A lot of networking companies are busy branching out into home entertainment devices, particularly of the type designed to bridge the gap between your home PC and your TV. The latest model is this LinkTheater from Buffalo, which uses Wi-Fi or Ethernet to stream videos, photos and music directly to your television screen.
Features
The first step is to plug the device into your TV, using either SCART, Composite or S-Video connections, although if you’re the proud owner of a bumper-sized HD-ready TV, you may mourn the absence of a more heavy-duty connector that could make the most of your equipment.
For incoming streams, the device will handle 802.11a or 802.11g Wi-Fi, and can accept an Ethernet cableif your network is wired. It also has a USB port on the front, should you prefer to keep your media files on a storage device or want to offer guests the chance to bring their own, and a decent range of file types for audio (MP3, WMA, AAC), images (JPEG, BMP, PNG) and video (MPEG1, MPEG2, MPEG4, WMV, XviD) are supported.
Performance
Although 802.11g is the current fastest Wi-Fi standard and is perfectly sufficient for audio, it isn’t particularly great when it comes to streaming video unless it’s compressed (we found video compressed with MPEG4 or WMV streamed acceptably well). There are options to cope with this, though: you could either go the wired Ethernet route, or the device will accept a HomePlug adapter if your wireless router is too distant to provide a decent service. Alternatively, you could stream from a USB device. If your video streams look jerky, it’ll be your network – rather than the device itself – that isn’t coping.
Ease of use
Thankfully, the ease of use on these devices is getting better all the time and this model continues that happy trend. It can either use Intel’s Viiv technology to connect to other devices (so long as you have the supporting hardware), or Buffalo’s own AOSS – Airstation One-touch Secure System – if your network is already running on Buffalo gear. Otherwise, you’ll have to go down the old-school Wi-Fi set-up route, but even this is a painless process as the device locates existing UPnP – Universal Plug and Play – media servers immediately. If you don’t already have a media server running on your PC, Buffalo provides the software on the supplied CD. Once you’re up and running, the software feels a lot like Windows Media Center and is very easy to use.
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Value for money
It feels like these kinds of devices have been at the sub-£200 mark for a while now, so it’s nice to see one just pennies away from ducking under the £150 barrier. While we expect to see prices fall once retailers start slashing their margins, this breaks new price ground for a streaming device of its type.
Verdict
While HD-ready TV enthusiasts might bemoan the lack of options for their super-sets, this is an otherwise sturdy option for streaming media to your living room. It’s the easiest to set up and use that we’ve seen to date, though it doesn’t add any exceptional new features. It’s also worth noting that you’ll need a fast network and/or well-compressed video files to get the most out of video streaming via Wi-Fi.
Feature list
• Intel® Viiv™ Technology-Verified Media Player
• Dual-band 2.4 GHz 802.11g and 5 GHz 802.11a wireless for interference-free playback
• Play back from any Windows® PC, Intel® Viiv™ PC, Buffalo Home Server, DLNA CERTIFIED™ Media Server, UPnP Server or USB storage device
• Video formats: MPEG1, MPEG2, MPEG4, XviD, WMV, H.264 (MPEG4 AVC)
• Audio formats: MP3, WAV, WMA, M4A (AAC), LPCM, AC3
• Image formats: JPG, BMP, PNG
• Video modes: 480i, 480p, and 720p
• Included Remote Control for Easy Access to all Media Content (Batteries Included)
• Easy Playback from Buffalo LinkStation™ Home Server and/or TeraStation™ Home Server Series Products (sold separately)
• Built-in 10/100 LAN Port
• Analog (Composite) Audio/Video Connectors
• D4/Component Video Connectors
• Optical Audio Connectors
