May 07

D-Link DAP-1522 wireless bridge

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We recently reviewed the Buffalo Nfiniti wireless bridge here and now D-Link has launched a similar product in the DAP-1522. Like the Buffalo the device features four Ethernet ports but where the DAP-1522 scores is that the ports are all gigabit Ethernet capable whereas the Buffalo are only 10/100. It will probably not make a great deal of difference if you have multiple devices sharing a 300mbps 802.11n connection.  For security the device also features Wpa2 security.  This is another solution if you have multiple network devices (BluRay player, internet enabled receiver) in you AV rack that’s not near a wired broadband connection.
Product info here

Apr 21

Netgear Digital Entertainer Elite

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Netgear has launched the Entertainer Elite media streamer. While I like the idea of these devices I’m not quite sure of what you’re supposed to stream. OK I get the usual audio and photo’s but a lot of these devices support 1080p video so unless you’re streaming you high def home movies around your house (what a dreadful idea) I can’t see the point really.
Anyway this one looks good, 802.11n Wi-Fi and a 500GB hard disk that you can upgrade (presumably you’ll lose whatever you had on the old drive).  The unit also has a few USB ports so you can play content straight off USB. You can also stream from Flickr or nice grainy YouTube videos.
Other useful features include the fact that multiple Netgear Digital Entertainer Elite units can work in concert throughout a house. Using “Follow Me,” consumers can pause a video in one room and resume it in another. While in “Party Mode,” they can synchronize music playback for whole-home listening. This could be fun – on my wife’s last significant birthday I ran slideshows on our 52” TV in the living room during the party of old photos of her from childhood, all around the house would be great.
A word of caution I have several Netgear products (WNR3500 router and SC101 NAS) and I’d advise to wait for a few firmware updates before taking the plunge, it usually takes them a few months to get things stable – just my opinion/experience