DVD-R vs DVD+R

Commercial Difference:

The truth is that the two competing technologies use different formats. No single company "owns" DVD and both technologies have their "champions". DVD-R/RW was developed by Pioneer. Based on CD-RW technology, it uses a similar pitch of the helix, mark length of the 'burn' for data, and rotation control. DVD-R/RW is supported by the DVD Forum, an industry-wide group of hardware and software developers, and computer peripheral manufacturers. The DVD-R format has been standardized in ECMA-279 by the Forum, but this is a private standard, not an 'industry' ISO standard like the CD-R/RW Red Book or Orange Book standard. DVD+R/RW is also based on CD-RW technology. DVD+R/RW is supported by Sony, Philips, HP, Dell, Ricoh, Yamaha, and others, and has recently been endorsed by Microsoft. DVD+R/RW is not supported by the DVD Forum, but the Forum has no power to set industry standards, so it becomes a market-driven issue.

Technical Difference:

DVD+R is a dvd disc that allows multiple layers for one disc where as dvd-r only allows one layer. They will not compete to become the de Facto standard, because they are both here to stay. Multi layer DVD+R can allow extra capacity per disc than DVD-R hence its high cost!

Some other Factors:

DVD-R:

Benefits: Better DVD playback compatiblity within home DVD players.

Drawbacks: Older technology and less money behind the format means that they come out with faster media and burner technology slower. You will frequently see DVD burners that will support (for instance) 16X DVD+R and only 8X DVD-R.

DVD+R:

Benefits: Faster speeds, more inovations like Double Layer discs (8.5 GB).

Drawbacks: Will not play is some home DVD players. If you know your home DVD player will play DVD+Rs then there is no reason to not use them.

What Is... ISO

The letters ISO on your digital camera settings refer to the film speed. Even though your camera is most likely not film at all, but rather digital, the ISO setting still does has the same function as older film cameras. ISO determines how sensitive the image sensor is to light. Since digital cameras do not use film but use image sensors instead, the ISO equivalent is usually given.

What ISO denotes is how sensitive the image sensor is to the amount of light present. The higher the ISO, the more sensitive the image sensor and therefore the possibility to take pictures in low-light situations.

And, where you would have needed to physically change to a different roll of film if you wanted a different ISO speed, digital technology allows you to simply dial one in. In this way, you can record images taken at different ISO speeds on the same memory card.

The most common ISO speed settings are: 100, 200, 400 and 800. Depending on your digital camera model you may also have them in the range of 64, 100, 160, 200, 400, 640, 800, 1600.

ISO Speed & Exposure

ISO speed affects the shutter speed / aperture combinations you can use to obtain correct exposure.

Suppose your digital camera's light meter warns you there is not enough light to correctly expose a scene. You could use the on-board flash, but let's suppose again it's not allowed (like in a concert or indoors recital).

You would then need to use a higher ISO. Set on "ISO Auto" mode, your digital camera will automatically select a higher ISO. Otherwise, you can manually select the next higher ISO and see if the increased sensitivity allows you to obtain a correctly exposed picture. If it does, you can now take a correctly exposed picture.

Similarly, if you find the camera is using a shutter speed that is too slow (1/60 sec. and slower) to handhold the camera steady and shake-free (thus resulting in blurred pictures), and you cannot open up the aperture anymore, and you do not have a tripod or other means to hold the camera steady, and you want to capture the action, etc. etc. -- then you might select the next higher ISO which will then allow you to select a faster shutter speed.

ISO Speed & Noise

However, all this increase in sensitivity does not come free. There is a price to pay with your image appearing more noisy.

See, when you boost the sensitivity of your image sensor by selecting a higher ISO, the image sensor is now able to record a fainter light signal. However, it is also true now that it will record fainter noise, where noise is any signal that is not attributed to the light from your subject. Remember that an image sensor is still an analog device and it generates its own noise, too! The increased sensitivity allows the image sensor to record more light signal and more noise. The ratio of light signal to noise (S/N ratio) determines the "noise" in your resultant image.

An image sensor is usually calibrated so that it gives the best image quality (greatest S/N ratio) at its lowest possible ISO speed. For most consumer digital cameras, this value will be expressed as ISO 50, ISO 64 or ISO 100. A few digital cameras use ISO 200 as their lowest ISO speed.
Just as with its film counterpart, an image sensor will exhibit "noise" (comparable to "graininess" in film) at the higher ISO speeds. Unlike film, where graininess can sometimes contribute to the mood of the image, noise produced by an image sensor is undesirable and appears as a motley of distracting coloured dots on your image.

ISO Speed & Image Sensor Size

The size of the image sensor determines the ISO speed range that a digital camera can use without suffering from undue noise. One reason for this is because the pixels on the larger image sensor can be larger and therefore receive more light, and thus have a greater signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio .If we take two image sensors, each with 4 megapixels resolution, but of different sizes, the 4 megapixels image sensor that is smaller will exhibit more noise at higher ISOs than the larger one.

Most consumer digital cameras use 1/1.8 in. (and smaller) image sensors, so noise at high ISO is a problem. Though they will allow you to use a high ISO (such as ISO 400), the resultant image will usually be very noisy.

A digital SLR (dSLR), on the other hand, uses a large image sensor, usually full frame (24x36 mm) or APS-sized (half-frame). Noise is rarely a problem and the use of a high ISO 400 results in images with barely noticeable noise.

Practical Considerations

• You obtain the best image quality by using the lowest ISO possible on your digital camera. If you want to ensure your digital camera always uses the lowest ISO setting, switch the ISO setting from the default "Auto ISO" (this setting is usually found in the Menu) to the lowest possible on the camera, say ISO 50.

• If you mostly take pictures where there is enough light for a correct exposure, i.e. sunny outdoors, then using the lowest ISO on your digital camera will give you the best image quality your digital camera is capable of.

• If you want to take pictures indoors where light may not be sufficient and in other low-light situations, then you would need to supplement existing light with flash or studio lights. Either that, or select a higher ISO. Of course, depending on your digital camera, a higher ISO may mean a noisy image.

• A large image sensor (APS-sized and larger) means that you are able to use a high ISO speed without unduly worrying about noise. This means that you can take pictures in low-light situations without your pictures being under-exposed. It also means that in situations where it is required, you are able to use a fast enough shutter speed to prevent camera shake. All, again depending on your camera, without much noise.

Optical vs. Digital Zoom

More and more camera manufacturers are choosing to label their digital cameras with the total (optical x digital) zoom. This is an unfortunate development and only serves to confuse consumers.

Most people who have used a 35mm camera or an APS camera are aware of only optical zoom. Optical zoom uses the optics (lens) of the camera to bring the subject closer. Digital zoom is an invention of digital video cameras. It is not uncommon to see digital videocams with 300x digital zoom.

For our purpose, digital zoom is not really zoom, in the strictest definition of the term. What digital zoom does is enlarge a portion of the image, thus 'simulating' optical zoom. In other words, the camera crops a portion of the image and then enlarges it back to size. In so doing, you lose image quality. If you've been regularly using digital zoom and wondered why your pictures did not look that great, now you know.

Is digital zoom therefore all bad? No, not at all. It's a feature that you might want in your digital camera (in fact, all digital cameras include some digital zoom, so you can't really avoid it), especially if you don't care about using (or don't know how to use) an image editing software. So, as far as digital zoom is concerned, you can do it in camera or you can do it afterwards in an image editing software. Any cropping and enlarging can be done in an image editing software, such as Photoshop.

So, when a digital camera is advertised with 3x digital zoom, no big deal. You can achieve the same 3x (and in fact as much as you want) digital zoom effect in an image editing software. The advantage of doing it later is that you can then decide exactly which portion to crop and how much to enlarge (3x, 4x, ...). If you do it in camera, image quality is irreversibly lost.

Someone in a digital camera forum once mentioned that he uses digital zoom because it might mean the difference between capturing a great shot or not at all. Umm, let's think about this a bit. True, if by zooming digitally in camera you get to see what your subject is doing and thus can capture the shot at the right moment. Not quite true, if it's something like a landscape shot, and the mountains ain't going nowhere fast, because you can achieve the same cropping and enlarging effect after the fact in your image editing software. So, it's really up to you, if you know what you're doing.

What, therefore is the rule of thumb, when it comes to using zoom? Here it is: Always use optical zoom. When buying a camera, choose one that warns you that you are about to use digital zoom or that allows you to disable digital zoom (most do). If you do use digital zoom, use it only if it does not appreciably impact your image quality. If you rarely print past 4x6 in. photos, digital zoom may not adversely affect you.

When comparing cameras, you should always use optical zoom. There is no point in comparing digital zoom with digital zoom or optical zoom with total zoom. Always compare optical zoom with optical zoom.

Optical Zoom vs. Resolution

What about optical zoom vs. resolution? Sigh! Now y'all know that we cannot and should not be comparing apples 'n oranges, but we still try. The question I often read about goes something like this: "Which is better: 2 megapixels resolution with 3x optical zoom or 3 megapixels resolution with 2x optical zoom?"

The megapixels resolution of a digital camera can be thought of as the number of pixels available to capture an image. With a 2 megapixels camera, you have 2 million pixels to record an image. With a 3 megapixels camera, you have 1 million extra pixels to record the same image -- in other words, you are able to capture the image in more detail.

Whether you zoom or not does not affect how many pixels are used to capture the image. So, zoomed at its maximum, a 2 megapixels 3x optical zoom digital camera will still have captured a 2 million pixels image. Likewise, a 3 megapixels 2x optical zoom digital camera will always capture a 3 million pixels image.

The real question behind the question is, "So now if I use digital zoom to zoom in with the 3 megapixels camera and simulate a total zoom of 3x, will the resultant image quality be less, the same, or still better than the one I captured with the 2 megapixels 3x optical zoom camera?" You follow so far?

With a 2 megapixels digital camera, you can make good 4x6 in. prints, and maybe even 5x7 in. prints. With a 3 megapixels digital camera, you can make good 8x10 in. prints. So, as far as image quality is concerned, the 3 megapixels camera is better. Unless you are always going to take pictures at max. zoom, the 3MP camera is better because at 2x optical zoom and less, it is always capturing images with more detail than the 2MP camera.

What we are really trying to say is this: do not compare. You've got to decide what is more important to you: resolution or optical zoom? If the answer is both, then find a digital camera that has both. It's that simple. If it's outside your pocketbook range, then choose a digital camera for what is more important to you.

To repeat, we do not compare optical zoom with megapixel resolution because optical zoom is not megapixel resolution-dependent. That is, the resolution of your final image does not change no matter how much you zoom in. If your digital camera is 5MP and has a 12x optical zoom lens with focal length of, say, 30-360mm, then at 30mm, your image is 5MP and at 360mm, it is still 5MP. With digital zoom/enlargement, the megapixel resolution decreases as you "zoom" in digitally (the premise behind Smart Zoom from Sony and Safe Zoom from Canon, see below); if you try to bring the cropped image back to the same 5MP size, then there is pixels interpolation and the resulting image suffers in quality.

We always disable digital zoom in camera, choosing to do our own cropping and enlarging in an image editing software.

Optical vs. digital zoom? There is no contest. Only optical zoom matters when selecting a digital camera.

What are SDHC Cards

SDHC (Secure Digital High-Capacity) is a new Flash memory card based on the SDA (Secure Digital Association) 2.00 specification. SDHC provides removable memory storage for compatible digital devices, including cameras, camcorders, PDAs, MP3 players and more.
The increasing use of high-definition video and high-resolution digital photography demands higher storage capacity and more demanding data transfer rates. Because of this, the new SDHC cards guarantee a minimum sustained data transfer speed, not a maximum speed. There are three available speeds — Class 2, Class 4 and Class 6.

SDHC cards are classified to guarantee a specific sustained DTS. This potentially saves consumers money, as flash cards are priced not only according to capacity, but also to speed. For example, if a product's maximum DTS is 2MB/sec, dishing out extra cash for Class 4 or Class 6 SDHC cards would be a waste of money. Conversely, devices that can utilize the 4MB/sec or 6MB/sec DTR will perform significantly better with Class 4 or Class 6 SDHC cards, respectively.Secure Digital was forced to create a new specification for SDHC cards when the previous specification topped out at a capacity of 2GB. This occurred previously when SD cards hit the 512MB wall. The new 2.00 specification should last a bit longer, as it allows SDHC cards to reach a maximum capacity of 32GB. Secure Digital is so-named because of its ability to protect copyright content through digital rights management or DRM. Because of this, it is a favored flash memory format in the audiovisual industry. SDHC cards are about the size of a postage stamp. Insiders expect them to be available through several different manufacturers by summer 2006, and prices will vary. Before purchasing, be sure your device is compatible. There are several card formats available on the market, and devices are proprietary. If a device manual does not list SDHC cards, or state it is "SD specification 2.00 compatible," the device cannot utilize these cards.

SD vs SDHC

The look and feel of a SDHC card is exactly the same as an ordinary SD but the difference is in size (capacity). SDHC cards usually hold more than 2 Gigabytes of Data. They are also faster than the "traditional" SD cards. (Note that some next generation SD cards such as class 2, 4 or 6 actually perform much faster than generic traditional SD cards).

Compatibilty is also another factor, not all devices that currently take SD cards as a storage medium are able to accept SDHC cards. You should check with your device manufacturer to see if it supports that format.

LCD vs Plasma

High-definition and flat panel TV’s are taking out old fashioned tube TV’s and their poor picture quality at an amazing rate. More and more people are trading in their old, bulky TV’s for state of the art LCD and Plasma screens. Besides their sleek and thin look, LCD and Plasma TV’s have lots of additional features and perks that you’re missing out on with an old CRT (tube) TV. So you’ve made the decision to upgrade but should you go with an LCD screen or a Plasma TV? This LCD and Plasma TV guide will walk you through all the key points and factors in determining which one to buy.

The best way to compare these two high tech TV’s is to simply compare and contrast them. Let’s start by looking at the features and advantages of LCD TV’s.

LCD & Plasma Similarities

Although LCD & Plasma TV’s have some important differences, they have quite a few characteristics in common that you should be familiar with when shopping for a new TV.

• Resolution – Both types of TV’s have similar possible resolutions. They explain their resolution in horizontal by vertical like 1024×768.
• Dot Pitch – When comparing the dot pitch of two different TV’s, the smaller the number the sharper your picture is going to be.
• Response Time – This is another characteristic that you should prefer a smaller number. The response time shows how quickly the pixels can change color and brightness.
• Brightness – This represents how much light is emitted from the TV. The name can be deceiving; it also measures the quality of the dark colors.
• Contrast Ratio - This is one of the more important characteristics to compare. A high contrast ratio will give you the best picture when displaying dark and bright colors together.
• Aspect Ratio – Most LCD and Plasma TV’s come in widescreen (16:9) but there are other options available.

LCD

LCD stands for liquid crystal display. These types of displays have been around for awhile and are commonly used with computers. One reason for their big popularity is the ability to produces a better picture than CRT monitors but also being much thinner.

Pro’s

• Low Energy Consumption – LCD monitors use very low amounts of power. This is why it is very commonly used in battery powered devices.
• LCD screens also reduce the amount of glare on the screen which can be very beneficial if your TV is in a room with lots of light.
• If an image is left on the screen too long, LCD screens are less likely to experience the image being burned into the screen. If this does occur, it’s easier to repair than other types of TV’s.

Con’s

• The viewing angle of an LCD TV is typically not as great as Plasma but the difference is not great enough to make a huge difference.
• LCD TV’s can sometimes get dead pixels which aren’t typically covered under warranty. Although they are very small, they can become very annoying.
• Brightness levels aren’t as great as Plasma and it’s not possible to display darks quite as dark.

Plasma

Plasma technology hasn’t been as widely used as LCD in previous years but has become very popular in large HDTV’s. Although they have historically been more expensive than LCD TV’s, they are becoming more comparable in price.

Pro’s

• Brightness and color are the major advantages of Plasma TV’s. They produce rich colors along with very deep blacks.
• Their wide viewing angles allow more people to be able to watch TV comfortably.
• The pixels of Plasma TV’s are lit individually unlike LCD screens. Because of this feature, the pixels can be completely turned off to display truck black colors.

Con’s

• The lifespan of a Plasma TV is typically shorter than other types of TV’s. The lifespan can be extended by turning down the brightness of the screen.
• Plasma TV’s are more susceptible to screen burn-in where an image is “burnt” onto the screen when left on the screen too long such as a network logo in the bottom right corner of the screen.
• Plasma TV’s require a panel of glass to cover it. This glass can reflect light and make it difficult to see the picture. If placed in a dark room, this typically isn’t an issue.

Summary

Some of these key points can help you in deciding which type of TV to purchase. Review your personal situation and determine which one is best for your household. Is your TV going to be in a room with lots if windows or light? If so, a LCD may be a better option due to the reduced glare. Are you looking for the best possible picture with the richest colors and darkest blacks? Then a plasma TV is probably the direction you want to go. Although both TV’s have their advantages and disadvantages, either type will give you a substantially better picture than a conventional TV. One of these TV’s paired up with an HD signal will give you the ultimate TV watching experience.

Common Digital Camera Terminology

Some Digital Camera Terminology

• 3x, 5x, 10x - Denotes the focal length ratio of a zoom lens (e.g. 35-105 is 3x, 38-380mm is 10x,divide the last number by the first).See also "Digital Zoom" and "Zoom Lens" below.

• AA cell - In the digital camera world this refers to the most common power source, the AA-size battery. See also "NiCd" and "NiMH".

• AC Power - Running your digital camera off the wall outlet power rather than by battery power. Usually means purchasing optional AC power adapter. Add-On Lens - Some lenses have filter threads on the front edge that allow you to mount an auxiliary wide angle or telephoto lens in addition to the standard lens.

• Add-On Lens - Some lenses have filter threads on the front edge that allow you to mount an auxiliary wide angle or telephoto lens in addition to the standard lens.

• AE - Auto Exposure, a system for automatically setting the proper exposure according to the existing light conditions. There are three types of AE systems: Programmed: where the camera picks the best shutter speed and aperture automatically; Aperture Priority: the user chooses an aperture value and the shutter speed is automatically determined by lighting conditions; and Shutter Priority: the user chooses a shutter speed and the aperture is automatically determined by lighting conditions

• AE Lock - The ability to hold the current exposure settings and allow you to point the camera elsewhere before capturing the image. This is usually accomplished by half-pressing the shutter button and keeping it at that position until you're ready to capture the image.

• AF - Auto Focus. A system that automatically focuses the camera lens.

• Algorithm - A mathematical routine that solves a problem or equation. In imaging, the term is usually used to describe the set of routines that make up a compression or colour management program.

• Anti-Shake - Konica Minolta's "Anti-Shake" feature is the mechanical shifting of the imager to compensate for camera movement and minimise blurring at lower shutter speeds. Putting this type of image stabilisation in the camera body of a dSLR means that it doesn't have to built into the lenses and therefore it makes them lighter and less expensive. See also "Optical Image Stabilisation" .

• Aperture - The lens opening formed by the iris diaphragm inside the lens.

• Aperture Priority AE - Exposure is calculated based on the aperture value chosen by the photographer. This allows for depth of field (DOF: Range of focus) control - large aperture = shallow DOF and a small aperture = deep DOF.

• Aspect Ratio - The ratio of horizontal to vertical dimensions of an image. The most common aspect ratio in digital cameras is 4:3 so that images "fit" properly on computer screens (800x600, 1024x768, 1280x1024). Some cameras offer a 3:2 mode so that you can print "perfect" 4x6" prints with no cropping necessary.(35mm film is 3:2, TV sets are 4:3, HDTV screens are 16:9)

• Aspherical Lens - A lens whose edges have been flattened so that it is not a perfect sphere, produces a superior image.

• Automatic Exposure - The camera automatically adjusts the aperture or shutter speed or both for the proper exposure.

• Autofocus - The camera lens focuses automatically, usually when the shutter release is half-pressed.

• AVI - Movie clip in Windows' AVI format. See "Movie clip" .

• AWB - Automatic White Balance. A system for automatically setting the white balance in today's digital cameras. See also "White Balance"

• B&W - Term used to mean black and white

• Back Lit - The subject is heavily lit from behind which generally causes it to be underexposed unless you use critical spot metering or use your flash

• Backlight - The illumination for a colour LCD display. Early colour LCD used high voltage fluorescent lamps, newer LCDs now use white LEDs which are much more energy efficient.

• Barrel Distortion - A common geometric lens distortion causing an acquired image to pucker toward the centre and be "rounded" along the outer edges.

• Bitmap - The method of storing information that maps an image pixel, bit by bit. There are many bitmapped file formats, .bmp, .pcx, .pict, tiff, .tif, .gif, and so on. Most image files are bit mapped. This type of file gives you the 'jaggies', when examined closely you can see the line of pixels that create the edges.

• Bleed - Printing term referring to an image or linked area that extends to the edge of the printed piece. Blue Tooth - The new wireless standard for connecting cameras, PDAs, laptops, computers and cell phones. Uses very high frequency radio waves.

• Blue Tooth devices when in-range (less than 30 feet) of each other easily establish a connection. BMP - BitMapped graphic file format popular with Windows computers. This is an uncompressed file format like TIFF.

• Borderless - Means a photo print with no border around it. Old term for this was full-bleed printing.

• Bracketing - see Exposure Bracketing

• Brightness - The value of a pixel in an electronic image, representing its lightness value from black to white. Usually defined as brightness levels ranging in value from 0 (black) to 255 (white).

• Buffer - A temporary storage area usually held in RAM. The purpose of a buffer is to act as a temporary holding area for data that will allow the CPU to manipulate data before transferring it to a device. Also see DRAM Buffer Burst Mode - The ability to rapidly capture images as long as the shutter button is held down. Also called Continuous frame capture.

• Byte - An ensemble of eight bits of memory in a computer.

Wireless Media Players and wireless internet-enabled gear

Wireless Digital Media Players and the ever increasing list of internet-enabled digital video boxes, Blu-ray players, home theater systems, and HDTVs, can turn your wireless networking from a simple home-office to a fully integrated wireless home entertainment system. Today's wireless digital technology has made all this easily achievable.
In this series of short reviews/product guides, we cover some of the best products available on the market that can help you take full advantage of this wireless home entertainment reality.

As expressed in our guide to wireless digital media players, today one can easily move music, video, and other digital media content around the house without wires. Thanks to the development in software and wireless digital technology, today's wireless media players can enable even average home PC users to experience their entire digital collection in its full glory over a big screen TV and proper surround sound system without being tied to a PC. In particular, wireless digital media players provide an affordable solution for ease of integration of digital content from a PC, a NAS, or any other device accessible through the home network, and the rest of your home entertainment system.

Priced at around three hundred dollars, these devices pull digital content through your home network, in order to play it anywhere in the house, say over an existing TV in the kids' room, a stereo speaker system in the garage, or a big screen in your dedicated home theater room. Further more, the ever increasing array of wireless internet-enabled gear like the Samsung BD-P2500,BD-P2550 or the LG BD300 Network Blu-ray Disc Player, and the latest range of Panasonic Viera G10 series of plasma HDTVs, as well as the so-called 'instant' media players like the inexpensive Roku digital video player that can pull digital media content direct from the internet without the need for a PC, help make this whole wireless home entertainment integration a simple reality even for non-proficient PC users. Yes... even non-proficient PC users can enjoy the latest in wireless home entertainment. You see, thanks to developments in wireless technology, installing a wireless digital media player or one of the latest 'instant' internet-enabled digital media boxes, is truly a simple straightforward process.



Digital Media Player Installation... a simple straightforward process


Wireless digital media players that pull content from your PC require the installation of the accompanying software that transforms your PC into a multi-media server. Such wireless media players include the D-Link DSM-520 MediaLounge Wireless HD Media Player.Others like the Netgear Digital Entertainer Elite require the installation of a media utility driver to be installed on your computer. This will enable these wireless media players to play audio and video digital media content using your favorite media player application like Apple iTunes. Using a standard media player application would often represent a significant advantage since these would normally include a host of features that one gets used to and that are often missing from dedicated media server software that come with some wireless digital media players.

On the other hand, with the so called 'instant' media players and internet-enabled gear that do not pull content from your PC, you do not need to install anything on your computer. OK, not being capable of pulling content from your PC may be an issue with some but the fact that you can browse online content direct over your TV screen without any PC is surely appealing.
Part of the setup process of any networked wireless digital media player - like any other networked devices, requires you to configure the media player to join your home network. In most simple terms, all you need is to run the player set-up wizard and key in the wireless network name or SSID, the security type (WEP, WPA, or WPA2), and security key or passphrase when instructed so, to connect to your network. Depending on your network security setup and the player in question, you may also need to open or unblock your firewall to allow the media player to connect to your PC, as well as configure additional network related information such as IP, channel number, and connection mode.

Reviewed Wireless Digital Media Players:

Apple TV
The original Apple TV was already a great product on its own; two years down the line, the upgraded Apple TV offers even more in terms of functionality and digital media content for the price.It still suffers from the same original restriction - namely it would not interface with a non-HDTV; but if this is not an issue, then the upgraded Apple is worth looking into as a wireless digital media player for your home entertainment.

D-Link MediaLounge DSM-520

Like the Apple TV, the D-Link DSM-520 is already two years old but it is still a capable performer. It does not support 802.11n wireless technology; hence you should avoid a double wireless hoop when streaming HD media. But it is still capable of delivering solid streaming performance even with HD digital media content. And its present price tag makes this wireless digital media player even more affordable than most of the competition.