Digital Entertainment

If you own a PC, chances are you have music/videos stored on it. You could watch these on TV or listen to music on your hi-fi system if only it weren8217;t so much effort to burn the CDs and play on a CD/DVD player. So, is there a better and faster way of doing this?
There8217;s the option of buying an iPod video or a Portal Media Player with a dock station, transfer the files to the PMP and play them on the hi-fi system/TV. But you still have to transfer the files.
So what8217;s the solution? Actually, there are several, but I shall only look at a Network Media Player, also known as Digital Entertainers. These are small devices that become a part of your home theatre network and can be connected using the wireless or wired network. There are a number of players, but the companies that are aggressively selling their products in India are Logitech Squeezebox and Netgear Digital Entertainer EVA8000.

Logitech Squeezebox: Its recent launch in India at Rs 19,995 with a two-year warranty has caught many people8217;s fancy. Sadly, it can only stream audio, that is WAV and MP3 files, and no video. The good bit is the way it looks with its brushed steel feel and the big display to show you the equaliser setting, song title etc. It also has a small remote control and a software that can be installed on your PC/laptop. The software interface lets you stream any music file from your PC directly to your hi-fi system. If you are an audiophile, you will appreciate the optical output behind the device which lets you connect it with the high-end amplifiers. It includes a 24 bit DAC digital to analog converter that is mostly used in medium-end CD players, so the performance is similar to that of a CD player.

Netgear Digital Entertainer EVA 8000: This comes across as a DVD player, but doesn8217;t have a front display. Instead, the front has a USB connector and a headphone output. The back is full of connectors, ranging from composite video output, audio output on optical, SCART interface to an HDMI port. Simple to install, it also has a software that can be installed in your PC/laptop. The good part is that the optical output is RAW and you can use the DAC in your high-end amplifier to make sure the music quality doesn8217;t suffer.
An advantage over the Squeezebox is its ability to play videos. And if you have a TV tuner in your PC, you can record programmes. The USB port is useful as MP3 files/videos on a pen drive can be directly inserted into the player.
Considering that you spend Rs 20,000-25,000 on the devices, it8217;s tempting to look at PMPs with a docking station. But with the digital entertainers you can store everything at one location and with features like support of nearly all formats and good integration with the home theatre system, they make for a good alternative.