Popcorn Hour casually announces the A-200 NMT for its most dedicated media streamer fans
By Richard Lawler 
posted January 12th 2010 6:34PM
posted January 12th 2010 6:34PM
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
posted January 12th 2010 6:34PM
A look back on popular stories from today in a specific year.
Now that we've thrown 'em off the trail, use the form below to get in touch with the people at Engadget. Please fill in all of the required fields because they're required.
Define "Simple BD Navigation".
@Gary J IIRC, it means non BD Live, as in simple DVD-like functionality without all the bells and whistles.
After having the A-110 for the better part of last year, I wish I had just shelled out a couple more bills for a dedicated media PC.
The crashtastic UI left alot to be desired. I hope it is substantially updated with the newer models.
Don't get me wrong, I have, and still do, put alot of hours on this A-110, but I can barely recall a day without having to reboot the device due to a crash. And for anyone about to drop the standard "but you can just install yamj, blah blah" I say, I can install ANYTHING I want on a dedicated media pc.
As for the "wifi" dongle, don't even consider it for REAL streaming. Opt for an bridged router you can hit directly. The throughput on the usb port is weak.
@defunctgod Really? I've had mine for quite some time and never had a single crash and I use it heavily. Have you updated the firmware?
As for the UI, you do know it's VERY tweakable, no? Have you installed YAMJ or another movie jukebox? They're all skinable as well. The community involved in NMT development is quite active and there are tons of options for skins and other UI changes. There really are almost limitless ways you can change it to suit your needs and wants.
@defunctgod yeah i've had mine for 2 years, thousands of hours of use.. only crashes were due to network issues or problems on the server side. i just use the standard ui, i'm lazy
@defunctgod
I have the A100 for more than 2 years, and it does not crash
The UI is not nice, but for playing video this box is amazing.
Also I think the biggest weakness, that is the UI, affects more audio playing.
@(Unverified) It very well may be my network. Things cleared up a bit when I stopped using the "wireless dongle". But yeah, anyway. I don't really run into the issues with the other boxes accessing the same share. Restarting isn't the biggest deal (I still use the device), but like I said, I would just have preferred shelling out a bit more for something a better.
@defunctgod
I have to agree, still nothing is better than a HTPC.
@melao It must just be me, then. I guess the results of "popcorn hour crashes" (http://www.google.com/search?q=popcorn+hour+crashes) on google are erroneous as well.
@defunctgod
I really had no problems, and I use it for torrent as well.
@melao Sorry bud, I was just being snarky. I have no doubt it works perfectly for many people. But I also have no doubt that the default interface is terrible, and for many users, the device does crash more often than should be considered "reliable". Any who.
Not a terrible device, but if it carried a $99 price tag, it would be a different story. I think I picked it up at 180-200, and I could have just pieced together a 300 dollar box with xbmc, like I did for the upstairs living room :(
@defunctgod I thought an htpc with xbmc would be the answer too, but since xbmc still isnt dxva compliant videos just wont play that smoothly. pch is so much more simplistic and plays 1080p without stuttering. and htpcs crash too. and there alot bigger not to mention all the setup and tweeking involved, what a heardache.
@tennisbgc I won't argue with you there. It is simple and easy.
The original argument though is that to get a "nice" (maybe stable??) setup, the customization (i.e. setup and tweaking) argument always comes back in from "PCH enthusiasts". And I will always argue, I would prefer to drop a couple more bones on a pc. But, I hear ya. It's cake to setup. Like I said, I still have mine around, and it gets use everyday.
As for the "crashing" bit. My linux box has been up and running for months, with nary a reboot except for system updates. But, yes, I'll admit that when you DO get a headache with a pc, it's a MAJOR headache.
@tennisbgc No dxva support but there's VDPAU which works an absolute treat. Get an ION based nettop and you're good to go.
@melao Until you need to bitstream HD audio to your receiver. I'm aware that Asus and Auzentech both have cards which do this in theory, but in reality don't work well (and in some instances not at all). Until you can get a HTPC for less than $200 that can do something as basic as bitstreaming HD audio any claim that there's nothing better than a HTPC really doesn't hold a lot of water.
@defunctgod I've had pretty much the same experiences as everyone else. I've had my A-100 for two years now and it's great. I think I've had to do a hard reboot maybe twice in that time, and that was simply because the audio was cutting out just a bit. You can't tell me an HTPC wouldn't require a reboot every once in a while, probably more actually.
PCH devices are incredible. I'm glad to hear they're doing well and coming up with new products all the time. Eventually, if they play their cards right, perhaps you'll be able to find them in Best Buy and Walmart someday. If they make the GUI even more user friendly, anyone should be able to use them, not just us nerds.
@truelove79
Don't get me wrong, I love my PCH-A100. For movies I haven't seen anything that could beat it in the same price range.
But to be fair enough, the A100 is good for movies only, for music the UI make it barely usable. And that is why I still think that as a media player a HTPC is the best choice nowadays.
Also, you could put MAME and play games on your HDTV. :P
But that's another topic. ehehehe
@subkumquat
Ever since I switched to using HDMI versus Component Video (dunno why) I have to power off/on the device to just get the video outputting. Very frustrating as it takes a few minutes to startup and worse I have to get off my ass.
@subkumquat Yes, really.
Yeah, I have updated the firmware to the latest. And, as mentioned, yes, I understand you can "highly customize" it, but, as I stated, I can do that with a normal pc. No I have never installed YAMJ, since to be honest I prefer the simplicity of just running a share and letting all my devices access them however they want without having to install/maintain another piece of server software.
Yeah, I'm lazy.
@defunctgod
Nitpick: YAMJ is not a server, it just creates flat html files that the pch can browse (even over a network share).
The new devices will have a new UI soon, so hopefully the UI shoudln't be as much of an issue anymore.
@scyber Fair enough. Poor diction on my behalf. Server-side software would be more apt.
Where are the rest of the specs? like video containers? audio codecs, etc? I can't really get too excited until I know if this thing can bitstream or pass-through the HD audio codecs
@(Unverified)
http://www.popcornhour.com/onlinestore/index.php?pluginoption=productspec&item_id=20
Interesting. I had been leaning towards the popbox b/c I expected the a-200 to be closer in price to the a-110 ($229). But this price is the same as the a-100 was. For only a few $50 premium over the popbox, this is much more appealing.
No thanks. A nice option, and it sounds like it has a great UI, but I'd rather wait for the Boxee Box or (most likely) get a Dell Zino for $230 and install XBMC or Boxee on it.
So it looks ugly.
It has a GB port that wont (i expect) ever get to be used in its full potential.
its made by a company that created the a110 and c200 - both ugly to look at and use.
It offers very little over current gen media players for more money than current gen players.
As for YAMJ ( agreat product)
remember i bet a lot of people dont even keep a movie on the hard drlve long enough to care about having IMDB info on it or cover art.
Infact WHO rips or downloads a movie without havinga clue if they want to watch it first?
rip/download - watch it -
if movie is good - store
if movie is bad - delete
even then not much point in storing ti when u can just get it again..
@wossy
storing SD movies uncompressed now costs 25 to 30 cents
We're seeing a lot of Media Players and all have a crappy interface. Interface is maybe one of the most important things for a Home Media Player. We need a player that can be operated by your average Granpa and that looks good (Thumbnails, 1080p ) and with decent media compatibility.
Maybe we'll have something different with the Boxee Box but still I pray we have a XBMC Box sometime in a very close future.
Drobo+Droboshare+PCH = Brutaly pwnz everything.
Plastic case and a fan inside. No thanks