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14.2. Using the FTP Server ....................92 14.3. Using the Samba Server .................... 93 14.4. Using the Torrent Client ..................... 94 14.5. Using the Usenet Client ..................... 95 14.5.1. Setting up NZBGET ..................96 14.5.2. Accessing the NZBGET Client ................ 97 15.
Thank you for purchasing Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO, the Networked Media Jukebox specifically designed for music and movie lovers. Powered by Sigma Designs SoC and best in class ESS SABRE³² Audio DAC, ES9018K2M, Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO is a versatile Networked Media Jukebox that could deliver astounding sound for music-listening and superior video quality for movie.
3. Safety Notes Read these operating instructions carefully before using the unit. Follow the safety instructions on the unit and the applicable safety instructions listed below. Keep these operating instructions handy for future reference. 1. Keep these instructions. 2. Heed all warnings. 3.
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WARNING: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF FIRE, ELECTRIC SHOCK OR PRODUCT DAMAGE: 1. DO NOT EXPOSE THIS APPARATUS TO MOISTURE OF ANY TYPE AND ENSURE THAT NO OBJECTS FILLED WITH LIQUIDS, SUCH AS CUPS OR VASES ARE PLACED ON THE APPARATUS. 2.
What do you need:- HDMI Cable Power Supply TV with HDMI Terminal Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO Step 1 Connect the HDMI cable to your TV HDMI terminal and the other end to your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO. Note: Some HDMI TVs have input and output HDMI terminals. Please make sure the HDMI terminal is connected to input rather than output.
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Connect the AC power cord to AC power adapter. Then plug the power cord into your wall socket and connect the power lead to Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO. Your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO is booting up now, check your TV for further instructions.
5.3 Connecting TV via Component What do you need:- Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO TV with Component Terminal Power Supply Component Cables (Not Included) Step 1 Connect the component cables to both the component terminals on the A-500 PRO and your TV by matching the green, blue and red video plugs and the red and white audio plugs to their coordinating terminals.
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Connect the AC power cord to AC power adapter. Then, plug the power cord into your wall socket and connect the power lead to Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO. Your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO is booting up now, check you TV for further instructions.
6. Remote Control POWER STANDBY mode: Press once turn player In ON mode: 1. Press POWER once turn player in VIDEO OFF mode (video and audio are OFF, other player tasks still run). 2. Press POWER – EJECT to soft reboot player. 3.
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RETURN Return to previous menu SOURCE Returns to the Media Source screen While viewing the images (listening audio files) allows to switch to the selections of images (audio files) and toggle between audio playback, photo slideshows and the menu screen mode ENTER Confirm selection Start media playback of both single file and DVD / BD formats...
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REPEAT Repeat the current media playback During music playback, this button offers three playback modes: Press once: Chosen song is played repeatedly Press twice: Playback will restart at the top of the list once the final song on the list is done playing Press thrice: Chosen songs are played in a shuffled order SLOW Slows down the current media playback...
7. Introduction to Home Menu The HOME screen is the main hub for accessing content from a local source (USB or internal hard drive), a network share or from the apps market. You can also view the current time and weather. Weather Forecast Know the weather without leaving the comfort of your couch Time and Date...
7.1 Switching Home User Interface Adding a whole new dimension to home interface, you can now choose your preferred home menu to either Music Home or Media Home: By using your remote control, navigate to: Setup > Preferences > Home Launcher > Media Home / Music Home For navigation in Music Home, please refer to page 103 7.2 Switching to Android OS You can also choose your preferred Operating System to either Networked Media...
8. Quick Setup Wizard 8.1 Setup via Wired Connection Setting up your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO using the setup wizard is vital for proper operation of the media player. For advance users, you may skip to Chapter 9. Using your remote control, navigate the Setup Wizard icon and press ENTER.
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Verify your Internet and network connection. If you received the congratulations prompt, your network setup is complete. Otherwise, please press the RETURN button to go back and check your settings again. Choose your time-zone and daylight savings setting. This will affect system timing and the time is reflected on your home screen.
Your setup is complete. Press the GREEN button to finish and return to the HOME menu. 9. Setup Advanced settings such as video/audio output, color-space, subtitle languages, and parental controls can be setup here. Note: If you have completed the setup wizard steps, the corresponding settings can be found and update here.
9.1 Preferences Language Choose display language for the user interface and subtitle language Photo Slide Show Transition setting for photo slideshows and determines how long each photo will remain on screen during a slideshow Screensaver Time Set the amount of idle time required before the screensaver turns on Time Adjust system time and date...
9.2 Audio Codec HDMI Audio Enable audio signal output from HDMI cable connection Disable audio signal output from HDMI cable connection Audio Codec Adjust how the media player handles each audio codec to match your entertainment system’s capabilities. Only select Passthrough if your external decoder is capable of decoding the audio signal.
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PCM S/PDIF ON (HDMI 20-bit) Output PCM to S/PPDIF and HDMI simultaneously. Due to S/PDIF has limitation and only can process up to 20-bit PCM, turn on this will also cause HDMI to output PCM as 20-bit OFF (HDMI 24-bit) Turn off S/PDIF PCM output.
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DSD Sample Rate 44100 or 176400 DSD Gain This option is for advance users and normal user should keep the value to 0 dB. Setting this values to > 0 dB might cause clipping when playback some of the DSD files. When doing DSD to PCM conversion, the PCM output will be 6dB lower than original source and this setting will try to compensate that...
9.3 Video Video Output It’s highly recommended that you set the video output according to the specification of your TV. Please check your TV specifications before setting the video resolution. AUTO System automatically selects the most suitable video resolution for your display (Should only be used for initial setup) High Definition Mode 720p/50Hz, 720p/60Hz, 1080i/50Hz, 1080i/60Hz, 1080p/50Hz,...
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Framerate Sync Reduce video jitter by selecting the correct framerate sync according to your TV specification. If your TV is a NTSC TV then do not set PAL in framerate sync. Only set 24p if you have checked your TV specification and it can display at 24p. Video Zoom Setup how you like the media player to handle your video zoom level.
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TV Type Setup your TV or display aspect ratio Typically for older TV sets using CRT technology and 4:3 computer displays 16:9 Most High Definition TVs such as LCD and plasma as well as HD projectors use 16:9 Color Space Define color space adjustment according to your TV specification.
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Turn on this will let the external video scaler or TV to do the video scaling. For example, playback 720P video will output to HDMI 720P Turn off this will let the A-500 PRO scale up the video to users’ HDMI output setting.
Shadows Tune the levels of shadows in your video Highlight Tune the levels of highlight in your video Adaptive Deinterlacing & ON or OFF Film Cadence Detection 9.4 Customizing Home Page The A-500 PRO now comes pre-loaded with the advance active user interface. You can now do the following: Create your own shortcuts on the home screen for fast access to your favorite folder, apps or jukebox.
9.4.1 Appearance Appearance Update the default wallpaper on home page or file browser Home Menu Display Enable or disable default icons on home page Shortcut Edit list of shortcut created Home Screen Default Default Popcorn Hour Active Interface (rotates according to time or weather of the day) Customized Select a wallpaper of your choice and replace the default...
File Broswer Screen Default Default PopcornHour black file-list background Customized Select a wallpaper of your choice and replace the default wallpaper *Image dimension must be 1280x720. Max file size 1MB. 9.4.2 Home Menu Display Enable or disable default icons on the home page. 9.4.3 Creating Shortcuts The A-500 PRO now supports quick shortcuts to your favorite folders, jukebox and apps.
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APPS Shortcut In apps market, navigate to your favorite app. Press the “I” button to bring up this menu. 1. Click OK on Create Shortcut 2. Choose where you want the shortcut to appear Home Add-On Appear as an individual icon on your home page. Shortcut Folder Add to the shorcut folder on home page.
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Share Folder Shortcut In file-browser mode, press RIGHT arrow on the remote to bring up the shortcut menu. 1. Navigate to the shortcut icon and Click OK. 2. Choose where you want the shortcut to be and you can now set username and password to access to your file.
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Home Add-On Appear as an individual icon on your home page. Shortcut Folder Add to the shorcut folder on home page. Local Drive Shortcut In file-browser mode, press RIGHT arrow on the remote to bring up the shortcut menu. 1. Navigate to the shortcut icon and Click OK. 2.
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Home Add-on Appear as an individual icon on your home page. Shortcut Folder Add to the shortcut folder on home page. Jukebox Shortcut In jukebox mode, press LEFT arrow on the main menu to bring up the shortcut menu. 1. Navigate to the shortcut icon and Click OK. 2.
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MAC Address Your unique NIC MAC address. This is needed when engaging support services or trouble shooting. Mode Wired Select this if your media player is connected to the router via an Ethernet cable Wireless Select this if a wireless dongle is inserted and you have a wireless network you want to connect to Note: Wireless is not available when the media player does not detect a compatible wireless dongle.
9.6 Network Share Add Share Manually add a network share on your PC, MAC or network attached storage (NAS). If you frequently access a network share, it’s recommended that you add it so it will always appear at the top of your network devices list. Browse Share Browse through a list of available network shares using the file browser and quickly add a network share without manually entering the IP address and share name.
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9.6.1 Add Share Protocol Samba Windows computers and most NAS devices use Samba by default. It can also be used on MAC and Linux based devices The NFS protocol offers faster network transfer speeds but not every device supports it. Please refer to your devices’ network share settings NFS TCP NFS over TCP/IP transport...
9.6.2 Browse Share Under Network Browser, select the workgroup and the device you want to access. Select the folder you would like to add. The protocol, IP/host name and shared folder information is automatically added for you. If required, you can add a username and password at this stage and then save this share.
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File Lock Default Prevents users from editing or deleting files. Useful in NMJ as deleting removes the file as well as any images or other files. Child Lock This only applies to DVD and Blu-ray movies. For more information, please refer to your local ratings system.
9.8 BD / Audio CD Auto Play Default Automatically playback when external optical disc Note: Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO does not support commercial Blu-ray disc. Audio Language Pre-select the default subtitle track for Blu-ray videos. BD Navigation File view When you select a BD IFO you can browse the folder contents.
9.9 Maintenance Firmware Update This section allows you to check the current installed firmware version. You can also manually check for a firmware update and reset the device to factory settings from this menu. NMT Setup Wizard Please refer to page 89. Open Source License In accordance with GPL, a list of open source licenses that the device uses are listed here.
WARNING: DO NOT DISCONNECT THE POWER TO THE DEVICE DURING THE FIRMWARE UPDATE PROCESS. Doing so may cause the device to become inoperable. Tip: The Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO supports offline firmware updating. Please visit our support website for more information.
10. Apps Market Get access to the Apps Market where you can get free and premium apps for your TV. Access instant video on demand services, online radio, social networking, games and more. The apps market is updated frequently and geospecific so check back to expand your multimedia lineup.
10.1 Login to Apps Market Login to the Apps Market to purchase premium apps or access a private store provided by your content provider. 1. On the left navigation pane, choose LOGIN. 2. If you already have an account, please enter your email address and password. 3.
11.1 Settings Login to the Apps Market to purchase premium apps or access a private store provided by your content provider. In the file browser, press the LEFT arrow on your D-pad to bring up the menu options. Networked Media Jukebox Launch the NMJ interface NMJ Manager Launch the Jukebox Manager to configure all your NMJ sources...
File Listing Info None Disable date and size information display in the file browser Auto Automatically display date or size when using the sort options Size Only Display the file size only Date Only Display the file’s modified date only Date and Size Display both date and size information Show Tooltips...
Tip: Make sure that the destination folder or drive is not copy-protected. 12. Movie Meta Data One of the main features of the Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO is the ability to download and manage movie meta data without the use of a PC. This feature differs from NMJ as this is only visible in the file browser mode.
12.1 Movie Info Page Walk-Through Press the INFO button on your remote to bring up the movie info page. 1. Movie Fanart 2. Movie Poster or Thumbnail 3. 4 Options are available here Synopsis Movie synopsis gives you an overview of the movie. Including parental ratings, casts, director, plot, etc.
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The fanart, movie poster and meta data are automatically pulled from the Internet and displayed on your screen. Navigate to the Download option on the bottom right and press ENTER on your remote. The poster, fanart and NFO files are downloaded and saved on the same storage device that your video file is located on.
12.3 Edit or Update Movie Information If the scanner pulls the incorrect information for the file, or if you wish to change the poster or fanart for your video, you can do so by editing the movie meta data. Navigate to the Edit option on the bottom right and press ENTER on your remote. You can either use the numerical pad or the onscreen keyboard to enter in the movie or TV show title.
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Change Info Under the Change Info section, select the correct title for your video. You can press INFO on your remote to see the synopsis before selecting that particular entry. Change Fanart Under the Change fanart section you can select from a number of photos that can be used as the background display when viewing the video information.
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Change Poster In the Change poster section you can choose the movie poster you would like to use. Afterwards, remember to download the data that way the changes you selected will always be used when you press the INFO button on your video. Tip: In order to download meta data, you must ensure that your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO is connected to the Internet.
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If you need to get subtitles in a different language than your default, press the GREEN button on your remote to change your language filter. The downloaded SRT subtitle file will be saved on the same storage device as your video file.
Network Media Jukebox you can! Without the need of additional PC software, the Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO will scan your movie and TV show library and download the poster, fanart and meta-data for you. When you want to watch a movie, you can sort through and view your collection using the posters, just like if you were at a movie store.
13.1 Configuring NMJ The Networked Media Jukebox, or NMJ, software works by creating a database for your storage device. This database contains all the info, posters and fanart for your entire movie and TV show library as well as any other media you scan in. To create the NMJ database, use the file browser to navigate to your media storage device.
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Tip: Building the NMJ database can take several hours depending on the size of your library. It’s recommended to start this procedure before you go to bed or during a time where you don’t expect to use the device. NMJ Scanning Configuration Scan Entire Folder NMJ will automatically scan the entire folder for supported media and add it to the NMJ database...
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Select the type of media you would like added to the database. Any file types that aren’t selected here will be ignored. Select the folders that you would like the NMJ software to scan. Tip: You may add additional folder at any time via the NMJ Manager. You may add “no_xxx.nmj”...
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On the confirmation page you may review the folders you have selects, remove them from the list or add additional ones if necessary. Once you are finished, press the BLUE button on your remote to complete the setup. Congratulations! Your first NMJ database setup is completed. The system is now scanning your files, downloading relevant data and creating a database.
13.2 Navigating in NMJ Press the MENU button on your remote to bring up the NMJ menu. This will help you navigate and sort your content in the NMJ software MOVIES Recent Scanned This will display all your recent movies and TV shows recently scanned Movie This will display all of your movies TV Series...
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MUSIC Recent Scanned Recent Scanned - This will display all of your songs recently scanned By Album This will display all your music by album By Playlist Displays a list of playlists in your NMJ database By Song Displays music tracks alphabetically in a list By Genre Displays albums based on Genre By Artist...
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PHOTO Recent Scanned This will display all of your photos recently scanned By Date Displays a list of years, once selected all photos taken in that year are displayed By Album Displays a list of albums, once selected all photos in that album are displayed (photo albums are folders) Help Bring up the on screen help to view more information about...
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Add Shortcut Create shortcut on home menu Tip: The Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO remembers your preferences for different storage devices. If you were using the NMJ view the last time, it will automatically launch NMJ the next time you select that device. If you want to exit back to the file browser, use the Jukebox Manager or the Switch to File Browser option.
13.3 Updating NMJ Information Sometimes the scanner might download the wrong information for your video file. To fix this, you can manually edit the file in the NMJ library right from the device. In the NMJ library, select the item that’s incorrect and open up the media control panel. Navigate to the Edit option and press ENTER on the remote.
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Depending on the movie title, multiple results may be shown. Choose the correct result and press ENTER on remote. The new poster, fanart and meta data will be downloaded and your database will be updated. Tip: The NMT forum has tools/guides to help you manipulate your NMJ data in many ways.
13.4 Networked Media Jukebox Manager Add folder(s) Add additional directories for the NMJ to monitor and add to the NMJ database Scan All Will scan and add any new files added to the monitored folders Rescan All This option will rescan all media and download everything again Delete All This option will delete the NMJ database Scan Option...
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Scan Option Auto Download Fanart Enable or disable automatic download of fanart for video Scan Language Specify which language to download meta data in (if not available, will default to English) Additional Information A new folder named “NMJ_Database” will be created on your storage device. Please do not remove or edit this folder as it contains the NMJ database for your media.
14. NMT Apps NMT Apps turn your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO into a network attached storage device, Torrent Client, and UseNet Client. An external storage device is required to install the NMT apps. In order to enable file transfer from your PC to the A-500 PRO, you will need to enable SAMBA Server.
Where NMT-IP is the IP address or host name of the Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO. For example: 192.168.1.101 or PCH-A500PRO. When prompted for credentials use the information provided below (unless you change the ftp password).
Please note that the service will remain on, even after a power cycle, until you go back and stop it. To access your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO over samba, type the IP address or hostname of the device into the address bar on your computer’s file browser: Example : \\PCH-A500PRO\ \\192.168.1.101\...
Torrent client interface. Type the following address in the address bar of your web browser: http://NMT-IP:8077 Where NMT-IP is the IP address or host name of your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO. For example: 192.168.1.101 or A-500PRO.
Once the torrent file is selected, click on Upload to add the torrent file to the torrent list on your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO. The torrent client will start to download the file(s). Other settings are available through the web GUI such as the Scheduler which can be used to schedule torrent downloads and set their upload/download limits.
14.5.1 Setting up NZBGET In the root of your hard disk you will find a folder called .nzbget. Inside this folder you will find two files: nzbget.conf and unpak.sh. IMPORTANT: Some FTP clients may hide this folder because it begins with a dot. On UNIX systems, files or folders that begin with a dot are hidden from normal directory listings.
To access the NZBget client, type the following into the address bar of your computer’s web browser: http://NMT-IP:8066/ Where NMT-IP is the IP address or host name of your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO. For example: 192.168.1.101 or PCH-A500PRO. To log in, use the following access username and password (unless you changed the...
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After the download is finished and the NZB file set contains par2 files, your download will bechecked and repaired if necessary. The unpack script in .nzbget will be called and your download will be unpacked. The unpack script of the Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO is able to unpack .RAR packed files.
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GUI, and restart it again with the resume button. All downloads will be downloaded and unpacked to the folder Download on your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO’s storage device. A subdirectory with the same name as the NZB file will be created.
15. Updating Firmware During the lifespan of the Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO, we will continue to develop and improve on the firmware. To receive the latest update, you just have to update the firmware online or via a downloaded firmware package.
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Manual Update You may also manually check for firmware updates via the Maintenance section in Setup. Navigate to Setup -> Maintenance -> Firmware Update and press ENTER on the remote. Choose the Check For Firmware Update option and press ENTER on remote. You can update the firmware in two ways;...
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If you have manually downloaded the firmware from our support site and have the USB drive with it inserted, the system will prompt you to continue with the update. If you are updating via the web, you will see the release notes as well as the terms and conditions for the firmware.
16. Introduction to Music Home The MUSIC HOME can also be the main hub for accessing content from a LOCAL MEDIA (USB or internal hard drive) or from a NETWORKED MEDIA or from the APPS MARKET. File Browser Using the file browser, you can copy, move, delete and rename files. You can view information and download poster art.
To return to the main playlist, press the source button again and select the Home icon. 16.3 Apps Market Access Apps Market to install apps. 16.4 Creating Shortcut Shortcut allows quick access and navigation to your files. To create shortcut, point on the file you would like to create its shortcut. On your remote control, click on the right directional key on your DPad Select the last icon to create shortcut.
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To view music list either by album, playlist, song, genre, artist, year or rating, tap on the 三 icon on the left upper corner of your Home Screen. You can always Play/Pause your music by clicking the Play/Pause icon at the right bottom. >...
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For more information on the album played, click on the top right upper corner of your mobile display Album Info Add Album to Queue (Current) Add Album to Queue (Next) Add Album to Queue (Last) Add to Playlist ...
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For more options on the songs played, click on the icon on the song and you may choose on the list of options as below: Song info Add Song to Queue (Current) Add Song to Queue (Next) ...
17. Troubleshooting My Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO doesn’t start - no red LED on the player. Please check that the power cord is plugged in and the power-lead is inserted fully into the power terminal. Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO stuck on the splash screen.
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Remove all Apps from My Apps quickly. To remove all apps installed on your Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO. You may want to consider resetting the player to factory default. This will flash the memory on the device and you have a fresh Apps market.
18. NMJ Navigator The NMJ Navigator is an iPad ® app that transform your iPad ® or Android ® tablets into companion screen for your NMJ database. In order to enjoy this app, you are required to set up at least one NMJ database. 18.1 NMJ Navigator Walk-through Scan this QR code to...
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Main Screen Your movies collection cover-art displaying in the main screen Browse Tab Browse by Genre More.. Tab Source - Bring back to home screen for source selection Now Playing - Show what media is currently playing in your NMJ device (2 fingers gesture swipe from right to left) Remote Control - Bring up the soft remote for your NMJ device (2 fingers gesture swipe from left to right) Search Field...
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