Ultra High Performance HDMI Switcher, 3to1 Switch
by Portta
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Our Price: $8.18 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Ultra High Performance HDMI Switcher, 3to1 Switch
Customer Review: XBOX 360 users, This is the one you need!
Summary: 5 Stars
Hey Xbox 360 users! (And everyone else...)
Have you run out of HDMI inputs on your TV?
THEN GET YOURSELF ONE OF THESE!
This is the switch you need!
It even works automatically!
Turn on the Xbox? Bam! It switches to the Xbox.
Turn off the Xbox? Bam! It switches back to what it was before.
(Of course, it will work with up to three HDMI inputs from any source. An automatic Xbox switcher is just the way I'm using it.)
Basically, this switch automatically switches itself to whatever HDMI input has power.
If a new input powers up, it automatically switches to that source.
If the source it is currently using goes off, it automatically switches back to the last input that had power.
It doesn't need any source of power other than that provided by the HDMI cables.
It does have a place where you could hook up a 5V power source but I've never had any use for it whatsoever.
(You'd have to get your own power adapter anyway as it doesn't come with one.)
There is absolutely no signal degradation that I can see.
Looks just like you have a straight cable into the TV.
And the HDMI sockets are nice and tight, too.
They don't feel cheap or anything.
It comes with a sweet little remote control that lets you switch remotely between inputs whenever you need to.
The switch has its own little wired remote sensor that you can hide wherever you need it.
In that way the switch can be back behind all your equipment out of sight.
The remote came with a battery installed and kept fresh by a little plastic strip - just pull it out and your good to go.
No need to even open the battery compartment!
Finally, if you were to lose the remote, the switch does have a button on it to manually change inputs.
There is also a red light that indicates which source it is currently set to.
Again, other than in the remote, this thing uses no batteries at all!
It came in a plain white box with a little instruction pamphlet.
No fancy packaging or anything.
I was truly surprised at just how well this little thing works.
I mean, this little booger only cost me thirteen bucks!
It works so well that I'm surprised it doesn't cost at least twice that. Really.
---Oh, and if you're needing some more HDMI cables? Get these - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003L1ZYYM
I bought a few of these from Amazon when I bought the switch.
These 6.5 ft (2.0 m) cables are extremely high quality and they're only ten bucks!
They're even 3D compatible.
Don't need 3D compatibility?
Well, I say at that price you might as well get the most advanced cables now in case you need it in the future.
I know that at Wal___t right now cables as good as these would easily cost forty dollars. Each.---
Customer Review: Does the job for me, best price could find too!
Summary: 5 Stars
So, I read many reviews on similar units and took my chances on this one....
Heres my current setup and reason for purchasing this product - I have/use the following in my Home Entertainment environment at this time;
1. Toshiba 52" TV (3-HDMIs inputs, 1 went bad 15mo's post purchase - now down to 2inputs avail)
2. A self built custom HTPC 3yrs ago, HDMI output
3. XBox 360 Elite, HDMI output
4. PS3 primarily for BluRay but not bad for games too =), HDMI ouput
5. Wii, no-HDMI
My attempt at following objectives;
1.) planning for 2nd HDMI input to fail on Toshiba TV, making only 1 available
2.) stop changing the TV to 3 different inputs each time manually and
3.) split/extend the PS3 BluRay HDMI to another TV in a different room....
First, this unit does NOT come with a Power Supply...but works just fine in lieu of that.
Also, it has a bright blue LED active HDMI port indicator light that I've found compliments my Entertainment Center, which is a pleasant secondary effect.
Finally, I wanted something to "inexpensively" combine my HTPC, XBox and BluRay into a single HDMI output.
Hence my search for weeks ending in the purchase of this item.
While in use LESS THAN 1 MONTH so far...Its worked perfectly to date, no complaints - yet!
HTPC is HDMI 1 - on at all times, which keeps the HDMI input active at all times - perfect for my situation
PS3 is HDMI 2 - when powering the PS3 on, this product auto switches to that as its input, displaying BluRay to output
XBox is HDMI 3 - once more, when powered on, auto switches to this as input, displaying Xbox to output
When PS3 and XBox are off, the unit auto switches to the HTPC default perfectly
While certainly not a super user/enthusiast who demands excellence of Audio and Video systems, I cannot see any degradation of picture quality nor hearing its sound vs. direct connections without this unit in the middle.
I also EXTEND HDMI over CAT5e converters to another TV 80ft away....this units auto switching and output has been working very well to date, no problems seeing/hearing any of the 3 (HTPC, PS3/BluRay, XBox) on either ends, the local TV or the one 80ft away.
The only thing I cannot comment on nor guarantee, is that it will remain working in 6, 12 or 18 months...but, for the price of $13.80/ea, I bought 2 and have one on standby in the event the active one in use eventually fails.
Also a side benefit, if the TVs 2nd of 3 HDMIs goes bad, this unit will definitely be required providing a tremendous savings vs. buying a new TV.
Here's hoping it lasts long! =)
Customer Review: Exactly what I needed. No complaints
Summary: 5 Stars
I probably did far too much research on HDMI switches, but what I found was that there is not one switch, $20 or $200, that will work with every system and setup. I found reviews of even the top switches where people complained that they didn't work. I was leaning heavily towards getting the 5x1 switcher from Monoprice. However, that device doesn't autoswitch and there were some complaints of incompatibility and that the LEDs were too bright (a minor quibble in my book since the lights can be covered up). That switch was also out of stock when I needed it. I came across this device on Amazon and decided to take a chance on it based on the positive reviews and awesome price!! I love this thing! Setup is a breeze. Just plug your HDMI input cables into one side and the output cable into the other and you're ready to go. You can also plug in the small infrared receiver cable which allows you to keep the device out of sight which for me was a very important consideration. There's just a small IR receiver next to my Xbox now and the switch is back out of sight.
Functionally, this thing just works. I have an Xbox 360 and a Toshiba HD-DVD player plugged into mine and it switches between them effortlessly. When I turn on the xbox, the device automatically switches to input 1. If I leave the xbox on and turn on the HD-DVD player, it automatically switches to input 2. If I then turn off the dvd player, it switches back to the xbox. I don't even need the small remote that is included, but I went ahead and programmed it into my Harmony One anyway (the Harmony software has the device in their database so setup was a breeze---just select Add Device, Amplifier-->Audio/Video Switch, and select Game Infinity as the manufacturer and type in 3x1HDMI Switch. Done.
Picture quality is excellent. I notice no picture degradation or sparklies whatsoever compared to having my devices connected directly to the TV. I was confused why there is an input for power, but a plug isn't included with the device. What I found was, for me, this device does not need to be powered although my cables are fairly short: my cable to my Panasonic plasma is 12 feet long and the cables coming into my switch are just 3 feet long.
I'd give this more than 5 starts if I could. This thing works awesome and the price can't be beat anywhere. It even looks fairly attractive with a glossy finish and nice subtle LEDs, and the HDMI cables plugged in very, very securely.
Customer Review: Great HDMI Switch
Summary: 5 Stars
I received this HDMI switch a few days ago and it works great. When researching it, I tried to find experiences of others with the Roku Netflix player, and I could not find any. So if anybody else wants to know my Roku experience, here it is:
My configuration is as follows: I have a DVD player, a cablebox/DVR, and the Roku player. If you've read the reviews you know that if multiple inputs are always "on", the switch cannot "guess" which one to switch to. In my configuration, the cable box and the Roku are always on.
What I have done is attached the devices in the order shown above - the DVD is "1", the cable box is "2" and the Roku is "3". So when I turn the DVD player on, the switch detects that and switches to DVD mode.
When I turn the DVD off, the switch automatically goes to the second device, which is always the cable box (even if I had been watching the Roku earlier).
The only ways to get to the Roku are to tap the button on the switch, or to use the remote. And that's fine, since I use the Roku much less frequently than the cable box or the DVD player. If it was other way around (use the Roku more than cable), I would just reverse the two devices, and plug the Roku into "2" and the cable into "3".
Speaking of the remote, I had no problem programming my universal remote to simulate the provided HDMI switch remote, so I have filed the provided remote away.
Finally, there is a feature that I don't believe I have seen mentioned in other reviews: the switch itself, and all its ungainly wires (3 input, one output) can be stowed discreetly BEHIND the DVD player or cable box or whatever. In effect it can be invisible. Infrared remotes cannot access hidden components, so they have provided a little mouse-shaped IR receiver, which I have placed on top of my DVD player. It is attached to the hidden switch via a provided cable, and it responds very well to my remote control
One thing I didn't notice was that this purchase included a single 3-foot HDMI cable. Since I didn't notice that I bought one extra cable (from the same Amazon supplier (CE Compass). So if you need cables to go with this switch, remember one comes with it. The extra cables that I got were dirt-cheap and they all seem to work great.
So we're very happy with this little purchase and fully recommend it.
Customer Review: Small package that solves middling problem--and does it well
Summary: 5 Stars
This device solves a problem that is an issue with HD television displays designed when the HDMI standard was being phased in: most of the first sets have a single HDMI port. While this was adequate at the standard's introduction, it no longer suffices as multiple HDMI-equipped devices are now the norm.
This switch does two things: (1) It allows two additional HDMI devices, such as DVD players or DVRs, to be connected to the display; (2) It reduces complexity for the display user.
Some devices have multiple ways of outputting a higher-resolution signal to the display--typically, using red/green/blue component cables to output an analog HD signal in addition to the digital HDMI signal. Older HD displays often provide multiple inputs for the component analog signals, but just one HDMI digital input. For the user, this means switching inputs to watch different devices.
The 3 port switch provides 3 HDMI input connectors, and a single HDMI output connector to the TV display. Thus, any device connected by HDMI is connected by HDMI to the display.
To address the second point (complexity), the switch is "smart." The highest-priority device is connected to port 1. In my setup, this is a TiVo DVR that always outputs power. Lower-priority devices are connected to port 2 (a DVD player in my case) and port 3 (which I'm not using). TiVo always puts out a signal (and low-voltage power) on its HDMI port, so the switch receives the power it needs to operate. If I turn on the DVD player, it sends a signal (and power) out on its HDMI port. The switch senses that, and switches to the DVD port. It will remain on that port until I turn off the DVD player, at which time it switches back to port 1.
This switch has an input for a DC power transformer, but it's unnecessary (and is not included in the package). What IS included is a credit-card-sized remote control to switch manually among inputs, and a small IR receiver that can be placed separately from the switch. This is a nice touch, although again it's unnecessary in my setup.
This device enhances a simple TV/DVD/DVR setup, and I recommend it because it reduces cabling and complexity for someone who just wants to watch TV or a video. It would be unnecessary but still useful for a TV with more HDMI inputs, if one wanted to reduce the steps necessary to switch among devices.