Home media servers to this point have lived in obscurity, but are becoming rapidly more popular with advent of faster, higher bandwidth wireless technologies as well as a storage market that has seen a decrease in size and price (you can get a 1 Terabyte Hard Drive for around $80 today). So what is a Home Media Server and what does it do? Most people tremble at the term server because it brings to mind programming and complicated operating systems with which they have no experience. However, the Home Media Server is not your average server. As the name states, it is designed for home and allows a person to watch their favorite movies, pictures, etc.. as well as listen to their music virtually anywhere in their house from one centralized location. The Home Media Server stores your movies, music, etc… on it’s hard drives and then wirelessly transmits this information to things called media extenders (which we will discuss shortly) that are then plugged into your TV. Media Extenders are devices which can accept this signal and then plug into your TV to act as a conduit for the streaming video, audio, etc… While you can buy a media extender for around $150, there are some devices that already can act as media extenders that people already own, notably the XBOX 360 and the Playstation 3 (both of which just had a price drop recently). These devices have the capability already built in to receive the Media Server’s signal and provide you with your stored audio and video. So what can you put on a home media server? You can put all of your movies you own (including high definition formats such as Blu-ray), pictures and home movies, any audio files, and even better, most servers will pull in your iTunes library for your listening pleasure. So what are the benefits of such a device?
• Never use a DVD or Blu-Ray again
• Access all your audio and video from anywhere you have a media extender
• Store your recorded TV for later access
• Listen to your iTunes or other music library anywhere
• Watch and store home movies, pictures, etc.. and view them anywhere
• Combine all your Audio/Video needs into one location
If this list isn’t reason enough to look into a Home Media Server, the prices have recently dropped on them as well. One problem some people might run into is what happens if you run out of space? Home media servers are expandable, which means you can add hard drives for more storage space as you need it.
So who makes them and where can I get one? Through my research, my favorite Home Media Server at this point is the Linksys Media Hub. I chose this one not only because of Linksys’ proven track record and the quality of their products, but it has the most features and adaptability for the price. I have included links to other products below. You can find the Linksys Media Hub at Fry’s Electronics and Best Buy or it can also be purchased online.
Linksys Media Hub
http://www.linksysbycisco.com/US/en/promo/Media-Hub
HP Media Smart
http://www.hp.com/united-states/campaigns/mediasmart-server/
Friday, September 25, 2009
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