I have a Media PC running Windows 7 Professional Edition with 2x1TB Hard Drives, 8GB RAM, and an Athlon X3 processor. It sits in an Antec Home Theater case with a remote control. I have placed about 125 movies of my library on my home theater PC. The question has been brought up to me by friends, colleagues, and even some of my family - Is the Media PC still relevant? Why not get a home media player?
Even just three years ago I would have said yes. Today, however, I have to go with no, the home theater PC is no longer relevant. There are several reasons why. One is that computers and laptops are so much more affordable and powerful than they were three years ago. Home media players are also more affordable, have more features, and play a better range of formats than they did three years ago.
Most people bought or built home theater PCs, because you could find an application to run on the computer that could play the media content you wanted, surf the Internet in your living room, and even do some home accounting right from the comfort of your favorite recliner using a wireless mouse and keyboard. Laptops are starting around $300 to $400 and can easily surf the Internet and perform the same basic home accounting stuff. You can still watch movies on it, and best of all, take it with you on the road. Why bother with a clunky home theater PC that costs time and money to maintain.
Today's Media PCs can be built for much less than what they could 5 years ago. I can build a decent one for about $600 including the OS. I spend about an hour or two month cleaning up old content and keeping the bunnies out. I can buy a home media player that is capable of streaming content from the Internet, the home network, and even digital copies of DVD movies for a little less $300. Some of the Home media players still require external storage, while others have built-in storage of 2TB.
My personal thought on using your own storage or purchasing a device with storage has to do with your ability to fill it up quickly. 2TB can realistically hold up to about 200 DVD movies or about 50 Blu-Rays. If you are going to fill it up quickly, then splurge on a larger drive and use the USB or wired network connection on the home media player. That way you don't have to spend the money on a drive included with the device, and a drive that is aftermarket. Just spend it once on external storage and upgrade from there.
A home media player that is always getting good reviews amongst home theater enthusiasts is the Pop Corn Hour A-210. Coming this month to stores and selling for less than $200, it looks frugal in its appearance, but features are anything but. This device requires separate storage either through USB, network, or the internal SATA interface. This device supports just about everything you could require access to, including DVD and Blu-Ray ISO formats, popular video formats, including VOB, MPG, and MOV. You can also store and play your CDs through this device.
Another device from PCH is the C-200 with a bit more pizazz. It has the ability to use an internal BD-ROM, more USB ports, and a front LCD information panel. Not to mention this device can download apps from the Pop Corn Hour market. It's a bit bigger, but the style fits right in with most home theater components. This device runs at about $300, based on those who have owned and used Pop Corn Hour devices they are one of the best on the market in terms of reliability, features, and quality. Read the reviews for yourself.
I don't own one these yet, but when it is time to replace my home theater PC or perform an upgrade, my next upgrade will most likely be to a Pop Corn Hour home media player. If you are in the market for providing a device that can stream content to your TV from your home network or a storage device, then consider getting a home media player. It is much smaller and uses less power than a home theater PC.
No comments:
Post a Comment