Dreamscreen and DLNA UPNP servers other than Windows Media Player

[brhamilt]

Has anyone gotten a UPNP or DLNA server other than Windows Media Player to work?

I have tried about 6 or 7 different ones googled on the net (Twonkey media, etc) with no luck in finding one that works.  I already have a NAS server set up that I use to send media to my PS3, Xbox360, etc, so I want to use that for the dreamscreen as well.

I dont see the point of having to leave a windows computer on all the time just for photos and music.

Also, just for future reference, I'd love to be able to listen to pandora while doing a Facebook slideshow, in case anyone is listening!

Love the product, but the software needs some work.

[konk6i3]

As of today, WMP is the only source for PC streaming to the DreamScreen.

Cheers,

[brhamilt]

For reference, Twonkey Media was the closest to working. I used the Windows Media approximators in it's advanced device settings, and was able to get the Dreamscreen to see the server and browse high level directories. When I got to the bottom level of a directory where music files resided, the Dreamscreen would lock up, requiring a hard reset. (i was using the latest twonky available, 5. something.)

The firmware updates have really helped the usability of the Dreamscreen, and operation is much smoother.

The DLNA / UPNP issue is big for me, though.  Some of the previews / reviews for the device apparently were not policed well by HP's marketing dept.  Lots of them state DLNA UPNP compliance, but on the box and in the manual and in operation of the device, it's not really compliant (not stating compliance is the same as non-compliance). That is really the only thing I am majorly dissappointed about.

All I am using the device for at the moment is a bedroom pandora radio. I dont have enough time to create special versions of files and manually copy to the device, or to move all my 10MP photos to snapfish. I have low res pics on facebook though, but I have to jump through hoops for audio for a slideshow.  I already had a transcoding capable DLNA / UPNP server, which I thought was enough. Ooops.

Hp seems to be supporting the device, which is great. But to be a convergence device, it has too many limitations right now, and convergence is about freedom. I love the hardware though, and it is awesome as a Pandora radio. Beats the heck out of tying up my laptop for Pandora.

Edit:

Just reverted to Twonky Server 4.4.18 --- tell twonky to treat the dreamscreen as an xbox360 and it will stream music... photos are not the proper resolution, however...

Edit2:

4.4.18 does work with pictures, but you have to strip out the Exif data.  This isnt a big deal to me because my originals are in seperate storage.  I was not using the exif data for anything in any of the pictures on my NAS.  So I think I have found a solution to help me.  Music does not display album art however... but this is a minor annoyance until HP can get something going or maybe I can find a workaround.

This makes me like my dreamscreen much more... but I shouldnt have had to do all this myself.

Message Edited by brhamilt on 11-19-2009 08:33 PM

Message Edited by brhamilt on 11-19-2009 10:47 PM

Message Edited by brhamilt on 11-19-2009 10:50 PM

[PhilSp]

What about sharing photos and music from a HP MediaSmart Server to the Dreamscreen.  I can't seem to get this to work.  I have sharing turned on through the MediaSmart Server but my Dreamsceen still complains that it's not setup as a shared device through WMP. 

[jotsbox]

I also have this issue.

It seems to me that the HP Mediasmart Server aka "The heart of your digital life" should work with HP's DreamScreen aka "Your Life. It's On."

Additionally, a true DLNA unit should work with Windows 7 "play to" feature.

@HP - Are you going to make good on this?

[brucej]

How bad is that?? Whats the point of making a product which NEARLY uses a standard, but doesn't quite?? The fact that someone has almost got it going with a DLNA server suggests that this has all the basics in place, so whats going on? Very poor HP...