FIA On3 Networked Multimedia System Reviewed

Anonymous Howard writes "Designtechnica has reviewed Fia's On3 networked multimedia system. It uses Linux for its OS, supports Samba, audio & video (including Ogg), but the On3 seems to be marred by a lack of some important features. For example, you can't create playlists or autoplaylists (playlists based on rules.) You can only play music sorted in folders, so if your music is sorted by artist and album, you can only listen to each folder at a time. Files are played back in alphanumeric order, so playback order depends on how the tracks are named. The On3 does not handle ID3 tags and track names are simply the name of the file. I'm trying to find a non-microsoft, out-of-the-box solution for a networked media system. Are there any other solutions out there? How do they compare? Are they worth it or does the industry still have a lot of growing to do?"

Comments

Not Quite A Slash-Ad But Close

[mfh]

For example, you can't create playlists or autoplaylists (playlists based on rules.)

While I sympathize, as playlists should be a feature in any player... Because you explained the autoplaylist feature, you should not expect it as a standard feature. The rest of what you're saying makes perfect sense to me and begs the question: why was this posted at Slashdot if the On3 networked multimedia system appears so lacking? Also, calling something The On3 (The One, ie: Neo), certainly appears to be a misnomer if the system is so utterly lacking.

Also, I must take issue with that review because it lacks any definative bottom line summary. They don't come out and say : this rocks, or, this is a bad buy. I think it might have something to do with the fact that the reviewers are selling this product. I won't cry "Slash-ad!" (because of the insight in this /. post) but I will point out that this appears to be a sneaky advertising trick to try and sell units. "Here we'll just publish an ad and call it a review."

So it's more or less useless...

[Skyshadow]

Sorry, but playing back in order of how the files are named? That makes the thing more or less completely useless unless you have a very, very short list of songs you always want to hear in the same order; how the heck do you get to market without the basics that you'd have expected from an MP3 player five years ago?

Plenty of non-MS out-of-box solutions

[Dynedain]

I'm trying to find a non-microsoft, out-of-the-box solution

Check out SLIMP3 and/or various offerings from Apple just to name two sources off the top of my head for audio. For video, just build a custom linux box with MythTV or something and stick it in one of those spiffy home entertainment cases. Or pay lots of money for the commercial equivalent.

Re:Linux-based?

[Doc Ruby]

If it's a shortcoming in the OS, it's fixable, though maybe not feasible (depending on the problem). But these shortcomings are in the app, which is not necessarily open source. Just running on Linux doesn't mean you can hack its code. Since the article mentions neither explicitly that the app is OSS, nor its license (which might imply OSS), you probably just get the app binary embedded in the device. So unless you want to hack the kernel to intercept and "fix" app functions (maybe impossible), it's not easily hackable at all.

Re:Check out TomsHardware.com's review of Soundbri

[radish]

Actually, forget Roku and check out the Squeezebox. It's a great player, much more reliable than the Roku and sounds better. Plus, the open source SlimServer app which runs the back end of both players is provided by SlimDevices, who make the Squeezebox. Roku "borrowed" it (which is fine, it's open) for the Soundbridge, but it works much better with the Squeezebox, and to be honest the Roku experience left a bitter taste in many people's mouths.

Slimserver is perl and is supported on Win/Max/Linux/BSD, supports most file formats, streaming, etc etc. Very cool.

Get a Squeezebox instead

[spiralscratch]

Support the company that actually develops and supports the server software used by Roku for their product.

http://www.slimdevices.com/

Last I heard, Roku gives back nothing to the project, possibly in violation of the GPL.

Re:Is it a myth

[Gyorg_Lavode]

I can see someone making a lot of money off mythTV. First you sell full computers of 3 brands: Normal/HDTV. Then you offer options: DVD play/record support, more tuners/other types of tuners, etc.

Finally, you offer just hard drives imaged w/ pre-made images of the full computers you offer. Along with the image you include the hardware that the setup requires.

Every person who installs MythTV should not have to take the hours and hours to get it running. It should be distributed in a few forms (hdtv/dvd/music/pvr/combo) created for specific hardware. (Obviously an idea akin to this is the reason for KnoppixMyth's popularity.)