BuffaloRescue Posted April 19, 2013 Share Posted April 19, 2013 Hi Ive been considering getting a mac mini so i can watch all my movies as well as various online tv feeds etc on my TV. Thing is.. its a bit expensive and I dont want to shell out for a mac mini but I want that kind of functionality - to be able to leave something running downloading stuff i want to watch on the big screen. It would be handy if i could transfer files easily from my laptop to the "tv computer" over wifi.. but i am on the condo blocks wifi connection so i dont own it i dont think i can set up a network like that. I used to own a lacie media hd player where you could just connect it with your movies and watch them, but it didnt work well, kept crashing and of course it didnt have internet/streaming tv capabilities. I could get a cheap windows box.. but i just hate windows. Anyone got any ideas? I want to get tv streams so i can watch foreign tv, especially news i also like documentary channels. There are quite a few free streams. I think netflix isnt available in TL. Are there any monthly packages for streaming TV or TV that can be downloaded in blocks like bbc live player. I cant get UBC as im in a condo block with crap thai cable. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isawasnake Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 (edited) People spend a lot of money on this, I don't think it is necessary. The key is the actual TV. You can play almost anything if your tv has HDMI USB inputs. Just hook a hard drive up to your tv. If you dont have a new TV, well worth the cost, they are so cheap - cheaper than these players lol. Why people bother with these players I am not sure, they are expensive. If you want to stream youtube, there are a couple of nice DVD or blue ray players that can do that too, but they are expensive. When I want to see a youtube, and admitedly this isn't as nice as just streaming, I just download it and put it on a disk or hardrive to watch it. Edited April 20, 2013 by isawasnake Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eeeya Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 Western Digital WD TV live ..and never look back 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isawasnake Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 Western Digital WD TV live ..and never look back These do look nice. I like that they can play dvd image files. How much do these run in Thailand? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eeeya Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 Off the top of my head i think they are around 4 - 5 thousand baht have to pair it up with a HDD too 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_smith237 Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 (edited) I have a MacMini set up (HDMI to 55" TV + Optical Sound to Surround Sound System). Disadvantage: Cost (starts at B 20,000 ) Advantages: Its a conventional computer so can do anything a computer can do. Can stream TV series and movies (i.e. from www.channel131.com / Hulu / iPlayer (with VPN) Can download torrents day and night. Can play YouTube. Can store and play all your music through surround sound. I'm sure other media players can do all that - But when I was researching this option a few years ago the MacMini did it in the most accomplished yet simplest manner. Edited April 20, 2013 by richard_smith237 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eeeya Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 I used to mess around with a pc running xbmc to tv. But for me now its its easier To control the wdtv with its remote. I'd save my money on the computer and put it towards reciever and speakers Sent from my HTC One X using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thaimite Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 (edited) I have a MacMini set up (HDMI to 55" TV + Optical Sound to Surround Sound System). Disadvantage: Cost (starts at B 20,000 ) Advantages: Its a conventional computer so can do anything a computer can do. Can stream TV series and movies (i.e. from www.channel131.com / Hulu / iPlayer (with VPN) Can download torrents day and night. Can play YouTube. Can store and play all your music through surround sound. I'm sure other media players can do all that - But when I was researching this option a few years ago the MacMini did it in the most accomplished yet simplest manner. I like the Popcorn Hour media series of players. IMHO they are the most versatile of the bunch playing almost any movie format and have outputs for numerous TV / sound interfaces. They of course support MP3 and most other audio codecs as well. I bought a new A300 in Thailand last week to go with my ageing A100 and A200. 8,000Baht delivered to Ubon. plus hard disk. As well as internal hard disk you can stream from other computers or NAS and also stream to your Ipad / Android Tab too They do stream You tube and some TV stations but I rarely use this feature. The newer A300 / A400 models also get regular firmware udates fixing minor annoyances or bringing new features Edited April 20, 2013 by thaimite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isawasnake Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 I used to mess around with a pc running xbmc to tv. But for me now its its easier To control the wdtv with its remote. I'd save my money on the computer and put it towards reciever and speakers Sent from my HTC One X using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app That's exactly what i did. I just hook a hard drive up to my tv, and I have a nice 2 speaker sound system, yamaha amp. I love it; I believe the money to be well spent. I would like to be able to browse the internet on the TV, which I can't... so that is the cost i am paying I guess. I do see the advantages of these WD players and others though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eeeya Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 Can browse internet through wdtv. Would need to buy a keyboard though. Remote is a pain in the ass to surf with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
draftvader Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 XBMC can be controlled easily with your smartphone. The price you'll pay for a PC that can do everything you need will be around B3,000 more....BUT... The amount of people putting their efforts and energies into writing plug-ins MORE than makes up for the extra money. Add to that the ability to scale your system for the future (i.e. 3D, 1080p, extra storage, etc) and the fact that you'll have a dedicate media server in your home that can also be used as a network back-up location whilst serving films and audio to other devices in your house. Maybe it is worth the B3,000 if you have more than one person wanting to use the files. My wife being able to watch her favourite dribble on her laptop whilst I watch sports and sci-fi on my projector with 5.1....priceless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloRescue Posted April 20, 2013 Author Share Posted April 20, 2013 This WD Tv - i cant work out if its actually got a built in hard drive or its just a player? Ive been looking at apple tv also. I have a macbook. I use the condos wifi not my own. Can i stream movies from my macbook to the apple tv? Are there like TV packages available in Thailand so i can watch news, documentaries, movies. Or is it strictly pay-per-movie having to mess around with credit card every time i want to watch tv thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloRescue Posted April 20, 2013 Author Share Posted April 20, 2013 Are there like overseas TV packages you can subscribe to? Something like SKY TV but online? I could use a VPN possibly. Even if it downloads stuff in advance like iplayer would be OK I suppose. I just want a simple solution where i turn my TV on and can access some interesting TV.. as well as news (which has to be live of course). Problem is i cant put a satallite dish in my condo block and the cable TV is terrible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rwdrwdrwd Posted April 20, 2013 Share Posted April 20, 2013 (edited) Does your TV have internet capability built in? You mention that you suspect it would be blocked by the wifi which indicates that it can at least connect - if it has internet capability and can connect to the wifi then it probably supports DLNA. If this is the case then you should be able to broadcast from your laptop to the TV, it's very unlikely this would be blocked. This is the setup I use, I run Twonky - http://twonky.com/ and once it's running and the laptop and TV are connected to the same wifi network, I can just browse the shared files on the TV, whoever runs the wifi would have to have specifically gone in to block the functionality to prevent it. Certainly worth a try This is only going to work for stuff you download though, it won't give you access to iPlayer etc Edited April 20, 2013 by rwdrwdrwd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloRescue Posted April 20, 2013 Author Share Posted April 20, 2013 No i dont have internet capability on the TV. Isnt there a simple way to subscribe to a full package, like equivalent of a cable tv package, and watch it online when you want? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dumpling Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 You have two computers running? If so all you need is a network switch, a network cable and a hdmi cable and for convenience a wireless mouse and keyboard, away you go.I have four computers at home 3 desktops and a laptop .All of these are networked and sharing enabled this has enabled me to have internet access on all TVs along with access to all HDs so watching movies is easily done through the network connection.I find this is the cheapest and most adaptable way to achieve internet TV.Along with the bonus of massive storage capabilities, being able to upgrade all parts of the system with no major issues gives me some "future proofing"(if indeed such a thing exists). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eeeya Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 This WD Tv - i cant work out if its actually got a built in hard drive or its just a player? Ive been looking at apple tv also. I have a macbook. I use the condos wifi not my own. Can i stream movies from my macbook to the apple tv? Are there like TV packages available in Thailand so i can watch news, documentaries, movies. Or is it strictly pay-per-movie having to mess around with credit card every time i want to watch tv thanksWD tv WDTV has no HDD. you need to buy one separate. http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=330 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gnasher328 Posted April 21, 2013 Share Posted April 21, 2013 I found all the UK sites I use would not work when they detected a foreign ISP, so try before you buy. I also had the same problem with utility sites. Using a 'Proxy Server' looked to be an option long term. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloRescue Posted April 21, 2013 Author Share Posted April 21, 2013 This WD Tv - i cant work out if its actually got a built in hard drive or its just a player? Ive been looking at apple tv also. I have a macbook. I use the condos wifi not my own. Can i stream movies from my macbook to the apple tv? Are there like TV packages available in Thailand so i can watch news, documentaries, movies. Or is it strictly pay-per-movie having to mess around with credit card every time i want to watch tv thanksWD tv WDTV has no HDD. you need to buy one separate. http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=330 Can it download torrent? Of course i only download pukka, non-hooky torrents Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloRescue Posted April 21, 2013 Author Share Posted April 21, 2013 (edited) This is all too confusing. I think ill buy a small windows box. Any ideas for a small, out of the way box that has bluetooth (for wireless keyboard) and a big hard drive, hdmi output. available in CM? Can get something like this for about 5,000 baht? Sorry i dont know about windows Edited April 21, 2013 by BuffaloRescue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eeeya Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 Holysh!tballs.. Why don't you pick the most complicated method. Lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forkinhades Posted April 22, 2013 Share Posted April 22, 2013 If you like DIY, you can try NAS4FREE, if you have old pc laying about, you can convert it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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