Digital Media Player | Sony SMP-N100 Network Media Player with Wi-Fi

Sony SMP-N100 Network Media Player with Wi-Fi

Filed Under Sony SMP-N100 Network Media Player with Wi-Fi | 9 Comments

With the technology ever expanding in the digital media player world, consumers are becoming more demanding every day.  The first players I reviewed on DMP Guide are still great players and the technology is still relevant today, but there are new bells and whistles that have been added to the more recent models that are hitting the market.  I’m no longer just satisfied with streaming my personal movie collection to my home theater, I want access to Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, Crackle, and Pandora.  If you can squeeze Facebook in also, that would be nice.  I came across the Sony SMP-N100 Network Media Player with Wi-Fi and after a little research, realized that it is worth a mention here on the DMP Guide.  It is right in my price range and has all the features I am looking for.

Sony SMP-N100 Network Media Player with Wi-Fi

One of the first things that differentiates the Sony Digital Media Player is that, unlike the first players out on the market, it does not require you to go out and buy a separate wireless adapter.  It is still not uncommon for even the most recent players to ask you to spend an extra $30 on an adapter that will allow you to connect to your home wireless network.  The Sony SMP-N100 also has hard wire connectivity through the USB port or standard LAN cabling for those who don’t have the home wireless or just prefer to set it up with good old USB cables.

So just to jump in to the features, you will get all of the features that have become standard for digital media players.  The Sony Network Media Player allows you to enjoy your personal media in up to Full HD 1080p either through the USB connections, or wirelessly over your home network as it is DNLA compliant.  This allows for full access to your movies, music, and other media.  I’ll give the nuts and bolts feature and compatibility list down below, but also sound is beautifully output as it supports AAC, DTS, and Dolby Digital all through either the HDMI output (cable is sold separately) or the optical digital output.  One nice touch that the SMP-N100 has is that it offers compatibility for everyone.  Even if you don’t have HDMI, it provides Compenent Video which also provides output up to 1080p, and it also provides standard composite and stereo output (standard red, white, and yellow cables).  Obviously if you want the high end output features, you must have  a compatible television and cables.  Most reviews of the Sony SMP-N100 Network Media Player with Wi-Fi indicate that the picture is very good even when hooked up to a standard definition television.

Probably the features I am most excited about is the streaming compatibility of this digital media player.  Sony gives you access to Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, Pandora, and Crackle.  So not only do you have access to your own media library, you will have acces to almost 100,000 instant movies that you can stream directly to your television.  All of those services require that you have an account, obvioulsy.  A huge plus, that has just recently been announced, is that Amazon Prime now inclues free access to 5,000 movies at no additional charge as an included service with their Amazon Prime accounts.  Amazon prime is currently $79 per year and members get unlimited free two day shipping as a part of their membership.  Now, in addition to the free two-day shipping, you will have access to 5,000 streaming movies at no additional cost.  Their library is growing every day, so this is a huge plus to this Sony Media Player.  Personally, I have Netflix, and now with Amazon Instant Video I have added about 5,000 movies with the push of a button.  An exclusive of the Sony SMP-N100 Network Media Player is that it also gives you access to Crackle, which lets you watch movies, TV shows, and original series from the Sony Pictures library.  If you would like all of these same features, and also like the functionality of  a Blu-ray player, Sony also makes the Sony BDP-S370 Blu-ray Disc Player which has all the features of the SMP-N100, but you can play your Blu-ray movies also.

Features Breakdown:

Format Support

AAC: Yes (USB) — m4a

AVC-HD: Yes (USB)

DivX: Yes (USB ) — jpg, jpeg

DivX HD: Yes (USB and DLNA) — XviD

JPEG: Yes (USB and DLNA) — jpg, jpeg

LPCM: Yes (USB and DLNA) — wav

MP3: Yes (USB and DLNA) — mp3

MPEG-1: Yes (USB) — vob, vro, mpg, mpeg, m2ts, mts

MPEG: Yes (USB and DLNA) — vob, vro, mpg, mpeg, m2ts, mts

Simple MPEG: Yes, MPEG 4 AVC (USB) — mkv, mp4, m4v, m2ts, mts

WMA: Yes (USB and DLNA) — wma (DLNA:Basic profile only no 32kpbs or lower)

WMV: Yes, WMV9 (USB) — wmv, asf

Inputs and Outputs

Analog Audio 2ch Output(s) (L,R): 1

Component Video (Y/Pb/Pr) Output(s): 1

Composite Video Output(s): 1

Ethernet Port(s): 1

HDMI Output(s): 1

Optical Audio Digital Output(s): 1

USB Port(s): 1- front

Weights and Measurements

Dimensions: 7.4 x 1.6 x 7.4 inches

Weight: 1 pound, 8 ounces

 

Back View:

 

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Comments

9 Responses to “Sony SMP-N100 Network Media Player with Wi-Fi”

  1. Rocky on April 13th, 2011 4:44 pm

    Thinking of buying one of these boxes

    Which one lets you search youtube for any video??

    THANKS

  2. Tripp on April 14th, 2011 9:16 am

    I just recently purchased this Sony SMP-N100 Player and you can search all of youtube for any video.

  3. Bill on April 17th, 2011 10:03 pm

    I have used the Sony SMP-N100, Apple TV and Wii for media playing. Sony box is very good especially if you have content on a USB stick or USB HD others do not. You can also use Windows Media Player as a DLNA server to stream content from you PC if you don’t have an external HD connected to N100. Apple TV has the easiest user interface, just plug it in and it works, after setting up WIFI. Its NetFlix interface is the best of all the players in my opinion. You can stream from any PC/Mac in the house with iTunes and Home Sharing turned on. Things I did not like about Apple TV (no USB, no 1080p, just 720p and no on/off switch, must navigate menu to put in sleep mode.) Wii is good for NetFlix and I like it because you can type characters very easy on Wii. Just like having a Keyboard. Only issue with Wii is that there is no HDMO, just composite video. The thing I did not like about any of these devices is that I would like to add my own applications, not just use Nelflix and HULU, etc and none have the ability to do that. Let’s say you want to add a TV station that streams live, there are iPod apps or you can use PC to stream to those devices, but cannot add these streams to the content providers list. My 2 cents

  4. Joe M on May 18th, 2011 1:47 pm

    Is there a player that allows you to stream live TV?

  5. Tripp on May 18th, 2011 4:19 pm

    I’ve been looking into players like this, and so far it looks like “Slingbox” is the best option to stream live tv. I may do a work up on the Slingbox shortly.

  6. MaxSmart on July 6th, 2011 2:46 pm

    I don’t get why the wifi thing is one of the top concerns on every review I read. If you’re serious about streaming your TV services, you really should get ethernet to your TV setup. Lower latency, much higher bandwidth, less packet loss, no problems with interference, better security – there’s no comparison. If wiring is a problem, you can always set up a cheap client-mode wifi router in your TV stand. Wifi is great for mobile devices like laptops, but for something hard-wired to your TV setup, it’s just a poor method of communication.

  7. Tripp on July 14th, 2011 3:57 pm

    I agree with you in part, but I love me some wifi. I can stream everything without any wires to every room in my house. Nothing wrong with a wired connection though.

  8. THOMAS on August 4th, 2011 11:00 am

    Is this compatable with the playstation network? Do i need a cable provider to use the Sony SMP-N100 Network Media Player with Wi-Fi?

  9. Tripp on August 18th, 2011 10:17 am

    It is not a part of the PlayStation Network. It does use the same cross media bar interface and Qriocity. I have a PS3 and thought the SMP-100 would somehow hook into the PSN in order to download movies. They added several sony movie services for free, but it would still be nice to DL from the PS store.

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