Mede8er V WD TV Live

O

oyseka

Member
Joined
May 23, 2009
Messages
22
Reaction score
0
Location
Tzaneen
Does anyone have experience with both of these that can make a comparative recommendations
 
Both the Mede8er and the WD TV Live media players are very old designs. Have you considered something more recent such as the MXIII from AVSupply which costs R1200? This uses the latest 4K capable quad core Amlogic S802 processor and runs Android Kitkat 4.4.2, comes with Netflix, Hulu, Hulu Plus, YouTube, XBMC (1channel, ProjectFreeTV, Icefilms, Navi-X, Mash Up preloaded) a web browser and much much more.
http://www.avsupply.co.za/product_i...-1gb-media-player-with-android-and-xbmc-p-437

These videos show the capabilities of a very similar machine with more Ram, more Flash, a game controller and an external antenna. It appears to be from the same factory. The AVSupply machine has a much better looking customised firmware. I received mine last week and I am really impressed with the performance. It's definitely the most capable media player that I've ever used.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pg1WScgdRLQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtGrudXE03I
Customised AVSupply firmware
http://mbox.co.za/forum/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=118
Video playback capabilities ...
http://www.cnx-software.com/2014/08/19/probox2-ex-review/
 
Last edited:
I've never used a mede8er, but I have the WD TV Live box and it works great. Streams all major services without a problem and has a nice user interface. Cost around R800 from Takealot over a year ago.
 
First tell us what you will primarily be using it for then better recommendations can be made.

Is it for streaming online content? Do you want to run XBMC or Plex on it? Do you want to play back media from an external hard drive or your local network? What are you connecting it to (av receiver, tv, etc)? What is your budget?
 
Primary function is to get content from the computer system to the TV. I have a wi-fi router so if it works via that fine, if not the system is only five meters away so I will run a cable. Secondary function is to allow internet connectivity for facebook and browser. There will not be Live streaming of video
 
oyseka said:
Primary function is to get content from the computer system to the TV. I have a wi-fi router so if it works via that fine, if not the system is only five meters away so I will run a cable. Secondary function is to allow internet connectivity for facebook and browser. There will not be Live streaming of video
Click to expand...

My TV can do that by itself.
 
The problems are two fold,
1) The TV will not play .mov or .mkv files so it has to go through something that understands them
2) I am using Mac so the media box has to be able to negotiate HFS+ hierarchy
 
oyseka said:
The problems are two fold,
1) The TV will not play .mov or .mkv files so it has to go through something that understands them
2) I am using Mac so the media box has to be able to negotiate HFS+ hierarchy
Click to expand...

If you're using a Mac just get an Apple TV.
 
Thank you for the information. I am concerned that the media player would not be able to negotiate a HFS+ directory
 
Apple TV will only play content from your iTunes library and iTunes does not understand .mkv or .avi
 
oyseka said:
Apple TV will only play content from your iTunes library and iTunes does not understand .mkv or .avi
Click to expand...

Does your TV support the Plex app? Maybe that's a better solution. You're the first person I've come across struggling to play media on their TV over a network. Doesn't say much about Macs tbh.

You could always move from torrented media to Netflix, Hulu, Simfy etc. for your movie, series and music needs and avoid the network problem.
 
Yotch said:
Both the Mede8er and the WD TV Live media players are very old designs. Have you considered something more recent such as the MXIII from AVSupply which costs R1200? This uses the latest 4K capable quad core Amlogic S802 processor and runs Android Kitkat 4.4.2, comes with Netflix, Hulu, Hulu Plus, YouTube, XBMC (1channel, ProjectFreeTV, Icefilms, Navi-X, Mash Up preloaded) a web browser and much much more.
http://www.avsupply.co.za/product_i...-1gb-media-player-with-android-and-xbmc-p-437
Click to expand...

Looks like an awesome machine.
 
@oyseka: I don't have any Macintosh equipment but there are apparently some android apps such as Paragon exFAT, NTFS & HFS+ that might be able to mount your HFS+ partitions on the MXIII. Post again if you want to know anything else about the MXIII.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.paragon.mounter&hl=en
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJjZewkDWJU

@satanboy: I must say that this is one of the coolest devices I've ever owned! It's like having an HTPC without all the hassle of configuring and getting it working. I just plugged in my air mouse, the video cable, power supply and it was ready for use after a boot time of ~30s. Netflix, Hulu Plus, YouTube, web browser, XBMC all working!
 
Last edited:
oyseka said:
Primary function is to get content from the computer system to the TV. I have a wi-fi router so if it works via that fine, if not the system is only five meters away so I will run a cable. Secondary function is to allow internet connectivity for facebook and browser. There will not be Live streaming of video
Click to expand...

oyseka said:
Thank you for the information. I am concerned that the media player would not be able to negotiate a HFS+ directory
Click to expand...

Yotch said:
@oyseka: I don't have any Macintosh equipment but there are apparently some android apps such as Paragon exFAT, NTFS & HFS+ that might be able to mount your HFS+ partitions on the MXIII. Post again if you want to know anything else about the MXIII.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.paragon.mounter&hl=en
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJjZewkDWJU
Click to expand...

I would recommend an Android player then. It will be best if you want to be able to use a browser on the TV.

The filesystem shouldn't matter if you're sharing it over the network, it will only require the tools Yotch provided above if you are connecting a drive directly to the device. You can just share the files via nfs or smb and the Android box will read it fine.

AVsupply currently has the Q7 on special: http://www.avsupply.co.za/product_info.php/android-quad-core-mini-with-xbmc-p-641

I have one of these at home and it works great. Just get yourself a gyro remote (http://www.avsupply.co.za/product_info.php/wireless-air-mouse-with-motion-stick-p-588) with and web browsing on your TV will be super simple.

Cool thing is you can install all the regular Android apps, so if you want to use the Facebook app it would probably be easier than using a browser. You can also run XMBC and Plex with these boxes. If you plan on connecting to an AV receiver just connect it via optical, I couldn't get passthrough to work over HDMI but works perfectly over optical.
 
Thanks @Yotch, I had been to the web site and the kit does look as if it does what I want in terms of playability. I have Paragon NTFS already on my system so that I can view my Windows 7 boot drive files but the reviews are not very promising from the Paragon website. As my media drive is one of five internal drives I would be scared that I buy the MXIII and the android software and then can still not do what I want
 
Hi, the media files are still held on an HFS+ drive and I presume that I would still have to see the media to be able to select and play it ???
 
@oyseka: In terms of networking options the android machines offer the largest number of options. There are many different apps that you can download from the Play Store from Samba based apps such as Samba Server (mentions OS X), Samba Filesharing, SambaDroid etc. to file managers like ES File Explorer and different web browsers such as Dolphin, Flashfox etc. The range is extensive and I am sure that you will be able to find something to fit your requirements. Zoidberg has a lot of experience with Apple equipment!
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.icecoldapps.sambaserver&hl=en
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.funkyfresh.samba&hl=en
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=berserker.android.apps.sambadroid&hl=en

The latest generation of quad core processors seem to be a lot faster than the previous dual core versions. I have been very impressed with the speed and graphic capabilities of the MXIII. If at some stage you decide that you want to stream your content directly from the Internet this box offers the widest range of options from XBMC, direct from the browser, free Hulu, to paid services such as Netflix and Hulu Plus. Send AVSupply a PM if you want any more information and to judge the kind of support that you can expect.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X