Like many people I’ve been waiting a long time for a decent PC-on-TV solution that allows you to view and control your PC when sitting in front of your TV. The Icron ExtremeLink PC-on-TV does just that and it actually works extremely well, unlike other products on the market.

Icron’s forte is its wireless USB technology and it has integrated this technology into its ExtremeLink PC-on-TV solution.

The system consists of two boxes, one which hooks up to your PC, and one which hooks up to your TV via HDMI, with some USB connections. You can literally hook up any USB device from a mouse to control the cursor, a webcam, a printer or whatever, and it will work just like you’ve plugged it directly into your PC.

You’re oblivious PC will be none-the-wiser it is being controlled from your living room!

Not a Media Extender like AppleTV

Unlike something like the AppleTV or PopBox it’s not a set top box that allows you to access some media on your PC via a graphical interface – you literally have full access to your PC from your HDTV as if you were using your PC directly.  

As far as I can tell this has created the first PC-on-TV box that actually gives you complete seamless control of your PC from another room using a TV set. I had the opportunity to try it out and it was a seamless experience with little or no noticeable lag.

Other boxes have attempted this like the PC2TV 2020, but they are typically a little rough around the edges and have lag when trying to use a mouse cursor.

The ExtremeLink system can deliver via USB 2.0, Cat 5 cable or wirelessly up to 100m. If wireless is not quite up to speed then you may want to consider using an Ethernet Coax adapter to ensure a super fast connection between your PC and living room.

ExtremeLink Specs:

• HDMI & Component Outputs
• DVI PC Input
• S/PDIF & Analog (RCA) audio at TV
• USB or S/PDIF audio from PC
• 4 USB 2.0 extenders
• Input resolution at PC up to 1680 x 1050
• Output resolution at TV 180p/1080i
• 802.11n at 5GHz
• Support for Windows 7, Vista, XP, MAC & Lunix

Pricing & Availability

Unfortunately the product is not available to buy yet and Icron is looking for a commercial partner which will take on the technology and sell the box under their own brand to a wider market.

A retail price of $299 is expected.

Also See

• The Internetvue PC2TV box to control\watch your PC from your TV
• Media Extenders to watch computer media on a TV
• PC to TV devices on eBay

Icron’s Wiranger uses patented ExtremeUSB technology to extend the reach of a USB device over a Wi-Fi connection.

It uses 802.11g radio to deliver cable free USB functionality meaning you won’t be limited to the length of your USB cable, but rather the 30m range of the Wi-Fi connection.

The WiRanger does not need or use a home network, but instead communicates between two WiRangers as shown in the diagram below:

This will allow you to use USB printers, scanners, isochronous web cams, hard drives, and MP3 players wireless in your home. Pretty much any USB 1.1 and 2.0 device you have can now be used wirelessly.

Given that most new devices typically have wireless functionality built-in the usefulness of this USB extender is limited, but there are certainly practical uses where a device does not already have wireless functionality.

There are plenty of USB hard drives out there that could be transformed into a makeshift Network Attatched Storage (NAS).

The WiRanger operates out of the box. It’s simple plug and play with no additional software needed.

This particular model has 4 ports, although models with fewer ports are available.

Icron USB Products on eBay (various models):

Also See:

• More Media Extenders on WebTVWire
• InternetVue PC2TV Wireless Video Router
•  Searching for more Media Extenders on eBay