SofaBaton X1S Universal Remote with Hub and App, All in One Smart Universal Remote Control with Customize Activities, Control Up to 60 IR/Bluetooth/WiFi Devices

So far I am really loving this remote. I've had it for almost a week now and have fully set it up and played around with the advanced features that it offers as well. Here is what I really love about it:1. It is straight forward to setup. It walks you through the setup and Sofabaton's library has a vast number of devices. The only device that it didn't have was my VCR but I was not surprised at all because very few people still use VCRs and it is a 20 year-old VCR from a minor brand. I was able to easily add it anyway by learning from the original remote (easy).2. It remembers the state of the devices. It knows whether a device is on or off and the input that is selected for devices like TVs and Audio/Video Receivers. This means that it knows what devices need to be turned off when you shut down which is especially hopeful for devices that only have a Power button (on/off) and not separate commands for Power On and Power Off. This works very well! The only time that it does not work, understandably because no remote can handle this, is when a device goes to sleep after a period of time (like a TV) it may not realize that it needs to turn it back on, but that is easily handled by pressing the Off button and then the activity (like "Watch Cable TV") to turn everything back on.3. The integration with Google devices is very cool! I am able to say "Hey Google Turn on Watch Cable TV" and it turns it on for me. I even created an activity to mute the TV by creating an additional activity with the Mute button in the Startup section. It works great when I'm in the kitchen and get a phone call and want to mute the TV without having to find the remote.4. You can create Macros to do multiple commands. For example, I have one for changing the channel to CNN, one for HBO, etc.5. The software on the iPhone works very well.6. The screen at the top of the remote allows you to add as many extra "buttons" or commands as you need which is great for less frequently used commands.7. It is VERY configurable.If I were to improve on this remote at all, there are a few minor things that I would add:1. I would like more buttons on the remote itself. At first I was really concerned about the lack of number buttons on the remote itself, but I soon realized that it is not a big deal at all. This really only impacts me when watching Cable TV. I mostly watch the same few channels and when I want to watch others, then I use the guide and scroll through the channels on the guide. I added Macros for some channels I watch the most (very easy to do) and that looks very well. I also added macros for approximately every 50 channels (i.e. 550, 600, 650, 700) so that I can jump around easily on the guide without needing to use the number buttons that you can still access by using the scroll wheel and the screen at the top.2. A Repair option would be helpful when using an Activity. I've seen some remotes that have this so taht you can turn on the TV if it didn't turn on the first time. That being said, I have had extremely few times when the remote did not turn something on properly and normally it was because I had turned it off manually and the remote thought it was already on. Not a big deal, but a minor nice to have.Overall, I highly recommend this remote.

My background: I have been in various IT fields for about 25 years, many of those either working in or supervising a Help Desk or Service Desk. Generally speaking, it is my department's job to help users with technology, explain it to them, and help them use it to accomplish what they need to accomplish. I help users understand tech.I am replacing a 16+ year old Logitech Harmony remote. It was a great remote, but over the years it has really showed its age. I have 4 kids, and the Harmony has been dropped enough that I started to wonder when, not if, it was gonna die.This Sofabaton X1S system is legit amazing for a couple reasons.1. I can program everything I need on my phone. No more rummaging around for the random mini-USB cables for my Harmony. No more holding on to a laptop because it's the only device that still has the version of the software that works with my remote. Smartphone app, and you can program the Sofabaton to control all your activities, even setting delays, changing startup order and everything. I can't believe how easy this was to set up. Even the software worked well...I didn't feel like I needed to trick the software into doing what I want. It seems well designed, and well thought out, and I wish that wasn't so rare.UPDATE: Over the last few days, I have noticed that my TV has 2 kinds of "off". There's the state right when you turn it off, and then there's the state after it's been off awhile. That last state takes a bit to turn on from before it's ready to accept input. I have had to program a delay in my activities, and fine tuning that to be correct has been SUPER easy to iterate through testing without needing a laptop and special cable. Love it!2. It's not THAT complicated to set things up. I pulled this setup out of the box, and had it set up and programmed with a TV, DVD player, HDMI switch, and a sound bar in under an hour. You need to understand how a remote like this things. You set up devices, and teach the remote how to use each of your devices. How does the soundbar turn on and off? How does the TV switch inputs? Then you set up your activities. This would be "Watch a Blu-Ray" or something like that. Then, when you hit the activity, you tell the remote how to turn on all your devices and set them to the correct input, and in what order. Here is where you can program delays (like my TV needs a 1-second delay after turning on before it will accept an input change command). Even this is not terribly difficult.3. The remote does not need line of sight to ANY of your devices to operate them. The hub controls everything, and the remote just tells the hub what to control and when. My kids had an amazing knack for knowing exactly when I was trying to turn on my TV, set it to the right input, and then turn on the DVD player, and they'd walk in front of me so that one of the devices wouldn't be set right, and it was annoying to unravel.4. If the hub can't control one of your devices because it's in a weird spot on your cabinet, there are 2-3 IR blasters included with the hub that you can route around your cabinet a bit, and stick to the underside of a shelf or whatever you need in order to control that device. For example, my HDMI switch is tucked into the corner of my cabinet, and I like where it is. So I had to route a small cable around the outside and stick the IR blaster to the backside of the fascia piece to my entertainment center. Now it's flawless when controlling my HDMI switch!5. Rechargeable remote, with USB-C connector. I love USB-C. I love that my laptop, my phone, my Nintendo Switch controller, my Steam controller, and now my remote uses USB-C to charge. I happen to have a USB-C cable on my side table for just this kind of thing, and I love that I didn't need to install some sort of proprietary dock to charge it.6. It's responsive! My old remote had a bit of a delay on certain devices and I could never make that any better. My son noticed right away how much more quickly I could scroll through menus on my TCL Roku TV. So much nicer when you have to navigate an on-screen keyboard to search for a video or something.Overall, the thing just seems well-designed and well-thought out. I can't yet comment on longevity or durability, but the SofaBaton folks really thought about what would make your experience with this device better/easier...and they succeeded. I thought for a long time about whether this X1S system was worth the money. It depends on your budget, but if you're in the market for a premium device, this guy fits the bill quite well.Rest assured, I will come back and update this review if I have any problems, but even my son was pleased with how well the SofaBaton X1S worked. I am so pleased with this purchase, and look forward to the family getting the opportunity to use it.