Media Centre options and Thoughts

Johnboy1951

There are a lot of choices these days so it is rather difficult to decide what media centre suits your needs and budget.

They can be priced from under €100 (example R-Pi) to well over €400 for a higher spec and quiet device, with size also coming into the equation.

While browsing some laptops today I came across a few such as this one
http://www.saverstore.com/product/20677855/Lenovo-B590-3761---Pentium-24-GHz---156?---4-GB-Ram---500-GB-HDD

and began to think of using such a device as a media centre under the TV.
It would be quiet and powerful and very versatile, and with the lid closed would be very tidy.
It would easily take different operating systems ... even multiple OSs for different uses, and of course could be unplugged from the TV for use as a mobile device etc.
I can see the original Windows OS, a full Linux install as well as maybe Openelec being installed on such a device and being quite happy in the various rolls.
XBMC would happily run on all three ..... and could be controlled over BlueTooth.

Do many people go this route for their media centre?
I ask because I have not seen much about it.

For those who might make use of the device away from the TV as well as a media centre it seems to be a good solution at a reasonable cost.

Your thoughts?
Comments?

Dravokivich

Would be a waste of a laptop. You could build a small quiet PC (and hide it behind the tv stand), which can be expanded on over time.

Or if you've a PC setup already to use as a media server, just get a small box similar to the Pi to run as a client.

same ol sh1te

No upgrade path, would be just as cheap to build. You can easily control XBMC over wireless with any smartphone or tablet and the Yatse app (Android and Windows, not sure about iOS)

Johnboy1951

I guess it must be me so

I dislike intently the limitations of the general media players ... I prefer a multi-purpose device.

So if I want to boot Win 8 or Linux or Openelec, the only way I can incorporate that into a media device is to self build ..... or I think with a laptop at somewhat simiar costs ...... with the added advantage of being portable and used 'on the go', as well as the advantage of being less intrusive under the TV.

But as I said, it is apparently my singular view.

Thanks for the opinions.

same ol sh1te

Would you not find it a major annoyance to be plugging in anything at the TV?

Johnboy1951

same ol sh1te wrote: »

Would you not find it a major annoyance to be plugging in anything at the TV?

Not sure I understand ...... any media device will need to be plugged in to the TV via HDMI.

This device (laptop) will also be available to unplug (the HDMI cable at the laptop) and carry outside should such be desired.

If I wanted to watch something while outside the home ....... aaaaah sitting by the pool sipping a cool one from a tall frosted glass ..... the laptop device will accommodate me.

The more I think about it the more sold I am becoming on the idea

same ol sh1te

What I mean is re-connecting once you've brought it back after doing portable laptop things. I've seen my brother use his laptop before and it's messy, to me the big advantage of a dedicated media player is the ability to hide it completely out of view.

I built a HTPC myself 3 years ago for about the same money as that laptop, my main requirement was small and fanless so I added a 40GB SSD but I'm now in a position where I can just buy a MITX upgrade kit to have a brand new faster device.

Just my 2 cents

Johnboy1951

Yes I understand ..... the difficulty I have with most solutions is that they are impossible to re-purpose when they reach the end of their usefulness.

I honestly would say I would not have a problem plugging in a HDMI cable and power jack after the few occasions that we get days when one can stay outside relaxing for some hours .... they are few and far between it seems

I too built a HTPC, but have decided it is too large for under the TV so the slimline of a laptop is rather appealing when compared to it.

Horses for courses

It would also be nice to bring the laptop with me, all set up for media playing, if I go away for a few days break.
It has advantages in the situation I am thinking of, and very few negatives.

Seems few people have gone down this road ....

BTW ..... what is MITX? Mini-ITX?

Zilog

Consider an Intel NUC system at all? Barebones systems are available for reasonable prices e.g. here:
Tranquil PC

Although Celeron based, supposed to have plenty of horsepower for Windows 7, OpenELEC, etc. Even has an IR sensor for media remote.

Myself I'm still running an old 3.2GHz Pentium 4 in a Fujitsu Scaleo E chassis running OpenELEC. Big chassis but looks like a media device. Love to get rid of it but still runs rings around Android PCs etc., no problem with 1080p playback. The P4 is only hyperthreaded, not true dual core, the NUC above would leave it for dust!

timetogo

I used to have a PC under my TV.

Pros are
flexibility - can pop other apps / servers onto the PC and it won't affect media.


Cons are
cost, more costly than a small Android box.
heat, depends on the PC.
cost of running. Also depends on the PC. My Minix Android box uses 7W when on (I think). PC is more.
needs management - patching, antivirus. No biggie but annoying when you're watching a video and you get a popup saying your PC needs to restart.
doesn't have infra red - easy to fix but an added cost.


There may be more pros and cons. I've had a couple of different PCs under the TV over the years. Now I have a Minix X8. I wouldn't go back. I have a PC that I use for downloading files and for running my servers so if I didn't have that then the Minix probably wouldn't be enough for me and I'd be back to having a PC under the TV.


The PC would be more powerful but the X8 is powerful enough to play HD video (and apparently 4K) video. That's all I want it to do.

XBMC on a PC is exactly the same as on an Android box. It's brilliant.
There are other apps you can get for watching videos (e.g. Netflix, RTE Player for example) that work fine with the Android remotes. For a PC you need a keyboard / mouse. That's no big deal either, but all of these little deals start to get annoying.

same ol sh1te

Yes MITX is micro ITX

@timetogo, Windows on a media player......yuck!!! Boot straight to XBMC using either OpenElec or XBMCbuntu and get the full speed of your hardware with no need for antivirus crap

Johnboy1951

@ timetogo

it seems most of your 'cons' are dealt with by using a laptop running Linux for media player, with the added benefit of having the media player portable with its own screen

I did not intend this thread to be a 'one Vs other', but more wanted to know if there are any real 'cons' I might not have considered.
So far none really, and the portability (with screen) is something I would value, although others would not.

Johnboy1951

Zilog wrote: »

Consider an Intel NUC system at all? Barebones systems are available for reasonable prices e.g. here:
Tranquil PC

I also came across this today ....

http://www.saverstore.com/product/20812476/INTEL-DN2820FYKH0-NUC-ULTRA-COMPACT-PC-Celeron-239Ghz-4GB-DDR3-500GB-25-SATA-Wifi-blue

I guess if I wanted something simple, limited and cheap it is similar to this I would be looking at
http://www.saverstore.com/product/20812475/Sumvision-Cyclone-Micro-2-Media-Player-Full-HD-HDMI-1080p-51-Surround

Sorry, this post is OT

timetogo

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

@ timetogo

it seems most of your 'cons' are dealt with by using a laptop running Linux for media player, with the added benefit of having the media player portable with its own screen

I did have linux on my PC under the TV for a while. There was an issue in playing some file types (they'd stutter). It was something to do with the Nvidia chipset I had. The issue didn't exist in Windows.
Another issue I had was when accessing shares over the LAN using XBMC it needed to buffer for ages in linux but would play straight away in Windows. Probably not a problem everybody would have.
I couldn't automate torrent clients as well in linux as I could in Windows. Don't really use torrents anymore. No real need these days.

These issues many not exist anymore. But I'm too old for messing about anymore. I just want to buy something that works out of the box.

Having the media player portable is not so important. You think it is but it's not . In reality you'll leave the laptop under the TV forever. If you have anybody else in the house they'll want to use the media player when you're using the laptop as a laptop.

timetogo

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

I did not intend this thread to be a 'one Vs other', but more wanted to know if there are any real 'cons' I might not have considered.
So far none really, and the portability (with screen) is something I would value, although others would not.

Fair enough so. If I had to buy a laptop for a media centre PC stuff I'd be looking for are

1: Where's the power button located. If you're going to have the machine go to sleep you'll need to hit the power button to power up. If you have the laptop in a small spot then you may need to take it out if the lid is down.

2: Get something like this.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Daffodil-PCR400-Remote-Wireless-Control/dp/B0055QKA5O/ref=sr_1_5?s=electronics-accessories&ie=UTF8&qid=1406214148&sr=1-5&keywords=usb+infra+red+remote
It's handy being able to control XBMC from your phone. Way handier to control it using a remote control (especially if the phone is in the bedroom or out of battery).

3: Ventilation. TV cabinets can get a bit warm in this weather. Make sure there's decent airflow as the small fans in some cheap laptops can be a bit average.


Nothing else really. Once you're running something like XBMC the experience is pretty much the same no matter what the device is.

same ol sh1te

Re: power button, you can setup wake on lan. The Yatse app for Android supports it, no button pressing

timetogo

same ol sh1te wrote: »

Re: power button, you can setup wake on lan. The Yatse app for Android supports it, no button pressing

Did not know that. I have Yatse too. It's a killer app.

Showbox + Yatse + Yatse Stream Plugin + XBMC = Pure brilliance.