LG Electronics media streaming snafus

In demos of media streaming technology, LG Electronics is almost there.

Today at CES, LG Electronics has demonstrated how the wonders of digital media could work. The idea — moving content off a server or laptop in your home to a living room device — is sound. Many companies, starting with Netgear as an early innovator and including Apple and D-Link, have tried to make the concept work. Yet, consumer electronics has struggled to embrace the digital realm when it comes to computer files. The LG BD300 player, for example, can stream Netflix movies over the Internet and play local Blu-Ray movies, access content from your TV and play CinemaNow flicks.

On the showfloor, the BD300 was not able to stream a movie over the server. And, while a Netflix movie played over a broadband feed, the selection is still too limited and most movies are in standard-def.

Meanwhile, the wireless technology for the LG wireless televisions is proprietary – it does not work with 802.11n, so you can’t stream content from your router, other devices must be connected to a separate set-top box. The BD300, however, does support 802.11n and LG offers a four-bay network-attached storage device to hold your files.