D-Link Wireless HD Media Player

by D-Link

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 16.7 x 11.3 x 1.5 inches ; 5.5 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 6.8 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000A4AVQO
• Item model number: DSM-520
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (124 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
  • #48 in Electronics > Computers & Add-Ons > Networking Products > Network Transceivers
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: May 4, 2006

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description All your videos, photos, and music on the big screen. Sound like a good idea? The folks at D-Link have made it easy with the DSM-520 MediaLounge Wireless HD Media Player. And when it comes to video, this device kicks it up a serious notch by supporting HD video streams

Good looks on the outside, and the power to deliver all your media -- including HD video -- from your computer to your home entertainment system. See a detailed view.

The DSM-520 is ready to handle most major media formats.

-- delivered directly from your computer to your home entertainment system. Enjoy all your digital content from the comfort of the living room with the DSM-520 -- and do it all wirelessly, as the device supports high-speed 802.11g wireless technology. Of course, you can also use a wired ethernet connection if you like.

Formats Galore
Thanks to the DSM-520's support for a wide range of media formats, it's ready to handle virtually all of your media, including high-definition video in either Windows Media Video 9 or MPEG-4 format. Enjoy videos with resolutions of up to 1080i from your high-definition television for the best picture quality. Plus, D-Link has partnered with premium online service providers to offer access to a vast array of online radio stations and music download services. You can use the Windows Media Connect feature of Window XP SP2 to playback files protected by Windows Media Digital Rights Management (WMDRM) on the DSM-520. Or, access your entire library of premium downloaded songs and videos directly from the device.

The DSM-520 integrates seamlessly into your home network and entertainment system. View larger.

Picture Perfect
For compatible television systems, the DSM-520 features a High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) connection. HDMI offers a pure digital connection for both audio and video. Other video connectors include component, S-video, and composite output, ensuring compatibility with virtually all televisions. Meanwhile, optical and coax audio connectors provide clear digital output and support surround sound when used with a compatible A/V receiver. Enjoy your entire music library in high fidelity from your home entertainment system, rather than from your PC speakers.

Good Looks and Expandability
A sleek 17-inch black aluminum chassis with smoked mirror front panel houses the DSM-520, and the stylish unit blends in perfectly with your other home entertainment devices, making your home theater setup complete. Plus, the DSM-520 includes a USB 2.0 port in the front panel for instant access to music, photos, and videos stored on removable USB flash drives or hard drives. Simply insert a USB drive filled with photos into the DSM-520 to showcase them on your home entertainment center. You can also attach a USB hard drive to expand the storage capabilities of the DSM-520. Your stored files on the USB drive can be easily accessed from the unit's user-friendly interface.

Easy Setup
A built-in Setup Wizard makes setting up the DSM-520 simple. Configuring the wireless settings is made even easier with Windows Connect Now. Simply run the Wireless Network Setup Wizard from Windows XP SP2, and transfer the wireless settings to the DSM-520 using a USB flash drive.

What's in the Box
DSM-520 Wireless HD Media Player, remote control (2 AAA batteries included), ethernet cable, A/V composite cable, S-video cable, detachable Antenna, CD-ROM with software and manual, and quick installation guide.

Product Description

Wirelessly stream digital media content from your PC or from a network attached storageHigh-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) for up to 1080i video resolutionEnjoy hundreds of free and premium internet video 'channels' with active-TV onlineIncludes software 2.0dBm antenna remote with AAA batteries cat 5 RJ-45 cable S-Video cable and composite RCA AV cable

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for video playback on your TV, April 10, 2007

By 

Peter M. Franklin - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: D-Link Wireless HD Media Player (Personal Computers)

I was a bit apprehensive after reading all of these negative reviews, but I thought I'd give it a try myself, and return it if it didn't work out.
Turns out I am as pleased as can be. The main thing I bought it for was to watch downloaded AVI movie files on my TV over my wireless network, and it does the job perfectly. I was surprised at the quality of the picture. No video pauses or skipping issues. I haven't had it lose the network once.
It was simple to set up. For a while it wasn't detecting my wireless network, but then I realized it wasn't the units fault, it was my wireless network. I just needed to reboot the router. After that it was effortless.
If the main thing you are purchasing this for is video playback, then buy it. It works great. But if your main objective is music or photos, it is somewhat sub-par. Its not unusable, it just could use some improvement in those areas and I'm sure there are better units out there for a music player.
I think a lot of the negative reviews are the result of people having setup problems and giving up, or people who wanted to use it mainly for photos or music.

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not a bad machine, if you understand the limitations, December 31, 2006

By 

Bill (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: D-Link Wireless HD Media Player (Personal Computers)

The DSM-520 is an great media server given its modest price with a few limitations.

The HDMI out works VERY well. The video quality is outstanding, as long as the streaming video file is done well. The audio out work perfect from the optical or coax.

The remote is fair and functional, however unit is a bit slow to respond.

FF and RW are pretty much worthless, and unit does NOT support chapters. However the search function (allows user to jump to a time) works well, but can not be enabled at the same time as the FF/RW. Not really sure why?

Limitations: will NOT play video files over 4GB correctly. This is NOT just a limitation with this player, but others will suffer from this problem as well. Most video will play, but stop at the 4GB point.

Unit does NOT currently support 5.1 audio via optical OR coax on Nero recode MP4 files, even when encoded with the . It will play audio out via HDMI or standard stereo outs on Nero recode files. My advice (based on HOURS of my own trial and error)stay away from Nero recode, and try out Dr. Divx (FREE !!!). Video file take MUCH longer to encode, but quality is excellent once encoder settings are set up correctly. (BTW... I am NOT affiliated with ANY software company.. just my own experience)

Nero recode video quality not as good as a high quality Divx file (a bit grainy... and unit WILL play 5.1 audio via optical on Divx files...

HD video's look incredible, though I have experienced a few skips while using the wireless connection, but is truly expected. When connected via LAN cable, unit has streamed EVERYTHING I've thrown at it flawlessly.

MP3 and windows media audio works well and sound quality is top notch (assuming the MP3 was encoded at a decent bitrate.

D-links media server is not the greatest, and will NOT stream videos with a divx extension; but it is functional. I've had great luck with Tversity (and it is FREE !!!), but don't care for it's interface much (nit-picking).

Rhapsody works AWESOME (as is free to Comcast cable subscribers). Audio quality is excellent (best streaming audio quality I've heard) as long as you pick a station with a higher bitrate.

OK.... short and sweet:

The good-
-HD Video looks excellent via HDMI (I am sure component video would look just as well).
-wireless connection works well, but wired MUCH prefered for flawless connection.
-Great support for Divx, Xvid, MP3, and even playsraw VOB files (as long as they are less than 4GB)
-Price is very fair, given units performance.
-Works very well with MANY upnp server's on the market, both free and not
-Once PC is initialy set up (not hard to do) the D-link player is easy enough to operate for my 7 year old to power up, and play movies
-Rhapsody support is excellent

The bad-
-Will ONLY play video files up to 4GB in size
-D-links software that unit comes with does not support divx files
-FF/RW function is POOR at best
-Does not support chapters
-Nero recode files (asvertised to work well with unit) have audio limitatins that can NOT be overlooked
-D-link customer support has been un-supporting


I HIGHLY recommend this product to anyone that wants to put their media collection onto hard drives or NAS. Makes it MUCH easier to organize and play your media files.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars All is not lost!, January 24, 2007

By 

Ricardo Colin (São Paulo, Brazil) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: D-Link Wireless HD Media Player (Personal Computers)

I bought DSM-520 thinking how great it would be to have people in my house and wirelessly show them videos, music, and photos archived in my computer. Well, after a few days using it I was a little disappointed. I found that my new toy was more a hassle than fun. I lost count how many times I lost my temper when that crap lost connection with the server. It didn't really matter if I used the wireless or wired network, it always got stuck eventually.

I updated the media server software twice (not the firmware, which hasn't been updated for almost a year now), and apparently, it got worse! Unbelievable. I was so frustrated I spent $200 on the thing and couldn't even return it (I bought it in Boston, but I live in Brazil). I didn't give up though.

HOWEVER, all isn't lost. I found out that when I connected DSM-520 to my laptop computer with the last version of Windows Media Player (WMP 11), I didn't need the media server software that enables the system to find and share the media with the laptop. Additionally, it would not lose connection frequently and the streaming is just fine. Amazingly, the WMP 11 does a MUCH better job than that of that crappy media server software.

All you have to do is have WMP installed in your computer and add the folders where the media files are to WMP library. You won't even need to have WMP running when using your DSM.

Dlink still needs to improve some features such as the fast forward/rewind, USB connectivity with more than 20Gb devices, among other. But I finally made it work!!! Hope my comment helps the desperate owners that, like myself, thought of throwing DSM-520 out of the window.