IAdea HMP-505S User Manual - page 11
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Appendix 1: Troubleshooting and FAQ
What is a firmware? Should I upgrade my media player to the latest firmware version?
Firmware is the system software that makes the hardware work. For example, your personal
computer stores its firmware (called built-in operating system or BIOS) on a chip in its motherboard.
Usually firmware updates provide bug fixes or adds new features to the system.
IAdea does not recommend installing firmware updates unless it addresses a critical operation flaw,
outlined in each firmware's release notes. Since upgrades involve erasing an old firmware and
replacing it with a newer one, a failed firmware upgrade will leave you without a working system
software, rendering the device unusable. Therefore you should exercise caution when upgrading the
firmware, and be ready to send the player back for repairs (under warranty terms) should failure
occur.
How can I perform a proper firmware update?
IAdea player firmwares are upgraded via the browser configuration interface, as described in the
manual. When you click on the “Update Firmware” button in the configuration web page, the BIOS
files you acquired from IAdea are copied to its destination device and then used to initiate updates.
The process takes from a few seconds to a few minutes, during which time you
should keep the
power plugged in
. Look for on screen display (OSD) for the “upgrade successful” message.
Could it play Flash, or MS PowerPoint Presentation file?
PC could play all formats, since each different media player software already reside in your PC. RISC-
based Media Player only could play a limited of video formats. (Please see spec for details). While,
MS PowerPoint native file could not play directly on a RISC-based player, if the file is converted thru
other software (i.e. Adfotain Manager Express) into a correct format, the converted file could be
played on a RISC-based player.
Why won’t some media files play smoothly?
The video bit-rate may be too high. The bit-rate is the amount of video or audio data used per second
to store or play the contents, usually expressed in Mbps (mega-bits per second). Video encoded with
excessive bit-rates will not playback smoothly in the media player. Recommended bit rates for
standard definition players (IAdea CMP-100S or NMP-200U) is 3~6 Mbps, while for high-definition
video media players (IAdea HMP series) the recommended bit rate is 5 ~ 8 Mbps. You can try using a
faster CF card or recompressing unplayable video files at lower bit rates using the free and open
source Handbrake tool at
http://handbrake.fr/
. Once you have found the right output settings for
size and quality, save them in Handbrake profiles for future use. Then you can easily recompress any
unplayable files you encounter in the future.
Why won’t some media files play at all?
Even though IAdea player license and conform strictly to industry standard video formats, sometimes
videos you acquire may fall outside of the compatibility matrix. When files play on your PC but not on
your player, you should recompress the file to ensure playback. For greatest compatibility, we
recommend outputting to the MPEG2 format (3 to 5 Mbps bit-rate) for standard-definition players
(IAdea CMP-100S or NMP-200U), and the WMV HD format (5 to 8 Mbps bit-rate) for high-definition
video media players (IAdea HMP, XMP series). You can try recompressing unplayable video files with
recommended file formats and bit rates using the free and open source Handbrake tool at
http://handbrake.fr/
. Once you have found the right output settings for size and quality, save them in
Handbrake profiles for future use. Then you can easily recompress any unplayable files you
encounter in the future.
The media playback looks different on PC than on media player’s screen. (Wrong aspect
ratio)
There are 2 major aspect ratios (width-to-height ratios) for video content, but many kinds of displays.
If you play 4:3 video on a 16:9 display (or vice versa), a circle becomes oval, and the picture takes on
a squeezed or stretched look. To avoid this distorted look, adding black bars are a common technique.