IFA 2011: Sony SMP-N200 network player makes your TV smart

Sony SMP-N200

Got an older telly, want to connect it to the internet but don't want to have to splash out on a brand-new smart TV?

Sony reckons it has the answer in this, the SMP-N200 network player. Hook it up to your TV via HDMI, connect it to your home broadband via wi-fi or ethernet and away you go.

The device brings Bravia Internet Video – with BBC iPlayer, LoveFilm and Demand 5 – directly to your screen, and the XrossMedia bar allows you to navigate the content of your choice.

You can also control the SMP-N200 using one of Sony's new tablets announced at IFA this afternoon, or via an iPhone or Android device.

The unit can stream films in high definition and 3D (assuming you have a 3D TV), and DLNA compatibility enables you to enjoy photos, music and movies stored on other devices via your home TV.

Users can browse Facebook while watching telly, surf the web or 'throw' (ie transfer) content from a Sony tablet directly on to the screen.

There's also a USB port for connecting external drives, and Sony includes to its '3D Experience', a new, free on-demand 3D streaming service.

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Andy Clough

Andy is Global Brand Director of What Hi-Fi? and has been a technology journalist for 30 years. During that time he has covered everything from VHS and Betamax, MiniDisc and DCC to CDi, Laserdisc and 3D TV, and any number of other formats that have come and gone. He loves nothing better than a good old format war. Andy edited several hi-fi and home cinema magazines before relaunching whathifi.com in 2008 and helping turn it into the global success it is today. When not listening to music or watching TV, he spends far too much of his time reading about cars he can't afford to buy.