Recently, the TV has evolved from a simple “drawer” for viewing analogue television programs into a high-tech device, which in its functionality can easily be compared to a computer. Modern models can be included in the home LAN. Some use them for surfing the net, communicating on Skype with friends, as well as for games. Of course, the “iron” of the TV will not be pulled by powerful 3D-shooters, but you leave the “Angry Birds” for sure.
But here's the catch: only SmartTV possesses all the above functionality, the price of which often exceeds the cost of a conventional TV and a powerful computer combined. Of course, for many consumers the need for such a purchase raises great doubts. This is correct, since the media player for the TV will turn the old LCD model into a good analogue of “smart”, and for all the pleasures you are unlikely to pay more than five to six thousand rubles.
What it is?
It would be foolish to continue talking about such devices without making a digression and without describing the concept itself in more detail. So, what is a media player for a TV?
If you are a user of gadgets on the Android mobile OS, you can imagine a kind of mini-computer under its control. Heard about the Raspberry Pi? So, the media player is the same “Blackberry” based on the ARM processor. Unlike the mentioned mini-computers, it already has a proprietary shell from the manufacturer, usually based on Android, with the addition of some specific services and programs.
Roughly speaking, this is such a tiny system unit for which your TV acts as a monitor.
Benefits
In principle, you can easily guess the positive aspects of this kind of technology yourself. Having bought a media player for a TV for only four to five thousand rubles, you will even make a modern entertainment center out of outdated equipment.
Given the development speed of Android, you don’t have to worry about the absence of any applications: players for video and audio files, browsers, and programs for viewing images. We have already said that there is even a "Skype"! Of course, in this case you will need to purchase an additional webcam, but it also does not cost too much.
In addition, portable USB drives can be connected to such devices . In combination with the ability to launch torrent clients, this makes any media player for TV a real treasure for connoisseurs of watching movies.
Easy setup and security
If you somehow follow the news of IT-technologies, you probably heard about the scandal that erupted around LG SmartTV. Recall that then users caught a too clever technique in espionage. Not only was it very difficult to refuse targeted advertising in the settings (the option was far hidden), but after removing the corresponding check-box, user information continued to be sent to the company's servers.
Of course, Android OS in this regard is far from perfect. Currently, there are hundreds of thousands of malware for it that could be dangerous for your personal data. But there are important differences.
Firstly, there are many effective anti-virus programs for Android. Secondly, in the presence of not so deep knowledge in the subject, not only other firmware, but even a new operating system can be installed on stationary media players! In any case, on the network, without any problems, there are instructions for installing special ARM assemblies of Debian and Ubunu.
As you can understand, not a single such fundamental opportunity is provided in SmartTV. Moreover, even updating its firmware may cause problems, since not everyone has a normal wired Internet, and a USB modem is simply not able to recognize such a technique.
Where can the content be played from?
Unlike a Smart TV or some Blu-ray player, a media player can easily pick up a movie or music from a home local network, from an external hard drive or NAS server, the popularity of which is currently insanely great. Some of them have a built-in hard drive to which you can upload music and video, and no one canceled playback from a flash drive.
Keep in mind that a portable media player with a supply of films will fit into your pocket, becoming a faithful and indispensable companion on a business trip or travel.
LAN settings
Unlike the aforementioned “smart TVs,” you are unlikely to encounter problems. The most commonly used Wi-Fi network. As a rule, the device immediately "hooks" to the home wireless network, requiring only a password to enter.
If you want to connect the gadget via a wired connection, there may be more difficulties. So, for sure, you will need to enter the IP address of the console itself, the subnet mask and other attributes. When setting up a digital media player, you will have to contact the manufacturer to study the procedure for setting up connected devices on his website.
Formats and other "buns"
As for the number of supported
audio, photo and video formats, then in this case these devices are beyond any competition. In addition, the media player will be indispensable for those who have an HD video camera at home. Why? Judge for yourself:
- Burn to disc? Expensive, tedious, and the optical drives themselves are gradually becoming a thing of the past.
- From the small display of the camera itself, it is simply inconvenient to watch.
- Of course, you can use a computer monitor for the same purpose, but much more colorful professional videos will be watched on widescreen TV.
- In the end, you can connect the system unit or laptop to the TV, but not everyone will cope with the settings.
Media players are different ...
To select the best media player, it is highly advisable to follow some of the recommendations below. Firstly, the appearance and dimensions of the device should be in harmony with the appearance of all your equipment. This may seem absurd, but if the gadget stands out against the background of your plasma panel, it will be striking even when watching a movie.
However, the technical characteristics of the player are much more important, which must include the following parameters:
- The more formats supported, the better. The MKV codec on their list is required. Ideal for imitation - the software classic media player.
- It is highly desirable that only the most productive chips be used (like Sigma Designs 8634/8642).
- It will be nice if the player supports playback of images of Blu-ray-disks.
- If you are a beginner, you should be interested in the option to automatically scan your home network for public folders.
- Is it possible to view IPTV? It is perfectly!
- For the same beginners, it will be much better if the technique itself sets the image output mode to the TV screen.
- In the case when the buyer considers himself a fan of music, the presence of HD-audio (DD TrueHD / Master Audio) decoders is highly desirable.
Some disadvantages
Of course, nothing perfect happens in the world. Media players are no exception. What are the disadvantages of the technique under consideration? How serious are they and interfere with watching movies and listening to music?
You need to start with the fact that the Android platform without a stable and fast Internet is of little use. Of course, you can try to watch the movie on the device you just bought, but no one can guarantee that there will be the necessary codec or enough “omnivorous” player.
Everything needs to be downloaded from the network, so the proud owners of the GPRS / EDGE channel will not be envied in this situation. In their case, the best solution would be to connect a laptop or computer to the TV, since they will probably be able to cope with the adjustment of image output, but it is unlikely to do without normal Internet. In a word, a network media player, which completely depends on the availability of an Internet connection, is definitely not suitable for us.
Ease of use
If possible, be sure to turn on the device while still in the store, try to cope with its management. Often there are times when the media player itself is very good, but its menu and navigation on it are so terrible that it is impossible to use the device normally.
The size and ergonomics of the remote control are also worth mentioning. Today on the shelves you can find a lot of these types of devices, in which the remotes in size are more like a horseshoe for a flea. It is not known what the designers are guided by, but in the dark you definitely don’t get on the right button.
Avoid remotes that have only a couple of buttons: they look beautiful, but it’s much more convenient to launch many functions with a single click, rather than circling several menus. If there is such an opportunity, it is worthwhile to purchase a universal control device, which includes the functions of a mouse and keyboard.
Note that in most cases you will have to purchase a keyboard, mouse, and webcam separately. The cost of specialized devices (a special camera for the player) is often much higher than that of their conventional counterparts.
Do not forget about the platform. ARM processors cannot be called too productive devices, so movies in the maximum resolution can noticeably slow down. However, this statement is true not for all devices: almost any Sony media player is almost certainly without this drawback.