The Neatgear NeoTV follows a more specialist path to streaming nirvana. It comes with next-to-no services built-in (unless you count Flickr and YouTube) and rarely holds your hand through the setup process or day-to-day usage.
Its menus are a far cry from the slickness of many rivals, and it won’t download and arrange album artwork for you.
But what the Netgear will do is play almost any digital media file you can throw at it, delivered almost any way you can think of, thanks to eSata, USB and SD inputs plus support for a prodigious range of music and video files.
High-quality options such as FLAC and MKV are on the agenda, and the NeoTV 550 even outputs HD audio.
It also has an array of analogue audio and video outputs.
Performance is consistently decent, with especially good motion handling and a punchy, energetic sound.
So, the Netgear’s a good buy. If only it tried a little harder to make your life easier…
Netgear NeoTV review
The Netgear NeoTV 550 is hugely flexible and will play almost any digital media file thrown at it Tested at £150
Our Verdict
Decent enough if you know what you’re doing, but no easy ride
For
- Hugely flexible
- loads of connections
- extensive format support
Against
- No streaming services to speak of
- quite hard to live with
Specifications
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General Information
| Manufacturer Website Address | http://www.netgear.co.uk |
| Brand Name | Netgear |
| Product Series | AV |
| Product Type | Network Audio/Video Player |
| Manufacturer | Netgear, Inc |
| Product Line | NeoTV Prime |
| Manufacturer Part Number | GTV100 |
| Product Name | Netgear NeoTV |
| Product Model | GTV100 |
Miscellaneous
| Package Contents |
|
| DLNA Certified | Yes |
Network and Communication
| Ethernet Technology | Fast Ethernet |
| Ethernet | Yes |
| Wireless LAN | Yes |
Interfaces-Ports
| HDMI | Yes |
| USB | Yes |
Audio
| Audio Formats | AAC, MP3, WAV |
| Sound System | Dolby Digital |
Technical Information
| Streaming Service | YouTube |
| Internet Streaming | Yes |
Management and Protocols
| Protocols | WEP, WPA, WPA2 |
Physical Characteristics
| Width | 104.1 mm |
| Depth | 119.4 mm |
| Weight Approximate | 275 g |
| Height | 38.1 mm |
| Colour | Black |
| Dimensions | 38.1 mm (H): 104.1 mm (W): 119.4 mm (D) |
Video
| Video Signal Standard | HDTV |
| Scan Format | 1080p |
| Video Formats | MPEG-1, MPEG-2, AVI, XviD, MPEG-4, MOV, H.264, MJPEG, WMV, VC-1, M2TS, MP4, WMV3, MKV |
Image
| Image Formats | JPEG, PNG |
Memory
| Memory Card Supported | SD, MultiMediaCard (MMC), xD-Picture Card, Memory Stick |