Hi there,
I'm setting up a wireless home entertainment center and I want to be able to play videos from my computer to my television without running wires. I've heard about a few devices like Slingbox and PogoPlug, but which of these would work best for what I want?
neither
Hey cheetofan,
Slingbox is a device that lets you watch your home TV from remote locations through the Internet, so it is not the device for your specific needs. Pogoplug is similar to Slingbox, except it connects to your hard drives and beams your computer data (files, video, pictures) to the Internet, so again, not the device you are looking for.
Instead, what you might look into is something like a USB to VGA adapter, such as the IOGEAR GUW2015VKIT (http://www.iogear.com/product/GUW2015VKIT/) This product will beam video from your computer to your TV. The downside is you still have to control the video via your computer.
Another thing to consider is to look into a home media device connected you your home network and television. Media Center PCs, as well as gaming consoles (like PlayStation and Xbox) can connect to media servers you set up on your computer, then play videos (and control them) from the comfort of your TV room.
Cheers.
HTPC
Just to elaborate a bit more on the Media Center PC, they are also commonly called Home Theater PCs (HTPC) and there are plenty of sites out there helping you to build your own, from picking hardware, installing software, and configuring everything just right.
Here are a few Do-It-Yourself guides to help get you started:
http://www.audioholics.com/tweaks/do-it-yourself-diy-topics/building-a-home-theater-pc-a-targeted-guide
http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1697,2016613,00.asp
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