PinoyDVD: The Pinoy Digital Video & Devices Community
Home Theater => Sources => NMTs => Topic started by: doughn on Dec 17, 2008 at 12:15 AM
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Should buy the wdtv or wait and save a litttle more for a better nmt player such as Popcorn Hour or Egreat ???
i really need a FullHD media player...TIA ;)
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here's the thing : you get what you pay for.
the WD HD you'll be able to watch mkv files among others... but that's it.
spotty upgrade options for that... connectivity is kinda limited but it will get the job done (as far as the ability to watch mkv's are concerned)
Now for the regular NMT's you have so much more flexibility and capabilities.
Eventually magiging mainstream din yan and the prices will be reduced dramatically. Pero that may be 1 to 2 years from now. You never know.
Just list down the things you want to do with the hardware you'll be buying.
Remember the wd hd isn't cheap either kasi you'll need an external HD din e.
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Based on user's reports, I wouldnt even bother about the other functions of an NMT. My opinion is based solely on the playback capability of the devices. So here's what I think.
Mura ba yung 5 or 6K sa yo in case pagkabili mo you find out na hindi kayang mapanood lahat ng 720p or 1080p encoded files that you acquire - (the files can be TOTALLY overwhelming you know), and you feel like upgrading so soon? What do you think? A lot of members here don't seem to mind buying and upgrading again and again and again but what about you?
You'd most likely spend more on HDD so would you like to have the cheapest, but allegedly buggy, alternative at the moment or a more expensive but proven device? Firmware update - of course they should come out eventually but when?
I dont have an NMT because I use the PC, but I feel very frustrated if any of my PCs cant handle the files well - buti nalang I have other PCs to turn to in such situation.
This feels like buying a Shuffle or a Nano to me.
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This feels like buying a Shuffle or a Nano to me.
Ha-Ha....Well said. ;) ;D
Let me just add, if not for the MKV function, the ones being sold by Garfield (HDD Media player/Recorder) seems to be a lot better. ;) ;D
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the WDTV is still relatively new so hindi pa siya ganun ka tested. actually iniisip ko rin yan before. i mean mahirap din kasi mag invest in something new na hindi pa ganun ka tested kasi 50/50 eh, it could be that you end up with a very good item or something that you will regret buying.
sa akin ang naging basis ng decision ko is dun na muna ako sa tested na items na since i wont be able to move around alot this xmas season kasi i scheduled my surgery this december para mahaba ang pahinga and kaunti lang mamis ko na time sa office ko. so at the end of the day i bought the egreat from gren.
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Even the Egreat's and PCH are still works in progress - still plenty of bugs and feature deficiencies ... I used to own a PCH and had to replace it with a more expensive NMT - the DVICO TViX M6500 ...the TViX is a lot better in terms of stability and features, except for Internet connectivity (which you wouldn't likely use if you have a PC)
The drawback of the TViX is that it is quite expensive - almost 20k without the HDD yet, but it's what an NMT should be.
I would recommend the TViX or an HTPC rather than getting a cheap media player or NMT if you're targeting to watch HD movies. Otherwise it will be a more expensive investment in the future, since you will have to replace and upgrade it anyway when you start experiencing the issues (which will definitely happen)....same as what happened with me.
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better save up
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i really need a FullHD media player...TIA ;)
the answer is in your question ;D
i believe the WD will not cut it out for you
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for me, the wdtv is a good second unit, to take out during weekends and stuff like that. so that you dont have to take out your htpc or primary nmt with you. just the movies you want to watch in your portable hdd and the wdtv. perfect! :)
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for me, the wdtv is a good second unit, to take out during weekends and stuff like that. so that you dont have to take out your htpc or primary nmt with you. just the movies you want to watch in your portable hdd and the wdtv. perfect! :)
For this purpose, I totally agree with Iinas ... if it will be in the centerpiece of your HT system however, I would suggest an HTPC or the TViX
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i guess the question has been answered :)
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For this purpose, I totally agree with Iinas ... if it will be in the centerpiece of your HT system however, I would suggest an HTPC or the TViX
sir raptor, you have a great media player in tvix, saw this in singapore, but was still too pricey for me, i was really waiting for this unit to go down in price when the popcorn hit the market. in terms of looks and ease of use, tvix wins hands down but at double the price.... nag popcorn na ako, i could live with the short comings ng pch. ;D
i guess the question has been answered :)
i guess so. ;D
but looking at my argument above. some people might not afford/justify a popcorn or egreat just like i felt i cant afford/justify a tvix. and in the end may end up buying a wdtv since its 1/4 the price of a tvix and 1/2 the price of an nmt.
kaya kung saan kayo masaya, supportahan namin kayo! ;D ;D ;D
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i bought the WD HD for the following reasons:
1. i download torrents from the office (good way to use company resources ;D ) so i rely heavily on my external HD
2. my pc is downstairs, my bedroom is upstairs.
i agree with the ipod analogy. if you want music, get an ipod. if you want it with a touchscreen, get an ipod touch ;D
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me too, esep esep pa and ito ang pananaw ko dyan...
- kung may budget ka na, get an NMT
- if limitado lang pera mo at player lang ang hanap, get wdtv
- if di ka naman kating-kati, wait til dumating ang bagong version ng wdtv (palagay ko naman meron)
- kung bitin ka sa features ng wdtv, ipon pa konti at NMT na kunin mo
bottom line is masaya ka at walang naisasakripisyong ibang mas mahalagang bagay na pagkakagastusan lalo na kung involve ang pamilya.
ito madalas kong sinasabi, "kung mabubusog din naman ako sa banana q, bakit pa ako bibili ng burger?" gets ba, gets?
well, it really works for me being... praktikal. ;)
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I say it will depend on your requirements.
If you're interested in MKV 1080p, then the WD media player is not for you. You'll be happier with a Popcorn/Egreat.
But if you're OK with AVI files with aXXo specs, then a WD would be just right. Cheap, simple, portable.
If you have a grandma who doesn't even have a DVD player in her house, you can even bring it along, hook it up to her TV, and show her some home videos and pics of the kids the next time you visit. ;)
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thanks for the inputs guys.....
my next question should be.... popcorn hour or egreat.... ???
TIA
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thanks for the inputs guys.....
my next question should be.... popcorn hour or egreat.... ???
TIA
hahaha, tough question yan. i suggest you read the other threads here in the nmt section and it will shed some light in which path to take. ;D
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thanks for the inputs guys.....
my next question should be.... popcorn hour or egreat.... ???
TIA
halos pareho lang yung dalawa ... just want to share my opinion being an owner of PCH for almost 6 months then replaced it with TViX - save up for an HTPC or TViX para wala ng upgrade ~ additional HDD na lang in the future
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halos pareho lang yung dalawa ... just want to share my opinion being an owner of PCH for almost 6 months then replaced it with TViX - save up for an HTPC or TViX para wala ng upgrade ~ additional HDD na lang in the future
also been thinking ACER ASPIRE 3200 (htpc) but i need a remote control and virus-free machine....
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Acer Aspire has Vista as OS and as long as the Windows Defender is always on,augmented by another Anti-virus, has proven to be very effective in thwarting any viral attack. ;)
But of course, it's not a guaranty,and at times, despite our defenses, we get victimized by loosing our guard or installing something foolish. ::) :P :'(
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Acer Aspire has Vista as OS and as long as the Windows Defender is always on,augmented by another Anti-virus, has proven to be very effective in thwarting any viral attack. ;)
But of course, it's not a guaranty,and at times, despite our defenses, we get victimized by loosing our guard or installing something foolish. ::) :P :'(
@Alfie
does the 3200 acer performed well (playing mkv) out of the box? or do i need to upgrade some more (ram and vid card and etc) ?? do u use a wireless remote control?
TIA
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does the 3200 acer performed well (playing mkv) out of the box? or do i need to upgrade some more (ram and vid card and etc)
I know a member who's currently enjoying his 3200 Acer even with a very heavy high bitrate 1080p content that I provided specifically for testing purpose. It seems to be working very well with MKV when set-up properly (software/codec).
Yeah kung mahal ang Tvix, and ok lang sa yo to set-up a PC, and you're not a hardcore gamer, this is a nice option it seems.
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The only MKV that I have before I upgraded my Video card was the Olympics Opening which I belive is a 720p, but since I upgraded my HDD, reformatted and installed a 8400 GT Videocard, everything seems to play flawlessly including the Call Of Duty World At War, which the Data Blitz personnel claimed can only be played with a 8600GT video card. ;)
I have not tried the 1080p 30 gig The Dark Knight which was posted by Clondalkin,however, if his friend was able to enjoy that then maybe the X3200 is more than adeequate. ;) ;D
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OT: Alfie, it works... let's see how this baby works on the 8500 instead :-)
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jackRyan- I did some research, it said that the 8500 does not have any significant improvement over the 8400. ;)....however, the site I got into was for gamers,and how they failed to make the X3200 a gaming PC....my take is why on earth did they even try?? ;D
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is there a thread here about Acer Aspire 3200? I've been seeing that PC (?) pop up every now and again on a bunch of threads here and it got me curious. hehe. and just when i am almost 100% sold with getting a WD HD player.
please direct me to the thread so i don't go OT any more than i already am. :(
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Here it is, join the club; ;)
http://pinoydvd.com/board/index.php?topic=86163.0 (http://pinoydvd.com/board/index.php?topic=86163.0)
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jackRyan- I did some research, it said that the 8500 does not have any significant improvement over the 8400. ;)....however, the site I got into was for gamers,and how they failed to make the X3200 a gaming PC....my take is why on earth did they even try?? ;D
Sirs, for our HTPC requirements, the more important thing is the video processors support for hardware acceleration for HD videos (h.264 formats) ... some of the most expensive high-end video cards that were released early last year does not have such feature, and most of the newly released integrated graphics cards on motherboards have the hardware acceleration for HD videos ... hence, an upgrade to a discrete video card will not necessarily mean an improvement on watching HD movies - improvement would just likely be on 3D performance.
What happens if the video card does not support hardware acceleration for HD video is that the encoding/ddecoding process is mostly handled by the CPU and not the graphics processor, hence if you have an old or low powered processor, you may experience issues (freezing, chopiness, pixelization, etc.) ... if you have a graphics processor with HD acceleration however, you do not really need a powerful CPU for HTPC purposes.
The best integrated graphics processor available are the Radeons built-in on AMD 780G-based motherboards ... these are usually paired with single-core AMD Sempron (LE series) for HTPC usage - this makes for a cheap, low-power consumption, and low-noise HTPC system ... there are a lot of positive reviews for such HTPC setups on popular computer tech sites (such as Anandtech and Toms Hardware).
I would recommend upgrading the memory of the X3200 rather than adding discrete video card if the purpose is primarily HT.
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I would recommend upgrading the memory of the X3200 rather than adding discrete video card if the purpose is primarily HT.
dapat ilan gb? yung ram.... TIA
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dapat ilan gb? yung ram.... TIA
Max it out. As much as your OS can recognize. 3.25GB in case of Vista. Hindi ka naman pedeng bumili ng "tingi" so just insert 4GB of RAM.
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Max it out. As much as your OS can recognize. 3.25GB in case of Vista. Hindi ka naman pedeng bumili ng "tingi" so just insert 4GB of RAM.
okies.... salamats
im really torn between PCH/Egreat and X200 acer....???
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Sirs, for our HTPC requirements, the more important thing is the video processors support for hardware acceleration for HD videos (h.264 formats) ... some of the most expensive high-end video cards that were released early last year does not have such feature, and most of the newly released integrated graphics cards on motherboards have the hardware acceleration for HD videos ... hence, an upgrade to a discrete video card will not necessarily mean an improvement on watching HD movies - improvement would just likely be on 3D performance.
What happens if the video card does not support hardware acceleration for HD video is that the encoding/ddecoding process is mostly handled by the CPU and not the graphics processor, hence if you have an old or low powered processor, you may experience issues (freezing, chopiness, pixelization, etc.) ... if you have a graphics processor with HD acceleration however, you do not really need a powerful CPU for HTPC purposes.
The best integrated graphics processor available are the Radeons built-in on AMD 780G-based motherboards ... these are usually paired with single-core AMD Sempron (LE series) for HTPC usage - this makes for a cheap, low-power consumption, and low-noise HTPC system ... there are a lot of positive reviews for such HTPC setups on popular computer tech sites (such as Anandtech and Toms Hardware).
I would recommend upgrading the memory of the X3200 rather than adding discrete video card if the purpose is primarily HT.
Raptor- Thank you for your info, now we know better. ;) ;D
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Sirs, for our HTPC requirements, the more important thing is the video processors support for hardware acceleration for HD videos (h.264 formats) ... some of the most expensive high-end video cards that were released early last year does not have such feature, and most of the newly released integrated graphics cards on motherboards have the hardware acceleration for HD videos ... hence, an upgrade to a discrete video card will not necessarily mean an improvement on watching HD movies - improvement would just likely be on 3D performance.
What happens if the video card does not support hardware acceleration for HD video is that the encoding/ddecoding process is mostly handled by the CPU and not the graphics processor, hence if you have an old or low powered processor, you may experience issues (freezing, chopiness, pixelization, etc.) ... if you have a graphics processor with HD acceleration however, you do not really need a powerful CPU for HTPC purposes.
The best integrated graphics processor available are the Radeons built-in on AMD 780G-based motherboards ... these are usually paired with single-core AMD Sempron (LE series) for HTPC usage - this makes for a cheap, low-power consumption, and low-noise HTPC system ... there are a lot of positive reviews for such HTPC setups on popular computer tech sites (such as Anandtech and Toms Hardware).
I would recommend upgrading the memory of the X3200 rather than adding discrete video card if the purpose is primarily HT.
+1 well said.
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Ang galing ng info mo, sir raptor. Thanks!
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Ang galing ng info mo, sir raptor. Thanks!
Sir, actually if you will build a system based on the hardware combination I mentioned above (AMD 780G-based motherboard and AMD Sempron), mga 15k complete na yung system (minus the PC monitor) .... the price is at par with the price of the PCH and Egreats.
Here's a sample estimate -
2k - Casing (I-Cute QS02)
2.4k - CPU (AMD Sempron LE1640)
2.3k - 4GB Memory (Geil DDR2 4GB Dual)
3.7K - Motherboard (Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H)
3.6k - 500GB HDD
1.4k - DVD-RW
That's approx. 15k lang and puro quality brands pa yung nasa list ... you even have an opportunity to reduce the cost - pwede bawasan memory, yung 2GB kasi pwede na for HT
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Sir, actually if you will build a system based on the hardware combination I mentioned above (AMD 780G-based motherboard and AMD Sempron), mga 15k complete na yung system (minus the PC monitor) .... the price is at par with the price of the PCH and Egreats.
Here's a sample estimate -
2k - Casing (I-Cute QS02)
2.4k - CPU (AMD Sempron LE1640)
2.3k - 4GB Memory (Geil DDR2 4GB Dual)
3.7K - Motherboard (Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H)
3.6k - 500GB HDD
1.4k - DVD-RW
That's approx. 15k lang and puro quality brands pa yung nasa list ... you even have an opportunity to reduce the cost - pwede bawasan memory, yung 2GB kasi pwede na for HT
very competitive. and you already have 500 gb hdd. galing.
sir raptor, i notice sa casing ng htpc laging i-cute yung nilalagay, do you have pix of this? mukha na ba syang av component kaysa computer?
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very competitive. and you already have 500 gb hdd. galing.
sir raptor, i notice sa casing ng htpc laging i-cute yung nilalagay, do you have pix of this? mukha na ba syang av component kaysa computer?
Bro, i think that's sir nerve's htpc casing posted dun sa "htpc set-up" thread.
:)
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very competitive. and you already have 500 gb hdd. galing.
sir raptor, i notice sa casing ng htpc laging i-cute yung nilalagay, do you have pix of this? mukha na ba syang av component kaysa computer?
the I-Cute QS02 is a slim type casing that looks like an AV component and fits on AV racks ... ideally, mas maganda yung mga Antec or Silver Stone casing dahil pang HTPC design talaga - price however is more than four times ... for budget conscious, I-Cute, for those with budget I would recommend the Antec Fusion series casings (but still using the internal components mentioned on my post + additional HDD for more contents)
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Hi Raptor. Please include the price of OS. :)
Is your recommended single core system actually tested with those high bitstream 1080p files I usually mention? I only feel the hardware acceleration effect of my HD4850 and HD3870 when playing original HD DVD via PowerDVD or Nero. The 4850 couldnt even help a 3.0Ghz Pentium D machine. Original HD DVDs play well, 1080p mkv wont.
I still think the CPU is the most critical component strictly for proper playback of 1080p streams in mkv containers, and then the codec.
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the I-Cute QS02 is a slim type casing that looks like an AV component and fits on AV racks ... ideally, mas maganda yung mga Antec or Silver Stone casing dahil pang HTPC design talaga - price however is more than four times ... for budget conscious, I-Cute, for those with budget I would recommend the Antec Fusion series casings (but still using the internal components mentioned on my post + additional HDD for more contents)
thanks sir raptor. very interesting. ;D
Bro, i think that's sir nerve's htpc casing posted dun sa "htpc set-up" thread.
:)
thanks doc, will have a look see. ;D ;D ;D
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Hi Raptor. Please include the price of OS. :)
Is your recommended single core system actually tested with those high bitstream 1080p files I usually mention? I only feel the hardware acceleration effect of my HD4850 and HD3870 when playing original HD DVD via PowerDVD or Nero. The 4850 couldnt even help a 3.0Ghz Pentium D machine. Original HD DVDs play well, 1080p mkv wont.
I still think the CPU is the most critical component strictly for proper playback of 1080p streams in mkv containers, and then the codec.
Sir,
Based on the expert reviews, the 780G-based motherboards paired AMD Athlon LE1640 single-core processor should be able to play smooth video without any issues, even the full HD 1080p movies. You may refer to the following links on results of the tests that were conducted -
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-780g-chipset,1785-2.html
http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=3258&p=1
On Tom's Hardware website review, they used an even slower single-core processor for testing Blu-ray (1080p) movies. They used a Sempron 3500+ (single-core 1.8GHz CPU), which is older architecture and slower than the Athlon LE1640 (2.7GHz). The Sempron 3500+ performed very well, with only an average CPU utilization of 63%+. They even used a lower model CPU, Sempron 3000+ (1.6GHz), and it still performed without any issues on the Blu-ray 1080p movies using PowerDVD when paired with the 780G-based motherboard. The only issue they got with the Sempron 3000+ was that the CPU was too slow for Windows Vista - almost 3 minutes daw ang boot-up.
On Anandtech website review, they used an entry level dual core processor, Ahtlon 4850e (2.5GHz). The results on playing different Blu-ray and 1080p H.264 movies were also very good. Note that the 4850e is only PhP 700 more expensive than the LE1640, so if you're planning to work on other things on the background while playing 1080p movies, this is another option. The results shows that the CPU utilization was less than 20% when playing the HD movies.
The good thing about the Anandtech review was that they showed benchmark comparison with systems using a video controller that does not have hardware acceleration for decoding HD movies - it shows that the CPU utilization shoots up 3 to 4 times compared to the video controller of the 780G-based motherboard. By the way, the integrated video controller of the 780G is a Radeon HD3200. The key is really the hardware HD decode capability.
Another analogy that I can mention are the NVidia GEForce video cards released last year. NVidia released first the high-end models, the GE Force 8800GT/GTS/GTX - these were priced at PhP 25k to 35k. These high-end models did not have hardware based HD decode capabilities, and during testing of Blu-ray movies, the CPU utilization reaches 80 to 90%. When NVidia release the mid-range levels (8600GTS), that were priced at 6k to 9k, they included the hardware HD decode - tests shows that CPU utilization dropped to 20%+ on the average when playing 1080p movies.
If the purpose of the CPU is the same as the NMT's - media player only, LE1640 is more than enough. If it is a general purpose PC, the dual-core Athlon 5000 is only PhP 1k more expensive than the LE1640 - that one or a higher model is recommended.
Regarding the price of the OS, yup you're right on this one. But if you're really tight on budget, there's always the Linux Media Center OS that's downloadable for free - all NMT's are Linux-based anyway. ;D
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Thanks Raptor,
Browsing through the review of Anandtech and TH, their tests were based solely on BD, HD DVD and recorded HD content. I can understand why none of these sites would test the MKVs which, in most cases, are what we're actually referring in this site when it comes to "hd files".
Again based on my experience, PowerDVD Ultra does not have any problems handling any of the optical disks and the TS files (including m2ts) no matter how big the filesize is and how high the bitrate is because hardware acceleration is conveniently enabled. The "1080p files" as we commonly understand in this board are certainly heavier in my test rigs using KMP or MPC or GOM. Case in point, the Pentium D machine Ive been trying to tweak - that plays all my HD-DVDs quite well but struggles so bad even with 8GB 1080p MKV.
Well anyway, hopefully I'd get hold of one of this Sempron powered PCs with 780 chipset and give it a push with the "hd files."
I think the member Momay has set-up his PC to tap hardware acceleration for 1080p MKVs, using MPC Home Cinema for playback, but I havent tried that myself. - condition is, the file has to be DXVA compliant to begin with - but not all of them are.
I'd dare estimate that at least 1 in every 10,000 PC user would even think of running their PC on Linux. So in this board, you're probably the only one, or one of the few ones? ;D ;D ;D
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save up...WDTV just wont cut it. not yet at least. ;)
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I'd dare estimate that at least 1 in every 10,000 PC user would even think of running their PC on Linux. So in this board, you're probably the only one, or one of the few ones? ;D ;D ;D
Unknowingly, all NMT users are already Linux users ... its using embedded Linux as core OS ;D ;D ;D
But kidding aside, the new versions of Linux are very user friendly - if you know how to use Windows, you'll easily get a hang of the new Linux interfaces ... this is one reason why the Asus EEE PC became very popular ... Linux media center is actually more advance than the Windows media center - besides the media player capability, it also has an integrated unified communication system that would allow you to interface SIP phones (parang may PBX ka na sa bahay) + some video security stuff functionality.
I'm using Ubuntu Linux on one of my PC rigs, very user friendly, parang naka-Windows ka na mas stable ....try Ubuntu Linux, its downloadable for free, and if you register on their site, they will even send free DVD installers including free shipment.
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Sir, actually if you will build a system based on the hardware combination I mentioned above (AMD 780G-based motherboard and AMD Sempron), mga 15k complete na yung system (minus the PC monitor) .... the price is at par with the price of the PCH and Egreats.
@raptor, sir may hdmi na ba ito? sori newbie here, and can it play 1080p mkv file? hehehe? TIA
Here's a sample estimate -
2k - Casing (I-Cute QS02)
2.4k - CPU (AMD Sempron LE1640)
2.3k - 4GB Memory (Geil DDR2 4GB Dual)
3.7K - Motherboard (Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H)
3.6k - 500GB HDD
1.4k - DVD-RW
That's approx. 15k lang and puro quality brands pa yung nasa list ... you even have an opportunity to reduce the cost - pwede bawasan memory, yung 2GB kasi pwede na for HT
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Yup, may hdmi and optical out ... it's a PC, as long as you install the codecs and media players (that are downloadable for free), it will play all the media file that you can throw into it
I would recommend the Gigabyte Motherboard (GA-MA78GM-S2H)
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based on my initial observation, as long as dxva compliant yung pagkakaencode nung MKV, then kayang kaya i-play ng WD HD TV.. so kung nagtitipid ka, get the WDHDTV then download those dxva MKV's.. for 720p, so far no issues..
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Paano malalaman kung dvxa compliant yung pagkakalagay sa container na MKV?
Kadalasan naman encoded sa H.264 yung video di ba? MP4 din kaso compress lang.
Kaya hirap mag play yung mabagal na HTPC or low end na media player sa 1080p MKV.
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there's firmware update for this unit. i'm not quite sure how it is after the update...hopefully it's going to resolve everything...
i'm planning to get one kasi... :D
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actually, i think if you're using codec packs and other non-commercial player releases, most of your processing comes via the CPU. at least, this is my understanding of it -- x.264 acceleration is only supported on blu-ray discs and whatnot, most of your decoding/processing/rendering is still done via cpu, can you confirm this?
as such, the 780g platform, good as it is, is not primarily responsible for smoothly playing back mkv files -- it's still very much dependent on your CPU.
we're currently playing around with a low power x2 (2ghz i think, 3200 le? can't really remember, but it's more expensive than a 5000+ X2, probably by 500 pesos, which isn't bad as they can be had for a bit over 3k) and we still observed frame loss on certain high bit rate titles (which was not the case with the 2.6ghz 5000+). It's nice for a low power / heat setup but might take more efficient codecs to render high bitrate files more consistently.
in any case, the 780g is the de facto choice for any decent system, htpc or otherwise.
oh, another question, is the wdtv a linux embedded device as well?
Sir,
Based on the expert reviews, the 780G-based motherboards paired AMD Athlon LE1640 single-core processor should be able to play smooth video without any issues, even the full HD 1080p movies. You may refer to the following links on results of the tests that were conducted -
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-780g-chipset,1785-2.html
http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=3258&p=1
On Tom's Hardware website review, they used an even slower single-core processor for testing Blu-ray (1080p) movies. They used a Sempron 3500+ (single-core 1.8GHz CPU), which is older architecture and slower than the Athlon LE1640 (2.7GHz). The Sempron 3500+ performed very well, with only an average CPU utilization of 63%+. They even used a lower model CPU, Sempron 3000+ (1.6GHz), and it still performed without any issues on the Blu-ray 1080p movies using PowerDVD when paired with the 780G-based motherboard. The only issue they got with the Sempron 3000+ was that the CPU was too slow for Windows Vista - almost 3 minutes daw ang boot-up.
On Anandtech website review, they used an entry level dual core processor, Ahtlon 4850e (2.5GHz). The results on playing different Blu-ray and 1080p H.264 movies were also very good. Note that the 4850e is only PhP 700 more expensive than the LE1640, so if you're planning to work on other things on the background while playing 1080p movies, this is another option. The results shows that the CPU utilization was less than 20% when playing the HD movies.
The good thing about the Anandtech review was that they showed benchmark comparison with systems using a video controller that does not have hardware acceleration for decoding HD movies - it shows that the CPU utilization shoots up 3 to 4 times compared to the video controller of the 780G-based motherboard. By the way, the integrated video controller of the 780G is a Radeon HD3200. The key is really the hardware HD decode capability.
Another analogy that I can mention are the NVidia GEForce video cards released last year. NVidia released first the high-end models, the GE Force 8800GT/GTS/GTX - these were priced at PhP 25k to 35k. These high-end models did not have hardware based HD decode capabilities, and during testing of Blu-ray movies, the CPU utilization reaches 80 to 90%. When NVidia release the mid-range levels (8600GTS), that were priced at 6k to 9k, they included the hardware HD decode - tests shows that CPU utilization dropped to 20%+ on the average when playing 1080p movies.
If the purpose of the CPU is the same as the NMT's - media player only, LE1640 is more than enough. If it is a general purpose PC, the dual-core Athlon 5000 is only PhP 1k more expensive than the LE1640 - that one or a higher model is recommended.
Regarding the price of the OS, yup you're right on this one. But if you're really tight on budget, there's always the Linux Media Center OS that's downloadable for free - all NMT's are Linux-based anyway. ;D
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i bought the WD HD for the following reasons:
1. i download torrents from the office (good way to use company resources ;D ) so i rely heavily on my external HD
2. my pc is downstairs, my bedroom is upstairs.
i agree with the ipod analogy. if you want music, get an ipod. if you want it with a touchscreen, get an ipod touch ;D
After reading this thread I came to a conclusion that you really have to know what you want and how much you are willing to pay for it. You wouldn't buy a Ferrari only to drive it in CM Recto where a Toyota would suffice. I guess comparing WDTV to PCH/E-Great/TVix is like comparing apples to oranges unless you are only comparing their playback capabilities.
Like Sir Pooch's situation, my A/V setup is quite far from my DSL modem/router. Though PCH/E-great has a wireless LAN option to solve this problem.
I've read in an Australian forum that there are cases where the WDTV plays smoother MKV vids compared to the PCH A110. Maybe downloading torrents while playing vids had an effect to the playback. HTPC is probably the most flexible setup of them all however the 2 min boot up sequence is a turn off for me.
Here are my reasons for opting for a WDTV:
1. I do want a NMT that downloads file without having my laptop turned on 24/7 that doubles as a player however, i do realize that if it breaks then i lose everything as well. OffT: Asus WL-500g can do this function w/o the media player capability and has other features like wifi printing. There is an advantage and disadvantage to having one gadget that does everything.
2. E-Great/PCH is promising coz even w/ my A/V setup being far from my Internet source, it does support wifi so I can still connect it to my home wifi. Then again i'm a Mac user and E-Great doesn't support HFS. Not sure about popcorn hour and website doesn't indicate file format support. TVIX does not support HFS as well.
3. Last but not the least is the price. If asked to choose between a torrent downloader and a media player, I would prioritize the media player. For the same price as the PCH I already have a WDTV and a 1TB drive.
My only question is.. Are there MKVs that the WDTV is not capable of playing? Maybe future firmware upgrades will address this. 1.0.1 might do the trick already as we speak.
For those with deep pockets I guess TVIX would be it for NMTs and if you don't mind using NTFS/FAT32 for your drive.
Choose your poison :D
In summary, all these gadgets are great as long as you buy them for what they are built for and maximize all the features. That way you get your money's worth. This thread has been really informative and helpful. Thanks to all the GURUs.
"Once you go MAC, you don't go back" :D
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Makikisakay na lang sa post for WDTV. So basically, WDTV just "doesnt cut it" for 1080p files. How about 720p files? Would the majority of the available 720p files play well on the WDTV?
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actually now i have 2 WDTVs ;D
regarding 1080p files, for me it plays without a hitch with the current firmware.
things i dont like:
no network connectivity
only external HD
the ff and rewind is still a b*tch ;D
other than that, it works for me.
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All 720p files so far have played and most of the 1080p files have played without problems.
As for the original question of the thread this is the route I took:
WDTV first (cause I can't wait anymore and it plays most files anyway) then in about a year or so when prices of the PCH and Egreat go down to about 6k I can upgrade. So for the price of a PCH or Egreat today, I can have the PCH/Egreat plus the WDTV. ;D
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^^Yes, that was my thinking too. My TV is only 720p capable so no need for 1080p. HTPC would seem a lot of work.
Actually, I do have the mediagate 350NDAS but didnt able to use the network function so I think, the WDTV would work for me....
Thanks for the info poock and sardaukar
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regarding 1080p content, my wdtv doesn't have problems playing it. i have those 8gb 1080p files.