I dunno, there are what, 19, 20 million Xbox 360s out there at this point?
As soon as you connect your 360 to your network, if you have Vista, next time you visit your PC you'll see a bubble telling you that you have a media center extender telling you how to set it up with a relatively short (for Microsoft) device authentication code.
The draw back to your solution, you need a Xbox 360 and Vista, I don't have either and don't plan to ever have Vista (linux user) but I may eventually pick up a Xbox 360. By requiring those two, you are really limiting the consumer base.
I am not up to date with the Xbox 360 or PS3 as a media extender, but their needs to be a better solution rather than proprietary software limited to a specific platform or even OS. I am going to take a wild guess that there are some third party solutions to for both the Xbox 360 and PS3, which that would help.
Personally for me, I think the best solution is a system that can run isolated by itself or on a network to share resources but not require any software. This is something that most media extenders currently cannot do. The Roku Photobridge is the first to really create a good media extender that met this critaria, sadly, there were issues with it and Roku totally dropped the ball supporting and all together gave up on it. There however is a replacement, the Popcorn Hour A-100/A-110 seems to start mostly where the Roku Photobridge left off. I am looking forward to purchase one coming up shortly and I don't doubt it will replace me dead Roku Photobridge as an excellent media extender.
If all you're talking about is a client for media streaming, both 360 and PS3 function perfectly well with third party clients available for all platforms. The article specifically was discussing Windows Media Center Extenders though, and if you're talking about the likelihood of someone having Vista and a 360 in their house vs the likelihood that they're running Linux on their PC and have a popcorn extender, then I have to think that the odds are way over 10:1 in favor of Vista and a 360, probably closer to 100 or 1000:1.
I am not talking about the likely hood of having one thing or another, I am talking about the requirements that are needed for most of todays media extenders. It is not about whether you have a Xbox 360 or PS3 or run Windows, OSX or even linux, it is about ease of use.
My biggest gripe with most of the current media extenders is that they are not isolated systems, they force you to run some kind of server software. I think isolated systems like the Popcorn Hour is a much better solution due to its low cost of ownership and maintenance. You are not required to have a "server" in order to stream your media. You can either attach storage directly to it or use a network shared resource, which includes a NAS or like systems that also have a low cost of ownership and maintenance.
I am a computer, gadget, electronics and technology junkie and have made a career out of it. If I don't like most of todays media extender options because I am not willing to accept their requirements that demand a high cost of ownership and maintenance, I find it hard to believe that the average Joe is going to also or even be able to. Media extenders and HTPC have come a long way, but they still have a ways to go.
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I dunno, there are what, 19, 20 million Xbox 360s out there at this point?
As soon as you connect your 360 to your network, if you have Vista, next time you visit your PC you'll see a bubble telling you that you have a media center extender telling you how to set it up with a relatively short (for Microsoft) device authentication code.
Not exactly rare or difficult.
The draw back to your solution, you need a Xbox 360 and Vista, I don't have either and don't plan to ever have Vista (linux user) but I may eventually pick up a Xbox 360. By requiring those two, you are really limiting the consumer base.
I am not up to date with the Xbox 360 or PS3 as a media extender, but their needs to be a better solution rather than proprietary software limited to a specific platform or even OS. I am going to take a wild guess that there are some third party solutions to for both the Xbox 360 and PS3, which that would help.
Personally for me, I think the best solution is a system that can run isolated by itself or on a network to share resources but not require any software. This is something that most media extenders currently cannot do. The Roku Photobridge is the first to really create a good media extender that met this critaria, sadly, there were issues with it and Roku totally dropped the ball supporting and all together gave up on it. There however is a replacement, the Popcorn Hour A-100/A-110 seems to start mostly where the Roku Photobridge left off. I am looking forward to purchase one coming up shortly and I don't doubt it will replace me dead Roku Photobridge as an excellent media extender.
If all you're talking about is a client for media streaming, both 360 and PS3 function perfectly well with third party clients available for all platforms. The article specifically was discussing Windows Media Center Extenders though, and if you're talking about the likelihood of someone having Vista and a 360 in their house vs the likelihood that they're running Linux on their PC and have a popcorn extender, then I have to think that the odds are way over 10:1 in favor of Vista and a 360, probably closer to 100 or 1000:1.
I am not talking about the likely hood of having one thing or another, I am talking about the requirements that are needed for most of todays media extenders. It is not about whether you have a Xbox 360 or PS3 or run Windows, OSX or even linux, it is about ease of use.
My biggest gripe with most of the current media extenders is that they are not isolated systems, they force you to run some kind of server software. I think isolated systems like the Popcorn Hour is a much better solution due to its low cost of ownership and maintenance. You are not required to have a "server" in order to stream your media. You can either attach storage directly to it or use a network shared resource, which includes a NAS or like systems that also have a low cost of ownership and maintenance.
I am a computer, gadget, electronics and technology junkie and have made a career out of it. If I don't like most of todays media extender options because I am not willing to accept their requirements that demand a high cost of ownership and maintenance, I find it hard to believe that the average Joe is going to also or even be able to. Media extenders and HTPC have come a long way, but they still have a ways to go.