Top tips for PlayStation 3 media streaming

The PlayStation 3 isn’t just a freakishly powerful games machine. It’s not just an advanced Blu-ray player either. It’s a fully-fledged hardcore home entertainment hub, ready to stream movies, music and photos from around the house, direct to the living room.

Setting it up is dead easy too. Follow these simple steps and you’ll be exploiting your media library from the comfort of the sofa in no time…

Step 1: Set up streaming
To stream videos and music to your PS3 you’ll need a PC on the same network. Assuming you’re using Wi-Fi, it’s a cinch. Just fire up your PS3, switch on your computer, load Windows Media player, click the arrow under the Library and choose “more options.”

Next, tap into your Library and choose “Configure Sharing.” Tick the box next to “Share my Media” and your computer will search the network for your PS3. Give it a sec and it’ll show up, either as a PlayStation 3, or as an “unknown device”. Click on it, and allow it.

Now return to your PS3, and you’ll find everything stored in the Windows Media Player library is available on your console. Ta da!

Step 2: Codec considerations
While the PS3 will be able to see every file in your Windows Media Player library, it might struggle to play back some specially encoded files, since it has strict rules on the file types it will open (it’s a bit on the fussy side).

If you’re solely planning to watch commonly encoded movies, including DivX and XviD encoded films, you’ll be fine. Be aware, however, that any proprietary formats, or those encoded with Digital Rights Management (DRM) will fail to play for legal reasons.

Step 3: Speed freak
Since you’re streaming media from your computer to the PlayStation 3, the speed of your network is directly linked to the quality you can expect to see. Using the PS3’s built in Wi-Fi will give good results, unless you’re attempting to stream very big movie files.

If you’re experiencing difficulties, consider linking your PC and PS3 using powerline adapters instead. They’ll network the machines using your homes existing power cables. It’ll mean there’s less interference, and much greater speed. Invest in the fastest adapters available, and you could quadruple the speed you’ll get through Wi-Fi.

Must have accessories
Wi-Fi router – You’ll need Wi-Fi to stream content to your PS3. Most broadband providers offer these for free, but if you haven’t already got one, you’ll need a Wi-Fi hub.

External hard drive – If you don’t want to leave your computer running, or lack the network to stream your media, you could always save your media collection to an external hard drive, then plug that into your PlayStation instead. It’s not as slick as streaming media around the house, but it’ll do the job.

PS3 remote – Complete the transformation of PS3 from console to entertainment box with Sony’s infra-red remote. It’ll save you fiddling with a joypad just to pause a film, and means your friends will hardly notice there’s a console at the heart of your entertainment set-up.

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