Looking for a reliable physical button remote

I started my home automation journey with the Harmony Remote several years ago. After falling in love with the simple act of hitting one button, and all devices powering on, I decided to upgrade my system when I bought my first home.

I started out with a Harmony Home Control hub, and Lutron SmartBridge Pro, as they were listed as being compatible with each other. Independently, both devices performed beautifully, but their integration together was slow and frustrating. Hitting a button on the Harmony remote to dim the lights took several seconds to execute. Hardly ideal. I've since discovered Indigo, and have successfully been able to pair my SmartBridge with it to great success. Immediate response times, and great flexibility. I'm an immediate convert. My issues arose when I attempted to pair the Harmony hub with Indigo, as there is no supported API for doing so. There seems to be a Vera plugin available, but I've been unable to get my hands on it to see how they implemented control, and am doubtful of the level of control possible even if I were to have a breakthrough with it.

Today, I returned the Harmony hub, and am looking for alternative solutions. I know that Indigo can drive different devices through both IR and RS232, so that is my eventual plan. MY GOAL NOW is to drive Indigo through a hard button remote, as opposed to only an App/triggers. The Harmony Remote was great, in that it didn't require line of sight, and felt great in the hand. Ideally whatever solution is available would be able to meet the same requirement.

I've spent the day looking at different potential remotes. I really like the Crestron HR-100 and HR-150. Both look great, but I can't get a final determination if their control point can talk to a Mac, or if it only stays within their system. http://www.crestron.com/products/model/HR-150

Savant has a new remote coming out, that looks functionally similar to the Harmony Hub. What's interesting about it, is that in SOME of the promotional material, two way IP control is mentioned. If a public API is available, this seems like a great solution, as the hardware looks great, and the functionality could be built up through Indigo. It was supposed to release in December though, and there hasn't been an official update on timing since October last year.

I've looked at a number of other options too, but haven't found anything conclusive as to whether or not they can send their commands directly to a Mac. So, my question is this: What solutions are you using to control music, media, and/or lights? Are you only using an app? Do you have a physical button remote that has linked with Indigo? How do you in-law proof your system, so that it is immediately intuitive for any guests?

Thanks for your time!

When I moved to Indigo I carried a lot of LightWaverf switches, Socket Lockers, remotes etc

My eternal goal is making Home Automation accessible to my better half.

Using Apps on phones/tablets is problematic for her.

So I am using the remote controls from Lightwaverf.

I have been amazed at how well they work in the house rarely is there a problem.

I can link the 10 buttons to toggle lights which are a mix of Hue and Lightwaverf,, pause/play iTunes for whole house audio,

I have so far set up 5 remotes, one controlling everything in the Lounge and two for the Master bedroom and two for the Guest Bedrooms.

So far no problems despite that they are fire and forget remotes and not 100% reliable, but certainly 99.9% for our usage

We still are using the old 16 button X10 palmpad remotes. Same deal; since they are one way only, you've got to make sure there's a receiver close enough to "hear" them and that the X10 signal can get back to the server, but some of the ones out at the barn have been knocking around for 30 years with only an occasional battery change, and they beat even the 8 scene insteons (that are also one way with the additional glitch of not knowing whether the remote thinks the current state is on or off)...