Lowest Price Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN

After much anticipation, WDTV Live is finally here! I'll get right to the point, because I know there are a lot of questions from current Western Digital WD TV HD Media Player owners and those sitting on the fence about the capabilities of the Live in comparison to other media players on the market. I also considered the ASUS O!Play ($99) while waiting for the Live's release or the Seagate FreeAgent Theater+HD ($135). The WDTV is a proven quantity and for the Live, I had high expectations.

Cosmetically, not much has changed. Not even the box. The Live is nearly identical to the WDTV except in color, being matte grey instead of shiny piano black. Ease of setup and usage carries over from its forebear, so WDTV users will be right at home with the Live's interface and settings. At the rear, the ports have been slightly rearranged to make room for a LAN port and component out. HDMI is now 1.3 instead of 1.2, capable of a color depth of 12 bits per pixel. Batteries are included in the box, as are component and composite cables, but bring your own HDMI or LAN cable.

Building on the strengths of the original (and successful) WDTV, WD has made an already excellent player even better. They listened to users and addressed two of the biggest complaints of the WDTV, namely: lack of network connectivity and lack of DTS down-mixing.

I am pleased to report that on these two counts, the Live is a winner, packaged inside the same compact form factor as its predecessor and sold at a very reasonable price. The most exciting thing is network connectivity because the Live can be made wireless!

1) Network connectivity: out of the box, the Live connects via CAT-5. I have no interest in connecting USB hard drives to the Live because it limits my mobility. I have 2 NAS (Network Attached Storage) devices (D-Link DNS321 2-Bay SATA, RAID 0/1 Gigabit Ethernet Port Network Storage Enclosure and D-Link 2-Bay Network Storage Enclosure) and have been streaming movies wirelessly to my PlayStation 3, but I don't like the PS3's lack of MKV support and wasteful energy consumption. My PS3 can now go back to being a dedicated game and Blu-ray machine.

I was surprised to discover that my AirLink 101 AWLL6070 150Mbps 802.11n Wireless LAN USB 2.0 Adapter (purchased for a failed WDTV networking hack attempt) worked. I plugged it in, changed the Live's setting to wireless and it saw my wireless network with no fuss. I really have to hand it to WD for making the device open-ended, unlike the NETGEAR Digital Entertainer Live (Black) (which I tested and returned), which requires a proprietary $40 Netgear dongle. Other dongles will work too with the Live, and WD has a forum listing them.

2) DTS down-mixing: this was another shortcoming of the original WDTV. The Live down-mixes DTS to 2.0 so you don't need to slave it to an audio receiver anymore. Many of my MKV's are encoded with DTS, so this is another huge improvement. DTS Master Audio does not seem to be supported, but I am not very concerned as DTS MA is rarely encountered in the wild (though that may change in the future). All my files are MP3, AAC, AC3, or DTS audio streams, which all work on the Live. Many of the tested MKVs have multiple audio streams for different language tracks. You can also mux additional tracks and subtitles into the MKV file with the free and awesome mkvmerge GUI program. Subtitle files can be downloaded from sites like DivxStation.

DTS downmixing means now I can take a portable drive of movies over to a friend's house and not worry about compatibility, greatly increasing the versatility and value of the Live. The inclusion of both component and composite outs removes the worry about older TV's. And like the WDTV, the Live will downsample to standard def for non-HDTV's. However, if you have an HDTV and an AVR, you'll want to use them for maximum enjoyment.

But the most biggest selling point for me is wireless. After discovering WiFi connectivity, I lost all interest in using the Live as a wired device. With just $20 (cost of AirLink), I now have a wireless player that easily out-competes more expensive ones like the Popcorn Hour A-110 HD Networked Media Tank (EU), and can enjoy the freedom and convenience of putting this player anywhere in my house. I don't have messy and dangerous wires all the floor to trip over (I killed a 1 TB hard drive full of movies this way) and I don't need an audio receiver. All the 720p/1080i/p videos I had on my NAS played perfectly with the except of one 1080p .mp4 which had intermittent hiccups every minute or so.

The Live saw each device 2x on the menu, as a media share and a network share. With media share, the files are divided into 3 categories: video, photos, music. Only some of my movies showed up (WMV, MP4, AVI, TS), no MKV's. With network share, all the files are listed. This is the listing option to use if you have a NAS.

3) Additionally, third complaint on the WDTV was lack of support for 1080p24. This format now plays. VOB is now also supported, for those of you who make DVD archives.

USABILITY:

The WDTV had the most attractive and usable interface of any of the 10+ media players I tested over the years, and WD didn't mess with a winning formula. Graphically, the Live retains the blue cool-toned look and easy-to-use navigation of the WDTV. It adds a third listing option, Preview mode. Movies will now start playing in a smaller window on the right if you pause over the title for a second or two (with audio). Every movie I tested plays in preview. The remote control is the same as the WDTV. Navigation long directories is still somewhat of a pain because of no Page Up/Page Down button, but if you hold the up or down button down, it'll scroll by a page at a time after a second or two. Commands are fast and responsive. No spinning dials that plague the Netgear Live Entertainer.

For rewinding, the preview sometimes does not match the time-code. The timer was counting down, but the screen showed video from the opposite direction. If you stop rewinding and resume again, it'll show the proper preview. This is a small nuisance that I hope WD fixes soon in a firmware update.

Subtitle support via embedded or external still works great for Western and non-Western character sets because of Unicode. Embedded subs are pre-tagged with the language code, so the device will display "Subtitle 1/3 - English". For external .srt files, I discovered that if I name them the same as the movie and include a dash, then the language (e.g. "MOVIENAME - ENG.srt"), the WD will display the part after the dash as the language name.

INTERNET STREAMING:

For YouTube, the videos looked really good. The Live will select HD streams if available. I was surprised at the video quality of some of the ones I loaded, particularly one music video. Startup was fast, if not instantaneous, and I did not notice a buffering delay. Currently, YouTube is the only site supported, and searching is only in Western characters. The onscreen keyboard is arranged in row, A-Z, with 0-9 at the bottom. (Plugging in a USB keyboard did nothing.) I'm hoping for Hulu, Vimeo, and more in the future, like a WDTV Live Channels Guide or something like that, organized by interests (sports, history, science, news, etc), or regions of the world. It would be a very useful feature for people like my dad, who doesn't know how to use the web and he'd be able to watch shows from other parts of the world. Maybe in a future firmware update.

I didn't test Pandora or Live365 (internet radio) because I'm not interested in listening to radio/music out of my TV. Noticeably missing is NetFlix support, a feature prominent on some networked media players, Blu-ray players, and gaming platforms (Xbox 360), though word is that WD is at work on an update.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

Next on my wishlist is RMVB support. This is the last thing missing from the long list of supported formats, because then I can throw out the really crappy RMVB player I have. Sadly, it seems to be hardware related and cannot be added with a firmware refresh.

Lastly, if the Live came in new colors like fire engine red like the Western Digital My Passport Essential 320 GB USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive WDMER3200TN (Real Red), or banana yellow, that'd be hot. I don't particularly care for the Live's matte grey exterior and prefer the glossy finish of the WDTV. It's not solid grey. It's sparkly like glitter, a rather odd choice for a finish.

To sum up, this is the device you've been waiting for! It is a great little player for the price. It now does everything I want it to (minus RMVB playback) and is truly the versatile and unfettered player that I have been hoping for. As a gadgets guy and early adopter, I wasted several hundreds of dollars testing out disappointing players and can say definitely that WD makes one of the best players on the market.

UPDATE 1: 10/24/09:

1. Streaming from Windows PC's works great (XP). I turned on folder sharing and the Live saw my media files and sub-folders right away. Right-click the folder, select "Sharing", then check the box that says "Share this folder on the network" and give it a share name. Mac sharing doesn't seem to work, but I added this only for the curious.

2. I logged into Pandora and it worked with no lag and no buffering. Currently, it's listen only. You can't add new stations, so you'll still have to manage your presets from their website through a normal computer. I found out Live365 is a paid service ("my trial is about to expire in 5 days"), making the feature totally worthless to me.

3. I turned on "thick" subtitle outlines option and it makes them a lot easier to see, especially if there's a lot of white on the screen.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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In the past I have dismissed various media players such as the Apple TV with 160GB Hard Drive - MB189LL/A because they either cost as much as a Xbox 360 Arcade or weren't anywhere near as versatile as the PlayStation 3 120 GB. Now there is a viable option that is more versatile than the PS3 (minus the Blu Ray) and costs less than the Xbox 360!

In terms of versatility, this unit excels. It plays media on attached USB drives like the consoles, and like the consoles, it can connect to a DLNA server (such as Tversity). What is unique is the network share support, both in terms of media playback (making media servers someone unneeded if this is your only media player) and in terms of adding any attached USB drives to your network. In terms of codec support, this unit plays just about anything. Where my PS3 could play m2ts files with ac3 (Dolby Digital), this unit can do that as well as play mkv files with either ac3 or DTS (or both since mkv and m2ts files can have multiple audio streams). WMV, mp4, mp3, etc all supported, as are many other formats I don't use (but you may).

The WD TV Live also sports many outputs (though you seem to be able to use just one at a time), including HDMI, component, composite, toslink, and RCA. It's also got 2 USB inputs (supporting optional wireless and drives) and ethernet in. The small unit is about the size of a paperback book and sports enough heft to stay in place (a sometimes overlooked feature). Rounding out the hardware is a mediocre, but functional and responsive remote control. WD says you can use the device with a Harmony.

The software is simple, easy to use, and a bit deliberate in that you must choose your media type (audio, video, or picture, then your source, then browse within. I imagine this would rock if I had many sources, but with one media server, fewer clicks would be a plus. The default thumbnail view may work well with local drives, but using media servers and shares, switching to the list view helped tremendously. While generally responsive, the UI generates some flicker at the bottom of the screen when browsing (using HDMI at 1080p, not sure if all scenarios generate this). Video playback is fine, though some files take a few moments to start up (maybe a tad quicker than Netflix on the 360). The PS3 totally blows the device away in that regard, but otherwise video playback is outstanding. AV is synched, and I've not noticed any hickups even playing 13gb+ 1080p h.264 (profile 4.1) DTS files (over 100mbps ethernet).

All in all, this device is my favorite media player, allowing me to move my PS3 to our other HD TV and retire our 360 from media playback duty (saving it for games). I haven't had a chance to check out the ASUS O!Play - TV HD Media Player (Black), but that may be worth a look (slightly different input and output options, but seemingly as flexible.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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As a die-hard fan of Apple products, it broke my heart to buy the WD TV Live instead of an AppleTV. But the lack of flexibility with the latter left me no choice. After using the WD for several days now, I couldn't be more pleased with my decision. Set-up was surprisingly easy, shockingly so, in fact. The devise instantly recognized my Mac and integrated its files without a problem. The interface isn't perfect - very PlayStation-esque - but works very well after you get used to it. Movie playback was seamless, audio playback excellent, and the youtube/pandora integration is a huge plus. I have high hopes that future firmware updates will expand that capability to hulu and netflix.

The WD TV lacks the polish of an Apple product, but the added functionality more than makes up for it. I highly recommend the WD to anyone who wants to tie their the computer to their home theater.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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There are already some very well-written informative reviews on this player, so I'll try to focus on the "out of the box experience" since mine is literally just out of the box today. Because my order on Amazon for this product was backordered for a month or more, I called all the local Best Buys until I found a WD TV Live that was not showing up on their "store availability" page and purchased it for $119 plus tax (oh how I missed Amazon when the tax was added on at my local store!). The price on Amazon has gone all over the place the last few days, from $119 to $149. I'm assuming we'll see it at $99 after the initial release period is over since several media players are now priced at that point.

I went home, unpacked the box and in my haste I didn't even see the installation CD that came with the unit. (I just ran it now so I could tell you about it - it includes a utility which allows your computer to "see" the WD TV, as well as the manual and some other fluff).

I plugged the WDTV into an ethernet jack on my router, used the supplied cables to attach to my TV, plugged in the power cable and literally minutes later I was watching videos stored on my computer! The WD TV immediately logged onto our computer network and saw both of our computers (Windows XP), and I was able to watch media stored on both. Wow. Very easy. Then I navigated to Pandora, punched in my account information, and 30 seconds later was listening to my Pandora music stations. Next stop was YouTube (another menu option), I plugged in my YouTube name and password, and was able to see my YouTube subscriptions.

I then went into the settings menu and clicked on "update firmware" just to make sure I had the latest firmware installed. After about 5 seconds of the unit checking with Western Digital, it confirmed my firmware is up to date. Again, very easy. I was also able to register the unit from the onscreen display, and received a confirmation email. I found the onscreen menus very logically laid out and easy to use.

Watching movies stored on my computer and accessing YouTube/Pandora was great - but I wanted to see if I could access Hulu. So, I navigated to the "media server" menu and it saw my Tversity software program running on one computer. I clicked on that and minutes later I was watching "Glee" (a program on ABC). The only issue I ran into was that fast forward would sometimes cause the program to freeze and I would need to re-start. Given that this media player is brand new and basically in what feels like a beta release, sold out just about everywhere, I'm assuming that a firmware upgrade in the coming weeks will fix that bug as well as any others I come across. I tried a few other programs and was only able to replicate the issue intermittently. However, pause caused no problems. And, I don't expect Western Digital to support Tversity, which may be the root of the problem (vs the WD player) so I'm not taking off marks for that one issue. I'm just happy I can watch a variety of shows streamed from Tversity on the WD TV. (A google search on Tversity will take you to the download site for that wonderful free to try program).

My previous media server, the D-Link DSM-320 D-Link DSM-320 Wireless Media Player, Audio/Photo/Video, 802.11g, is not nearly as nice... I spent hours and hours and hours (days) configuring it and getting it to "see" my home network. I also found the user menus to be very cumbersome with navigation almost an afterthought. In contrast, the WD TV is a dream come true and definitely feels like the "next generation" of media servers.

I've tried a number of video and music formats, and they've all played with no problem (except for the fast forward issue above). I watched a slide show of pictures stored on one of my computers. All of this without reading a single manual or going to a single internet help forum. Literally, plug and play.

So, overall, I'd say this is a strong unit, and I'm very happy with it. Since I am reviewing the unit much sooner than I normally would, I do commit to the Amazon community that if I experience issues with the WD TV I'll return to update this review. But based on my experience with other media servers and other hardware setups, I think this is a winner. Highly recommended.

Hope this helps!


UPDATE 11/12/2009: Almost a month later and I'm 1000% happy with this player... no issues. Works great... fast..great interface... I'm going to give one or two of these as holiday presents this year. I've replaced my DVR on my second TV and no longer pay the cable company $14 per month for a DVR... this little gizmo is going to pay for itself!

LAST UPDATE 12/5/2009: I was experiencing video freezing with Hulu using the Tversity software on my computer... I switched to Playon and am really glad I did! Flawless performance on Hulu streaming and TONS of content (i.e. you can watch tons of old TV shows like Dynasty and Mary Tyler Moore). Still very happy with this unit. I do agree with other reviewers - it would be nice if remote had a volume control, and some of the navigation screens are a bit "clunky" but overall very happy.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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Why is WD continue to leave these important features out? I decided to return this item. I like to watch concert dvd and my kids like to watch different episodes of cartoon. I can't select my chapter. Come on where is IFO for MENU SUPPORT. Forget about Subtitle or Audio for different languages. Other than that PQ is worser than WDTV 1, any way, I may just bite the bullet and buy POPCORN HOUR or PlayON HD.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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The device supports HD video recorded AVCHD at 24 and 17 MBit/s on JVC Everio X HD pocket size camcorder.

The camcorder contents is detected and WD TV Live plays video directly from the camcorder.

It will not support externally connectable USB DVD or Blu-Ray disc players, and therefore there is no need for Blu-Ray or DVD menus. I am suprised that some expect more than the device was designed for. I suppose proper menu could get enabled for devices that were compatible connected and detected, or else menues do not show up.

Playback of photos may be problematic, if you have some 45000 pictures on an external USB drive. It takes some time to count them up. Photo display is better done from a computer.

However, for a store window slide presentation lasting long time, e.g. all day, this device and large HDTV, combined with external USB drive packed with many photos is an economical and easy solution. This would easily replace LCD photo frames with huge TV and more flexible playback capabilities.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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Hi all I just recently purchased a WD TV Live Media Player. Here are my impressions thus far. I find that everyone seems to have different uses for these types of devices. It's hard to review these type of devices because of it's many uses, it may or may not suit your needs depending on what files you play on it. The uses of this player is not limited to how I use it, is what makes these players a great idea. As a person who has an HD camcorder, you cannot compare how the videos look on an HDTV as opposed to a computer screen, viewing on an HDTV reminds you why you bought the camcorder / HDTV combo, awesome quality. Nice to have these media player devices so that you don't have to hook up your camcorder all the time to view your videos on the big screen. My needs are quite basic and I will break down what devices I have and how I use my devices in relation to another. Note: I play my files mainly off a USB SATA hard drive.

Devices I have:

Sanyo VPC-FH1 1080P camcorder

Aiptek GVS 1080P camcorder

WD TV Live Media Player (WDTV2)

Gen 1 WD Media player (Used to have)

With my Sanyo VPC-FH1, I usually record in either Full-HR: 1920 x 1080 (60 fps/ 24Mbps) or Full HD: 1920 x 1080 (60fields/sec 16Mbps) Both play on PC with ultra smooth playback.

WD Live player: Plays 1920 x 1080 (60 fps/ 24Mbps) files very smooth, occasional weird hiccups, would rather live w/o but tolerable.

Full HD: 1920 x 1080 (60fields/sec 16Mbps) files seem to play at 1/2 the frame rate, not choppy but not the smooth fluid playback that it does on PC.

With my Aiptek GVS I film in either 1080P 30FPS and 720P 60FPS

1080P 30FPS files just don't seem to play right, it just seems a bit jumpy, it's just weird, you have to see it to see what I'm talking about.

720P 60FPS files are somewhat choppy, goes from smooth to choppy.

Now my experiences with the gen 1 WD Player

Sanyo 1920 x 1080 (60 fps/ 24Mbps) files are choppy and reduced framerate.

Sanyo 1920 x 1080 (60fields/sec 16Mbps) files play perfectly fine, no choppiness, super smooth playback, no hiccups.

Aiptek 1080P 30 FPS second files play just fine.

Aiptek 720P 60FPS files also play just fine.

A few more other uses I have for my players.

ISO files

WD Live player: Can play just fine

WD Gen 1 player: Also plays just fine.

VOB files

WD Live player: Can play just fine and continuously as 1 file

WD Gen 1 player: Only plays one at a time, no option for continuous play.

Early conclusion: I wish they could have combined the positive features of both players into the WD Live player. Unfortunately, they fixed some issues present in Gen 1 but took away some with gen 2. At this point I would need both players to be completely satisfied which of course is not practical. I hope that a firmware update will soon be available to address my issues which may address other issues people might be having. So these are my experiences with the player. There seems to be countless options, but I only use a few and so far my needs are not met with this newest player. At first when I saw that it could play my 1920 x 1080 (60 fps/ 24Mbps) files I felt problem solved, that's all I'm missing. But to find out that it could not play certain files as well as my gen 1 player could play was very disappointing. Feel free to ask some questions or make comments.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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I rarely give reviews unless they are negative. This device exceeded my expectations. It delivers a beautiful picture and is super easy to use. It had all the right features that I was looking for, like both composite and HDMI connections, and the long list of video formats. You can't beat it for the price.

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This thing does exactly what it advertises.
And it does it well.

EVERYTHING I have thrown at it, it has played. Period.

I am running a wired network and have NEVER seen ANY lag or hiccups.
1080p - XViD - mkv - ts - iso - everything, plays flawlessly.

I have never had any network problems, audio issues, or lock-ups.
Before I would use my XboX 360 for WMV-HD, but it doesn't play mkv like the WD TV Live, and mkv is 90% of the HD content out there.

This thing has been running non-stop since the day I bought it the week it was released.


Not sure of the competency level of the other reviewers, but this thing is easy to setup.

I FINALLY can retire my XboX 1 as my main media hub. :-)Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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Finally, they have solved the DTS downmix issues, plus there is an Ethernet connection for Firmware updates (shame the original didn't allow this, rather than having to fork out for an entire new unit). However this also features live streaming, which works like a storm with my Cyberlink Media Server. Plus it has UTube and Pandora built in, much easier access than via my Samsung BDP-1600.
My one comment would be shame on you Amazon...6-8 weeks backorder ??
How come I can walk in to Best Buy and it's sitting on their shelves. One can only assume your buyers had no idea how popular this would be.
Prior to this I also tried the Briteview CinemaTube, that tried to do everything this does (but without UTube and Pandora). When you compare the two, the CinemaTube fails miserably and is being returned as we speak.
What Western Digital have done is come up with something that equals the Popcorn Hour at $100 less than Popcorn's price !
Now if Amazon only had stock, you could all enjoy it's features as much as me !!
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Ok, I expect anyone who wants a product like this to do some homework first and have some tech knowledge. That being said, I love this device.

I've been putting downloaded media onto TV's for years. I had an old ati card that had a composite out to my 22" crt back in 2002. Loved that but getting up to change the volume/file playing etc was a pain.

In college I bought a $40 philips dvd player that would play divx/xvid files I burned to cds and later dvd's - loved that and used it for years. I could fit a half a season of a show on one dvd disc!

More recently I watched everything in my room on my 22" lcd using a basic usb remote and windows media center. It works well though the screen is a bit small.

Enter my living room. I have an HDTV. A blu ray player that streams netflix well (love the LG players!). Still, I download a lot of content, archive even more, and watch hulu often. What about all those HD movies I have?

The WDTV Live is the best solution I've seen for playing/storing media in HD. It's gorgeous quality, fast UI, and great featureset make this the best technology purchase I've seen in ages.

Pandora? Check
UPNP/DLNA - Buy playon and suddenly you have Hulu, Netflix and many other streaming options at your fingertips

The network just works flawlessly for me (I have an Ethernet to 802.11N adapter that works well).

Haven't seen a file yet that this can't play. It's so fast and natural you could set one up for your household and I'm willing to bet just about everyone could figure it out.


If you're looking at this sort of device, this is THE one. I've researched it for weeks, and let me tell you this can't be beat. Unless you need more functionality or flexibility, in which case you should build a home theater pc.



Protip:

Once this is on your network, you can transfer files to the device from there. I have a desktop downstairs hosting my files, and from my laptop upstairs I can transfer everything I want - albeit more slowly.

Awesome, simply awesome. If only it had esata and gigabit ethernet...Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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This product works flawlessly for me. I can stream my videos from my server and I can watch videos from an attached HD. I tried the ASUS O!play and it didnot work properly. It was returned. Get the WD unit.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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This is very tiny hardware media player.

I'll just put the cons here since the pros are fairly easy to read in other reviews.

1) Will not recognize any folder on the network that is named MOVIES, MUSIC, PICTURES.

2) Only passes dts into stereo. Licensing costs too much WD says.

3) Does not play my Quicktime (MOV) files (which are four years old).

4) Cannot hot swap USB drive. You have to power off/on the player or it will not be recognized.

5) No E-sata port like the ASUS

Those are just minor quibbles. It's a fantastic device and easily replaces your HTPC. Uses 5% of the space and 5% of the energy of a HTPC!


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The search for a reasonable media device continues. This is my 3rd media device, and as much as I wanted to like it, it fell down on several fronts. I guess I'm going to simply have to break down and purchase a full HTPC.

First, an important setup note that's not mention in the setup guide. The device defaults to *composite* video out of the box. The manual states that the unit has an "Auto" function, but my device was set to "Composite". Don't bother hooking up your HDMI cable, as you won't get a picture. You must first hook up the composite cable that comes in the box, navigate to the settings/video menu, and change the output to HDMI. Of course, at that point you'll lose the picture, and then you can hook up the HDMI cable. OK, I know it's a minor nit, but why on earth would a company market a "1080P HD" device, and default it to composite? Other than that, it was easy to set up.

The big advantage of this next generation device is that it has network support. Unfortunately, it appears that the support was hacked together without much thought as to how it should integrate with the existing functionality.

In particular, attached USB drives can be organized in a "media library". Pictures, movies, and music will be organized by type, regardless of where they reside on the hard drive. From the user's guide: "Media Library Compilation refers to the process of scanning and consolidating the media contents of a USB drive into one comprehensive database so that you can easily browse and locate media files based on certain metadata information (e.g., video files are categorized based on title or release date)."

Unfortunately, there doesn't appear to be any way to incorporate media on the network (i.e. media servers, network attached storage) into the library. To access media on the network, you have to navigate a seemingly endless chain of menus. For example, my photos are stored on a NAS (e.g. MyNAS) in a folder media/pix. To view a photo, you navigate through the menus via Photos->Network Shares->MyNAS->Media->Pix. That's way too many clicks to get to a photo, mp3, or video. At a minimum, a shortcut feature would be nice.

Perhaps a future firmware upgrade will incorporate the network media into the library, but the current functionality is seriously wanting in the usability area.

A more significant issue is that the device is periodically rebooting itself when I forward to the next song while in shuffle play. If I select a folder and hit "Play", it'll randomly select a song and start playing it. If I skip to the next track, 2 or 3 times out of 10 the device will reboot itself. There's a serious bug in the software. This is a showstopper, as I planned to mainly use the device to stream music to my home theater. I checked for a firmware upgrade, but I'm using the latest version. I can't imagine that this is a hardware defect, as the rest of the features appear to work fine.

Another negative is the lousy remote. It's too small, has a poor button arrangement, and has no back-lighting. I know many people will dump it for a universal remote, but there's no excuse for this piece of junk.

On the positive side, the codec support is top-notch, and the speed of the UI is generally acceptable. It powers up in ~8 to 10 seconds, and the menu transitions are snappy. However, accessing media on the network (via cat 5) results in a lag of a few seconds as the device logs in to the NAS or server. Not the end of the world, but a minor annoyance.

In a nutshell, this player appears to have been rushed to market. I can see why the original device got such good reviews, as the management of local media is very good. However, if you're planning to use the device primarily to access network-based media, you'll be disappointed. Sure, you can access media on the network, but it's not seamlessly integrated in the media library, and as a result, usability sufers.

I'll probably hang on to the device for a few weeks to see if a firmware upgrade addressed any of the issues, especially the random reboot. If not, it's going to heading to Ebay for a quick auction.

Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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This uses the new processor Sigma SMP8655 instead of Sigma SMP8635 in the previous model.
Tried with wireless adapter Rosewill RNX-EasyN1 and DLink DIR-655, and it works.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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Well, after spending the past month or so with this device, I can say it works wonderfully-- sometimes.

My intent was to use it in the kitchen as I use the Xbox 1 XBMC in the living room. That's not happening.

The streaming on the device constantly drops off within 5-7 minutes of starting any video running from any of my 3 home PC's, and it completely drops off my wired home network (loses IP and needs to be manually reconnected from the network settings menu). Youtube videos work fine streaming (watched about 45 min. of a movie on youtube just to test with no issues at all), as do any USB-stored videos. So I'm kind of baffled, and WD isn't talking or returning emails. A google search tells me I'm not the only one with this issue.

It has tons of potential, and is a great device if streaming from your home network isn't your intended use. Everything else works great! Of course, if there's something someone thinks I'm missing, please feel free to reply here.

I'm keeping the unit for the parts that DO work (the USB portion), as I feel it's worth it for the price. I'm also maintaining hope that it's just a firmware issue that WD will eventually address or return an email on. But I'm not holding my breath.







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Read about all the problems everyone is having with file sharing and streaming, myself included. Don't buy until these issues get resolved.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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first off, mkv wont play streamed through most media server setups. best bet is to use network shares if you are gonna stream mkv files. it will detect subs within the containers and it will detect subs if theyre in the same directory as the movie file, assuming they share the same name. ive played isos, mkvs, mpgs, mp4s, avis... all through network shares with no real problems relating to file types. on the network issues people are mentioning, i have had many network issues myself, and then realized that closing my download programs while watching movies on this player eliminated the problem. i used to have trouble connecting to my shares, sometimes it would say no media, sometimes it would hang and id need to reboot, sometimes it would load the files but not play them. now, as long as i dont have a bunch of torrents downloading while im using the player, i have no more problems with that connectivity stuff. not being able to download a lot while watching vids via shares is a con because i used to do media server to ps3 stuff all the time with absolutely no trouble due to downloads -- im talkin 10+ simultaneous downloads at 2MBps down and 200kbps down. i think something about the way the wdtv player processes streams overloads my router or something. another flaw is you can only do 16x fast forward and rewind, which is very slow since you are not able to choose chapters or anything on most files you will play on this. ps3 has 120x fast forward and rewind for streamed files. another thing that bugs me is sometimes it will forget where you last left off on a movie, so youll have to start all over or fast forward for several minutes to get to where you want.

features wd needs to add:

- faster fast forward and rewind -- way faster, 16x is much too slow.
- consistent, reliable save states for resuming playback
- generate chapters within files like the ps3 (ps3 lets you break down any vid file into 1 to 5 min segments for selection)
- network issues. a lot of people are having network issues, i think it has something to do with how much load its placing on the routers. ps3 never gave me this problem and i was playing 1080p files as big as 16gb on that as well.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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I have tried several other devices for playing/streaming video to my TV. None of them until now did what I wanted, and all had one problem or another. This is really exactly what I was looking for. Specifically, it plays all of my media files, including some old ones that I've had trouble playing in the past (on the 360 and PS3). I actually wanted to get the previous version of this WD player, but it was missing two things that I needed - component video w/optical audio (since I don't have HDMI), and a network connection. The network connection is awesome for moving files over to the HD I have attached to the player. In Windows 7 I can see the attached HD on the network (latest firmware fixed any Windows 7 issues), and easily copy things back and forth. This allows me to keep everything hooked up and move things on the network instead of relying on the USB alone.

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purchased this item with pre-order and waited until a month later i got it. i already had wdtv, and i want to try wdtv live for networking feature ...

however, to my disappointment, the quality is not good enough. from time to time will experience missed files when streaming from pc, as for streaming from internet, only youtube works OK. and in the menu there's wifi access, however, i tried three of my wifi dongles, none of them worked and i don't know where to get a workable one.

this one must be returned.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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Just got this yesterday device and hooked up less than 30 min.

First Impression:

Size - It was super small and compact
Quality - I'm not sure but it looks like a plastic box than calling it electronic device. Maybe metallic would've been better for esthetic
Lots of junk - I never used the CD Software and had lots of junk in there. I just used the device and power supply.

After 1 hour use:

I didn't hook up the USB drive because I'm using my computers as network share drive. I was bit worry if it can stream 1080p through the network....IT SURE DID!. It did take 3~4 second to load up. Also, when refreshing the directory you have to reconnect. It's little bit annoying but no big deal. YouTube worked great but it lacked Hulu. I knew it didn't have Hulu from beginning but perhaps WD will read this review and consider for next firmware patch.

The remote is a HUGE disappointment. No sound control? Can't skip? You can forward it but no skip. There is a "skip" button but it moves onto next movie file. Makes sense if the skip can forward next 10 min or something. Also, it's super tiny.. easy to lose or be hidden inside the sofa. Again, it looks like a plastic toy that 5 yr old can enjoy playing.

Overall Review:

For the money, you can't go wrong w/ this. Why watch video on your dinky 22" Computer LCD when you can maximize your 52" LCD in your living room? So glad, I'm not using Vacuum Player (Xbox 360) to do this any more.
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I have been using WD TV Live for a week now. I also updated the firmware to Release 1.01.11 (11/16/09). There are five problems:

1) I have personal home videos shot in HD (AVCHD) using Sony HDR-TG1 camcorder. I want to copy all the AVCHD files in a portable hard drive and play them through WD TV Live. It plays the files but there is a gap of 2 seconds where my TV screen goes blank. The reason why it is happening is each shot is saved in a MTS file within AVCHD folder by HD camcorder (that's the way it supposed to be). It tries to play each MTS file sequentially and when it moves from one file to another, it creates a pause of 2 seconds when your screen goes blank. It supposed to play all MTS files within AVCHD sequentially without any gap. The gap is very annoying because it does not treat AVCHD as one movie but a sequence of movies. So, unless you combine all MTS files into one huge one file, then it should work, but for me this is a bug and it is the biggest turn down for using WD TV Live for AVCHD. To put it in perspective, imagine you ripped your DVD video on an external hard drive and it has multiple VOB files. When you play the movie, WD TV Live plays all the VOB files fine without any gap. Why can't it treat AVCHD movie the same way?

2) Sometimes when you want to jump to next chapter while watching DVD format movies from your hard drive, it jumps to the beginning of the movie. I do not fudge with how DVD videos are extracted and copied into hard drive. I simply copy the entire movie files from DVD movie and it still does that.

3) Occasionally, it also freezes when you try to fast forward. You have to power down WD TV Live and restart it.

4) If you loose the remote, then the product is useless. Unless you want to buy a second universal remote and make it "learn" the signal and have a backup one just in case. There are no buttons on WD TV Live.

5) Image quality is just okay when you play HD movies. Nothing great. If you have PS3 or similar, then you will see the difference.

Overall, I do not recommend this product until WD fixes all the issues especially gaps in AVCHD one.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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I'm rarely this enthusiastic about a product. There are definitely downsides, but nothing significant enough for me to really feel there are major flaws. I owned (and still own, actually) the regular TV and loved it, but really disliked the lack of networking support. I went to a trade show and Western Digital was there. I mentioned this to their representatives and he told me they were releasing a version with networking support in a couple of weeks. I had to pick one up as soon as possible.

What I expected was the original with the ability to access network shares via SMB, but I also expected the UI to still be a little slow and difficult when setting up the network. I was very surprised at how simple it was to set things up. I decided to go the WiFi route rather than Ethernet and it really just involved finding a compatible WiFi adapter on WD's compatibility list (I picked a Belkin because it had a stand) and plugging it in. It found my router right away, I entered the password and I was connected very quickly. I had absolutely no issues streaming anything over the WiFi, which was very surprising. I figured huge 1080p MKV files would be an issue, but they played incredibly well. The UI was extremely quick and responsive. Previews even worked quickly over the WiFi. Connecting to shares on my computer was absolutely no problem. I am just in awe of how well it works. After using an AppleTV, which in theory should work better because it's so limited in its network functionality, I just figured there would be problems. Western Digital really got it right. Plus there's YouTube support and it works really well, too.

The downsides are few but they do get kind of annoying here and there. The main issue that bothers me the most is that when I add something to a folder on a network share, it doesn't update on the WD TV Live. This is understandable to and extent, but there ought to be a reload button or function of some kind to work around this. Currently the only way to reload the folder is to click home and reconnect. It's not a huge deal, but it would be really great if it wasn't necessary. Other annoyances fall under a lack of options, mainly. For example, thought preview mode work exceptionally well (where you have a list of videos and it shows a little window that previews the selected video) you're required to have sound along with the preview. That's useful if you're not sure what the video is, but if you already know and you're leaving the television on for a few minutes before watching (like you get a phone call, for example) then you have sound playing constantly. There are obviously two work-arounds: mute the TV or select a folder or photo rather than a video file. Nonetheless, it would be nice to have the option to simply turn off sound and only have a visual preview mode. In terms of setup options there aren't many. You don't have as much control over the WD TV Live as you do with the regular WD TV. This is unfortunate in some ways, because options are always nice, but in others it makes the setup really simple. I'd feel very comfortable recommending the WD TV Live to a novice more so than the WD TV because it's much more simple to setup. The thing is, this sort of device probably doesn't appeal too much to a person who doesn't know much about media files because it doesn't provide any means of content acquisition (like the AppleTV does with the iTunes store). It assumes the user has content already, which means they're either generating it themselves or acquiring it on the Internet without the assistance of the WD TV Live. Neither of those things are necessarily simple (in the same way the WD TV Live is) and so I think it makes more sense to add a little complexity through additional features and settings rather than remove them for the sake of simplicity.

Overall, however, there's very little to complain about. Though I don't use this for photos and music and can't really comment on how well those aspects of the WD TV Live work, I'm extremely pleased with nearly all aspects of video performance and would gladly recommend it to others.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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Great Device!
Quick setup, Great functionality. Plays ISO copies of DVDs!
(Complainers and SadSacks, RTFM!)

Perfect for my computer media collection.

Small flaws:

No adjustment of "menu font size" My TV is small and I sit far away from it.

File menus show small number of titles.

No Access to Netflix instant movies or Amazon movies (yet).

No Hulu access (yet).

No Browser accessed online video ABC, NBC, CBS, or Audio/Radio ("").

NO Audio books internet Subscriptions ("")

I-tunes not compatible ("").

Difficulty with adding album art to Music / Audio books screen, should auto full-screen album art after 30 sec of play, or user adjustable amount of time ("").

Slide shows can be shown with music though... Kudos...........;-)

How about enabling WD Media player with Googles' "Chrome" browser / Operating system?

Screen saver options? You could go crazy with this, (like Ringtones) Even if you must display only "WD" ADD type pix. Flying Toaster "WD" logo?

Infinite possibilities because of Firmware update capability.

WD;
You must know that the "Sheik Geeks" Are going to "HACK THE PLANET! HACK THE PLANET!" with this product.... Why not "Open Source" some of it like an "APP" section of the device? (see Google "Chrome" browser/OS )

P.S.
Pressing "FF" then "NEXT" Felt a little weird to go forward by chapter in the ISO files "REV" then "PREV" worked also.

Keep up the good work WD!Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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What a bummer. I was really hoping this product would work after the relatively positive reviews, but it has way too many flaws which became obvious in just a couple hours of use.. I bought this to connect to a second TV. I use a TiVo series 3 for my main TV with PyTivoX on the Mac, a setup that works flawlessly in most cases. The WD TV Live experience is a far cry from my TiVo experience.

Pros:

. Very small, portable if you want it to be.

. Very easy setup.

. Plays MTS files copied directly from an HD camcorder.

Cons:

. Serious audio sync issues with most file types, problems that get worse if you fast forward or rewind while playing a file. This happens with both local storage and when using network shares. These audio sync issues have never happened to me when streaming the same files from PyTiVoX to my TiVo.

. Absolutely will not stream 1080 content reliably over a wireless G network -- buffering on the device does not seem to account for network speed. The first minute or two of a file will play reliably, but then will stutter or freeze.

. Will not play decoded .mpg files from a TiVo. The video will play (although with pixelation & combing), but there is no audio.

. No ability to bookmark or add shortcuts to folder locations on a network share. You have to navigate through the entire path every time. Even for open/anonymous shares, you still have to jump thru a login screen every time. This is just stupid.

. Chapter functions on files created via Handbrake rarely seem to work. The next chapter button often just skips to the next file.

. Remote does not have volume controls or TV on/off control.

. And, finally, no Netflix. I wasn't expecting it, but seems like a no brainer on a $120 (street price) device.


I'm disappointed, and this one is probably going to go back to Amazon.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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So far it's played anything that I've tried including files from my HD Video Camera - I didn't expect this as they are in 2 separate files: video and audio. And the WD TV LIVE figured out how to link them together and play them on its own.

The price dropped from $119 to $99 in the last 2 weeks since I bought mine, so I hope that Amazon will credit me back the difference. I bought 3 in total as they seem very nice X-mas gifts.

So now all I have is an Internet connection and a TV and that's all I need. No cable service at all! Fantastic! Hopefully soon they'll add streaming video from Netflix, etc.

The graphical interface is decent but hardly what I'd call superb. Similarly, the remote is nice but it would be great to have more control to skip ahead X seconds in a video. Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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It's the ONE guys! I've been downloading MKV movies for a long time, and I always had problems playing them in my HDTV! Now with this little angle, LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL! Just hook it up and start watching!Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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I bought the WDTV Live to show a short high def video on a large screen in an endless loop all day. I was influenced by the glowing reviews here on Amazon. But it didn't work for me.

I spent about four hours of total frustration trying to get the WDTV Live to see files on my Mac and visa versa. My network has one Mac and one PC on it that were already working fine. The WDTV would see the Mac but wasn't able to connect to it or see folders or files on it. The Mac likewise would see the WDTV and the flash drive connected to it, but couldn't see the files on it. I could also never get any output from the component output. (Yes, I found that I must first connect to HDMI and then find the menu selection to change it; but it still didn't work.)

These problems may well have been settings of mine that weren't correct. But, I got no help from the very simplistic user manual. And customer telephone support was a travesty. Three different support technicians knew almost nothing about the device. None of three knew that the serial number can be found within the menu structure and is also on the box. One tried to convince me that there was no component output, even after I read the specs to him and told him I was looking at a jack on the back labeled component output on the back. None of the three knew anything about Macs or Apple networks (or PC networks for that matter.) All they could do was email me "solutions" from the online FAQ list, solutions that had no relevance to my problems whatsoever. Most irritating was that on my third call the same day I was suddenly hung up on a about 3:05 pm PST. I waited a few minutes to see if they called me; they didn't. So I called them and got the recording that it was "after hours." Yup, on their website it says that they close at 5:00 pm CST (3:00 PST) on Fridays. So I guess when that time comes they just disconnect who they talking to.

The performance of the device was mixed. It played my 1920x1080 AVCHD camcorder files beautifully. (Quite a feat.) But my .mov files created by iMovie and Final Cut were not smooth. They didn't stutter, they just were somewhat jumpy, like not every frame was being properly interlaced.

Conclusion: I'm returning it tomorrow.

None of this is intended to denigrate any of the other reviews. It's just another perspective and another experience.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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I seriously look at both my WDTV's and my new WDTV Live and I am absolutely blown away that something so small can be so powerful. In all honesty the WDTV is the media device I had always been waiting for. Support for ALL major codecs, a great user interface, and the ability to hook up external hard drives. The WDTV is the dream machine for home entertainment and the WDTV live just upped the bar in a big way as you now have a wireless/network option.

I wont bother going into any details about the WDTV Live as there are already reviews up that do an outstanding job of explaining all the differences between a WDTV and a WDTV Live. I am simply writing this to back up what they have already said, that its the best media player on the market period.

I am actually blown away that there are people giving these devices bad reviews. I have spent well over a thousand dollars trying almost every major media device released over the last 5 years and this device beats every single one of them hands down. The only negative I can think of in regards to this device is the remote. Its too small and not high in quality. I wish they would release a high quality remote that you could buy separately as I would buy it in a heartbeat. I actually wrote Western Digital an email regarding this matter and they replied that it was something the WDTV team was looking at.

The bottom line - With wireless support now included this device has really come full circle. Western Digital has really embodied everything anyone could ever want in a media player and they did it in a tiny device that you can buy for a hundred bucks. There are devices out there that are 2-3 times as expensive that still don't even come close to beating this device. IMO this is basically the iPod of the media player market and like the iPod it just continues to get better and better with each new release.

Most of the products I have given 5 star ratings were really not perfect products. In other words if Amazon had a 1 to 100 percentage based review system, most of the items I gave 5 stars would not get a 100% rating. Most would get anywhere from a 93% to 98% rating. With that being said this would be one of the few items that I would give a perfect 100% score. In other words this is a true 5 star product in every possible way.

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Fantastic device. Plays all my movies in .ts, .mkv and .mp4 format. I have them stored on a network computer and they playback flawlessly over wireless-G. WD has resolved the need to log into network drives repeatedly with the recent firmware update. The device does rarely crash and need a hard or soft reboot. This has occured occasionally when I skip in 10 minute increments too quickly. I had planned on building an HTPC but this completely eliminates that need. True this device won't record and play protected content. Hopefully WD will add netflix and hulu support with a future firmware update. I'm using the WD recommended D-link USB N adapter. Just plug it in and go.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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First off, this is exactly what I've been waiting for a long time. I had my PC connected to my HDTV & surround sound and was getting "good" results. The problem was that the maximum resolution my 1080p HDTV would display content was 1440x900 since I was running it through a splitter connected to my monitor. The best I could get out of audio was stereo since it was only analog. I also didn't like to have to get up to change a show on my PC because I didn't have remote access. Not anymore.

The WD TV Live has so far played every file I have thrown at it. I've played everything from standard def files to 720p & 1080p mkv. files and it works flawlessly. Everything is automatically upconverted to your TVs native resolution, so that's a plus. This device also supports Dolby Digital 5.1 and supports DTS(2.1 only). The Youtube support is pretty nice and if you are playing an HD/HQ video on Youtube it will automatically select the best quality version. If you have PlayOn on your computer, you can use Hulu on it as well!

Now the issues I have...the remote is one. First off it looks and feels like something you expect to get with a $20 DVD player. It's also not extremely responsive but for the most part it does the job. The other problem is a big one though. The WD TV Live's big upgrade over the older model was suppose to be its networking capabilities. When it works, it works great. No need to transport an HDD back and forth because just as long as you "share" your external HDD to your network, the WD TV Live will read directly from it...that is if the unit wants to see your network.

I've been running into the issue that whenever turn off the unit and turn it back on, it won't connect to my network. This is really annoying because I have to do stupid random stuff to get it to work again. So as of right now, I'm just going to keep it on all the time until this gets a firmware upgrade. I have no doubt there will be a firmware upgrade because it's an extremely popular device. If they fix that I'll give this thing a 5/5 because the remote issues aren't enough to set back from all the positives. And if you are experiencing networking issues please know that the option is always there to connect your external HDD for the time being. For the price this little gadget can not be beat.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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I just got this today and was able to set it up on a wired network with a Mac and a Vista PC. I hooked it up to a 47 Vizio LCD using HDMI. So far I know it plays my JPEGs, VOBs (DVD), MP4s, and MP3s. I was also able to view my photos on Flickr, and also a YouTube video. So far it has done everything I was expecting. I don't notice any delay or quality degradation of the video. I don't know how much I like the way it handles displaying folders because I have to click through folders to sub folders to get the Vob's to play, but I can live with it. I think it is well worth the money. I wouldn't hesitate to buy this again.

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I really like the player, but I should caution everyone that there is a VERY specific list of wireless USB devices that will work with this unit. I tried two different devices and neither of them worked, so I just ran a network cable. If you are planning on getting this and using the wireless, make sure you go to WD's website to see the list of devices that will work with this unit. The drivers are pre-loaded on the device, so you can't just use any wireless USB stick.

Other than that, this thing works great! I have had no trouble at all connecting it to the network and getting it up and running.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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Pros:
Plays all kind of video formats including HD , with all kind of audio formats...
Network Connect to most media servers and PC

Can be used as Media server itself (you can connect 2 USB drives)

Cons:
No Netflix streaming support (yet?)
Graphic interface a bit 'low res'


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The intent with this device is obviously good, however, it needs more work.
You have to go through too many "hoops" to get at the file you want to watch, and everytime you turn the device on or off, you have to search for the network..very frustrating.
Simply not ready for primetime.

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This review is about WD TV Live (featured on this page) and WD TV generation 2, which share the same hardware minus the network capabilities.

I bought this unit recently, after having bought WD TV generation 1 a few weeks ago. There was a significant improvement in user interface, plus the capability to copy/move files between media and to play DTS audio over a stereo or HDMI output (on WD TV gen1 DTS won't decode, it only outputs it in digital mode through the optical output).

Besides occasional problems with audio sync, the unit operates beautifully for high definition video. However, for standard definition video, which needs to be upscaled by the device to play on most LCD or plasma TVs, the picture quality is quite worse than that of the WD TV generation 1. The picture is grainier, with very noticeable artefacts. This is super annoying for me and a great disappointment for a device that otherwise would be ideal.

WD has not addressed the matter and has not replied to queries about it. I hope this is solved in future firmware upgrades, because the device is otherwise excellent.

I've seen this issue addressed in many user forums, there's no clear explanation for the phenomenon, hopefully WD will address it.

Meanwhile, I'm returning my unit.

Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN Review

I was looking for a convenient way, to organize my videos (DVDs, Home Videos, Tivo Recordings etc.). My final two choices were the Apple TV (ATV) device or the Western Digital WD TV Live.

I finally decided, to go with the Western Digital WD TV Live. Where the Apple TV has a beautiful interface, and integrats nicely into a Mac environment (iTunes, Airport Extreme etc.), it does not allow you to stream the variety of media types that the Western Digital WD TV Live does. Also, the WD solution is quite a bit cheaper.

The first thing that was surprising to me, when I opened the box was, how small and portable the WD device is. This is definitely another plus in comparison to the ATV. Hooking up the device was easy, using the HDMI cable. However, I was never able to get the Component output to work. Be warned: I initially set up my WD device using Composite, and then changed the output settings to Component. The Component output did not work and I had to navigate through the flickering picture, until I finally was able to change the settings to Composite again.
But if you use HDMI, you will not run into any issues.

The next issue was, that as soon as I connected the device to my Home Network, the Western Digital WD TV Live asked me to download a firmware update. I did so, and after about 20% of the download, the TV screen turned black. I waited for about 30 minutes, but nothing seemed to happen anymore. I had to unplug the WD device, and then restart it again. The firmware update then completed without any further issues.

Network connections worked easy. The Western Digital WD TV Live found all my shared folders on my PC and on my two Mac computers right away, and was able to stream the media. One drawback is, that the WD does not recognize my iTunes. It only recognizes the mp3 and aac files. It does not play the file protected aac files, purchased from the iTunes store.

The YouTube and Pandora integration also worked without a problem. However, entering text, using the remote control
is very cumbersome (but that is also true for a PS3, Tivo unit etc.).
Speaking of Tivo : Since I am using a mac, files transferred from a Tivo unit to my Mac use a .tivo file format, which is not recognized by the Western Digital WD TV Live. These files need to be converted to mp4 or m4v format.

Which brings me to my last section of my review : Copying your movies to a Hard Disk. For Apple, using the free software Handbrake is almost essential. I recommend, to use the preset 'Apple Universal' which will either create a mp4 or a m4v file of your DVDs. Both formats work flawless with the Western Digital WD TV Live.
When you export your home movies from the old iMovie HD, the application will create a .dv file, which is not recognized by the Western Digital WD TV Live. Again, these files need to be converted.
However, the new iMovie 9 creates a .m4v file which works perfect.

The WD device recognizes all types of HD formatting, in my case, I use the Apple Journaled format.

The Western Digital WD TV Live connects to your home network through a network cable, or you can purchase an additional USB device (~ $ 20.00) which will let you connect through your WiFi router.

The HD Picture is beautiful. However, this of course always depends on the compression that you use, when converting your movies. I compress all my DVDs to about 2 GB, and the picture quality is still very good. However, for my home movies, I use uncompressed, true HD, which looks perfect on my Sony LCD TV.

Conclusion : The price/value ratio for this product is outstanding. There are still a couple of issues that will probably be resolved in the future, with new Firmware updates.
A couple of nice to haves would be the integration of Netflix streaming, or access to Hulu (which is possible, streaming the media through your PC using a media server).
The user interface is nice, but ATV is miles ahead of everyone else (i.e. PS3, Tivo etc.). But I am very happy with the Western Digital WD TV Live - it does exactly what I want, and then some more.

************ Additional comments 12/18/2009 ***********************
I have been using this device for several weeks now and I still love it. In fact, I went ahead and bought a second one for our downstairs TV.
I connect the Hard Disk, which contains the media, to my Airport Extreme USB output and both WD devices recognize the shared hard disk. Again, even the user manual says otherwise, I have no problem with the Mac OS Extended (Journaled) formatted Hard Disk. However, sometimes, it takes up to 10 minutes until the Hard Disk shows up on the WD HD TV Live, after I turn it on. Not sure, what the issue is there, but I can live with this.

The other issue I ran into is, that movies, which have the Apple .m4v extension, play fine, but functions like 'fast forward' are not supported. However, if I simply change the file extension from .m4v to .mp4, everything works
fine.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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Received this and had it up-and-running in under 10 minutes. In preprration, I converted some of my DVDs and home movies to different formats and saved them onto an external HD in order to text the WDTV's performance. It has played everything that I've thrown at it...MOD/MKV/AVI/VOB...everything. It took all of five additional minutes for me to attach it to my home network and begin watching videos on YouTube. (not really my thing, but I wanted to make sure it worked)

There are a few cons however:
- The remote is very small, with buttons that, I believe, most would find way too small
- The cables provided are somewhat short, approx 2.5ft, so make sure you can place your WDTV close enough to you TV to reach
- You might have to read a few forums to figure things out, as the included manual can be a little lacking on detail (thumbnails, shared drives and just how to best convert you media for playback)
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I have both the WDTV and the WDTV Live. Both operate similarly and provide fantastic pictures and video. It plays both my HD and regular MPEG video from a flash drive without any problems. But the device is not without its issues:

1. The user interface is slow.
2. Once I start playing a video or picture, the filename and slider bar caption is displayed on the screen and ruins the first several seconds of the played video.
3. The network interface is well designed and functional. However, even though I used the recommended Wireless N dlink adapter for the device, playing video across the network was jerky. HD video is unwatchable even though I'm probably 20' from the router with three aluminum studded walls. Am replacing the dlink wireless adapter with a powerline wired connection to see if it fixes the problem.

Even with these issues, I would highly recommend it and just bought one for my mother-in-law.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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This device is exactly what I was looking for. With the one exception of not having GMC support (nothing seems to...) it fits every need I have. The later OEM firmwares (and the hacked firmwares) variously support additional functionality like samba sharing, USB hubs, etc, which makes the device that much more powerful. I've currently got this thing reading from 4 drives with the stock firmware. Love it.

Consumes ~6 watts on average.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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I am at a loss to decide which is worse, the support or the product. The networking either works or it does not, as seen in their forums which are 90% people complaining about networking problems. I've been waiting for days for a response from their tech support, which either doesn't care or is too overloaded responding to what must be an immense number of people having trouble with this product. Seriously, I've never had more trouble plugging something into a network.

The one interesting bit is they've released the source code for the unit in an effort to gather a homebrew following, so hopefully some kind soul will make this product usable. Too late for me, however, as I'll be returning mine.
To sum my own personal experience:
DHCP doesn't work with many routers
DNS just don't seem to work for unknown reasons for some people (so you're not going to get features they promise like pandora and youtube)
Decidedly NOT plug and play, as you will need to muck about with any network shares to get things to work at all -- and even then it will work poorly.
Video and audio won't sync in several formats (despite the videos playing properly on the PC they're hosted from) Audio was off by 4 seconds on something I tried viewing.
Piddly pathetic remote
No internal NV memory to store movie data, so it leaves folders all over your server to keep track of individual movie settings (last location, etc)
No thumbnail views for videos, title bar too short, so finding videos in a folder can be agonizing.
Tech support is out fishing or something, I don't know...
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Previously, I purchased the Asus O'play because it was $20 cheaper . . . a mistake.
Initially, the O'Play would not recognize my NAS drive.
To get around this I had to modify the startup Linux scripts until finally, after a FW update, the machine bricked.

The WD-TV is great, found my NAS drive immediately and is easy to navigate.
In addition, the WD-TV Live is smaller and sturdier than the O'Play.
YouTube support is a nice bonus.


Some complaints:
- It hung during a 16x fast forward
- It needs to be set to continuous playback mode for ripped DVDs and doesn't recognize title screens for the DVDs
- Remote is too small, however not an issue after adding it to my universal remote.
Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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UPDATE: "Bricking" has been tied to internet updating of firmware 1.011.12. Simply avoid this update, and monitor the online forums for a while before accepting any future update requests. I'll up my rating to 3 stars, then to 4 when this issue is more permanently resolved.

Do Not Buy This Unit Until Firmware Issue Fixed!

Since it connects to the internet, new firmware is automatically detected. I said "yes" to firmware 1.01.12, and it "bricked" the unit. As far as I can tell, EVERYONE who accepts this update ends up with an unrecoverable unit. Absolutely Nothing will bring it back.

Repeat: Do Not Buy This Unit Until Firmware Issue Is Resolved. Even then, this debacle should give you pause.

That said, until now I have really enjoyed the WDTV Live, and the WDTV I had before it. Heads are going to roll at WD, I'm sure.

So sad. Guess I'm going to have to hardwire the computer to the TV again, until a reliable solution is released.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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Bought this product 2 weeks ago, it was working fine until I got an automatic notification that a new firmware was available. Since there were many bugs in the interface I accepeted the upgrade. After 100%, nothing happened, 30 minutes later I rebooted the device and since then it's would not even start.

Since then WD has removed the firmware, but thousands of people have been impacted.

WD tech support is totally useless and can only offer a REFURSBISHED???!!! replacement???

What a joke. I will never a buy a WD product again, worst quality control ever.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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I've seen other reviews already mention this, but I thought THREE of these products and the firmware update that happens when you plug it in SCREWS IT UP IRREVOCABLY.

I was told I had to return them and that they don't even have the issue fixed yet. I had one that hadn't done the update and they didn't even have level 2 technicians available who could walk me through installing it without the firmware update until Monday.

I think if you cause an issue that makes thousands of your units defective, you need to staff some extra technical support to take care of it.

I'm disgusted with this entire process. I paid someone to come in and upgrade our router and make sure the wireless connection was working fine as well as install these and now I have to do it myself when I get the new ones.

I'm PISSED.

Seems like it would have been cool if it had actually worked. They've lost my business forever.


UPDATE:
I called in with a brand new tv live that hadn't been messed up by the firmware update and it still wasn't reading most of my media. I have a 4 day old PC with Windows 7 and they have only ONE trouble shooting suggestion as to why it was only reading my pictures and not my music or videos even though all folders were shared.

They told me to call Microsoft because they didn't support that product.

I'd rather die than ever use a Western Digital product again. Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player is GREAT. instead of burning video or music or picture onto a cd and dvd and viewing it in a divx player, i can just view to straight off my hard drive and computer using usb or network.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.

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I had this unit working for two weeks before the KILLER FIRMWARE (Version 1.01.12) auto-update BRICKED my player. I was not pleased with the boxes' NAS and other network performance issues before WD's firmware update WIPED OUT my unit. Now, I will not return to WD's product offering unless it is "monumentally" better than the competition. Since this seems unlikely, I guess I am done with WD's media players.

I have returned my WD Live unit to Amazon.

As a note to other potential buyers, check out the competition carefully on this website. Search for "hd media player" under electronics to get a full listing of other offerings. Sort by "Avg. Customer Review" to find out what is working and what is not.

All the best to you fellow media enthusiasts out there.
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I am a Netflix customer and bought this product thinking that i would be able to browse the internet and view any content, including Netflix, on my HD tv. No such luck. Not sure why this doesn't support that capability. I have to return the product.Get more detail about Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player WDBAAN0000NBK-NESN.