[any ANONYMOUS forum user]

Is there a way to stream via the USB port?

Can I connect WDTV to my PC and play content of a networked drive through the PCs LAN connectivity?

Can I hook up WDTV to a NAS that is capable of utilizing both the ethernet port and USB 2.0 ports simultaneously? Is there any hardware that can do that?

[any ANONYMOUS forum user]

The modified firmware, turns the connected USB HDD of the WDTV into a NAS. You could access it from any device on the network via SMB, FTP, NFS, etc... All you need is the modified firmware and a supported usb-ethernet adapter (like what the Wii uses for LAN). With this modified firmware, you can stream content from a device on the network.

From my understanding, you do not need a PC to be able to access your NAS via the WDTV. WDTV runs on some variant of linux, and once the modified firmware has been set up properly, it basically will communicate like a PC to your NAS.

Supported USB devices

[any ANONYMOUS forum user]

1. Brought a Airlink 101 USB-to-Ethernet adapter, and connected it to WDTV USB1 port.

2. Downloaded ext3-boot 0.8.5.3 and unzipped to an USB flash drive.

3. Connected a USB hub to WDTV USB2 port, then connected the USB flash drive and my media hard drive to USB1 (Either use a hub, if you want to have 3 things plugged in like hdd, ethernet, pendrive, etc.. Or you can format your hdd, to contain two partitions. One being fat32 and the other being another supported format, such as ntfs, ext3, etc.. The small fat32 partition would host the firmware).

4. Started WDTV box, the new firmware was detected by WDTV, then I flashed WDTV with ext2-boot 0.8.5.3.

5. Re-started WDTV box, the startup screen showed my IP address, and both LED on USB-to-Ethernet adapter turns on. I can also see WDTV IP address from my router.

6. I can play files from my media hard drive that is connected to USB1.

7. I can FTP to the WDTV and can see a bunch of files. And the the media hard drive connected to USB1 can be accessed from /tmp/media/usb/usb1?



If you want to have faster and better supported EXT2 or EXT3 filesystem, but have Windows OS:
You have to backup your data first, and then you can format USB-HDD to EXT2/EXT3 (Use Acronis or PQ magic or free RescueSystemCD+Parted for this job. Or you can use CLI interface over telnet, but I don't recommnend this to non-experienced user with Linux devices). Also you have to install under Administrator Acount on Windows EXT-FS support, reboot and after you will be able work with EXT2/3 partition as with NTFS

[any ANONYMOUS forum user]

The Iomega Screenplay looks like a decent device. Unlike the WDTV, which is a standalone video player, the Screenplay acts as a NAS too.
Advantages of WDTV over Screenplay:
-Super compact. The WDTV is really tiny, you can easily carry it with you during travel. That plus a portable hard-drive, bam, watch movies you really want in a hotel.
-Use external hard-drive that you already have. Upgrading storage is as easy as getting a larger external hard-drive.
-Cheap. Bestbuy frequently put it on sale for $99. Screenplay is $300, although you do get 1TB built-in.
-Supports H.264. With the screenplay, you have to have the transcoding software on your PC transcoding the video in realtime and feeding it to the Screenplay.

Advantage of the Screenplay over WDTV:
-Network connectivity. It's a 1TB NAS. The WDTV would've been prefect if it has an ethernet port and can stream videos via network like the Screenplay.
-Remote seems to be better than the cheap plastic WDTV remote.
-Can record video via video-in. This could be very useful to some.

I wish devices like this came out sooner. Years ago, it's extremely difficult to even find a device that can play divx/xvid reliably, let alone mkv. I already have my ultimate solution. Currently, I have all my videos on my Windows Home Server, connected via gigabit ethernet. To the TV, I have an actual computer (the Mac mini is perfect) running XBMC/boxee.
Advantages of my setup:
-No format restriction. I can play anything I want. XBMC is just awesome.
-With Bittorrent client installed, I can download and watch. No need fumbling around copying files.
-Gigabit ethernet. HD streaming, no problem.
-With a TV tuner, I can have DVR functionality too (Windows Media Center is great for DVR use).
-Windows Home Server also gives redundancy and backup. The Screenplay, despite being a NAS, has no redundancy.
Obviously my setup is much much more expensive though. But it has the ultimate flexibility.

I'm glad more and more standalone devices with HDMI coming out supporting divx, xvid, and matroska. I just wish they were out sooner.

[shawnnn]

Originally Posted by any ANONYMOUS forum user

1. Brought a Airlink 101 USB-to-Ethernet adapter, and connected it to WDTV USB1 port.

2. Downloaded ext3-boot 0.8.5.3 and unzipped to an USB flash drive.

3. Connected a USB hub to WDTV USB2 port, then connected the USB flash drive and my media hard drive to USB1 (Either use a hub, if you want to have 3 things plugged in like hdd, ethernet, pendrive, etc.. Or you can format your hdd, to contain two partitions. One being fat32 and the other being another supported format, such as ntfs, ext3, etc.. The small fat32 partition would host the firmware).

4. Started WDTV box, the new firmware was detected by WDTV, then I flashed WDTV with ext2-boot 0.8.5.3.

5. Re-started WDTV box, the startup screen showed my IP address, and both LED on USB-to-Ethernet adapter turns on. I can also see WDTV IP address from my router.

6. I can play files from my media hard drive that is connected to USB1.

7. I can FTP to the WDTV and can see a bunch of files. And the the media hard drive connected to USB1 can be accessed from /tmp/media/usb/usb1?



If you want to have faster and better supported EXT2 or EXT3 filesystem, but have Windows OS:
You have to backup your data first, and then you can format USB-HDD to EXT2/EXT3 (Use Acronis or PQ magic or free RescueSystemCD+Parted for this job. Or you can use CLI interface over telnet, but I don't recommnend this to non-experienced user with Linux devices). Also you have to install under Administrator Acount on Windows EXT-FS support, reboot and after you will be able work with EXT2/3 partition as with NTFS

So am I able to do all of this with Windows? It seems like it is straightforward, but I am unsure if I need Linux or not. If I hardwire into a machine other than the machine that contains all my media, will I be able to see the data if it is all shared?

I.E. I have a Macbook that is connected the a network wirelessly. The macbook is inched from the WDTV, however I do not keep all my media on the macbook, it is on the PC that across the room. Would I be able to stream files to the WDTV from the PC if everything is shared out?

If not what wireless method would you recommend. I am going round and round with this trying to figure out what I need to do, but I cannot get a straight answer...

Should I buy a NAS (would that make life easier)? I would rather not, but if I need to I will.

[Stream Recorder]

If I understand everything correctly, the USB HDD of the WDTV can be accessed over the LAN using standard protocols including SMB, FTP, NFS, etc. I suppose you can access it from both PC and Mac.

[Stream Recorder]

WDTV Live, the newest version of WDTV, allows to connect to your computer via ethernet (WDTV can connect to your home network so you can access content from your PC or network drive) and play media content (HD and SD videos, music, photos). Another interesting option is using a Wi-Fi adapters (purchased separately) to connect WDTV Live to your computer via Wi-Fi.

You can also play videos, music and photos from the Internet on your big screen TV. WDTV Live allows to explore and watch YouTube videos and Flickr pictures play thousands of radio stations via Live365 and discover new music with Pandora radio.