The first option lets you browse your media by location or type, while Media Library indexes your files by type, date, genre or artist to name but a few. The menu is divided into Browser, Media Library, Feeds, Radio, File Copy and Setup. It must be said that the process is not as smooth as with the WDTV Live HD or more recent Eminent EM7075-DTS hdMedia Stream, but at least it’s present. Ryan has addressed our biggest complaint with the Playon!HD’s media handling: it now supports indexing on anything you plug in. You’re then greeted by the same attractive, if slightly slow, interface as its predecessor – at least once you’ve set the resolution to HD from the ugly standard definition default.
Startup is quick with the Playon!HD Mini booting up in less than 15 seconds.
Only the Asus O!Play HDP-R1 HD, which provides not only USB but also eSATA connections for hooking up external storage, offers more at this size. Nonetheless, with HDMI 1.3, proper component and composite video outputs, twin USB inputs supporting up to 2TB hard drives and Ethernet (Wireless-N Wi-Fi is available with an optional dongle priced at around £20) as well as analogue stereo and digital optical audio out, the basics are well-covered. Impressively, at the Mini’s back you’ll find almost the same connectivity found on the rear panel of the full-size Playon!HD, though it lacks that model’s co-axial digital audio output and side-mounted memory card reader. One small downside is that the unit has hard plastic feet rather than the usual rubber ones, so you’ll need to be careful if putting it on surfaces that scratch easily. Below this is a flush power button, which is the only control present so you’ll always need the remote to hand to operate the Playon!HD Mini. The Mini has matte, textured sides and the only glossy section is the front, with its Playon!HD logo illuminated in red when in standby or blue when the device is active. Ryan has sensibly refrained from the completely glossy shells so many others use. Ryan has implemented we would go so far as to say that the Playon!HD Mini is probably the most attractive media player we’ve reviewed, if not as cute as the tiny Western Digital WDTV Live HD.Ī.C. And that’s no bad thing, as aside from its size the original was a pretty attractive box. Onto the device itself, as one might expect this is essentially a smaller version of the Playon!HD. For example, the tiny play, stop and volume buttons are clustered together between large track control buttons, making it too easy to accidentally stop your video when you only meant to turn up the volume. Unfortunately a few layout quirks make it less than intuitive.
#AC RYAN PLAYON HD FIRMWARE UPDATE PLUS#
It has its plus points: it’s large and comfortable uses AA batteries that could be exchanged for rechargeables, and has colour-coded rubberised buttons that offer pleasant feedback. The remote is still the same model as found with the Playon!HD, which if you read our review you’ll know we weren’t overly enthusiastic about. It supposedly offers the same features as the Playon!HD in a smaller (151 x 102 x 42mm compared to its predecessor’s 227 x 166 x 60mm), lighter (600g versus 1.5kg), quieter and cheaper package! What’s not to like? Well first off the bundle isn’t quite as extravagant as its predecessors, consisting of a more modest HDMI cable, composite video and stereo audio cable, power brick and remote. Ryan’s latest certainly holds a lot of promise. Ryan is back with the Playon!HD Mini, the “little brother of thePlayon!HD”.Ī.C.
Unfortunately, the Playon!HD was also large, heavy and not exactly silent – all of which prevented it from taking the media player crown. Pre-2009, models like the Network DVR lacked high definition capabilities, however the Playon!HD we reviewed last year offered not only HD but more features than any other media player we had looked at. Ryan has certainly been prolific in its attempts to create the perfect media player.
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