Western Digital WD TV HD Media Player

866 reviews

Apr, 2024

Positive
usability (461)
price (158)
performance (146)
size (88)
portability (69)

Negative
sound (94)
reliability (32)
battery (6)

General overview
Price comparison

alaTest has collected and analyzed 866 reviews of Western Digital WD TV HD Media Player. The average rating for this product is 4.1/5, compared to an average rating of 4.2/5 for other products in the same category for all reviews. Comments about the portability and size are overall positive. The price and performance are also mentioned favorably. Some have doubts about the battery and reliability. There are mixed opinions on the storage and sound.

usability, performance, price, size, portability

reliability, battery

We analyzed user and expert ratings, product age and more factors. Compared to other products in the same category the Western Digital WD TV HD Media Player is awarded an overall alaScore™ of 91/100 = Excellent quality.

Review analysis

(Based on 866 reviews)

Expert Reviews

User Reviews

Review Ratings

(49% of reviews)
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Showing 1 - 393 of 702 Show Reviews: in English | in other languages (164)

Consumer review (amazon.com)

Amazon.com review summary for Western Digital WD TV HD Media Player

alaTest has collected and analyzed 383 user reviews of Western Digital WD TV HD Media Player from Amazon.com. The average user rating for this product is 3.8/5, compared to an average user rating of 4.1/5 for other products in the same category on Amazon.com. Reviewers are impressed by the portability and size. The price and performance also get good reviews, whereas many are less positive about the battery and reliability. There are some mixed opinions about the memory and sound.

usability, performance, price, size, portability

reliability, battery

80% of the reviews on Amazon.com give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Expert review by : John Marrin (wired.com)

Review: Western Digital WDTV Live Hub

Media streamers typically don't have a fat 1-TB hard drive attached. This one does.

It’s a streamer! It’s a server! Robust format support. USB keyboard compatible. Extremely easy to set up, especially remote-admin features. A/V quality is sharper than Carl Sagan’s intellect. Simple and responsive interface. 1080p resolution: Suck it,...

You can only search and browse for content on one device at a time. Cables and full manual not included. No built-in Wi-Fi and no Hulu support? We no like. Online streams can be slow to start. Some features can get buried in backwater sections of menu....

Nov, 2010

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Expert review by (cnet.com)

Western Digital TV HD Media Player

Editors' note (July 22, 2010): The rating of this product has been changed slightly since its initial publication to reflect changes in the marketplace. See the review of the Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex TV for comparison.

Network digital media streamer; Netflix, MediaFly, Flickr, MediaFly, and Pandora Radio built-in; Live365 channel; YouTube channel; HDMI out; two USB ports; digital optical audio out; quick, easy-to-use interface; includes composite and component wires.

No Wi-Fi--separate accessory required.

If you don't already own an Xbox 360, PS3, or Blu-ray player and you're serious about networked streaming, the WD TV Live is one of your best choices for getting content to your TV.

Jun, 2010

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Expert review by : David Carnoy (cnet.com)

WD TV HD Media Player (winter 2009) review

There's an interesting new niche market developing in the media player arena as storage companies like Western Digital, SanDisk, and Iomega look for a way to tap the growing number of consumers who have multimedia files stored on their computers and...

Compact adapter allows for playback of USB-based multimedia files on TV; reads a lot of file formats; both HDMI and composite video connections; able to connect up to two mass USB storage devices at one time via side- and rear-mounted USB ports; up to...

Couldn't play back audio on some files; no networking capabilities; eSATA, FireWire, or flash media reader options would've been nice as well.

While it isn't infallible, the Western Digital WD TV HD Media Player plays back a wide array of audio, video, and image files on your TV without the need for a computer.

Feb, 2009

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Expert review by : Tim Gideon (pcmag.com)

Western Digital WD TV HD Media Player

The WD TV HD Media Player shuns wireless streaming; instead you use it to make your media portable via USB drives.

Affordable. Excellent file supportincluding for HD video and lossless audio codecs. Simple, intuitive user interface. Includes file-conversion software.

No wireless streaming. Doesn't include a USB drive. Unremarkable physical design.

More Media Hub Reviews: Nvidia Shield TV (2017) DirecTV Now Google Chromecast Ultra Amazon Fire TV Stick With Alexa Voice Remote Roku Ultra more

Dec, 2008

Partner Source

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Expert review by : Michael Brown (maximumpc.com)

Western Digital TV HD Media Player

Western Digital's WD TV HD Media Player is missing two components commonly found in digital media players: a display and storage. What the device does have is two USB ports, HDMI and composite video outputs, digital and analog audio outputs, and the...

Supports a host of popular media formats, codecs, and containers

Awful DAC; doesn’t support DivX, WMA Lossless, or any encrypted media

Speaking of music, the WD TV supports almost all the popular file and container formats, including AAC, FLAC, MP3, Ogg, and WAV. We do wish, however, that it supported WMA Lossless. The player displays album art and artist, album, and track name...

Mar, 2009

Partner Source

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Expert review by : Calvin (pinoytechblog.com)

WD TV HD Review - PinoyTechBlog - Philippines Tech News and Reviews

The WD TV HD is a multimedia box that allows you to view images, audio…

Oct, 2010

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Expert review by : Andreas Ødegård (anythingbutipod.com)

WD TV HD Review

The time where home theatre computers and expensive media boxes were the only ways of getting content onto your TV is over, and the market is filled with cheap solutions that will let you play music, photos and videos on your TV. One of the cheapest...

Nov, 2009

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Expert review by : Androski Matthew (techwarelabs.com)

Western Digital TV HD Media Player

Western digital describes it as a “ High-definition multi-media adapter ”

In the beginning I was genuinely curious if the WDTV would live up to my expectations. To my enjoyment the WDTV turned out to be pretty awesome with lots of great features for a reasonable price (around $100.) My only real desire for this device would...

Sep, 2009

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Expert review by : Michael Kwan (futurelooks)

Western Digital WD TV HD Media Player

As much as I like my trusty little laptop, I'd much prefer to watch my HD movies on my HDTV. That much makes sense, but when you get the majority ...

Fantastic file format support ; Incredibly small form factor ; Great-looking user interface ; HDMI, dual USB, and optical audio out

Remote has strange transmission problems ; No wireless (or even wired) streaming ; No included storage ; MOV file did not play audio (codec issue?)

Interestingly, I found that there are absolutely no buttons or controls on the set top box itself. You can’t even turn it on, as far as I can tell, from the media player. Instead, absolutely everything is controlled by the remote. I guess it’s a good...

Jul, 2009

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Expert review by : Jesse Corbeil (askmen.com)

WD TV HD Media Player

Slingbox it ain't, nor it is a real competitor for Apple TV -- but we love the simplicity of the WD TV.

The company formerly known as Western Digital enters the set-top box game with a cool gadget aimed at people with a lot of downloaded content. Slingbox it ain’t, nor is it a real competitor for the Apple TV box. In fact, it doesn’t even have built-in...

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