Chances are your PC has become a hub for all your media, be it downloaded music, edited photos and camcorder footage, and maybe even recorded TV shows and movies. Perhaps this isn’t much of a surprise, considering an inexpensive hard drive can store many thousands of songs, photos and videos, not to mention a high-speed Internet connection is a fast and convenient way to obtain new digital content. But let’s face it – why watch movies on your small computer monitor when you have a huge television in the next room? Why resort to your PC’s tiny speakers for music when you own a multichannel stereo system? And who wants to bring the family in a messy home office to view photos of the kids on the computer when you can do so more comfortably on a big couch and big TV? You get the idea. And so today, we have a handful of products that let you wirelessly stream your PC-based media to your family room so you can enjoy music, photos and videos through your home theatre. All that’s required is a wireless router - something you can pick up for as little as $25 these days - and one of the following products: Apple TV
As with other wireless media receivers that you connect to your television, Apple TV ($349, http://www.apple.ca/) is the newest kid on the block that lets couch potatoes access their PC-based media through the popular (and free) iTunes software. Windows or Mac users can now use the tiny white remote (included) to scroll through music, podcasts, audiobooks, photos, music videos and animated shorts on their television. Too bad Canadians still cannot download movies and TV shows via iTunes (as our American neighbours can). The silver Apple TV, which is about the size of a hardcover book, is easy to set up: simply connect the unit to the television via a high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) cable, which handles both video and audio, or component cables (the red, blue and green video-only cord). [Note: because there is no support for composite (RCA) cables, or S-Video, Apple TV will not work on older televisions. Analog and optical audio outputs are both offered, however.] Next, have Apple TV join your wireless network (with speeds up to 802.11n, the latest and fastest WiFi standard) or connect directly to your router or modem through a wired connection thanks to the Ethernet jack at the back of the unit. Apple TV offers a built-in 40-gigabyte hard drive to store up to 50 hours of video, 9,000 songs or 25,000 photos (or, realistically, a combination of all three). Storing the media on the drive will produce smoother video quality (with less “stutters”) than streaming it in real time from the PC. Keep in mind, however, at the time of writing this, iTunes is still not fully compatible with the Windows Vista operating system. D-Link MediaLounge
Similarly, the D-Link (http://www.dlink.ca/) MediaLounge Wireless Media Player (DSM-320; $199.99) distributes audio and video content from a PC to a TV over a wireless network. Consider it a set-top box that connects to a TV that enables you to wirelessly access music, pictures and videos stored on a computer hard drive. It can also be used to stream select Internet radio stations and services to the home theatre via 802.11g/b technology (up to 54 Mbps). While the on-screen interface isn’t as sleek or as user-friendly as Apple TV, it supports many more audio, video and photo formats than iTunes, which is good for those with lots of camcorder footage, downloaded movies or TV programs, or WMA (Windows Media Audio) music, the latter of which is unsupported by Apple’s software. In fact, the DSM-320 supports nearly 20 such “codecs,” including the popular DivX and XviD video files. But unlike the Apple TV, the MediaLounge does not have a built-in hard drive. At the back of this slim, silver digital media adapter are a handful of audio and video output options: composite (RCA), component, S-Video and optical audio - but no HDMI support for the highest quality audio/video in one cable. Similar to Apple TV, if your high-speed modem is in the same room as your TV, or if you don’t own a wireless router, you may choose to connect this product with the optional wired LAN jack. Travelling to Europe for the summer? No problem: A switch allows you to toggle between PAL and NTSC settings. HP MediaSmart TVs
If you’re in the market for a new high-definition television and want to be able to access all of your PC-based media on it, you can kill two birds with one stone by picking up the new MediaSmart TV (from$1,799.99 for a 37-inch model) from HP (http://www.hp.ca/). Built into these HDTVs are wireless receivers capable of streaming music, photos and videos from a nearby PC (wireless or wired options), and with a very clean and attractive interface to navigate through all the content. The top-of-the-line solution is the HP MediaSmart SL4278 ($2,699), a 47-inch television with 802.11n wireless networking, full 1080p support (1920 by 1080 pixels) and the ability to connect to online services for access to thousands of movies and millions of songs. This HP MediaSmart TV also includes three HDMI slots to connect additional components and includes an ATSC tuner for free over-the-air HD broadcasts. Other solutions
Xbox 360 (http://www.xbox.ca/) owners can pick up a Wireless Networking Adapter ($129.99), a small unit with an antenna that connects to the video game console, allowing you to wirelessly access media on your computer in another room. Problem is you need an Xbox 360 and a computer with Media Center software installed. Microsoft says this is the first example of a “Windows Media Extender,” but we’ll probably see this technology built into high-definition televisions, digital media set-top boxes and DVD players sometime this year. From Zio Canada (http://www.ziocanada.com/) comes the Eureka LX350HD ($349.99), a small HD-capable unit that also wirelessly communicates with your PC over a WiFi connection - and unlike the other solutions, no software is necessary to install on the computer beforehand. The TV interface uses a Windows Explorer-like folder and files interface. You can also insert an internal hard drive (sold separately) to bring movies, music and photos to any TV in the home, cottage or hotel room.
As with other wireless media receivers that you connect to your television, Apple TV ($349, http://www.apple.ca/) is the newest kid on the block that lets couch potatoes access their PC-based media through the popular (and free) iTunes software. Windows or Mac users can now use the tiny white remote (included) to scroll through music, podcasts, audiobooks, photos, music videos and animated shorts on their television. Too bad Canadians still cannot download movies and TV shows via iTunes (as our American neighbours can). The silver Apple TV, which is about the size of a hardcover book, is easy to set up: simply connect the unit to the television via a high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) cable, which handles both video and audio, or component cables (the red, blue and green video-only cord). [Note: because there is no support for composite (RCA) cables, or S-Video, Apple TV will not work on older televisions. Analog and optical audio outputs are both offered, however.] Next, have Apple TV join your wireless network (with speeds up to 802.11n, the latest and fastest WiFi standard) or connect directly to your router or modem through a wired connection thanks to the Ethernet jack at the back of the unit. Apple TV offers a built-in 40-gigabyte hard drive to store up to 50 hours of video, 9,000 songs or 25,000 photos (or, realistically, a combination of all three). Storing the media on the drive will produce smoother video quality (with less “stutters”) than streaming it in real time from the PC. Keep in mind, however, at the time of writing this, iTunes is still not fully compatible with the Windows Vista operating system. D-Link MediaLounge
Similarly, the D-Link (http://www.dlink.ca/) MediaLounge Wireless Media Player (DSM-320; $199.99) distributes audio and video content from a PC to a TV over a wireless network. Consider it a set-top box that connects to a TV that enables you to wirelessly access music, pictures and videos stored on a computer hard drive. It can also be used to stream select Internet radio stations and services to the home theatre via 802.11g/b technology (up to 54 Mbps). While the on-screen interface isn’t as sleek or as user-friendly as Apple TV, it supports many more audio, video and photo formats than iTunes, which is good for those with lots of camcorder footage, downloaded movies or TV programs, or WMA (Windows Media Audio) music, the latter of which is unsupported by Apple’s software. In fact, the DSM-320 supports nearly 20 such “codecs,” including the popular DivX and XviD video files. But unlike the Apple TV, the MediaLounge does not have a built-in hard drive. At the back of this slim, silver digital media adapter are a handful of audio and video output options: composite (RCA), component, S-Video and optical audio - but no HDMI support for the highest quality audio/video in one cable. Similar to Apple TV, if your high-speed modem is in the same room as your TV, or if you don’t own a wireless router, you may choose to connect this product with the optional wired LAN jack. Travelling to Europe for the summer? No problem: A switch allows you to toggle between PAL and NTSC settings. HP MediaSmart TVs
If you’re in the market for a new high-definition television and want to be able to access all of your PC-based media on it, you can kill two birds with one stone by picking up the new MediaSmart TV (from$1,799.99 for a 37-inch model) from HP (http://www.hp.ca/). Built into these HDTVs are wireless receivers capable of streaming music, photos and videos from a nearby PC (wireless or wired options), and with a very clean and attractive interface to navigate through all the content. The top-of-the-line solution is the HP MediaSmart SL4278 ($2,699), a 47-inch television with 802.11n wireless networking, full 1080p support (1920 by 1080 pixels) and the ability to connect to online services for access to thousands of movies and millions of songs. This HP MediaSmart TV also includes three HDMI slots to connect additional components and includes an ATSC tuner for free over-the-air HD broadcasts. Other solutions
Xbox 360 (http://www.xbox.ca/) owners can pick up a Wireless Networking Adapter ($129.99), a small unit with an antenna that connects to the video game console, allowing you to wirelessly access media on your computer in another room. Problem is you need an Xbox 360 and a computer with Media Center software installed. Microsoft says this is the first example of a “Windows Media Extender,” but we’ll probably see this technology built into high-definition televisions, digital media set-top boxes and DVD players sometime this year. From Zio Canada (http://www.ziocanada.com/) comes the Eureka LX350HD ($349.99), a small HD-capable unit that also wirelessly communicates with your PC over a WiFi connection - and unlike the other solutions, no software is necessary to install on the computer beforehand. The TV interface uses a Windows Explorer-like folder and files interface. You can also insert an internal hard drive (sold separately) to bring movies, music and photos to any TV in the home, cottage or hotel room.
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