Since the cost of digital storage continues to fall, I'm even more tempted to put all of my multimedia content onto a single big hard drive. I already have thousands of digitized audio tracks and images from my digital camera on my network, and I've ripped some DVDs. But until I can find the perfect device to play it all back on my family-room entertainment center, I'm somewhat hesitant to invest the time and effort to rip all of my videos.

For this review, I looked at a device that I hoped could meet my requirements: The D-Link DSM-520 MediaLounge Wireless HD Media Player. It's designed to stream music, pictures and HD video from your home network to your entertainment center.

Basic Features

The DSM-520's designers had an entertainment center form-factor in mind. It should fit right in with your DVD player, VCR, stereo, etc. Figure 1 from D-Link's installation manual shows the back of the device along with captions to sort out the numerous connection options.

Figure 1: The DSM-520's back panel

As you can see, the device has support for both wired and wireless networks. For entertainment center connections, the big attraction for me was the digital High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) port. Since I broke down and purchased an HDTV last year, this is the first device I've tested that could be digitally connected.

Figure 2 shows the IR remote for the DSM-520. I found it easy to use but not without a few problems. The biggest one was that it wasn't backlit; so using it in the dark could be a bit of an issue.

Figure 2: The Remote

But the button layout was intuitive enough that it shouldn't be much of a problem. Along with the standard buttons you'd find on any multi-function remote, this one came with special buttons for Music, Photo, Video, On-Line and USB content.