NETGEAR announced today that are releasing a new network media streamer, the NTV200. The $79.99 device is actually an internet media streamer and is not set up to play videos, photos or music directly from the computers, hard drives or NAS drives on your home network.
Reminiscent of last year's NTV250 - NETGEAR's partnership with Roku - NETGEAR product managers said in an interview, that the box can turn a TV into a smart TV so that consumers don't have to run out and get a new TV to access online media streaming.
They further explained that the NTV200 is a perfect compliment to their NeoTV550 which specializes in playing videos, music and photos that is found on your network as well as playing blu-ray discs when an external Blu-ray player is connected to the NeoTV550.
The NTV200 will launch with over 100 channels to stream movies, videos, and photos from photo sharing sites. Netflix, Vudu, YouTube Leanback for TV viewing, Pandora, Napster, Showtime, Picasa and many more channels are included. This varied offering of channels is more complete than any of the competitors at this price point.
The same size as a Roku box, a WDTV Live, or an Apple TV, this Neo TV is packed full of features including a free remote app for Android or iPhones. The advantage of the remote app is the ability to use the phone's virtual keyboard. Within the Neo TV app is the ability to post to Twitter or Facebook, so the user can share their thoughts at the same time that they are streaming video or music.
Other features include a fast, 300 Mbps, built-in WiFi for buffer-free streaming. The Apple TV is the only other similar device to have this WiFi connection speed.
Once we get a review unit, we'll let you know how well the NTV200 performs.