Best HTPC out of the box

Forums › Home Theatre (including HTPC and EPG Collector) › Best HTPC out of the box

crackrdbycracku

1168 posts

Uber Geek

#86134 1-Jul-2011 17:15

OK, so maybe this is not the best forum to ask this questions because we are all into 'tinkering' with our stuff.

But for the sake of argument; what do you consider the best HTPC straight out of the box to be?

I'm not talking about the most powerful or the most upgradable. I'm talking about the best system to buy, take home, unbox, plug in to the TV and sound system and GO!

In your assessment you might consider:

value for money, it only needs to be fit for purpose so price counts.

size, it is for the living room.

ease of use

noise.

How it plays with all the other toys like phone, 'proper PC', tablet, etc.

Yeah, I know the best option is to build from the ground up but what if you don't want to?

CrackedbyCracku

Didn't anybody tell you I was a hacker?

gehenna

8495 posts

Uber Geek

Moderator

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#488396 1-Jul-2011 19:10

I don't know that such a thing exists :)

timbosan

2159 posts

Uber Geek

#488403 1-Jul-2011 19:27

gehenna: I don't know that such a thing exists :)

Actually, there is: the Acer Revo 100 - there is even a thread o geekzone!
www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?forumid=84&topicid=74449

It is even available at Noel Leeming and the likes http://www.noelleeming.co.nz/revo100

It has generally very good reviews, and is an item I am considering to replace my (noisy!) custom made HTPC.

AFAIK is only has a single tuner but supports more via USB.

B1GGLZ

1961 posts

Uber Geek

#488404 1-Jul-2011 19:28

gehenna: I don't know that such a thing exists :)

+1
IMO the best and only option is to build from the ground up as it has to perform a specific function to suit your own requirements.
A suitable generic type probably doesn't exist.

Mattv

242 posts

Master Geek

#488407 1-Jul-2011 19:39

B1GGLZ:
...it has to perform a specific function to suit your own requirements.

I kind of think that is the key. What do you want it to be able to do? TV? If so, DVB-S or -T? Movies? What formats? HD or SD or even 3D? Gaming? The list goes on.

PANiCnz

989 posts

Ultimate Geek

#488442 1-Jul-2011 21:33

Apple TV 2 + XBMC = WIN

CYaBro

4582 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#488465 2-Jul-2011 00:03

+1 for the Acer Revo 100.
I've got one on loan from our supplier at the moment and it's great.
It's smaller than I thought it would be and having bluray drive is a bonus.
The only downsides so far are it only has a single dvb-t tuner and 250gb hdd but those can both easily be upgraded.
The touchpad/keyboard is great too and has pretty good range.
I had the Revo in the av cupboard and the touchpad worked fine on the otherwise of a wall.

Opinions are my own and not the views of my employer.

B1GGLZ

1961 posts

Uber Geek

#488508 2-Jul-2011 08:59

CYaBro:
The only downsides so far are it only has a single dvb-t tuner and 250gb hdd but those can both easily be upgraded.

So it's not ideal out of the box and needs to be modified?
That's why it's better to build one that suits your needs rather than spend more money modifying one that doesn't meet your needs.

Equinox IT

Cloud spending continues to surge globally, but most organisations haven’t made the changes necessary to maximise the value and cost-efficiency benefits of their cloud investments. Download the whitepaper From Overspend to Advantage now.

dpw

843 posts

Ultimate Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#488513 2-Jul-2011 09:23

CYaBro: +1 for the Acer Revo 100.
I've got one on loan from our supplier at the moment and it's great.
It's smaller than I thought it would be and having bluray drive is a bonus.
The only downsides so far are it only has a single dvb-t tuner and 250gb hdd but those can both easily be upgraded.
The touchpad/keyboard is great too and has pretty good range.
I had the Revo in the av cupboard and the touchpad worked fine on the otherwise of a wall.

Single tuner and small-ish HDD don't bother me - all my stuff are stored on a NAS. The biggest question for me is 1080p - can this play them smoothly? The CPU specs doesn't look that flash...

Android user, software developer, a semi-typical (not a gamer) geek, and a Bernese Mountain Dog nut!

http://savitarbernese.com | https://nz.linkedin.com/in/danywu

blakamin

4431 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user

#488515 2-Jul-2011 09:35

Saw this yesterday
http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/30/edge-hd2-mini-pc-is-an-htpc-that-hides-behind-your-tv/

dpw

843 posts

Ultimate Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#488517 2-Jul-2011 09:40

I have been keeping an eye on the Acer Revo 100 - the idea of having bluray built in is very appealing! The device looks very snazzy, but I have my doubts how usable that keyboard is...

Android user, software developer, a semi-typical (not a gamer) geek, and a Bernese Mountain Dog nut!

http://savitarbernese.com | https://nz.linkedin.com/in/danywu

crackrdbycracku

1168 posts

Uber Geek

#488573 2-Jul-2011 12:48

Apple TV 2 + XBMC = WIN

My understanding was that a Mac was required to jailbreak an Apple TV, is that correct, out of date, just plain wrong? Also you would plug in an HD for storage, correct?

Can anybody point me to a good thread on this? I've had a quick look here but it seemed there was a lot of shlock to wade through.

Anybody got an opinion on the Mac mini? Or the Dell Inspiron Zino HD (although I have heard bad things about Dell build quality).

The things I would be wanting to do are:

Watch Freeview TV

Record TV, single tuner is OK as there are bugger all times there is more than one thing worth watching on TV at a time.

Download, play and store (250GB should be fine, can always jack in another HD) video without having to worry about formats and MKV wrapping, blah

Play and manage music on iTunes.

That's about it.

Didn't anybody tell you I was a hacker?

timbosan

2159 posts

Uber Geek

#488575 2-Jul-2011 12:55

crackrdbycracku: Apple TV 2 + XBMC = WIN

The Apple TV is a playback only device - it offer no method of watching live TV, for this you still need a HTPC (or other Freeview receiver).

Even with XBMC it's still playback only, just capable of playing back more formats.

And yes, you need a PC or MAC to jailbrake it. I have an Apple TV 2 and it's a great product but does involve a big commitment to using iTunes (my is not jail-broken).

CYaBro

4582 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#488639 2-Jul-2011 16:45

B1GGLZ:
CYaBro:
The only downsides so far are it only has a single dvb-t tuner and 250gb hdd but those can both easily be upgraded.

So it's not ideal out of the box and needs to be modified?
That's why it's better to build one that suits your needs rather than spend more money modifying one that doesn't meet your needs.

For the average joe public it is ideal out of the box.

I've been playing 1080p blurays all day today and no problems with lag or anything, it looks great.
The touchpad/keyboard takes a little getting used to but does its job.

Opinions are my own and not the views of my employer.

cldlr76

289 posts

Ultimate Geek

#488663 2-Jul-2011 18:52

Not sure if you consider this "out of the box" but I got one from playtech almost directly as it was off their website (only difference was I got them to add a hard drive I had lying around and changed the case color to suit the wife). Im still really happy with it, it hasn't had any issues, except getting the displays working properly when I bought a new tv but that was easily resolved in the end. Unfortunatly they don't have any on their website at the moment but computer lounge do... http://www.computerlounge.co.nz/systems/systemdetail.asp?sysid=71&systypeid=5

crackrdbycracku

1168 posts

Uber Geek

#490098 6-Jul-2011 15:16

Hi anybody had any experience with one of these?

Acer Aspire Revo R3700

The reviews I have read so far look pretty positive and at $760 from PB Tech is is way cheaper than anything else I have seen.

http://www.pbtech.co.nz/index.php?z=p&p=WKSACN1207175

Didn't anybody tell you I was a hacker?