[greigym]

Hi guys, Ive recently been enlightened as to the virtues of using Vuze etc and a colleague at work informed me that he uses Vuze and plays back HD footage from his PC wirelessly onto his TV via an Xbox360.
I use my notebook connected wirelessly to a router supplied by Sky and as I dont play games etc, I wondered if there was an alternative/ cheaper option to getting an Xbox.

Its a new area for me but would love to play the stuff I currently download/view on my notebook, on my HDTV.

Many thanks

[next010]

Those HD videos must be fairly small probably 720p content to work over wireless typically HD video does not fair well over wireless connections.

As for an Xbox I wouldn't bother getting one far too limited in media format support.

If you want a reasonably cheap media player with a decent GUI get a "WDTV Live" it plays most common formats. It does not come with built in wireless you must buy a USB adapter separately for it - either the official one or third party brand which uses the same chip theres a list on the net somewhere.

Alternatively another cheap option is the "Asus O!Play Air HDP-R3" its basically the same unit as the "Asus O!Play HDP-R1" only with built in wireless support. However its GUI is no where near as good as WDTV Live but it does have slightly better media support.

Wired ethernet connection is really the best way to go if you can afford it check out homeplugs which are ethernet over power lines its better than wireless.

[greigym]

Many thanks for the info.

So wired is the way forward then as it copes better with HD. Im guessing that the only downside is that I would need to plug my notebook into the media centre each time I want to watch something I have downloaded....unless the unit has its own memory of course.

Which would you advise is best as a wired unit then?

Many thanks

[next010]

WDTV Live I'd go with as player.

There is another option a USB hard drive, the WDTV Live can share out a USB drive over your network connection you could copy files to it from your PC over the wireless however the copy speed of wireless is painfully slow so your going to be waiting...

Best option to stream from PC is plug the laptop into your router or buy a low end NAS - really basic unit nothing more than a hard drive with a network adapter and use that to store all your media and play from network.

[greigym]

Im not really sure.I thought I would get the Asus O!Play HDP-R1 as it seemed similar to the WD Live but cheaper! I thought I'd just continue to download to my notebook then attach the notebook up to the Asus which in turn would be connected to the TV. I dont necessarily need a storage device as I can keep what I really must on the notebook but....

I just had a look at the low end NAS option and perhaps that would be a better option long term even though I dont understand it fully!!!!

Perhaps I should just stick to the Asus!!!

[next010]

Your notebook streaming over the wireless is the bottleneck but maybe it will work for you but just dont go expecting to play 1080p content over wireless.

What you could do is buy a cheap network hub/switch for 20 bucks and place it in an easily accessible location so you can plug your laptop into it at any time but also have the media player plugged into it that way you dont have to worry about speed issues. The media player doesn't have to be plugged into your Internet router with its built in hub if its stuck in a particular location.

A NAS is basically a storage device that sits on your network it appears as a computer in your network browser and you can copy files to it, both devices can read these folder shares and play media from them.

A basic NAS like the one I linked doesn't have much in the way of features or upgrade-ability whereas there are high end ones that have lots of features and options.

[greigym]

Many thanks for this. Im def movng away from the idea of wireless now as I have the space next to the tele. In fact a lot of these units look pretty good so will add to the look! Im just debating on which way to go as I now like the idea of having a storage device for movies etc!

Jeez I always end up spending more than intended!!!!!

[greigym]

Would a good compromise be buying the Asus or WDTV, using it plugged directly into the notebook for the time being. After time then buy a NAS to suit my requirements for storage?

[sibeer]

Why don't you use the Media Center as your NAS? If you connect a cheap USB hard disk to the media center and then it is connected to the same network as your Laptop it can be used as the storage for both. That way you don't need the laptop on for Media Playback.

Also Wireless N is fine for HD Video so long as you get a good connection (lead walls need not apply).

[sibeer]

Originally Posted by greigym

I use my notebook connected wirelessly to a router supplied by Sky and as I dont play games etc, I wondered if there was an alternative/ cheaper option to getting an Xbox.

All you need do is run a wire from the back of your Media Streamer to the Sky Router. You can then set the streamer to share it's files and hey presto you have a basic NAS. You can even buy USB caddies if you have a spare hard drive lying around. Once setup you can add it as a drive on your notebook then use it as your storage from there.

[greigym]

many thanks all...Ive bought the WDTV live so hope to connect it up this weekend as a start point! Im sure it will only be a matter of time before im adding other bits!

Cheers