The problem with media streaming servers is that you're inevitably dependent on your computer to supply all the multimedia content--toast the PC, lose your files and all you're left with is just another expensive piece of dead weight in the living room. Enter the On3 Digital Media Player and Library, the connected home entertainment system from US-based storage experts FIA. A hybrid Network Attached Storage (NAS) device, media server, and AV system rolled into one, this soon-to-release digital decathlete is a self-sufficient multimedia player. Though not a Media Center PC, the On3 can play music/video/images directly from its on-board hard disk or from another PC in the network. Another bonus: With its always-on LAN connection and large capacity, the On3 also serves as a useful backup drive for an entire house.

Upside: FIA touts the On3 as an easy-to-install AV product and is even easier to operate with its supplied remote control. But we're betting that it'll be the unit's cool compact size and bi-directional streaming feature that will snag the wallets of avid downloaders--not only can you watch multimedia content stored on other PCs on your home LAN, you can even download and view media files on the On3's 120GB hard drive as well. The device is both Windows- and Mac friendly and can be connected wirelessly (via 802.11b/g) or by wired Ethernet.

Information on the unit's operating system (OS) is a bit sketchy but FIA has hinted that the On3 is running on a lightweight embedded WinCE OS. This, of course, bodes well for machine boot up time. Some servers--especially Media Center PCs--load torturously slowly compared with standard AV equipment. At the heart of the On3 is an Intel RISC CPU running at 266MHz, enough horsepower for casual stuff like Web and image browsing (JPEG, Bitmap and PNG support is standard). The hardware decodes a variety of video files, namely MPEG 1, 2, and 4, DivX and XviD. In addition, the unit will also play secure video formats such as Apple's MOV and Real's RealMedia.

Audio lovers, too, won't be disappointed by the server's audio capabilities. The On3 supports most of today's popular audio formats including MP3, Ogg Vorbis, AAC and WMA. Plug the On3 to a digital sound receiver and you can also enjoy surround AC3 Dolby Digital audio via the unit's dual--coaxial and optical--SPDIF (Sony-Philips Digital Interface) sockets.

Downside: Despite its encyclopedic feature set, the On3 still lags behind true Media Center PCs in one important department: The former doesn't support video recording. As a pure playback-only system, the On3 doesn't have the Media Center's DVR (digital video recording) function which allows users to record their favorite TV shows onto a hard disk. We don't expect couch potatoes to be auctioning their VHS or DVD recorders after purchasing the On3.

The On3's compact form also means there's no room within its chassis for other peripherals. There's no optical drive for reading DVDs or CDs and the lack of an in-built memory card reader deprives digital photography fans the convenience of copying digital images to the server directly from memory cards.

Other nitpicks: For a US$599 (S$1000) piece of hardware, we'd have expected more AV connectivity options. Newer media devices like Neuston's Virtuoso MC-500 already sport high-quality Scart and DVI connectors, making the On3's video output options--which include component, composite and S-Video sockets--look unimpressively limited.

Outlook: The technologies inside this little box may be out there on the shelves already, but this is the first time anyone's successfully put them all together. If FIA can get any bugs and major issues ironed out before its launch in April, the On3 is likely to give other competing media servers a run for their money.