Lessons in networked entertainment, Part 2

This year, it seemed everyone at the Consumer Electronics Show had a media adapter or network server to show off. Here are my favorites:

The Denon NS-S100 Network Multimedia Server got much of the attention, winning the Best of CES award. The server is much slicker looking than lower end versions, has two hard disk drives, a well-done electronic programming guide and loads of AV inputs and outputs. My two complaints are the price: $3,000 to $5,000 (huh?); and the lack of an embedded wireless link. For that much money, you’d think Denon would throw in some Wi-Fi. The server is available in June.

The Prismiq Media Player/Recorder is my favorite media adapter because it lets me create a “virtual” personal video recorders (PVR) — a TiVo-like box using your computer’s hard disk and wired or wireless network. I’ve never been big on personal video recorders like TiVo or ReplayTV because they cost a lot more than this $300 box, and require a monthly $10 service fee on top of that. With Prismiq’s player, you skip the cost of the fee and that of another mega-hard disk drive, and get to watch your cached content in the living room rather than in front of your PC — the big drawback of other PC-based PVRs. The player is available this June, too.

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This year, it seemed everyone at the Consumer Electronics Show had a media adapter or network server to show off. Here are my favorites:

The Denon NS-S100 Network Multimedia Server got much of the attention, winning the Best of CES award. The server is much slicker looking than lower end versions, has two hard disk drives, a well-done electronic programming guide and loads of AV inputs and outputs. My two complaints are the price: $3,000 to $5,000 (huh?); and the lack of an embedded wireless link. For that much money, you’d think Denon would throw in some Wi-Fi. The server is available in June.

The Prismiq Media Player/Recorder is my favorite media adapter because it lets me create a “virtual” personal video recorders (PVR) — a TiVo-like box using your computer’s hard disk and wired or wireless network. I’ve never been big on personal video recorders like TiVo or ReplayTV because they cost a lot more than this $300 box, and require a monthly $10 service fee on top of that. With Prismiq’s player, you skip the cost of the fee and that of another mega-hard disk drive, and get to watch your cached content in the living room rather than in front of your PC — the big drawback of other PC-based PVRs. The player is available this June, too.

Roku Labs’ HD1000 was the most elegant media player I saw. The company’s CEO is Anthony Wood, ReplayTV founder and inventor of the PVR. When Wood demoed the company’s art packs on a high-definition television, for a second I thought I could actually pay the $500 one of these babies cost. While I came to my senses, I’m sure that high-end AV enthusiasts will find the price reasonable for distributing high-definition video around the home. The HD1000 is available now, has component and composite outputs, and an embedded Ethernet and USB port for Wi-Fi.

I also think it was smart of D-Link to announce a Wi-Fi version of its videophone, launched at last year’s show. One of the show’s big surprises, the i2eye Broadband Videophone, was the first affordable piece of SOHO videoconferencing equipment. But to sell consumers devices that go into the living room, D-Link knows you better add wireless. Available now, the 802.11b version includes an upgraded user interface and software, and costs about $250 per unit.

Next time, we’ll finish up our CES 2004 coverage by examining trends for the coming year.

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