MG-350HD

The MediaGate MG-350HD supports MPEG 1, 2, 4 (MPG, MPEG, AVI, M2V, DAT, VOB, etc) DivX and XviD video codec’s and MP3, OGG Vorbis, WMA on the audio front, as well as Dolby digital and DTS through the units coaxial and optical output. The unit features LAN and Wi-Fi connections, an internal (not supplied) hard drive and outputs video at resolutions up to 1920x1080p via its DVI connection, and 1920x1080i via its component video output. In addition to these features the MG-350HD can also operate as a Networked Attached Storage (NAS) device facilitating easy file sharing and streaming.

MG-350HD Black

Setup and General Observations

I found the 350HD fairly easy to setup, provided you feel comfortable with installing a hard drive and understand basic GUI operations in a computer environment it should be a no brainer. I attached the player to my network and fired it up; from there I updated to firmware revision 1.1.7 (as easy as clicking on the file from any networked drive) and was on my way. The players on-screen GUI was relatively easy to navigate, just a matter of select and click. One thing to keep in mind is when navigating through different networked drives you may experience a little lag but the response inside that drive is much quicker. The supplied remote handles transport functions, volume, direct media access, book marking, repeat functions, and an assortment of other useful shortcuts.

Video Performance

MG-350HD Remote

I tried out many 1080i MEPG2 files on the drive and the color saturation, detail and overall appearance of the image was similar in quality and performance each time. Using the internal hard drive is the best way to ensure maximum throughput, followed closely by the wired Ethernet port.  Streaming a file of this size and bit-rate may not always provide the best results wireless with WiFi, smaller file sizes shouldn’t provide any challenge for the 350HD’s 802.11g connection.

In addition to the MPEG2 test clips I tried out various DivX and XviD clips as well and both played just fine and were more than enjoyable.

MG-350HD Front

Summary

In addition to the obvious benefits of the MediaGate MG-350HD (HD file playback over wired and wireless networks as well as its optional internal hard drive) the players easy to use GUI makes browsing those files elementary and while it may not play every audio/video codec known to man, it does play the most commonly used codec’s without breaking a sweat. Another handy feature incorporated into the 350HD is internet radio. I’m actually listening to one of the pre-programmed stations right now and the audio quality through the player is quite good, for internet radio that is.

At as little as $219.00 (on-line retailers can be found through MediaGate’s site) the 350HD is well worth the asking price.  For those willing to live outside of the iTunes / Windows Media Center, MediaGate offers an affordable alternative to other PC to TV devices on the market.  If you’re interested in video file-playback in your home theater but aren’t quite ready to jump into the world of home theater PC’s, the MediaGate MG-3 50HD Wireless HD Media Player is well worth a look.  It's simple to use and supports a wide range of formats in high quality. It also manages to avoid the many bugs and glitches we commonly associate with high definition streamers.