Are there any standalone media players available?

portable hard drive versus external image

Kevin

Is there anything that I can just slap my hard drive into and it will my songs & movies from? I'd like it to be compact, approximately the size of a dvd player, and have a remote. And I'd like it to start up right away. I don't want it to be a pc. Thanks

Answer
At this point in time choosing a good HD media player basically boils down to a choice between the level of content streaming versus support for audio and video formats and extensions. As one might expect there is no all-around HD media player currently on the market that can do both exceedingly well. In your case it sounds like the latter will be of greater importance.

Based on your requirements I recommend choosing from the following media players:

(Shenzhen) Egreat Technology Co. âHD Popular Seriesâ Media Players
http://www.egreatworld.com/en/product-default-7.html
â Futeko Support Knowledgebase
(Page contains firmware updates for select HiMedia, Kaiboer, EAGET, and Egreat players)
http://www.futeko.com/navpage/support.php

HDI Dune - HD Smart Media Players and Extension Modules
http://www.dune-hd.com/hd_players/current/

Syabas Technology âPopcorn Hourâ Networked Media Jukeboxes and Accessories
http://www.popcornhour.com/onlinestore/

Of course when it comes to hard disk drives the easiest non-networked solution is to simply use a portable or external HDD connected to the eSATA or USB (3.0) ports on the media player; it would certainly open up the field of media player choices. If youâre willing to use eSATA or USB to connect external drives then add the following media players to your list above:

A.C.Ryan Playon!HD2 Full HD Network Media Player
http://www.acryan.com/web/product/playonhd2/

Mede8er MED500X High Definition Media Player
http://www.mede8er.com

HiMedia Technology
â HD600A
http://www.himedia-tech.cn/en/product_show.php?id=24
â HD600B
http://www.himedia-tech.cn/en/product_show.php?id=25

As I am sure you will quickly discover, many of these media players cost the same or more than some full-featured BD players that include support for audio and video streaming from external NTFS formatted drives. (For example, many LG Electronics BD players support USB flash drives and external hard disk drives formatted in FAT16, FAT32, and NTFS when accessing files , i.e., music, photos, and movies. Also, select models of Samsung BD players support files stored on FAT16, FAT32, and NTFS formatted USB flash drives. And there are likely even more BD and universal disc players available from other manufacturers that also support NTFS formatted drives.)

With respect to the WD TV Live Hub and Seagate FreeAgent® GoFlex⢠TV media players: the Western Digital WD TV Live Hub simply contains an internal 2.5-inch hard disk drive, as is the case with several jukebox / media server style media players. The Seagate FreeAgent® GoFlex⢠TV HD Media Player allows you to plug in a 2.5-inch hard disk drive but you are restricted to using proprietary Seagate GoFlex portable drives. In addition, the consensus of experienced media player owners shows a greater preference for the media players listed above over the WD TV Live Hub and Seagate FreeAgent® GoFlex⢠TV units.
 

Now, what is an external hard drive?

� ��Sho

I still need to figure out how to back up my files safely. An external hard drive was recommended. Or a CD-R? I guess you can tell, you've got a real rookie here.

Answer
An external hard drive is pretty much the same as the normal hard drive inside your computer, but it is outside the computer, in its own case, connected usually through a USB or parallel port. It can be moved from one computer to another fairly easily.

The main advantages of a external hard drive versus a CD-Writer or a DVD-Write are capacity and speed, both of which are greater with an external hard drive. Also, it is much easier to make a full back of your computer to an external drive.

Here are a couple of examples which received good rating and are not too expensive:

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=10399719&SearchEngine=PriceGrabber&SearchTerm=10399719&Type=PE&Category=Comp&Gad=0&dcaid=15890

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=202636834&SearchEngine=PriceGrabber&SearchTerm=202636834&Type=PE&Category=Comp&Gad=0&dcaid=15890

Alternatively, CD / DVD writers have the flexibilty of portable media that can be easily taken to another computer and a lower cost. If you don't already have a CD writer, since there is not much difference in price, a DVD writer would probably be better of the two.

If you chose a DVD writer over an external hard drive, I would suggest taking a look at the BenQ DW1655 which has received good reviews:

http://cdrinfo.com/Sections/Reviews/Specific.aspx?ArticleId=16050

http://www.pricegrabber.com/p__BenQ_DW1655_Dual_Layer_DVD_RW_Writer_Black_w_LightScribe,__15386962/search=BenQ+DW1655

Either alternative has its benefits, but for easy, full system backups, I would recommend the external hard drive. For extra security, throw in a writer for occassional file copies to have more than one backup copy / device.

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