Customer Reviews

Viewsonic NexTV VMP75 1080p Network Media Player - Stream Netflix, Internet radios/videos & access to Twitter, Facebook w/free HDMI cable

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

The ViewSonic NexTV VMP75 is a real mixed bag of tricks. At first glance, the device is feature packed. Not only do you get the typical features (like Netflix, internet browsing, etc), but you get playback of ISO files, which until recently has been hard to find. This device has many things going for it, but the negatives really take my excitement for the VMP75 down a notch.

This device is small and the size is great for mobility (if you choose) and for the fact that it can easily fit behind mounted TVs or stuck in a corner somewhere. Of course, no matter where you put the player, it will need to be visible for the remote. It's a nice, compact device that stays cool while running.

I loved the fact that the player would access ISO files, but in my tests the success was limited. Playback was slow at times, but that could have been my connection. However, sound would cut out and I would get a connection error at times.

As for Netflix access, it did a pretty good job. Connecting to Netflix would take some time (actually, many of features for this player took time to load and I would definitely call this device SLOW), but once Netflix was loaded up you could browse your instant queue and get going with your movie. There were a couple of instances that sound wouldn't work and I was forced to exit the Netflix feature and restart it.

Another negative to the device was that wireless was not included. I know many people have wired connections, but many do not. With most of my TVs I do have a wired connection and I tested this device both on a wired and wireless connection because I really wanted to put this in a room that had only wireless available. In this day and age, the manufacturer should include wireless. I had to buy one of the USB wireless dongles that was recommended by ViewSonic (and let me say their list was small and the devices were hard to find).

I hate to list so many negatives and not list some positive aspects, but for me, the negatives were a sore spot. For my particular purpose, this device was going to primarily serve up Netflix and it worked perfectly (minus the SLOW startup time) about 90% of the time. However, I think some better firmware from ViewSonic might fix some of the real problems. All in all, it's a decent NetFlix player, but there are too many devices on the market that can already play NetFlix well. Personally, I'd consider waiting for another model from ViewSonic.

I got this primarily for Netflix. The first unit I received had a bad HDMI port on it. I had to turn it upside down and wiggle the cable in order for any picture to show on my TV. I held it down in this position to see how it worked. Everything looked OK except the Netflix had no sound. Well this unit went back the next day.

The second unit came and the HDMI port was OK on this one. I tried Netflix and NO SOUND AGAIN!!! This time I reported the issue to Viewsonic and got a response back quickly. Naturally they wanted me to validate I knew how to hook it up. I responded that the sound was fine with playing network files and was fine on YouTube...just Neflix. The response was a thank you and they said a possible fix is in the works.

Well...yesterday (Sept 7th) I checked for firmware updated and there was one!!! I downloaded and installed and now Netflix works. I like this box now.

Reminder to all...download the latest firmware before trying anything. They are adding fixes all the time now that people are reporting problems.

***Edit Nov 25****
There is another new firmware update. It fixed my HDMI sync issues, allows zip codes for location, seems to work better with network shares, seems twice as fast responding to commands, and loads during power up faster. It is getting there..just wish all this was done before they launched. Right now I am glad I bought this.

I exchanged this unit after a week thinking that all the problems and bugs meant I had a defective player. Nope. The second one had the same problems. I originally purchased this unit to replace my Asus O!Play so I could stream Netflix, but have given up and gone back to the Asus player which I adore.

Pros (there are only 2)
It plays Netflix well
The menu interface is attractive

Cons (sit back and relax - this will take a while)
Playback of ISO files from attached USB hard-drives was really, really bad. Sound cuts out for no reason, fixed by rewinding a rewatching, but it happens a lot. The 'resume playback' feature worked on 10% of the files, and if you chose 'ok', it would play for 10 seconds and show a 'connection interrupted' error and just stop playing. It was connected via USB.

The unit was hardwired to my network through a router - but would not play back anything from any computer on my network. I could see the files - just not play them.

The time display would not stay programmed. Literally every third time I turned this unit on, the time was incorrect. It's prominent on the menu page, but I finally gave up and let it show the incorrect time.

Pressing play after pausing caused the machine to stop playing your file and freeze the entire unit. The only remedy I found was turning the power off and then on again.

Finally - the customer service from the website was horrible. The automated troubleshooter was a huge waste of time and when I finally got an email from what I think was an actual person, it was a form email and didn't address my issues at all.

I was interested in this as a media player for my older TV, without HDMI input, because it also supported composite AV. Unfortunately, the AV cable was missing from my box. Since I received this via the Amazon Vine program, I was unable to return it for a replacement (they had none left), so my choices were to purchase an AV cable, or use the supplied HDMI cable on TV#2, where I really didn't want to place the unit.

I decided to purchase an AV cable, but Viewsonic store was out of stock. The problem is that the AV connector is not standard. It is 3mm phono to composite AV. I purchased a third party cable, but I could not get it to work, so I expect there is something proprietary going on. Last resort: I hooked the Viewsonic NexTV to TV#2 using the supplied HDMI cable for testing and review purposes.

Here's what I found:

Pros:
+ small footprint. Unit measures only 5" x 4" x 1.25" inches so it fits practically anywhere.
+ comes with a free HDMI cable.
+ supports older TVs with composite AV (proprietary cable included).
+ up to 1080p resolution.
+ easy set-up.
+ Ethernet built-in to connect to your home network, and stream content.
+ attractive and functional Main Menu showing location, time, date, and weather.
+ Netflix main menu tab for quick launch of Netflix 2.0.
+ iMedia main menu tab for quick launch of YouTube, Live365, Shoutcast Radio, Flickr.
+ Web Browser main menu tab supports six custom quick launch URLs, with bookmark support for additional favorites.
+ supports external devices (flash drives, USB HDD, eSata etc).
+ I like the remote control!

Cons:
- no component AV support.
- on-screen keyboard does not work with the web browser, so typing URLs and Google searches is limited to phone-texting input method via the remote control.
- a bit slow on the internet. I would not recommend this unit if you are after a web browser for your TV.
- does not support Flash webpages (which means forget watching Hulu!).
- proprietary composite AV cable (3mm to AV). If the supplied one is not long enough, you're out of luck.
- wireless support not included. You have to purchase an additional wi-fi adapter.

Impressions:
My main gripe with the Viewsonic NexTV VMP75 is that as a web browser, it's slow (really slow!) and the text is so tiny that you have to stand in front of the TV and squint to read it. The input method via keypad on the remote control is tedious, especially when there is a good virtual keyboard built-in that works within the menus. Why doesn't this work with the browser too? There is no Flash support, so a lot of the stuff you're going to be looking at online won't display anyway. YouTube works but is very slow, and I found that searching for content is a test of patience.

One the other hand, I was easily able to pull content (music, photos, videos) off my PC using the network sharing feature. For those having trouble, try this. On your PC, navigate to "C:\users\default\" and you will see a bunch of folders. Copy your content to the appropriate folders (music to music, videos to videos, pictures to pictures). Return to the Viewsonic NexTV unit. On the Main Menu select Network Shared Folders. The unit automatically found my PC, which I clicked on. One the next screen, click the Users tab, then Default (user), and all the folders are displayed. Your content should be there where you just put it, ready to stream.

My videos played smoothly with the file types I tested (.avi and .mpg), but the box says the unit supports many more. It also supports iTunes, but only files without DRM. Pictures (photos) can be watched in a slide show, with duration and transitions set up in the Main Menu. The slide show is started via the Slow/Slide button on the remote when you are in the Pictures folder.

All that being said, the unit is not without its flaws. It occasionally locks ups, or tells you there is no media to play, or forgets the time and temperature.

Conclusion:
While I could not test the Viewsonic NexTV on my older TV using composite AV, the unit worked adequately when connected via HDMI to my newer TV#2. However, all in all, there is still a lot of room for improvement before it will come close to knocking my socks off.

I purchased this unit in August and received it quickly.
Plugged it in that night and tested it. NetFlix app is slow starting and exiting back to the main menu, would scan my network but not play any of the files I have, I had multiple types and they all were listed on the box, still would not play one.
Had issues accessing other service like radio and YouTube and they would lockup most of the time requiring me to remove power to get back to the main menu.
I had to restart it about 5 times that night while testing and decided this is not what I want to deal with.
I checked for updated firmware and it said I was current.
I returned the unit the next day and ordered a Roku HD. The Ruku was cheaper and is allot better at NetFlix, usability and responsiveness.

I bought this set top box hoping it would work with the movie files that I have shared across the network as samba shares(says in the specs that it supports samba). I host my samba shares from a Ubuntu box that has all my movie files (all my samba shares work will all my other devices on the network).

When I set up the device to my TV I noticed that it was a little slow and did not respond very fast to input from the remote control but I shrugged it off and tried accessing a movie via a samba share that I have set up just for movies. The box was not able to see any files over the network no matter how I set up the file permissions. I tried upgrading the firmware of the device and multiple other trouble shooting measures. Over all I do not see how a company can say that a device supports samba with this type of performance. Also even with the firmware upgrade the device continued to be very slow and unresponsive to the commands given to it via the remote control. Over all I think the device should be avoided if you are wanting a real set top box I advise you look else-ware.

Because of all the negative reviews on this item, I delayed installing it for quite a while. I'm glad I did because the latest firmware is a lot more stable than the initial firmware that was installed.

During my initial setup, I noticed all kinds of weird things with the interface - and I couldn't even set the time correctly for my timezone (Central Standard) since the NexTV insisted on setting it to either (+) or (-) 1/2 hour. After messing with it for a while, I found a menu option to upgrade the firmware; which took about 5 minutes to complete. Honestly, the upgraded firmware is what should have shipped on this device since it fixed all the little odd problems and instability issues I had been seeing.

The rest of this review assumes that the latest firmware has been installed.


Before getting this Veiwsonic NexTV player, we had been using our Wii with the Netflix Instant-Play DVD. That worked fine - but it was just a hassle to have to swap the DVD in and out all the time. This NexTV player is far more convenient than using the Wii and it works at least as well. I also like that it connects to my A/V receiver using an HDMI cable. I would rate the Netflix functionality as a solid 5 stars; which is great since that's what we got it for.

Another thing I like about this device is the start screen with the local weather and time displayed very nicely. Viewsonic did a good job making it clean and functional.

When it comes to the other functions, this device has not done quite as well. The browser is a hassle to use and some of the other functions are a pain to setup. In my case, I already have an XBox 360 hooked up to my Media Center - so I don't need those other functions anyway. In the end, I am thinking of this as a Netflix player only.

I assumed that this device wouldn't be included in the Logitech Harmony remote database - but I was wrong. It is filed under 'Computer-Media Center PC' and you need to use the device name VMP75 (when I tried NexTV VMP75, Logitech couldn't find it). The Harmony One/900 work perfectly with only a couple of minor tweaks to the new activity.

Overall, I would recommend this device if you're planning on using it mostly with Netflix. If you are looking for a more full-feature media center type device - I would look elsewhere.

Viewsonic VMP75 is supposed to be a network media player. However, it does not have the capability to find media on network shares (XP simple shares, or Ubuntu linux samba share). I guess if you want to connect a USB drive to the player, it would work.

Netflix seemed to work fine, and has the 2.0 interface (allows playback of movies in your queue, and other movies, but no search).

YouTube interface is horrible, as it uses the web browser and is cumbersome to navigate.

Returned this dud back to Amazon, no point in a network media player that can't access media files across the network!!! Yikes, where's quality control when you need them?

I have a couple of friends who have WD and Seagate media players and their biggest complaint is how slow the interface is on theirs. I was expecting this one to be a little slow, but i was definitely surprised when it wasn't. The remote and the player are very sleek. There is really only one complaint that I have with this product, and that is that it does not have built in WiFi. You need a WiFi dongle to connect to the internet, and it is not included. Also, there is only 1 USB port, so you cannot have the dongle plugged in at the same time that you have an external HD plugged in. Other than that, great product at a great price.

I love this item for the price I paid for it...did not hang even once yet as compared to the much hyped "Western Digital WD TV Live Plus HD Media Player", does what it claims to do. I saved the extra $600-700 for a internet ready TV by spending just $94.

Pros...to many ...you also get a browser

Cons: Just two:
-1.The Browser doesn't have a inbuilt embeded flash/Divx player, which is desirable when viewing online nevs video and news
-2.Doesn't have more video sources like Netflix should include other popular providers like Amazon Video/HULU etc.