Product ReviewsWestern Digital WDTV Live Streaming Media Player WiFi FULL-HD 1080p DLNA
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48%
44%
6%
2%
0%
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 Rating: Review Date: 03/13/14  |
Cons: The software still has a few bugs to iron out.
Pros: The WD TV Live features industry-leading format support and built-in Wi-Fi. Its broad selection of streaming services includes Spotify, Netflix, Hulu Plus, Vudu, and Pandora, among many others. The interface is friendly, and video and sound quality are as good as you'd expect. |
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Rating: Review Date: 03/11/14 |
Cons: Some menu options are a little buried/hidden
Pros: Beautiful UIPlays anythingAuto converts (crappy) AAC format to stereoSupports multiple share types (Windows, NFS, Mac) Comment:
This is the best media player you can buy for around $100. The UI is beautiful (coming from a Patriot Box Office).It plays anything I throw at it, including Blu-Ray ISOs. One surprising feature is that it decodes the horrible AAC format on the fly to Stereo in case your receiver is old (like mine) and can't decode it. It can output all of the sound over optical (again, for older receivers).It supports multiple share types, though I've only tested the Windows Share.It has Netflix and other apps. As I mentioned, it has an optical port for those of us with receivers lacking HDMI.One complaint I have is that some of the menu options are a little buried and difficult to get to in a hurry, but this isn't a deal breaker.Though my experience is limited (I had a Patriot Box Office then this), I have to say this must be one of the best media players out there. Highly recommended. This review was modfied by poster @ 03-11-14 04:14 AM |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/07/14 |
Cons: Bit sluggish, location doesn't update automaticly
Pros: Works great, easy to set-up, easy to change settings for dns changers, lots of choices Comment:
Great unit, works well, menus are a tad sluggish but nothing bad. Just keep in mind if you switch dns settings to get US services, you MUST go to time settings and reset location or it will not give you access to US apps like hulu or pandora |
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Rating: Review Date: 12/14/13 |
Cons: Id have liked to see hulu supported hopefully WD can add it in a firmware. but its no biggie as usually use one or other and it has netflix
Pros: Streams great wifi and ethernet network or internet. good quick playbacknice customizable menu and backgrounds decent selection of internet serviceseasy to navigate and setup was quick Comment:
So I bought two of these for my parents and set them up for them as a early xmas gift. It was super easy to hook them up one is on wireless and one is on wired both are streaming very well not noticeable difference between the two as far as lag or anything goes. Netflix streaming was quick and easy to setup. also has some other neat online services that you can favourite ect. YouTube services - weather - and some other media services. everything was setup quickly mom was upstairs streaming movies off a Network HDD on a system i setup here for them and dad was streaming video on netflix last i checked :P. i love easy devices like that for them the less i have to teach and the easier it is for them the happier they are and thus the happier i am in return. |
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Rating: Review Date: 10/04/13 |
Cons: No exFat, ext3 or ext4 support for connected drives (FAT, FAT32 and NTFS are supported)
Pros: Plays anything you throw at it as far as I can tellAccess to lots of servicesSilentSmallPortableAndroid/iOS apps if you can't find the remote Comment:
Been using this for a year, happily, playing anything I can get my hands on on it. Works with anything I've thrown at it. Plays off network servers, DNLA servers (e.g. Plex), files on external hard drives and USB sticks and hard drives.Thoroughly recommended. You'll only match this with a HTPC or perhaps a Rasberry Pi running Rasbmc or Rasplex. |
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Rating: Review Date: 09/12/13 |
Cons: Interface a big laggy, file display isn't that great
Pros: Fast, reads everythings Comment:
This is probably the best media player out there. It reads any format including 3D SBS or top-bottom movie. I have not had any trouble reading any kind of movie. The interface is a big laggy but you're not buying the interface but a movie player which is what it does perfectly. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a media player. |
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Rating: Review Date: 09/08/13 |
Cons: -Cannot install custom firmware unlike its precessor-Need tweeking to support ThumbGen generated files
Pros: -Easy to use-Built in wifi-Share the connected drive on the network Comment:
I owned the gen 2 for a few years now and love it, I wanted to have another one for a different tv, so I bought this one. The firmware on it is different and I had to tweek it with themes to get the moviessheets to work.However once its setup, it works just as good as the old one.The addition of wifi is a nice to had for people that dont have wired network, however I would assume that full HD would be a bit choppy if streamed. |
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Rating: Review Date: 08/04/13 |
Cons: File type supportSpeed
Pros: Easy of use Comment:
Its is very easy to use and customize, connected to my network very easily and is able to play movies off my pc or the wd tv live hub instantly.Problem with it is it sometimes very slow, most of the time it is with netflix. after clicking netflix to start sometimes the unit just freezes with a black screen other time it takes about 2-5mins to load up. It is quite random though, at time it works perfect and other times its just slow and unresponsive requiring me to unplug the unit just to get it going again. |
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Rating: Review Date: 07/31/13 |
Cons: A little slow
Pros: I have no problems with it , nice little unit Comment:
Anton , I have a Sony Bravia KDL46EX500 and it works on my TV . You might want to give it some time to load , it does take a little time for it to work |
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Rating: Review Date: 06/30/13 |
Cons: -none really
Pros: -it worked fine-software is decent Comment:
Its a good media player alright. just doesnt satisfy me when a HTPC does way more |
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Rating: Review Date: 05/08/13 |
Cons: included setup guide in box is uselessthe downloaded instruction manual gives false information on the guide on how to setup the windows folder sharing, and you would never figure it out without finding the youtube video giving instructions on how to change the folder permissions to get this thing to log in.
Pros: Plays most of my video files (some do not play)cheap price Comment:
this youtube video explains how to make the network shares on windows 7 work on the box, or let the damn thing log in and display files you share."Enable Network Shares on WD TV Live & Windows 7 Ultimate x64" / 225,000 viewshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQstgQ4eJCMi wish in the manual they just explained it like this.four stars, if i didn't have to go around for two hours and figure out these frustrating issues i could use it right out of the box and give the review 5 stars. |
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Rating: Review Date: 04/13/13 |
Cons: Slow operationNetflix only works half the time
Pros: NetflixBuilt in WiFi Comment:
I bought two of these. One for myself and one for my parents. In the 8 months I've owned it I've had good use out of it. The main reason I bought it was for the built in WiFi and Netflix. Some of it's downfalls are the slow operation and the frequency of updates; most of which do not fix problems, but create them. I've tried using it to stream media from my Windows PC, but it is too slow. Also, Netflix only wants to work half the time. Despite some of these issues - which I think could be easily fixed - I would buy it again for the features alone. |
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Rating: Review Date: 04/04/13 |
Cons: And bit slow when navigating through menus.
Pros: Simple to use. Works great! Comment:
Very satisfied with my purchase. Got it for $90 on sale with free 32GB USB stick which works perfectly with this. I haven't found a file format it can't play. Goodbye DVDs. |
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Rating: Review Date: 02/23/13 |
Cons: Interface for Internet Apps like YouTube and Vimeo too clunky to really be useful. More of a gimmicky addition.
Pros: Good value for $100. No competition really. Comment:
Can't be beat for playing your Xvid/x264 collection. Detects Windows Shares on your LAN...so USB drive isn't necessary. Just add a new Windows user for the WDTV with simple password...it remembers the login credentials.Most bad reviews seem to be caused by wireless...so I'm sticking to wired network connection.It was also time to retire my DivX DVD player. Most downloaded programs are in h.264 now. Blu-Ray players don't have the component connections...just HDMI...so the WDTV can still be used with older TVs.Thinking of buying another for the parents. Very user-friendly. |
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Rating: Review Date: 02/19/13 |
Cons: Hang sometimes. Can be slow if 2 hds of 2TB each or a 3TB hd is inserted. Take time for scanning large HDs. Sometimes i can't skip chapter, don't know why.
Pros: It replace my sony 400 dvds player without problem. Works with blacx dual docking station (work better than a double connexion using both usb ports). Can be use as a file server on home network even when the device has been shutdown. Surprisingly small box. The double video outputs can work simultaneously. For $95 delivered, it's almost a steal. Comment:
My 400 DVDs player stop working and it would cost me $150 to repair. So i try this thing. Handle ISOs pretty good. Read ISOs, FLV, WMV, JPG, AVI for sure. I cannot score it perfect because of anoying hang and chapter skipping that doesn't work frequently. |
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Rating: Review Date: 02/19/13 |
Cons: no component out for older TVs (but there is standard def output via RCA video out)
Pros: Works with netflix, connects to my WHS 2011 no problems Comment:
Had this for a week and it is a good upgrade from my older WDTV Live. Addition of netflix support is great and the interface is much snappier. Haven't pushed a huge amount of codecs at it yet but so far I am happy with it. Remote feels cheap. Wish it was a bit cheaper but came with a free USB flash drive at least. |
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Rating: Review Date: 02/16/13 |
Cons: None
Pros: Small1080pWifiWide array of supported media formatsHdmii Comment:
Very small and simple to use. Performs just as expected! |
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Rating: Review Date: 02/10/13 |
Cons: Media library building is slow..
Pros: Streams Canadian Netflix in HD!Supports many video and audio formatsFairly fast, simple interface Comment:
This is my first dedicated media player and so far it's been great. This is one of the few devices that can stream Netflix content in Canada. Movies play without a hitch in 1080p.One concern is that the device (thus far) does not manage to build a media library from a 750gb external hard drive filled with movies and music connected via USB. I imagine that it cannot cope with the large number of files, so I had to turn off the media library setting. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/24/13 |
Cons: Indexing the drive is a bit of a drag.
Pros: Easy to use, way easier to setup than the Original WD Box. Plays everything! Comment:
Wanted a media player that had Optical out and HDMI. Unit plays everything I throw at it and works flawlessly with my Amplifier! A super asset to my Home Theater. Now I just need to setup a media storage server for it to index on a regular basis!Highly recommend this unit to anyone looking for a Media player! |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/20/13 |
Cons: Multiple fiddly issues out of the box, laggy remote response
Pros: Full featured, upgrade from PBO, iphone remote app, auto content info Comment:
Very pleased. Now x264 is the norm my Patriot Box Office wasn't doing the job. Using wireless setup, plays everything I've thrown at it. Content info with covers is AWESOME! Kids have stopped asking "which one is this? Which one is this? Which one is this?" a dozen times a day.Multiple annoying issues out of the box that needed google-fu to solve. Wouldn't see my networked computer, wouldn't connect to the media drive on computer, wouldn't d/l content info. All solved, but headbanging nonetheless. More features/complicated than the PBO true, but not as intuitive to figure out. The remote is often laggy. The player would freeze at couple times a day for the first week, but not lately, wonder if it was related to getting content info.I wish there was a paper manual. I feel like that there are a lot more features to discover but going from tv room to computer room is a PITA.Was going to relegate the PBO to the kids room but now wish I had bought a second WD Live in boxing week sale. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/18/13 |
Cons: none
Pros: Just the Best Comment:
I bought 5 of these for family members , it's just the best thing ever |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/14/13 |
Cons: None for this price
Pros: Improved UI, response over older versions, added scraping, plays any format Comment:
I've owned previous generations and the UI is much improved on this one in terms of asthetics and response. The scraping ability is a great new feature. I was able to scrape ~1,500 movies off my unRAID server in a couple of minutes, running LAN, plays lossless m2ts streams fine. Haven't tried the wireless yet. Sure, it's not XBMC but for $100 (PMed), it's tough to beat. |
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Rating: Review Date: 01/11/13 |
Cons: Some high-quality 1080p BluRay MKVs may choke it, depends on your encoding/network speed.
Pros: Small, efficient, cheap enough, simple and fast setup, plays just about anything you throw at it Comment:
Overall this is just about the best media player for your TV; it will literally play all non-DRMed media files you can possibly think of, both over wired and wireless network and it has a simple and user-friendly interface to boot.This is not as flexible and tweak-friendly as a Roku, but this is perfect for someone who just wants to plug it in and play a movie file without having to worry about setup quirks and endless configuration menus.I've intentionally tried to make it choke to see just how good this little box is; so far, a high-quality high-bit rate 1080 BluRay MKV gave it trouble, but anything else has been smooth as butter.Highly recommended. |
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Rating: Review Date: 12/31/12 |
Cons: a bit slow indexing all your media if you have lots
Pros: Works great........plays many formats......easy to setup Comment:
this works as expected. the device is easy to setup. menus are slow sometimes, but not a big deal.Am happy i made the purchase. |
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Rating: Review Date: 12/10/12 |
Cons: No remote volume control. Does not completely power down. Long time from plug in to play.
Pros: Nothing striking. Comment:
I am not a techie by any means and I have only used 1 other media player(Patriot Box Office) so I can't address technical aspects of this unit. I can say that I was very disappointed to not have a remote volume control. Who wants to get up during playback to adjust volume? My Patriot has one at half the price. Another annoying thing is that after shutting the player down with the remote it remains powered up enough to maintain a wireless connection. When I felt the unit after being shutdown for hours the player and plug were still warm. What was even stranger was that when I pulled the plug out it still had not disconnected from the Wifi. It seems that the powered external hard drive that was connected to it was still powering it somehow. So to keep this unit cool and not drawing power it needs to be totally disconnected. This was verified with WD helpline. Now I am wondering if the reason this unit does not power down is because the time this player takes from plugging it in to using it is quite long, about 90 seconds, but if it is left plugged it it fires up quite quickly. All in all I feel like this unit was rushed to production a little too quickly and does not live up to the standard that WD is supposed to represent. |
If you want a device that will stream and play back your downloaded files, this is one of the leading models.