Digital Trends

Actiontec Wireless Digital Media Player June 3rd, 2004 | by Jeff Fila

Introduction

Actiontec is a Silicon Valley-based provider of broadband communication and networking products. While their product lineup centers mostly on network access devices such as modems, routers and network adapters, they also offer a few Bluetooth products and the subject of this review, a Wireless Digital Media Player.

We've written before that networked media devices — home-theater components designed to play your digital audio, video and images through your TV and/or stereo — are going to be a big focus for a number of companies. While the “big guys” — companies like Yamaha, Linksys, and Sony are pumping out their designs, it really is the smaller manufacturers that are making the most innovations. Companies like SlimDevices, Roku and Prismiq are giving the big players some good competition, and great ideas.

Actiontec's approach to the networked media device is a low-profile device that can play back images, movies, audio, and even browse the Web from the comfort of your living room all for under $200. With both analog and digital connections to your stereo and television, including support for HDTV, and a wide range of supported formats, the Digital Wireless Media Player may appeal to techies and the non-technical alike.

Actiontec's Wireless Digital Media Player is fairly featureless, except for the protruding WiFi card.