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Review: Oritron NPD3117 Networked DVD Player
I tried a computer-based setup and found that my wife and younger children had trouble figuring it all out. At that point I decided I needed to wait for a hardware-based solution that would work well without requiring a clunky computer near the TV.
Enter the OritronHaving decided that nothing was available yet, you can imagine my excitement when I saw a networked DVD player in early October. This was the Oritron NPD3117 Networked DVD Player, also known as their On Media DVD player. This unit plays many audio and video formats -- even photo/JPEG discs. Where it really shines, though, is in its ability to play streaming content over the local network. It can switch between DVD and network content with the click of a button, and is very flexible in supported formats.
What does it do?
But what can this device actually play? Through the disc slot it plays DVD/+-R/+RW, audio CD/-R/-RW, VCD, SVCD, and CDs full of JPEG images or MP3/WMA music. Over the network, it plays MPEG-1 and MPEG-2, JPEG/TIFF/BMP, MP3/WMA, and most AVI files (DivX and XviD for starters). Yes, that's right, it plays DivX over the network! You may ask why it plays AVI-based files only over the network. This is due to the interesting way that the device handles video: any format that is not handled natively is transcoded on the fly on the PC-side. This is why there is a system requirement of 1.2GHz for the PC (though one of my On Media server boxes runs just fine with a 1GHz Athlon). When an AVI file is selected, it converts it to television resolution on-the-fly. No need to pre-convert your files. This means you can watch full-quality on your laptop and desktop (with the higher monitor resolutions), and TV-quality through the unit from the same file. It will not stream DVD's (encrypted or not). It also won't stream a VCD/SVCD per se, but will stream the actual MPEG streams that are encoded for VCD/SVCD when named properly. No proprietary video formats such as Real, QuickTime, or Windows Media Video will play. I do wonder though, if someone were to write appropriate AVI-style codecs for them, if it could be managed somehow ...
The player's interface is mostly well done. I have some complaints that I'll get to in a moment, but overall it works well. Upon first turning on the unit, the player's LED display greets you with "Hello" while the TV shows the logo. It then checks for a DVD in the drive and if present immediately starts to load it. At that point (or if there is no DVD) you can press the On Media button on the remote to switch to network content. (Actually you must wait for this sequence to complete. You can't turn it on and right away press On Media.) The LED display switches to "Online," and lets you browse servers. The next time you switch to On Media mode it will go straight to the last server selected. Going back to the server list is quick and easy. Once a server is chosen it provides options for Pictures, Video, or Music. Selecting one (with the arrows and OK button on the remote) provides you with options for Folders, Playlist, or All. "Folders" shows you all folders on the shared PC. My complaint here is that it flattens them out. All folders appear at root level, which will affect how you name them. "Playlist," of course, lets you select pre-made playlists of files, and "All" shows a single flattened list of all files contained on the server for the chosen media type. Selecting a file starts the media playing.
Music plays, without any fancy visualizations, right on the menu screen. The bottom shows the title information, but you can still continue navigating to other media while it plays. MP3 music can play during a photo slideshow (this is not true of WMA however). Video plays full-screen with media information during the first few seconds along the bottom, or when needed using the Display button. Forward/Reverse works in ten-second intervals (which is also true of music), and no DVD-style slow-mo or zoom options are available. The quality is great, though. Transcoded DivX files look like DVDs (based on source quality of course), and lower quality clips play at the best quality possible. I have played full-screen and widescreen and all ranges of quality and I have never been let down by this unit. It works as advertised.
How does it work?The unit needs to be plugged into your LAN. Instead of providing a CAT5 outlet on the back, it has a PCMCIA slot for a 16-bit wired or wireless 802.11b card. This is not the same as CardBus, which is 32-bit. You must get a 16-bit PC Card and it must be one on the company's approved list. This includes D-Link, Orinoco, Linksys, NetGear, and Microsoft products, so it's not too difficult to find. Best Buy had both the wired and wireless version of the LinkSys cards and may well have had other offerings as well. I was glad they chose this route rather than custom-branded cards at high prices.
I tested the unit with both wired and wireless cards (both from Linksys) and am pleased to report no difference in functionality. I have DHCP setup on my network, and after plugging in the wired card it just works. There are network options screens to enter static information but I didn't test those. After plugging in the wireless card it showed me a list of wireless networks in the vicinity and a simple selection got me online. It supports WEP security (wouldn't want to type all that from the remote though!), and both infrastructure and ad hoc configuration. The wireless option only supports 802.11b, but due to their method of streaming this is not a problem and the content is smooth.
PC setup is a breeze. You install the On Media software on any PC containing sharable content. Sadly there is no non-Windows support. This may be in part due to the complexity of real-time transcoding and the Universal Plug-and-Play used for network communication that plugs into the associated Windows services. Of course there's no reason why ports of the software couldn't be made, but it would not be a simple translation most likely. Once the software is installed you must select folders to scan for content. This can take some time the first time. In addition to crawling through all the folders you choose, it generates TV-friendly versions of all of your images. This is the only case where it must change a format in advance (let me stress though, it never changes any of your original files). The photo resizing is a good thing. I have a 4.2MP camera and I popped in a CD containing full-size photos. It played them all without a hitch, but there was a noticeable delay as it resized them. This is avoided with the streamed photos due to the pre-sizing. The player does not automatically rescan your folders, however you can set a schedule for it to do so. I use this so any files recorded by my PVR are added to the shared files list for easy viewing. The only downside is you can't setup schedules per folders, just one scheduled interval (though it can include as many folders to scan as desired).
Something nice about the network implementation is one PC can serve multiple units, and one unit can connect to multiple PC's (though only one at a time unfortunately). In addition, on the PC side you can see any connected players in the server interface. Since the player's network settings allows you to rename it you could see "Bedroom," "Living Room," etc. based on your setup.
I called the support number before even getting the unit to get some questions answered. The service people were knowledgeable and didn't take too long to answer, but English wasn't their first language. An attempt at more information via email didn't yield much more information, but they responded within a day. If you dig into their websites and manuals you see references to Koss. I'm not sure if they are manufacturing or supporting the unit, or some other role. I just found that interesting.
Pros:- Well laid out remote with hotkeys to jump to music/video/pictures
- All the A/V in/out connectors (composite, S-Video, component, digital and 6-channel audio)
- Wide range of streaming content with smart choice of transcoding
- Easy network setup for wired or wireless environments
- Great quality of all supported media - you wouldn't know it's streamed!
- Would be nice to play even more content types (Ogg Vorbis, Real/QuickTime/WMV)
- Remote feels too light, makes you wonder how tough it is
- Server could be more flexible with scheduling options.
There are a number of things I would like Oritron to work on, but they aren't showstoppers. More granular forward/reverse, remember position in file if you turn off the unit during a movie, and even better choices for navigation would be nice. They make it clear that the unit is firmware upgradeable, though, so some of these things will hopefully be remedied in the future. The actual network-side of the unit is handled by a product called NetPlay which is licensed by Digital5, a company that just creates and licenses network DVD options for other companies. They will be forced to keep innovating to compete with other, similar offerings, so hopefully we will all benefit.
Overall, I would highly recommend the NPD3117. It's what I've been looking for in most areas. I believe there is even more that they could do to make this unit perfect but it's the closest thing I've seen yet. A great unit!
Some technical notes:- As noted above, the AVI streaming only works for certain AVI types. The On Media website lists the exact FourCC codes that are recognized. I'm not sure why there is the FourCC restriction though. Since it uses the codec to transcode the video it shouldn't care what type of file it is. It has occurred to me that by being creative with codecs one could create interesting hacks that would be streamed to the unit. VNC, static internet portal (headlines, weather), internet music, and web cam streaming come to mind. Email me if you are interested in discussing further...
- According to a company spokesman, server software and firmware updates are coming very soon. According to the same person, certain features (like internet radio) will only be added to future products (I hope they don't forget about their early adopters!). Some "logical next step" features like an integrated web browser probably will not be made available due to interface/experience concerns. They want to position themselves as industry leaders in this area so expect more devices to come in the future.
- The server software only imports media from local fixed drives. I wanted the ability to also import/play DivX content from local CD-R's. I solved this by mounting the drive into an empty NTFS folder. Now it just scans that folder like any other folder. There is a brief stutter when starting a video from CD, but then it plays as flawlessly as other media.
...on scan.co.uk. It has a built-in 80GB h/d and can play Oggs out of the box. It doesn't play WMAs, but that doesn't bother me because a) I don't have any and b) it will do on the next firmware update, apparently.
You mean like this one? Or, slightly cheaper, this one?
I am TheRaven on Soylent News
I'll admit, if the product is all that the review makes it out to be then I would be very interested. Cheap, too--it's selling for $169.99 + free shipping. Of course, you still have to add in your connectivity of choice, but regardless, a more than reasonable price considering some of what I've seen from similar media delivery companies such as Escient and SonicBlue.
Unfortunately, it seems that it's only a nice deal if you can get it to work. Three reviewers over at Review Centre are a little less than satisfied:
A second author had difficulties with networking:The third review seems to be quite pleased with the product. Overall, it sounds like a nice player, but it suffers from poor implementation (or at least Q/A in manufacturing). It would be nice, however, if they were able to get these issues resolved. However, if problems such as these are as prevalent as they appear to be, my money if perfectly content with rotting in the bank until something slightly more functional appears on the market. I can only hope the promised firmware updates will help to alleviate the glitches.
Rule No. 153: You cut the fat, you cut the flavor.
Seriously, even if you didn't RTFA, the blurb specified the player is an alternative for people who don't want to use a computer.
http://www.onmediadvd.com/onmediadvd/Oritron%20Net work%20Media.htm
If you are interested on viewing your computer media via TV you should look at hauppage's MediaMVP it goes for abot $80 bucks, the box's OS runs linux ( http://reviews.cnet.com/4505-6466_7-30543929.html )
After asking hauppage about linux support I got this response:
- - - - - -
Dear mynamehere
Thanks for your note.
The MediaMVP currently requires a WindowsXP or Windows2000 system. Even though our MediaMVP product development was done under Linux, the "server" part of the system is currently only running with Windows.
There have been a ton of requests for Linux servers, and our engineers are seeing what we can do to support a Linux server. When we do, we will post a free update on our website.
Ken Plotkin
Hauppauge
- - - - - - - - - -
Personally I would buy a couple of them in a sec if it supported linux (where all my media is located)... The point here is that if we let'em know that there is a demand for linux drivers/software they *will* make them.. (hopefully before xmas) So, if you have interest on this kind of a device for linux, send them a nice email at sales@hauppauge.com
Better yet is LiteOn's LVD-2001 which plays AVIs, Divx, MPEG4, MP3's, DVDs, etc, etc and has a front loading memory card reader for displaying jpegs. I paid $169 CDN. It's still a bit clunky but the firmware (linux!) is easily upgradeable and appears to be under active development. A new one was released just two days ago to improve Divx 3.11 performance and support the .srt subtitle format.
Fortune Magazine reported in their November 17, 2003 issue that Apex is currently the leader in market share among all DVD player brands. It has 15.4% of the market; second-place Sony has 11.8%. Even cheaper brands of DVD players, with shelf prices as low as $35, threaten to take away some of that market share.
Players capable of streaming content off the network, recording television, or doing anything else over and above playing DVDs are a niche market. Until they can compete with a $35 basic DVD player or a $100 progressive-scan DVD player, they will continue to sell only to a small subset of the electronics-buying population.
For more information, click here.
"Movie quality is dependent on the bit rate of the video (which cannot be greater than 3 MB/sec). " link to article on dvdrhelp.com Buy.com has it for $169 link
Here you go
Seems like a better player, depending on the "ugradeability" of the codecs. It says on the page that they will add support for SMB over ethernet, doesn't say whether you can also access files on other shares from the player.
Are you a grammar Nazi? I'm trying to improve my English; please correct my errors!
Here is the page it seems the coward was referring to.
Product description:
LN5786
Kiss Technology DP-508 DVD Player DIVX V4+/MPEG4/VCD/SVCD/MP3/DVD-RW with 80GB HDD ( 304.33)
Constitutional rights may be respected, repealed, or modified; but they must never be ignored.
Ok, there's that small matter of the DMCA, but with a small amount of work an XBox can be turned into the best media playing device around. Some of the features:
- Dolby 5.1 and High definition and progressive video support through component connection options
- DVD, VCD, SVCD, MPEG1&2, DivX, XViD, Ogg, MP3, RM, Quicktime, WMV, TiVo, Shoutcast, JPG and many other formats
- Remote control available
- Built in 100BaseT, with optional 802.11x
- SOFTWARE UPGRADEABLE, with multiple applications already available and lots more on the way.
Hell, the thing even has a games player built in!
For $250 CDN, this is the best value piece of home theater hardware you can buy, period.
...is known as the Gateway Connected DVD Player. It's the exact same system as the Oritron, right down to the (Windows-only :( ) streaming server. It's currently retailing for $199, and includes a Gateway-branded 802.11b card (I think it's a rebranded D-Link card, judging by the antenna casing). Given Gateway's superior rep for service, I felt a little more comfortable buying this unit over the ones from GoVideo and Oritron.
Pros: Audio and video playing works exactly as advertised (even low-bit MP3s sound great), transcoded video works nicely, wireless works with WEP (although you have to enter the key in 24-bit hex through the remote).
Cons: Library support highly lacking (can't shuffle playlists, only plays alphabetically through an album), plays some DivX files as audio-only (haven't figured that one yet), aforementioned lack of OGG/AAC/QT support.
And why buy it? Can I build a PC with quality audio for $199? Nope.
RW
I have tried the NDP3117. Here is what I thought of it:
.avi or .mpg files which contain a Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track, it always got downsampled to stereo.
1) For MP3's or JPEGS it works great.
2) For MPEG2, the video quality is good as it just streams it straight from the PC to the DVD player.
3) For any video that is not MPEG2 it sucks. On a 3 MBit/s MPEG4 file my Athlon XP 1900+ was not able to always keep up with the transcoding. The final video quality was shit compared to watching the same file on the PC.
4) You can only stream stereo sound. Even when I used
5) Navigating during a movie sucks. THere is no way to skip ahead to a specific point in the movie.
6) The PC software installed easily and did not install crap all over my computer. However, the interface for adding media to your library is kinda crappy.
Like a lot of slashdotters, I had a computer connected up to the TV to play music and videos. My desktop PC died, so I repoed the TV computer for the time being. Still wanting to have movies and music on my TV, I bought the gateway connected DVD player. I love it. For $199, it was worth every penny. I bought the wired version of the player since I didn't think that the 802.11b wireless connection would be fast enough for some movies....All I know is that the specs say 3mb/sec max.... using the wired version, I have played videos with a higher bitrate than that. The video output is better than my PC could do, and the DVD player itself is excellent. I did check out the player that sparked the parent article, but got the gateway one instead... So if you're in the market for a networked player, check the gateway player out. There are also several other non-DVD video playing options (one of which runs linux I believe... and no, they probably can't be hooked together in a beowulf cluster) out there.... shop around, you might be suprised by your options.
Pros:
-Fast user interface to navigate (compared to say, the LinkSys network box which is slow as dirt)
-Includes progressive scan DVD player (no DVI-out though)
-Supports all kinds of video formats (with the latest firmware update)
Cons:
-The streaming app is poor in many respects - for example, you can't easily run two instances on the same machine to seperate content into two servers (e.g. one for me, one for my wife). It would be nice of the architecture was more open
-It organizes files by ID3 tags (album, artist), not by folder structure on your hard drive. That means if your files aren't tagged well, the UI is useless, and if you have a lot of partial albums, it's a pain to navigate. Expect to retag your library if it isn't already done well.
-No support for building a play-list on the DVD player - you can only play a single album/artist, a single song, or an existing playlist - no way to build up a queue of songs/albums on the fly.
-No way to change the sorting within an album - it sorts by song title, not track number, and plays in sort order. In the latest software you can work-around this by having it display filenames (which usually include track numbers, thus sort correctly), but then the names are so long you typically can't see the actual song title.
One final feature I wish it had - live streaming of the audio output on the PC to the DVD player, so that (for example), I could fire up Rhapsody and listen to it in my living room.
Altogether a pretty cool product - hopefully they'll address some of these issues in future firmware/software updates. If not, I may end up reverse engineering the networking to see how difficult it would be to create an alternate player.
fyi - They are using ffmpeg for all the transcoding that is mentioned, so it probably wouldn't be too difficult to replicate that aspect.
I'm using the Prismiq and the XBMP. Both have advantages, both have issues. Anyone have any other recommendations?
"Sometimes a woman is a kind of religion, she can save your soul & set you free from all your sins" - Bad Examples
It's probably a distro built around MythTV. MythTV uses a very very similar frontend/backend technology. It's a PVR, a DVD player, a transcoder, MP3 player, and it makes julienne fries! I've been following the project, and I know that there's an Xbox front-end version. Of course, to do the PVR stuff (Myth's bread & butter) you'd need a backend PC with a TV tuner card or two, and a stiff bit of processor...