Use the HTC Media Link HD to share media from the Nokia 808 PureView and GSIII
I know there are very few that think Symbian is good operating system, but I have to say the more I use my new Nokia 808 PureView and discover what it can do, the more I am convinced that more people would like it if they gave it an honest chance. I previously wrote about some innovations Nokia has in Symbian and just discovered a new one last night that I wanted to share. When you realize that new devices are just now adding some of the functionality found in the older Symbian OS, then you start to understand it is a fairly powerful operating system that lacks the flash of iOS and Android.
Check out my screenshot gallery of the Nokia 808 PureView and Samsung Galaxy S III sharing media via the HTC Media Link HD.
I started off my evening trying to get my Nokia 808 PureView to share media via DLNA to my Xbox 360 and then realized I have my Xbox connected to the Internet via an ethernet cable fed through my wall and have no WiFi connectivity with it. I then thought about the HTC Media Link HD I tested out in June and decided to try connecting the PureView to my HD LCD using this device and the Nokia Play To app that lets you share photos, videos, and music via DLNA. I installed the app and it immediately discovered the HTC Media Link HD. The Nokia 808 PureView captures amazing photos and videos and as you can see in my image gallery, I was able to easily view photos and movies on my large TV as well as having the ability to enjoy music streamed to my TV and speaker system. The cool thing about photos is that you are able to zoom in and view the zoomed in window on your TV. Music was also flawless. I did notice a bit of buffering lag with videos, but they are HD videos with excellent sound so maybe this is causing the buffering. My family enjoyed watching last weekend's air show footage on the TV.
I then figured I would try using the Media Link HD to connect the Samsung Galaxy S III to share media via DLNA. It worked via AllShare Play with the ability to share photos, music, videos, and select documents. There was more lag than on the PureView and photos did not look as good as the PureView, obviously, but it was still a decent solution.
Using a device like the HTC Media Link HD, or other DLNA adapter, is a great way to share content from your phone to a large display. You can also use an HDMI cable to output the PureView 808 to a TV, but then you have to stand or sit where the cable can reach. It is very convenient to sit on the sofa and wirelessly control my media output with DLNA and WiFi. Friends and family don't want to crowd around a phone to view content so being able to output it to a large display or TV is a fantastic alternative. Don't forget that I previously wrote how you can also purchase movies from Amazon and then watch them on the big screen via HDMI. This Amazon movie functionality does not work via DLNA as only videos you capture on the phone appear in the Nokia Play To media directory.