you never got new devices. Before harmony it was basically selecting from a bunch of pre-programed options.

It could be clunky, but it was a lot more usable than the other way to program a remote. The Harmony programming was so much easier to work with and set-up. But the programming of them was always a pain in the ass since it was always a bunch of button presses that you could never quite know if it wasn't working because you messed up or the code you entered didn't work. Granted there are other multifunction remotes out there and I've used a few before getting into the Harmony line. This was nice since at the time a lot of the universal remotes, including some of the Harmony ones, were going to mainly touch screen and/or dropping a lot of the buttons (in particular the number pad) to make their remotes all svelte and high-tech looking. I really like this remote since it still has all the physical buttons so was easy to control without having to look at it. Can't recall how long I've had it now, probably about 10 years I'd guess, but know I've had to replace the battery once since the original stopped holding a charge. Might look at picking up and programming a backup Harmony One since that's my main remote and would hate to go back to having to use multiple remotes. Would be nice if they'd release to code so someone else could provide it or maybe convert it to a standalone product that doesn't need their servers to work. While I haven't used the software in quite a bit, due to not replacing any equipment, it would be annoying if they just shut it down at some point. I might go buy whatever their current low-end remote is just because my harmony 200 is 10 years old and some of the buttons work only so-so, but like I said, who knows if they'll actually support it. Universal remotes have existed forever, and I really didn't have much love for the harmony configuration UI, but nobody came close to them for the ease of configuration and support. I feel like they were the only big league player in this game. Hell, one of the reasons I like the xbox is I can use a single universal remote without having to link an app or smart device to it all the time. Personally I like the hard road of a stereo receiver over bluetooth soundbars, want a streaming or gaming device over a smart TV, and want sound controlled exclusively on my stereo not TV, so I'm constantly using my universal remote. They plan on supporting existing product, but who knows how long that promise will last.

Harmony remote programming software