So, you've arrived here thinking "what the hell is the Remote Two? Who is Unfolded Circle?" and I know, this is a bit of a niche but hear me out.

What if Apple made a privacy focused, locally managed Logitech Harmony Elite universal remote?

So I was once a Logitech Harmony Elite owner and when I saw that Logitech were ending the manufacturing and potentially support of the Harmony line I was really disappointed. The Logitech is fully in the mercy of Logitech's cloud services meaning I had a potential brick on my hands in a few years so started looking at alternatives.

I backed the Remote Two a few years back on Kickstarter as I loved how:

1) It wasn't driven by the Cloud.
2) Linux!
3) The design.
4) Just how polished it looked in general.
5) Open to development.

Kickstarter here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/marton/remote-two

But my needs changed over the years and I just ended up simplifying everything to the point I use an Apple TV Remote to control the living room now (boring!) so have no need for this.

So, this remote arrived the other week. I unboxed it because I was really keen on seeing this and trust me when I say this is the best feeling remote you'll ever have. This is a remote developed by a very passionate team and they do care about their community (Marton, who is the CEO has even spoken to me to ask me what I wanted in the remote via their Discord). Like seriously if I had a need for this remote it would be in my living room running everything now. This is the very first Kickstarter I've backed that has vastly exceeded expectations.

The remote is locally managed with no cloud ties (apart from firmware checks) and links into Home Assistant and can control basically anything via that + IR. There are profiles you can add on it for family members, you can use it in multiple rooms etc. All managed by a web interface that runs on the remote itself (the remote connects to WiFi, the dock can connect via Ethernet or WiFi).

So, if you're looking for a Logitech Harmony replacement then this is it. Plain and simple. Just from playing around with it you won't regret it. Just note that unlike the Logitech Harmony this does have far more options on it so a little like Home Assistant you'll have to really play around with it.

More details on their site: https://www.unfoldedcircle.com/ 

And, if you want my one then it'll cost you $800 with free NZ wide shipping - basically I'm just seeking to make back what I paid on this. A little less than if Apple made this.

And, here is a photo of the remote: 

This will come in the original box with all accessories.