D-Link Forums
The Graveyard - Products No Longer Supported => D-Link Multimedia and USB => DSM-520 => Topic started by: tshaff09 on April 07, 2009, 02:33:44 PM
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??? Any news on firmware updates coming out?
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Darn good question.
There were items left unfixed in 1.06 like the album art and a fix for the fonts so users could read more than 10 frikkin' letters on the screen.
There's also an issue with its ability to properly handle video durations and cutting off early.
I assume DLink has dropped the ball on this product. Honestly, I stopped buying Dlink stuff over this and the total bad support quality.
I think they are trying to herd everyone to their Vista extender, the 750, which isn't even sold down the way due to lack of interest.
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thought about buying a 750, but after the support on 520(see my other posts) its the old saying "fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me!"
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I was so happy to see that D-Link issued a Beta firmware for my DNS-321 that for me, works quite well so much as to that I went out and ordered a second DNS-321.
But, like so many other DSM-520 owners I am waiting for a new firmware even if it is also a beta.
D-Link: Can you give us a hint to let us know if this is even in the works?!? WE WANT TO BE LOYAL TO YOUR PRODUCTS BUT YOU NEED TO DO THIS SO WE STAY WITH YOUR BRAND. Please respond.
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I am not clear to what you are asking works? If you are asking if the DSM-520 and DNS-321 work together Yes they work great! but the mention you are purchasing a second unit would leave me to believe you have already played with it and realized that.
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I am not clear to what you are asking works? If you are asking if the DSM-520 and DNS-321 work together Yes they work great! but the mention you are purchasing a second unit would leave me to believe you have already played with it and realized that.
The question is "Are any firmware updates in progress for the DSM 520 to fix the holes it still has?" Or is the 520 dead? Read the entire thread from the beginning.
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ECF
Buzz is asking this....
Is D-Link working on a firmware update for the DSM 520?
Obviuosly a Yes or No answer is what everyone is asking for.
Or a second whay to phrase the question is, Has D-Link stopped firmware development for the DSM 520?
Another Yes or No answer.
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It is obvious to me they have dropped all work on the DSM-520 product line. Take what you have and be happy with what it can do - just remember this support (or lack thereof) next time you go shopping. I'll be getting a different name brand (can you say Cisco/Linksys).
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Has anyone ever tried flashing the dsm-520 with the DSM-720 firmware? Someone on another forum suggested the hardware was basically the same, except the wifi device. Would it blow up the 520 so bad that it wouldn't recover at all? ???
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I think if you research futher you will find that the hardware in the 750 that crunches the video is an upgraded version of the hardware in the 520 i.e. the 750 hardware can handle h.264 content and due to a hardware limitation the 520 cannot. Therefore I would not recommend doing this unless you are so frustrated with the 520 that making it toast is not a problem for you.
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The DSM-520 and the DSM-750 are two different animals. The DSM-750 has a different chipset to handle higher bit rate video compared to the DSM-520. If you are a gambling man and don't mind possibly bricking your DSM-520 then go for it.
Oh...and don't forget to tell us how it turned out. Matter of fact, YouTube it so we can all watch. :)
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First of all, Thanks Willobee for this response:
"ECF
Buzz is asking this....
Is D-Link working on a firmware update for the DSM 520?
Obviously a Yes or No answer is what everyone is asking for.
Or a second way to phrase the question is, Has D-Link stopped firmware development for the DSM 520?
Another Yes or No answer."
I mentioned that D-Link has done new firmware for other products recently and it was a simple "Is it in the works or planned for this product?"
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It's funny that this forum post is here. I personally have 5 Dlink DSM-520's. And they are a great product. I have never been to these forums till today. I remember some time last year I did a search on google about Dlink DSM-520 supporting Netflix. And in there it said they were working on it and it should be out in fall of 2008.
As far as I can tell, this never happened.
Yesterday, my neighbor asked me to set him up the way I have my media in my house. I recommended the Linksys product due to Dlink proving they no longer support updates on this product.
Tomorrow he is coming over here and we are buying 3 Media Servers from Linksys.
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It's funny that this forum post is here. I personally have 5 Dlink DSM-520's. And they are a great product. I have never been to these forums till today. I remember some time last year I did a search on google about Dlink DSM-520 supporting Netflix. And in there it said they were working on it and it should be out in fall of 2008.
As far as I can tell, this never happened.
Yesterday, my neighbor asked me to set him up the way I have my media in my house. I recommended the Linksys product due to Dlink proving they no longer support updates on this product.
Tomorrow he is coming over here and we are buying 3 Media Servers from Linksys.
Let us know how those work relative to the 520. I stopped buying or recommending Dlink a while back because of bad support. We use Playon and love it except for the font issue and need compatible devices.
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Yes I tried Playon and for me it was clunky at best. I beta'd it though so it many have became better with the completed version. But I decided if DLink wasn't going to release the Netflix supported software then I would just get something else the next time I buy a Media Server. I have 5 Dlink DSM-520's and I have 8 TV's. I plan to buy 3 Media servers of some type in the future.
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I am sorry but I do not have access to any information regarding firmware development.
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Then you have provided no value. Personally, our main media boxes are the PS3 and Xbox360. We use the PS3 Media Server to power those and the DSM-520. The 520 is not in the main room of the house due to limitations mentioned before. A better UI would go a long way and seeing a full title of something would be fantastic if it weren't something that I get anyway on my other two consoles. Also use PlayOn and it works very well with the 520 too, although the PS3 is still the winner in this category hands down for me. Just scroll the title or release the source code and we'll figure it out ourselves and do it. If we're being abandoned, at least give us that. The DSM folks need to take note of how things are going in DNS-321 land where the users are involved in the beta process. Smart move there...here...well, not so much.
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Hey ECF,
Is firmware development a top secret at D-Link?
You say you are a Technical Engineer, Global Moderator, Level 8 Member.
Do you work for D-Link or are you just a free lance Technical Engineer?
If you actually work for D-Link and are the main support in this forum we can only assume you would have access to information regarding firmware development or to some that has that access. The problems and limitations people encounter with any device that is powered by firmware may be directly related to the firmware.
If you you do not have any access to what is going on with the firmware development how can you fully support this product?
Is it at all possible for you to communicate with someone who has access to firmware development and relay that info back to the end users that are asking about it?
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I am sorry but I do not have access to any information regarding firmware development.
ECF,
In the posting by pjb2400 "DSM-520 Sharing in WMP 11" a year ago, you state
"As for the Album art we will be releasing firmware to better implement the album art feature with the DSM-520."
What has changed recently keeping you from access to this kind of information, and is there a forum/format we should pursue?
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It appears that D-Link has not released a new version of firmware for the DSM-520 for over a year now (Firmware 1.06.01 - 4/22/2008). Given the significant number of issues and requested features that can be found on this board, I would have thought that we would have seen a new release within the last 12 months. Can any of the D-Link folks on this board comment on the future support and plans for the DSM-520? I am starting to become concerned that I may now have a dead-end product. We are beginning to see a number alternative options from other companies and I would like to know what the future holds from D-Link.
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I am sorry but I have not been provided details on future plans of this device at this time. I know that there are alternative options from other companies D-Link too have release other device since the DSM-520 was developed. We have release the DSM-510, DSM-330 and DSM-750 which provides an improved chipset and many more features and supported media formats on the DSM-330 and 750.
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I am sorry but I have not been provided details on future plans of this device at this time. I know that there are alternative options from other companies D-Link too have release other device since the DSM-520 was developed. We have release the DSM-510, DSM-330 and DSM-750 which provides an improved chipset and many more features and supported media formats on the DSM-330 and 750.
So basically your telling us to go buy another Dlink product you guys don't support from reading the other threads.
The 750 requires Vista and is a media extender. The local big box won't even sell it anymore.
Are there any other sources for help with this product?
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The Media Center Extender is a feature and The DSM-750 support Windows XP and Vista.
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To all those here who are thinking about upgrading from their DSM 520 to the 750, I strongly suggest you read my comments (and ECF's responses) posted in the DSM 750 section before you make your purchase. The DSM 750, quite simply, does not handle .mkv or .h264 files in a wireless environment the way Dlink would like you to think it does.
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Thank you Tigrman699 for that info. Popcorn anyone? :(
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To all those here who are thinking about upgrading from their DSM 520 to the 750, I strongly suggest you read my comments (and ECF's responses) posted in the DSM 750 section before you make your purchase. The DSM 750, quite simply, does not handle .mkv or .h264 files in a wireless environment the way Dlink would like you to think it does.
I'm not sure upgrading from one unsupported product to another unsupported product is gonna happen. Now for alternatives. I use Playon and the Popcorn doesn't work well with it supposedly.
The mods are useless on here.
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Hey all,
Something to check out is the LG BD390. It is a bluray player and media lounge all in one. Looks pretty cool, might be a good alternative.
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Roku makes a box that runs Netflix perfectly, and Amazon VOD. It has always worked for me, unlike the 520.
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I agree, there is no way I will get another DLink device if this is how it goes with them. A year later and then the new device will cease to work as well?!
I'm looking in to run TVersity with my 520 and/or PlayOn, which both hopefully will run fine for a while. At the time they don't work on the 520, and I still haven't gotten any updates from DLink, I will look in other places for a solution and most likely won't ever look back for a DLink solution ever again.
I hope all DLink officials understand the importance of this!? My, and I'm sure everybody elses, previous experience with you will affect me/us 110% for any future purchases! How well you handle this is your biggest advertisment for both your current and new customers!
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I agree, there is no way I will get another DLink device if this is how it goes with them. A year later and then the new device will cease to work as well?!
I'm looking in to run TVersity with my 520 and/or PlayOn, which both hopefully will run fine for a while. At the time they don't work on the 520, and I still haven't gotten any updates from DLink, I will look in other places for a solution and most likely won't ever look back for a DLink solution ever again.
I hope all DLink officials understand the importance of this!? My, and I'm sure everybody elses, previous experience with you will affect me/us 110% for any future purchases! How well you handle this is your biggest advertisment for both your current and new customers!
What seems to be the problem here? Im not clear on the issue you are having..It was all working fine then stopped all of a sudden? I have not seen any of your posts stating any issues with Playon or TVersity just the fact that it costs money and you would like Netflix incorporated into the DSM-520 itself and not have to pay for playon. I use TVersity daily with my DSM-520 and have never had a problem and Playon very often and it always seems to work great.
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ECF,
there are many holes in this product.
1. the album covers don't display correctly
2. you can't read the entire title of anything
3. the file sorting order with UPnP servers (i.e. the DNS-343 in my case) is all wrong.
4. File sorting is not as advertised
5. The UPnp Servers don't read ID3 tags, nor does the D-Link media sever software, at least the track number of the ID3, it just reads alphabetically
6. the Netflix issue as advertised.
7. even though a file is mpeg4, it is still very picky if it will play it or not.
I don't know if we can make this anymore clear for those of you at D-Link. If this does not get resolved, this will be my last D-Link product. It will also be everyone I know last D-Link product. Keep that in mind.
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ECF,
there are many holes in this product.
1. the album covers don't display correctly
2. you can't read the entire title of anything
3. the file sorting order with UPnP servers (i.e. the DNS-343 in my case) is all wrong.
4. File sorting is not as advertised
5. The UPnp Servers don't read ID3 tags, nor does the D-Link media sever software, at least the track number of the ID3, it just reads alphabetically
6. the Netflix issue as advertised.
7. even though a file is mpeg4, it is still very picky if it will play it or not.
I don't know if we can make this anymore clear for those of you at D-Link. If this does not get resolved, this will be my last D-Link product. It will also be everyone I know last D-Link product. Keep that in mind.
ECF,
So, this is the 30th posting on this topic and you have responded but it seems that you, as a representative for D-Link, I would think pass this on to your higher-up. D-Link has lost several LOYAL CUSTOMERS who
A): Have bought SEVERAL of their products (Me personally have the 520, (2) DNS-321's, and various other hardware.
B): Will NOW start NOT recommending D-Link products due to the lack of response by this company with issues with thier product.
The ending result of this will eventually put an impact on the company and will eventually cause costly cutbacks within this company, which may result in loss of employees.
Could I make this be any clearer? I hope this may be an eye-opener in our present economic condition. You should be helping customers like us since we are the few remaining consumers out there that still have the funds to buy these "non-necessary" products that keep companies like D-Link going.
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Unfortunately I am only the massager and do not have say in whether or not a firmware is created. I have not been provided any details for any future firmware releases at this time.
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ECF
I was reading your phrase at the bottom of your posts. "Only Dead Fish swim with the stream". Well, pass-on to your superiors that they soon will be "down river" if they continue sell boat anchors to people. - Or - if D-Link doesn't want to put the time and resources into future development for the DSM-520, then release the Firmware to us, so that we may have a viable product! Thank You.
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I totally agree with what you guys are saying. these issues need to be addressed + some new features would be nice! I wholeheartedly regret this purchase!
&ECF can you ask sombody in there if this product is End of Life so i can bin it and purchase something from a company who stand behind their products and are driven to provide the best level of customer satisfaction! ie not DLink!
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WHEN? ECF??
THE PRODUCT IS DEFECTIVE AND DOES NOT PERFORM TO SPECIFICATIONS. TECHNICAL SUPPORT HAS ACKNOWLEDGED THIS OVER A YEAR AGO, AND STILL HASN'T DONE ANYTHING, WON'T TELL US IF THEY WILL DO ANYTHING, AND CONTINUES TO OFFER THE PRODUCT FOR SALE.
IN CALIFORNIA, THAT'S CALLED UNFAIR BUSINESS PRACTICES.
UNLESS D-LINK WANTS TO FIND ITSELF SLAMMED WITH THE COST AND THE EMBARRASSMENT OF A LAWSUIT, THEY NEED TO PROVIDE ANSWERS AND NOT JUST "I'M THE MESSENGER" AND I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING.
I'M PISSED, LOTS OF OTHER USERS ARE PISSED AS WELL. ONE DIFFERENCE-- I HAPPEN TO BE A LAWYER. I'M WILLING TO INVEST THE TIME TO GO AFTER D-LINK.
THINK ABOUT IT.
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WHEN? ECF??
THE PRODUCT IS DEFECTIVE AND DOES NOT PERFORM TO SPECIFICATIONS. TECHNICAL SUPPORT HAS ACKNOWLEDGED THIS OVER A YEAR AGO, AND STILL HASN'T DONE ANYTHING, WON'T TELL US IF THEY WILL DO ANYTHING, AND CONTINUES TO OFFER THE PRODUCT FOR SALE.
IN CALIFORNIA, THAT'S CALLED UNFAIR BUSINESS PRACTICES.
UNLESS D-LINK WANTS TO FIND ITSELF SLAMMED WITH THE COST AND THE EMBARRASSMENT OF A LAWSUIT, THEY NEED TO PROVIDE ANSWERS AND NOT JUST "I'M THE MESSENGER" AND I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING.
I'M PISSED, LOTS OF OTHER USERS ARE PISSED AS WELL. ONE DIFFERENCE-- I HAPPEN TO BE A LAWYER. I'M WILLING TO INVEST THE TIME TO GO AFTER D-LINK.
THINK ABOUT IT.
This practice is not unique to D-Link. Most if not all of the competing media players are riddled with functionality issues and missing features that are clearly stated "on the box." Dedicated media players are a relatively new technology with lots of bugs to be ironed out. Since all the major manufacturers are releasing media players with incomplete or buggy functionality, one could argue that introducing media players in this state is an industry standard that consumers have come to accept.
As an owner/user of a competing brand of media player for several years now, I observed (and participated in) the progression of these players from their very infancy. Early PCs and major operating systems (e.g. Vista) were similarly flawed in their own ways. This is the price we pay for early adoption.
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For you lawyer types...the sticking point might be the disclaimer (paraphrasing) that "Product specifications are subject to change without notice".
Seriously, no lawyer is going to waste their time on this.
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For you lawyer types...the sticking point might be the disclaimer (paraphrasing) that "Product specifications are subject to change without notice".
Seriously, no lawyer is going to waste their time on this.
Agreed. As an attorney myself, I think the accusations are without foundation. Practically speaking, if we want to see more innovative products from the D-Links of the world, there's going to be a learning curve for the manufacturers and patience required for those of us who choose to adopt new/emerging technologies.
If you want a perfect bug-free technology for playing media, go out and buy a DVD/CD player.
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WHEN? ECF??
THE PRODUCT IS DEFECTIVE AND DOES NOT PERFORM TO SPECIFICATIONS. TECHNICAL SUPPORT HAS ACKNOWLEDGED THIS OVER A YEAR AGO, AND STILL HASN'T DONE ANYTHING, WON'T TELL US IF THEY WILL DO ANYTHING, AND CONTINUES TO OFFER THE PRODUCT FOR SALE.
IN CALIFORNIA, THAT'S CALLED UNFAIR BUSINESS PRACTICES.
UNLESS D-LINK WANTS TO FIND ITSELF SLAMMED WITH THE COST AND THE EMBARRASSMENT OF A LAWSUIT, THEY NEED TO PROVIDE ANSWERS AND NOT JUST "I'M THE MESSENGER" AND I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING.
I'M PISSED, LOTS OF OTHER USERS ARE PISSED AS WELL. ONE DIFFERENCE-- I HAPPEN TO BE A LAWYER. I'M WILLING TO INVEST THE TIME TO GO AFTER D-LINK.
THINK ABOUT IT.
This forum is for the community to reach each other and share technical information regarding the products D-Link offers.
It is not a platform for you to voice your personal grievances with D-Link or it's policies as a company.
If you are consistently unhappy with your product or feel you have been cheated or treated dishonestly by D-Link then please contact our customer service line at 800-326-1688 ext 6314.
They will be the only ones able to assist you with your grievance, as it is now you are complaining to a team of technical support staff geared to moderate the forums. Not handle customer service issues.
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I've been a DSM-520 owner for over two years. DSM-520 wasn't a bleeding edge technology at the time I purchased it, but owning a number of other D-Link products I had some loaylty with the brand.
While I have enjoyed getting what I could from the current firmware of my DSM-520, the truth is that the product never worked as expected and the 1.06.01 firmware still has a large number of holes (in fact, even upgrading to 1.06.01 was a problem by itself). As someone said in this thread above, dedicated media players are indeed an early technology and as the supporters of this early technology we may indeed need to bite the bullet.
My problem is though that two years is a LONG period of time when we talk about the new technologies. The media player industry has come a long way since the introduction of DSM-520, and I don't see that D-Link is trying to ride this wave like it seemingly does with its other product lines. I don't know whether D-Link's forray into the media players has been as promising as it might have been expected, but I can read the writing on the wall as far as expecting a new firmware upgrade for DSM-520.
I don't have a problem using other D-Link products (and I do), but as far as the dedicated media players go I'm now looking elsewhere for a DSM-520 substitute. Granted it won't be a perfect product but at least there seem to be other vendors that churn out new firmware upgrades regularly to keep up with their users' feedback and industry developments.
P.S. What's also interesting is that I haven't seen any cooked firmware updates for DSM-520 (e.g., even my older Pioneer DVD player as a number of cooked firmwares avaiable, let alone gazillion of cooked ROMs for PDAs) - maybe there's not much demand for the product these days? I'm past warranty so I wouldn't mind trying a cooked firmware for my DSM-520.
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I don't have a problem using other D-Link products (and I do), but as far as the dedicated media players go I'm now looking elsewhere for a DSM-520 substitute. Granted it won't be a perfect product but at least there seem to be other vendors that churn out new firmware upgrades regularly to keep up with their users' feedback and industry developments.
I can personally relate to your concerns, but the grass isn't necessarily greener if you go with another brand. I've been an owner of a competing product for over 2 years and many of the stated features still don't work or may work but are buggy. From my understanding, the reason for the problems experienced with media players in particular is the fact that the manufacturers are designing them to play a very wide berth of media formats. Getting a single unit to properly play so many formats is no easy task. . . which stretches development resources thin.
On the flip-side, if media players are redesigned to support fewer container and video formats, a huge number of consumer products which export to non-compatible formats would be unable to easily use the media player without owners first going through a recoding exercise.
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I can personally relate to your concerns, but the grass isn't necessarily greener if you go with another brand. I've been an owner of a competing product for over 2 years and many of the stated features still don't work or may work but are buggy. From my understanding, the reason for the problems experienced with media players in particular is the fact that the manufacturers are designing them to play a very wide berth of media formats. Getting a single unit to properly play so many formats is no easy task. . . which stretches development resources thin.
On the flip-side, if media players are redesigned to support fewer container and video formats, a huge number of consumer products which export to non-compatible formats would be unable to easily use the media player without owners first going through a recoding exercise.
Thank you for your comment. I agree and understand that competing products aren't perfect, but, frankly, I'm getting tired of having various media files, some of which are becoming increasingly popular, converted (often with substantial loss in quality and functionality) just to be able to play them on my DSM-520... it's just not worth my time. I don't know the exact nature of the technical challenge, but maybe you are right about finding the balance between the versatility of played formats and stability of performance, which makes it a Catch-22. :)
It is quite possible that DSM-520's chipset is simply not capable of playing the latest audio/video formats - I'd rather be able to play more types of media files on my DSM-520 than spending another several hundred bucks on an upgrade. But with no firmware upgrade for DSM-520 on the horizon, c'est la vie.
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I think the DSM-520 is an exceptional product, except for the album art and the picture scaling. It is also very specific on what it can and cannot do, both in the manual and online.
Advanced Simple Level 5 for you MPEG4 people. That means, max bitrate of 8K for the video portion. No Quarter Pixel and no Global Motion Compensation. It however does not care about Adaptive Quantization and it does not care about B frames - plays both fine.
It even does some things not listed, such as playing ogg files that even hit 700 kbps or higher! I'm a fan of using ogg's that have special tuned engines behind them and this thing plays it like a champ. These are things that I cannot get to play on a SlingBox for example. The SlingBox pukes trying to play them.
Other things is, it does not care about resolution of your vid. Feed it a 1080p stream and it will eat it fine.
So I can't see the comments about what it doesn't do being valid. If you follow the rules, it will play your file and works as advertised, except where mentioned above. If you download movies off the net, and they are AVI's, be warned that a lot of those guys use XVid and they will enable those unsupported features. I have yet not had it play soemthing where I followed the rules. If you need the bandwidth, use MPEG. It will take a 25 mbps file on MPEG-2.
Crud. I even have this thing feed AC3's to my proc.
-X
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At the risk of piling the DSM-520 has a lot of quirks that you either have to put up with or use it as a door stop. I've had the DSM-520 for a couple of years and have come to accept its short-comings plus I've found ways around the most annoying features (like the track order being whacked in all views accept Folder - the tracks being out of order is an irritant for pop music but renders it useless for classical music).
I've tried talking with the D-Link support people who are all very nice but I didn't get anywhere - as Dr Phil says "how's that working for ya'"?
It's not clear to me that even if the D-Link elves were working on a new firmware release that they know what to fix. From a business perspective why would D-Link invest in the DSM-520 anyway? It's hardly a cash cow being constrained by the lack of spiffy new firmware. I never got the impression that customer support were listening or being kept up at night worrying about the deficiencies of the DSM-520.
Anyway, it's not lost on me that all the media file flavours play without complaint on my Windows 7 PC. Couple that with the dramatic way that hardware costs have come down and I am going to build my own media PC which I will hook up to my receiver. It's not hard to do and I can then retire the DSM-520, which has not been useless but hasn't been great either. I would include my wife's summary of the DSM-520 but it can't be repeated in polite company.