And the guy at the Rapsody office with a translation dictionary manages to make my day.

Yes. Yes I do progress continuously.

HD Playback

Both players performed admirably while playing HD files as long as I didn't rely on the wireless connection on the Mvix. There was, unsurprisingly, no discernable performance difference between the two; both hammered through my Transport stream WMV-HD and HD DivX test files without a glitch or a hiccup. I tested several resolutions including 1080i and 1080p files stored locally on their internal hard drives, on a networked PC and on a self-powered external hard drive. All of the files played smoothly without any glitches. I have no trouble at all recommending either of these players to those looking for a device that allows them to transfer and view HDTV programs recorded on their computer on their TV.

Conclusions

I have reviewed several network media players based on Sigma Designs chips and although there are doubtless a few people who would disagree with me, I have come to the conclusion that there are not many that offer anything really unique in the way of usable features. They essentially contain very similar hardware housed in different boxes (insert loud protests from die hard fans here). Most of them offer either a wireless solution, a network attached storage option, or a combination of both.

At the end of the day, however, they play media files in the same way using the same core technology. If you're in the market, their ease of setup makes both the Mvix and the Rapsody attractive options. Since HD playback turned out to be less then stellar over a wireless connection, the NDAS on the Rapsody is a much more attractive option for those of us who ache for the day when we won't have to hunt for an HD fix.