Netgear Push2TV first look

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Wouldn’t it be nice to simply touch a button and have whatever is on your laptop screen fill the grand vista of your widescreen TV in glorious high definition?

 

The Netgear Push2TV HD, along with a suitably equipped, Intel-powered laptop, allows you to do just this - giving you video streaming at up to 1080p resolution.

The Push2TV HD is the second generation of this media-streaming device, which makes use of Intel’s WiDi (wireless display) technology to create a direct wireless link between your laptop and your TV.

 

As well as simplicity, there's also the advantage of not needing to stream via your home network or media hub, saving your Wi-Fi bandwidth for other uses.

We tried out the Push2TV HD with a WiDi-enabled HP Pavilion DV6-6135TX laptop and found it easy to set up and use – easier, in fact, than some DLNA products we’ve tested. We connected the Push2TV HD box to a TV via HDMI (a composite connection is also available).

 

The first time you launch the WiDi software on the laptop, it prompts you for a four-digit code displayed on the TV. After you enter the code, the wireless link is complete – that’s pretty much all there is to it. We tested the device with:

 

CHOICE had no problems with video quality. There was a small amount of lag during intensive game play and on some 1080p video, but nothing worth worrying about.

 

You can also display different content on the TV while the laptop is in use (with the screen display set to extend mode).

The Push2TV is small and thus very portable, and has huge potential. But remember it needs a WiDi-capable laptop to use it, and these have only been hitting retail shelves in the latter half of this year. There are other ways to stream digital content to your TV (see our previous test of media hubs), but if you do have a WiDi-capable laptop, the Push2TV is a particularly simple and effective device.