Broadlink RM4 Pro Review: One Hub to Replace Every Remote

The remote control drawer problem

Most homes have one. A drawer - or a coffee table - with four, five, six remotes piled up. TV, air conditioner, ceiling fan, maybe a projector. You want to turn things off before bed without getting up, but first you have to find the right remote in the dark. If you have ever pulled out the DVD player remote thinking it was the AC, you know exactly what I mean.

I started looking into smart home hubs to fix this. What I found at the sub-$40 price point surprised me more than I expected.

What the Broadlink RM4 Pro actually does

The RM4 Pro is a WiFi-connected hub that learns your existing remotes and replaces them with a single app. It handles both infrared (IR) - which covers TVs, air conditioners, projectors, and most home electronics - and radio frequency (RF), which is what ceiling fans, motorized blinds, and some garage doors use.

That RF capability is the real differentiator here. Most cheap smart hubs only do infrared. The RM4 Pro handles both, which puts it in a different class entirely for anyone with a ceiling fan or motorized shades.

Setup works through the BroadLink app on iOS or Android. You train it by pointing your existing remote at the hub and pressing each button. IR learning is fast - usually under a minute per device. RF learning takes longer and requires more patience, but it does work.

Once set up, you can create schedules, automations, and voice commands through Google Assistant or Alexa. It also integrates with Home Assistant if you run a local smart home setup, which is a genuine plus for privacy-conscious users.

A reviewer from Brazil specifically noted it handled RF where other devices failed - that matches what I found in my research. One Canadian user mentioned ceiling fan automation worked well after the initial setup time investment.

The honest cons

The app is functional but not polished. It gets the job done, but the UI feels like it was designed in 2017 and never fully updated. Adding RF devices especially requires following a specific sequence that is not obvious the first time. Expect to spend 30 to 45 minutes on setup if you have several devices.

IR range can be inconsistent in large rooms or when the hub is placed behind furniture. You need a clear line of sight to the devices you are controlling. In a standard room that is fine; in an open-plan space it can be hit or miss.

One review I found (from a Latvian user) complained the RF channel count was limited and 2.4GHz support was lacking for their specific use case. Worth noting that RF compatibility varies by region and device - it is not universal for every RF remote out there.

What you normally get at this price

At $37, your standard options are: a basic universal remote with physical buttons (no WiFi, no automation, no voice control), or a barebones IR-only hub from a brand you have never heard of. Neither lets you build automations or talk to Google Assistant.

The SwitchBot Hub Mini competes in this space but stops at IR. The Logitech Harmony line handles more but costs three to four times more. The RM4 Pro sits in a genuinely useful middle ground - mature enough software, real RF support, active community, and a price that makes it low risk.

Buy it if... / Skip it if...

Buy it if you have a ceiling fan or any RF-controlled device alongside your standard IR devices. Buy it if you want voice control over your AC without buying a new AC unit. Buy it if you are building a Home Assistant setup and want a proven, well-supported IR/RF bridge.

Skip it if you expect a plug-and-play experience with zero configuration. Skip it if your only goal is controlling a single TV - a $10 universal remote does that fine. Skip it if you have devices that run on frequencies outside the standard 433MHz RF range.

My honest take: at $37 down from around $74, this is a solid buy for anyone who has even one RF device in their home. The app is imperfect but the hardware performs. I would not hesitate to pick it up at this price.

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