Customer Reviews

HDMI COMPONENT DIGITAL AV SELECTOR (ACCESSORY)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

My first foray into next generation games came when I bought a Nintendo Wii after Christmas of '07. It wasn't too big of a deal because the Wii was made with Standard Definition TVs in mind. When I moved from Hawaii to California a few months later, I found myself purchasing an XBox 360 Elite and a 42-inch LCD HDTV. Then the Playstation 3, a Component cable for the Wii and then upgrading my cable box to HD, and then a Component cable for the new PSP Slim.

With all this, I ran out of inputs for my TV, especially Component inputs.

I had been searching around for an HDMI/Component switch for several months, but had found none. I had asked people in the know, but was directed to standalone HDMI OR Component switches. I thought that finding an AFFORDABLE switch that handled both Composite and HDMI was going to be impossible, and got to the point that I would have to buy one of each. Before I committed, I did one last google search that eventually led me to the Intec G5239.

The G5239 can take in 2 HDMI inputs as well as 4 Component. Each of these inputs also come with an Ethernet jack and an Optical In. There is also 1 Composite input in the front of the unit (the 4 Component jacks can also take in Composite input, FYI).

You can also name each input instead of the default INPUT 1, INPUT 2, INPUT 3, etc. So it's very handy for people who aren't videophiles or gadget geeks, like your parents or your girlfriend. ;-)

For my setup, I have as follows:

INPUT 1-4 (Component)
1 - EMPTY
2 - PSP Component OUT cable
3 - Xbox Original running the HD AV Pack
4 - Nintendo Wii w/ Component OUT

INPUT 5-6 (HDMI)
5 - XBox 360 Elite
6 - PS3

INPUT 7 (Composite)
7 - EMPTY

All HDMI inputs displayed at the maximum 1080P resolution. All Component inputs displayed at the maximum resolution set, whether it was 480i, 480p, 720p, or 1080i. Images looked no different as when they were connected straight to my HDTV.

If you are a into video games, then Intec is a name that you should be familiar with. They are makers of aftermarket videogame accessories like controllers, memory cards, cables, and AV Selectors. I usually rank them ahead of Pelican and Mad Catz for their quality.

So with that said, the Intec G5239 is perfect and is THE CHOICE for those that demand excellent quality at a reasonable price. If you're in a similar situation as I was and are looking for a solution, look no further. Here's your answer (and this is the answer because I researched it for MONTHS! ;-)).

Good piece of gear. Lets me switch between any of my several devices from the couch instead of having to get up. My laziness can continue uninterrupted! It was easy to set up and I haven't had any issues with it yet. (It's been about 2 months)

I bought a couple of these units recently from a dealer and kept one for myself to use for the myriad gaming devices that I have. It works perfectly and having the remote control means I don't have to get off of the couch to change inputs.

It's just a shame that Intec chose to make such an incredibly thought-out and functional, yet IN A PRACTICAL SENSE, DIS-FUNCTION product. (For most users). Specifically ... This mostly awesome A/V switch does NOT perform conversion of various video formats. IN OTHER WORDS ... Your input video format POTENTIAL (i.e.: HDMI, Component, S-Video, etc) OF ANY AND ALL OF YOUR INPUT SOURCES, is only as good as EXACTLY the specific output connection you plan to use to feed your final display device. If you plan to use the Component video output from this nearly awesome A/V switch to feed your final display device ... Well, then ALL 4 (to potentially 7) OF YOUR SOURCE INPUTS MUST BE THAT VERY SAME FORMAT ... `COMPONENT'. !!!NO VIDEO FORMAT CONVERSION!!! (major bummer for my needs).

PLEASE NOTE:
Now, if by chance your final display device happens to be a TV with at least one available HDMI, AND Component, AND S-Video, AND Composite input, then you would be in great shape!!! (no problem)

Unfortunately, no one before now has thought to help out the rest of us, by sharing this information.

SUMMARY: This truly could be an amazing A/V switch for many of you. It's cosmetic appearance is very sleek and sexy. It's form factor makes it very practical for 'Racking/Stacking' with other components. Heck ... They've even included network/internet ports for each of the first 6 inputs! (very impressive). But sadly, it's missing just one very critical component ... Cross-conversion of the different video formats.

***Please way these comments according to your intended need/application when making your decision about this product.

I purchased this as a replacement for my "pelican" brand input selector. In short, the image quality of this is worse than the pelican brand and the remote never worked. I sent an e-mail to customer service and was informed that someone would get back to me within 4-6 weeks. Well it has been 5 weeks now and no one has replied. I wish I had returned this right away instead of keeping it.

The product label is very misleading. This item is not specifically for the PS3. You can use it for any video/audio device. You don't even have to have a PS3.

Item looks great. Has 2 HDMI Connections (see below) with ethernet, 4 Component/Composite/S-Video Connections with ethernet and optical audio, and 1 Composite/S-Video connection (in the front). The programmable LED readout is nice.

The biggest flaw with this item is the HDMI connections do not have Optical audio. Most people using HDMI want the best sound along with the best video. The remote is very very basic with just a power button and buttons labeled 1-7.

This item would be perfect if the HDMI connections had optical audio. Seriously, this is a huge oversight on Intec's part.

Overall, this was a good item. It works precisely as I expected it to, and as I needed it to for my purposes. You should know up front that this box is just a source selector--it does not convert signal types. So, for example, if you have a Wii hooked up with component cables, and an N64 using S-video, then you'd need to switch your TV's input to S-Video for N64 and component for Wii, in addition to switching the switch box. Some of the other reviews criticized this item for not converting, but I don't think it's fair to criticize it for being something that it doesn't claim to be.

Other reviews complained about the remote not working, but I didn't exactly have this problem. For me, the remote seems to have a sweet spot where I have to hold it to get it to work consistently. It doesn't seem to work if I am holding the remote too high--I have to hold it closer to the ground (the box is only 1 ft off the ground). I don't know if this was the cause of the other reviewers' remote problems or not, but it is kind of annoying trying to find the sweet spot.

One other annoyance is that the LEDs are pretty bright, and when the box is off it has a very bright red LED. So bright that if it were in your bedroom, you'd probably want to put a towel over it to sleep.

Spare yourself the disappointment in buying this product. First and foremost let me say that my remote didn't work from day one. I think I managed to get it to operate two, maybe three times, since I got this thing. No big deal, I'm not lazy, I can look past that. But here's the real problem...

This device only works with one form of output. It's hard to explain so let me put it this way. If you connect this device to your tv using the component cable, that's the 3-video + 2-audio cables, then only the systems you connect to the device in the same manner will work.

I have the following hook-up
PS3 connected with component cables
PSP connected with component cables
PS2 connected with composite cables (1-video, 2-audio)
Gamecube connected with composite cables
Intec connected to TV with component cables

and ONLY the PS3 and PSP work. With the Intec connected as described above, I have a stray composite video cable that dangles, so I hooked this video cable up to another input on the back of my tv and switched to that input. Well whatta ya know, I got video from my systems connected with composite connections... but unfortunately there were no stray audio cables dangling to complete the connection for the Intec. Hopefully this gives you the whole story of what you're about to buy. Don't do it, unless everything you're using is hooked up the same way.

Mine arrived DOA, but it is just as well because there is no way this device would last 4 months. The $.99 power supply is a piece of junk. The switches have a feel like you can push them through to the back of the box with ease. It looks cool, but don't let that fool you - for this price you should get MUCH more!