Ask Engadget HD: What's the best way to stream DivX from NAS to my HDTV?
By Richard Lawler 
posted December 9th 2009 12:01PM
posted December 9th 2009 12:01PM
"I have been watching for a review of a product that will solve my movie streaming needs, even waiting for Sonos to do a video product. I have a lot of DivX movie files on an NAS, and would like to be able to view them on my TV (without needing my PC to be on as a media server), I would prefer a wireless solution, but could do a cat5 cable if needed. Any ideas on the best way to do this?"
Now, we might suggest a box that pulls double duty as NAS and media player, but he's probably looking for a solution that doesn't require importing from Japan. Let us know how you get it done.
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WDTV Live
http://www.wdtvlive.com/
I first used the ps3, then the 360, then I got frustrated with having to convert hd mkv files to get compatibility on either system and iffy at best surround sound (the 360 only supports .wmv's with wmvpro audio). I ended up building an ion based htpc that is tiny, uses very little power, uses a mediabrowser/metabrowser frontend through wmc, and works flawlessly with surround sound over hdmi - both dts and dolby passed through to my receiver for decoding. I couldn't be happier now. The WDTV Live recommendation is not a bad route either, but I do enjoy browsing the internet on the tv from the couch.
i'd say use either a ion HTPC with the stock Vista WMC, or if you dont mind the configuration, XBMC + Plex
Best is relative. For the simplest/easiest (and likely cheapest) method to accomplish this, you should probably look at something like the WDTV Live or similar.
If you want flexibility, wide format support and a nice interface, then an HTPC is your best bet. I know people who use the Acer Aspire Revo R1600 ($200) for their HTPC and it seems to work quite well even for HD. Myself, I'd opt for the dual-core Revo R3610 model ($329), at least. The built-in Windows Media Center in Windows Vista/7 works well enough, particularly when paired with MyMovies or Media Browser.
For the hardware I'd go for an ASRock NetTop ION 330HT or NetTop IONHT-BD. I'd then install XBMCLive on that hardware.
As for storage I'd go for Synology DS209+II. It's a mid price NAS, with an excellent read/write performance.
If money is tight, I'd get a Popcorn Hour or a WDTV device.
If money isn't so tight, and you want a superior user experience, I love WMC + mediabrowser.
I have a Systemax Impact HTPC running Win7 Ultimate and Boxee and it absolutely rules! Much better than WMC plus the additional content that's accessible through Boxee. Media streams from a Buffalo 2TB Terastation NAS
Excellent header picture Richard.
Popcornhour + YAMJ = an awesome video jukebox.
I would suggest building a HTPC to solve all ur problems. if u dont want to pay for a window home server try a free open source (FreeNAS).
A FreeNAS server isn’t just a place to store your media—it’s also a fully featured media streaming machine in its own right. The built-in Firefly media streamer creates a library in iTunes that anyone on the network can access. And with FUPPES, the open-source UPnP server, you can transcode and stream movies to your networked computers, HTPC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, or any other UPnP or DLNA-enabled media player. It also streams photos and music
@liammad2002
The first OS I loaded up on my file server was freeNAS. Got tired of it quickly. First of all, the samba service it not optimized, it's noticeably slower than linux-based samba. Second, the interface is not exactly intuitive. Third, it's default file format is UFS. UFS has no support under windows, but has read only support under linux. The lack of file support for this format worried me because I stored both media and backup files on my server. Fourth, it's just much more limited than a linux distro in general and doesn't have any features that linux cannot at least match.
I'd recommend ubuntu server for file server and xbmc + ion for media streamer (running on ubuntu desktop, there's no support for graphics acceleration on the ion in the windows version of xbmc). Loading webmin on ubuntu server can help ease the transition if you're not a linux guru.
I would recommend (and I use) the Popcorn Hour (or any other network media tank product) for this type of application. Easy to use and plays just about any video format and container. I have three PCHs that stream from a 10tb server. I used to use the server straight as a home theater pc but the PCH is simpler.
Go with a Popcorn Hour or similar. Network Media Tanks (NMTs) are great. They play anything & you get web based content. Throw Playon on your PC and you get Hulu too!
NMTs give you a LOT of bang for the buck. I got mine for around $160. I'm using a Dragontech ioBox HD100 & YAMJ for my movie jukebox.
I'll be adding a Thecus N4100Pro with 4 1.5TB Western Digital Greens after the holidays.
Just keep in mind that if you want to do BD .iso files with menus, your going to have to spend a little more and get the Popcorn Hour C200. As far as I know, this is the only box that will play that format with menus at this time.
An NMT will give you a lot more than the WDTV while not spending as much on a HTPC.
Good luck!
^^^ Excellent advice. I did not draw the distinction between the PCH a-110 and the c-100, but you will need the c-100 to play blueray ISOs. They both pass lossless audio also.
@pbusardo
I think that this is the best response I have seen also. I have been thinking about adding a device in my master bedroom, but have not quite figured out what to do yet. I am thinking about a PS3 also, as it offers a lot of bang-for-the-buck @ $300.
As for Boxee on an ion 330 - does it really even work? I have an overclocked quad core that starts squealing when I run it - same with XBMC.
@pbusardo
I am really only interested in .iso blu rays/hd dvds as well. does anyone know of any other route than the C-200? I have heard the WD TV Live also does isos but maybe not HD isos? Anyone know if there is a way to play iso's through WMC extender like xbox 360?
Right now I would go with Windows Home server plus the XBox 360 as a Media Center Extender above anything else. Windows 7 plays DivX/Xvid right out of the box, I have yet to experience an unplayable file.
ASUS media player HDR-1 works great. Wish i would have waited 1 month could have gotten the new version with Wi-FI!!
Zino
I was at a friend's house, and his PS3 recognized his neighbor's NAS. The PS3 has DIVX capability, but it's an older version, and I haven't used it personally.
Not a glowing recommendation, but since you don't want an HTPC, this may be worth looking into. Probably the most robust device -- assuming it handles NAS -- is the Popcorn Hour.
-Pie
a htpc will always play everything you can throw at it but you do have the added hassle of :
1. it being a pc and they go wrong
2. running a complicated OS that can have issues
3. family friendly?
dedicated media players such as the xtreamer mede8er and the popcorn hour series are cheap and simple to use..
Another vote for Popcornhour. Get 1 for each TV in your house!
http://www.digitalconnection.com/Products/Video/tvixM6620N.asp
http://www.digitalconnection.com/Products/Video/tvixM6620N.asp
http://www.digitalconnection.com/Products/Video/base3.asp
http://www.digitalconnection.com/Products/Video/base3.asp
Sorry, for duplicate posts - my posting abilities seem to be flaky
Mediagate 350. Not the most amazing piece of Hardware, nor the prettiest swiftest software. However, as my girlfriend pointed out (rather hurtfully), it is the only piece of AV, IT gear I've set up in the house that "just works" and has required little to no tinkering. Interface easy for non-techies and its small and discreet.
Imo, if you just want a streamer, the Popcornhour boxes are typically very popular. If you want a full fledged HTPC that you can also perform light computing on, wait for ion 2. It's supposed to be announced this month.
Original XBOX + XBMC with component cables and optical audio out.
I hooked it into my Bose surround sound system and used RCA remote codes to setup the bose remote to control the XBOX.
1080i with 5.1 surround sound.
Downloads go straight to my NAS and I can pull them up on the XBOX. Works flawlessly.
Be careful with the WDTV Live, it has an extremely high failure/DoA rate right out of the box and early on. On top of that WD released a firmware update that screwed up another big chunk of the ones that had been previously working.
I own both the original WDTV and the Live version. The original WDTV had a few playback and audio issues to begin with. However, after a couple of months, and several firmware revisions, I've been extremely happy with its performance. The only thing it was desperately lacking was any kind of network capabilities using the official firmware. This is why the WDTV Live was a no-brainer purchase for me. Unfortunately there are a few kinks that need to be worked out with network shares and copying files to and from the attached hard drives. I'm confident that Western Digital will sort these problems out in due time, but it has been kind of a let down so far.