Popcorn Hour Owners Thread (All Models)

[ananth_mk]

while continue enjoying my latest PCH C 200....got strike to this 'Info' button query...

On watching my HD movies from my internal HDD drive.... tried 'Info' button on remote and notice the resoultion details.. like 1280x544 and the video clarity is obvious better than DVD and closer to BD quality in my sony 46" tv ( still that 1920x1080 is what i expect to enjoy fullHD ;( )

doubt query is: Is that resoultion detail shown 1280x544 on PCH 'Info' message can be considered authentic info. even though the ripped movie file formats are either mkv or m2ts ???

 

[gevarghe]

while continue enjoying my latest PCH C 200....got strike to this 'Info' button query...

On watching my HD movies from my internal HDD drive.... tried 'Info' button on remote and notice the resoultion details.. like 1280x544 and the video clarity is obvious better than DVD and closer to BD quality in my sony 46" tv ( still that 1920x1080 is what i expect to enjoy fullHD ;( )

doubt query is: Is that resoultion detail shown 1280x544 on PCH 'Info' message can be considered authentic info. even though the ripped movie file formats are either mkv or m2ts ???

The mkv is 720p and the 544 means that the ripper cropped the black bars (standard practice) as there's no "useful" information there

 

[srinisundar]

Hey ananth_mk I'm glad this worked out for you The firmware is exactly same between A210 and C200 so you should be able to go to this path : setup>Maintenance>NMT Setup Wizard>Media Select>SATA_HDD_A1. After Reboot while loading PCH will show " SATA_HDD_A1 is Share folder" or something like that. Now any downloads will directly go to your HDD rather USB drive.

Try NMJ's flash movie wall, its really good. But not good as XMBC but it better than having to go through the file structure. "How To" is available in their Wiki, if you need any help pls let me know.

I am trying to install YAMJ (Yet another Musci Jukebox) in my PCH, its hell of task and needs lot of time. I was successful but still not able to change the default skin to Aeon (very similar to XMBC)....you can do so many things with PCH !!!

A210/200 Owners: When I bought A210 I was little worried that it doesn't support full BD menu only BD lite. I remember having a chat with George regarding this. But in their latest firmware update they have give full BD support to A210 and 200. I ripped my Matix collection to full BD folder structure and not only PCH played beautifully i was able to access complete BD menu !!!!! PCH rocks

I installed YAMJ thru my Vista based laptop and it went as breeze, no issues... However it could not verify the movie details due to incorrect file name i have given for around 20 to 25 movies out of 600 to 700 movies. I have various movie from Telugu, Hindi, English and Tamil and it could pick the exact wall paper of the movie and also the details. Just to add it took around 6 hrs to 7hrs to access movie files and to install jukebox.

I am yet to change the skin to Aeon, may be after fixing the pending movie files i can do it tonight or tomorrow.

 

[manny9]

Yeah its better to have the names according to YAMJ naming standards. It's a Java based application and its very slow in scraping movie info, fan art and other pics from internet. Just with standalone YAMJ it was ok, but with Aeon its extremely slow to the point of frustration.

Did some digging in the internet and they all advice to use a NFO editor. So downloaded YANFOE (Yet Another NFO Editor) and it took 10 min to build NFOs and download movie fan art YAMJ with Aeon skin used to take hours.

Once it builds the NFO it places them in the movie folder and ran YAMJ with "scarp movie info" property to false. YAMJ finished building its database (XMLs) in 20 min Aeon skin is really beautiful.

I found wonderful guide to use YANFOE : Documentation / Guide READ FIRST

Try it , this is the best way , don't use YAMJ to scarp stuff from imdb , it takes too much time....

 

[manny9]

I think the resolution information PCH displays is accurate. At least for the few movies I verified. There is a tool called Media Info for PCs which gets information regarding resolution, audio tracks etc., and most the ripping software use this tool. So I am guessing PCH should have some similar program . Best way verify is to download Media info and compare the results with PCH For blurays there is a tool called BD Info.....

 

[GeorgeO]

Manny9

I am waiting to hear about the Music Jukebox software that you mentioned earlier. Is it up and running yet on your PCH?

Thanks

 

[manny9]

Hi George, Didn't try any 3rd music jukebox yet but i did try PCH's NMJ. This is pretty decent and it lets you create playlist and stuff. Its easy to set up....Once your in the file structure mode in your internal/external media HDD press the Green button for music in the remote, similarly its red button for movies. BEFORE you press the button make sure the internet is connected. when you do this an alert will be displayed that the NMJ is being built. It will take sometime, it will connect to internet and will try to fetch album covers for the music. Sometimes it accurate and sometimes not. Once done there will be a wall display in flash.

You can find NMJ and apps market guide here : http://www.networkedmediatank.com/wiki/images/d/d1/Apps_Market_&_NMJ_Guide.zip

NMJ is basic for music and i will see if anything better is out there, will keep you posted

 

[citylife]

Received my A-210 y'day evening from DHL. Also bought a 2TBWestern Digital AV-GP WD20 EURS from Nehru Place. Yet to open the PCH box.... fearing long learning curve :lol:

 

[gvsriks]

Received my A-210 y'day evening from DHL. Also bought a 2TBWestern Digital AV-GP WD20 EURS from Nehru Place. Yet to open the PCH box.... fearing long learning curve :lol:

How much did the complete A-210 cost including customs if any, guess you got it directly shipped from their website?

 

[citylife]

How much did the complete A-210 cost including customs if any, guess you got it directly shipped from their website?

Yes, i ordered directly from website.

PCH A-210: US$ 199.99
Shipping & handling by DHL : US$ 70.00
Money paid to DHL at delivery time inclusive of customs duty : Rs. 1968.00

package shipped on 8th July morning from Hong Kong. Custom cleared and delivered at home on 11th July evening (10th July, Sunday, was a holiday for DHL).

 

[citylife]

The WD internal HDD i bought from Nehru Place last week did not work when attached to A-210. It kept on making clicking sounds for 1 minute or so on each power on while the TV screen stuck to "Setting up....". Then i attached the HDD to a friend's desktop. Same result. So i've created a RMA for WD. They'll pick it up on 17th and probably take another 10 days to send in a replacement (if at all they replace it :sad

Meanwhile i'm interested in buying an external 2TB HDD (preferably Seagate). Please give your suggestions which one is to go for. Thanks in advance.

 

[srinisundar]

The WD internal HDD i bought from Nehru Place last week did not work when attached to A-210. It kept on making clicking sounds for 1 minute or so on each power on while the TV screen stuck to "Setting up....". Then i attached the HDD to a friend's desktop. Same result. So i've created a RMA for WD. They'll pick it up on 17th and probably take another 10 days to send in a replacement (if at all they replace it :sad

Meanwhile i'm interested in buying an external 2TB HDD (preferably Seagate). Please give your suggestions which one is to go for. Thanks in advance.

Check this for an guide..

A-200/A-210 Compatibility Lists - NMTWiki

 

[citylife]

Check this for an guide..

A-200/A-210 Compatibility Lists - NMTWiki

Thanks. I have that compatibility list but there is no recommendation for a 2TB external HDD. That Wiki list seems to be a very old one since now people are trying to use even 3TB USB drives.

 

[manny9]

Hi, if anyone is planning to order PCH from their website , you can try Aramex shop and ship it might be cheaper than ordering directly from them. There is a big thread on Aramex in this forum....

 

[gvsriks]

Hi, if anyone is planning to order PCH from their website , you can try Aramex shop and ship it might be cheaper than ordering directly from them. There is a big thread on Aramex in this forum....

How much would it cost for PCH A-210 through Aramex? Guess we need to pay membership cost for Aramex and we need to account that as well.

 

[manny9]

Yeah u need to member of Aramex which $35 life time if i'm not wrong. But they keep giving some coupons , i registered for $5, checkout the detailed thread in this forum...but its not always cheaper getting through Aramex...you need to take case by case decision...

 

[citylife]

I've NMT applications on USB pen drive and attached 2TB USB Seagate external drive for media. I've been able to install YAMJ and play movies from same (awesome).

Now i want to use NMJTool box. I cannot find the DB files for using the toolbox. If anyone has used this tool to edit YAMJ data, please explain how to build NMJ database, including how to use ToNMJDB.

 

[ravi_rn]

Folks,
What is the basic difference between popbox, A200/210 and C200 models?

Thanks,
Ravi

 

[GeorgeO]

Check their website they have a comparison table.Offhand I dont recall the differences.

 

[Brajendu]

Friends... I 'm planning to buy the cheapest one "Popcorn Hour A-200" its $150 in their website. What will be the major 'deficiency' in this model? .. I just wanna play HD/BR ISO movies, MKV/MP4 movies store in my pen drive or 1TB external storage.

I can tell my friend from USA to bring it for me. But will he have to pay anything extra to the custom? I'm sorry, I never ordered anything from abroad, so no knowledge on this front. Kindly advise me...