As spotted by radio-birdman:
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=1674900&p…
Great device - awesome price!
Getting another one for the bedroom me thinks :D
WDTV Live $98 at Officeworks
720
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I think you'd have some arguments against you there :)
I haven't used an AppleTV, but I can certainly vouch for the WD LiveTV! I was running the b-rad firmware, but back to WD firmware now as I don't use the extra features.
i got a ps3 but with this DRM Cinavia takin over…seriously tempting!
Yup, cinavia's a bitch, I'm less inclined to download blue ray rips now. Minus 1 for piracy :-(
I can recommend this. Bought it last time it was on sale for this price and haven't regretted it. It's handled everything I've thrown at very well so far, including BR rips.
So did I simulacrum, and like you I've had a terrific experience with it.
One thing I will say, which has perplexed me, is that I've been unable to use it to copy files from one device to another. It always says something like "unable to copy this file". It's a small glitch in an otherwise outstanding little unit, but worth noting.
Have you tried?
same story, same glitch, same recommendation!
Haven't tried using it to transfer files.. didn't realise it had that option. I'll give it a try later.
yes, mine is running the latest firmware.
This is an awesome device!
as long as you have an extra hard disk drive filled with stuffit can play almost anything!
I bought one for mum's christmas present.
She loves it to watch downloaded stuffI got an Astone media player (same type of thing as the WDTV Live) which was around $90 at the time that the WDTV Live was around $200, I would have preferred the WDTV. They are nice, simple and just work.
I bought it and returned it because it was crap. Not sure if it was just a problem with mine but every video I played got out of sync with the voice (within a couple of minutes). Didn't matter if its USB, portable drive, network etc., it happened with everything. I had the latest software installed also.
Must've been a defective unit then. If you exchanged it for another one you would've been pleasantly surprised
I've got one and never had any issues with it + its very awesome :P
absolutely a dodgy unit . never had that problem with a WDTV and use mine every day without fail
Can you play RMVB, MKV, H264 with this?
I also want subtitles SRT support
Can anyone confirm SRT support? I would drop a green for this if it supports subtitles natively
yep, it does
my Western Digital Media Player does
the live is a new version of it
Yep. From memory the SRT needs to be the same name as the file you're playing and it gets loaded automatically.
Correct me if I'm wrong guys.
yep
If the movie is called "MattyD.avi" the subtitle has to be "MattyD.srt"
I wish issh wouldn't sell copies of that online.
i'm sure you do ;)
Edit: I saw what you did there ;)
well I didn't but oh well, sounds funny :)
just got for $88 from OW.its a return unit from customer. not bad. will claim GST for this and my other stuff
so you got a second hand unit? probably was faulty if it was returned?
Well if the second hand unit is faulty, johndoe would have the option to exchange it at OW for a working unit. I would assume in that case the price would not change. My guess.
What does johndoe has to say. Did you try it.
it is now works like charm. everything are inside the box. not missing anything include the plastic cover of every components. For $80 (after GST claim) i couldnt asked more. If the device defect in the next few days, OW will definitely replace with a new one like my canon camera last time. very happy ;)
Thanks for posting this. I was looking around for the best price on these only a few days ago and planning to buy on Friday. Saw this so went down today and grabbed it and a 2.5" drive. About 10 of these still in stock at the Windsor store here in Brisbane.
Darn these are on sale again, were $99 last year then say at ~$124. But the person I would have brought it for just got a PS3. Just wish PS3 handled more codecs, like the WDTV.
I've got one and it work like a charm as a backup unit for alternate room viewing. Though the DNS flush issue it has on network shares was a pain. Also wish they had better previewing. But of the price it's a great unit.
Think it was this price a few months back when I got a couple?
Not a bad unit for the money.
Pros-
Massive codec support
No DRM/Cinavia/content protection systems
Tiny form factor
Network out of the box, wireless add on available
2 USB ports
Good manufacturer support - regular firmware updates, support forum
Easy firmware updates - unit can download them semi-automatically
Cheap RRP, can be had for $99 or less
HDMI, TOSLINK out
Composite out for
Support for online services - Youtube, Flickr, Facebook & more
Hackable - firmware not encrypted, 3rd party firmware with extra features available
Can connect to and serve media through Samba filesharingCons
Ugly UI (compared to XBMC)
UI can be sluggish for unknown reasons
Tiny remote (can be considered a pro)
Slow to boot
Any others?Verdict - While not perfect and not without quirks, the WDTV Live is certainly great bang for the buck. I recommend grabbing one or more before anti piracy hardware becomes more widespread.
Another thing to consider is the new chipsets from Realtek and Sigma. Players based on those chips are already available with a whole lot of others slated for release in May and June.
Good list of Pros and Cons. Some more Cons:
- Wireless is not built it, you need to buy and attach a dongle.
- The ports are USB 2.0 not USB 3.0. (With some 1080p MKV files, a USB 2.0 port struggles)Overall this is a good little box, but it would be better if it had the above features like some of the newer media players do.
I've been hanging out for a refreshed tv that does 1080p. How much extra is it to make this thing wireless? Got tired of the Cat-5 cable snaking through the house.
buy yourself another cat5 cable
Use This Offer and buy This
and comes out to be less than 10 cents for a cable
I crimp my own cable, and have enough to last until Sydney's second airport is built. I want a wireless solution to avoid the hazards of cable running through the entire house.
In my house there's a hole drilled in the wall(s) between the router and TV (and cat 5 fed between them through the wall). There's a proper cover thing on each side so it doesn't look dodgy :) Wasn't too difficult to do, but it was a 2 person job to make sure the correct places were drilled.
I bought the D-Link DWA-125 Wireless (150 N speed) and it works flawlessly. Around $35 at the time 2 months ago. Beware that although they have a compatibility sheet on their website, there's at least one model on it that doesn't work, even though it's supposed to be supported - the Belkin F7D2101 Surf & Share 300N. More here - http://whrl.pl/RcH0LL . Do your research on dongles before buying.
Streaming HD on wireless may be a hit and miss depending on the environment you're in, devices, higher HD videos take up a lot of bandwidth, other usage on your wireless network etc…
Could someone tell me please would this be able to play the live IPL cricket stream from youtube or could someone try this for me please. There is a live match at 8:30pm and the address is www.youtube.com/indiatimes.
it should
http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=330
Play network and
internet content.
Connect to Internet sites like Facebook, YouTube, Deezer or stream content from your home network.Thanks. I rang OW in Chadstone, they have one set up, bit not connected to the internet, so can't try it out there. Would appreciate if someone could try this for me and let me know. Thanks.
Just buy and try dude. Officeworks will glady return the product withing a few days and including all undamaged packaging. Then it will get marked down and sold a little cheaper for someone else if you don't wont it. :)
Wait wait, youtube has live streaming now?
I gave this a go and it doesn't appear that you can do it. The Youtube app works by title/tag search rather than allowing you to a specific youtube account by choice. I did searches for IPL, Cricket, indiatimes and the closest I can get is videos of match highlights for up to a few days before (with indiatimes as the uploader) but it will not bring up the main indiatimes page in the searches.
After checking out the page you specified on my PC there are distinct differences to normal Youtube pages that are likely preventing this. When playing normal youtube pages the app is just streaming a video file, with controls to pause, skip forward and back etc. On the indiatimes live stream there are no controls available, it just streams so there is no "file" for the WDTV Youtube app to find and catalogue. I thought I might be able to add it as a "favourite" on my Youtube account via my PC, and then access it on the WDTV that way, but the indiatimes page does not have the buttons available to make it a favourite either.
These tests were conducted using the latest WD firmware. Not sure if the hacked B-rad firmware adds any extra functionality that might allow it.
Hope that helps.
Aww dang it….another shopping spree coming up soon…just bought a 2 TB External HDD from the other deal…now I need a 3D TV deal to complete the set
You paying for size vs cost or functionality? Even JB Hifi's selling it for $115.
http://www.jbhifionline.com.au/computers-laptops/computer-ac…
JB Hifi was selling this for $125 just last week.
I am new with WDTV. Wondering how it works:
1. Is it able to download movie via internet and play it straight?
2. Does it support all major type of media file, say rmvb, avi and MP4?
3. Does it has wirless connection function? Or it has to be connect to router by cable?
4. Does it function seperately from computer?Much appreciate if somebody can show me the answer. Thinking about to get the device to play all me download movie on LCD.
1/ No. Online stream only e.g Youtube
2/ No to RMVB. Yes to AVI, MP4, MKV
3/ No. Need USB wireless adapter
4/ YesRMVB
you can easily convert these to avi, mp4
To add to (1)
If you are looking at doing that
you may want to have a look at this
http://www.wdtvlive.com/products/wdtv_live_hub#/highlights
I dont believe that the WDTV LIVE HD supports RMVB.
Not sure if there's even a hack for it as well, although many other WD players do support it.
Howdy there Vincecheng
this WD live is magic.
answers to your Qs.
1.you can download the item to a hard disk ,then play it or you can stream to it(WD Live dont have internal mem for media).
2.yes it support everything to chuck in it(best is to install B-RAD firmware).
3.nah ,it dont have wireless connection ,but you can buy a wireless stick ,wireless keyboard and mouse and use it for the WD LIVE.
4yes it works by itself ,if you atached an external drive to it,if you share a hard disk on the pc ,it have to be on.
also you can stream lots and lots of stuff.
enjoy this magic toy.
P.S
if you are with TPG ,even you can watch IPTV ,Porn hub, Iview and so on.
C H E E R SBobbymg in regards to (2). Are you saying that the B-RAD firmware supports RMVB?
no. It's a chipset limit. Firmware , even 3rd party one, won't help
I would also love to k ow if b-rad supports rmvb as well. Thanks. :)
Anyone know how to easily add coverart,and synopsis ( summary as to what the movies are all about like what you see when viewing the back of a dvd cover ? Running the Boxee software on my computer seems to be able to do this effortlessly,even being able to sort by other parameters like genre etc and am surprised that this baby can not do also. This becomes a necessity when trying to navigate a large movie folder. Have purchased 4 separate brands of device so far over time and none has done this like Boxee.
Western Digital phone Tech Support could not help ! thanks ps files residing on a Western Digital N.A.S. and am trying to view on a Samsung B series plasma with terrible crude file folder structure.Bad news is that it doesn't appear that WD themselves offer the moviesheet/synopsis option. Good news is that the B-rad 3rd party firmware update does … and then some.
Example videos of the firmware in action:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRkO9qxQerU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5Q4hRk50xgIf you don't want to run 3rd party firmware on your unit, you won't be able to see moviesheets, but coverart thumbnails can still be added by just dropping a JPG of the coverart into the folder of each movie.
Bought one, there were two left on shelf when I left Officeworks QV VIC
Bang for buck, this little unit cant be beat.
I just wish WD's players could support XBMC…. perfect marriage of great hardware with best UI and software. But not going to happen unfortunately :(. Maybe next gen WD's players might be able to (crosses fingers!).
Unlikely; they're encrypting the firmware in new models so homebrew firmware seems unlikely.
This is a good deal but just bought a Boxee Box instead and it is everything I wanted in a set top box.
Already had a Beyonwiz DP-P2 PVR for TV and the XBox wasn't cutting it for movie playback. Choice was the WD or Boxee.
My 2 cents - Check out this little puppy for something a lot more advanced like Boxee Box for only a little more.a little more??
$230 was the cheapest I could find…..That's double the price and a bit…..
wow
Got it yesterday after work. Brilliant product
Bought this morning, plenty of stock at Newcastle.
Now where do I go to download movies, tv and music? I am new to this.
Just bought one at QV, Melbourne. Still had a few left.
Have farted around with my Popcorn Hour A-200 (then A-210) long enough trying to get (what is, in my opinion, the best UI available on a TV) YAMJ + AEON working.
http://www.google.com.au/search?um=1&hl=en&biw=1440&bih=736&…
Pity its such a pain to get working and I just end up using the PCH in default skin mode (which the WD looks better).
Maybe I'll get one and if I don't like it Mum and Dad get a new present.
The Boxee Box looks good too… does it do MKV, BluRay ISOs et al?
Wow - I just downloaded and tried out Boxee on my laptop at work. VERY NICE indeed. Super smooth scrolling UI based on XBMC, IMDB details including all the Simpsons episode synopsis and it plays all of my media including 1080p MKVs!
Very impressed. Give it a go. Anyone wanna by a PCH?
I just bought this at The Good Guys at Cockburn, WA for $81.80. They were selling it for $179. After I paid the original price, I went to the Officeworks just opposite the Good Guys and took a photo showing it is priced at $98. I then went back to the Good Guys and asked for a refund. They refunded 1.2 x (179-98) = $97.20 bringing the final price to $81.80.
there's a place in WA called Cockburn? Seriously?
Wow :).
Good on ya, too much effort though.
lol ya rly but its pronounced Coh-Burn
in what language?.. lol
It's a surname, not mine, and is pronounced as such.
Thanks for the tip. This time finally found one from my local OW. Pretty happy the el cheapo USB wireless sticks I bought last year via another ozb deal for about $15 did the trick.
Can you stream your own files without it going through the internet?
Sure. Click on the "Videos" button under the main photo for a walk thru on this page: http://wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=330
Thanks!
Just bought one from OW to complement my WD mini media player. Thanks for the tip.
Anyone knows whether this adapter will work with the WDTV Live?
yes is the answer. see previous posts from goodbargain.
Already bought one of these about 9 months ago for $179, very simple, easy to use media player, not the best but you dont expect that for this price. Will play back most files and now thats its under $100 its even more compelling.
price has gone up to $124, however jb hifi has it for $115 so you can price match
booo. :(
been looking out for this for a while now!