Digital Home Thoughts: Asus O!Play Air is for Play

"The O!Play includes many of the features we'd expect to find in a media player: support for HD resolutions, HDMI 1.3 with LPCM HD audio support and h.264/mkv playback. It's a small, fanless device with a smart looking design. However, when you pick it up, the design is let down by a greasy plastic outer surface."

The media player market is awfully crowded these days. It seems as if everyone wants a piece of the pie. ASUS made its entry earlier with the original O!Play, but has updated his player with a wireless version. While I think this is great from a convenience stand point, I always have concerns with wireless when it comes to data transfer sensitive applications like HD Movies. The O!Play Air seems to have quite a bit going for it, though there are a few dings listed in the review that would prevent me from picking one up. As the market matures, I begin to wonder if these standalone devices will be able to stand up against solutions from cable and satellite providers, or even more traditional solutions like Windows Media Center, or even iTunes with an iPod. Still, they are quite cheap, and could act as a bridge before someone is ready to take the leap into something more serious.