LG BD570 Network Blu-Ray Disc Player Review
I have been waiting for this to come out for a few weeks now (seems like longer). I am tired of using stereo cables and s-video to connect my laptop to my TV every time I want to watch something from my computer. I looked for other "home media server" options originally, and ultimately found a Samsung product similar to this one. It seemed great at first, but after reading some reviews I was skeptical. Then, C-NET reported the imminent release of the LG BD750, which they saw at the 2010 CES.
The best features in my opinion, aside from the fact that it plays Blu-ray discs, is that it can stream Netflix right out of the box and also stream media from your networked computers. I set up the BD570 last night and played around with it a little. DVD playback seemed fine. Setting up the Wi-Fi connection wasn't too difficult, either. It would have been much easier if our Wi-Fi SSID were being broadcast. Also, toggling to upper case letters on the on-screen keyboard for SSID/password input wasn't immediately obvious. The built-in Wi-Fi is a definite plus, though; the Samsung I was looking at came with a Wi-Fi dongle that you had to plug in via USB and set up (seems like Wi-Fi was an afterthought). If your modem or router/access point is located close enough to your entertainment center, you could even connect the LG via Ethernet for even better streaming throughput.
Setting up Netflix was a cinch. They provide you with an activation code; you log into your Netflix account on your computer and type in the code, and presto. You can then browse through your Instant Queue, or browse by category, etc. (Other products with similar features, don't let you watch un-queued movies. That is, you have to add them manually on your computer before they appear on your TV queue.) The quality seemed pretty decent--perhaps slightly more pixelated than hooking up my laptop Netflix stream to the TV via s-video. This might just be a matter of tweaking aspect ratio settings on the TV and/or BD player. Also, the movie cover art seemed a bit slow in loading while browsing through titles, but no biggie.
Streaming shared media on network computers via LG's Home Link feature works great, but it took a bit of tweaking to get it set up. A couple of different shared items appeared immediately when I loaded Home Link. One was labeled "COMPUTERNAME/Username" and the other was a directory of all shared documents. The former was some form of "media server" protocol, which I couldn't get to work (I tried enabling media streaming in Windows 7 settings, to no avail). The latter directory tree, once opened, showed all empty folders (Documents, Pictures, Movies, Downloads--i.e., all "My Documents" sub-folders, but all empty). I had "Homegroup" sharing enabled for a number of different folders in Windows 7 settings, but Home Link couldn't access their contents until I added "Guest" as a user in the Share settings for specific folders. Once that was done, I was instantly able to browse and stream movies, music, and pictures. I tested a couple of DivX and MP3 files, and they seemed to run great.
All of this file-sharing trouble may be my unfamiliarity with the new Windows 7 networking lingo and how to configure settings properly without sharing everything with the world. Others may find it much easier to connect and stream media. Also, bundled with the LG player is a disc containing some Nero software called Home Essentials, I believe. It's a way to share files over a network using DLNA. I'm not sure how it works, or whether it's any good, but now that I've got Windows networking figured out, I might leave good enough alone.
Overall, my impression of the BD570 is very positive. The only reason I've given this only 4 stars is the slightly cumbersome nature of the setup process for home networking, and because some of the language used in the menus is not 100% clear (not overly technical, just poor English). We have had very good experiences with LG products--bought an LG fridge, washer, and dryer in the past 6 months or so--and I'm so far pretty pleased with this new addition. As the first to review the product, at least on here, I hope people will find my experience and remarks useful.
One final caveat: I have not tested any of the other Internet-enabled functions, such as Pandora, YouTube, etc. If they're anything like the Netflix function, then they should be easy to set up and use.
LG BD570 Network Blu-Ray Disc Player Feature
- Blu-Ray Player with 1GB memory 802.11N for Wireless networking NetCast for YouTube & CinemaNow
- BD-P NetFlix HD BD live
- Full HD 1080p output via HDMI with Cinema mode at 24 or 60 frames per second USB Media Host
- Superior audio performance with 7.1 channels with Dolby Digital Plus & TrueHD & dts-HD
- Quick boot with instant tray opening
LG BD570 Network Blu-Ray Disc Player Overview
BD-P, Netflix, YouTube, CinemaNow, BD Live, Advanced Audio, Quick Booting, 1GB Memory, Wireless 802.11n, DLNA, 7.1ch Analog Output, Instant Tray Open, 1080p up-scaling for DVD, USB Media Host
Available at Amazon Check Price Now!
*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Mar 04, 2010 08:12:10
ไม่มีความคิดเห็น:
แสดงความคิดเห็น