Western Digital WD TV HD 1080P Media Player

• Play Full HD 1080p video, music and photos on your HD TV
• Play a wide variety of file formats
• Dolby Digital 5.1 & DTS audio support
• DVD-like menu

I purchased the WDTV Media Player (version 2) through Amazon two weeks ago. I have an extensive collection of movies and tv shows that I have ripped from my blurays and dvds over the past few years, plus downloads etc (over 2.8 gigs worth and counting). I built a HTPC 1.5 years ago and always hoped there would be a simple, inexpensive solution that would allow me to easily transfer my media to the TV without constantly playing with settings to the point where my wife is getting up from the couch out of boredom.

Along came the WDTV Media Player, the best solution for someone like me. I have tried as hard as I can to dig up a format (H.264, X.264, .mkv, .flac, .omg etc.) or problem to throw at this device to muck it up and I have yet to succeed. It has even been able to playback halfway decompressed files. I have it hooked up by HDMI through a Pioneer 819 AVR and set to bitstream audio codecs. I have had none of the audio syncing issues that were prevalent in the first generation machines. The user interface is attractive and intuitive. If you are use to using a HD set top box from your cable company and a PVR/DVR, this is basically the same functionality. Set up takes minutes and playback is beautiful. Unlike an previous reviewer, I have found that playback on standard definition content to be excellent. It upscales as well as any high quality dvd/bluray player. For HD playback, playback is just as good as bluray--without and time lag between pressing play and start time.

As with any device, it has its flaws-although they are minor in the scheme of things. First, it will not play menus from ripped DVD's and blurays (only the largest file in the rip, i.e. the movie). The WDTV does have its own menu that allows you to change audio tracks and subtitles on the fly. Unless the chapters are ripped and formatted correctly, you cannot skip to the next chapter. This sounds like a bigger problem than it is. This can be rectified by ripping with better quality software. If you downloaded your movie with bit torrent, you get what you pay for with your "free"/stolen content. Even using content without the ability to skip chapters, fast forward and reverse work quicker than on my panny bluray player and I am able to fast forward up 16x speed and the devise allows you to skip ahead in 30 second intervals (just enough to allow you to jump ahead of commercials from video capture off your cable box).

Other minor gripes: They are not able to bitstream lossless sound codecs (TrueHD and DTS-HD MA). Frankly, this is minor and most people will be happy with Dolby Digital and DTS (which the WDTV v2 and Live can send by bitstream over the HDMI capable--a feature lacking in the first gen WDTV). I have been told by people familiar with the Sigma 3365 processor that firmware may allow it to bitstream TrueHD, although probably not DTS-HDMA). We'll have to wait an see.

I have seen the Asus, Seagate and Popcorn C-110 and, they all have their pro's and con's. Dollar for dollar, the WDTV (v2) or WDTV Live (for an extra $20) are the best media players on the market. I give this three thumbs up and my strongest recommendation.

Update: 12/29/09 I picked up an WD HD Live at one of the big chain electric stores over the weekend to see if it was worth the extra few dollars. Pandora internet radio is a nice feature and I think the Live has a lot of "potential". There are some problems though. To test the machine, I tried to set up with a wireless dongle (g--i don't have a wireless n dogggle although I am not sure it would make much differenec). I also used a direct ethernet connection (obviously the best way to set it up).

First, HD streaming from a network harddrive was disappointing. Although 720P playback was usually not bad through ethernet. It did stutter and lose audio sync from time to time. If I paused playback to allow the WDTV LIve to rebuffer (or HDD drive--I am not entirely sure which devise had the issue), it seemed to fix the problem for a while. Using the dongle, playback about the same as with the ethernet. To be clear, some files played back without a hitch and others were far more problematic. The same files played perfectly on both the WD TV Live and WD TV (v2) when connected directly to a USB HDD.

With respect to 1080P playback, there were some significant hiccups. Using the network, playback stuttered badly on more than half of the files played. It appeared that the machine was dropping frames and lost audio sync. This was more prevalent when playing back large files (17 gig archived BD movies for example). Smaller 1080P files (8-12G) played about as well as 720P--some played perfectly and others with only minor issues. all files, however, played without issue using a direct usb harddrive. In my bedroom I am using an LG BD player that already has netflix, YouTube and pandora. The WD does not handle netflix, and the other services are redundant (Pandora is nice, but, frankly, YouTube is a pain to use with all of these systems).

In conclusion, the WDTV Live and WDTV (v2)have the same capabilities when used as stand alone devices connected to USB harddrives. Although I didn't mention this earlier, streaming SD content from a network was no problem with the Live. HD streaming capabilities were suspect, particularly with large files. As a caveat, other more sophisticated videophiles may have the time and computing power to convert larger HD files into smaller formats that will stream better. The thought of using handbrake to downsize my entire collection is not something I have any intention of doing. The WD TV LIve is a great first start. With some more firmware updates, it may be a better network streamer, but I think network streaming for 1080P is still a generation or two away from prime time.

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This review is about WD TV Live and WD TV generation 2 (featured on this page), which share the same hardware minus the network capabilities.

I bought this unit recently, after having bought WD TV generation 1 a few weeks ago. There was a significant improvement in user interface, plus the capability to copy/move files between media and to play DTS audio over a stereo or HDMI output (on WD TV gen1 DTS won't decode, it only outputs it in digital mode through the optical output).

Besides occasional problems with audio sync, the unit operates beautifully for high definition video. However, for standard definition video, which needs to be upscaled by the device to play on most LCD or plasma TVs, the picture quality is quite worse than that of the WD TV generation 1. The picture is grainier, with very noticeable artefacts. This is super annoying for me and a great disappointment for a device that otherwise would be ideal.

WD has not addressed the matter and has not replied to queries about it. I hope this is solved in future firmware upgrades, because the device is otherwise excellent.

I've seen this issue addressed in many user forums, there's no clear explanation for the phenomenon, hopefully WD will address it.

Meanwhile, I'm returning my unit.

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I've now owned the Gen1 and Gen2 of this product. Gen2 is quite a bit faster for loading and navigating menus which makes it nice. They've released one firmware update but I don't think it fixed any of the many bugs and may have even introduced some.

With the Gen1, I don't remember having audio/video sync problems like I experience now. This makes many of the movies I have completely unwatchable. I'm not talking millisecond differences, I'm talking 3 to 5 seconds for some movies. Sometimes more.

There are workarounds for many, but not all, problems you'll experience if you own or plan on purchasing one of these. Many of the workarounds can be found on WD's community forum. If it wasn't riddled with so many bugs for so long, I would give it 2 or even 3 more stars but WD seems to have lost interest with device.

Why didn't I give it more stars??

Does not meet USB and HDMI mechanical specifications. Since this is the case, who knows about well the meet the electrical specs. (workaround Some people trim 1 to 2 mm off the ends of the cable to resolve issues)

Problems with audio/video sync (workaround I wish there was one. Sometimes stopping the movie and resuming playback works, but mostly it doesn't.)

Certain sized USB devices work when updating to new firmware, others do not. This is not documented so your guess as to what sizes work are as good as mine. (workaround For updating, only use FAT32 formatted drives of less than 256MB and you should be fine)

While the power is on, if I plug in a USB drive, the first time I go to that drive, the WD hangs for about 1 or 2 whole minutes without any sign of doing anything. (workaround Turn off the WDTV, plug in the drive, turn on the WDTV. This takes less time.)

The file manager (used to move files and whatnot) hides files with certain extensions. Unfortunately, it hides files with the .srt extension which contains subtitles for a given movie. (workaround take the drive(s) to the PC and move the file)

Sometimes when I select a movie to play, it'll start playing the audio but not the video. This requires the box to be powered off and then on sometimes unplug and plug back in even because it stops responding to the remote. (workaround After power cycle, try again.)

This is only a smattering of the fun you'll have if you decide to buy one. In a nutshell, many bugs, slightly fewer workarounds, and even less support from WD.

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This media player is not capable of playing ripped DVDs in their normal format. It is not just that it can't read DVD menus but the real problem is that it has partial recognition of DVD structured files. The only video objects (.vob files) that routinely play are the ones that correspond to the first chapter of the DVD. Try to select another vob video file and it will only play the unselected first one. This makes it impossible to play DVDs in their native structure off a USB drive. You have to re-encode the DVD files into another format if you want to watch them through this device. It would be much better if there were no recognition of DVD structure at all. Then you would be able to simply navigate by selecting the individual vob files. Not as good as menu recognition but a workable solution.

I also found a bug that gave a black screen on my HD TV whenever I changed drives. I figured out that by unplugging the HMDI cable and then plugging it back in, the display screen came back.

Do to poor design and continued bugs in this product, I returned mine. It is hard to believe that they created a USB video player that does not correctly read the most common video standard DVD files.

I really wanted this to work!! I bought this as a christmas gift for my dad 2 days ago and it arrived today. When I opened the package it looked so cool I wanted one for myself so I opened it up to try it out and I am so glad I did! First off you have to upgrade the firmware. Well I went on WD site to get it. What this ad on amazon doesn't tell you is that this is the 1st gen wd tv hd media player, western digital only has firmware on there site for 2nd gen. I called the most incompetent tech support guy who was practically worthless, had no solution for me whatsoever. Than after 10min he figured out where on the wd site I go to update the firmware, the only problem is that wd was "updating" their site so basically when you click on the firmware to download it leads you to a page that says "page not found" I told the tech support guy he makes up some lame excuse about the site being down. Then I ask him why other firmwares work for other products. He didnt have an answer and told me to call back tomorrow. After a quick google search I found the firmware update someone posted on the wd conversation forum, so I finally updated and was on my way. I played an Avi and Mkv movies, they worked flawlessly and everything seemed perfect after that.. That is until 2 hours later. I turned of the system then went to go back to finish watching the mkv I film had been watching earlier and what do you know I got a blank black screen. This little piece of plastic junk will not play anything. I tried resetting (the hardware and software), I went back to the wd conversation forum and basically what I found was that this model has a habit of doing this and that WD is phasing them out so there isnt much support on the 1st gen models. So now I am out $130 and no gift for dad yet.. Please dont make the same mistake I did and listen to all these great reviews.. THIS IS JUNK!!! Beware it does not work, do a quick google research and type in "wd tv 1st gen not working" and you will see I am not the only one with this problem and there are more complaints than good reviews out there ( just not on amazon). I wish I would of done that in the first place.