...
Like i say about the orange light that turns on when new media is imported, you can import all your audio, video and pictures by dragging and dropping and so on, and you can also create 'watch folders' so for instance if you make the 'my music' folder a new 'watch folder' each time that ... Read review
Advantages: stream your computers media to your tv Disadvantages: quality of wi-fi, setup can be tricky
...of the showcenter 200 called Pinnacle media manager.
Aside from Pinnacle media manager being on the cd-rom there is also the necessary software and drivers you need to install to successfully via the cd-rom to establish a connection between your pc and the showcenter 200 which can either be done via wifi 802.11g, which i found to be very tricky and couldnt seem to establish a connection via wifi, or when anything did happen i just ... ...am currently using and there are no problems at all with connectivity or anything.
Then how about box contents, well in the box you get a wifi dongle which you connect to the back of the showcenter 200 to establish a signal for wireless connectivity, you also get a 3 metre ethernet cable (cat5e), and of course you get the other basics such as scart lead and the plug.
So how about an overall opinion, well i found this ... more
So like the title says, you can stream your audio, video and pictures from your computers hard drive to your tv via the showcenter 200
So maybe we should start with some specifications, features, opinions etc.
For a start lets begin with supported file types and so on, first off we have audio... the file types that are supported for audio are all the major formats like MP3, MPEG-1 layer 2 (MPA), PCM WAV and WMA. You can also stream video which also supports the majority of video formats such as MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-2 VOB, MPEG-4 AVI, Xvid and WMV9, and HD video is also supported which is a nice bonus. Of course you can also stream and view your pictures (including support for HD imagery from high mega-pixel cameras etc) On the showcenter 200 and again most the image formats are supported such as JPEG, BMP, PNG and GIF.
Then we have inputs, outputs and connections, which there is plenty of which are as follows:-
SCART 21-pin connector (Europe-only, also known as Peritel connector or Euroconnector) with composite, Y/C, RGB, stereo audio
Component video output (YPbPr, 3 x RCA)
Composite video output (1 x RCA)
Y/C ("S-Video") video output (1 x Hosiden)
Stereo audio outputs ("Line-Out" - 2 x RCA)
Additional stereo audio output (for separate connection to audio system - 2 x RCA)
Digital audio outputs, both optical (1 x Toslink) and electrical (S/PDIF 1 x RCA)
Then we have the other outputs and inputs which dont really relate to the above:-
Ethernet 100BASE-T (1 x RJ-45) with associated connection/data LEDs
Integrated Wi-Fi 802.11g, interface with built-in antenna
Power cable connector
IR receiver
USB Connector on front panel
As you see on the last of that list is a USB port, which allows you to connect usb storage devices such as usb pens and external hard drives etc.Then moving on, how about lights and switchs. well on the front as you may of guessed is a power switch, then we 3 lights, 1 green light to indicate power is on, a red light that indicates the showcenter 200 is in standby, then the orange light which indicates new media has been imported and ready to play.
Like i say about the orange light that turns on when new media is imported, you can import all your audio, video and pictures by dragging and dropping and so on, and you can also create 'watch folders' so for instance if you make the 'my music' folder a new 'watch folder' each time that a new song is added to your 'my music' folder it will be automatically updated/imported into the showcenter 200, and this is all done by a peice of software which comes on the cd-rom that is included in the box of the showcenter 200 called Pinnacle media manager.
Aside from Pinnacle media manager being on the cd-rom there is also the necessary software and drivers you need to install to successfully via the cd-rom to establish a connection between your pc and the showcenter 200 which can either be done via wifi 802.11g, which i found to be very tricky and couldnt seem to establish a connection via wifi, or when anything did happen i just lost the connection, but luckily ethernet is supported which i am currently using and there are no problems at all with connectivity or anything.
Then how about box contents, well in the box you get a wifi dongle which you connect to the back of the showcenter 200 to establish a signal for wireless connectivity, you also get a 3 metre ethernet cable (cat5e), and of course you get the other basics such as scart lead and the plug.
So how about an overall opinion, well i found this on ebay for £100 which was sold as an ex display model, and can also be found on pinnacles official website (pinnaclesys.com) for a limited cheap price of £129.99 and can also be found on non official sites such as svp.co.uk. I thought this was the bargain of the month for me, and maybe even the bargain of the year. I can now watch all my videos, listen to all my music and view all the pictures from my computers hard drive on my tv via just one connection which is the pc and the showcenter 200 which i have wanted to do for quite some years, so this receives a 10/10 from me.
Like i say this receives a 10/10, and its well deserved, if you want to view the audio, video and pictures thats on your computer on your tv, well theres no better way than the showcenetr 200 way!
So as we reach the end of this review i have to say this is the longest and hardest thought review i have done as far back as i can remember! So if you liked this review then feel free to rate it or leave a comment
Advantages: Linking computer to tv and all in 1 music and video Disadvantages: Setup
...more information. I have the pinnacle showcenter 200 which cost £175, and for what it can do is worth it. There are two parts to the showcenter, you have the silver box and remote. There are no buttons on the silver box which will connect to you tv or hifi simply connect using a scart lead or Composite and Y/C (S-Video) outputs. There are optical or phono connections for audio if you wanted to connet to your hifi. The other part of the package is ... ...will search for all compatiable media types and tag them so you can select to play them on your tv usng the showcenter box.
Supported media Types
The software that comes with this automatcally seaches your hard drive for all compatiable media types. It then tags them and catalogs them by genre, artist, video, music and many more options. Some of the supported media types are ,
- MP3, WMA - audio types
- JPG, PNG, GIF - image types
- MPEG1, MPEG2, ...
Loneranger1982 01.10.2005 (02.10.2005)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Pinnacle ShowCenter 200
Composite video, S-Video, MPEG2, MPEG1, component video
Display (projector)
Type
None
Remote control
Type
Remote control
Technology
Infrared
Connections
Connector Type
1 x SCART ( 21 PIN SCART ) - rear
1 x component video output ( RCA phono x 3 ) - rear
1 x composite video output ( RCA phono ) - rear
2 x audio line-out ( RCA phono x 2 ) - rear
1 x S-Video output ( 4 PIN mini-DIN ) - rear
1 x SPDIF output ( RCA phono ) - rear
1 x SPDIF output ( TOS Link ) - rear
1 x network ( RJ-45 ) - rear
1 x USB - front
System requirements details
System Requirements Details
Windows 2000 SP3 - Pentium III - 1 GHz - RAM 256 MB - HD 10 GB
Manufacturer's product description
Easily stream your favorite high-quality digital photos, music and movies from your PC to your television and home stereo system with Pinnacle ShowCenter 200. It combines top quality audio and video, including HD photo and video support, with an intuitive user interface for an incredibly convenient and engaging entertainment experience. Stream audio from your media library, listen to Internet radio, enjoy premium content purchased on the Internet.Equipped with a USB port on the front panel for enjoying photos and other media files from a camera or other storage media device. It comes with powerful, easy-to-use media management software and works with high-speed wired and wireless (802.11g) home networks.