robjg63:
Sure, I'm getting your flow. Here's my flow:
WDTV is not "pre-programmed" as such. Have you heard of "firmware" The bit between hardware and software. WDTV devices get firmware updates regularly - I had one on mine just the other day. If your device is not too old or obsolete I reckon WD will keep them updated with the latest codecs.
You are partly right and partly wrong.
Sadly the codecs are often programmed into the processor chips - they are pretty much a video PC on a chip - Not sure which chip the WD has but a lot use Realtek chips. They can program quite a few features using the SDK kit that Realtek provide (interface/web browsers etc) - but usually these little boxes can only decode what the chip was built to handle.
I have a Playon HD mini - it plays pretty much everything (for now). I still have a Mediagate MG350HD that was quite good 3-4 years ago when I bought it. I still use it quite often - but it wont handle surround sound mkv files etc. Both manufacturers state that the limits are what the viedo/processor chip is built to handle.
I can see the advantage in the Netgear device - that looks pretty cool and PCs do have enough PC power to support soft coded codecs....
Your are so right. I was kinda expecting someone to come up with this explanation. And there is also a solution - well, thats what i think it should be :
A box similar to the netgear (i gave a link above) + inbuilt capability of a video processing engine, like a VLC player or better, which can play literally anything thrown at it + a support team (from the manufacturer ofcourse) which sends out a update every week - pretty much like a GPS map update - which fixes bugs, updates codecs, adds new playing capabilities, etc.
