Buffalo LinkTheater PC-P3LWG/DVD
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"Save Your Money or Wait for Future Firmware" on by tboyblu
Pros: Excellent video quality - upconverts low bitrate files impressively; USB and network storage support, High Def DivX support to 1080i
Cons: Poor navigation, horrible internet support, long startup time, poor wireless functionality
Summary: I bought this unit to replace my D-Link Media Lounge for the support of WMV, DivX and High-Def versions of these formats, not provided with the D-Link.
If I had to choose between the two, I'd stick with the D-Link, despite the lack of support for the many video files I have in those unsupported formats.
First, the highlights of the LinkTheater.
I have network storage for my media files, and the Buffalo supports that wihtout a hitch. I don't have to have my PC on to access those files. In addition, the USB port on the front of the unit allows me to plug in any USB storage device to play media on those as well.
Wired networking isexceptional and easy to configure (wireless is on the opposite spectrum). Unlike the problems I had with the D-Link and buffer issues (even when wired up), the Buffalo performs flawlessly, even when streaming bandwidth heavy HD video.
The video capabilities are the highlight of this unit. DVD playback is quite impressive (although Buffalo claims they can't upconvert DVD due to the MPAA - but tht isn't true, as other players do support DVD upconversion). The algorithms used to upconvert video files is quite impressive. Even in low quality video files, artifacts are not very distinct, even on my Sony 36" Hi Def TV. High Def DivX and WMV HD look fantastic. Although, you don't get any audio with high def Windows Media Video - a problem acknowledged by Buffalo's support. This is supposed to be fixed with future firmware.
Also of note, Windows media video must be encoded in version 9 or higher. There is no legacy support for earlier versions, including many ASF/ASX files.
Audio sounds clear, almost too clear, as compressed audio, like MP3 and WMA, reveal their digital artifacts in my receiver. WAV, OGG and surround versions (DTS and Dolby are supported for passthrough) sound flawless.
Now the bad. Unfortunately, this unit that has so much potential, does not realize it very well.
Navigation is a nightmare. The oddly configured remote has buttons for rarely used setup features that could have been put in a menu. I would have prefered to see buttons for page up and down, favorites, and the ability to shuffle (which is available for DVD - but not anything else) on the remote. Moving through menus requires you to press a directional arrow button to move one item at a time. Holding the button down does not scroll through a list. In internet browsing, the behavior of the arrow buttons seems very random and puts you all over the screen.
The internet link allows you to go to sites in your Favorites folder of your preferred browser, but it is pretty much limited to viewing graphics and text. A keyboard would be a nice addition to this system, as using the remote to enter text is cumbersome.
Media links on the web don't seem to work. I've tried opening streaming audio links and streaming video links and just get a message on the screen that it is opening the audio or video player, but nothing happens. So - no internet radio support either (the shortcut provided to internet radio by the LinkTheater doesn't work either). I miss support for Napster and Rhapsody that I had with the D-Link.
To randomize playback of audio, you must do that in the server software on your PC. There is no way to do it through the LinkTheater's interface.
Finally, the last annoyance, although minor, is that you cannot playback audio with photo slideshows. I loved that with the D-Link, as you could play some great music to accompany pictures.
I really wanted to like this unit. A nearly identical unit by AVEL (?) is available and supposedly offers a better interface and support. For this prioce, either wait for better firmware, or better yet, look for a unit that supports Windows Plays For Sure audio and video.Updated
DVD playback is quite good on this unit, if you are willing to wait for it to go through its somewhat long boot up (although, it's really not that bad, I just find it annoying sometimes). I don't use this as my primary DVD player, so if you did, you might not like this aspect of the player (although the picture is impressive).
Of additional note about High Def WMV, aside from the no audio issue, the DVDs you can buy that include a disc with WMV High Def may not work in the player. Terminator 2 High Def is a good example, it requires additional software to play it back, and that can't be done on this player (although I doubt any players could do that currently). The IMAX films work, and look fantastic, but without audio, there is no point in watching them.
I'd like to see Buffalo try to address some of these issues, perhaps getting the esteemed Microsoft "Plays for Sure" functionality. -
"First Impressions....Awesome!" on by LexyGS4ever
Pros: Supports many codecs, including DivxHD; photo slide show with music; easy to setup; supports soft subtitling for foreign films
Cons: sometimes remote is slow to respond; no WMV8 or 7 codec support
Summary: I've spent 1 long night with this box and I'm very impressed so far. It pretty much does everything that it says it does and it suprised me with a few additional features that I was unaware of. Things like photo slide show with music, support of soft subtitling of video files, and internet radio were quite a surprise.
I hooked it up to my 1080i HDTV monitor and it looks great, especially the HD content. Lower resolution files that I stream off the computer looked good too.
Setup was a breeze. In a just a couple of hours I was able to setup 3 servers. 1 PC running Link Theatre software, 1 PC running Windows Connect Server software, and 1 Buffalo LinkStation running PCast. All three servers were picked up by the Link Theatre without any problems.
Network connectivity is good too. So far I've only tried 100BT Ethernet...no need for wireless for me. Although I might test it anyways.
Navigation through many video/audio files can be made easy if you place files in subfolders. It can be made easy if you organize your files correctly.
That's it for first impressions. It's a really well done product and I look forward to future enhancements such as support for even more codecs. Nice job Buffalo!Updated
I tried the WMV HD clips from the Microsoft site and only the video plays. The video plays very smoothly, but hey! I need audio with it too. I hope Buffalo comes out with a fix. Other HD content from Divx plays fine.
I called customer support and a real person answered. They couldn't immediately answer my question on the WMV HD audio issue so I'm waiting for a call back like other reviewers here.
Another issue that came up was subtitling from .srt files. The player displays them too small. I wish there was font adjustability that controls size, shadows, etc.
Like azher said, it's a new product that will hopefully see some firmware updates soon.Updated
Got a call from customer service and they explained the issue with WMV HD. It should hopefully be fixed in the next firmware update. It's great to work with customer service that actually helps the customer. Keep up the good work Buffalo! -
"Promising and unstable... so far" on by melvisdog
Pros: Fast server software, multiple file-type support
Cons: No playlists, freeze/crash, no MOV luck
Summary: Setup was more difficult than I expected. I'm pretty good at networking but was puzzled by the setup and all the required rebooting to the LinkTheater.
The first test was running a plain, out-of-the-box Spiderman 2 DVD. It crashed inexplicably at chapter 35. Dunno why.
Once I started the Wireless MP3 streaming (50% of why I purchased it), I found that lovely screeching sound that another reviewer described. Forwarding through to another song sometimes works, other times it crashes. My biggest complaint however is for the lack of playlist support. You cannot create your own, nor can you use those created from WinMediaPlayer or musicMatch. Therefore you can only "play all" by a folder selection which may be a Genre, an Album, or an Artist. Good luck figuring out how to randomize these, once you choose it (you hit the undocumented "Repeat" which will work only between songs, not while they're playing).
Photo support seems excellent. However, I keep my photos in folders according to major events (Beach_2003, Spain_2004, etc) and was disappointed to find that you can only choose one folder to run as a slideshow during any music playback. And you have to do this from the server software, so there's no spontaneous choosing of some photos while the music plays or before your playli.., er... wad of music starts.
Video support of MPEG and AVI seems good. My one WMV that I used for testing is apparently WMV8, which isn't supported. However, my home videos are quicktime which was probably about 40% of why I bought this, and they don't work. The specs sheet and the packaging say it works with MOV, but looking at their site, it's not listed. The screen goes black for probably the amount of time the video is supposed to run, then returns to the selection menu.
I read some bad reviews last year of the d-link device, the Roku, the GoVideo dvd thingie, and others. I waited purposefully for the second generation of devices to fix the codec and software issues, and am pretty disappointed if this is top entry.
I'm going to try to increase my network's wireless strength before sending this back. I may be expecting too much from my 11.G network, but it's not looking promising. -
"Has lots of potential!!!" on by alistan
Pros: The ability to connect to the Buffalo Link Station and play media files is awesome. Great customer support makes this item work looking at.
Cons: Too many minor issues that will have be resolved with the pending firmware upgrade
Summary: I purchased the Buffalo Link Theater along with Buffalo Link Station. The Link Station was added to my network with no problems and was easily accessible by both my wired and wireless devices. However, the installation of the Link Theater was an entirely different issue. After receiving the Link Theater on a Friday and discovering on a Tuesday that the Link Theater documentation on using WEP Keys was wrong, I was finally able to use the device on my wireless network.
When I called Buffalo, I was easily connected to tech support who informed me that the device was so new that they had not had any training. I was instructed to wait for a senior tech to call. The senior tech did call after the weekend and was very helpful and knowledgeable. I was informed that a firmware update was in the works and would be released in the near future. In fact the senior tech was so helpful that he provided me a number so that I could easily contact him if I had any further problems.
The Link Theater plays DVDs flawlessly with the exception that a couple of my DVDs play with a screen that jumps on occassion. However, others work fine. The sound is great, the exception being that when a song first begins, it has this weird sound. Internet video and photos are visually appealing. I hope Buffalo corrects all of the minor issues with this media player and get the firmware out soon so I can show it to my friends. -
"Very nice for my needs!" on by Powie
Pros: Unit looks to be well built, and looks nice. Display looks awesome, easy to use.
Cons: No WPA support, will not share my Samba linux share for some reason.
Summary: I recently decided to catch my home entertainment system up to date. Like one of the other viewers this is my first night, but since there are only a few reviews, I thought I would toss mine in.
Initial setup was easy, I consider myself pretty good with computers and networks. So like any true tech I opened the box, and hooked it up. (using the manual when all else fails) I have this connected to a Sony XBR 34" HD television via component connection. Ar first I had no video but changing video mode via the TV Mode button on the remote resolved this. I set it to 1080i and all was well and looked sweet!
My biggest complaint is the lack of WPA support for WIFI. So for now I have it connected via a twisted pair cable from my switch 30 feet away.
The remote seems "okay". I guess I'm used to my old Zenith remote which you could point any direction almost ant it would operate the TV. I wont put all the blame here as it can easily be the infrared receiver on the LinkTheater itself. Navigating the menu's seems a bit non-intuitive at times. But you get used to it quick.
The first thing I did was pop in a Linkin Park DVD, it looked very nice indeed, and the sound was very good through just the TV set itself. (Reciever and 7.1 speakers coming UPS). I could not say if the progressive scan made it look any better than my old Panasonic DVD player. I'm a bit of a newbie as far as a Home Theater nut.
I then installed the server software on my PC, it installed w/o a hitch, the software could be a bit better as for setting up certain folders to be "served". And as mentioend above I could not access any Samba shares, which for me is a big deal, but since the basic user doesn't run a linux server I didn't let this affect my rating, as I do love this device, and hope they will fix this issue.
After this I tried a bit of internet surfing. The built in browser might be okay for some real basic browising, but I think I'll stick with Firefox on my laptop. It displayed pages well enough to read, navigate. But the remote is not made for browsing.
Next I played some MP3's all which sounded good, the ability to set custom slideshows for each folder is a nice touch.
I then tried a bit of the streaming content, just a few statiions, both tuned in just fine, and sounded good. Knowing this is just streaming content, I really wont use it much at the current time. I know rhaposdy support would be liked by many people.
I also plugged a LEXAR Media 1 gig USB Thumbdrive in, it detected it fine, and played the couple songs I had on it.
After 4 hours there is 0 heat build up on top of the device. So placiing this under my reciever when I get it tomorrow, will not worry me about adding more heat to it.
After looking at similar items from Dlink, Linksys, Roku, Philips, and Netgear I feel I've made the right decision, this thing rocks.
It's a bit pricey, I paied $309 from buy.com. But since I needed a newer DVD player it was worth every penny. I think if they sold a cheaper model without the DVD player they would sell many more. Or one with DVD changer
Another nice touch is the screen saver if you walk away. I look forward to seeing updates to the software as it can hopefully only get better!
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