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Of course the Harmony Hub is EOL and Sofa Baton can only start an activity via Hubitat.
I need/want to have deeper control...as in mute/pause/etc. I certainly prefer local control ,,,but will do API calls if I have to.
Does anything like this exist...and is in production/available/Not EOL?
Does your TV have an IR remote? You could just use a Broadlink or a Bond Device to learn the codes and then send the codes from Hubitat using the local integrations for Broadlink or Bond.
I have two Broadlink RM4 devices, an RM Pro, and also one the Tuya Zigbee IR blasters I use to automate IR devices in different rooms.
Thanks I probably should’ve made this clear but the main device I’m trying to control is an Apple TV. Or at least that’s my primary objective is to be able to pause it via Hubitat
Ah. This would be a good use of HA and the HADB app, since HA has an integration for Apple TV remote.
I run HA on a PI 4 just for niche devices like this, to bring them into Hubitat, otherwise I don't touch HA for anything else. It is truly a Hubitat Assistant for me to just expand what can be connected to Hubitat.
I think for my uses, a PI 4 is actually overkill for HA. A PI 3 would probably be plenty for connecting a few devices via local lan, cloud, or bluetooth to connect back to Hubitat.
I still have my Harmony Elite and it still works... for now. I'm also looking for a sexy remote that's also compatable with Hubitat.
Sigh. I try so hard to only have one smart hub...but Apple does their best to make it impossible.
Please consider referencing some of your previous threads on this topic.
It’s hard to know what exactly someone else’s goals are with respect to remote control and/or automations.
Each time a new thread is created, it leaves room for a whole new round of “so what exactly are you trying to do?” Or, “which devices are in which rooms?”
If I recall correctly (and I might not be), you use an IR blaster system to distribute commands throughout your home with a single Harmony hub?
That’s an example of an important detail that came to light in another thread.
Fair enough...ATV is an outlier since it uses both BT and IR. ..though I have no idea what I may buy next...and looking for a truly "universal remote."
So, is there another remote this can control basically what a Harmony remote can?
I'm trying to avoid some of the past topics...like how the heck does Harmony power on and off an ATV with no BT support. Nobody seems to know.
The Apple TV remote is great for controlling the Apple TV itself, and a TV that it’s directly connected to.
But the fact that it has zero capacity to control, say, a TV and receiver (or soundbar), or switch input sources to something else that’s connected to your TV/AVR, is frustrating AF.
Agree. I actually never use the SofaBaton I tried to fix this with...and just use the SofaBaton hub, Hubitat, and the actual ATV remote. It's really clean and simple in a dark theater.
I see. How do you adjust AVR volume or change sources on the fly without using the SofaBaton remote?
ETA: In theory, some of that would be possible with HDMI-CEC (e.g. change to the source input for a device that just turned on). But HDMI-CEC rarely works totally as advertised.
The remote learn function on the Apple Remote.
Me and CEC just don't seem to get along. I get it on my TV since it's a fiber optic HDMI. But CEC been around since 1.x days and my ATV and Denon (used to be Marantz) receiver doesn't play well with it. Of course, ATV won't do WOL either...which is ridiculous in 2025 IMHO.
I get that the Apple TV can learn another device’s IR commands for very simple control of on/off, volume, or channels, for one physically connected device at a time (AFAIK).
But how do you use the Apple TV remote to switch inputs if you have an AVR and other devices like a Blu-ray player or game console?
I don't need to do that. If I did I'd still probably use both...the ATV one when streaming. I have 3 ATV's in the house and the goal is to standardize controls as well.
And you were using a single (or multiple?) Harmony hub to control which devices?
Did you ever use a physical harmony remote?
Back when my Harmony remote was alive I used it. I never liked how small some of the buttons were, but it did everything I ever needed. I use to have a lot of devices connected. But since I'm not gaming right now...things like DVD players and Playstations are not connected anymore. Right now the home theater is in a 9.2.4 ATMOS setup. I used IR extenders from the Harmony hub to run devices in other rooms via Habitat.
BTW - Another place Apple sucks is that with the Harmony remote all ATV's use exactly the same signal ON/OFF signal...so I had to power cycle extenders in rooms and keep up just the one I wanted to respond.
My use case is probably a bit different than most. I ended up using the Echo and HE. For example:
Alexa, switch to radio [changes AVR input radio]
Alexa, switch to movie [changes AVR input to Apple TV]
Alexa, mute [toggles mute]
Alexa, increase [increases AVR volume by a fixed amount]
It seemed silly at first but I ended up using them more than expected. The mute turned out to be the most used. When I receive a work call I can just tell Alexa to mute and I don't even have to take my hands off the keyboard.
On the HE side I handle things like turning on the equipment if it isn't already on and equalizing the volume. Around 4am it resets the volume so that I don't blow out my eardrums the next day when I turn on the radio. 
So in my case I only need and use the Apple TV remote to control the Apple TV. I don't use any other remotes.
At some point I'll migrate from the Echos to AirPods but it hasn't been a priority. It is one of the last pieces I need to move off of an old Hubitat C4.
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