For anyone who takes lots of digital photos, who is a TV show junkie or who loves movies, a network media player may be the perfect gift for the holidays. Although a few media players creep up to the $200 mark, most are under $150 and many hover at $99. You can get players for as little as $59. Be sure to check for players that are on sale, and compare online prices, as many players will cost substantially less than the prices listed below.
There are several more network media players in addition to those listed here, but the following is the short list of favorites I've tested this year. Be sure you know the questions to ask yourself when choosing the network media player that's right for you.
If you know that those on your gift list that already own or will be receiving a network media player, don't forget the accessories they need or accessories that enhance their media sharing experience.
Top Performing Players for 2010 - The WD TV Live Hub and the Apple TV
The WD TV Live Hub: $199 Compare Prices
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Makes a good gift for: Everyone: Beginners, those who want to share photos, movie buffs and TV show fans.
Don't buy it for: Someone who predominantly buys movies and music on iTunes.
The WD TV Live Hub is singularly the best network media player out there. It easily finds all of the media on your home network and with very few exceptions will play all file formats. It can double as a media server because it has 1 TB of storage, so the whole family can store media on its hard drive.
The user interface (menus) is clean and very simple to use. It includes a full Facebook experience and allows you to post photos directly from the WD TV Live Hub. It has Netflix, Blockbuster On Demand, and has announced it will soon add Hulu Plus to stream all the current and old TV episodes available there.
Still, if your gift recipient is an avid Mac user, has an iPhone or iPad, and is dedicated to using iTunes to buy songs and movies (or rent them), an Apple TV is their easiest, most complete solution
Second Generation Apple TV: $99 Compare Prices
Makes a good gift for: Mac users, iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch and iTunes users with Macs or PCs.
Don't buy it for: Someone who saves their media on Macs and PCs outside of iTunes--for instance, those who save media for Windows Media Player or other media libraries.
The second generation of Apple TV can only stream media from computers that have iTunes (Mac or PC). But this is also the only network media player that can stream protected music and movies bought from the iTunes store, or digital copies of movies loaded from a disc to your computer.
iPhones, iPads and iPod Touches those that have the iOS 4.2 firmware update can stream music, movies and photos directly to the Apple TV via the AirPlay feature. Like most Apple products, this device is small and elegantly designed, with simple menus through which one navigates in the same manner as used on iPods for nearly 10 years. Be sure your friend/family has a widescreen HDTV, as the Apple TV cannot play on an older picture-tube (direct-view) television.
Logitech's Squeezebox Touch Network Audio Player: $299 Compare Prices
Makes a good gift for: People who want to listen to music on their stereo, or who want a whole-home music solution, or those who want to connect to speakers or stereo without an attached TV.
Don't buy it for: Someone who wants to stream videos and movies to their TV.
For many years,Squeezebox has been making devices to connect to your AV receiver, stereo or powered speakers. The 4.3-inch touchscreen of the Squeezebox Touch is no different. can be controlled by touch or by using the small rubberized remote. The display uses an extremely large typeface to make it easy to see from more than 10 feet away.
Squeezebox can find your playlists and play your full iTunes library. The Touch also has the capability of showing photos from a USB or SD card, or from Flickr or Facebook. Add more Squeezebox players in other rooms, and you can play the same song throughout your home. The price is $299, but Logitech lists the Z523--a Squeezebox Touch and speaker package--for $319.
Inexpensive Players
Makes a good gift for: Someone who wants a basic player but isn't picky about high-quality picture and sound; someone who has basic file formats like MP3s music and basic Windows video formats.
Don't buy it for: People who have large libraries or many users, or who want a larger variety of services and high-quality video.
Inexpensive media players are less likely to have all of the features you want, and may not transfer the same high-quality video as other network media players. Be sure you know what to look for when buying a network media player.
Roku HD Box: $59.99 Compare Prices
While the player offers many content partners and the menus are relatively easy to use, it can get finicky and be frustrating for the novice user.
Seagate FreeAgent HD: $79.99 Compare Prices
This model does not include the FreeAgent external hard drive, which can be added and connected to the unit's dock.
Western Digital's WD TV: $129.99 Compare Prices
Be sure to shop around as this is often the same price of the WD TV Live Plus network media player that has a number of additional features.