Streaming NAS to non DLNA TV

What do you want to show/play? (photos, music, and/or videos; also if you know what formats they are in that would be helpful).

Also, if you want the middle box to support netflix, youtube, etc, that is something you will need to take into account.

I have a ReadyNAS Duo v2 and non DLNA TV the way I got around it was buy a Blu ray player with DLNA and built in wifi (I got the Sony BDP-S590) . Now this was a bit to work out, but real easy once set up. Download a app on your Android phone or tablet call BubbleUPnP. Now to watch the files off the ReadyNAS I start the app(need to have your wifi turn on your phone or tablet) went to devices (in BubbleUPnP) set renderers to the Blu ray player (most have it connected to the same network) Libraries to the ReadyNAS. Next click library then the file you wish to play. It should then be sent to your TV. I know this is a late reply but hope it helps

A BluRay player with a built-in DLNA client is certainly one approach that works well for many people. Others include adding an htpc media player, or a stand-alone appliance like WDTV, "popcorn hour" or Dune.

I prefer devices that can read the NAS shares via SMB or NFS myself.

Anyway, it is useful to have more details on the media library, since most of these devices can't play everything.

With the setup I have, I have not find a file that will not play so far.

The supported file list from Sony is here: http://esupport.sony.com/US/p/support-i ... nfo_id=957 Note there are plenty of disclaimers:

Not all files are guaranteed to play. A part of a file type may not play back.

There are a lot of formats out there, and I don't know know of any appliance that can handle them all.

The supported list of formats for the S590 is pretty good, but there are some gaps which will affect some users. For example, the lack of motion jpeg and DVI means that some camcorder files will not play; the lack of support for vorbis and flac audio might also be an issue for some people.

I wasn't saying its foul proof but like you said the S590 has a good list of supported formats and as long as you look for a player that covers what you use most you will be a lot better off.
From his post I say he wants it as easy as he can get it. No setting up a computer on the TV etc just to watch his videos.

I have a lot of experience with media players, and have provided troubleshooting advice and conversion tools on other forums - several thousand posts on the netgear multimedia forum, before they stopped development on stored media players.

Whether a player works for you depends completely on what you want to watch. Your trouble-free experience is because in your case the player supports the formats you own. If you (for instance) had an extensive library of home movies that were more than 5 years old, you'd be extremely frustrated. Or if you had a large CD collection that you had converted to flac, you would be very unhappy.

Since the RN102 doesn't support transcoding, you (a) need to analyze the compression and the format of the media you have, and carefully check the player datasheet and (b) still be prepared to convert stuff that doesn't play. (a) can be quite difficult, there are a lot of nuances to the compression, and datasheets are usually incomplete.

Upgrading to an RN3xx or RN5xx that can transcode on the fly using plex will help, but it is an expensive upgrade. It is often cheaper to go with a different player (including possibly a computer media center). PCs also have advantages with Apple devices, and it is easier to keep them up to date.

Personally my family media player is a Netgear EVA9150 (now end of life) - which still plays the media I have. Anything new that doesn't play, I can convert.

I have good experience with my recently acquired WD TV Live in combination with RN516. WD TV Live can regard the NAS as a network share and play directly from it's disks. It also supports DLNA and connects to the TV via HDMI. More info can be found on http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=330. Click "Specification" for the list of supported formats.

See also: http://www.readynas.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=74642#p417334

You need to take some time to find the right toolset that produces the format from your DVD/BDs. After some testing I opted to convert them to .mkv. Consider that it takes about 15-20 min for each DVD (depending on the capablities of your computer) and even longer for BDs. Also make sure that home movies you have created in the past from smart phones or digital camera's have a format that the media player supports.

And if you are old enough to still have VHS movies and vinyl records consider how often you still play those and if it is worth investing the time to convert them. Maybe just buy the ones you really like on DVD or CD and forget about the rest.

I agree that the WD TV Live is a good player -I'd add that it also has had regular firmware updates over the years. Supporting both direct access to the shares and DLNA is a plus. Also, it supports DTS audio - the Sony BDP-S590 doesn't support it for DLNA content.

MKV is a good format if you want to preserve surround sound. M2TS is also widely supported.

If you don't care about surround sound, then MP4 is also worth considering, especially if you have Apple mobile devices.

In any event, if you are converting your own content (home movies, etc), then I suggest that you keep the originals as well as the conversions. Conversions always result in a small quality loss, so it is best to keep the originals around (in case you decide to switch to a different format later on).