As I look at the main site the only differences I see is that Live Plus can do netflix and Mediafly. As I am in Canada I do not care about Netflix and dont even know what Mediafly is. So my question is: Would there be any other reasons (Besides the ones mentioned above) to go with WD Live Plus over the cheaper WD Live? Example Live Plus has better playback in certain areas or are there issues with one or the other? Any input would be appreciated.
Also on the same thought bubble. Excluding the obvious benefits from the built in hard drive is there any other benefit to bump up to the WD TV Live Hub? Again referring to compatibility and other issues.
Aside from the DRM content services (NetFlix etc…), the Live and the Live Plus are essentially functionally identical.
The difference is that the chip driving the Live Plus has the DRM provisions for playing protected streams (i.e. NetFlix), whereas the chip driving the Live is the non-DRM version of the same chip. So, in terms of processing, once you take the DRM out of the equation, the chips are identical.
So, the “Live” will never have the ability to play any protected content that requires DRM, while the “Live Plus” will.
At the minute, that basically is limited to just NetFlix and MediaFly, but I suppose the chance exists for WD to add other content providers in the future.
As far as I know, while there might still be some on store shelves, the big stores like Best Buy stopped selling the "Live"s a while ago and only carry the "Live Plus"es now, so that might end up being the deciding factor – even if you don’t care about DRM streams, you might have to end up buying a Live Plus anyways.
Someone else who’s better versed will have to chime in about the Live Hub. I believe, in effect, it’s equivalent to a Live Plus, with a built-in HD and gigabit ethernet, and a dressed-up interface, but driven by the same chip and the same core of firmware code (ie the same files will/won’t play, and the same bugs exist).
… incidentally, the DRM is why the Live Plus was made. Users who had bought a Live had asked WD about NetFlix support. WD found out that they needed to use the DRM-capable version of the processing chip if they wanted to add NetFlix capabilities, so WD was forced to build the Live Plus – they could not merely add NetFlix capability to the Lives, because they didn’t support DRM.
It seems similar user demands are behind the new Live Hub… it adds many features that users have been asking for, like the dressed-up user interface and the movie metadata.
With them being based on the same chip, I wouldn’t completely rule out the possibility of the LiveHub’s UI being back-ported to the Live/Live Plus as a future update, but I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting for it either.
Mediafly and DVD menus are available on the Live when using the Beta firmware, so the only difference is Netflix
