Xbmc on tv best way?

As the title suggests I want xbmc to work with my hd tv but not sure about the best way to do this.

I want xbmc as it has a great UI and plenty of plugin channels etc.

I have come across the raspberry pi however, it appears that to stream HD it needs extra bits bringing the cost up somewhat including the purchase of codecs that are free elsewhere?

Ideally I want something I can just plug in the back of the tv into hdmi or USB and I'm off so to speak. The wdtv live box seems good as it has direct storage, but it doesn't have the extra channel plugins for streaming.

Any of you out there with any ideas, suggestion etc?

Much appreciated.
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Comments

  • JasonJason Posts: 76,557
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    Well according to this, which i think is the official site for XBMC on the Pi, the codecs have been reverse engineered and are now free due to a dispute with the foundation.

    http://www.raspbmc.com/
  • Esot-ericEsot-eric Posts: 1,293
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    the codecs have been reverse engineered and are now free due to a dispute with the foundation.

    Unfortunately, it seems that it was a childish prank by people who seem to think it's funny to spread misinformation every year on 1st April.

    Hard enough to separate truth from fiction on the Internet without usually credible sources actively spreading nonsense.

    Anyway, to the OPs question:

    I believe the Raspberry Pi comes with support for h.264 hardware decoding built-in. It's just the other codecs that require you to purchase a license, and i think the R-Pi has enough CPU grunt to decode those in software anyway.

    If you can wait until June the Ouya Android console should be shipping, and that will come with support for XBMC.
  • mred2000mred2000 Posts: 10,050
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    Acer Revo nettop machine? More expensive than a Pi but it'll do everything and you can probably fix it to the back of your telly so it'll be well out of the way...
  • JasonJason Posts: 76,557
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    Esot-eric wrote: »
    Unfortunately, it seems that it was a childish prank by people who seem to think it's funny to spread misinformation every year on 1st April.

    Fair play, my fault for not reading properly ..

    There's an unofficial build of XBMC for Android that allows HD playback - if the OP got a decent Android TV stick, it could certainly work and give much more scope for streaming.

    According to the site, it's a full release as well

    http://www.xbmcandroid.com/2013/01/17/introducing-the-first-end-user-friendly-release-of-xbmc-for-android-must-have/
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 858
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    mred2000 wrote: »
    Acer Revo nettop machine? More expensive than a Pi but it'll do everything and you can probably fix it to the back of your telly so it'll be well out of the way...

    Seen these on ebuyer for 160 with no o/s which is fine as I use Ubuntu anyway. However reviews suggest these are not Ubuntu friendly?
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 858
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    Fair play, my fault for not reading properly ..

    There's an unofficial build of XBMC for Android that allows HD playback - if the OP got a decent Android TV stick, it could certainly work and give much more scope for streaming.

    According to the site, it's a full release as well

    http://www.xbmcandroid.com/2013/01/17/introducing-the-first-end-user-friendly-release-of-xbmc-for-android-must-have/

    Think it was the mk808 on amazon for about 35 quid but has issues with wifi and android support is in early stages but that's interesting link. Ty
  • TheDisneyMagicTheDisneyMagic Posts: 454
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    Another vote for the Revo range, I have R3700's attached to every TV in the house all connected to a server which also has a SQL database to keep track of content - they are brilliant, the newer models come with BluRay drives as well making them even better for the job.

    I personally have Windows installed on them but they boot directly in to XBMC using the program XBMC Launcher. By using this it removes the Windows Shell unless I attempt to exit XBMC this makes the whole process seamless.

    When you get round to setting everything up let me know if you have any problems and I will be happy to help you.
  • Tinky-WinkyTinky-Winky Posts: 95
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    Hi,

    Does the latest Revo series handle HD from BBC iPlayer as I heard that the R36** could not handle it.

    TW
  • TheDisneyMagicTheDisneyMagic Posts: 454
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    I used to have the R3610 version a couple of years ago and after upping the RAM (I think it was 4GB) it was able to handle HD with no problems - Now I can't remember if that included the BBC iPlayer HD or whether iPlayer HD was even about back then. I still have one of those models at work so I will give it a try for you when I get a chance.
  • TheDisneyMagicTheDisneyMagic Posts: 454
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    The R3700 and above definitely handle it with no problem. I can account for that personally.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 858
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    What about this? Good for hd streaming? Has audio out for surround etc. would it cope well though?
  • TheDisneyMagicTheDisneyMagic Posts: 454
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    Yup they cope fine with the audio, I have some of them attached through the HDMI for Audio and Video and others attached through HDMI for Video and Optical for Audio and no problems what so ever.
  • theAREtheARE Posts: 1,847
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    I have a Blutimes M1 android tv box which fully supports the XBMC build for android
    But XBMC for android generally is still quite new and their are bugs - but it's getting better

    Edit: the only issue with the Bluetimes was that the remote that comes with it is absolute crap - and wont let you do pretty basics things. So had to get a usb airmouse / keyboard to go with it to make it properly usable. Just factor that into your budget if you go for one.
  • BrokenArrowBrokenArrow Posts: 21,665
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    theARE wrote: »
    I have a Blutimes M1 android tv box which fully supports the XBMC build for android
    But XBMC for android generally is still quite new and their are bugs - but it's getting better

    Edit: the only issue with the Bluetimes was that the remote that comes with it is absolute crap - and wont let you do pretty basics things. So had to get a usb airmouse / keyboard to go with it to make it properly usable. Just factor that into your budget if you go for one.

    I have an MK802 mk3 dual core and this works straight off your Android phone with no remote control required, even uses the G sensors.

    Not tried XBMC on it though.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 858
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  • TheDisneyMagicTheDisneyMagic Posts: 454
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    Tobias. wrote: »

    They should be good, I haven't got my hands on one yet but considering they are the upgrade to the R3700 I would guess they should be able to handle it. The Celeron and Core i3 processors should be more powerful than the Atom in the machines I have.
  • Esot-ericEsot-eric Posts: 1,293
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    Tobias. wrote: »

    Should work fine.

    I just converted one of these (i used the processor and HDD to upgrade my sister's computer and replaced them with a Sempron 140 and 60GB laptop HDD) to an XBMC machine using OpenELEC and the one you linked to is much higher specs.

    Runs fine and plays back content without a problem, including 720p stuff (don't have any 1080p content to test). Installed the iPlayer, ITVplayer, and 4oD plugins and they playback fine too.

    Unless you need to run Windows software or what to use it as a computer too putting Windows on it is just throwing your money away. OpenELEC is much more light-weight and free.

    There are also these recently released.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 858
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    Esot-eric wrote: »
    Should work fine.

    I just converted one of these (i used the processor and HDD to upgrade my sister's computer and replaced them with a Sempron 140 and 60GB laptop HDD) to an XBMC machine using OpenELEC and the one you linked to is much higher specs.

    Runs fine and plays back content without a problem, including 720p stuff (don't have any 1080p content to test). Installed the iPlayer, ITVplayer, and 4oD plugins and they playback fine too.

    Unless you need to run Windows software or what to use it as a computer too putting Windows on it is just throwing your money away. OpenELEC is much more light-weight and free.

    There are also these recently released.

    I can get the one I linked to for 160 with no o/s was hoping to put ubuntu on but that is a no go with these machines. Would openELEC just install and make the unit an xbmc only device? Ie boot straight in? If so is it the same as xbmc as in plugins and updates? What about codecs etc? Ubuntu you download via terminal, whereas this? Loks promising...

    EDIT - maybe not just looked and there are issues apparently on that range with installing Linux inc Ubuntu and openELEC...hmmm
  • whoever,heywhoever,hey Posts: 30,992
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    Are the codecs free on ubuntu?

    Doesn't the raspberry pi just run linux anyway, so cant you install puppy ubuntu on it or something and install the free codecs?
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 858
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    Esot-eric wrote: »
    Should work fine.

    I just converted one of these (i used the processor and HDD to upgrade my sister's computer and replaced them with a Sempron 140 and 60GB laptop HDD) to an XBMC machine using OpenELEC and the one you linked to is much higher specs.

    Runs fine and plays back content without a problem, including 720p stuff (don't have any 1080p content to test). Installed the iPlayer, ITVplayer, and 4oD plugins and they playback fine too.

    Unless you need to run Windows software or what to use it as a computer too putting Windows on it is just throwing your money away. OpenELEC is much more light-weight and free.

    There are also these recently released.

    The acer Revo has the celeron 887, 4gb memory and only seems to work with windows 8 - would that be okay for doing backup from my DVD collection to the hard drive? Would it be slow? Would I be better off looking at something else?

    General consensus seems to be that with win 8 it will run xbmc fine had included streaming should be okay depending on broadband but not much info on back up times etc?

    So many choices lol... Ty for all the help though.
  • Esot-ericEsot-eric Posts: 1,293
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    Yeah, it looks like the newer Revos will only currently work with Windows, which automatically bumps the price by around £70.

    Eventually the various Linux distros will solve the problem but for now, if you're going for a Revo, you'll either need to use Windows or try and get the previous generation Revo.

    The Revo will be able to backup from your DVDs but it'll be pretty slow. Better to rip them on your (more powerful) main computer and then transfer them to the XMBC box or a NAS.

    Those Artic MC001 machines would have been perfect for a media box but it looks like they've been discontinued and i haven't found anywhere else selling them. Perhaps they're due a refresh, so it may be worth keeping an eye on the site.

    You asked about installing XBMC plugins in OpenELEC. They will work fine since it's just a very minimal Linux system with XBMC (12.1) running on top. OpenELEC includes some additional plugins and an additional settings menu where you can configure things like networking. So, if you have (or get get hold of) an old PC it'll work fine. It'll even work with cheap Windows Media Center remote controls out of the box, so no need for mouse/keyboard.
  • Esot-ericEsot-eric Posts: 1,293
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    Are the codecs free on ubuntu?

    Doesn't the raspberry pi just run linux anyway, so cant you install puppy ubuntu on it or something and install the free codecs?

    Looks like the Pi doesn't have enough CPU grunt to software decode without stuttering.

    The Pi comes with a licence for h.264 so anything using that will be hardware accelerated and play without problem (even 1080p stuff).

    A licence for MPEG2 can be purchased for £2.40, and VC-1 for £1.20, which also hardware accelerates content using those codecs, but it seems like the Pi still struggles with AC-3 or DTS audio.

    The OP could encode all their DVDs using h.264 video and AAC audio and the Pi will play them back without problem. Similarly most of the catchup services use h.264/AAC streams, so those should work too.

    A Pi (£32 inc case), USB power supply or powered USB hub (£5-£10), a MCE remote (£15) and, optionally, a USB Wifi adapter (~£10). At under £70 all-in it may be worth a shot.

    Now that i've finished upgrading all the household computers i'm going to pick up a Pi later this month to experiment with.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 858
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    http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00AXYAXU0/ref=noref?ie=UTF8&psc=1&s=computers

    With the Revo out of the question, I am leaning towards this? But the specs seem exactly the same as the Revo l80 unless I'm missing something obvious... Thus I presume Ubuntu etc would be out the the question here too? Would I be able to use a USB bluray drive to backup films with it?
  • call100call100 Posts: 7,264
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    More expensive, but, this from Novatech is supposed to be OK..
  • Tinky-WinkyTinky-Winky Posts: 95
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    Hi call100,

    Digital Spy does not allow links to Novatech for some reason.

    TW
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