Netgear Digital Entertainer Elite available worldwide for $399
By Darren Murph 
posted Apr 20th 2009 4:04PM
posted Apr 20th 2009 4:04PM
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And people will buy this over other entertainment boxes because....?
its $399 and has a PLETHORA of features.
a smorgasbord even.
PCH is $200 and is sweet
Somehow I doubt this will be $399 worldwide.
I was really interested in this until I found out that it doesn't play MKVs with DTS audio tracks.
no mkv or dts? this is just another half assed attempt. Popcorn hour still rules the roost.
The PS3 does more than this for less money.
500GB isn't enough. I've looked into one of these devices before, but the $200 deal on the 360 + $80 on the 120GB drive I got at Circuit City was simply too good to pass up. Media device AND gaming system won out over just media device.
Sometime this summer I planning on getting myself a 2TB (Which is supposedly the limit Fat32 can handle.) RAIDed system, drop all 500 movies I own on it and plug it into my 360. It supposedly SHOULD be able to see it. Then box up my DVD collection and put it in the basement. Damn thing is taking up too much room. I'm est I'm going to need at least 2TB for all of that because on some of those 1 = 1 season of something. SG1, BSG, Babylon 5, etc. So we'll see. Just wish 360 supported NTFS... :\
I know - that is such a bummer that the 360 can't read NTFS external hard drives. Too bad there isn't a chip-on-board solution for using an NTFS drive that reads and writes via FAT32 (because of the horrid limitations - there's a reason that standard is only used for flash drives!!!)
So are none of your movies over 4gb in size then?
I keep going to the Netgear forums and reading up on peoples problems with this device. It seems as with most products, this thing isn't without its problems. I recommend you go over there and read up before purchasing this. I'm so sick of companies that send out expensive electronics that don't do what they advertise.. and say "oh yeah, it will be updated in future firmware".. why they heck don't they just make sure its ready before they send it out??!?!?!
Mo
The problems most people are experiencing come from the fact they are downloading their media from the Internet from questionable sources and the formats are not coded properly or with off-the-shelf software. If you take your personally owned DVD or recorded DVR shows and convert them using, say, Nero, iTunes, or DVD Fab, then the media players tend to work just fine. Most media players are not tolerable of all the weird settings used in 'stolen' video from torrents or usenet, and of the several players I've ever tried, the DVICO TVIX series seem to be the most flexible and forgiving. However, the user interface isn't all the grand, so you sacrifice for now.
I have their previous model and these guys promise big and deliver low.. If only it worked like it says it does on the box. No TV Recording, 1080p doesn't work, 720p Still has problems.. Even standard def videos if they are encoded in the unapproved netgear way stutter even from a USB Drive. I'm sure they've fixed some of these issues with their local drive and better hardware, but still. I wouldn't buy another one.. not until they learn how to deliver a decent firmware update.
For that same $400 you could build/buy a desktop system to hook up to your television. Just load up Boxee or XBMC or whatever you want, and rock on. Plus you'd have a full OS to install any addtional codecs, browse the web, etc.
Amen, brother.
What's with that exorbitant high price. $399? They must be joking. I could easily build/get a computer for less than $400 that can do more than this box. $100 and call it even.
No interest at all, consider their wifi moderm is total crap.
Seems to be a cmpetitor for the Neuros LINK.
I'd get a popcorn hour instead of this, or the upcoming QNAP model. They all have the same mobo, but apparently the Netgear firmware sucks....
I thought about this but opted for another PS3 instead and stream movies and music from my DLNA NAS, and can play video games in another room. Plus if you can have a PC on your network run a variety of compatible media servers.
They mention "podcasts", but no detailing of whether they mean audio, video, or both. Still no Hulu access either.
I have a PCH and its one of the greatest devices Ive ever owned.
True ! .. i gave up on SMB watching Bluray backups after it liked to stutter during the movies .. and i went to a Small Portable HD ... The best move i ever did .. perfect 1080P playback with lossless HD audio 100% perfect every time
I don't see how you can justify paying $400 for this rather than an ion (http://www.engadget.com/tag/ion/) media center. If the prices translate from British pounds, you'll soon be able to get an Acer Hornet (or AspireRevo?) for $267 and get a fully-functional computer that can play everything you can throw at it... Then all you need is to go and buy a 500 GB or 1 TB HD for $60-$120, and then install Boxee / XBMC.
Now tell me again why Netgear thinks they deserve my $400 when ion's around the corner?
I have a PCH and it pwns. This netgear sounds like a POS. Can't even play 720p let alone 1080p.
Asus Eee Keyboard please?
Where does it say it cannot play 720p or 1080p content? Link?
I was just going off this guys post. I didn't actually read into it. Not worth the time.
Jak @ Apr 20th 2009 4:23PM
"I have their previous model and these guys promise big and deliver low.. If only it worked like it says it does on the box. No TV Recording, 1080p doesn't work, 720p Still has problems.. Even standard def videos if they are encoded in the unapproved netgear way stutter even from a USB Drive. I'm sure they've fixed some of these issues with their local drive and better hardware, but still. I wouldn't buy another one.. not until they learn how to deliver a decent firmware update."
It's pretty obvious that anyone who will complain about the price AND compare it to building or buying a low cost PC to do the same job would never be in the market for one of these devices anyways.
Objectively speaking though, the device is pretty impressive because most devices in its class don't support as many file formats, nor do they offer dual-band 802.11n. I'm not gonna say it's better than a PC, because it isn't one. I do agree that it would be nice if it came with a larger hard drive, but at least they do make it easy to change out.
My wallet says no. Absolutely not. This is for lazy people who have extra cash to toss around.
The alternatives are endless at a fraction of the cost...
Am I wrong?
not worth it at all. you can get the WD box that hooks up to your HDD for playback, this just adds wifi and an overpriced HDD, lol. fuck that, or you can build your own
I bought the EVA 9150 and have been using for about 4 days. It is not without it's problems, but overall it works well. To move your DVD's to I think it's fine. The picture slideshow kinda sucks, but the wireless and youtube features bring it home. For the music lover it plays FLAC and almost every other codec imaginable. I think most of the software bugs they can fix through firmware, but who knows when that will happen. For my $400 to store and play my 100g flac music and 200g DVD iso files in gorgeous 1080P I dig it so far.
So how exactly are you playing your "200g DVD iso files in gorgeous 1080P"
They are dvd files silly ass
Or, I could use the $399 to build an XBMC rig that would *destroy* this in every possible way. Now that I think about it, that's exactly what I did.
You guys should fine out what it does and doesn't do before you post. People will read this and think the claims are true. It plays DTS, it plays 1080p wirelessly. It plays almost every format for all media. The point about torrents coming in weird formats is legit. With your own media it won't fail you. It isn't without its problems (I have had one for a week) and the user interface is pretty weak. Especially the music player which seems like Windows Media 1. It sucks But it does everything as advertised. If they were smart they would open up this thing up and let all the nerds out there make it awesome.
Could someone explain why you would need one of these media streamer devices. Will a Laptop (which is mobile in your living room) connected to a large networked drive not do the same thing if it has a HDMI output. Or does a laptop not have the same video output capabilities when connecting it to a flat plan TV.
thanks
derek
A laptop would be more capable and open even more feature (web browsing, email, play ANY format/codec). But a laptop is still a "computer" with a keyboard and mouse interface. Even a laptop with a usb remote still feels "not quite the same" as a STB like this. There is something to be said about the ease and simplicity that a remote based STB offers, and the comfort with which it fits in with your media setup.
Although, there (for me) is more to be said about saving a lot of extra money. So if you have such a laptop with HDMI, I say hook it up. If you want a STB, then jump for the Popcorn Hour at half the price. PCH will reign supreme until any other company can figure out to mount NFS and SMB, and play everything under the sun (Damn you h264 High@5.0!!).
At such a high price, netgear seems to be banking on the ignorance of it's customers to move some units (al a Monster Cables). Although said ignorant customer probably isn't going to even know what the hell this does and couldn't fathom how movies can be played on your TV that does not come from a DVD/BD/Cable.