Mediagate MG-350HD

Ben Mansill | Sep 4, 2006 11:41 AM
Anyware | http://www.anyware.com.au
RRP: $399 (time of review)
A very tidy solution for streaming your downloaded video to the TV, without the need for a full Media Center PC.
Performance:  5
Features & Design:  4
Value for money:  5
Overall Rating: 
User Rating:  No user ratings.
A very tidy solution for streaming your downloaded video to the TV, without the need for a full Media Center PC.
This little wonder is not a true Media Center PC, and nor is it a simple network extender with media playing capabilities. What it is, is just about the nicest way to stream almost any form of media from your main PC or notebook, to your lounge room TV and stereo.

The Mediagate 350HD is an evolution of the wonderful Mediagate MG-35, the primary enhancement being the addition of 802.11g (54Mbps) wireless. It retains the same case design though, but it’s a very slick looking unit, unobtrusive and elegant. It can lie on its side, or stand vertically, and has a bare minimum of buttons, the remote being the way you’ll drive this unit after the initial setup.

Getting your media files onto the 350HD is done via Ethernet or wireless. It also has a USB 2.0 port and in testing we found it extremely convenient to just plug in almost any USB data storage device and stream the video directly to the TV. Far less convenient was trying to actually copy files from a USB drive to the 350HD’s hard drive. It can’t be done, which is a startling disappointment. The only way is to copy the files to your PC, and then transfer them to the 350HD.

Curiously, or, perhaps, wisely, depending on how you look at it, the 350D doesn’t come with a hard drive as standard. This you’ll need to add yourself. On the plus side, it means you can tailor the size of the drive you install to meet your media needs, but conversely, it’s a fiddle that non-technical people would probably prefer to do without. A hard drive may not be something many people actually bother with. The unit streams straight to the TV without the need for a hard drive at all. It’s only if you want to make the 350D your storage hub that you’ll need a drive.

In any case, once it’s set up and humming smoothly on your home network it’s delightfully simple to use. File support is comprehensive, and spans virtually every conceivable need both now and into the foreseeable future.

Video support: MPEG 1 and 2, XviD, WMV9, MPEG4 Video, AVIO and VOB.

Audio: MP3, WMA, Ogg Vorbis.

Image: JPG, PNG, BMP, GIF

The 350HD's support for high definition video makes it especially attractive. Possible future updates for new formats may be offered via a driver file later.

For the functionality it delivers, the 350D is an appealing alternative to a fully blown Media Center PC. Setup is a little challenging if you’re not familiar with networking basics, but anyone determined enough can get it done with the help of the comprehensive documentation.