In Use (continued):

The next set of images are related to viewing photos. With the unit configured to display thumbnails, you will get something like what you see in the below left image. In this shot the WD TV is accessing all images on the hard drive, so not only are my actual photographs being shown, but it has also browsed into my music folders and picked up some album art. You get the file name and size when you have highlighted an image in the browser, and then once selected it will show it full screen, as shown in the below right image. You can browse manually in this mode, or allow a slide show to take you through your images.



The below left image takes a look at the music player interface. Like all of the media players I have used so far, music playback is not the strong suit of the WD TV. While you can definitely enjoy the music, the navigation and interface leaves something to be desired. As you can see, you did get a nice layout for the text, but the album art is ignored, and you really can't manage a large music collection with something like this.



With the above right image we finally have a look at something related to video playback with the WD TV. All these tiles are representative of a movie file in the thumbnail browser. The graphics are useless since they are all the same, and it would be nice if it just capture the first frame, or something like that, for purposes of easier navigation. Once you highlight a file you get the name, file type, and file size at the bottom of the screen, but otherwise you are driving blind as you try to find your desired file.

In my review of the Seagate FreeAgent Theater+ I downloaded some HD media files for testing purposes, and decided to use the same ones here. The first file tested, shown in the below left image, was the H.264 "I Am Legend" Blu-ray profile 1080p trailer. It played just fine, and the comment I made in the Theater+ review regarding dark scenes seeming pixelated applies to the WD TV, as well. I can't say what the issue was then, but since another media player did it too, I am more inclined to blame the file or the television. The below right image shows the 1080p WMV "Coral Reef Adventure (IMAX)", which did not play at all on the Theater+. While I was able to get video on the WD TV, this is not a complete success, as the audio codec used is WMA Pro, which is not supported by the WD TV.



The final test was for DVD playback, from both DVD folders and ISO files. Instead of my typical "300" movie test I decided to let my youngest daughter 'help' with the review by simply watching Yo Gabba Gabba from the WD TV... one episode from each recording format. The video and audio quality from either type of archive was as good as can be expected. DVD ISO files played back exactly as I would expect, while DVD folder playback wasn't quite as smooth. In order to play a DVD folder recording I was forced to navigate into the folder and select the appropriate file. It takes a few extra steps, but once you get it going it runs like a typical DVD.



After the testing was completed, I powered down the WD TV, but there was still something to be noted. The LED on the attached USB hard drive remained lit, and by placing my hand on the drive I could feel that it was still spinning. Even when powered down, drives connected to either USB port remain at full power.