[Baron Blood]

Hello,

My brother has a setup where his BD player and TV don't have a USB port.

Can anyone recommend an affordable way to play my 1080 files off my portable had drive at his place?
He has EIGHT HDMI inputs with only three being used.

I was thinking of those under $100.00 gizmos that you plug in and connect to to a HDMI input but with the research I've done so far they don't sound reliable.
Maybe a cheap BD Player with a USB port would be better...no?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated?

 

[smitbret]

Hello,

My brother has a setup where his BD player and TV don't have a USB port.

Can anyone recommend an affordable way to play my 1080 files off my portable had drive at his place?
He has EIGHT HDMI inputs with only three being used.

I was thinking of those under $100.00 gizmos that you plug in and connect to to a HDMI input but with the research I've done so far they don't sound reliable.
Maybe a cheap BD Player with a USB port would be better...no?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated?

It depends on what makes up those 1080p files. There are several different codecs and standards within those codecs that could make them playable or unplayable. Your best bet is either get a new BD player with a USB input and has good codec support (the new LGs are very good for this) or get something like a WDTV Live. A Roku can work as well but has more limited codec support. Also, be aware that if any of your 1080p files have Cinavia in them, then the Blu-Ray player will cut the audio at 20 minutes in and there is no way around that, yet.

 

[Lils Roro]

WD TV Live Streaming Media Player. Will play most anything on its USB port, has a very small footprint, and isn't fussy about what you hook it up to.

 

[Baron Blood]

Thanks, guys!
It's either a cheap BD player or the WD thingy.

Since he doesn't stream or access the Internet with his TV set-up...it might be just a cheap player

 

[smitbret]

Thanks, guys!
It's either a cheap BD player or the WD thingy.

Since he doesn't stream or access the Internet with his TV set-up...it might be just a cheap player

That's what I would do. If it's the WDTV Live (as long as it's not the 'Play' version), it will play just about anything and you won't need to worry about what codec or stream the file is in. Additionally, Cinavia protection will not be an issue.

 

[Baron Blood]

That's what I would do. If it's the WDTV Live (as long as it's not the 'Play' version), it will play just about anything and you won't need to worry about what codec or stream the file is in. Additionally, Cinavia protection will not be an issue.

This Cinavia thing...is this something that's been added to newer players?

 

[smitbret]

This Cinavia thing...is this something that's been added to newer players?

It's a copy protection scheme that Sony introduced in 2011. It was adopted as part of the Blu-Ray standard in February of 2013 so every licensed Blu-Ray player manufactured after that date has to support it.

Basically, if you try to play back a file that is ripped from a Cinavia protected DVD or Blu-Ray, it will play fine for between 7-20 minutes then the audio drops and a Cinavia warning appears on screen. I don't know the technicalities but it is actually a signal that is embedded into the audio track of the DVD or BD. The player is able to detect the signal and can discern from the signal whether it is the original disc or not. If it decides it isn't the original source then it triggers the Cinavia warning.

Since BD players have to support and be licensed to playback BD Discs, they have to support Cinavia as well. Streaming media players that don't play the discs directly and don't use the full BD menu don't have to be licensed or support Cinavia. Anyone with any kind of serious library of DVD/BD rips will run into it if they try to play back a ripped movie on a BD player.

There has been no solution to defeat Cinavia, yet, Slysoft, the makers of AnyDVD had planned to have it defeated by 2014 but have come up short. A couple of products have found a way to make a working BD-R copy from the original but any further copying or conversion to a streaming, digital file will trigger it.

It's not on most Discs, but Sony releases typically carry it and a handful of others. There's enough out there to cause at least some occasional frustration to anyone with a couple dozen titles or more. It's the reason I dumped my PS3 as a streaming media player and replaced it with a WDTV Live Hub. Discs that carry it have the Cinavia logo on the case so they are easily identified.

 

[Baron Blood]

It's a copy protection scheme that Sony introduced in 2011. It was adopted as part of the Blu-Ray standard in February of 2013 so every licensed Blu-Ray player manufactured after that date has to support it.

Basically, if you try to play back a file that is ripped from a Cinavia protected DVD or Blu-Ray, it will play fine for between 7-20 minutes then the audio drops and a Cinavia warning appears on screen. I don't know the technicalities but it is actually a signal that is embedded into the audio track of the DVD or BD. The player is able to detect the signal and can discern from the signal whether it is the original disc or not. If it decides it isn't the original source then it triggers the Cinavia warning.

Since BD players have to support and be licensed to playback BD Discs, they have to support Cinavia as well. Streaming media players that don't play the discs directly and don't use the full BD menu don't have to be licensed or support Cinavia. Anyone with any kind of serious library of DVD/BD rips will run into it if they try to play back a ripped movie on a BD player.

There has been no solution to defeat Cinavia, yet, Slysoft, the makers of AnyDVD had planned to have it defeated by 2014 but have come up short. A couple of products have found a way to make a working BD-R copy from the original but any further copying or conversion to a streaming, digital file will trigger it.

It's not on most Discs, but Sony releases typically carry it and a handful of others. There's enough out there to cause at least some occasional frustration to anyone with a couple dozen titles or more. It's the reason I dumped my PS3 as a streaming media player and replaced it with a WDTV Live Hub. Discs that carry it have the Cinavia logo on the case so they are easily identified.

Thanks Smitbret.
This is important info.

 

[nba23tsc]

Also, be aware that if any of your 1080p files have Cinavia in them, then the Blu-Ray player will cut the audio at 20 minutes in and there is no way around that, yet.

I use PS3 as a blu-ray disc player and my sort of workaround was to change the time to 1 hour later so the player thinks 20 minutes has passed (I think each Cinavia trigger bugs you for 20 minutes), and then I can continue watching. It is still disruptive to the movie experience but at least I could continue watching the movie after that (for 20 minutes at a time ).

Now, it is either:
Play original disc with PS3 or
play blu-ray files with Chromebox.

No more Cinavia nonsense.

 

[Baron Blood]

I use PS3 as a blu-ray disc player and my sort of workaround was to change the time to 1 hour later so the player thinks 20 minutes has passed (I think each Cinavia trigger bugs you for 20 minutes), and then I can continue watching. It is still disruptive to the movie experience but at least I could continue watching the movie after that (for 20 minutes at a time ).

Now, it is either:
Play original disc with PS3 or
play blu-ray files with Chromebox.

No more Cinavia nonsense.

???

Your post confuses me.
I don't have a PS3 and don't want one.
What is this Chromebox and why is it the only alternative?
And finally... why is this Cinavia topic nonsense?

 

[nba23tsc]

???
Your post confuses me.
I don't have a PS3 and don't want one.

I know but if you get any commercial blu-ray player you might face the same problem.

What is this Chromebox and why is it the only alternative?

It is not, it is just what I am using now that does not have the Cinavia problem.

And finally... why is this Cinavia topic nonsense?

Cinavia topic is not nonsense, but Cinavia IS nonsense

 

[Baron Blood]

I know but if you get any commercial blu-ray player you might face the same problem.



It is not, it is just what I am using now that does not have the Cinavia problem.



Cinavia topic is not nonsense, but Cinavia IS nonsense

OH!
Gotcha!

I looked into the Chromecast and it's too expensive.
I'm hoping to keep it around or under $100.00
So I'm considering this right now.

IncrediSonic Ultra Play IMP150 - HD TV Digital Mini Media Player

 

[smitbret]

???

Your post confuses me.
I don't have a PS3 and don't want one.
What is this Chromebox and why is it the only alternative?
And finally... why is this Cinavia topic nonsense?

The Chrome box isn't the only alternative but if you are looking for a media streaming box that can playback just about any file type then you are looking at a WDTV Live, Dune, Popcorn Hour or an HTPC. Of these, the WDTV Live is the only real sub $100 choice. The Dune and Popcorn Hour boxes start at $200 and go up to around $500. The Chromebox is kind of the go to HTPC right now because it has a small footprint and when you pair it with Kodi it packs a pretty big punch especially for $150.

The problem with Cinavia is not a PS3 thing. As I mentioned before, ALL blu-ray players built after Feb 2013 are required to support it in order to carry the license to playback Blu-ray Discs.

 

[jaykay0222]

OH!
Gotcha!

I looked into the Chromecast and it's too expensive.
I'm hoping to keep it around or under $100.00
So I'm considering this right now.

IncrediSonic Ultra Play IMP150 - HD TV Digital Mini Media Player

If $100 is your budget and you don't need any online streaming services, then WDTV is the best option

It is simple plug n play for playing any USB media files

 

[Baron Blood]

I looked into the WB earlier when it was suggested.
Up here in Canada it's a lot more expensive for some reason.

ALL but this one...http://www.amazon.ca/WD-TV-Media-Pl...TF8&qid=1425659369&sr=8-10&keywords=WDTV+Live are $200.00+

Would that one be good?

BTW~thanks for the ongoing replies, guys.

 

[viking74]

I live in Canada and picked up the WDTV for $80 at Best Buy and it plays high bitrate 1080p mkv files just fine from an external HDD. I believe the one you're looking at is the US version (HESN) vs the CAN version (VESN) not sure if there is a difference though.

 

[Baron Blood]

I live in Canada and picked up the WDTV for $80 at Best Buy and it plays high bitrate 1080p mkv files just fine from an external HDD. I believe the one you're looking at is the US version (HESN) vs the CAN version (VESN) not sure if there is a difference though.

Cheers, Viking.
Yes I found it at Best But online so I'll go and pick one up tomorrow and try it.