Peter Near compares Media Center Extenders

XBox or HP?

I personally believe that the XBox is the perfect client for Windows XP Media Center Edition, and have been pushing for this option for years. I was ecstatic when I found out that the Extender for XBox was in development.

I’m now lucky enough to own both the HP x5400 and more recently Extender for XBox, and have spent some time comparing the two.

This is a very thorough review that should answer most of your questions if you’ve been thinking about integrating a Media Center PC into your home entertainment system. For what it’s worth, I have the Linksys extender, and it is identical in function to the HP model that Peter writes about. I highly recommend it.