GoVideo D 2730 Networked Progressive-Scan DVD Player
One star for non-geeks; 4 stars for geeks.
I bought this the minute I saw it, thinking $110 was not much to lose.  It took me over a week to get it fully working, but even so, I'm giving it 4 stars (if you're a computer geek).  One star if you don't know what a router is (too hard for non geeks to get working).<br />While I have read about the many problems people have had with the wireless adapters, I am using this in wired mode.<br />The unit has two pieces of software:<BR>1) The Client software is what is programmed into the unit itself.  It is burned onto a flash memory inside the box.  GoVideo has released three versions (mine came with version 1).  You can upgrade or downgrade the Client by creating a CD-ROM (the online tech support walks you through it - very simple).<BR>2) The Server software is what you put on your computer.  It is the interface that locates and marks all of your video/MP3 files to be shared on the player.  The Server itself is not a media player.  There are two versions of Server.<br />So, the first thing I recommend is that you go to the website (even before your unit arrives) and make a V2 and V3 CD-ROM.  I don't think V1 is even available over the net anymore, nor does it come on a CD-ROM when you get the device, so once you upgrade to V2, you can NOT downgrade to V1 again.  This shouldn't be a problem, since V1 is really quite bad.<br />Even with a wired connection, I had A LOT of trouble getting the player to connect to my PC when Client V1 was installed.  I had to force a fixed IP address, because the unit just couldn't figure out mine.<br />WORD OF WARNING: For some reason, GoVideo requires you to initially connect this device to a TV via a Coax cable.  If you initially connect it to a S-Video or component video, the screen will simply not work.  The menu is technically still there, but you can't see to navigate it.  You need to connect via Coax to select the output mode you want.  Of course, once you do, the screen goes blank until you connect to the TV differently.  This operation alone demonstrates why the average person will hate this product.  BTW - once you upgrade to V2, there is a button on the remote that cycles through the different output selects.  Infinitely better, but hardly intuitive.<br />Once you have Client V3 and Server V2 installed, the box should be able to easily connect to the network.<br />Mine auto-connected at this point, but , the problems began here...<br />I have a Router between me and the Internet, and a hub connected to that.  My PCs and the DVD Player were all connected to the Hub.<br />In this configuration, my videos were ALL playing very poorly (pixelated, no sound sync, skipping).  I called tech support at least 6 times.  They have very flexible hours, and each person I spoke to was different (but all in the USA).  Unfortunately, no one was able to even come close to diagnosing my problem.<br />They were more than willing to send me a new unit, but I had a feeling it was something in my network itself.  Well, someone at my work got the problem right away.  It was my Hub.  Even though it was a 10/100 hub, it was operating at half-duplex, so all of my media was getting killed.<br />The instant I removed the hub from my system, and replaced it with a switch, my video worked GREAT.  BTW, this explains why you can't even BUY a hub at Best Buy these days.  Switches are all full duplex, and cost under $10 per port.<br />So, if you're looking to buy one of these, here is what I learned:<BR>1) Upgrade to the latest Client and Server<BR>2) If you change the Server version, or the method the player uses to connect (auto IP, fixed IP, etc), cycle power on your PC and the DVD player.<BR>3) DON'T connect to a hub - use a switch<BR>4) If you're still having problems, Google on &quot;D2730 forum&quot; and you'll get much more useful information than tech support has.