Wd tv live what operating system. WD TV Live Network Media Player
WD TV feels like a quality device. The laconic design, user-friendly interface and high performance cannot but please potential buyers. Viewing photos, videos and listening to audio is easy for the player, and the design and ergonomics of the shell are often superior to competing solutions, including those with Android on board. This media player will appeal to everyone who is looking for a miniature and stable model for playing files from the HDD and local network.
The problem is that WD TV is not alone in this discipline on the Russian market. And the implementation of streaming services for the domestic market does not stand up to criticism. In fact, the video services that are relevant to Russians are limited to only ivi.ru and YouTube, with the caveat that searching for video recordings allows only Latin characters. Such careless adaptation of software for the domestic market raises a lot of questions.
Of course, many shortcomings will be corrected in unofficial firmware, but the last thing you expect from a world-famous brand is functionality at the “gray import” level. Let's hope that the existing shortcomings will be corrected in the next software updates.
In nature, there are many additions to the TV that can make life easier for the user. About five years ago there was not such variety as now - either standard DVD and Blu-Ray players were used, or HTPC (Home Theater Personal Computer) assembled by craftsmen. Then Apple entered the market with its Apple TV, Chinese developers stepped up - and what we have is a bunch of “set-top boxes” with multimedia functions. Personally, I have a second-generation Apple TV at home; this device fits organically into my ecosystem; it costs reasonable money (about $100), but the hardware is very weak: the maximum supported resolution is 720p and there is no support for flash drives or built-in memory. In short, it’s a thing in itself - and I’ll probably tell you about my experience with Apple TV and alternative firmware for it someday.
Today we’ll talk about a product from Western Digital called TV Live Hub. Their devices that connect with TVs and other equipment caught my eye two years ago - but I was able to test only this device and only now.
The unit in question costs 7 thousand rubles, inside there is a 1 terabyte hard drive. At the price of hard drives of this volume (3-4 thousand rubles), we get, so to speak, the cost of the rest of the hardware - the same 3-4 thousand rubles. Let's see what's included, what the Live Hub can do (I'll call the device a player) - and try to figure out who needs such a thing.
Packaging and equipment
The colorful cardboard box is quite large, and it seems that there are a lot of different things inside. But no, about half the volume is occupied by the box with the player; in addition to it, the box contains a remote control and a power adapter, and a couple of booklets. Cables are not included in the package, which can be explained, but only partially - and we will deal with this later.
Appearance and ease of use
The player material is plastic, matte-rough on top and bottom, glossy on the rim. On the front there is an on/off button and a port for connecting USB devices; there is also a WD logo on the front panel, which lights up while the device is operating.
There is nothing on the sides, at the back there are all connectors for switching: power, optical output, HDMI output, a second USB port (also designed for connecting USB devices), composite and component outputs.
Now for the weird stuff. The first strange thing: there is not a single cable included in the package - not even the most common HDMI cable at the moment. The second strange thing: there isn’t even an Ethernet cable, not to mention a built-in Wi-Fi adapter (even though it can be connected to a USB port). Let this not be a surprise to you - you will have to buy everything at once, without putting it off until later. Moreover, there are considerable benefits from going online, more on that a little later. A list of devices compatible with the player can be found.
We turn everything on, the player starts, signals the presence of fresh firmware, we update, again there is a notification about new firmware (well, that’s how it happens), after 10 minutes everything is ready, you can use it.
On the screen we see a colorful menu, you can move through it left and right by pressing the “down” button on the remote control, we get to the customizable “Favorites” menu, you can view newly added files, and so on.
Where do the files come from? From external devices (the player copies data from a flash drive or external hard drive to its built-in one, if you wish, you can simply watch the content) or over a network - you can either upload files to the player or point the player to a “shared” network folder. That is, WD Live Hub is sort of like that, and it can be part of your multimedia ecosystem, or it can aggregate all the data. In principle, a terabyte is a good amount of data; you can also use it as a network hard drive for a torrent client. It would be nice to be able to connect the player to the computer directly - but, alas, this is not possible.
As for the main menu, it is extremely simple to understand.
Settings– here, perhaps, there are the most opportunities. Setting up outputs, menu type, video, sound, photo, network, even remote control. I don’t see the point in considering everything - one way or another, you won’t get complete freedom of action. One interesting thing is the ability to connect Apple equipment to remotely control the player and upload (view) photos.
Photos– viewing photos, implemented in an average way – the player scrolls through the pictures with effort, flipping through takes a couple of seconds (plus, you can see how the picture is drawn, and this is no good). You can start a slide show. You can view JPEG, GIF, TIF/TIFF, BMP, PNG formats.
Music– sorting by tags, supports MP3, WAV, WMA, AAC, FLAC, OGG.
Video– the main functionality of the device, in my understanding. I will immediately indicate the supported formats: AVI (Xvid, AVC, MPEG1/2/4), MPG/MPEG, VOB, MKV (h.264, x.264, AVC, MPEG1/2/4, VC-1), TS/TP /M2T (MPEG1/2/4, AVC, VC-1), MP4/MOV (MPEG4, h.264), M2TS, WMV9, FLV (h.264), in fact this means one thing - no matter what you try, everything plays , up to 1080p. There is rewinding, you need to get used to it, subtitles are supported.
Services– as many as 22 mini-applications for working with content. These include photographs - Flickr, Picasa, and videos - the same YouTube and Vimeo, and even the ability to order video on demand. There is support for Facebook and even Yota Music (you need a login and password, that is, you won’t be able to listen for free).
Games– a selection of simple games, there’s not even anything to tell here.
RSS– reading feeds, adding new ones is possible; the on-screen keyboard is used for this.
Files– view the device file system.
Conclusion
The WD TV Live Hub player costs, as I wrote at the beginning of the review, 7 thousand rubles. Let's summarize.
pros:
- Small and quiet device
- Omnivorous
- Fast work (except for viewing photos), fast hard drive
- Ability to connect external USB devices
- Good functionality (apps, games, RSS)
- Intuitive interface
- Availability of a file manager
- Network access, connecting Apple equipment to work with the player
Minuses:
- No cables included
- No Wi-Fi adapter (but can be connected to a USB port)
- Not the most convenient rewinding of files
- Large and not very convenient remote control
- There is not enough ability to connect the player to a computer as a removable hard drive
For me, the WD TV Live Hub turned out to be a device that did not make the best impression at first, but in the end the impression became positive. I can’t say that everything about it is perfect, but it’s a pleasure to use the device. Not bad for the money asked.
Stated characteristics
Supported Formats
- Video - AVI (Xvid, AVC, MPEG1/2/4), MPG/MPEG, VOB, MKV (h.264, x.264, AVC, MPEG1/2/4, VC-1), TS/TP/M2T ( MPEG1/2/4, AVC, VC-1), MP4/MOV (MPEG4, h.264), M2TS, WMV9, FLV (h.264)
- Photo - JPEG, GIF, TIF/TIFF, BMP, PNG
- Audio - MP3, WAV/PCM/LPCM, WMA, AAC, FLAC, MKA, AIF/AIFF, OGG, Dolby Digital, DTS
- Playlists - PLS, M3U, WPL
- Subtitles - SRT, ASS, SSA, SUB, SMI
Other characteristics
- Capacity: 1 TB
- Interfaces: Gigabit Ethernet, USB 2.0, HDMI, Composite A/V, Component video, Optical audio
- Dimensions (HxDxW): 32x198x154 mm
- Weight: 0.55 kg
Ilya Tarakanov ()
There is no doubt that WD TV, released almost a year ago, has significantly revitalized the market for media players that support high-definition video. It very successfully combines the “correct” processor, a convenient software shell, an impressive design and, most interestingly, low cost.
The only thing that disappointed us was the lack of network connection. This significantly complicated working with large media libraries, which are most conveniently stored on network drives or personal computers. Of course, since then enthusiasts have already solved this problem, but for the mass user this “upgrade” is not easy.
So the release of an updated version of the player with a built-in network controller looks very interesting. Western Digital clearly wants to repeat the success of the first model, and the timing of the announcement was chosen well - just before the New Year holidays. Let's see if this works.
Contents of delivery
The player is packaged in a compact cardboard box, decorated in dark colors. The name of the model looks the most contrasting. So if you are looking for a device on the shelves in a store, you will find it quickly. Also on the packaging you can find several photographs, a brief description, and specifications. Localization is only partial. The size is also pleasing - only about 20x18x10 centimeters. Several of these will fit in a regular plastic bag at once :).
Let's see what's inside and whether the package is sufficient to start working with the device. The box contains: player, remote control, batteries for it (2xAAA), a leaflet with a brief description of the installation process, a CD with full descriptions and programs, two audio-video cables, a power supply (12 V 1.5 A), two sets of rubber feet .
Wiring comes in two options - composite video plus stereo audio and component video. Both cables on the player side use a four-pin minijack connector. Today this is a fairly common option. But you can’t buy them in any store.
On the CD, the user can find a pdf file with the full version of the manual in English (the Russian version can be downloaded from the manufacturer’s website), several samples of media files, and a program for searching for a device on the network.
In general, we can say that the kit is quite sufficient. It’s a pity, of course, that there is no HDMI cable, but this is probably not worth demanding from a device positioned as “high quality and inexpensive.”
Appearance
Like its predecessor, the model we are considering today causes nothing but delight upon first acquaintance. It’s simply impossible to believe that a modern multi-format device with full support for HD video can fit in such a compact case. And the new model is even more interesting - among other things, it now has a network controller.
Actually, the case itself remains almost the same - plastic is used, the dimensions are 12.5x10x4 cm. Only now, instead of glossy black, it has become matte gray. Of course, this is more practical in terms of cleanliness and preservation of appearance.
The included rubber feet can be attached to one of two sides, which corresponds to the horizontal and vertical orientation of the player. On the front panel there is a small window with indicators of device status and USB activity (two stylish white LEDs), as well as an IR signal receiver from the remote control.
On the side (or top) there is one USB port and a reset button. On the rear panel are all other connectors. Here you can find the power supply input, a second USB port, HDMI, optical digital audio output, network port, and analog audio-video connectors.
Compared to WD TV, the new version added a component video output and, of course, a network port. Since space is very limited, this has led to the replacement of conventional audio-video “tulips” with minijacks. This is a little less convenient, but the main connection option today is HDMI, so the remark is not very significant.
The player is cooled passively - the grilles are located at the ends. In this sense, vertical installation is more effective. Consumption is very small, so overheating is only possible in the event of an extremely unsuccessful installation. In particular, the manufacturer does not recommend installing an external hard drive on the player. This solution also has an undeniable advantage in the form of completely absent noise, especially when working over a network.
Let us once again praise the remote control - compact, with a reasonable minimum of buttons, convenient and functional design. As with the media player body itself, this time matte plastic was used for the remote control, which significantly affected the appearance during operation. It is worth paying attention to the absence of any volume control from the remote control.
Internal organization
In terms of filling, the new model is similar to the first one - it again uses a platform based on the Sigma Designs media processor. But there are also differences: the main chip is now SMP8655, the memory volumes have increased noticeably (up to 512 MB RAM and 256 MB flash), a network chip has been added, and a separate HDMI output chip, on the contrary, has disappeared.
The main processor has a large heatsink. The remaining microcircuits do without cooling systems.
The player has one board, which ensures the reliability of the design. In addition to the indicated components, you can also find a console output on it, which will allow you to modify the firmware.
The filling is housed in a metal casing, which ensures structural rigidity and “solidity” of the player, thanks to its relatively large weight. Well, in turn, all this is located in a plastic case consisting of two elements. If desired, it can be disassembled even without using a screwdriver.
Connection and settings
By and large, this entire section could be fit in one sentence - “connect the HDMI, network and power cables, turn on the player and start watching the video.” Indeed, in our case, we can do without preliminary settings - HDMI immediately worked in 1080p mode, the network card received an address via DHCP, and the player found several DLNA servers on the test network. Nevertheless, let's go through the player interface settings pages.
There are seven groups of parameters in total. The first - “Audio and Video” - is used to set the operation of the outputs - the type and mode of video output is configured, support for DeepColor on HDMI is activated, the screen aspect ratio and audio output mode (stereo analog or digital) are selected. We note here the lack of support for auto-selection of frame rate depending on the type of source material, although 1080p24 itself is present in the parameters.
The next three groups relate to video, photo and music playback, respectively. For all types of files, you can select the playback sequence and the type of list of files and directories (thumbnails, list, preview). The player supports the use of external jpeg files to design folder icons.
In addition, subtitles can be configured for videos - font size, outline type, automatic use if available. To view photos in slide show mode, select the interval and type of transition (one of seven options or random selection), as well as the zoom mode. For music files, the only additional option is to show the file name or song name.
Next comes “File Management”. In fact, this is not a settings page, but a built-in utility for copying and moving documents between network and local drives. It is also possible to delete files.
A clearly new item for this model is “Network settings”. We are talking about specifying network connection parameters. Manual mode for setting IP addresses is supported, as well as DHCP. Interestingly, the device can also be used with wireless networks, but for this you apparently need to connect a special USB adapter. The compatibility list on the website shows more than a dozen models, including 802.11n. Among those actually available in Russia, we note the D-Link DWA-140. You can remember five wireless networks and quickly switch between them. The modern WPA encryption standard is supported, so connecting the player to a wireless network will not compromise security. Although, of course, it should be noted that for an HD player this option of integration into the network is not very interesting due to low (for the tasks under consideration) performance.
There are also options here that allow access to connected USB drives over the network, auto-connection of network resources, and resetting remembered network details (username and password). The network access speed is typical for this class of devices - about 5 MB/s for reading and 3 MB/s for writing (and writing is also supported on NTFS). The device name can be overridden from the default “WDTVLIVE”, but the workgroup does not change.
The last page is dedicated to system settings. In particular, selecting the interface language (Russian is available, although the translation is sometimes incorrect or has errors), enabling file indexing (a function similar to WD TV, which allows you to work with information from tags, and not with folders, applies only to local drives, creates a hidden folder on removable disks, requires free space), selecting a timeout for the screen saver, setting the code page, resetting all parameters, checking for firmware updates and installing them (the tests used the recently released 1.01.17). Localization affected not only the menu - the player works correctly with Russian file names both locally and over the network, and tags are also read correctly. To access some updates from WD, you must register your device on the website. For WD TV Live, this can be done directly from the player interface. All you need to do is provide your name and email address.
So, we are done with the settings, you can start working with media files.
Working with multimedia
“Communication” with the player occurs through the menu using the remote control. Its design is quite pleasant and convenient - a “grid” version similar to its predecessor is used with a choice of items vertically and horizontally. Separately, we note the good response speed, which does not cause discomfort.
On FullHD devices the picture does not “ring” - clearly in the original version the design was oriented towards standard resolution or 720p. Although, of course, this does not affect the work with files and still looks very high quality.
The first selection consists of the "Video", "Photo", "Music" and "Settings" items, which were described above. After determining the content type (affects file filtering when viewing lists), you must select a source - local drives, network resources, media servers or Internet services (different for each content type).
There are two USB 2.0 ports for connecting local drives. Working with USB hubs is not supported, which is not very convenient. But you can use several partitions on disks. File systems can be FAT/FAT32, NTFS, HFS+. When using disk indexing, it is advisable to use the corresponding button on the remote control to disable them.
There are no special presets for network resources. UPnP AV/DLNA servers are found automatically. The player works with WMP from Windows 7, TwonkyMedia and MediaTomb servers, as well as network drives with built-in DLNA service. The operating speed in this mode is very high - we were able to play back test files with a video bitrate of 52 Mbit/s and there was even room for fast forwarding. Of course, this is one of the positive features of the device in question.
To connect regular network folders (SMB/CIFS protocols) there is a built-in network browser. When accessing a resource, you are prompted for a username and password if necessary. This data is saved and does not need to be repeated later. In general, this option is not bad, although in the case of a large network it might be more convenient to have a certain list of favorite resources for quick access. The speed of working with SMB is usually lower, but this time we were not able to accurately determine the limitation. As a rule, we test the speed of a regular Windows PC and network drives, and the results are almost the same. But with the device in question, the numbers were very different, and the repeatability was poor - sometimes it was not possible to read a file with a video bitrate of 30 Mbit/s normally from the computer, but with the NAS, 50 Mbit/s video was shown well. As one of the tests, we looked at a m2ts file of about 40 GB from the disk image without any problems. So just keep in mind that the network speed may be enough for remixes, but we cannot predict success.
Let's start, as usual, with the simplest thing - photographs. The device can work with jpeg, gif, tiff, bmp, png files. The image can be rotated and scaled while viewing. The orientation flag from exif is read and used correctly. There is also a mode for displaying brief information about the file - modification date, resolution, size. You can also change the repeat mode for your slideshow on the fly. To set these options, use a special dedicated button on the remote control with the same name. Unfortunately, its action “interrupts” all other controls - if the “option” menu is visible on the screen, you must first remove it, even to stop playback.
Photo previews are visible only when working with local and network resources, as well as with a DLNA server. Indexing local disks allows you to use, in addition to “directory” navigation, also sorting by date (similarly for video files). There is a built-in library search system that works with indexed content.
The online photo viewing service is presented by flickr. When using it, you can select certain categories of files, such as the most interesting or recently published. But there are clearly some problems with the resolution of the pictures - they look very sad on a FullHD TV.
Let's move on to the music. According to the manufacturer, here we can use the formats mp3, wma, wav, aac, flac, mka, aiff, aac, ogg. In addition, you can decode DD and DTS directly in the player and output in stereo format. In general, all this was confirmed (we did not check some rare formats). Fans of high-quality sound will certainly enjoy working with flac. It’s a pity there aren’t enough developers for ape anymore. The audio output is also not very good - the maximum sample rate of the decoded signal is 48 kHz, even if the source file (for example, in wav format) was recorded at 96 or 192 kHz.
Tags are supported in mp3, wma and flac formats. Russian versions are visible in both Unicode and cp1251 (with the appropriate selection of the code page in the settings).
If your library is already boring, you can use the built-in clients for Live365 and Pandora services. They provide access to a huge number of Internet radio stations. True, the first one works in “VIP” mode for only five days (to demonstrate the full range of capabilities), and the second one is available only in the United States (and requires registration). However, in the free version of Live365 you can find something interesting to listen to. And if this is not enough, purchase a VIP account (about $8 per month).
By the way, if you first turn on the music and then return to photo mode, you will get a slide show with musical accompaniment.
In addition to individual files, the player also works with playlists in pls and m3u formats, which may be useful for some users. Sorting for local disks occurs by album, artist, genre, date.
This player model, of course, is primarily intended for viewing modern high-definition video formats. However, it is also quite compatible with “regular” video and can display such familiar formats as mpeg, avi/divx/xvid and wmv. It’s a pity that the manufacturer has not yet established how to work with DVD-Video: neither folders nor disk images can be fully used - only file by file or only the main movie (and even then not always). Although switching audio tracks and subtitles works fine with them. To fully enjoy the picture, you should look for something with FullHD resolution in mkv, ts/m2ts, mp4 or mov containers. There are also no problems with codecs - all the capabilities of the chip from Sigma Designs are used. The player successfully decodes mpeg1/2/4, wmv9, h.264/avc and vc-1. In particular, you can view recordings from modern HD video cameras without any editing or processing.
While watching, you can use rewind - up to 16x (depending on the format) in both directions. Of course, the actual speed depends on the performance of the data source. Unfortunately, there is no quick navigation using timecode. Some compensation for this can be the automatic memorization of the position when playback is stopped. If you then select the same file, the player will offer to start from there or from the very beginning. Another quick way to navigate is to use the next/previous file buttons while rewinding - they allow you to “jump” 10 minutes at once.
Files can have multiple subtitles and multiple audio tracks. Switching is only through the options menu. This, of course, is not very convenient. You can also try scaling the image by 1/8x, 1/4x, 1/2x, 1.1x, 1.2x, 2x, 4x, 8x.
The situation with HD audio tracks is ambiguous. From the test set of files, some versions played successfully, while others had no sound (although the player correctly detected the track format). So there is no clear answer about the applicability of the player in this case. Among the successful options, we note DTS HD output as DTS, full DD TrueHD, LPCM output with downmix in stereo.
Subtitles are supported both external (srt, ssa, smi/sami, idx/sub) and embedded in the video file (mkv with ssa or srt). When setting the player to Russian, you can use cp1251, Unicode and UTF8 to display text correctly. You can also have several language versions of external subtitles, differing in suffixes. External subtitles do not work when playing files through a media server.
In addition to files, the user can watch videos from the popular YouTube service. There is a choice based on popularity, rating and other criteria. A good move is the support for HD formats broadcast from this service. In this case, on large-screen TVs, the videos do not look as terrible as they do on standard definition.
Complete programs
Full versions of user manuals and various documentation are recorded on disk in pdf format. Unfortunately, Acrobat Reader is not included. Although, of course, most likely everyone already has it installed.
Also on the disk there are several examples of media files - photos in jpeg, music in mp3 and video in mp4. Note that the videos and photographs are in FullHD resolution, so the user can immediately evaluate the capabilities of his new acquisition.
The disk shell is presented as an interactive program that links both to files on the disk and to various network resources (for example, the Adobe website). There is also a WD Discovery utility that will help you find the player on the network and organize access to connected USB devices.
There are no programs for transcoding media files included. Apparently this time the manufacturer considers its product “omnivorous,” which was confirmed in our tests. Although, of course, several times we received a request for specific samples to recode the file for playback on the player.
conclusions
The new model of the WD TV Live player turned out to be certainly successful. In addition to all the positive characteristics of its predecessor, it also received a very fast network, allowing you to view almost any type of content from remote resources.
Some users will also benefit from the increase in HDMI output, which has led to (currently partial) support for new HD audio formats. Of course, to use them you will also need an appropriate receiver.
Unfortunately, in the pursuit of high-resolution video, the manufacturer forgot or did not have time to implement full support for the still popular DVD-Video today - the player cannot show the disc menu.
In our opinion, WD TV Live can successfully compete with numerous models of the NMT family today. First of all, it has a sleek design, a beautiful and convenient user interface, and a very fast network connection. The price announced by the manufacturer at the beginning of sales was $149.99 (we are, of course, talking about the USA) today has already dropped to $119.99 and looks great. On the local market, unfortunately, it differs markedly from this figure. The current average retail price of this model in Moscow is $128() .
We thank the 2L agency for providing the player for testing.
From its first appearance, it immediately won the sympathy of a huge number of users - simply because it was very cheap, and the built-in functionality could be the envy of much more expensive models. However, the first model also had noticeable shortcomings. For example, it lacked a DTS audio decoder, network support, and support for the latest version of HDMI. But Western Digital did not stand still and released the next version called WD TV Live, in which these shortcomings were eliminated. I kept meaning to test this model, but somehow never got around to it. And then from the States they sent me a special new US version called WD TV Live Plus (this is practically the same WD TV Live, only with support for several specific US network services), for which many thanks to the online store Reader-Sony.ru, and Now we’ll just see what this player is. So, a compact universal media player WD TV Live Plus.
WD TV Live Plus
SpecificationsChipset- Sigma 8655
Dimensions- 126 × 40 × 100 mm
Weight- 330 g
Net- Ethernet 10/100
WiFi- using a special USB controller
Ports- Ethernet, HDMI, composite A/V, component video, USB 2.0
Audio File Types- MP3, WAV/PCM/LPCM, WMA, AAC, FLAC, MKA, AIF/AIFF, OGG, Dolby Digital, DTS
Video file types- AVI (Xvid, AVC, MPEG1/2/4), MPG/MPEG, VOB, MKV (h.264, x.264, AVC, MPEG1/2/4, VC-1), TS/TP/M2T (MPEG1 /2/4, AVC, VC-1), MP4/MOV (MPEG4, h.264), M2TS, WMV9, FLV (h.264)
Image Types- JPEG, GIF, TIF/TIFF, BMP, PNG
Playlists- PLS, M3U, WPL
Subtitle formats- SRT, ASS, SSA, SUB, SMI
Online services- Netflix, YouTube, Flickr, Pandora, Live365, MediaFly networks
Drive unit- absent
HDD- absent Well, according to the characteristics - it supports at least the devil of a bald man. But let's see how it will look in practice. Equipment The device itself, remote control with batteries, AV cable (composite signal), AV cable (component signal), AC power supply, quick installation guide and disc. Appearance and Controls There have been virtually no changes in the appearance of the player - a compact box the size of a pocket book.
Appearance
On the front panel there is a power indicator and an indicator for connecting an external drive. On the rear panel there are the corresponding outputs: power, USB, HDMI, optical, Ethernet, audio-video, component.
Rear end
There is another USB port on the left side. There are no control buttons on the body as a class; the player is controlled only by the remote control, which was small and primitive, and remains so.
Remote Control
Main menu
Preview images
While viewing a picture, you can call up a menu that contains zoom-out, rotation, and file information.
Menu
Also, if you are connected to the Internet, you can view images from your Flickr account. Listening to music Various types of selection: by artists, albums, compositions, playlists, recently listened to.
Compositions
Tracks and albums can also be viewed in preview mode or as a list. The player is simple, but during playback it displays information about the artist, album and genre.
Playback
Playback menu
Accelerated playback is done at 2-4-8 and 16x. You cannot jump to a specific time point - by the way, this is sad. The only "jump" that works here is jumping 10 minutes forward or backward when you press the "next chapter" or "previous chapter" button on fast forward.
Video with external subtitles
High resolution video
However, here you also cannot jump to a given time position or to the corresponding number of minutes, which is not particularly convenient. Acceleration from 2x to 16x works, but on some container codecs (especially on Matryoshka) it’s a little crooked. Jumping 10 minutes using the previous/next chapter keys during fast forwarding works here. The key point in my testing of HD media players is how they play folders with Blu-ray disc structures. Because modern players already play all kinds of rips decently, but Blu-ray folders - everything is much more complicated here. Players are divided into three categories based on their playback mechanism: 1. The player does not understand the structure of Blu-ray at all, and in order to play the desired stream stream, you need to select the appropriate file from tens or hundreds. And since the vast majority of players do not yet know how to sort files by size (this is the only way to find a file with a movie), it turns out that you really can’t really watch a movie in this format. 2. When playing a Blu-ray folder, the player automatically finds the movie and starts it. In this case, menus and extras are not available, but you can watch the movie. However, if among the additional stages there is a sufficiently long film about a film, then the player may miss and start it - I’ve encountered this. And then the movie itself can only be started manually. 3. The player reproduces the Blu-ray structure like a regular Blu-ray disc - with all the menus, extras, and so on. This, of course, is the most convenient. But in all my practice, only Dune players reproduced Blu-ray structures in this way. Some journalists explain the existing problems with the reproduction of such folders by the developers' concern for copyright - they say that pirated copies of BR discs are distributed in the folders, so they do not reproduce them, so as not to quarrel with the copyright holders. The explanation, in my opinion, is at least strange. Because the same “Matryoshka”, in which rips of BR films are distributed, is reproduced by all these players without any problems. And they are embarrassed to reproduce folders. By the way, in these folders I keep copies of normal licensed BR discs that I bought with my own hands. It’s just much more convenient for me to play them from a hard drive.
High resolution video in MKV with subtitles
So how does WD TV Live Plus behave with such folders? Behaves badly. Well, that is, it pretends that it understands these folders and seems to play the movie, but in reality it just grabs the first stream file that appears in the list - as a rule, this is a license warning in a hundred languages. Therefore, there is no point in using WD TV. Just search for the movie file and run it manually. Price In the States, this player costs about $90 - that is, two pennies. Given such an ultra-low price, you are more than tolerant of its shortcomings. If you don’t need to watch Blu-ray folders, then the player is quite suitable for solving most light tasks of playing media content, including from the network. conclusions Well, the player is clearly developing - the developers have removed most of the problems of the WD TV model in WD TV Live. With the network, support for the DTS decoder and various Internet media services, the player has become very good. And if you also take into account that it really costs a penny, it simply turns out to be one of the best budget models on the market. Among the shortcomings is the inability to scroll through videos more flexibly and get to the desired point, and problems with Blu-ray folders. Otherwise, it's a great player, just great.
Butter won't spoil the porridge. Folk wisdom
Editorial gg has long been approaching media players from Western Digital, a well-known manufacturer of hard drives. The Live TV model, at first glance, did not promise any surprises. Well, there is support for Internet services (YouTube and Facebook are everywhere now), well, there is built-in Wi-Fi (good, but not a feat). Well, there is support for FullHD video (who would be surprised?) But in practice, the device turned out to be damn user-friendly and extremely pleasant to use.
Along with the TV Live model, the WD line of media players also includes the TV Live Plus and TV Live Hub players. The first of them differs from TV Live in design and lack of Wi-Fi (a wireless network is available only as an option, you need to buy a special USB accessory). The second is the same lack of Wi-Fi and a built-in terabyte hard drive. Thus, TV Live can be safely called the optimal and most popular model among other WD media players.
| WD TV Live Media Player Specifications (WDBGXT0000NBK) | |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 125x100x30 mm |
| Weight | 190 g |
| Interface | Ethernet, Wi-Fi b/g/n, USB 2.0 (2 pcs), HDMI, composite output, optical output |
| Video signal format | PAL |
| Video file formats | VI (Xvid, AVC, MPEG1/2/4), MPG/MPEG, VOB, MKV (h.264, x.264, AVC, MPEG1/2/4, VC-1), TS/TP/M2T (MPEG1/ 2/4, AVC, VC-1), MP4/MOV (MPEG4, h.264), M2TS, WMV9, FLV (h.264) |
| Image File Formats | JPEG, GIF, TIF/TIFF, BMP, PNG |
| Music file formats | MP3, WAV/PCM/LPCM, WMA, AAC, FLAC, MKA, AIF/AIFF, OGG, Dolby Digital, DTS |
| Playlist file formats | PLS, M3U, WPL |
| Subtitle file formats | SRT, ASS, SSA, SUB, SMI |
Appearance
A small, neat box, slightly larger than a pocket-sized paperback book. The front panel has the first USB port and a sensor for the remote control. Well, and of course, an LED operation indicator.
On the back there are elements designed for mounting the media player on the wall in both vertical and horizontal orientation. True, the question remains of how to use the remote control in this case, if the sensor for the remote control is pointed at the ceiling.
The rear panel has everything you need - an HDMI output, another USB, an optical output, a composite audio-video output (a corresponding cable is included in the package) and Ethernet. Although using such a device is much more pleasant if there is Wi-Fi (you can use an iPhone/iPad or Android smartphone/tablet for control).
The remote control is a little big for my liking. But it is very comfortable to hold in your hand thanks to the ergonomic design of its lower part.
Video review
The media player menu exceeds any expectations with its neat design, localized menu (though there is no Ukrainian language) and a large number of settings. You can change the background (and download new themes from the Internet). Manage the color, size, position of subtitles (and even adjust their synchronization with the video).
It is possible to enter parental passwords and program the remote control using its number keys to quickly navigate to certain menu sections or launch Internet services.
But the on-screen keyboard turned out to be not very convenient. To get to the punctuation marks, you need to switch the display page. There is no Cyrillic alphabet. But if you install the WD TV Remote application from Google Play or the App Store, then (provided there is a Wi-Fi connection, a smartphone or tablet will not work via Ethernet) the problem of entering text in any language immediately disappears.
As always, a significant part of the available web services is useless in our conditions. Traditionally, you can use Accuweather, Picasa, Flickr, Facebook (I never found the ability to write), vimeo and YouTube. By the way, YouTube has two options - regular and YouTube Leanback, designed to work with TVs. In this case, you can log in to your account without entering a password - the application will offer a code that you will need to enter on the page activate. After which you can return to the TV and use your saved channels and playlists.
The player has access to two online gaming services - Funspot and Playjam. The games there, of course, are simple (darts, Sudoku, chess), they can entertain/occupy guests. Especially if there is no game console or (oh, horror) computer or tablet in the house.
Bottom line
Despite the fact that I did not expect any special miracles from the media player, it managed to leave the best impression. He coped with the main task of playing video with a bang, never once finding a video that he could not play. Within a month and a half of operation, the player received two firmware updates, which indicates the serious intentions of the manufacturer. Everything about it turned out to be well done and thought out to the smallest detail - from the ergonomics of the remote control and the ability to program it to the excellent menu design and a large number of settings for playing music, photos and videos. The last straw was an excellent application (at least for Android, but I don’t believe it works worse on the iPhone) WD TV Remote, which, if you have a home Wi-Fi network, controls the player and enters text (the same passwords in services or search on YouTube) much more comfortable. In the end, I had no choice but to crown WD TV Live with our highest award - Editors' Choice.
five reasons to buy WD TV Live
- compact body dimensions
- built-in Wi-Fi b/g/n module
- ergonomically shaped programmable remote control
- firmware regularly updated by the manufacturer
- a special application for iOS and Android that makes it easier to work with the player and enter text