HTPC vs Standalone player for non-tech people

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martyyn

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#128915 28-Aug-2013 10:57

It was always going to happen, I'm just surprised its taken this long !

Some friends were at my house last week and absolutely wetting themselves over my HTPC being able to play tv, bluray, stream audio, etc from the server. All basic stuff to you and me, but they struggle with ipads. Now they say 'cost is not an issue, build us one of those' :(

We all know as good as our systems are they need the odd tweak every now and again and I really don't want to be tech-support if it fails to record the moto-gp in the middle of the night due to what I find out to be user error ! They also want to be able to either stream music from a central location or their iphones. They've been to Harvery Norman and are being told to buy $$$$'s of products which quite honestly they understand.

I've read a couple of threads about various Panasonic and Samsung blurary players with twin dvb-t tuners and network capability but know nothing about them at all. They currently have basic sky and nothing else but really want the moto-gp from Sommet. Do they do apps like Spotify aswell ? Or can they at least be paired with an amp to play music ?

I'll keep reading but would appreciate any suggestions.

[e] After having read a little more I should probably emphasise there is a stong Apple presence in this house, simply because they think anything else is too complicated. DLNA appears to be for everything except Apple. I need to find out exactly what there music needs are, because they just said 'play music from my iphone on the stereo' the other day. Where the iphone music comes from Im not sure because I dont think they use itunes.

trig42

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#885827 28-Aug-2013 12:32

Hmm, I'd steer them away from a HTPC too.

The Panasonic DVD/BD Recorders are great and easy to use. I'm not sure of the Apps they can run though, but for a freeview recorder, they are great. Add an AppleTV and most of their needs will be met (assuming they have a computer somewhere with all of their music on it?).

Don't forget a Harmony remote - probably the most user friendly universal remote around (not so user friendly for programming, but you can set and forget that).

davidcole

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#885830 28-Aug-2013 12:38

If they already have sky I'd push them at a mysky.

I can't really comment on the Freeview only based recorders having never used one, as I doubt you'd easily find one that can a, record stuff, b, play other stuff back.

Although that said, the samsung TVs can record (transponder based so you can record tv1 and watch tv2 at the same time) and have pretty good playback capabilities the usual suspects of apps/

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martyyn

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#885831 28-Aug-2013 12:38

Yeah, at $500 the Panasonic PWT720GZ is looking good value.

Not sure I want to confuse things with an Apple TV at the moment, but I'm going around there later to talk about their music situation and figure out exactly what it is they want to do. Half the trouble is they wae their iphones in the air and say they want to play this on the stereo !!

A PC in the garage as a server for photos, movies etc may be the go too and a Harmony remote is top of the list as well.

martyyn

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#885832 28-Aug-2013 12:40

I did think about mysky (they have basic sky now) but they only really want to record the moto-GP on Sommet which is only dvb-t (at the moment, I see they have asked users if they would like dvb-s on their Facebook page).

Im just thinking about how to peel it back from my all singing and dancing HTPC/server combination to something they will actually use.

davidcole

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#885833 28-Aug-2013 12:42

martyyn: I did think about mysky (they have basic sky now) but they only really want to record the moto-GP on Sommet which is only dvb-t (at the moment, I see they have asked users if they would like dvb-s on their Facebook page).

Im just thinking about how to peel it back from my all singing and dancing HTPC/server combination to something they will actually use.

You know as soon as you give them a DVB-T based recorder they're going to ask you about recording sky....oh well you need to plug in into the recorder sand get a channel blaster and......OH THE PAIN

martyyn

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#885835 28-Aug-2013 12:43

I know. I should've just put my remote away and not let them see it !

chevrolux

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#886060 28-Aug-2013 18:38

I would go for a NAS that supports Plex and then Roku devices for each TV. Plex helps you stream media from the NAS to whatever device you want and is super easy to use.
The for recording TV a Panasonic Freeview recorder is all you need.

I set my parents up with the exact same system and they can handle the running of it.

Edit: Plex server download is here as well as what NAS's are supported. My pick for a NAS would be anything from Synology. Not the cheapest but good product.

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Dingbatt

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#886172 28-Aug-2013 21:03

Since they have said cost is not an issue, build the cost of ongoing tech support into the amount you tell them it is going to cost.
$10000 should probably cover it ;-)
I was recently looking at a media-server system at a home automation company. While it costs $$$, it is set up and programmed by the company and then run from an iPad. Their demo system had mysky, bluray, itunes and MSMCE in it and went to 2 TVs and a projector. While your friend's setup wouldn't be that complicated, if they have an 'Apple' expectation of unboxing, powering up and it just working, then I suggest you building them an HTPC would put a strain on that friendship.

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RunningMan

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#886184 28-Aug-2013 21:12

An airport express or Apple TV sitting on their network will enable them to very easily stream music or video (Apple TV) to their stereo or TV. In fact, a home theatre amp that supports AirPlay would also do.

Dunnersfella

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#886217 28-Aug-2013 21:40

Upgrade to MySky.
A Panasonic BluRay recorder (the 2013 versions that will stream both live and recorded TV to their iPad's).
An Apple TV 3.
A NAS with a Plex server built in.
A Harmony Ultimate remote.

Then, set up the Harmony with these activities...

1: Record Freeview (loads 'Guide' so they can easily navigate the EPG) - leave the Red / Green / Blue / Yellow buttons on the screen so they can series link etc.
2: 'Saved' Freeview (loads the 'navigator' so they can easily scroll through the shows they've recorded on the Panasonic recorder).
3: Watch Freeview (self explanatory, with swipe gestures to fast forward / pause / rewind etc)
4: Record Sky (loads the 'planner / guide' in the same way the Freeview recorder does).
5: 'Saved' Sky (loads the pre-recorded Sky channels etc).
6: Watch Sky (self explanatory, with swipe gestures to fast forward / pause / rewind etc)
7: Watch DVD (Yup - pretty straight forward).
8: Apple TV (Loads the Apple TV - one of the newly released pre-configs from Harmony).
Under Apple TV, you can use the sneaky side-loading of Plex, directly off the NAS.

The Harmony Ultimate means you don't need to keep the remote pointed at the gear at all times, as the remote communicates directly with the bridge via wifi, meaning it's pretty much fool proof.
If they want an amp, just get one with Airplay music built in (Sony / Denon / Marantz / Pioneer), and they can use the receivers App. to control the amp etc. Of course, the Apple TV means they could try out a soundbar / HTIB if they need.

My $0.10.

martyyn

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#888156 2-Sep-2013 10:36

Thanks all,

After spending a couple of hours with them trying to work out exactly what it is they want, they've decided to put off any major purchases until they can really understand what they need and what they can do.

My thoughts are a Panny dvd/dvb-t tuner to handle movies and freeview, an airplay amp for the music, a harmony remote to tie it all up and they are done. It will cost more than an HTPC but there will be no support calls from them....with any luck :)

Cheers