Asus has just unveiled the latest network media player to fall under their O!Play line, the HD2, during the CeBIT show in Germany. It’s basically a relatively flexible media player that will let you play multimedia files straight off a storage source—that’s either connected via any of its ports and slots or through the network—straight to a TV.
Ok, lots of players can actually flash a polite “Hello” when switched on (and unlike you, they never forget to say “goodbye” when turned off), but LG’s new flagship Blu-ray player does bring a few new features to the table. Besides its programmed politeness, the BD590 is listed as the only BD player to pack an integrated 250GB hard drive. As a bonus, it also comes with a connection to Vudu’s online service and a CD-ripping function.
Networking company D-Link is all set to show off a couple of new networked media hubs at CES. The main draw should be the Boxee Box, a rather interestingly-designed (a cube that looks like it’s sinking? That’s interesting, right? We’re definitely interested.) kit that ports Boxee’s media streaming-slash-social network interface straight into your home entertainment system.
LaCie has just announced ther LaCinema Classic HD, a media server/player that can store photos, music and videos into its 1TB drive, and play them back to an HDTV via an HDMI connection.
JVC has announced the XV-BP11, a low-cost slim-line Blue-ray player that recognizes only the Blu-ray 1.1 Profile, dropping internet features for a reduced price. Measuring only 1.5-inches high, the player sports a USB port for connecting external digital media sources, and recognizes the AVCHD (H.264) format used by HD camcorders.
Viewsonic has just introduced the VMP70, a direct-connect HD media player that plays digital multimedia (photos, music, and videos) stored in a hard drive or flash drive straight to an HDTV.
Patriot Memory, a company usually known for storage and computer memory modules, has just released a set-top kit called the Box Office All-In-One HD media player. It’s basically a compact box with its own internal storage and built-in network connectivity for playing stored media (digital audio, video and photos) straight to your home theater.
Western Digital has come out with an update to their WD TV Media Player, which now adds DLNA home network connectivity and support for Bonjour services that lets users connect to home networks.
Seagate has just updated their FreeAgent Theater HD media player with the FreeAgent Theater+HD that adds better video and audio capabilities and network support.