Best streaming device for 1080p tv

[Hanniblex]

I want something to watch netflix and youtube on my tv at 1080p. I see a bunch of streaming devices, but I don't know what is the most reliable. Should I get google tv or roku? something else? I am trying to find something affordable so a HTPC would be out of the question, but I am willing to spend the extra bucks to get a quality unit. I don't want to have to build another computer just to stream videos from the internet in HD.

[Chef]

have you considered an apple tv? you can watch youtube, netflix and iTunes and stuff like that.

[Draex]

The Roku 2XS is probably the best low cost solution, the Jynxbox Android (http://jynxboxandroid.com/) running XBMC/Android4.04 seams to be another powerful cheap solution, but its from a fairly new company with not a lot of credit to its name.

[nordles]

If you want to try something new and a bit tricky, I would recommend looking into the Raspberry Pi.

There are work arounds for watching YouTube and currently it doesn't support Netflix, but they are working on it. XBMC also works on this little thing if that interests you, there's a lot of information available about it if you hunt around.

It's not the ideal or fastest solution but it could be a fun learning experience, and it's only £25/$35 ish.

[sazr]

I would definitely go for the Raspberry Pi solution, for the price and the experience, but i think that depends a little on your knowledge and background

[Xenon]

There are many cheap Android TV devices that have plenty of power to display 1080p. Plus you get the web, Netflix, network streaming etc. Which country do you live in?

[Hanniblex]

There are many cheap Android TV devices that have plenty of power to display 1080p. Plus you get the web' date=' Netflix, network streaming etc. Which country do you live in?[/quote']

The United States.

[Hanniblex]

have you considered an apple tv? you can watch youtube' date=' netflix and iTunes and stuff like that. [/quote']

I'm a bit of an Apple hater. lol

[Hanniblex]

If you want to try something new and a bit tricky' date=' I would recommend looking into the Raspberry Pi. There are work arounds for watching YouTube and currently it doesn't support Netflix, but they are working on it. XBMC also works on this little thing if that interests you, there's a lot of information available about it if you hunt around. It's not the ideal or fastest solution but it could be a fun learning experience, and it's only £25/$35 ish.

Where do you buy these? Sounds interesting. I like new and tricky... :)

[Hanniblex]

I would definitely go for the Raspberry Pi solution' date=' for the price and the experience, but i think that depends a little on your knowledge and background[/quote']

Gonna do some research on this raspberry pi. I am definitely intrigued.

[Xenon]

I would definitely go for the Raspberry Pi solution' date=' for the price and the experience, but i think that depends a little on your knowledge and background[/quote'] Gonna do some research on this raspberry pi. I am definitely intrigued.

If you want to go the Raspberry pi route look at Amazon or Element14 if the electronics bug gets you.

It's a more customizable in terms of software and hardware but the "pre-made" solutions are less so, but offer you a lazier option.

So what'll it be, the blue or red pill... ;D

[Hanniblex]

I would definitely go for the Raspberry Pi solution' date=' for the price and the experience, but i think that depends a little on your knowledge and background[/quote'] Gonna do some research on this raspberry pi. I am definitely intrigued.

If you want to go the Raspberry pi route look at Amazon or Element14 if the electronics bug gets you. It's a more customizable in terms of software and hardware but the "pre-made" solutions are less so, but offer you a lazier option. So what'll it be, the blue or red pill... ;D

Dam man! I started this thread looking for a lazy solution to this problem. I want something to throw on top of the home theatre and use without effort. I think I might want to "play" with this rasberry pi thing.

I think I might get both. I will use the streaming box until I get the rasberry pi up and running. Then I can give the other box to my sister so they can enjoy streaming.

So for the Rasberry Pi. You said it's customizable. Do I have to buy something to get it up and running or does it come with everything needed to stream on day one?

[Xenon]

I would definitely go for the Raspberry Pi solution' date=' for the price and the experience, but i think that depends a little on your knowledge and background[/quote'] Gonna do some research on this raspberry pi. I am definitely intrigued.

If you want to go the Raspberry pi route look at Amazon or Element14 if the electronics bug gets you. It's a more customizable in terms of software and hardware but the "pre-made" solutions are less so, but offer you a lazier option. So what'll it be, the blue or red pill... ;D

Dam man! I started this thread looking for a lazy solution to this problem. I want something to throw on top of the home theatre and use without effort. I think I might want to "play" with this rasberry pi thing. I think I might get both. I will use the streaming box until I get the rasberry pi up and running. Then I can give the other box to my sister so they can enjoy streaming. So for the Rasberry Pi. You said it's customizable. Do I have to buy something to get it up and running or does it come with everything needed to stream on day one?

It depends on what kit you get, but you'll need an sd-card, hdmi lead, KB/Mouse, micro usb, usb hub, BIOS, ROM......

Honestly, unless you're dedicated to testing and fiddling around with it, I'd say just stick with the cheap and cheerful option.

If you get into digital electronics, try looking at an Arduino, much friendlier.

The raspberry pi is quite a rabbit hole to fall into for the inexperienced.

[Hanniblex]

I would definitely go for the Raspberry Pi solution' date=' for the price and the experience, but i think that depends a little on your knowledge and background[/quote'] Gonna do some research on this raspberry pi. I am definitely intrigued.

If you want to go the Raspberry pi route look at Amazon or Element14 if the electronics bug gets you. It's a more customizable in terms of software and hardware but the "pre-made" solutions are less so, but offer you a lazier option. So what'll it be, the blue or red pill... ;D

Dam man! I started this thread looking for a lazy solution to this problem. I want something to throw on top of the home theatre and use without effort. I think I might want to "play" with this rasberry pi thing. I think I might get both. I will use the streaming box until I get the rasberry pi up and running. Then I can give the other box to my sister so they can enjoy streaming. So for the Rasberry Pi. You said it's customizable. Do I have to buy something to get it up and running or does it come with everything needed to stream on day one?

It depends on what kit you get, but you'll need an sd-card, hdmi lead, KB/Mouse, micro usb, usb hub, BIOS, ROM...... Honestly, unless you're dedicated to testing and fiddling around with it, I'd say just stick with the cheap and cheerful option. If you get into digital electronics, try looking at an Arduino, much friendlier. The raspberry pi is quite a rabbit hole to fall into for the inexperienced.

Yea. I watched a few youtube videos about it, and it looks a bit too much more than what I need.

So any suggestions for a simple streaming box?

YouTube and NetFlix is all I am trying to watch.

Any good smart blueray players out there?

[Xenon]

I would definitely go for the Raspberry Pi solution' date=' for the price and the experience, but i think that depends a little on your knowledge and background[/quote'] Gonna do some research on this raspberry pi. I am definitely intrigued.

If you want to go the Raspberry pi route look at Amazon or Element14 if the electronics bug gets you. It's a more customizable in terms of software and hardware but the "pre-made" solutions are less so, but offer you a lazier option. So what'll it be, the blue or red pill... ;D

Dam man! I started this thread looking for a lazy solution to this problem. I want something to throw on top of the home theatre and use without effort. I think I might want to "play" with this rasberry pi thing. I think I might get both. I will use the streaming box until I get the rasberry pi up and running. Then I can give the other box to my sister so they can enjoy streaming. So for the Rasberry Pi. You said it's customizable. Do I have to buy something to get it up and running or does it come with everything needed to stream on day one?

It depends on what kit you get, but you'll need an sd-card, hdmi lead, KB/Mouse, micro usb, usb hub, BIOS, ROM...... Honestly, unless you're dedicated to testing and fiddling around with it, I'd say just stick with the cheap and cheerful option. If you get into digital electronics, try looking at an Arduino, much friendlier. The raspberry pi is quite a rabbit hole to fall into for the inexperienced.

Yea. I watched a few youtube videos about it, and it looks a bit too much more than what I need. So any suggestions for a simple streaming box? YouTube and NetFlix is all I am trying to watch. Any good smart blueray players out there?

Not really in the know with smart Blu ray players, but there are a ton of different Android tv boxes out there, there is an android Netflix app and you can always stream over the network. I'm not sure if you can have a server set up with a shared Blu ray optical drive and stream over the network, or find a server side software solution that allows that capability. The fun is in the unknown, do some research and find what you need from it. Is the ability to play Blu rays a necessity?

[Hanniblex]

I would definitely go for the Raspberry Pi solution' date=' for the price and the experience, but i think that depends a little on your knowledge and background[/quote'] Gonna do some research on this raspberry pi. I am definitely intrigued.

If you want to go the Raspberry pi route look at Amazon or Element14 if the electronics bug gets you. It's a more customizable in terms of software and hardware but the "pre-made" solutions are less so, but offer you a lazier option. So what'll it be, the blue or red pill... ;D

Dam man! I started this thread looking for a lazy solution to this problem. I want something to throw on top of the home theatre and use without effort. I think I might want to "play" with this rasberry pi thing. I think I might get both. I will use the streaming box until I get the rasberry pi up and running. Then I can give the other box to my sister so they can enjoy streaming. So for the Rasberry Pi. You said it's customizable. Do I have to buy something to get it up and running or does it come with everything needed to stream on day one?

It depends on what kit you get, but you'll need an sd-card, hdmi lead, KB/Mouse, micro usb, usb hub, BIOS, ROM...... Honestly, unless you're dedicated to testing and fiddling around with it, I'd say just stick with the cheap and cheerful option. If you get into digital electronics, try looking at an Arduino, much friendlier. The raspberry pi is quite a rabbit hole to fall into for the inexperienced.

Yea. I watched a few youtube videos about it, and it looks a bit too much more than what I need. So any suggestions for a simple streaming box? YouTube and NetFlix is all I am trying to watch. Any good smart blueray players out there?

Not really in the know with smart Blu ray players, but there are a ton of different Android tv boxes out there, there is an android Netflix app and you can always stream over the network. I'm not sure if you can have a server set up with a shared Blu ray optical drive and stream over the network, or find a server side software solution that allows that capability. The fun is in the unknown, do some research and find what you need from it. Is the ability to play Blu rays a necessity?

Probably not, but I also have a dvd sub for netflix. Would be nice to have an all in one box. I just need 1080p streaming for youtube and netflix. A simple UI would be nice too. I am more looking for reliability.

[Xenon]

I would definitely go for the Raspberry Pi solution' date=' for the price and the experience, but i think that depends a little on your knowledge and background[/quote'] Gonna do some research on this raspberry pi. I am definitely intrigued.

If you want to go the Raspberry pi route look at Amazon or Element14 if the electronics bug gets you. It's a more customizable in terms of software and hardware but the "pre-made" solutions are less so, but offer you a lazier option. So what'll it be, the blue or red pill... ;D

Dam man! I started this thread looking for a lazy solution to this problem. I want something to throw on top of the home theatre and use without effort. I think I might want to "play" with this rasberry pi thing. I think I might get both. I will use the streaming box until I get the rasberry pi up and running. Then I can give the other box to my sister so they can enjoy streaming. So for the Rasberry Pi. You said it's customizable. Do I have to buy something to get it up and running or does it come with everything needed to stream on day one?

It depends on what kit you get, but you'll need an sd-card, hdmi lead, KB/Mouse, micro usb, usb hub, BIOS, ROM...... Honestly, unless you're dedicated to testing and fiddling around with it, I'd say just stick with the cheap and cheerful option. If you get into digital electronics, try looking at an Arduino, much friendlier. The raspberry pi is quite a rabbit hole to fall into for the inexperienced.

Yea. I watched a few youtube videos about it, and it looks a bit too much more than what I need. So any suggestions for a simple streaming box? YouTube and NetFlix is all I am trying to watch. Any good smart blueray players out there?

Not really in the know with smart Blu ray players, but there are a ton of different Android tv boxes out there, there is an android Netflix app and you can always stream over the network. I'm not sure if you can have a server set up with a shared Blu ray optical drive and stream over the network, or find a server side software solution that allows that capability. The fun is in the unknown, do some research and find what you need from it. Is the ability to play Blu rays a necessity?

Probably not, but I also have a dvd sub for netflix. Would be nice to have an all in one box. I just need 1080p streaming for youtube and netflix. A simple UI would be nice too. I am more looking for reliability.

Unfortunately I'm not great with pre-built appliances, and knowing what's reliable. I tend to make solutions out of basic components and then add my own reliance to them, it can be a pain in the ass, but if you do a good job it's yours.

I'm pretty sure there are some "smart dvd/Blu ray players that have Youtube and Netflix apps, however I'm not a great fan or user of them so I can't really help.

[Mac]

I just use my PC, HDMI into the back of the TV. Got a quiet enough PC so I take no notice of it.

[Hanniblex]

Yes, but I don't have a fast enough laptop or a desktop near my TV.

[Theguywhobea]

As much as it is cool to use a really cheap and small device to stream 1080p video to your TV, I still think that for $230 for a PS3 you still get the best bang for the buck. The whole library of PS3 games (discs and downloaded), native Blu-ray playback, plus you still have Netflix and Hulu Plus and even Crunchyroll HD for the anime fans. You can also use PS3 media server to stream video content that is on your PC to your TV.

[douchecanoe]

I feel like there should be more talk about using an APU build for this kind of thing, this is what I see them being kind of directed for, thin client PC's

Put some sort of Trinity A4 APU in a box with 4GB fast RAM, and a small SSD maybe (doesn't need to be large if your content is network based) and you're set

You can get those Zotac boxes really cheap, and if your TV is on a stand you can mount them on the back of your TV with the VESA mount so you don't even see it!

Plus you get full Windows experience with web browsing and all that jazz, and you can also put some emulators on. Boot up XMBC with media library and the emulators and that's one kickass HTPC

....that's just what I would do though

[cushy91]

I have 2x Raspberry Pi running XBMC using Raspbmc at the minute.

The main RPi has replaced my main HTPC which has now been repurposed.

It's not quite ther yet, though, in terms of stability and every feature working but it's pretty damn close. I have mine playing live TV and 1080p movies served up from from my network storage box with no problems (for movies at least, there's still a few issues with live TV)

I'm not entirely sure if it's possible to run Netflix yet on XBMC by way of an add-on but I do remember work being done on one.

If you like tinkering and want a project then by all means get a Pi. If you want something that's gonna work straight out of the box or something that has WAF/SAF (Wife/Spouse Acceptance Factor), then look elsewhere...Apple TV, Roku, WDTV, Xbox 360 other STBs etc

[deafboy]

Roku for me.

Raspberry Pi just isn't there yet.

[Aaranu]

I use a western digital TV Live and it gets the job done nicely.

[Hanniblex]

I might go with the google tv. It's under $100 and has a lot more options than the roku. The roku not having a youtube app killed it for me, but I am still wondering if I really "need" to watch youtube on my tv.