Gateway's connected DVD player merges plug-and-play networking capabilities with the latest in home-theater technology so you can stream your music, photo, and video files from a Windows-based PC in the study right to your living-room entertainment system. The progressive-scan-capable player is fully compatible with DVD-Video, CD, VCD/SVCD, Kodak Picture CD, and recordable discs full of JPEG, MP3, or WMA (Windows Media Audio) files, so you can still enjoy its authoritative features even if you're not inclined to use the networking feature just yet.

Whether your living room is currently home to an HDTV or you're merely thinking of "someday," the Gateway player stands ready to deliver the full potential of your DVDs. Progressive scanning, referred to as 480p for the number of horizontal lines that compose the video image, creates a picture using twice the scan lines of a conventional DVD picture, giving you higher resolution and sharper images while eliminating nearly all motion artifacts.

The player's rear panel sports a single PC Card slot (also referred to as PCMCIA) for wired or wireless access to a Windows-based home network. Basic networking requirements consist of a computer with a 700 MHz or faster Pentium processor running Microsoft Windows 98 SE or higher with a network connection, 20 MB free hard-drive space, 128 MB RAM, and Gateway's specially made 802.11g DVD card, which can be used in either a wired or a wireless configuration. The 802.11g DVD card, which comes with the DVD player, uses the 54 Mbps wireless networking standard, making it nearly five times faster than the widely used wireless-B products found in homes, businesses, and public wireless hotspots around the country. Far more convenient but a little more complicated to configure is a wireless setup, which lets you place your hardware in separate rooms without need for lengthy cable runs. This option requires the additional purchase of a wireless networking device (a router if you'll have multiple network users or an access point for a single connection) to relay data between your PC and the DVD player's card.

Access your Windows-based home network wirelessly via the ADC-320's PC Card slot and included 802.11g DVD card.

Once you've established your network, you can put a connected DVD player in every room with a TV or stereo to connect wirelessly to your PC library. In your PC, you can then create a library of music, photo, and digital video to enjoy anywhere you have a connected DVD player and a television and/or audio system.

Front-panel menu buttons grant full operation, even without the supplied remote control. The player lets you import M3U (MusicMatch) or the PLS (WinAmp) playlists and create custom digital slideshows of PC-based JPEG images. The player also supports playback of recorded video from MPEG4 video and Microsoft Media Center computers.

If you're inclined to go in for a little karaoke entertainment, this player's got you covered: the stylish front panel also offers two .25-inch microphone inputs governed by single volume and echo-effect control.

The ADC-320's digital-audio outputs enable connection to a full-featured A/V receiver so you can experience Dolby Digital/DTS 5.1-channel surround sound.

A set of left/right analog-audio outputs channel audio to Dolby Pro Logic receivers and stereo televisions. Both Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1-channel surround-sound signals can be routed through the player's digital-audio outputs (one each of RCA coaxial and Toslink optical) for direct connection to a full-featured audio/video receiver, and if you're using an older surround amp with multichannel analog inputs but no onboard processing, you're in luck: Gateway's model happens to decode both Dolby Digital and surround formats, outputting multichannel analog signals as well as digital. Top-of-the-line component-video outputs (switchable between progressive and interlaced, depending on your television) help minimize digital and line-scan artifacts on compatible advanced televisions, while composite- and S-video outputs bring compatibility with nearly any television. What's in the Box DVD player, 802.11g DVD card, remote control, remote batteries, user's manual, stereo analog audio interconnect/composite-video cable, and an installation CD.