Back in the days when I was picking out my first DVD player I was so up to date with all the set-top box and media player manufacturers. But today? Now when every $60 Samsung and Sony Bluray player plays back all kinds of files.. where are those companies that are leading the market?I had to do some research.I found there some promising and reasonably priced products from a handful of manufacturers out there.Sadly xoro - the brand that I gave my money for a decent dvd player - seems not to play a leading role in the media player space nowadays.But when you look closely there maybe some promising options out there:

• Western Digital makes WD Live TV which is a decent sub $100 player
• The Popcorn Hour A-300 and A-400 seem like solutions for the better off with a heft of ports and price tag of >$200
• I quite liked the mid-range Dune D1 frome dune-hd and Xtreamer Prodigy boxes. They cost between $100 and $200 and they both seem really capable with a huge software package