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How To Watch Streaming Media And Save On Your Cable Bill

For those of you who have a new 1080p HD TV you know how great High Definition movies and video look on it. Not to mention, an unreal gaming experience with some of the new gaming consoles. There are also endless options when it comes to cable TV viewing. Having a DVR with on demand ensures that you never have a moment without some form of entertainment. The only problem being with all of the bells and whistles the monthly fees really begin to add up.

That is why I am going to outline how to have an amazing media experience while saving a cash on monthly bills. While at the same time, having an easy to use system that doesn’t require hours of configuration tasks. In the past there have been two issues with creating a system like this. The first issue is finding devices that are compatible with each other. Fortunately, the Digital Living Network Alliance was created. The DLNA is a standard used by device manufacturers that allows home entertainment devices to share content. Theoretically what these standards do is allow a DLNA compliant TV to communicate with a DLNA compliant media device.

The good news is that these standards are beginning to work. It is becoming easier to connect computers, hard drives, media devices, gaming consoles, and DLNA compliant TV’s. The second problem has been all of the different file formats. In the past, if you wanted to watch a video that was in a certain format, the device that you were watching it on either has to use that format or you need to transcode the file into an acceptable format. This process has been hit and miss.

Fortunately, the problem of transcoding has been addressed, plus new media devices and media software have the ability to take the software and convert it into a format that your media device will understand. The functionality of this transcoding technology is becoming automatic and it is actually working. Also the choices of different file formats and codecs are increasing, as well.

So let’s say that you have a new HD TV and you have a large collection of HD movies, photos and other files you would like to view on your. The easiest way to do this is to use a new HD Media Player device such as the popular Western Digital WD TV Live Network-ready HD Media Player. Once you get your new player you can plug it into your TV. Then you have a few choices for getting media into the player. Keep in mind that this player has the software to convert, organize, and play your media but it doesn’t have storage capacity. So in order to store media you either need to hook an external USB hard drive to the player, or connect to your existing network.

I’ll go over a couple of different scenarios here. First off say that you have a new USB drive you are going to use to transfer and store your files. All you would have to do is plug your drive into your computer and transfer the files to the drive and then plug it into the WD HD Media Player. Then you can use the software and the remote with the WD HD Media Player to organize and play your files. You can also plug your new empty USB drive into the WD HD media player and connect to your computer network and download and organize the files you want on your new drive. The player also comes with a 2nd USB port so you can also experiment with, other transfer and storage options.

Let’s say that you have a lot of media on several different computers and you want to consolidate that media. You could purchase a Network Attached Storage device to hook to your network. A NAS is like a giant hard drive that plugs into your network. The advantage of having one of these is that you can store all of your media files on one central location and access them from all of your computers, and your WD HD Media Player. Another advantage is that the NAS plugs into the network via your router so you have the advantage of accessing all of these files without having to leave any computers on.

Let’s say that you are trying to conserve on space and cords so you don’t want an external USB drive connected to your WD HD Media Player and you don’t want any additional cords besides the HDMI cord you purchased to connect the media player to your TV. The solution is to get a wireless USB adapter. Then you can stream content from your NAS and also from You Tube and Flickr and other compatible streaming options.

This is a great solution and it is sleek and functional. The problem is you also don’t want to pay for monthly cable fees, besides your broadband Internet. But you still want to watch standard TV shows and old reruns. Plus, you have a membership to Netflix and you want to watch streaming movies so you don’t have to hassle with waiting for the mail.

What you will need is software that will give you access to Hulu and Netflix and whatever else is not built into the functionality of the WD Media Player. There are a few choices that will do this, one is tversity and the other one is PlayOn both are good choices but some reviewers have had better luck with PlayOn so that is the choice we are recommending.

One caveat is with the PlayOn software your Hulu programs won’t be in HD this is because of the computing power requirements for converting HD into other formats. There is a good chance that in the future this won’t be an issue. So with these solutions you can watch almost any show or movie you want without paying outrageous monthly fees. In fact without the monthly cable fees the hardware and software will pay for itself in a couple of months.

Mitch | Feb 14, 2010 | Comments 0

Remanufactured Philips DVP5992 1080p HDMI Upscaling DVD Player with USB 2.0 and DivX Ultra

Picture/Display: 12 bit, 108 MHz Progressive Scan, High Def (720p, 1080i, 1080p), Video Upscaling(720p, 1080i/p)
DivX Ultra Certified for enhanced playback of DivX videos; Plays CD, (S)VCD, DVD, DVD+R/RW, DVD-R/RW; Plays WMV, DivX, MA, MP3 and HD JPEG photos
Brings audio and video to life: HDMI digital output for easy connection with only one cable; Progressive Scan component video for optimized image quality; High quality outputs for analog and digital audio
Easy to use: Create MP3s directly from CDs; EasyLink for easy control of connected devices via HDMI CEC
Connect and enjoy multiple sources: Hi-Speed USB 2.0 Link plays media from USB flash drives

Product Description
Be impressed with this Remanufactured Philips DVP5992 1080p Upscaling DVD Player with HDMI digital video and audio connection. Step into another home entertainment arena as you immerse yourself with High Definition video (720p/1080i/1080p)…. More >>

Remanufactured Philips DVP5992 1080p HDMI Upscaling DVD Player with USB 2.0 and DivX Ultra

Mitch | Dec 14, 2009 | Comments 0

Complete DVD Menu functionality
Downloads music, movies and pictures at superfast transfer rates
Playback MP3, JPEG, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, Xvid, and Divx 3.11/4.x/5.x files
Digital photo viewer with thumbnail preview & Self-customized music playlists
HDMI output, Upcsale to 1080i

Product Description
The The new HV358T will support high definition video output (up-scaling to 1080i) for better picture quality and standard 3.5 SATA HDD for the ever-increasing storage demand for digital contents. HV358T is a super powerful external hard drive. When connected with AV equipments, it plays back media files in the built-in hard drive directly. The HV358T not only stores data, plays movie, music, and photos, but also provides uncompromised high definition display and di… More >>

Argosy HV358T-0015T 1.5TB HDD Media Player

Mitch | Dec 14, 2009 | Comments 0

HDX 1000 Networked Media Tank (NMT) Player, the revolutionary Networked Media Player, is the ultimate solution to stream and playback the digital media contents, such as your movies, musics, pictures and documents onto your big screen TV.
These files may be stored as a shared folder on your home network, in a drive (USB, SATA) attached to HDX 1000 or on the web such as YouTube and Flickr.
Network or Harddisk streaming support, including external source such as external USB stick, harddrive or DVD rom.
USB Slave (for direct file copy from PC) * NAS (networked attached storage) functionality
Bittorrent peer 2 peer downloader * Usenet Client for direct usenet NZB downloads * Internet TV content streaming * Internet Radio

HD Digitech HDX 1000 Network Media Tank NMT 1080p HD H.264 MKV Player

Mitch | Dec 14, 2009 | Comments 0

Support up to 1280X720 (720P**, certain video formats, not al, please see product description for more details) HD mutil-format video audio media file player built-in BitTorrent p2p file sharing engine with HDMI interface
Access two USB drives simultaneously and turn your USB storage devices into HD home theather and stream media contents from computers shared in the network
PC-free Green Download : Built-in BitTorrent p2p file sharing engine allows you to share files on the Internet without having to turn your computers on
Support RM, RMVB, MP2, AVI, H.264, VOB, MOV, MKV, DivX, Xvid, WMV video format
Support MP3, Real Audio, FLAC, AAC, OGG, WAV audio format and JPEG, GIF, BMP, PNG image format

Product Description
Overview brite-View “CinemaCube”(model : BV-5003) is a multi-format Audio/Video Media player, with resolution up to 1280X720** HD (certain but not full 720P, please check description below. For Video, it supports : RM, RMVB (codec : real video 8/9/10) with 720X408/576 at 30fps at max bitrates 1000kbpsAVI/MP4/MKV (codec : MPEG-4, DivX 3/4/5/6, XVID) with resolutions up to 1280X720 at 30fps with max bitrates 8MbpsAVI/MP4/MKV (codec :H.264) with … More >>

Brite-View CinemaCube networkable media player and BitTorrent downloader!

Mitch | Dec 14, 2009 | Comments 0

Hisense 1080p HD TV Media Player

Product Description
Turn your USB drive / NAS into an HD media player, allowing you to watch your favourite HD movies on your HDMI TV. You can also plug it into your ethernet network!

- Support Full HD: 1080P
- Maximum Stream Rate: 800Mbps
- All Video Format: Real Audio RM/RMVB, WMV9(VC-1), MkV (H.264), FLV, 3GP
- All Audio DTS-HD 5.1, Dolby, True-HD
- DLNA – UPnP / Network Neighbourhood
- Support both FAT / NTFC formatted USB Storage Device
- Remote c… More >>

Hisense 1080p HD TV Media Player

Mitch | Dec 14, 2009 | Comments 0

HD Media Player
HDMI, Optical Audio
Music, Video, Photo
support up to 2TB SATA Hard Drive
Video up-conversion to 720p/1080i

Product Description
Avolusion MEDIAGear MGU-B USB 2.0 HDMI 1080i Digital HD Media Player for 3.5″ SATA Hard Drive w/Remote Control (Black) is a standalone media player to plays video, photo and music to your big screen LCD TV or Plasma TV. Avolusion MEDIAGear MGU-B HD Media Player are compatible with any 3.5-inch SATA hard drive, therefore you can assembly a 3.5″ internal SATA hard drive into this HD Media Player and carry all your favorite video, photo, music anywhere you go! USB 2.0 … More >>

Avolusion MEDIAGear MGU-B USB 2.0 HDMI 1080i Digital HD Media Player for 3.5″ SATA Hard Drive w/Remote Control – Retail

Mitch | Dec 14, 2009 | Comments 0

Robust and portable 80 GB multimedia device with Wi-Fi
Download movies, TV shows, and songs via the integrated Archos content portal
Surf the Web; share content; and view and post videos to Web video sites, such as YouTube
Stream and watch videos from your PC
Record your favorite TV shows

Product Description
The Archos 705 Wi-Fi portable media player lets you surf, stream, download and record movies easily for playback on the industry’s highest quality 7 touch screen. The 705 Wi-Fi is the only wide-screen portable media player that connects to the Internet for surfing the Web, accessing email and watching YouTube videos wherever you go. The integrated Archos Content Portal features thousands of movies, TV shows and songs for downloading wirelessly to the player, and an … More >>

Archos 705 Wi-Fi Portable Media Player

Mitch | Dec 14, 2009 | Comments 0

The DSM-750 includes a MediaLounge Media Player mode, which allows a Windows XP OS-based PC to stream music, photos, and videos.
If your Windows Vista Premium or Ultimate OS-based PC has an integrated TV tuner, watch live TV4 or record a TV program with Windows Media Center
The DSM-750 supports HD video resolutions of up to 1080 so you can enjoy life-like picture quality on your 1080p-capable HDTV
The DSM-750 supports HD video in either Windows Media Video 9 or MPEG-2/47 format
Dual User Modes: Extender for Windows Media Center and D-Link MediaLounge

Product Description
D-Link DSM-750 Wireless HD Dualband Draft 802.11n Media Center Extender… More >>

D-Link DSM-750 Wireless HD Dualband Draft 802.11n Media Center Extender

Mitch | Dec 14, 2009 | Comments 0

LinkTheater High-Defination Media Player; Remote-Batteries Included; Ethernet Cable Power Cable; Quick-Start Guide; Warranty Statement
Play your computer media files on your TV and stereo.
Automatic Backup for Flash drives or HD based Videocameras
720p and 1080i; VIDEO: MPEG2, H.264, WMV9, MPEG4 (low res); AUDIO: AAC-LC, AAC-HE, MP3, WAV, WMA, Dolby Digital (AC-3)
CONNECTORS: HDMI, D4, Composite

Product Description
Enjoy High Definition digital movies, music & photos on your TV with Buffalos LinkTheater Network Media Player! The perfect device for the home the Buffalo LinkTheater Network Media Player will stream high definition digital movies, music & photos from a Windows PC, a LinkStation Live, a LinkStation Quad, a TeraStation Live, USB storage devices, or any DLNA media server device. It includes an Ethernet port, digital audio output, a USB port to directly connect your m… More >>

Buffalo Technology LinkTheater High-Definition Media Player LT-H90LAN

Mitch | Dec 14, 2009 | Comments 0