smart tv

evosteo

has anybody bought one of these

seen it in the harvey norman magazine the other day

looks like interesting technology all the same

wonder how usefull it is

http://www.harveynorman.ie/lg-smart-tv-upgrader.html

2011

evosteo wrote: »

has anybody bought one of these

seen it in the harvey norman magazine the other day

looks like interesting technology all the same

wonder how usefull it is

http://www.harveynorman.ie/lg-smart-tv-upgrader.html

I have no experience with this. But personally I think this is the way to go.

I hope to get one next weekend:)

evosteo

2011 wrote: »

I have no experience with this. But personally I think this is the way to go.

I hope to get one next weekend:)

jesus that looks the part alright, very pricey though

2011

evosteo wrote: »

jesus that looks the part alright, very pricey though

Define pricey

I think you get a lot of "bang for your buck".
Having said that I am an Apple fan through and through.
This is despite the fact that most of my working day is spent using PC

Bruthal

Vga socket beside couch mounted on blank plate, another behind tv, cat 5 soldered between them, and old pc conected to couch one, does the job.

Stoner

LG Smart TVs have nice features, I wonder if this box brings them all to a TV?
a boxee box is a good deal, I don't really like apple TV box that much as I dont likne my content being limited via itunes.
Also on the LG box what formats can it play? Boxee will do all that but also access your NAS drive if you have one. (this box may be capable of doing the same)

I've had a NAS drive in my place for 7 years now, I have a ReadyNas Duo and a T Link sharecentre. Both support uPnP / DNLA.

both have itunes servers if you are an apple user. I can put any media i like on the NAS drive and watch it on different devices, I watch MKV HD 1080p movies on my PCs the PS3 and xbox360 also link up to it (but both suffer from format issues)
Best of all my android phone can stream media via the dnla server too, so I have about 4TB of media internally to watch on about 6 devices all from the one NAS, they are a great investment and what I would recommend to someone starting out, you can get a boxee box and link it to the NAS, or a Sony or popcorn box. Also all your photos and home documents can live there to be shared and they run web servers so you can get your info from outside the house.

I think that the LG box only brings a TV up to Smart TV standard, I have an LG Smart TV and I have all those features, but to be honest its nothing like a media PC. I would check it the Smart box is dnla complaint it is has then it will open your TV up to a NAS drive connection. However I would be more in favour of a Media PC, a popcorn or boxee box, if you look on the home entertainment forum you'll find that they are the favourites too. Ibood had a very nice sony box for only 70 euro a while back

http://ie-en.forum.ibood.com/6831-sony_full-hd_network_media_streamer_with_hdmi_ethernet_and_wifi_and_dlna_certified/

they are great for these types of thing and they appear on the site from time to time, a few days ago this was here

http://ie-en.forum.ibood.com/6876-mede8er_med5002_-_enjoy_local_and_internet_based_media_like_never_before/

as you can see the above box will play MKV files

they even had a nice NAS recently

http://ie-en.forum.ibood.com/6853-drobo_fs_5-bay_self-healing_and_beyondraid_/

As you can see the streamers are certified for uPnP / DNLA as is the NAS box

You can download and install boxee on your PC for free, and also control it for free with your Android or Iphone if you want to see what it is like. The boxee box is more or less the same interface but its a little box that takes the place of a PC, has a HDMI connection, quiet and efficient.

the only thing I will say is that these boxes like the LG box etc there are so many out there but when new formats come out a media PC is future proofed you can install a new codec pack. Some of these units can be left behind or you will wait an age for firmware updates. I have arsed around with many of these types of boxes, they are all great but all missing something, using the browser on LG Tv will not be the same experience as using one on a media PC.

In place of the Apple TV box I would get the following

http://www.dabs.ie/products/d-link-sharecenter-pulse-2-bay-network-storage-enclosure-78PQ.html?q=share%20centre

pop in two hard drives

http://www.dabs.ie/products/western-digital-2tb-caviar-green-sata-600-64mb-3-5--7G12.html?q=2Tb

(this box now supports some 3TB drives)

a Boxee box

http://cgi.ebay.ie/D-Link-Boxee-Box-Digital-Media-Player-/220855840882?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item336c08b072#ht_2590wt_906


this will give you a network in your house that will allow you to share content on PCs, Android phones and watch them in HD on a boxee box on your main TV, if you have an Android tablet you can use the DNLA software (all free) on it too. Also with my LG smart TV, I can send media from my phone directly to my TV using the DNLA send software, so I'd imagine this could do the same (so would the boxes i mentioned above) an Iphone can be used as an extra remote control for the boxee box too, if you still insist on owning one

Your Router should be DNLA certified too,

In short, I have not used this box, but I have an LG Tv that has LG Smart TV built in, it's good but sitting under it is a Media PC

2011

Stoner wrote: »

I don't really like apple TV box that much as I dont likne my content being limited via itunes.

I was suggesting a Mac Mini, not Apple TV. Meaning that it is possible to watch movies with and without iTunes (and do lots more).

BTW fantastic and informative post! I must study it in more detail later.

Stoner

2011 wrote: »

I was suggesting a Mac Mini, not Apple TV. That way I can watch movies with and without iTunes and do lots more.

BTW fantastic post! I must study it in more detail later.

correct, my error I did notice that when i started but lost it later on when i was advising against the more fixed approach I got carried away, that is a lovely machine you are getting, very nice design and a quality build.

IMO a NAS is a more flexible investment, the good thing about boxee is that Robbie can pop it on his old PC and see what he thinks for free, and it give another use to your phone, using wifi for controls is great because IMO a decent wireless keyboard and mouse will set you back a fair few bob and range is always an issue, but wifi addresses that.

Stoner

What spec are you getting 2011.

It looks like a basic spec of
i5 2.3GHz (what architecture)
500 GB hard drive
2GB of RAM
and on board graphics 256MB

for 600 euro
I looks like accessories like keyboards are extra.

IMO it looks super and that is worth the money but with respect to processing power per euro I think it's high, but i don't think anyone beats apple for design they have it wrapped up.

2011

Stoner wrote: »

What spec are you getting 2011.

I'm not 100% sure TBH.
TBH in view of your post I might do a little more research first and hold off for the time being.

It looks like a basic spec of
i5 2.3GHz (what architecture)
500 GB hard drive
2GB of RAM
and on board graphics 256MB

Correct. I had intended to go for 4GB of RAM and larger hard drive.

for 600 euro
I looks like accessories like keyboards are extra.

Yes, but I already have a keyboard, magic mouse, trackpad and Time Capsule.

IMO it looks super and that is worth the money but with respect to processing power per euro I think it's high, but i don't think anyone beats apple for design they have it wrapped up.

My intention is that it will be mainly for movies, music, photos and internet use. I think that it will be more than up to the task.

evosteo

great post stoner very informative

have too give it a proper read later:)