The ShowCenter 200 is designed to help bridge the digital media gap that currently exists between the computer and the TV. In other words, it attempts to solve the problem of how you manage and access your digital content and then get it from your Windows-based PC to rooms where a computer is not located. Building on its successor, the ShowCenter Wireless G, the ShowCenter 200 adds support for HD photos and videos, comes equipped with a USB port for connecting digital cameras, and supports WM9 DRM files. You've got to have a relatively large digital media library and wireless network to get the best from the device, but the ShowCentre 200 is certainly one of the best products of its type.

Pros: TV-style interface; remote; supports HD and WM9 DRM; USB port
Cons: Doesn't support WM lossless; no DVI or RGB video ports


The ShowCentre 200 is Pinnacle Systems latest digital media adapter. The device (roughly the same size as a Freeview decoder) connects directly to a Windows-based computer or to a home network via either a wired 10/100Mbit/s (Gigabit Ethernet not supported) or wireless 802.11g connection (built-in antenna), and streams compatible media files to any television or home entertainment system. The device also includes a front panel USB port so you can connect your digital camera, external drive, or USB drive, a remote control, Ethernet and power cables, as well as easy-to-use media management software, so you're ready to start streaming straight out of the box.

Unlike its predecessor, the ShowCenter Wireless G, the ShowCenter 200 supports high definition (HD) video and photos, significantly enhancing their quality on televisions with HD capabilities. In addition, you can now view HD video in a variety of formats including WMV, AVI, and MPEG and enjoy high quality photos taken with powerful digital still cameras.

The major selling point of the slim-line silver box is that it facilitates the streaming of multimedia files from a network-connected computer to a television or home entertainment system - all via a consumer-friendly remote control. The benefit of this is that you don't have to lug your laptop around your home or office to access compatible files stored on its hard disk, or have the hassle or ripping photos and music onto optical media in order to play on a regular DVD player. The downside is that the ShowCenter uses proprietary software, so some files have to be first converted.

The ShowCenter 200 searches your computer for all stored video (MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-2 VOB, MPEG-4 AVI, Xvid, and WMV9), audio (MP3, MPEG-1 Layer 2, PCM WAV and WMA) and photo files (JPEG, BMP, PNG and GIF), and then organises them by category, giving you a complete overview of all media files on your computer. Unfortunately, WMA files are automatically converted into 192Kbit/s MP3 files (original files are retained), so you can forget about playing back lossless WMA files on your Hi-Fi.

The device doesn't support AAC, Ogg Vorbis or ASF files either, which will disappoint geeks and Mac users alike. Windows Media 9 DRM (digital rights-protected) files are supported however, as well as WM9 HD up to 1080i, WM9 HD up to 1080i with DRM, MPEG-2 HD up to 720p, MPEG-4 HD AVI up to 720p.

All portrait-oriented image files are rotated by 90-degrees as defined in the ShowCenter 200 database. The pictures are optimised on the fly for TV screen display and stored as a copy in JPEG format, preserving the original image file. A software colour correction and flicker filter is selectable from the ShowCenter 200 player.

You can then playback these multimedia files on a larger screen (such as a television) using the supplied infrared remote control, or listen to Internet Shoutcast radio and Windows Media downloads on a home stereo via a broadband connection. The major benefit here is that multiple people, such as friends and family, can view and listen to your multimedia files in the comfort of your living room without having to huddle around a computer monitor or a laptop screen. It's also a relatively neat way to view the mass of DivX video files you may have stored on your laptop.

Unlike some competing products, the ShowCenter 200 includes really intuitive and family-friendly media management software. Pinnacle's MediaManager lets you manage all photo, video and music files with relative ease, and it easily supports large media file collections. There's also integrated CD and DVD burning software for archiving collections or sharing playlists, and you can create playlists, import and export content and browse auto playlists, including Top Rated and Most Played.

A ratings system lets you score your music and photos from zero to five stars in order to generate automatic playlists, you can listen to music without turning on your television (as long as you've got separate speakers), and you can assign radio stations or playlists to individual buttons on the ShowCenter remote. There's also a 'now playing' feature which indicates the current, previous and next song in a list.

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