WD - WD TV Live Media Player

This is far most the best playback device there is I had issues at first because it would freeze when I have my 2b WD (that's loaded with music and videos#, but I found the issue. If you have the same problems go to the settings and change the media notifications to when it will Check for the newest media added and there will not be anymore freezes or slow reading issues. I have about 1,200 gigs to about 1,400 gigs of music and movies usage of my 2 TB wd passport. Cons:{The WD TV live viewer Takes about 5 minutes to upload the software to the device you plug in to the WD TV device. This Device Also Lets you access all of your files music and videos from PC when the WD TV device is on # WD TV device has to be linked to Wi-Fi. There are apps for tablets and mobile devices for the touch screen remote fun but the con to that is that your device whether it being a android or apple device has to be on the same Wi-Fi to link with the device. I learned by trying different things myself and I have no issues with this. Best bang for your dollars. Note Apple and iTunes does not work well to none on this device. Also This device has a usb slot on the Front & back Has Ethernet Port Wi-Fi HDMI and AVI capabilities. Thanks For reading.

If your looking for primarily to play all your media formats in a very direct layout, add Netflix, YouTube, Pandora music, a few other common apps, access all your music and photos,, all in HD, over wireless network, then this is for you. It has no lag or buffer issues through from 1 room to another even playing HD size files at my house. I use both main drive and usb drive back at the PC that runs SERVIIO with no issues. Used ps3 before the cinavia add on ruined some playback, NO MORE PROBLEMS. Infrared remote is lacking volume and basic tv functions so I plan on getting a learning remote to take this one's place since I haven't found one that uses WD'S code. The only thing that kept me from giving it perfect was no support for Amazon Prime yet. In process of finding a way around that through another app on computer... Will update Does not replace PC that's hooked up to TV in other room but ease of use and layout from serviio to organize my media collection is great. NOTE... I did breakdown and try a roku3 first because of all the apps available but the video formats that it plays is inferior.. I cant remember what it doesn't play but it was either avi, mkv, mp4. If it had played all my formats from my downloaded collection I probably would have kept it.... But the WD LIVE plays them all.

Bought this unit primarily to watch downloaded movies. Setup was easy and I was able to add it to our network. However, the instructions were not clear on how to connect to various hard drives on our network, I was able to figure it out, but it took a while. The unit is also capable of streaming services, and it streams Netflix very well. It is small and light weight and I use the optical digital audio output to connect to our surround sound system. I am very pleased with the unit.

If you're looking for a way to stream videos, this is a great product! I originally purchased the item because I was growing tired of plugging my laptop into my TV in order to watch videos. I purchased the WDTV Live and paired it with a WD My Book Live External Hard Drive. They work extremely well together and have solved the problem of hard-wiring my computer to my TV. I chose the WDTVL because it offered a wider range of video formats compared to similar products such as Apple TV. The applications or "Services", as they are referred to on WDTVL, are another big plus. I no longer utilize my blu-ray player as a Netflix streaming device. The Netflix app is also organized very well compared to other devices. There is a Slingbox Player app as well, which is great if you are planning on streaming your home TV while you're away from home. There are tons of other apps that I have not had the chance to explore yet because I've been so busy with the Netflix and video streaming! !!!!!!!!!! My suggestion would be to not upgrade the firmware. There may be some enhancements that come with the upgrade, but I don't think they are worth the headache. Might want to wait until that gets sorted out. Here are some of the problems I experienced: - Randomly lost video signal when powering the unit on - Lost connection to the WD My Book Live - Frozen applications. I ended up returning the WDTVL and exchanging it for a new one. Aside from the issues I had because of the firmware update, the WDTVL is an awesome product. I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who enjoys streaming video.

I have been using the WDTV products for a very very long time. I purchased the first WD multimedia device back in 2005 and I have owned one ever since. I will speak specifically to this device however since this is the one I am using currently. I purchased this because I have an extensive movie collection on an external hard drive. I hook up my HDD to the WDTV via USB and watch 1080p content on my TV. I have never come across a codec that this thing can't handle. I know that there are many similar devices out there but the WDTV can seriously play anything. When I am going through movies to download I never even look to see what the codec is or how big the file is because I have never had the WDTV fail to play everything seamlessly. Also there is the added benefit of all the streaming services built in, I am a big Netflix fan and I watch Netflix all the time with this device. It has BUILT IN WIRELESS!!!! Do you know how awesome it is to take this small box and hook up a power cable and HDMI out to my 42" TV in the bedroom and watch HD Netflix content without having to use some annoying USB dongle, it is great, seriously. I am not a fan of running Cat5/6 cables all over the apartment so I go wireless and when a device has it built in the smiles do not stop. This box does what it is supposed to, it does it well, and it is pretty simple to use. Not only can you do Netflix wireless but you can stream media from another media server in the house. So if I did not want to have my HDD with the movie collection in my bedroom directly connected I could instead hook it up to my PC and share the drive on the network. This is a little more complicated to set up but it works none the less. For the money this little guy packs a punch. It is silent, makes zero noise, gets a little warm to the touch after extended use but nothing abnormal there. I have had many of the WD series of devices and they really are amazing. I tried to go the cheap route one time and got a different product from another manufacturer (whom I love dearly) ASUS. I was furious with their media player and immediately bought another WDTV device instead (ASUS collects dust). If you don't have a huge collection of media and you only use streaming services like HULU and NETFLIX then there are a lot of other products that will work for you. But if you are anything like me and one day you come across a cool movie that is in some "obscure" format and you can't watch it, then you will kick yourself and wish you had purchased this product instead. (P.S.) It is a really small device, so you can pick up the WDTV box, a USB thumb drive with some movies, and then head to a friends house and bring the party to their place! (P.P.S) This does not have any internal storage capacity so you will need an external hard drive, jump drive, or network sharing to view media you own. The WDTV Live Hub has a 1TB built in HDD but that is a completely different story :-)

Excellent media player for just about ever need. Plays every format of media I use and some I have never hear of. Two USB ports make it versatile for mem stiks and HD's. Interface is nice and easy to use. Small size takes up very little room. Nice interface with options. Good price. Full size remote with full set of buttons, unlike Apple TV. HDMI and Stereo audio out (switchable) allows usage with audio systems other than HDMI TV system.

Overall I am pretty happy with my WDTV Live. I wanted this box so that I could view video content from my computer on my living room television. I chose this box over the ROKU versions and Apple TV because of the wide array of file types that are compatible with this box. That has been a really great feature. So far I have not had trouble with any file type. The only downside to this box is that it does freeze occasionally. When this happens, the only fix I have found is to unplug the box. There is a power key on the remote but no physical power button on the box. This is really the only downside that I have found other than that some of the applications can be a little slow, such as Hulu Plus. The box was very easy to set up and for the price and the features, I am happy with this purchase.

I replaced my media PC with this device after getting tired of all the security patches to my Windows 7 Media Center PC. It's quiet, small, can be connected to external media via 2 USB ports. It streams my audio collection (in FLAC and some .mp3) and my movie collection (.mkv files). No problems with playback on anything I have tried yet. The optical audio works well and surround sound is nice on this (getting that working correctly on my media PC was always problematic).