I reported o­n this [1] o­nkyo network AV player back in January, and at that time, it seemed like a good idea. It would connect to your network, playback XviD, MP3, etc., and it even had an optical output.
Well, this isn't the case anymore. o­nkyo has announced today the new release date (because they haven't released it yet) - the 24th of this month. This would be all fine and dandy, but o­nkyo is also announcing that they will remove XviD from the specifications as it will not be supported.

Onkyo Corporation has announced that they have fixed a release date for the "NC-501V(W)," Net-Tune supporting network AV player: April 24th.

When the product was first announced in January, the release date was presented as "the back part of February." However, due to "a delay in development due to supply parts," it was extended. Apart from the announcement of the new release date, o­nkyo has also announced a change in the specifications.

First of all, XviD playback will be removed from the specifications, making the supported playback formats now MPEG-1/2, WAVE, WMA, MP3, and JPEG. MPEG-4 (Advanced Simple Profile) support is planned to be added in a firmware update.

The internet radio function, as well as the function connection to multiple computers acting as servers will be added in a firmware update.

The NC-501V(W) is a network AV player that can playback audio/video files stored o­n a computer o­n TV and audio devices through a network connection. It has a D4 output as well as an optical digital output. The audio circuitry also uses the independent "VLSC (Vector Linear Shaping Circuitry)" circuitry, allowing for high quality audio output.

[2]

Inspired by:
http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/av/docs/20040419/onkyo.htm [3]

Original TechJapan article o­n o­nkyo NC-501V(W):
http://www.techjapan.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=69&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0 [4]