On the audio side, support is again comprehensive, with MP1, MP2, MP3, FLAC, AC3, WAV, AAC, M4A, WMA, and WMA Pro files. Open-source music fans will lament the lack of Ogg support, but we think inclusion of the lossless FLAC format makes up for it, as it makes it relatively easy to back up all your CDs and stream real CD-quality music from a large hard drive on your PC. There's also support for protected audio files, such as WMA files purchased from online stores such as Napster and Rhapsody--but not for "rented" subscription files from those same stores.
All that file format support is great, but the Digital Entertainer has one more trick up its sleeve--it can stream protected songs purchased from iTunes from any Windows PC that has iTunes installed. That's a huge plus, as it's one of the most highly desired features that is almost always missing from non-Apple products (with a few notable exceptions). The bottom line is that iTunes-junkies will be able to access their large libraries of purchased iTunes music (but not video). We did have some issues with the performance of those files--but more on that later.
While many network media streamers are loaded with features, the Digital Entertainer is probably the most fully featured streamer we've seen. On top of its ability to pull content from networked PCs and attached storage, there's additional functionality in terms of its ability to pull content straight from the Internet. Here's a rundown of the Entertainer HD's additional features.
TV Tuner / EPG
The EVA8000 also can integrate itself with your PC's TV tuner--assuming it's so equipped--which means you can schedule recordings and play back recorded content right from your EVA8000. We had a PC setup running Windows Vista Premium (which includes Windows Media Center) and equipped with a Hauppauge TV tuner. At first, we had the tuner pulling in analog TV signals over an antenna, figuring we could use Media Center's built-in electronic programming guide (EPG) with the EVA8000. That didn't work for two reasons. First, you can't pull EPG data from Media Center--instead you need to buy a $5 EPG license fee from Netgear, which feels a bit cheap after you've paid close to $400 for the device already. Second, the EVA8000 can't be configured with an over-the-air tuner at all--during the setup for this feature, our only options were Satellite and Cable.
Once you get it setup, the functionality is pretty good. You can schedule recordings from the EVA8000, watch recorded content, or even stream live TV from the PC to the Netgear. Sure, the design isn't quite as friendly as TiVo--or, indeed, the Xbox 360, which offers all of the same functionality when connecting to Media Center-equipped PCs--but as an added feature it's pretty nice.
YouTube
Another great feature on the Digital Entertainer HD is the ability to stream YouTube videos straight to your TV. When you go to the "TV/Video" section, you can then select YouTube video, and from there you can, for instance, search for tags or search a specific user's videos. Obviously some of the joy of quickly looking up whatever comes into your mind is hampered by the fact that you need to use the remote to enter in search phrases, but aside from that, we felt it worked really well. But because you're not able to browse the YouTube site on the TV screen as you would on a Web browser, we went for a work-around. Access YouTube from a computer, set up an account (which is free), save your favorite videos, and then browse your username from the Digital Entertainer HD to, say, show your friends your favorite dancing cat video.
Flickr
You also can access your Flickr account via the Digital Entertainer HD. It works very much like the YouTube section, where you can search for users or tags. Again, we thought this functionality worked fairly well, as we were able to browse friends' Flickr accounts easily by dialing in their names and then saving them as favorites. One shortcoming we did notice is you can only view users' public photos and there's no way to, say, enter a password to view their private photos. It's a minor drawback, and one that can perhaps be fixed via firmware.
Internet Radio
The Digital Entertainer HD also is able to tune into Internet radio stations, which is a feature that was curiously missing from Apple TV. You can browse from the pregenerated list of stations, using Title, Genre, and Quality filters, or you can dial in the URL of an Internet radio station that isn't listed. While the quality and content of many Internet radio stations isn't that great, we have to admit we were pretty excited we could dial into to WFMU's Internet stream.
News and Weather
News and weather are also available on the Digital Entertainer HD. Once you plug in your ZIP code, the weather displays on the main menu page, and by going into the News/Weather section, you can access more detailed weeklong forecasts, as well as weather maps of the entire United States. In the news department, it comes preloaded with RSS feeds from Yahoo and Reuters, plus you can add your own by typing in the proper URL. We had no problem accessing the CNET Crave RSS feed, and any other standard feed should work just fine.
PC Access
The Digital Entertainer HD also has a nifty feature called PC Access. PC Access allows you to essentially stream what is on your computer monitor to your TV over the Digital Entertainer. Not only that, but you can actually control your PC using the remote control, so you can, for example, click links on a Web page. Honestly, the practical applications of this feature are rather limited, as the rate at which the screen refreshes on the TV is too slow to, say, watch Web video. But it's potentially useful for PowerPoint presentations and viewing other static media that can't otherwise be streamed to the Entertainer HD.
Follow Me and Party Mode
The Digital Entertainer HD's Follow Me feature is useful for those who have multiple units in their house. The idea is you pause a file on one Entertainer HD, and you can then hit "Follow Me," and it will start it at the exact same point on another Entertainer HD. The "Party Mode" feature is similar and allows you to sync multiple units so they, for example, play the same song in multiple rooms in your house. We only had one unit, so we couldn't test these features, but they're nice, well-thought-out extras for those looking to buy more than one unit.
Performance
We mentioned before that the Digital Entertainer HD is capable of playing protected songs purchased from iTunes--but there's a big catch. The problem is there's a 15-second wait between the time you choose a purchased iTunes song and when it begins playing (as opposed to the nearly instantaneous response on any other audio files). If you're someone who likes to listen to an entire album--especially albums without gaps such as Dark Side of the Moon--it really doesn't cut it, and it's even enough of a break to cause a hitch using shuffle mode during a party. So while it's great you can access your iTunes-purchased music--and we certainly commend Netgear for being one of the first non-Apple products to offer this functionality--it still doesn't quite compare to the Apple TV for people who buy most of their music through iTunes. On the other hand, if you only have a handful of purchased songs--50 out of several thousand, let's say--you could certainly live with it.
As with any network media device, streaming is at its most solid when using all wired connections. Our initial setup was using a Dell notebook computer connected via Ethernet to a Belkin N1 router, connected via Ethernet to the Digital Entertainer HD. Using this connection, we had mostly flawless playback of everything from full WAV files to high-definition WMV files. We watched some 720p clips of car racing that looked great and played without a hiccup, and it's definitely impressive to watch high-quality video streamed over a network.
After playing a bunch of files successfully, we decided to push the Digital Entertainer HD to its limits by trying to play a 1080p WMV trailer for the movie Alexander. The trailer played back fine and looked great for about 30 seconds, but eventually it choked. That's not too unexpected--and there's not much 1080p digital video available that people want to stream--but what was more annoying is it caused the Digital Entertainer HD to freeze, and required us to reboot it by cycling the power (unplugging it and plugging it back in).
Using wireless connections--as expected-- lowered the Digital Entertainer HD's ability to stream. First, we started off using our laptop's wireless connection with the Digital Entertainer HD still connected via wired Ethernet. In this scenario, we couldn't stream 720p WMV files without getting stuttering and audio dropouts. Ripped DVDs (essentially, 480p video) were better, as we had no trouble streaming King Kong, but it did freeze up when we were playing back Star Trek: Insurrection. As usual, music--which is considerably less bandwidth-intensive-- was even better, and we had no issues streaming FLAC and WAV without a hitch. The same was true of 256k AAC files--that's the better-sounding, DRM-free file type that will soon be available from the iTunes Store. We also switched the arrangement around, using a wired Ethernet connection with the laptop and the wireless connection to the laptop. This provided essentially the same experience, with King Kong playing fine but Insurrection having choppy playback--which is a bit puzzling, but that's what happened. This is where it's disappointing that the Digital Entertainer lacks 802.11n compatibility, as it would have offered the possibility of hiccup-free wireless streaming.
Since the Digital Entertainer HD was able to stream DVDs we're familiar with, we were able to get a good sense of its video quality prowess. First, we took a look at Star Trek: Insurrection and were able to confirm that it did have 2:3 pull-down processing, so the introduction looked good with smooth lines on the hulls of the boats and the railing of the bridge. We also were able to look at Silicon Optix's HQV test suite, which would give us a good indication of how good the video processing is. The results were mostly a mixed bag--it did a pretty good job of displaying all the detail of DVD video, but it did struggle with other tests such as a rotating white line and three shifting lines. We wouldn't rate it that highly as an upconverting DVD player, but it was better than the Mvix MX-760HD. And of course, it's better than nothing, which is what Apple TV offers in terms of its ability to play ripped DVDs (without converting it to another format).
We also looked at King Kong, which is an excellent-looking DVD, and the Digital Entertainer HD didn't disappoint. Detail and colors looked excellent, and we completely forgot we were watching the DVD streamed, instead of on a decent upconverting DVD player. While the Netgear might have struggled with some of the tests on HQV, we have to admit that film-based material like King Kong looked excellent. Perhaps our biggest concern with the EVA8000 is stability. We had our fair share of freezes that required rebooting, and there were times when the EVA8000 had trouble scanning our PC for files. Granted, we were pushing the device to its limits, but we do get the feeling you'll experience more hiccups with the EVA8000 than with Apple TV. For many, the additional features and file compatibility are well-worth some occasional mishaps, but anyone with a low tolerance for frustration might be better off with the Apple TV.
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Where to buy
Netgear EVA8000 Digital Entertainer HD:
$307.95 - $410.11
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