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Linksys DMA2100 Home PVR Wrap-Up

Published February 21st, 2008 in Electronics, Media, Projects | 1 Comment »

I installed a Dlink green ethernet switch last night.  Network is perfect, all bars with no loss or defects, and navigating the menus are super fast.

I figured out the deal with the video not being wide screen. Turns out, since we have analog cable, video is sent in 4:9 format, not 16:9 which I was setting the TV for. Amazingly, when showing 4:9, there is no deformations, video is very clear. So it is win win.

I have also begun ripping DVD’s I own into MPEG format so that I can watch them on the extender.

All in all, after tweaking, I would say it was definitely worth the effort.

Linksys DMA2100 Extended Review

Published February 18th, 2008 in Electronics, Media, Projects | No Comments »

OK so I’ll start out by popping off with issues that have not been fixed.

  • I am still unable to get full-screen video playback, however mysteriously, some online content does play back in full-screen mode.
  • Composite video connections do not work, yet I have not tried resetting the device (an action that requires a menu to finish, I think, which is quite stupid imho).

So I increased the power of my wireless AP, however it is very limited, and quite old, so that is one factor in the horrible performance when using wireless, especially when the device is able to use Wireless N technology. I suspect a newer AP with N technology would perform vastly better. Instead , I replaced the antenna on the device with some high gain ones I had lying around:

Linksys DMA2100 New Antenna

(more…)

Linksys DMA-2100 and Home PVR Initial Review

Published February 15th, 2008 in Electronics, Media, Projects | 1 Comment »

Today I received the Linksys DMA-2100. I already had my Vista PC setup with a tuner card and media center, so I was ready to get the DMA2100, which I’ll call the extender for the rest of this article, hooked up to the plasma in the living room.

Setup was very easy, just connect power and A/V cables, then go through on-screen GUI on the extender and media PC and you’re done.

Here is my review, which I’ll explain:

Pros:

  1. Easy Installation
  2. Does what it says it does
  3. No Monthly fees
  4. Stunning interface
  5. Connections for all devices.

Cons:

  1. Wireless Network graph is horrible, when PC and Extender are but 10 ft apart, room to room.
  2. Wide-screen, but does not fill the 46″ Plasma.
  3. Composite on my unit does not work.
  4. The network issue makes the unit unusable.
  5. Some buttons on remote do not work.

WAIT! Some of these issues are addressed farther down, do not stop reading if you are considering this product. (more…)

Home PVR Linux Vs. Windows

Published February 11th, 2008 in Electronics, Media, Projects | No Comments »

Here is my problem. I work overnights, and go to the gym in the evenings so there are shows that I’d like to watch, but I have to always miss. It would be nice to watch them in the morning or the next day when I’m off work, when there is nothing good on anyway.

I’ve always liked the idea of a TiVo, but just one of my beliefs is right of ownership, and the distinction between a product and service. I believe after the initial price of the TiVo box, you should only have to pay service fees if you intend to use an “exclusive” set of features of the TiVo. Things like downloading online movies, access to internet tv or stations, or some of their other online features. However the guide, and recording features should be available without service charges, less you just have an expensive paperweight.

Enter PVR’s, or Personal Video Recorders. (more…)