San Francisco — They are the latest in digital home entertainment, so new we're not even sure what to call them:
Internet-enabled boxes you connect to your stereo system, TV and home network that are designed to play MP3s and Internet radio as well as host your music collection.
The three I tried come close perhaps another year of tweaks are required to the convergence the consumer electronics industry has been promising for years.
Compaq's iPAQ Music Center ($1,000), Hewlett Packard's Digital Entertainment Center ($1,000), and ZapStation ($1,500) from ZapMedia all accept MP3 files from personal computers and, with varying limitations, the Internet. All three rip tracks directly from CDs and display on-screen guides on your TV.
The ZapStation comes equipped with a DVD-ROM, while the HP unit has a CD burner.
In addition, the ZapStation was the only unit of those reviewed that allows you to visit nonproprietary Web sites and download media files provided no extra software is required.
Setting up the iPAQ was easy, but it was a real pain entering text with a phone pad-like design on the remote control. How do you spell "Help?"
I connected to the Internet using the iPAQ's 56 Kbps modem and an EarthLink account. Because of the proprietary browser Compaq uses for online interaction, the iPAQ does not support CompuServe, America Online and free Internet service providers.
The Compaq unit offers PC networking through HomePNA, slower than Ethernet because it uses home phone lines. Compaq actually recommends connecting directly to an Ethernet network through a USB dongle (sold separately by Belkin for $15).
Equipped with a 20-gigabyte hard drive, the iPAQ preprograms some free Internet radio stations and a few song tracks. Wanting better music, I popped in Madonna's "Ray Of Light" CD. The cover art popped up on my television, along with a track list downloaded from the Internet. I ripped and encoded three songs into MP3 format in less than two minutes.
MP3 ripping, sound quality and quick playlist editing are the iPAQ's strong points. Text entry and poor Internet radio selections are the pitfalls.
IPAQ uses OpenGlobe's operating system to scan your PC's hard drive and access the Internet. It recognizes any music you've downloaded and automatically stores the information.
But the pre-loaded stations were either unavailable or just plain bad a symptom of Internet radio's current travails and there was no way to program in my favorite Internet radio stations.
Next was HP's de100c, a sleek unit powered by the Linux operating system.
HP gets high marks for easy installation and start-up instructions, quick on-screen response to remote control commands and a nifty pop-up on-screen keyboard for text entry.
This unit has a 40-gigabyte hard drive, enough for nearly 10,000 four-minute songs encoded in MP3 format, and most audio functions are performed by RealPlayer and RealJukebox software.
The home screen lets you survey your existing music library on the hard drive or go directly to Internet radio links. Good on-screen menus make finding ripped or transferred music easy.
After networking my DSL connection to the unit with Ethernet cable, registering the de100c and some configuration, transferring files from PC-to-unit was equally simple.
By the time I got back to the room with the HP unit, the songs were on it and ready to play through my living room stereo speakers.
ZapStation, also powered by Linux and equipped with a 30-gigabyte hard drive, has got nice menus, easy setup instructions and a browser that allows you to visit Internet radio sites like Shoutcast and Live365 and bookmark links.
It's also the only unit of the three with a keyboard a wireless version that makes text entry for registration and playlist editing a snap.
Once I shared my DSL connection to the machine, ZapStation offered news headlines courtesy of USA Today and I could sample music through MP3.com.
There's also a video library section and ZapStation can play back downloaded video files as well as DVD content.
ZapStation's browser was less than elegant. It's easy to lose track of what's highlighted.
And transferring music from a PC required too many steps for my taste. I had to go to a screen on the TV that prompts the download; go to the PC to launch a Web browser and then enter a Web address, user name and password.
I trudged back to the room with the ZapStation and started the transfers and I'm now too tired to listen.
The actual transfer was quick, though: five songs took 10 seconds. A full album took just under 30 seconds.
So who's the big winner?
Hewlett Packard for ease of use, smooth networking and stylish design (What happens to the iPAQ if the companies merger goes through?). For those keen on video and Internet browsing outside the walled gardens Compaq and HP offer ZapStation has potential.
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