Category: UPnP AV / DLNA media-playback hardware)

Articles

Sony unveils super slim PlayStation 3 | Crave – CNET

Sony PlayStation 3 2012 up close and personal eyes on | Engadget

From the horse’s mouth

US Press Release

European Press Release

My Comments

The press have been afield with the news about Sony’s latest PlayStation 3 games console. But this one is a major redesign to cope with the smaller space that newer consolidated electronics can occupy. This has yielded a smaller console that is significantly lighter and doesn’t use as much power as the existing units.

One main difference is that it has a top-loading Blu-Ray drive for your games and movies. This uses a sliding lid in a similar vein to some CD players like the B&O Beocenter 9000 series music systems rather than the hinged lid that, in my opinion, is asking for problems. 

There are two main design variants – one with a 500Gb hard disk and a cheaper variant with 12Gb flash memory with the ability to add in an optional 250Gb hard disk. The American market would have the console come with the 250Gb hard disk in the box. The cheaper version may work with occasional gamers and those of us who use the PS3 more as a network media client rather than as the full-on games console.

Of course there will be access to the PlayStation Network and the local video-on-demand services that has allowed the PS3 to earn its keep as a network multimedia terminal rather than just a games console for teenagers and young men. It will also have the same performance expectations as the current-generation PS3.

But could these variants be a way to bring the PlayStation Experience to more households or allow one to increase the feasibility for more of the multi-player multi-machine gaming from this console?

Revo Domino – an example of an Internet radio with DLNA Media Playback

Regular readers of this site would have noticed the Internet radios that I have reviewed earlier on. These were typically tabletop radios that had a broadcast tuner capable of receiving at least FM and / or DAB digital broadcast radio. But they had Wi-Fi and, in some cases, Ethernet network connectivity which allowed them access to, most commonly, the vTuner Internet-radio directory and the ability to play through audio content from any broadcaster that listed its stream in this directory. They also had the ability to play audio content held on a DLNA media server after it was selected on the set’s control surface.

Of course, all of these sets had a line input so they can amplify other audio equipment like portable CD players but most of them had a dock for one of Apple’s iPod or iPhone mobile devices. A few of the sets even had a USB connection so you can play music held on a USB memory key.

Now the network-audio direction is coming in the form of network-capable speaker units that have Apple Airplay and, increasingly, DLNA Media-Renderer operating mode. This meant that you could use software running to these protocols to play music held on a computer, smartphone or tablet through these systems as explained in this feature article. The network connectivity for all of them is Wi-Fi to 802.11g/n standards with WPS “push-push” setup but some of these units would have an Ethernet socket for connection to an Ethernet or HomePlug network segment and / or Wi-Fi Direct so they can become their own access point for smartphones and tablets.

The manufacturers are running a range of two or three units with similar functionality but having differing speaker configurations and / or power outputs with some having the capability to offer a “punchy” sound where that tight bass does exist. As well, one or two of the models in these ranges is equipped with a rechargeable battery pack and designed for portability so they can be used on the beach or on the streets in a similar manner to those classic “ghetto-blasters” of the 1980s.

Pioneer NAC-3 Internet radio and iPod dock – capable of being controlled by a DLNA control point program

The device that predicted this level of functionality in a network speaker system was, in my opinion, the Pioneer XW-NAC3 speaker dock / Internet radio that I reviewed on this site. Here, it had Wi-Fi and Ethernet connectivity as well as support for Bluetooth A2DP audio streaming. But it used the network connectivity to play broadcast content from Internet-radio stations on the vTuner directory as well as being able to be controlled by a DLNA Media Control Point alongside the basic DLNA MediaPlayer “play-from-own-control-surface” functionality.

Usage Issues

A problem I have discovered with some DLNA server / control point software running on Android devices is that they won’t work properly if you run the device as its own access point. This would be something that you may do if you enable “Wi-Fi tethering” on your phone to share your phone’s Internet access and data allowance with other devices.

Here, you may have to work around this by using another access point to create the temporary Wi-Fi segment. This could be done using an ordinary Wi-Fi router, even one of those “Mi-Fi” devices that work as a router for a wireless-broadband service. This solution may come in to its own with the battery-driven units that don’t have Wi-Fi Direct and you want to play content from your mobile device or laptop.

Another situation that may plague anyone who sets these units up in premises with a public Wi-Fi hotspot is that they may not work properly with these hotspots. Here, most of these public-access networks would be set up for client isolation so that no other client devices can discover each other. As well, most such networks typically use a Web interface for provisioning the Internet service. This will typically make the network unusable for point-to-point use like media playback.

Instead, if you are using that network speaker system in that hotel room or serviced apartment which has a public-access or guest-access wireless hotspot, use a “MiFi” or a similar device to create a Wi-Fi network if the computer, smartphone or speaker system doesn’t support Wi-Fi Direct. Some Wi-Fi Direct setups like the Intel implementations used for laptop computers may allow you to work the temporary network in conjunction with the public-access network and bridge Internet data to this temporary network. This would come in handy with units that offer Internet-radio functionality like the Pioneer NAC-3 or the Denon Cocoon series.

What to look for with these speaker systems

I would make sure that if you are intending to use these network speaker system with a smartphone, tablet or PC, make sure that the unit works with DLNA and Apple AirPlay.

If the speaker unit that you are after doesn’t have Wi-Fi Direct, you may have to make sure you have it working with a wireless access point like your home network’s WiFi router or a “MiFi” when you are using it on a wireless network.

Also pay attention to the sound quality and the functionality of these speakers, especially if you buy units that you intend to use “at home”. As for portable units, look for anything that also works for durability especially if they are intended to be used on the beach or by the pool.

Once you choose the right network-capable speaker system for yourself or to give as a gift, you could then end up enjoying listening to them for a long time.

Introduction

I am reviewing the Sony BDP-S390 Blu-Ray Disc player which is one of many value-priced Blu-Ray players that don’t just play Blu-Ray Discs but effectively add Internet TV functionality to cheaper and older TVs.

There is a more expensive variant known as the BDP-S590 which adds 3D playback with suitable TV equipment and a top-of-the-line model known as the BDP-S790 which adds on 4K high-resolution playback for the largest high-resolution displays as well as support for Skype functionality. But I am focusing on the BDP-S390 as a model that ticks most of the network and Internet video boxes at an affordable price.

Price

Recommended Retail Price: AUD$179.00

Functions

Connections

The unit itself

The Sony BDP-S390 is much smaller than most common DVD or Blu-Ray players and may be described as not fitting the average AV equipment rack due to this size. But this wouldn’t be of concern if you you are just plugging it in to the secondary TV set and it is sitting on the bench under or beside that set.

Being a video-focused device, there isn’t a display on the unit and you have few controls on that unit. Therefore, you are encouraged to operate this unit from the remote control and using the TV screen. This may make the playback of audio-focused content like audio CDs or vTuner Internet radio become more unwieldy as if you are listening to digital radio via a satellite-TV or digital-TV set-top box; or listening to the radio through the TV in some hotels.

Connections – Composite video, stereo line-level audio, digital audio, HDMI A/V, Ethernet LAN

As far as the home network is concerned, the Blu-Ray player comes with Integrated 802.11g/n Wi-Fi as well as Ethernet connectivity rather than being “Wi-Fi ready” where it would need a dongle to connect to the Wi-Fi network. It can connect to video systems that use a CVBS (composite) through an RCA jack or HDMI display and can connect to audio equipment via an RCA line-level stereo feed, a PCM or bitstream (Dolby Digital) feed using an RCA socket or a digital feed via the same HDMI socket. This same HDMI socket also allows the player to work with “one-touch-start” setups that use HDMI-CEC control abilities. The front has a USB socket so you can connect up a memory key to store BD-Live data or play / show media content held on a memory key.

The setup routine was relatively quick although you would need to use SMS-style data entry when you enter the passphrase for a Wi-Fi segment that doesn’t implement WPS quick-setup. This routine can be annoying if you have punctuation in the passphrase due to the confusing reference to an “input method” where you would need to press the yellow key on the remote to gain access to the punctuation.

The standard remote control that comes with this player

The Sony BDP-S390 does support “smartphone-as-remote” operation with the Sony Media Remote app for the iOS and Android platforms. This allows you to use the smartphone and your home network as an alternative to the infrared remote control and could allow you to conceal the player in a cabinet yet be able to operate this Blu-Ray player.

As a member of the DLNA Home Media Network, the Sony BDP-S390 ticked all the boxes properly. Here, it worked well with TwonkyMobile on my Android phone to allow me to “throw” a Facebook album image to the TV’s screen and it had come up properly. It could also quickly list every DLNA media pool that existed on the network as part of the top-level XrossBar menu.

The Internet TV experience was very smooth for the visuals and came through without any glitches. As well, it didn’t take long to load up whatever was in an IPTV channel’s lineup.

Even though I had access to an average TV to test this player, the Sony’s picture quality did come up very well with photos and videos. The colours were still true to the video no matter the source.

Limitations and Points Of Improvement

The Sony BDP-S390 could provide support for extended DLNA applications like setting up shows to record using DLNA-compliant PVRs; and RVU which allows it to be a user interface for advanced cable-TV PVRs and to some extent, hospitality applications.

The Skype feature could be made available across all of the Sony Blu-Ray players so as to allow existing TVs to work as Skype videophone terminals.

Similarly, I would like to see this set as well as other Sony consumer-electronics equipment be able to work with IPv6 networks so they can be future-proof. As well, this Blu-Ray player, as well as other Sony network-enabled consumer-electronics equipment could support WPA2-Enterprise setups as a field-installable add-on so small businesses don’t need to create separate WPA2-Personal segments to implement Wi-Fi-enabled DLNA-compliant audio and video equipment in their network environments.

Of course, some of us might think that this player looks a bit ho-hum because it uses a drawer to load discs rather than a direct-load slot.

Conclusion

I would recommend the Sony BDP-S390 Blu-Ray player as a valid option when you want to enable an existing TV or HDMI-equipped video projector with Blu-Ray, DVD, DLNA and / or Internet video capabilities. The price makes it even right to purchase this player as an entry-level Blu-Ray player / network-video terminal that can be used with an entry-level flat-screen TV.

For example, you could buy that low-end LCD TV and this player from Harvey Norman in order to get cracking with Blu-Ray Discs and “The Shire” on Channel 10 Catch-Up TV. Or you could use this player and any old LCD TV or HDMI-equipped video projector to set up a DLNA-driven visual-merchandising arrangement for your business or organisation.

The higher-end Sony models could go well with a high-grade TV that excels on picture quality yet you want to get your foot in the door with network and Internet video as well as Blu-Ray playback.

Article

Bang & Olufsen unveils Playmaker wireless audio bridge, makes sure AirPlay and DLNA speak Danish – Engadget

From the horse’s mouth

Bang & Olufsen – Product Page

My Comments

Previously I had touched on Bang & Olufsen launching the Beosound 5 Encore which is their first DLNA-enabled music system that put Sonos on notice as far as “cool” hard-disk-based music systems were concerned. Again B&O have launched another music system which, this time, can be driven by a computer or a mobile device, achieving this same goal of effectively putting Sonos on notice.

This device, known as the Playmaker, can connect to any B&O Beolab active speaker system and works to the AirPlay or DLNA Media Renderer standards, thus being able to be under the control of a computer running iTunes, TwonkyMedia or similar software. Even your iOS device running its stock iTunes implementation or your mobile device running a DLNA controller app like TwonkyMobile or PlugPlayer can be the control point. Of course, you could adjust the volume or move between tracks using a Beo4 or Beo6 remote control.

Like an increasing array of network media players made by companies who have their feet planted in good sound, the B&O Playmaker supports FLAC and other codecs considered as part of high-grade sound reproduction. This is in the same manner as what I was often seeing at the Australian Audio & AV Show at the Melbourne Marriott Hotel where all of the network-capable audio systems were working to DLNA setups and using FLAC and other high-grade audio codecs.

Here, this Danish design king has provided two paths for DLNA-based audio – a system with a local control surface and display in the form of the Beosound 5 Encore and a system that is managed entirely from remote control in the form of the Playmaker. These are another example of “audio companies of respect” embracing standards-based high-grade network audio reproduction.

As I have also said before in the article on the Beosound 5 Encore, this is one design masterpiece that would come in to its own playing that piece of European chillout music in that trendy inner-urban café, wine bar or beauty salon.

Article

Pioneer SMA wireless speakers put AirPlay, HTC Connect in one happy family — Engadget

My Comments

Pioneer have released a range of single-enclosure wireless speakers for use with smartphones, tablets and laptops. But they are not the typical Bluetooth wireless speakers that one would ordinarily think of.

Here, they can either work with a small network whether by Wi-Fi wireless or an Ethernet connection; or they can become their own Wi-Fi access points. They implement Apple AirPlay or the common DLNA 1.5 Digital Media Renderer protocols which makes them work with Apple or industry-standard portable-media playback setups. 

They also have a USB connection for directly connecting one of those high-capacity iPod Classics that is full to the brim with music or other iPod / iPhone devices; as well as having a line-in jack for other media players or tuners; or simply serving as extension speakers to an existing sound system.

The difference among the models is the ability to work on battery power or the speaker setup used in the units. The cheapest model, the XW-SMA1 uses a 3” speaker for each channel and a 3/4”  tweeter for both the channels and doesn’t have battery power. The step-up model, the XW-SMA3 uses the same speaker configuration but can run on its own lithium-ion battery for 4 hours at maximum volume. The top-of-the-line model, the XW-SMA4 has the battery power but can yield better bass through the use of a 3” speaker and 3/4” tweeter per channel and a 4” bass speaker (subwoofer) shared by both channels.

What Pioneer has done is to achieve a highly-compatible wireless speaker set that can work with the standard DLNA-compliant home network which could be based around Windows computers and Android smartphones as well as being able to please the Apple fanbois. This is able to be done without having to resort to Bluetooth technology.

If I was choosing one of these for summer outdoor fun, I would go for the XW-SMA3 or the XW-SMA4 if you value that bassline in the music. The battery-power ability can come in to its own when you are near the pool or on the deck without needing to run extension cords everywhere.

Article

Meet the Aperion Aris, a Windows-only wireless speaker | Crave – CNET

My Comments

Not everyone has to have an Apple device like an iPhone or iPad but a lot of audio devices, especially network-enabled speaker systems, seem to be designed so that they work best with Apple devices.

Now there has been exhibited a network-enabled single-piece speaker that is pitched at platforms other than Apple. This unit, the Aperion Aris, has been billed as working only with Windows 7 and 8 by supporting the “Play To” functionality in these regular-computer operating systems.

But the “Play To” functionality is actually about UPnP AV / DLNA MediaRenderer functionality and should work with other UPnP AV / DLNA audio control point software. This could really mean that your iOS, Android or Windows Phone 7 mobile device could drive this speaker if it runs TwonkyMedia, AllShare or other DLNA control point program.

But an Apple Macintosh computer can still work with this speaker if it is running a DLNA media-controller apps. Examples of this include Songbook Mac, TwonkyMedia or PlugPlayer, the latter of which is available through the Mac App Store.

The speaker system is based around a six-speaker design that has two drivers per channel and two passive-radiators with a claimed power rating of 50 watts per channel. But it would be really interesting to hear how it sounds as in whether it can fill an average room with sound and whether there is some “punch” in the sound.

Personally, I would like to see network speakers support AirPlay and DLNA or at least use DLNA as a common denominator due to the level playing field that this standard offers for network audio delivery.

Introduction

Western Digital WDTV Live network media adaptor

There was a trickle of component network media adaptors which provide media playback from the Internet or home network to an existing audio-video system but this trickle has now become a flood over the past few years with equipment being offered at varying functionality and cost points.

For video content, most of these devices including some of the current-model Blu-Ray players may offer “over-the-top” TV services to existing TV equipment and this may avoid the need to buy a “smart TV” for this kind of content. This would appeal to those of us who would rather spend money on equipping our home theatres with a video projector or top-notch high-performing LCD TV rather than buying a “smart TV” to keep up with the Joneses. Similarly, these devices can expose a secondary TV like the one located in the secondary lounge area or master bedroom to the plethora of online content.

Similarly, you may want to invest in an audio-based network media player so you can enjoy Internet radio or music held on the network-attached storage through the hi-fi system. This is becoming more so as high-grade audio files of classic and contemporary albums are being made available for sale and file-based audio content has now achieved hi-fi credentials.

What are these devices

A component network media adaptor like the Western Digital WDTV Live is designed to connect to existing audio and video equipment and show network-derived content on such equipment. Of course, they will work as a gateway to some Internet-hosted media services like IPTV / video-on-demand or Internet-radio services; and a few may work as a terminal for popular interactive Internet services like the Social Web.

If the manufacturer keeps investing in the device’s platform, there may be the ability for newer content services to be added to an existing device. This typically is being achieved through a continual firmware update or an app store that works in a similar vein to a mobile platform’s app store.

Sony BDP-S380 Network-enabled Blu-Ray player

Some of these adaptor devices also have functionality for access to legacy media like a radio or TV broadcast tuner and/or an optical disk player. An example of this is the Sony BDP-S380 Blu-Ray player which I had reviewed. But these devices also have a USB port, iPod dock and / or memory card slot so that content held on any of these locations can be played through the device. Similarly, the Microsoft XBox 360 and the Sony PS3 games consoles are able to serve as component network media adaptors as well as satisfying marathon TV games sessions.

A selection of these devices have an integrated hard disk and are able to work also as a media server. Some of them may allow you to add the media files by “ripping” from supported optical discs or recording broadcast material from an integrated tuner as well as accepting the content from the network or USB memory keys in a similar vein to the typical network-attached storage device.

Two main classes

NAD c446 Network Media Tuner

There are two main classes of these component devices and the class they fall in to is based on the content they are designed to reproduce.

Video-optimised

A video-optimised network media adaptor is designed primarily to reproduce video or still-image content on an attached TV or projector.

Key identifiers for this class of device include the presence of video connectors for a display device. These are typically HDMI, component or composite sockets alongside the audio sockets.

Another identifier is that there is a very small display on the unit itself which only shows content running time, or no display at all. The user is expected to operate the device using the remote control and looking at the attached video display device for visual feedback. This is common with very-low-end DVD players that don’t have a track/time display and I once saw one of these players in operation at a party and the hosts had the TV on so they know which tracks to play on a CD.

Of course, if they have a legacy media source, it will typically be something like a DVD/ Blu-Ray player or a digital-TV tuner. The online services available to this device would typically be the IPTV / video-on-demand / advanced-TV services and it may also work as a terminal for video-conferencing (with an add-on camera), interactive TV or the Social Web.

Audio-optimised

Linn Majik DS network preamplifier

An audio-optimised network media device is designed primarily to reproduce audio content, especially music.

These devices have no video connections at all or they may use any such connections for a secondary purpose. It is augmented by the device having a display and controls on its front panel for selecting and playing content or a remote control with an LCD or OLED screen as its primary control surface. This means that the device won’t be dependent on the use of an external video display for its operation.

If the device supports legacy content, the will use either a radio broadcast tuner and / or a CD / SACD player. They will also have access to audio-based Internet content sources like one of the Internet-radio directories like vTuner, Pandora or Last.FM.

What to look for

Ethernet connectivity

A component network media adaptor should have an Ethernet connection in order to provide for reliable playback of high-quality network and online content via Ethernet or HomePlug AV. You may get away with Wi-Fi wireless for Internet radio, CD-quality audio content, still images or standard-definition video content.

UPnP AV / DLNA

As well, the device should support UPnP AV / DLNA functionality. The basic level of support for this functionality is to find and play media held on DLNA media servers using the device’s control surface. On the other hand, a better-equipped device is able to play content that you push to it from another UPnP AV / DLNA control point like a lot of smartphone media-control software such as TwonkyMobile.

It also allows your device to be future-proof and is of importance whenever you look towards running specialist media-server equipment such as network PVRs on your home network.

Internet-media services

Most low-end video-optimised equipment will support fewer Internet-video services but the mainstream-priced equipment from the big brands will offer access to the popular TV services in your territory like the catch-up-TV services and the big-time video-on-demand services like Netflix.

If a device has access to online interactive services like Facebook or Picasa, only one person will be able to operate their online service on the device at a time. This functionality may just be useful for showing pictures held on the user’s online-service account but activities like updating the status comment on the service or simply logging in may be very difficult. This is due to the limited user interface that these devices offer as I have previously talked about.

Devices complementing each other

Some of these network-media adaptor devices can complement each other. For example, you may use a newer adaptor that provides access to newer content services while you have an older adaptor that the manufacturers have given up on still able to provide some of the online and network-sourced media that you are after.

Similarly, you could use an audio-optimised network media adaptor for playing radio and music sources while you have an Internet-enabled TV or video-optimised network media player coming in handy for image and video content.

Conclusion

The component network-media adaptor, whether in the form of a Blu-Ray player, set-top box or network-enabled tuner, can expose existing audio-video equipment to the world of online or network-hosted entertainment content.