I'm surprised this hasn't already been discussed, as it's already been out for 9 days :)

h++p://store.iomega.com/section?secid=40419 (sorry, you'll have to cut and paste and replace the ++s)

I know, I'm going to get the comments like "1080i?!?! Oh, my bleeding eyes!" But not everybody requires 1080p to be happy.

In this compact package, there is
1 TB NAS drive
Ability to playback VOBs, MKS and many other major formats
Media player, can play other videos/music/pictures from anywhere on the network
SD Video capture for camcorder, vcr, etc.
Expandable to wireless via USB
Can add more capacity via USB
Low power consumption

Since I was looking at needing to get a TB NAS drive, a media player, and a DVR, this seems like a pretty good deal to get all of those in one package. I've put in my order to Amazon and will report back when I get it.

I got my new ScreenPlay PRO HD 1 TB drive.

This is going to take me a while to go through all of the features, so I'll post here as I do each one. I finally found better specs for it on the support website. Since I haven't made 3 posts yet, I can't post URLs, so this is the mangled URL:

h++ps://iomega-na-en.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/iomega_na_en.cfg/php/enduser/cust_alp.php?prod_lvl1=991&prod_lvl2=1060&p_prods=991,1060&cat_lvl1=50&p_cats=50&p_pv=2.1060&p_cv=1.50&p_sid=4cAQ78jj

First: My purpose - I wanted a media player unit on which I could store my entire collection of 200+ DVDs (and eventually 50+ VCR tapes that are degrading). I needed something that my kids could use. I wanted something inexpensive. I wanted something that wouldn't use a lot of power when it wasn't being used. And I wanted something that would run quiet but cool. Small form factor and nice looking box would be a bonus, but not required.

My experience - I like the way it looks. It isn't much bigger than my Western Digital MyBook external drive. Plugging it in was easy. I hooked it up to my HDTV via HDMI and to my computer through the USB port. Pressed the power button and voila, I had a new drive on the computer. I copied pictures, music, homemade DVDs, and ripped a DVD onto it last night.

The UI was better than I thought it would be after seeing the ScreenPlay HD 500 GB one, but it wasn't as good as it could be. Nonetheless, it is worthwhile. It starts off listing the different devices you scan display files from:
ScreenPlay Pro (from the 1 TB on board unit)
External USB (for any additional hard drive/card reader you plug into it)
Network (any shared directories on the network)
AV Input (composite input plugs)
Schedule (scheduling the DVR)
Setup

As you browse to the device, it shows the folders from the root directory. You can browse into each folder from there and while at the folder level, narrow your search to Music, Videos, or Pictures. As you scroll down through the list, a preview window on the left side of the screen shows you information about what you've highlighted. So for MP3s, it shows the tags. For videos, it starts playing them (without sound). And pictures -- obviously it shows them. You press play once you've selected the item and it plays.

Now, I am NOT an audiophile, so I really cannot comment on the sound much other than yes, it has sound and I couldn't really hear anything wrong with it. But that isn't saying much, as I have a hearing problem. Setup allows you to switch between 2 channel and 5.1 channel audio. There's a "night mode" (don't know what it does) and S/PDIF can be configured as HDMI LPCM, HDMI RAW, SPDIF LPCM, and SPDIF RAW.

When you browse to a directory that has VIDEO_TS in it, it will automatically launch the DVD in it. I haven't watched a whole DVD yet, but what I did see was impressive. Standard DVD stuff worked fine. Zoom allowed up to 8x zoom and using the arrows I could move around the zoom screen. With it being a hard drive, skipping to other chapters and stuff was without any pauses. I saw nothing that concerned me. In fact, one of my home videos I made played better on this unit than it does in my DVD player. My DVD player skips over the "Show First" video and this thing got it right.

Hooked up to an old analog TV via composite, it selected 480i output automatically. The items on the top/bottom edge tend to get cut off. Due to the interlacing TV, the menu was a little irritating to look at (the horizontal lines need to be double the width to prevent flicker on interlaced TVs). Switching it to NTSC mode didn't help any. But the video on it was fine once I got it launched. I didn't try hooking up the component video cables (composite hook ups are in front, component hookup is in a wire jungle I wasn't prepared to navigate last night).

It was not able to play any videos downloaded directly from my camera (MJPEG format). Nor did it recognize the raw video from the camcorder (AVI DV1 format). Nor could it do the 720p MKV sample file I downloaded.

Picture slideshow capability works well. I haven't tried putting MP3s in the same folder but apparently it will play the MP3s as it is viewing the pictures and going through about 8 different types of transitions. For a quick and easy slideshow, it would do the job.

Documentation totally sucks. And so does the remote. Those are the two major downsides. I have a utility on my computer that I don't even know how it works or what it does. It can make my folders sharable, and apparently has some transcoding capabilities, but I don't know how they work. Looking in the directory, there appears to be bittorent client and several codecs. The remote is small, crowded, complicated, and oddly arranged. for instance, the volume has the + on the left side and the - on the right. On nearly every other remote I have with a horizontal volume layout, they are - on the left and + on the right. The 0 is not below the 8, it's below the 7. Navigating up levels in the menu seems to be inconsistent. Sometimes you press stop, sometimes return, sometimes menu. Othertimes you just give up and press Home and start over. I'm going to be working hard to get this into my JP1 remote.

Playlist manager that comes with it requires the drive to be plugged in through USB to create a playlist, as it doesn't find my drive on the network. Haven't tried a playlist yet.

Network access to the drive is just like a remote computer. It's in the "Workgroup" workgroup and it shows a folder called "ScreenPlay" that you can open and copy files to. But trying to copy files over 2 GB to this NTFS formatted drive doesn't work unless you do it via USB.

There's a telnet client on the drive, but the password is unknown. There's also a web server on the drive that uses CGI and a sample HTML page, but no clue as to how to get further into it. There are also a few partitions on the drive that are "unknown". So there's lots of interesting mysteries for a hacker to explore :) This thing will keep me occupied for a little while.

So suitability to the job I wanted it to do: Almost perfect. The few problems I've run into can be fixed via firmware update, which Iomega has already shown they do on the past ScreenPlay HDs. For the time being, I can keep my uploads under 2 GB (I haven't tried ISOs yet).

Ok, I've had some time to play with this thing a little more and can give some more information on it.

It has Divx support. It gives a registration number and you can log onto Divx and (apparently) watch movies. I have not yet tried this feature.

But I did try the recording. It records in 720x480 (can't do better with it because the input is through composite). It has several levels of quality. I recorded in HQ, which resulted in an mpeg of about 1.2 GB per 30 minutes. Playback was nearly identical to watching it from the VHS tapes it came from. However, I did experience some problems. It told me "Bad Disc" a few times. When I finally had finished recording about 1 1/2 hours worth, then I was able to record several other files without further problems. Not sure if I really do have a bad disk drive.

Network connections are limited. It uses SMB and limits the connections to one computer. So it can play directly to the screen, and have one incoming connection retrieving/saving additional information.

It was able to stream video from my computer very well. Even over a wireless connection (SPP was plugged into wireless router, other computer had wiresless card). It reported getting 5Mb connection to my computer and streamed flawlessly the DVD I had stored on there. Did not watch the whole DVD, but it seemed very responsive.

I found out you don't have to have the DVD in a folder called Video_TS. You can just have the vobs/ifos in the folder and it will automatically start playing that as well. Or I can play my XVid encoded files by going to the folder where I'm keeping those and selecting the file.

I also hooked up an external USB drive to it and it was able to stream from the drive without problem. One odd thing, though. It starts showing the drive at a lower mount level, so you end up with a directory without a name that you browse to first before it shows you the root folder. Not a big deal, just odd.

And yes, hacking it has been easy, especially since I haven't needed any special equipment to read the firmware or the OS :)

Thanks for your thoughts on the new Iomega device. I was looking into the earlier model, but concluded it would not work for 10GB 1280x720 MPEG2 recordings from broadcast TV. It would appear that this new device may be suitable. But I ordered the new Western Digital "WD TV HD Media Player" (which does not have any storage). If that doesn't work for me, I might be back looking into Iomega's offerings.

A link or two:

Press release: http://www.iomega.com/about/prreleases/2008/102908_screenplay_pro.html

Product page: http://store.iomega.com/section?secid=40419

No MPEG-4.10 (H.264) support?
No WMV 9 (VC-1) support?

No thanks.

So does it actually output 720p/1080i, or is it just up-scaling? The Iomega website was a little unlcear, said it had "better support for native high definition 720p and 1080i video", but then in the specs it says "Resolution: PAL/NTSC - 480i/480p; scalable to 720p/1080i" in one area, and then "PAL/NTSC - native to 1080i" in another section.

You said it didn't work with a 720p mkv file, any idea what codec it was using? I have the older version (500 GB Screenplay) and was excited when I saw that this one lists mkv support, but since most mkv files I've seen are H.264, not clear if this will actually play them.

One thing I read elsewhere said that by default the drive is formatted as NTFS, and there is a menu option to re-format it as FAT32. That should eliminate restrictions on larger file sizes.

Do not buy this drive for MKV unless you want to leave your computer on to do the transcoding. The device does not natively support the H.264 format in the MKV package, but it can use your computer to transcode it to a format it can play.

https://iomega-na-en.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/iomega_na_en.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=20311

The drive can handle files larger than 2 GB, as long as you put it on via USB port. I and others have had problems copying over the network any files greater than 2 GB.

No, this device isn't perfect. But it fits exactly with what I was trying to fill. I wanted a device that I could archive my DVDs onto, could stand alone when playing those DVDs back, and would preserve those DVD menus. I also wanted it to be able to record my degrading VHS tapes. So for the price, it certainly feels to me like I'm getting a deal since I cannot get a DVR + Media Player + 1 TB drive for less than $300.

I added a USB Wifi dongle to the drive and it can stream videos stored on my computer without any problems. I can expand the drive by plugging in another USB drive into it. And I'm pleased with the video playback I've seen so far. For an average consumer, I'm very happy with the device. As I said in the first message, I don't think any AV-phile is going to go for it because it isn't 1080p. But not all of us require 1080p to be happy. If that's what matters to you, get a popcorn hour a110.

Lame.
Pass.

Some of these companies just don't get it. (I doubt that Iomega designed this device itself, anyway.)

And yes, hacking it has been easy, especially since I haven't needed any special equipment to read the firmware or the OS :)

I also own this player and it is okay for me as you said. However, what hacks have you done? Please feel me in. Thanks

I wanted to clarify some things on the output and format.

I have a DivX file that is encoded in 720p. This player plays it and it looks beautiful on my HDTV. If I package that DivX in an MKV file, this player will play it the same way. Same with any Xvid I package in the MKV file.

It just can't natively handle the H.264 format, you have to put those files on your computer and transcode.

As far as hacking goes, you can telnet into it. It has a built in http daemon. So you can add your own webpages, CGI scripts, etc. Like I could plug in another hard drive into the back of it, go back to my computer and bring up a webpage to automatically copy the contents of that other usb drive to the internal drive. I've added a file upload to mine, although it's not working well for larger files. I'm in the process now of trying to figure out how to do a cross compile on my linux machine so I can write an executable for the player.

Edit: Also forgot to mention that I enabled the extended USB drive to be accessible over the network.

I really like the Iomega but still have not made up my mind due to the lack of being able to play HD-material. If this can be fixed with a FW upgrade I would still consider it. Does anybody know if it's a codec problem or that the processor used can't handle the decoding? It would be interesting to know if you can do something similar as for the PS3, i.e. remux from mkv to vob and it works (h++p://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=131782). Has anybody tried this?

Kindly tell us how to implement your hacks, pleeeeeeeaaaaase.

Well, awesome discovery thanks to klootje.

It appears this device is very similar to some other devices that have been hacked. Namely, the Realtek players, such as the Emtec MovieCube -R100. I haven't been this giddy since my Apex DVD player hacks.

http://rtd1261.wikidot.com/start

Looks like it has the missing WIFI WD MY HD needs. Any reason for the lack of excitement?

I think they shouldn't call it HD, it's almost scamming if it isn't

No MPEG-4.10 (H.264) support?
No WMV 9 (VC-1) support?

No thanks.

Some of these companies just don't get it. (I doubt that Iomega designed this device itself, anyway.)

Note to the HD freaks and your silly "lame" posts. No one cares about HD playback becuase it is and never will be a money maker for mainstream companies.

Ripping BD products is just as lame considering the hoops people to go through to get it down to a decent size....its just not a smart idea for companies to care about something a FEW people want.

The rest of us will stream our HD into house and ripped standard DVDs for playback, we are the people they will focus on because we are the majority.

If this device can play VOBs and have a 1TB drive then it suits of the needs of many and therefore is a viable product. I know 10 friends that will have it once I set up 10 of them for them!

Note to the HD freaks and your silly "lame" posts. No one cares about HD playback becuase it is and never will be a money maker for mainstream companies.

Ripping BD products is just as lame considering the hoops people to go through to get it down to a decent size....its just not a smart idea for companies to care about something a FEW people want.

The rest of us will stream our HD into house and ripped standard DVDs for playback, we are the people they will focus on because we are the majority.

If this device can play VOBs and have a 1TB drive then it suits of the needs of many and therefore is a viable product. I know 10 friends that will have it once I set up 10 of them for them!

Are you some staff of IOmega or something?
There is no way you can talk it right this device saying HD on the box
I bought my media center for HD movies, and this device saying HD could easily fouled me and I'm sure it will fool people searching for a HD player

No one cares about HD playback. . . .
Speak for yourself. (Need new glasses?) So who's buying all those HD TVs and why?

Ripping BD products is just as lame considering the hoops people to go through to get it down to a decent size....
Hoops? It takes about 30 minutes in all. And why in Gods' name "get it down to a decent size?" I want full PQ/AQ and storage is cheap (< 10 cents/GB). Where have you been?

If this device can play VOBs and have a 1TB drive . . . .
Old hat. And not very ambitious. Lots of devices can do this and much more, and have been able to do so for years. (Ever heard of XBox/XBMC?) Iomega is days late and dollars short. Again, where have you been? And why limit yourself to 1TB and USB?

I know 10 friends that will have it once I set up 10 of them for them!
Do you work on commission?

Edit: Just because a device supports a certain feature--e.g., 1080p24--you are not required to use it. However, if it does not support a feature, you obviously cannot use it, if and when you decide to. Give me more choice any day - and greater potential for the future. I expect more for $300 MSRP.

Speak for yourself. (Need new glasses?) So who's buying all those HD TVs and why?
why? most people in the real world don't care... you need to get away from AVS every once in a while... (yes, I realize that it is heresy to say that on AVS...)
most people who buy HDTV's (and they are still in the minority, Most people still have SDTV's) so they can watch HD TV, and SD DVD's look sweet on them....
(again this does not apply to anyone on AVS...)


Edit: Just because a device supports a certain feature--e.g., 1080p24--you are not required to use it. However, if it does not support a feature, you obviously cannot use it, if and when you decide to. Give me more choice any day - and greater potential for the future. I expect more for $300 MSRP.
true, but then you end up paying for features most people don't need nor want...

full disclosure: I did have a Screenplay for a while... didn't much care for the UI, so I gave it to my parents... they seem to like it just fine... except for that joke of a remote...
so I am not sure I technically qualify as a Screenplay supporter or not...

Are you some staff of IOmega or something?
There is no way you can talk it right this device saying HD on the box
I bought my media center for HD movies, and this device saying HD could easily fouled me and I'm sure it will fool people searching for a HD player


Upscaling DVD players did it for years....its NOTHING NEW.

Again very, very few people are ripping and playing HD movies.

Personally I do not care about the product but why reply with a statement like "lame" when you already know this product is not for you....its just a troll post and a waste of space. I will fight it every time!

Hoops? It takes about 30 minutes in all. And why in Gods' name "get it down to a decent size?" I want full PQ/AQ and storage is cheap (< 10 cents/GB). Where have you been?

BD ripping is a joke, if you do not understand that then you are living under a rock. As for asking where I have been, just shows you lack common sense...you want a troll fight you are going down the wrong path here ;)


Old hat. And not very ambitious. Lots of devices can do this and much more, and have been able to do so for years. (Ever heard of XBox/XBMC?) Iomega is days late and dollars short. Again, where have you been? And why limit yourself to 1TB and USB?

XBMC is a JOKE, maybe a lame cheap solution for specifc needs but some of us have full house audio/video distribution that is way beyond the crap talked about here and Im not limiting myself to 1 TB, its a project for friends and family and 1TB drives are the HOT price point right now. This device could work for this specific project...lame to you but you have no imagination about what others need or have....its it really about you???


You simply have no idea what some of us have done so your remarks again show how much you are just being a troll.

Again, post that this product is lame beacuse it does not play some HD movies isn't right. If it does not play the file format you have JUST MOVE ON...how hard is it for some of you wannabe tech heads to understand that? Not everything is about playing back 15- 25GB movie files :eek Heck 99% of the population does not even have ripped standard DVDs so NONE of these companies should ever, ever cater to someone like you before they cater to the majority, because in the end no volume means no profit.

Edit: Just because a device supports a certain feature--e.g., 1080p24--you are not required to use it. However, if it does not support a feature, you obviously cannot use it, if and when you decide to. Give me more choice any day - and greater potential for the future. I expect more for $300 MSRP.

Hey, now that is a valid response without all the silly "lame" stuff :D I do agree with you there but its just not a product for you, it seems you conclude others are like you but in the end you are 1/2 of 1/2 of 1% of the population so why would any company cater to your needs?

For me and many others.....
It comes with a 1GB drive and if it will play ripped VOBs very well, its a viable solution.

If you truely believe these companies do not get it then please go into business and build a device that does it right. Some how I think you are just a online guy with more opinion then true business skills.

I do agree with you there but its just not a product for you, it seems you conclude others are like you but in the end you are 1/2 of 1/2 of 1% of the population so why would any company cater to your needs?

I never claimed to be more than one person with an opinion. (However, I am clearly not alone.) As I said, I'll pass. I've had .vob jukeboxes for years. I'm now looking for more.

You, OTOH, pronounce from Olympus that "No one cares . . . " speaking unbidden for all of us. How dare anyone disagree with you?! What a pompous hypocrite. Look in a mirror to see the person you describe.

"Why don't you start your own company. . . .
Now, that is lame. I'm a consumer, waiting for a producer who will offer more than last decade's goods. I can't build a car either. So what?

This is a waste of time. Have fun all.

Hopefully we're done posturing.

My challenge for the longest time was finding something that I could plug my camcorder into, press play, and record.

I connected the Composite cables into the SPP from my camera, connected the SPP to my TV via HDMI. change the source to AV using the crappy remote. Pressed play on my camera, the video displayed, and then I pressed record on the SPP.

Done. I believe that the output file created defaulted to MPEG. Had I read more before capturing 6 of my HI8 tapes, I would have enabled the chaptering feature which if I understand correctly will place chapter markers every 30 seconds, or something like that.

Mind you, when I captured the initial tapes, the SPP was not connected to my computer. Just to the camera and TV.

My challenge now is the discovery. Does anyone know if the discovery util scans for SPPs that are networked attached only?

Lastly, well at least for now, anyone got the SPP recognized in Ubuntu 8.10?

Do not buy this drive for MKV unless you want to leave your computer on to do the transcoding. The device does not natively support the H.264 format in the MKV package, but it can use your computer to transcode it to a format it can play.

The drive can handle files larger than 2 GB, as long as you put it on via USB port. I and others have had problems copying over the network any files greater than 2 GB.

No, this device isn't perfect. But it fits exactly with what I was trying to fill. I wanted a device that I could archive my DVDs onto, could stand alone when playing those DVDs back, and would preserve those DVD menus. I also wanted it to be able to record my degrading VHS tapes. So for the price, it certainly feels to me like I'm getting a deal since I cannot get a DVR + Media Player + 1 TB drive for less than $300.

I added a USB Wifi dongle to the drive and it can stream videos stored on my computer without any problems. I can expand the drive by plugging in another USB drive into it. And I'm pleased with the video playback I've seen so far. For an average consumer, I'm very happy with the device. As I said in the first message, I don't think any AV-phile is going to go for it because it isn't 1080p. But not all of us require 1080p to be happy. If that's what matters to you, get a popcorn hour a110.

Hello Joman100 :) !

I post you here the link of the 2GB limit fix over the network :

h--p://screenplayprohd.wikia.com/wiki/Getting_around_the_2_GB_limit

I hope it is of help to ya!

One question: Do you or does anyone have some Video noise issues (sparkles, color alterations or objects lines edge roughness) with Plasma Tv (Samsung HD Ready) both on RGB and HDMI inputs ??!

Thank you and cheers :) !

I have had a SP Pro HD for about a month.

While I am generally pleased, I have noticed that the HDMI audio output on ripped DVDs copied into the Pro HD in VOBs is iffy at best.

Everything seems to play correctly with the component/stereo outs, but most transferred DVDs will not output sound (video ok) via HDMI to my Panasonic 42PZ85U tv.

TV recorded directly into the Pro HD plays back fine.

Anyone else having this issue?

It was not able to play any videos downloaded directly from my camera (MJPEG format).

I bought this device to playback my digital camera's avi file. But it turns out that my Canon Powershot's avi is MJPEG, which is not playable by this device as indicated by your test.

You mentioned you did some kind of hacking, Does it help after the hacking? How do you do the hacking?

Anyone here can offer any help would be greatly appreciated. Any firmware update, any hacking, and tip or hint, please. Thanks.

Thanks for extensive review OP.

I'm considering getting one but have a quick question. I know you can watch content from a memory key, but is it possible to copy content from a USB memory key or similar to the actual unit itself.

The reason i ask is that i want to update it without having to use my PC.

Thank you.

delly.x,

Yes, there is a way to copy from the USB onto the main drive. It's slow, and not the way I end up transferring everything. But it works. It's not documented. You highlight the file you want to copy, press the menu button and it will pop up a list for delete/copy/paste. You copy, then go to the place you want to put it and pop up the menu again and select paste.

But it doesn't have a progress bar, and the transfer is slow. Not as slow as the network, but still slow.

reddot88,

The hacking I've done so far is to fix some of the problems with the device. For instance, I found a smbd that fixes the 2 GB problem (and I made it available on the http://screenplayprohd.wikia.com site that I've set up). I haven't done any hacking into the RTD 1262 chip yet, which is where all of the decoding takes place.

I've reformatted the data drive in EXT3, and added a script that makes it easy for me to do a bunch of directories that all have files, some duplicates, without taking additional space. For instance, I have a main directory called favorites, with subdirectories for each of my kids. In each directory is a hard link to the movies they like. Since they have some movies that all of them like, it appears in all of their directories but since it's a hard link, it doesn't take extra space. So there are just a few things like that that I have been hacking.

Slappy,

The discovery will find any screenplays on the local network that are connected either via ethernet or via usb dongle.

Only one computer at a time can be connected to the screenplay, but a simple hack makes it so that more can be.

edit: Oh, and Yes, I've gotten the screenplay recognized in Ubuntu. I'm assuming you mean connecting it via USB, since the OS doesn't really matter if you're going over the network (as long as you have Samba installed). I'm using 8.04, not 8.10. NTFS3G to mount the 4th partition, assuming you've left it formatted for NTFS. I prefer EXT3 on the device.

I wanted to weigh in a little on the HD. I've been using this device for several months now. It DOES do HD. If I encode my videos in 1080i or 720p, it outputs the high definition to my HDTV in all of its glory. The trick is determining which codec. It doesn't support H.264, which is the "popular" one today. But it does support other mpeg-4 level 2 codecs. XVid and Divx, for instance. There appears to be a lot of misinformation in this thread from people who don't own the product.

It doesn't support 1080p. If that's all you care about, don't get this product. It's the other features of the product that drew me in. I've transferred hundreds of DVDs now recoded into XVid and I still haven't filled up this device. And I've got all of my VCR tapes transferred. It also works as a DVR & there is a way to do live TV pause.

$$ wise, I felt it was a great investment. DVR + upscaling DVD + 1 TB hard drive + USB expandable + networked (both wifi and ethernet) media player for $300. Now it's around $250. You'd be hard pressed to get something anywhere near that price that does the same thing all in one compact device. For the budget conscious, it's really not a bad choice.

Hi everyone,

Does anyone know if a Harmony remote will work on this unit?

Also, what's the best software solution for ripping BR/HD DVDs. Does the software support Xvid? (no idea how this works....excuse the noob). I was looking at AnyDVD HD. Their site doesn't really discuss the codec's supported.

I have ripped 50+ DVDs into Video_TS, so I shouldn't have to recode to Xvid for standard DVD, right?

Any word on YAMJ support? The wife/kids prefer cover art.

Thanks in advance

Being an unhappy customer for more than 4 months, I must say STAY AWAY from Iomega and specially this model.

Even with the latest firmware, it will randomly crash. Transfer speeds are a joke and worst of all, once in a while it will fail to reboot and you will loose your valuable data.

For more info visit iomegascreenplayprohdiscrap.blogspot.com

wow, one post, and it is very much an 'anti-post', I am sure I will take you concerns to heart... or not...
your blog looks very much like all the info comes from just one disgruntled customer...

oh well. I gave my IOmega to my mom... if she had half the issues you have (or any really) I would of heard about them...

Yes a Harmony remote will work with this model. It is listed as a home theater computer so you may have to search. The Harmony remote works better as you don't have to point the remote directly at the box as you do with the supplied remote.

I want to use Boxee on this dose anyone know if or you can hack it so that we can?

have read through the forum posts and you folk are waaaayy beyond where i am! I have just bought the screenplay pro hd and to be honest i really like it. unfortunately i cant use it with my mac. I know i have to format the drive but here is my question: do i format the whole drive of just the 970GB partition? (there are 4 partitions on it now). I have performed the firmware update from the iomega website, is there anything else i need to do?

also, i hooked it up to my tv with the hdmi cable but while trying to watch a .avi movie there was no sound. but it did work when i hooked it up with the composite cables.

my apologies for the noobie questions but any help would be much appreciated

are you sure you need to format the drive? I don't remember needing to do that... or maybe it took care of that itself?

why wont it work with the mac? from a PC (or mac) point of view, it should just look like a NAS (or SAS?), in theory it should just work...

It needs to be formatted cos Mac cannot write to NTFS drives. It turns out i just needed to reformat the large partition after doing the firmware upgrade.

now on to bigger questions: some of my .avi movies have no sound when being played through the HDMI cable. do they all have to be recoded?

What does "Unsupported GMC" mean? i have a couple of movies with it showing and the video is extremely choppy (unwatchable). can i add more codecs or am i shooting above my weight?

thanks again

ok, so while i was watching a movie that did have sound (see above post) the system decided to reboot. since then, ALL my movies work!!! (except .mp4)

am a happy camper

um, you don't need to write to an NTFS drive, it works more like a NAS I think... its some Linux file system and the box itself handles all the writes... you just need to make sure the box can write to its own drive... PC or mac should be irrelevant...
as for sound or mp4, I don't know...

I can now write to my drive (yay!) but the audio seems to be tempermental. Sometimes it plays the audio and sometimes it doesn't! (yes, I have had it happen with the same movie). I have the unit connected via HDMI

Hello I am a first time poster. I bought the Screenplay HD Pro and it plays fine on my tv. I do have a problem with connecting it to my computer via usb to move the files around though. I have Windows XP 32-bit and it locks up the window as I go in via my computer/select the sreenplay/open folder then it locks up in 3 seconds. Does anyone know why it does this and if I can prevent it? Otherwise it does work as advertised but I think if given a choice I would have gone the WD interface route and a standard TB drive as I dont record from tv and the WD interface seems light years ahead of the screenplay interface.

thanks for any help

Scott

A new firmware has been out for a few months. Not sure what it fixes/adds. http://screenplayprohd.wikia.com/wiki/Firmware

I used to own old screen play 500gb hd that hanged up on me going back to costco! I am ready for new. Would u know where can i get the best price? If costco carries it?

I experience the same issues of explorer delays when using the Screenplay, it apparently is a Microsoft feature that explorer needs all the details of attached enumerated drives before it updates. Since the Screenplay is very slow on its networked reply, explorer waits.

This also occurs when any program, like WinDVD calls an explorer object like "Open".

Annoying. One thing to remember is to disconnect the networked drive in explorer when you are not using it, that speeds things up.

Can the Screenplay Pro HD access multiple USB connected drives through a hub? And a trendnet wi-fi dongle at same time?

If so, are there certain hubs that work?

Haven't tried it.

I see so many return of this product at Fry's , while Asus Oplay were sold out.... I do like the internal hdd and menu support, but the lack of software video supports kind of preventing me from pulling the trigger.

I see this is an old post.. but I am just so disgusted with this piece of garbage I cant stand it.. I seen where everyone carries on like the twaeks and root menu changes are simple... well ... please fill me in.. between the security issues in 7 and these shoddy devices that are out .. I am sooooo frustrated I cannot stand it... crummy remote... VERY VERY slow interface.... not being able to tell which mode it is in.. usb or video...... on .. off OMG and then to top it off you have to physically remove the usb corb to get out of the computer usb mode .. or whatever they designate that mode .. as far as a set top box... u better have long wires and cables.. and have the darn ac adapter duct taped in... cuz your going to have your hands full with this Junk.... Any one want it? first fifty bux and its yours.. it is in near new condition.. Until then.. I am pleading .. for assistance in the root hacking area of trying to make this purchase.... where it dont hurt in the rear soo awful bad !!
T/Y in advance anyone..

I love the thing, those who say it is junk, well, don't know what to tell you, as I haven't had a lick of problems with mine.

The Remote DOES suck though, but using a programmable remote, now I have no issues.

for the audio problems mentioned, mine does drop out when hooked up to HDMI, but it's only happened a couple of times in the two years I've owned it and a reboot has fixed it each time, unless it was a codec issue.

I've done the skin hacks, and enabled torrent, seems to all work fine for me.

I only paid $169 for mine at Fry'z, and thought it was a pretty good deal, at the time it was only $40 more than buying an external 1 TB HDD.

I love the convenience of being able to take it to a friend's house and playing my collection there.

When I have had codec issues, I just recode the movie on my pc using AnyVideoConverter (free) and all my problems went away.

the 1080i mode looks great on my LG plasma screen (1080i), no issues there.

My friend just bought the new model called Screenplay Director HD, and it's 1080p, but lacks the video input (record) functionality of the original Pro version. His has a bit slicker menu look, the remote still sucks but not as bad as mine (they are laggy remotes) but has about 3x the bootup time of mine.

I haven't hacked mine lately, will have to check back to the wiki site to see if they've added any new features.

Well, there's my two cents worth! Hope it helps someone make a purchase decision. ~StarTiger :D

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I added a USB Wifi dongle to the drive and it can stream videos stored on my computer without any problems.

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How did you do that please? I can't find any instructions at all. Thank you.