You may remember me getting a bit upset by Paul Thurrott’s dismissal of the new generation of Extenders for Windows Media Center. Basically he said the extenders were no better than the old models and they were not worth looking at. I totally disagreed with that and it looks like Paul may have softened his stance on them. This week he has reviewed the Extenders from HP, Linksys and D-Links and seems to like the HP Extender the most (which is not surprising given it’s the most expensive)
The HP MediaSmart Connect is the best Media Center Extender on the market today and it features excellent non-Extender functionality through its vibrant and professional looking MediaSmart interface as well. This interface provides access to USB- and Pocket Media Drive-based content, as well as content found on your home network, on PCs and other compatible connected devices, as well a small but growing list of online services. It's hard to overstate how much nicer the HP MediaSmart Connect experience is than that which you get with other Extenders. The hardware is better, the software is better, and the overall experience is just superior. No, the HP isn't perfect. But in the world of Media Center Extenders, it's the sweet spot. Highly recommended.
Checkout his reviews on WinSupersite.com