Caavo Control Center Smart Remote and Home Theater Hub with Voice Control-Lifetime Plan

The Caavo Control Center (which I will just refer to as “Caavo”) fills a technology gap that has existed for many, many years. As new types of HDMI-connected devices enter the market, consumers become increasingly perplexed by not only hooking up all of these devices in the proper way but also finding all of the loads of digital content on these devices. Caavo tackles both of these issues in a way that is simple yet elegant. This is not just a run-of-the-mill HDMI hub, it’s much more. It abstracts away all of your devices and streaming services so that you can get back to just watching what you want, when you want it.Hope you enjoy my mini-review of the Caavo Control Center!SetupThe setup process has been truly fine-tuned to make it quite easy. The Caavo box has 4 HDMI ports for all of your devices to plug into, and one that goes out to either your TV or to an AVR (Audio/Video Receiver). Be sure you use good, quality HDMI cables to connect your 4K/UHD devices. Also, make sure you have enough cables before starting the setup process. You probably will need a new one for connecting the Caavo to your TV or AVR.A typical setup requires you to unplug all of your HDMI-connected devices from your TV or AVR and then re-plug them into the Caavo. What’s great is that you now can organize all of those cables a bit better. Once you plug in those device HDMIs, you just connect another HDMI (out) from the Caavo to either your TV or AVR. Plug in an Ethernet cable (it does have built-in WiFi if you don’t have an Ethernet connection). Hook up the IR Blasters (so that you can transmit Infrared signals in closed cabinets or for devices that don’t have network controls and only use IR). Then just plug in the Caavo to power and go to the TV for the easy setup on-screen.I found the on-screen setup to be extremely easy to use and navigate. The setup screens walk you through not only identifying what HDMI devices are connected (it does this automagically) but also tests and configures how you watch and listen to your video and audio. The Caavo remote will pretty much replace much of the standard functionality that all of your other remotes do (there may be some functions that will occasionally make you use the device’s remote, but that isn’t often). Also, if Caavo detects a cable or satellite provider device attached to it, it will walk you through that setup so that you can easily tune to channels or shows and watch or record them.Later, you link your Caavo with a Caavo account. This allows you to say what services you subscribe to so that when you search for shows or movies, Caavo can better find them and get your watching them. Also, you can set up playlists using the smartphone app. Find something you want to watch? Just add it to the list. It’s great to create lists for parents or friends and just share it.UsageThe setup shouldn’t take long to do honestly. And once you have everything plugged in and configured, the fun begins. The Caavo button on the remote will become your new best friend. You use it to launch the control center and access your devices and shows and streaming channels, as well as playlists. Depending on which device you use, the Caavo remote will automatically configure the proper buttons for use. And if you “long press” a button, it will provide some other functions.With some DVRs and streaming services, Caavo can deep link into watchlists (e.g., things you have recorded or shows on streaming service watch lists) making it really easy to find the shows that you want to watch or have recorded. In terms of finding content, you can use the built-in voice search capability which works quite well. When it finds what you want, you can click through to watch, rent, or buy the content. The nice thing is, Caavo search is not constrained to a single device or service, it searches across everything you have configured or connected.Pressing the Caavo button powers on your system, regardless of whether you are directly connected to a TV, AVR, or soundbar. It will automatically set the right input (based on your initial setup), and if you choose a particular service, it will activate and tune to the appropriate device. You can also set a preferred device for viewing certain streaming services. Like watching Netflix on your Apple TV because of the viewing experience? Just set it as the preferred device. And pressing the power button will shut off everything together.If you have a voice-enabled service like Amazon Alexa or Google Voice, you can even configure Caavo to work with that. There is a required service plan (just $19.99 per YEAR - not month) that enables voice search, guides, universal search, deep linking, and more. It is not required though (but I highly recommend getting it).This “mini” review only scrapes the surface of the features and functions of the Caavo. I’m happily using it in my man cave! Hope this review is useful!Pros:* No need for multiple remotes to control things (just use the Caavo remote)* No need for complex diagrams or instructions for your family members or guests on how to use your home entertainment setup* No need to remember which Input to use on your TV or AVR - there is only one and Caavo knows how to show the video* No need to remember which service is on which streaming device - Caavo remembers that tooCons:* For those people with LOTS of devices, you do have to choose four of them only to connect to the Caavo.* Be sure you have a high-speed HDMI cable (18 Gbps) if you are hooking to a 4K TV - I had to get one to connect to my 4K TV

A long time Harmony universal remote user, I saw a review for Caavo on CNET and was intrigued. Harmony works fine (when it works), but it's setup is complex, it is a pain to add/change components, is slow, and often needs 2 or 3 'tries' to get everything on. As someone who wants a unified remote that can handle my setup (which is always changing, now is Apple TV/Sonos focused, with some Xbox and Fire Stick use) and be easy for my wife/kids to use, I jumped on this and ordered one (as well as a few of their lighted cables).A week in, the Caavo --not without some flaws -- is WAY better than expected. It's like a Harmony that works, on steroids, and does a ton more. You expect with a universal remote that it can turn everything on/off with a click, and seamlessly control multiple components. Caavo does this really well --but now using it, it's really the 'point of entry' in what it is trying to do, which is unify and simplify your entertainment experience.First off, the 'magic trick' is that Caavo automatically recognizes what you plug into it. You don't have to tell it or plug your remote into a computer. You plug your devices into the HDMI ports and it automatically recognizes and configures them. It was amazing. Caavo found every device I threw at it (6 in total, Apple TV, LG TV, Firestick, Xbox 1, a Sony BD player, and a Sonos Beam--more impressive as the Sonos wasn't directly plugged into the Caavo).Harmony I remember having to figure out which year/model my TV, BD player, etc. was. Caavo recognized everything and I was set up (including my favorite TV apps) in about 10 minutes. Personally had no issues on setup, everything worked the first time. Another 5 minutes and I set it up with the Alexa function in my Sonos Beam (which is super cool in that I can turn it on/off via voice, search for shows, and even find my remote by asking Alexa). Plus the remote itself is really good - responsive, elegant, logical (I like the little stand that props it up on the bottom and helps you figure out which side is up -- take notes Apple!!!)So now in about 15 minutes I have a one-remote solution. Everything works seamlessly, and way better than Harmony. Have not had any hiccups in a week of use so far. Great for people that want to simplify their setup. But this really was only the entry point on what is proving to be one of my favorite devices I have (like Eero, see my review for that). The cool stuff I like:-Universal remote works with everything and buttons map logically. The coolest feature is it if you lightly touch some of the buttons their function (for that device) show up on the TV. Genius! I tap one button and on the TV it explains it's the 'Home' button on Apple, etc. No hunting in the dark.-EVERY remote now works with universal functionality. This isn't advertised much, but now my old remotes not only still work, BUT they act as 'universal' in that they trigger the whole system through the Caavo. So if I want to use my old Apple TV remote (which sorta sucks), when I press a button, EVERYTHING turns on -the TV, soundbar, etc, and goes to the Apple TV home screen. Same with my Xbox controller. And in fact, I can be on Apple TV, and grab the Xbox controller, and it switches to Xbox! Again, they need to tout this feature a lot more.-Voice search - just started using this, it's really cool. Basically, it's a universal search to go with the universal remote. There is a button you can press on the remote to ask it to search for programs or switch a device. In my experience, it works a ton better than the Siri on Apple TV, both in recognizing what I'm asking, but also locating shows. Twice now my kids have asked to watch something I didn't know, did voice search on the Caavo, and it found it. And it finds it not only on the device but the available services it's on, and it knows (from setup) which ones you use, so with a click now you go right to the show you want to watch. This works WAY better in my experience than the universal search within the Apple TV appThe stuff I don' like-The service plan. As others have noted, Caavo is $99 but charges $2/mo or $20/y for a 'service plan'. After using it, I get it as it's not just a universal remote, but really has a lot of sophisticated search and discovery features. But I'd rather pay for this upfront. I'd like a lifetime service option and would easily pay another $100 for that upfront -- this device is worth 2x what they are charging-Switching to apps on Apple TV can be a bit slow. I think this is because (from what I've read) the way Caavo actually controls Apple TV (it uses some type of AI that literally scrolls across the screen for you), and it's not any slower than me doing it manually, but I'd like this to be faster-the App needs work - I like the app they have (downloaded it yesterday), but other than making lists it has limited functionality. I'd like the app to be able to launch programs directly, and maybe have a remote control feature like the Apple TV has.Anyway, reading some of these reviews, I think those people need to spend time with the Caavo to appreciate it. This long time Harmony user is now a Caavo fan. The Harmony is being retired...