HTPC/OFFICEPC Busted! Need a replacement, but on tight budget

[kalniel]

How come? I can't see anything obvious apart from the lack of Bluray drive.

Exactly that

[Agent]

Ahh, fair enough I've seen a few people think the AMD APU won't decode Bluray for some reason. I was fairly sure you wasn't one of them, but just checking

[DanceswithUnix]

Thank you for that. The problem I have is that I honestly don't have a clue. One option I'm thinking of is that I could go for an android stick/wdtv live/portable media player for all my tv needs. This way I don't even need a htpc, but simply a basic office and web browsing computer. It would also allow me to have portability too and that way I could connect the wdtv live/android to my main tv and put all movies on an external hdd hooked upto it. The wdtv/lan hdd can then also be shared across the network via rj45, allowing me to send files to it via my main pc upstairs.

That is why I was hoping someone could guide me and help me make my mind up.

EDIT: I've been thinking, and the above option definitely makes more sense.

Do you have an Android tablet? My son has a really cheap one, coupled to his TV via an HDMI cable that cost a couple of quid on the Amazon marketplace. Works great for things like Netflix.

[mediaofficepc]

No I don't mate...which one is it and can it handle Bluray? 1080p etc?

Out of interested, Isn't there any such thing as a portable PC?

[Agent]

Depends on what you mean by portable to be fair. Some people just use a laptop, as you can buy very powerful ones. Some are closer to desktop replacements IMO due to their size, but certainly still portable.

I generally find ITX based systems portable. Certainly if you use a small case and a pico PSU, but it just depends on what you're willing to spend.

[mediaofficepc]

What I mean is mate is that I'm looking for a Raspberry type of portability, but with a little more power to handle more heavier stuff.

[mediaofficepc]

Guys, I'm missing all the usual text format features on this website...how do i get them back?

I've drawn a full diagram, showing my Network Layout...(When you click on the link below, click on it again to enlarge)

EDIT:

[DanceswithUnix]

Well your TV looks more up to date than mine, how good are the smart features? (I ask as mine is an early Samsung Smart TV, and it is unusable).

There is a Samsung plugin for "Plex". Not something I have personally tried, but you should be able to download a Plex server for free to try on your main PC, and run an app on the TV so it can access your media repository directly.

If it does what you want, then you can invest money in a cheap combined NAS/plex server.

[virtuo]

I use a Raspberry pi (With Xbian OS) for streaming 1080p MKVs from NAS and it is excellent, it did struggle with 1080p video over WiFi, but now it's hard wired to my LAN and it's not missed a beat. It's one of the original 256Mb ones, so getting a newer 512Mb version will be even better. For under £50 all-in you can't really go wrong. I have a wireless Xbox 360 controller hooked up to it for control, and the XBMC android app to use my phone as a remote.

I bought my dad one of those £150 Zoostorm towers you can get on eBuyer. It's fairly pants, but load it up with Mint Linux and it's an excellent cheap office/internet machine. Could probably build something even cheaper if you are happy to hunt.

[DanceswithUnix]

The Pi is fun if you want to muck about with hardware, but a little extra money gets you better cores (A9 usually), twice the cores, twice the ram, a built in battery and screen, built in WiFi and comes with a charger.

The upside of the Pi is you get cabled ethernet (some consider that a downside though) and you end up with very personalised system as you need to make your own case.

http://www.ebuyer.com/407319-sumvisi...n=b2c_thursday

Edit to add: I linked that tablet because I just had an email with it in and didn't have to look for it. You can probably knock a tenner off that price or for a little more get a better resolution IPS screen if you shop around.

[Agent]

I use a Raspberry pi (With Xbian OS) for streaming 1080p MKVs from NAS and it is excellent

Oh interesting, might have to give that a try. Last time I attempted it, while it had a good go, I'd get dropped frames occasionally. It was enough to drive me a bit crazy in the end and I ended up not using it.

[virtuo]

Oh interesting, might have to give that a try. Last time I attempted it, while it had a good go, I'd get dropped frames occasionally. It was enough to drive me a bit crazy in the end and I ended up not using it.

Yeah I just assumed that the hardware wasn't capable of playing 1080p streams over SMB (or it was struggling decoding the DTS on the fly). 720p worked fine over wifi. Thought I'd give it another shot when I networked the living room, pleasantly surprised.

[mediaofficepc]

Guys, I really appreciate your comments and help.

@ DanceswithUnix - Yes mate it's a Samsung Series 6 and so far every file thrown at it has worked, although not sure if it can play via a NAS.

Did any of you guys manage to take a look at the diagram I attached on post #23? If so, how do you think I can setup this WHOLE network, so that everything is easy to access and what do you recommend I buy to solve my original problem(s)?

[herulach]

It sounds like what you actually want is a nas with UPNP server software. Turn windows media connect on, or download & install plex on your main PC. POint it at your media storage and see what the TV looks like for streaming. If it works, then you've got any number of options, ranging from a full on server solution like mine to an external HDD plugged into the back of the router.

Really what you want (assuming the TV streams properly) are 3 devices. Some form of NAS solution - this could be a dedicated device like one of QNAP's offerings, or a HDD plugged into an appropriate router. If you then still need a second computer just for office etc, get the cheapest prebuilt zoostorm ebuyer will sell you.

[mediaofficepc]

It sounds like what you actually want is a nas with UPNP server software. Turn windows media connect on, or download & install plex on your main PC. POint it at your media storage and see what the TV looks like for streaming. If it works, then you've got any number of options, ranging from a full on server solution like mine to an external HDD plugged into the back of the router.

Really what you want (assuming the TV streams properly) are 3 devices. Some form of NAS solution - this could be a dedicated device like one of QNAP's offerings, or a HDD plugged into an appropriate router. If you then still need a second computer just for office etc, get the cheapest prebuilt zoostorm ebuyer will sell you.

Thanks for the recommendation. Yes Plex worked immediately and I can stream my movies perfectly to the Samsung TV. The only issue is that I could not rewind/forward them quickly...in fact sometimes it froze...is that something to do with Plex settings? Can i control the movies, i.e. fast forward, pause etc using plex?

Also what do I do about the Sony Bravia kdl46v3000 which is in the living room? I definitely want to watch movies on that, but I remember a while back, trying to watch movies on it via ethernet and it was slooow.

[mediaofficepc]

Bump!