Networked Media Device (Windows CE 5.0)
As the price of storage has dropped, consumers have converted more and more of their media library into digital form. For years customers have managed this library with Microsoft Media Player, and more recently the Windows Media Center PC has allowed them to add recorded video, pictures and home movies to that database. As these customers have become more comfortable with digital media, they have found a need to listen to and view that media in other locations in the house where a PC might not be practical or cost effective.
A Networked Media device (NMD), along with a Windows Media Connect (WMC) server, is a solution to this problem. If you have your media stored on a WMC media server (perhaps the Windows Media Center PC in the family room), you can still play that media in the living room or kitchen using a Networked Media Device.
The NMD displays a listing of the contents of the media server and allows the customer to browse and play that media over a wired or wireless network.
You can customize the functionality of the NMD to support any combination of audio, video and still pictures. An NMD can be a standalone device that only plays back media found on the network, or it can be an integrated component of a device with additional media capabilities, such as a networked DVD player, or an IP set-top box.
The NMD described here is a Windows Media Connect (WMC) client. Connections between an NMD and a PC over the network are managed through the UPnP framework established by WMC. This NMD also supports playback of audio, still images, and video content that is protected with Windows Media DRM 10 for Network Devices.
An OEM can modify the sample provided here to support other standards (such as DLNA) and other third-party UPnP media servers.
NMD End User Scenarios
The following figures show two possible user scenarios.
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In this scenario, one Windows Media Connect (WMC) server is connected to a wireless home network. The Networked Media Device (NMD) is also wireless, and connects to the media server via UPnP over the wireless network.
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In this scenario, the Networked Media Device (NMD) is connected to a wired home network. There are two Windows Media Connect (WMC) media servers located on the local network, and both are available to the NMD.
In either scenario, the NMD will recognize any WMC media servers located on the local wired or wireless network.
The following figure shows the suggested structure of a Networked Media Device using the Feature pack.
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NMD Hybrid devices
A NMD may be combined with other functionality to form hybrid devices. Some examples are listed below.
NMD + DVD
- NMD + Local Media Player
These devices play media over the network, and also play local media from DVD or local media storage (Hard disk and memory cards).
NMD + DVR
NMD + DVR + DVD recorder
These devices play media over the network, and also record media to storage (Hard disk). Adding a DVD recorder allows recorded media to be archived to DVD.
See Also
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