Crutchfield - North America's electronics authority since 1974

1.888.955.6000
 
 
Free Shipping on Everything.  60-Day Money-Back Guarantee  |  Lifetime Tech Support
 

HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center

A one-stop source for TV shows, movies, music and photos

Zoom HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center
Front
Video loading and will display in just a moment.
Photos
HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center
 
Videos
 

Item# 319HPZ545 offer details

Item# 319HPZ545

Review Summary

 
DISCONTINUED
 
This item is no longer available to purchase.
 
Contact us for other options
 
Call   Email  
 
 
 
 

By buying this product you'll earn up to 1500 Rewards points.

When you sign up for a Crutchfield account, you’ll be enrolled in Crutchfield Rewards. You’ll earn one point for every dollar you spend on gear from us. You can turn your points into Rewards Cards that you can use toward future purchases. You can sign up for an account now, or after you complete your purchase (you’ll get credit for the points either way).

 
Hewlett Packard

Our take on the HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center

It just might be the most versatile home theater component we've ever seen! HP's z545 lets you keep a vast library of your favorite music, movies, TV shows, and digital photos in one convenient location — all ready to go at the touch of a button. That's because hiding inside its sleek, brushed-aluminum chassis is a feature-packed Media Center PC that will revolutionize your viewing and listening habits.

The z545's PVR (personal video recording) software lets you pause, rewind, or fast-forward "live" TV, or automatically record every episode of a particular program for viewing anytime you want. Dual built-in TV tuners allow you to record two different shows to the hard drive simultaneously — you can even watch a third program you've already recorded!

The internal 200GB hard drive holds hours and hours of video, plus the built-in DVD player/recorder drive lets you archive your shows on sturdy, recordable DVD discs for virtually limitless storage. Even cooler is the included HP Personal Media Drive, which slips in and out of an easy-access slot on the z545's front panel. It offers an additional 160GB of storage, and has its own portable power supply and USB 2.0 connectivity for use as an external drive with other systems — great for taking photos, recorded shows, and music to a secondary location, like a vacation home.

You'll enjoy a great-looking picture with DVDs you rent or buy, especially if you've hooked the z545 to an HD-ready TV via the DVI digital video connection. Optical and coaxial digital audio outputs let you pass Dolby® Digital soundtracks to a home theater receiver for exciting surround sound. This multimedia powerhouse also makes an awesome digital music server. Transfer tunes from your CDs to the hard drive, and use the included Windows Media® Player software to create custom playlists or instantly locate any song you want to hear.

Make the z545 part of your Wi-Fi home network, and open up a range of whole-house entertainment possibilities. For instance, send music from the PC's hard drive to media streamers in different rooms, while simultaneously watching recorded video in your main home theater room. The z545 has built-in Wi-Fi (802.11b/g) capability, and can be used either as your wireless access point, or as a client within your existing wireless network.

Microsoft®'s Windows® XP Media Center edition offers a user-friendly interface with large-font menus and simple navigation, so your music, movies, and photos are never more than a few clicks away. For transferring pictures from a digital camera, there's a built-in memory card reader that handles just about every form of flash memory out there (see list in "Key Features," below). The included wireless remote and lap keyboard let you control your system from the comfort of your sofa.

Read a hands-on review of the HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center at CrutchfieldAdvisor.com

Highlights:

  • component-style chassis matches traditional A/V gear
  • Microsoft Windows XP Media Center 2005 edition
  • personal video recording software
  • 14-day electronic TV programming guide (requires broadband Internet connection)
  • dual built-in NTSC TV tuners (compatible with cable, satellite, or over-the-air TV broadcasts)
  • built-in 200GB hard drive
  • removable 160GB HP Personal Media Drive with portable power supply
  • recordable DVD/CD drive
  • bright, blue front-panel text display
  • built-in Wi-Fi (802.11b/g) capability
  • front-panel memory card reader accepts CompactFlash® (Type I & II), IBM Microdrive®, SD (Secure Digital®), MultiMediaCard®, Memory Stick® (including Memory Stick PRO®), SmartMedia®, and xD-Picture™ Cards
  • FM tuner (antenna included)
  • wireless keyboard with built-in trackball
  • remote control
  • 17"W x 4-3/8"H x 17-3/4"D
  • warranty: 1 year parts and labor
  • Our 60-day money-back guarantee
Connections:
  • 1 audio, 3 A/V (including 3 S-video and 1 front-panel) inputs
  • 2 RF inputs for cable/antenna signals
  • FM antenna input
  • DVI digital video output for compatible TVs
  • analog video output, including composite, S-video, component video, and RGB (D-sub 15-pin)
  • optical and coaxial digital audio outputs
  • analog 7.1-channel audio output
  • 10/100/1000 Base-T Ethernet port
  • 2 FireWire (IEEE 1394) ports
    • 4-pin front-panel port for digital camcorders
    • 6-pin rear-panel port
  • 6 USB 2.0 ports (including 2 front-panel)
PC Hardware Specs:
  • 3.0GHz Intel® Pentium® 4 processor 530 with Hyper-Threading Technology
  • 512MB system memory (DDR PC3200 SDRAM) — expandable to 4GB
  • max. disc write speeds: 16X DVD+R, 8X DVD-R, 4X DVD+RW or DVD-RW, 40X CD-R, 24X CD-RW
  • max. disc read speeds: 16X DVD-ROM, 40X CD-ROM
  • ATI RADEON™ X300 SE graphics card with 128MB video memory
  • integrated Intel High Definition Audio chipset with 7.1-channel capability

Consumer Alert: This TV recorder has only an analog broadcast tuner and will require a converter box after February 17, 2009, to receive over-the-air broadcasts with an antenna because of the Nation's transition to digital broadcasting. Analog-only TVs should continue to work as before with cable and satellite TV services, gaming consoles, VCRs, DVD players, and similar products. For more information, call the Federal Communications Commission at 1-888-225-5322 (TTY: 1-888-835-5322) or visit the Commission's digital television website at: www.dtv.gov

 

Hands-on research from the Crutchfield Labs (what are the Labs?)

Product Research

Product Research
What's in the box?

Download owner's manual

  • HP Digital Entertainment Center
  • RF Wireless lap-size keyboard
  • 1 Wireless remote control
  • 2 "AA" batteries
  • 160 GB HP Personal Media Drive
  • Wireless LAN antenna with attached 58" cable
  • 6' Digital Entertainment Center AC power cord
  • 6' Personal Media Drive AC power cord
  • Personal Media Drive AC adapter with attached 58" cable (12V/2A)
  • 5.5' DVI cable (has two in-line noise filters)
  • 57" S-video cable
  • 57" Digital audio coaxial cable (has a single RCA connector on each end)
  • 57" RCA stereo cable (has left and right RCA connectors on each end)
  • 9.5' Coaxial cable (has an F-type connector on each end)
  • 69" USB cable (has a USB Type A connector on one end and a mini-USB Type B connector on the other end)
  • 9.5' Ethernet cable
  • 2 Emitters (each has an attached 16' cord)
  • 1 FM radio antenna
  • 1 TV splitter
  • 2 Self-tapping screws (for mounting the TV splitter)
  • 2 Self-adhesive hook-and-loop fasteners
  • System Recovery Disk CD-ROM
  • Wireless LAN 802.11b/g Device CD-ROM
  • HP Personal Media Drive CD-ROM
  • User's Guide
  • Software Guide
  • "Start Here" book
  • Digital Entertainment Center Warranty and Support Guide
  • Personal Media Drive Warranty and Support Guide
  • Wireless LAN 802.11b/g Device Quick Installation Guide
  • Personal Media Drive instructions
  • "Information about your Personal Media Drive" sheet
  • 3 Self-adhesive labels

Our Product Research Team

At Crutchfield, you'll get detailed, accurate information that's hard to find elsewhere. That's because we have our own in-house Product Research team — they open the box, verify contents, check the owner's manual, and record dimensions, features and specs. We stay on top of new products and technologies to help people make informed choices.

Features
Inputs and Outputs Notes

Features

Overview: Along with Microsoft's Windows XP Media Center edition operating system, this Digital Entertainment Center features the following: 3.0GHz Intel Pentium 4 processor, 512 MB system memory (DDR SDRAM; expandable to 4 GB ), built-in 200 GB hard drive, ATI RADEON X300 SE graphics card with 128 MB video memory, dual built-in TV tuner cards (compatible with cable, satellite, or over-the-air TV broadcasts), personal video recording software with television program guide, FM tuner, and integrated Intel High Definition Audio chipset with 7.1-channel capability. The HP z545 also features a recordable DVD/CD drive, removable 160 GB HP Personal Media Drive with portable power supply, front-panel memory card reader that accepts nine different types of memory, and built-in Wi-Fi capability. A wireless keyboard with built-in trackball and remote control are supplied for system control.

Note: A monitor and speakers are not included.

Media Center: You can control the Media Center functions and navigate Media Center windows by using the remote control, keyboard, or trackball. You can easily switch back and forth between them by moving the trackball or by pressing a button on the remote control or the keyboard. When using the remote control and the Media Center program, you can:

  • Watch, record, and play back television programs
  • Pause, rewind, and fast-forward TV programs
  • Watch an instant replay
  • Play back your digital videos
  • View your digital pictures or play them as a slide show with music
  • Easily print your photos
  • Browse, select, and play music CD files with full-screen visualizations
  • Record CD tracks to your media library
  • Play DVD movies
  • Access streaming music and video subscription services

Instant Messaging: Media Center supports instant messaging so you can communicate with your friends and family while you are doing something in Media Center. You always have the option to turn this feature on or off.

My TV: The Digital Entertainment Center acts as a digital video recorder (DVR) that works with the Media Center remote control so you can watch and record TV programs at your own convenience and pace. In My TV you can:

  • Live TV: watch, pause, fast-forward, or rewind your favorite TV shows. You can watch recorded TV shows while recording another show.
  • Recorded TV: record a single TV program or an entire series, view a list of recorded programs by date or title, view a list of programs scheduled to be recorded, play a recorded program, find out why a program wasn't recorded, or add a TV recording manually
  • Search: quickly find a TV program or a series to watch or record by entering a descriptive word, program title, or program category
  • Guide: scroll through the free Television Program Guide to find programs to watch and record. You can record specific TV shows or a whole series to your hard disk drive or an HP Personal Media Drive.
  • Movies: go online to find movies to watch now or later. Get the latest information about movies on TV: read reviews, see cast lists, find other times the movie is broadcast, view the DVD cover, browse for related movies, and find other movies with the same cast members.

My Music: The My Music window in Media Center works with Windows Media Player to find and play your music files and CDs. You can use Windows Media Player to create your music library and then use Media Center to find and play your music using your remote control. In My Music you can:

  • Play music CDs; skip, shuffle, or repeat songs or albums
  • Play digital music files from a music library you create and organize using Windows Media Player
  • Search for music files by categories: album, artist, playlist, song, or genre
  • Download album information such as artist name, song title, length of song, album name, label, year, and cover art
  • Play a music playlist with a slide show
  • Copy music tracks from a CD to your Windows Media Library
  • Display visualizations when playing music CDs
  • Buy music online from the Now Playing page in My Music. The Internet browser opens the Windows Media Web site where you can listen to and buy music by the artist or album you are listening to at the time.

HP Tunes: With HP Tunes, you can play your favorite music you have added to your iTunes music Library. iTunes is an Apple-developed software program located in the All Programs menu that works together with the HP Tunes area in Media Center. HP Tunes is linked to the Apple iTunes music Library. Both programs work together to organize and play back your favorite music files, CDs, and created playlists.

My Pictures: The My Pictures and HP Image Zone Plus areas in Media Center are great ways to view, organize, and print your pictures. With My Pictures, you can organize your pictures into folders you create in the My Pictures directory in Windows Explorer. HP Image Zone Plus is both a software program and a Media Center menu item that allows you to view and search for your digital images by using the remote control or the keyboard and trackball. HP Image Zone Plus allows you to organize your photos, scanned images, and video clips by date, keyword or place. It provides all the tools you need for viewing, organizing, editing, printing, sharing, and protecting your digital images.

My Videos: The My Videos window in Media Center makes it easy to play home video files you created or video files you downloaded from the Internet. In My Videos you can:

  • Play and scroll through videos that are in the My Videos or Shared Video folders in Windows Explorer by using your remote control or your keyboard and trackball
  • View your videos in full-screen mode or from an inset window in Media Center
  • Browse your videos straight from the device on which they are stored. Media Center recognizes removable media from a CD or DVD drive or from a digital video camera.
  • Display your video details such as the name and date your video file was modified
  • Sort videos by date or name
  • View small image (thumbnail) and title of video file
  • Scroll through your digital videos and folders by clicking the page up and page down buttons using the trackball

Listening to FM Radio: The radio tuner card allows the Media Center to play FM radio. The Radio window in Media Center makes it easy to play FM radio stations by using your remote control. In Radio mode, you can:

  • Listen to FM radio stations
  • Set up presets of your favorite radio stations
  • Delete or organize your radio station presets
  • Use the time-shifting feature; pause, rewind, and fast-forward up to 30 minutes of radio programs
    • Note: Since this Digital Entertainment Center has dual TV tuners, you can watch or record TV and listen to FM radio at the same time.

Recording TV Shows to DVDs: You can use InterVideo WinDVD Creator to copy your recorded TV programs to DVD for viewing and playing on your PC and in some set-top box DVD players. When you copy your recorded TV programs to CD or DVD using RecordNow!, it is recorded as a data file, which can be played back from a PC only.

Creating (Burning) CDs: The DVD Writer allows you to make your own music or data CDs. Your Digital Entertainment Center has four recording software programs, iTunes, Windows Media Player, RecordNow!, and Windows XP.

Creating DVD Movies: The Digital Entertainment Center allows you to capture (copy), edit, and record your home movies in four easy steps by using the InterVideo WinDVD Creator software program:

  • Capture: take videos and pictures from digital camcorders, capture cards, and Web cameras, and then save them to your hard disk drive
  • Edit: arrange and trim your files; add titles, transition effects, images, and audio
  • Author or Add Menu: add a menu with chapters to your DVD
  • Make Movie: finalize your project by burning your movie to a DVD

HP Personal Media Drive: The supplied HP Personal Media Drive is an internal and external USB hard disk drive designed to quickly and easily increase your storage capacity and to transfer media files such as digital photos, music, videos, and other important files. You can also use the HP Personal Media Drive to back up other drives on your Digital Entertainment Center. The HP Personal Media drive is designed to:

  • Work with the Digital Entertainment Center and PCs that have a USB port
  • Store large media files and personal files
  • Transfer files between PCs
  • Play media files
  • Back up your files

Memory Card Reader: The memory card reader is accessible directly on the front of the Digital Entertainment Center. The memory card reader has four horizontal card slots, which accept the following memory cards: CompactFlash (Type I & II), IBM Microdrive, SD (Secure Digital), MultiMediaCard, Memory Stick (including Memory Stick PRO), SmartMedia, and xD-Picture Cards.

Wi-Fi Capability: Your Digital Entertainment Center includes a Wireless LAN 802.11b/g Device. This device allows you to establish a wireless network using your Digital Entertainment Center as a Wireless Access Point or as a Wireless Client (Station Mode) if you already have a wireless network running.

Wireless Keyboard: The Digital Entertainment Center comes with an RF wireless keyboard that uses a built-in receiver/transmitter for communication. In addition to the standard alphanumeric, function, arrow, and numeric keys, the keyboard also has an array of special buttons. The special buttons are at the top of the keyboard. These buttons operate the DVD player, connect you to the Internet, or provide quick access to specific functions.

Remote Control: You can use your remote control with Media Center to play CDs, DVDs, and videos, to view pictures, and to watch and record television programs. This remote control helps you navigate the Media Center windows on your Digital Entertainment Center just as a cable TV remote control navigates cable TV options or controls the playback of a movie in a VCR or DVD player.

Inputs and Outputs Notes

Front Panel: The front panel has the following connections:

  • Front Input: left and right RCA audio jacks, RCA composite video jack, and S-video jack
  • DV In: 4-pin IEEE 1394 port
  • Headphones: standard headphone output
  • Mic In: minijack for connecting an optional microphone
  • USB: two USB 2.0 ports

Rear Panel: The rear panel has the following connections:

  • Audio In: left and right RCA audio jacks
  • Audio 7.1 Pre-Out: analog 7.1-channel audio output that consists of the following RCA jacks: front left, front right, center, surround left, surround right, surround back left, surround back right, and subwoofer
  • Video Out: video output that consists of the following jacks: composite video, S-video, component video, and VGA
  • DVI: DVI digital video output
  • Digital Audio Out: Toslink optical digital jack and coaxial digital jack
  • USB: four USB 2.0 ports
  • 1394: 6-pin IEEE 1394 port
  • Ethernet (10/100/1000): 10/100/1000 Base-T Ethernet port for networking
  • Wireless LAN: threaded connection for the supplied wireless LAN antenna
  • TV Source 1 In: left and right RCA audio jacks, RCA composite video jack, and S-video jack
  • TV Source 2 In: left and right RCA audio jacks, RCA composite video jack, and S-video jack
  • Cable/Antenna 1 In: 75-ohm coaxial jack
  • Cable/Antenna 2 In: 75-ohm coaxial jack
  • FM Antenna In: 75-ohm coaxial jack
  • Infrared Transmitter Out: two minijacks for use with the supplied emitters
 

Product Reviews

Review Summary

Average Customer Review:

1 people say:
(0)
(1)
(0)
(0)
(0)
 

Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences about this product. Please be sure to focus your comments on the product itself. Read our Review Guidelines for more information.

Review title
* Email
Your email won't be visible. Please use the email address that is associated with your order.
Display name
(e.g., JohnD) Your review will be signed using the display name and location
* Your location
(e.g., Charlottesville, VA)
* Your rating
Click on a star to rate the overall product on a scale of 1-5
1500 characters left * Your review
Attach a YouTube Review
Crutchfield Video Review Guidelines
  • Only submit videos that you made or are authorized to use.
  • Do not submit videos that contain music, video or visuals that are copyrighted and belong to someone else.
  • Please see our Review Guidelines for more information.
Submit the URL of your YouTube™ video review or product demonstration. e.g., http://www.youtube.com/v/o79TWHh598U
500 characters left Pros
500 characters left Cons
* Agree to Terms
By checking this box you agree your review becomes the property of Crutchfield, that you are over 18 years of age, that you own or have owned this product, and that you are located within the United States or its territories. Please see our Review Guidelines for more information. We reserve the right (but are not obligated to) review all submissions and edit or remove any review in any manner which we deem necessary. Your review should be posted within seven days.
1-1 of 1 items Sort Results By: Date Reviewed | Rating | Helpfulness
 
4 out of 5

HP z545, Full of Features

Written By Mid-MN, Nisswa, MN on Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Crutchfield Customer Review (What's this?)
Crutchfield Customer Review

The reviewer purchased this item from us, verified by the email address on the order.

 
I'm in the audio-video installation business and have been looking for and often thought of building the exact product HP has brought to market.

I have had the HP z545 for two weeks. I found installation and integration with a surround sound system fairly straight forward and not time consuming.

As with with "Graves" review I too found setting up the TV interface a bit confusing, but have not had signal or a picture quality problem. Running line level interface only.

Put it through it's paces and so far I can't find much in the way of negatives. It's new and yes they could improve some, but I can see that HP has done well with the many times discussed limitations given by MS Media Edition.

The removeable 160g Media hard disk is a good enhancement over standard removeable drives.

I am pleased.
Check the spec's, HP didn't leave much out.

Mid-MN
76 out of 92 people found this helpful
Was this review helpful?    Yes | No
 
1-1 of 1 items

Learn more about Media Center PCs

Learn more about Media Center PCs

Multi-room Music & Video Glossary

Multi-room Music & Video Glossary

Amanda P.
4/29/2010
based on 6 ratings
 

Definitions of common multi-room audio and video terms.

 
Recycling Your Electronics

Recycling Your Electronics

Chris Egner
4/11/2011
based on 116 ratings (13 comments)
 

Be environmentally friendly when you get rid of old gear: re-use it or recycle it.

 

Accessories

Accessories we recommend

Blank DVDs
Don't forget blank discs You'll want to save some recordings on discs, so make sure you have enough to do the job.
Maxell DVD-RW
$2.99
In Stock
 
After $0.50 Price Break
 
Blank CDs
Make mix CDs If you're burning CDs, you'll need blank discs.
Maxell CD-R 80
Blank CD-R Audio Recordable Discs (50-disc spindle pack)
$17.99
In Stock
 
After $2.00 Price Break
 

Extras

Coax Digital Cables
Get digital audio Coax digital cables send the audio signal to your home theater receiver.
Monster Interlink® Datalink™ 100
Coaxial digital audio cable (2-meter/6.6 ft.)
$49.95
In Stock
 
 
Optical Digital Cables
Prefer optical digital cables? Optical digital cables send the audio signal to your home theater receiver.
Monster Cable 400dfo
Optical digital audio cable (2 meters/6.6 ft.)

Also available in:
Open Box: $39.99
$49.95
In Stock
 
 
 
Add selected to cart
 

For a more in-depth review and enhanced detailed information on the HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center, please visit the Crutchfield website product page (/ISEO-rccbcspd/p_319HPZ545/HP-z545-Digital-Entertainment-Center.html ).

Sorry, the HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center is no longer available for purchase.

HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center