|
Rhyno posted:So we cut cable back in February and I've been keeping a laptop handy for watching video from itunes and other sources. We use the 360 for Netflix and Amazon Prime but as everyone knows it sucks a dick for streaming from your own network unless the files are in very specific formats. By way of offering another option, you may want to give the WDTV Live a try (IYG thread - which is slightly outdated, you might want to skip to the last few pages for the latest version of the player). It does Netflix and Hulu (but not Amazon), has played every file I've thrown at it, local network support both via network share and DLNA plus two USB ports to support local storage. It can also act as a media server itself so you can theoretically plug an external HDD the back of it, transfer your video files there and watch them on the TV or from your laptop or wherever. Plus it has a (somewhat) decent smartphone remote app with simulated keyboard which comes in handy for Netflix searches. It's not a replacement for a custom built HTPC but for $80 I've never really found myself cause to complain.
|
#
¿
Sep 9, 2012 06:28
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 1, 2024 17:09 |
|
|
Maneki Neko posted:I just picked one up, and I'm leaning towards a return as well. The Netflix app is old and janky, Plex has an annoying audio issue, and the rest of the app content just isn't there. Outside of Plex, I think I'm honestly better served by the Xbox 360. Don't use the official Plex app - install XBMC ( http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=Amazon_Fire_TV ) and use the PLEXBMC add-on (http://wiki.xbmc.org/?title=Add-on:PleXBMC). This runs your Plex server through XBMC which also sidesteps the FireTV's somewhat limited codec selection, so you likely won't need to transcode as much as you would have through the Plex app. All the playback issues I had with Plex on the FireTV went away after going that route.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 13, 2014 02:18
|
|
|
Hadlock posted:Does XBMC not have it's own codecs? I'm considering a FireTV to put XBMC on, but only if it has codec support on par with VLC It does! XBMC supports codecs that the FireTV does not which is really handy for local media playback. The official Plex app for the FireTV is limited by the codecs the FireTV supports, so you may need to do a lot of transcoding on the fly depending on your media. Using PLEXBMC instead you're playing files via XBMC and using its bundled codec library instead so you can play a larger variety of files directly. Basically "Install XBMC" was the answer to a lot of my FireTV playback questions. For local media it's super stable and for me works better than any other media-streamer-in-a-box at that price point I've tried.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 13, 2014 03:14
|
|