2011 Media Streamer Roundup : Netgear NTV550, A.C.Ryan PlayOn!HD2 and the Boxee Box
by Ganesh T S on November 20, 2011 10:32 AM EST- Posted in
- Home Theater
- Media Streamer
- NetGear
- Boxee Box
Subtitles are an important part of the media experience. However, media streamers have been guilty of only including rudimentary support for SRT and SUB formats. With the rising popularity of Blu-ray backups and anime content, consumers have started looking for PGS support in various containers and also support for stylized subtitles (with karaoke effects, for example). In this section, we will explore the extent of subtitle support in the three media streamers.
| Subtitle Compatibility Details | |
| A.C.Ryan PlayOn!HD2 | |
| Firmware Version v9.5.3.r5440 | |
| Format | Notes |
| PGS | Supported only in M2TS (MKV Not Supported) |
| Forced Subtitles in MKV Not Supported | |
| SRT | External Subtitles Supported for All Formats |
| MKV Muxed Subtitles Supported | |
| No Issues with Automatic Subtitle Encoding Detection (All Tested Languages Worked Fine) | |
| SUB/IDX | Supported with VOB in DVD Folder / ISO |
| MKV Muxed Subtitles / External Subtitles Not Supported | |
| ASS / SSA | Rudimentary Support (No Stylization) |
| Subtitle Compatibility Details | |
| Netgear NTV550 | |
| Firmware Version 3.2.16NA | |
| Format | Notes |
| PGS | Supported in both M2TS and MKV |
| Forced Subtitles in MKV Supported | |
| SRT | External Subtitles Supported for All Formats |
| MKV Muxed Subtitles Supported | |
| Automatic Subtitle Encoding Detection Fails / Some Languages Don't Work (Vietnames, Thai, Korean, Arabic, Hebrew, Hindi and Japanese Don't Display Properly) | |
| SUB/IDX | External Subtitles Supported for All Formats |
| MKV Muxed Subtitles Supported | |
| ASS / SSA | Supported with Stylization (Stylization Effects Could be Smoother) |
| Subtitle Compatibility Details | |
| D-Link Boxee Box | |
| Firmware Version v1.2.2.20482 | |
| Format | Notes |
| PGS | Supported in both M2TS and MKV |
| Forced Subtitles in MKV Supported | |
| SRT | External Subtitles Supported for All Formats |
| MKV Muxed Subtitles Supported | |
| No Issues with Automatic Subtitle Encoding Detection (All Tested Languages Worked Fine) | |
| SUB/IDX | External Subtitles Supported for All Formats |
| MKV Muxed Subtitles Supported | |
| ASS / SSA | Full Support with PC-Like Stylization |
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NewCityVegas - Tuesday, November 22, 2011 - link
What interests me most right now are small boxes coming out of China that seem to combine a wifi media box with a TV tuner selling for about $120.I wish I could see a real review of one of these. Here's a promotion piece (called a review) from a vendor:
note: there seems to be auto spam filter that can't tell legitimate interest but here is the link in a clumsy format:
blog
wholesaleonepiece
kom /
google-android-tv-box-review
dbrons - Tuesday, November 22, 2011 - link
After trying one of the realtec players I bought a Dune Smart B1. It plays iso, folders, most everything. I suppose the Dune layers cost more but it would be interesting to see them compared.cjs150 - Wednesday, November 23, 2011 - link
Zotac Nano AD10VIA Artico 1150
Both out, similar price. Alledgedly can act as perfect HTPC especially if like me you have a NAS box to act as storage.
Stick an SSD in them and tell us what you think.
Are these a great addition to a real AV rack. Can they deal with Blu ray playback, light gaming (but on big screen) play virtually every type of media we can throw at them.
What is the noise and temperatures like - no use if sound like a jet taking off.
What are they like with Windows 7, XBMC or Linux in them. How easy is setting up a remote controller for them.
Xmas is coming I want toys!