Patriot Memory's Box Office Media Player Review @ [H]

Probably going to pick one up at the end of the month, no need for the wifi adapter personally.
 
Volkum said:
Thanks, Kyle. I keep all my ~220 DVD ISOs in a single folder so I was worried about this.
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Yeah, that would suck to scroll through one at a time as it reads the file information on every one....one at a time. Then you can only see six at a time as well in the menu window. This may not be as bad as I make it out to be as it is functional, it just is not fast. Would be great if we could at least skip ahead in the directory by first letter of the file...

Kenai said:
This sounds almost perfect, can it do the Netflix downloads as well? Great article Kyle.
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No, and I doubt we will see that any time soon. Netflix has DRM attached to the player so I don't think this is possible with the PBO. I think there used to be a media server called PlayON that would stream Netflix to Xbox/PS3 but I am not sure this works any more.
 
I am going top follow LoneWolf's suggestion about the WirelessN attached router/switch. Drop that in my media center, can hub the Xbox, PS3, PBO, and a NAS server to it. Grabbed both the WAP and wireless switch at Provantage for $180 TT&L.
 
How does this thing compair to the Asus O!Play HDP-R1 HD? Anyone know?

I just ordered one (it's still in transit) but if this unit is better, then I would send the Asus back.

I am not interested in internal storage/USB attached. UPnP for me only with my NAS drive.
 
I'm not trying to be a nudge but, I just don't see the utility. Perhaps for a very select niche. I see it as basically offloading a number of tasks from your computer.

However, most geeks I know routinely leave their computers on and, with multi core computers the standard these days, I don't see media playback/recording impacting performance a whole lot.

The device provides an easy conversion tool between formats but, does anyone who regularly dl's content for viewing or burning not use some type of authoring software anyways? I guess I don't see the value for convenience in a roughly $100 piece of equipment that you have to add a HDD to anyways.
 
Magnus said:
I'm not trying to be a nudge but, I just don't see the utility. Perhaps for a very select niche. I see it as basically offloading a number of tasks from your computer.

However, most geeks I know routinely leave their computers on and, with multi core computers the standard these days, I don't see media playback/recording impacting performance a whole lot.

The device provides an easy conversion tool between formats but, does anyone who regularly dl's content for viewing or burning not use some type of authoring software anyways? I guess I don't see the value for convenience in a roughly $100 piece of equipment that you have to add a HDD to anyways.
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This is for watching media content on your TV in your living room, not on your PC. And these $100 boxes are a very good alternative to an HTPC in many ways.
 
Magnus said:
I'm not trying to be a nudge but, I just don't see the utility. Perhaps for a very select niche. I see it as basically offloading a number of tasks from your computer.

However, most geeks I know routinely leave their computers on and, with multi core computers the standard these days, I don't see media playback/recording impacting performance a whole lot.

The device provides an easy conversion tool between formats but, does anyone who regularly dl's content for viewing or burning not use some type of authoring software anyways? I guess I don't see the value for convenience in a roughly $100 piece of equipment that you have to add a HDD to anyways.
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The TV is one of those places where, when you come home, you just want things to work, without a huge amount of tweaking or futzing with things.

A media extender is convenient. Once you're done setting up the network share and connectivity, once you're done. No video cards needed, no Windows trweaking, just a UI already set up for you operated by remote control to stream all of your networked media to the TV through a simple box. They also use less power than an HTPC and are generally (when done right) quieter.

I love having a media extender I can put pictures or movies on the TV, and audio through the stereo, and not have to do anything other than press a few remote buttons. For me, that's how it should be.

P.S. Why would I want to watch TV on my computer when I can watch it at 720p on a 42" plasma? I mean, I have the capability, but that's only when I'm doing something else in front of the computer --I want to watch movies as if I was at the theater.
 
Right, however.... I have 4 tv's that I would like to watch my encodes on. @ $100 per room it really can't be beat.
Posted via [H] Mobile Device
 
Hi there Kyle... Great article!! I think it was a couple of months (maybe less) that you started the ad for the PBO on the front page...I actually clicked the link!! LOL...and that's what cost my self and a bunch of my friends money. But, it was money well spent.

I know this thing isn't perfect, but IMO, it's currently the best solution out there. 6 of my friends bought them as soon as they became available here in Canada, and I'm doing a custom installation for a client with 4 of them throughout his home. Hard drives and wireless N bridges all around!!

I'm so happy with this thing....I bring it to friends homes for movie nights! It's so easy to connect, especially when you have TVs today that have side input HDMI ports!

Thanks again, great review...
And I agree with your comments about the remote!! Grrrrrr....but the solution is a Harmony!!
 
Magnus said:
I'm not trying to be a nudge but, I just don't see the utility. Perhaps for a very select niche. I see it as basically offloading a number of tasks from your computer.

However, most geeks I know routinely leave their computers on and, with multi core computers the standard these days, I don't see media playback/recording impacting performance a whole lot.

The device provides an easy conversion tool between formats but, does anyone who regularly dl's content for viewing or burning not use some type of authoring software anyways? I guess I don't see the value for convenience in a roughly $100 piece of equipment that you have to add a HDD to anyways.
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I don't think the PBO can replace a HTPC, but it sure can complement it. I have my htpc in my bedroom and a PBO in my kids room.

Actually I'm thinking about install one on my minivan for traveling.
 
It sounds like it definitely has some flaws and drawbacks to this device...

BUT it is the one device that I have seen that appears to be capable of doing exactly what I want it to do, for less than $200 (assuming I buy a hard drive for it).

Honestly I did not know about this product before, but after seeing it on hardocp, I'm 98% sure I will buy one in the next few days... of course if the review had been crappy, I wouldn't have bought one, but Kyle did a good job of illustrating that it will do exactly what I want it to do. This will be very handy when I move out of the house in a month (shit, I need a TV!)
 
DudeItsMe said:
Honestly I did not know about this product before, but after seeing it on hardocp, I'm 98% sure I will buy one in the next few days...
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That other 2% was that deer I hit on the way home :( Sorry to hear that bro. Hope everyone is OK. - Kyle
 
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Stoly said:
I don't think the PBO can replace a HTPC, but it sure can complement it. I have my htpc in my bedroom and a PBO in my kids room.

Actually I'm thinking about install one on my minivan for traveling.
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funny thing.. we were just talking about modding one for car during lunch today :).

unit should be small enough to fit in any car compartment, with low power requirement, this should be easy to mod. get a couple LCDs you get all your movies with you on trip.

let me know if you are going to do it.. sounds like a interesting project.
 
EvilJohn said:
Is there anything that differentiates this from the WDTV Live! device? It sounds like basically the same device.
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Stoly said:
well aside from the drive bay and the interface they are pretty much the same.
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Not exactly correct, they perform very similar functions but this is powered by a Realtek chip and the WD TV Live is powered by a Sigma chip, at least according to this post at AVS http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=17363291&postcount=1209.

As such, the GUI's are different as in the list of supported formats and probably a few other small features as well.
 
delvryboy said:
Any issues streaming from a WHS box?
Posted via [H] Mobile Device
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None whatsoever. My Mediasmart WHS comes bundled with TwonkyMedia Server to do the job, but you could use TVersity, or (if the PBO supports it) Windows Media Connect, which is part of WHS, or (if supported) set up an SMB share.

My Popcorn Hour can pull media via all of those options, so for me, it's just about finding the easiest, most convenient one.
 
I can see where a sub $100 dollar set top box like this would be news but it isn't an enthusiast product. Most "enthusiasts" already have a home server or some variation there of in their homes. Attaching hard drives to this box and struggling to integrate it into your home network or have it exist as your home server seems half-assed and definately falls into the "value" sector.

An "enthusiast" product in this market would be a DVICO TVIX set top box. I own two and can stream 1080P content to both boxes simultaneously (one direct Gig-E the other Wireless N switch to Gig-E). The first box I purchased back in 2006 is still running strong (minus the battery cover on the remote).

The TVIX boxes play every media format out there, can play vids, music, and display images from a network share or internal (3.5) hard drive as well as record TV/Cable signals to both like a TIVO. Have similar outputs to the PBO. And most importantly can connect to multiple network shares allowing for greater control over how your content is distributed across the network. Another point, one that is important to me, is that it is compatible with my universal remote. All the viewing and recording options of the TVIX remote can be represented on a logitec universal remote.

I'll give the PBO some credit though. Connecting to the internet for things like hulu is pretty sweet, though I figured something with this functionality would be able to connect to other services like netflix as well. But to be honest TVIX has been in this market for several years, there really isn't any comparison when you consider the hardened state of their product line.

In any case, for those of you out there that see the Patriot PBO product as a near miss then look into the DVICO TVIX line of products:

http://www.tvix.co.kr/ENG/

I promise you will not be sorry. I have over 6 TB of standard definition and 3 TB of HD on my home server and haven't had any issues worth noting in either playback or recording. Like I stated above I have had my setup running for almost 4 years now. DVICO has been doing this for a long time. While other vendors were "streaming" content their TVIX boxes were "decoding" HD content using the same Sigma chips used in Blu-ray players.
 
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0xygenthief said:
I can see where a sub $100 dollar set top box like this would be news but it isn't an enthusiast product. Most "enthusiasts" already have a home server or some variation there of in their homes. Attaching hard drives to this box and struggling to integrate it into your home network or have it exist as your home server seems half-assed and definately falls into the "value" sector.
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I think at this point almost EVERY content server (with the possible exception of Western Digital's) falls into the enthusiast sector.

Most people don't want to have to do so much as install a hard drive into a box, and the thought of it mystifies them, even though it's not rocket science to you or I.

This box doesn't really exist as a home server --rather it complements it. While you can copy movies to it, I can do the same with my Popcorn Hour --and I never have, because it's far easier to stream off the network. The one case where I could see you doing it with the PBO is if you add it to a car setup, or, if you actually Bittorent files to the box. Chances are, if you know how to set the box up for Bittorrent, once again, you're an enthusiast.

A true consumer solution (which is what I think you mean rather than value solution) would be something where you plug the cables in (like you would with a DVD or VCR, turn it on, and it does everything for you from there --but there is no such thing with content streamers, as you need to set up a network share. The closest you'll find is a box that streams Netflix, or a DivX-enabled DVD player where you just burn a disc and pop it in. Even my former D-Link DSM-520 took a little work, although once set up, it had probably the most foolproof UI I know of.

P.S. It's true, there are higher-end enthusiast solutions than this --my Popcorn Hour C-200 was $299, plus the $60 Blu-Ray drive I put in it (the notebook hard drive I installed was a spare I got free). It's more a case of paying-more-gets-you-more than which solution is enthusiast.
 
0xygenthief said:
...
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The option to have the dual tuners in the TVIX is nice, but it doesn't support Bluray ISOs like the PBO does.

I would buy the PBO in a heartbeat for $300 if it would mount Bluray and HDDVD ISOs with full menu support, had an interface like 7MC with MediaBrowser and MetaBrowser, gigabit NIC, and the option to add a single or dual tuner.

Even the way it currently is it is tempting but I need HD DVD support and a better browsing option for larger libraries.
 
It's more a case of paying-more-gets-you-more than which solution is enthusiast
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Paying-more-gets-you-more solution would suggest that paying less will give you less, right? Since the PBO is still a decent product wouldn't that mean this product falls under the "value" sector. HardOCP has given awards for value products before, and this is my point. It deserves the gold value award but not the gold enthusiast award.

As far as being a mainstream consumer product the TVIX line flagship, the 6600, has plug and play capability with your home network. Essentially you just hook it up and your network devices can see the device. The NFS software that comes with the box allows you to easily set up a network share, even for the most computer illiterate. The exception being wireless setup. Like any wireless device on a network, you have to go through the process of entering encryption info and passwords etc..

As far as hooking up a hard drive goes, it's easier than putting batteries into the remote. All you do is slide in the hard drive and it lines up with the connecting pins. Just secure with a single screw then snap the cover on.

I also noticed the 6600 does streaming from youtube so it looks as if DVICO is attempting to appease it's enthusiast crowd. In any case all the TVIX line can stream Internet Radio content (i.e. shoutcast). And your suggestion that the TVIX would be suited for a car A/V setup is funny since that's how they got their start. Essentially they realized there was a market beyond the car A/V scene and let the way with their products appx 5-6 years ago.
 
Patriot Box Office said:
funny thing.. we were just talking about modding one for car during lunch today :).

unit should be small enough to fit in any car compartment, with low power requirement, this should be easy to mod. get a couple LCDs you get all your movies with you on trip.

let me know if you are going to do it.. sounds like a interesting project.
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Well it shouldn't be [H]ard at all (no pun intended). I already have an AC/DC converter to drive the PBO and a 19" WS LCD.

The hard part will be deciding where to install it and routing all the cabling.

-Or-

You could build a portable version with say a 13" WS LCD and a 64gb SSD
 
It seems like an interesting little device. However for anyone that has a 360 or PS3, it is kinda useless. While I haven't checked the 360 lately, the PS3 does pretty much everything including mkv files by default now not to mention the other functions. I would assume the 360 does most everything as well. Also tversity is just bad compared to ps3 media server, it really has a ton of problems.

Now for someone without either of the above two, this is probably a darn nice little deal. I just can't imagine it registering on the radar of anyone who does have those though.
 
how does this device stack up against the WD LIVE? It seems like the patriot box is difficult to set up and use. It should work with windows 7 out of the box.... having to do a registry edit for windows 7:eek: (Registry is Something I would never touch) Is ridiculous!
 
. And your suggestion that the TVIX would be suited for a car A/V setup is funny since that's how they got their start. Essentially they realized there was a market beyond the car A/V scene and let the way with their products appx 5-6 years ago.
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. Actually, I was talking about the PBO in that part of my post.
 
Killroy said:
The option to have the dual tuners in the TVIX is nice, but it doesn't support Bluray ISOs like the PBO does.

I would buy the PBO in a heartbeat for $300 if it would mount Bluray and HDDVD ISOs with full menu support, had an interface like 7MC with MediaBrowser and MetaBrowser, gigabit NIC, and the option to add a single or dual tuner.

Even the way it currently is it is tempting but I need HD DVD support and a better browsing option for larger libraries.
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I don't think the PBO or any other media player in its price range has the necessary hp to have an interface like Media portal, XBMC much less 7MC.
 
not sure why ISO DVD or ISO BR is an fully useful option to have files be to big for network and take all day to send them to the device hdd.

Been able to play any MKV file (norm h.264/AC3 or DTS) and AVI old and new Xvid formats and been able to do it very well is what is needed

can you even stream an 9-15gb mkv file that is 1080p over an 100mb based network, i thought the bit rate be to high on some of them?

the network connection is the Big let down for this unit for the most part

the device is very interesting, and the review you done for it very well as i have been looking for one recently, thats not priced to much
 
Stoly said:
I don't think the PBO or any other media player in its price range has the necessary hp to have an interface like Media portal, XBMC much less 7MC.
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That's why I would buy it for triple the current price with those features. ;)

greenfrogman said:
not sure why ISO DVD or ISO BR is an fully useful option to have files be to big for network and take all day to send them to the device hdd.

Been able to play any MKV file (norm h.264/AC3 or DTS) and AVI old and new Xvid formats and been able to do it very well is what is needed

can you even stream an 9-15gb mkv file that is 1080p over an 100mb based network, i thought the bit rate be to high on some of them?

the network connection is the Big let down for this unit for the most part

the device is very interesting, and the review you done for it very well as i have been looking for one recently, thats not priced to much
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I believe the highest bitrate for Blurays is about 50Mbit/s. So theoretically you could stream at least two over one 10/100 connection. The benefit of having large Bluray and DVD ISOs is that it takes less than an hour to rip the movie and it doesn't require a fast rig to do so. There is also no loss (perceived or not) of quality or features like there is with encodes.
 
can you even stream an 9-15gb mkv file that is 1080p over an 100mb based network
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Short answer, absolutely! Its all about the bitrate. An MPEG-2 movie in it's uncompressed form will max out at about 7Mb/s for a bitrate. Please not I said MEGA BIT not BYTE. A HD movie can go as high as 50 Mb/s for a bitrate. The bit to byte conversion equates to something in the teen MB range for a HD movie across your network.

So while a standard 10 MB Ethernet may struggle with HD content a Fast Ethernet 10/100 connection will allow you to watch multiple streams of HD content barring any other extreme network traffic.

not sure why ISO DVD or ISO BR is an fully useful option to have files be to big for network and take all day to send them to the device hdd.

Been able to play any MKV file (norm h.264/AC3 or DTS) and AVI old and new Xvid formats and been able to do it very well is what is needed
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You are absolutely right. Try looking into the TVIX box lineup from DVICO, I think you may find what you are wanting from them.
 
Originally Posted by Stoly
I don't think the PBO or any other media player in its price range has the necessary hp to have an interface like Media portal, XBMC much less 7MC.
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Killroy said:
That's why I would buy it for triple the current price with those features.
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So why not pay the extra money and build yourself a low cost Windows 7 Media Center PC?

I agree with Stoly, you are expecting way too much (in regards to the user interface) from a set top box. You can only do so much with a remote after all. If your concern is large numbers of files in a few directories try separating the content by genre on your network storage device, worked for me...
 
0xygenthief said:
not an enthusiast product
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I would suggest there are differences between home theater/entertainment center enthusiasts and "Computer Hardware Enthusiasts" and computer hardware enthusiast is exactly what I specified. I would suggest you are blurring the groupings.

Thanks for your input though, you are obviously well schooled on the subject matter and your opinion is respected here. :)
 
I think it kicks ass. Love mine. I think it fully deserves a Gold award from HardOCP....maybe not from Finer Homes and Theaters...but I am good with that. If the PBO is news to our readers, and it seems to be, then I hit the mark I wanted to by presenting it to our readers. Had I owned AVSForums, I might have seen things differently.
 
After reading this review and especially after having been a WD TV and now, WD TV Live owner ... I was very surprised by the gold reward giving to this product.

I suggest you review a WD TV Live, give it the gold, which you will based off your findings with this product and give it the lower ranking it deserves.
 
Ok, had a chance to read thru everything, quickly. Some posts got more attention than others.

One thing I found that is not true, is the WD firmware bricking. That firmware was pulled long ago and from what I understand, WD took care of those that had the issue, very quickly.

You can now get the automatic update via WD TV Live, with zero issues.

@ Kyle, it's too bad you guys have a sour relationship with Western Digital. I understand both sides of the fence, it takes a lot of resources to send out, and take back in products loaned out to review sites, vendors, pc user groups, etc. And it takes just as much resources on your end as well.

This is a hot emerging market right now, surprised WD does not get you their VERY HOT product right now to review. It basically destroys any other media player out there inho.
 
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