# Best Multimedia box to play offline movies on TV



## Prima.Vera (Oct 4, 2017)

Dear all,
Basically I can Google for this information, but I am more interested in actual user experience not on the payed reviews.
So what I am searching for is a Multimedia Box with those primary mandatory characteristics:
- 2 USB ports at least; - needed for external storage where I hold all my multimedia collections;
- complete codec format support for all major offline videos, such as Mkv, Mov, Mp4, Avi, Vob, etc;
- complete audio codec support, including AC3, DTS, and all of the latest Dolby Atmos, etc;
- multiple subtitle support;
- 4K support;
- Wi-Fi enabled;
- online support for Youtube, Netflix, whatever...

I was looking to some Roku or Amazon Fire TV, but not sure if those devices have ALL of the required specifications above.

Thank you very much in advance.


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## Jetster (Oct 7, 2017)

Budget? And you want it to hold how many movies?

And roku, Amazon fire do not save media


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## Prima.Vera (Oct 8, 2017)

That's why I need at least 2 USB ports so I can attach external devices to it.


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## INSTG8R (Oct 8, 2017)

A PS3 or Xbox. PS3 is also a great BD player


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## Jetster (Oct 8, 2017)

I guess roku has USB ports now but the problem with solutions like this is the limited playback on file types. Just biuld a small PC or Raspberry pi or even a nas

Better yet look under hot deals in this forum. I posted a dual core HP. From Newegg for $60


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## Prima.Vera (Oct 10, 2017)

I was thinking for something to upgrade my WDTV (_WD TV Live Streaming Media Player*)*_ box to 4K play capabilities. Isn't really anything better out there??


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## Sasqui (Oct 10, 2017)

Intel compute stick or micro PC?  I'm planning on getting one or two in a few months.  Haven't picked one yet, but here's an example:  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075JFKPHF/?tag=tec06d-20


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## Prima.Vera (Oct 10, 2017)

Sasqui said:


> Intel compute stick or micro PC?  I'm planning on getting one or two in a few months.  Haven't picked one yet, but here's an example:  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075JFKPHF/?tag=tec06d-20


That's awesome. But is the CPU strong enough to play 4K HDR videos??

I was thinking to a Roku Ultra recently. Is this better?


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## FYFI13 (Oct 10, 2017)

Intel NUC. Not as chaep as Compute Stick but you get a proper PC. Then just install Kodi/Plex and you’re good to go. Linux friendly. Some versions even have 2,5” HDD slot. 
Got one myself, it serves me as NAS and HTPC.


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## Dimi (Oct 10, 2017)

Buy an Nvidia Shield TV, it plays EVERYTHING you can imagine, at 4K too AND HDR 10bit hevc. I already have 2, amazing little machines. Its 199$ though but you do get a nice controller & remote with it.

I torture tested them but there is nothing they won't play, even stuff my pc can't handle.


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## Sasqui (Oct 10, 2017)

Prima.Vera said:


> That's awesome. But is the CPU strong enough to play 4K HDR videos??
> 
> I was thinking to a Roku Ultra recently. Is this better?



I have a Roku 3 and haven't been terribly pleased with the interface, TBH.  Having to add channels via a PC is stupid and the web browser sucks out loud.  I can't speak for the Roku Ultra.

There are several mico PC's that claim 4K, but can they deliver?  I don't know.  Here's one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075JG9WT9/?tag=tec06d-20

... however good the reviews are for that particular unit, heed the fact that hardly ANY are done by verified purchasers!


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## ERazer (Oct 10, 2017)

Build unRAID server/NAS with old computer parts then run Plex/Kodi/Emby


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## Dimi (Oct 10, 2017)

Sasqui said:


> There are several mico PC's that claim 4K, but can they deliver?  I don't know.  Here's one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075JG9WT9/?tag=tec06d-20 ... however good the reviews are for that particular unit, heed the fact that hardly ANY are done by verified purchasers!



That only has wireless a/b/g. The Nvidia Shield TV has wireless AC plus it will play everything in 4K. I can't speak highly enough of it. Great interface and its hella fast. Gets regular updates too. Plus you get the controller. I even play dreamcast roms on it. Its pretty epic.


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## Sasqui (Oct 10, 2017)

Dimi said:


> That only has wireless a/b/g. The Nvidia Shield TV has wireless AC plus it will play everything in 4K. I can't speak highly enough of it. Great interface and its hella fast. Gets regular updates too. Plus you get the controller. I even play dreamcast roms on it. Its pretty epic.



It does look impressive, and less than $199:  https://www.bestbuy.com/site/nvidia...ng-media-player-black/5709686.p?skuId=5709686

I suspect around Cyber Monday it'll be less 

What about web browsing?


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## FordGT90Concept (Oct 10, 2017)

Xbox One S > NVIDIA SHIELD TV

I was just able to snag a Xbox One S Minecraft edition for $225 from Costco.

Problem with both is rather crummy remotes.  Xbox One S is directly compatible with Inteset INT-422-3 where the SHIELD has no IR sensor.  SHIELD Pro ($300) does.

One score for SHIELD is that it supports HDMI CEC where the Xbox One S doesn't.  Xbox One S, instead, uses a really bright IR blaster to literally bounce the IR signal off the wall at devices in the room.  Xbox One S is more flexible in that regard.

Rokus are woefully underpowered compared to the Xbox One S and SHIELD TV.  In fact, I refuse to touch Roku because you can't even use the damn thing until you tie it to a Roku online account.  I suppose similar can be said of Xbox One S but who doesn't already have a Microsoft account of some kind already?

Another score for Xbox One S is it can play UHD Blu-Ray.  You can also tell it to physically shut down because it listens to the power button function where SHIELD only knows how to sleep.



Sasqui said:


> There are several mico PC's that claim 4K, but can they deliver?  I don't know.  Here's one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075JG9WT9/?tag=tec06d-20


Bought a Beelink version of one of those.  Avoid like the plague.  Windows 10 on it is not legitimate and good luck finding drivers.


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## Dimi (Oct 10, 2017)

Sasqui said:


> It does look impressive, and less than $199:  https://www.bestbuy.com/site/nvidia...ng-media-player-black/5709686.p?skuId=5709686
> 
> I suspect around Cyber Monday it'll be less
> 
> What about web browsing?



I haven't tried webbrowsing but it has bluetooth so you should be able to connect a keyboard/mouse to it. 
I might try my old logitech wirless keyboard, cause it has an ir dongle and report back later how the experience was.


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## Dimi (Oct 10, 2017)

FordGT90Concept said:


> Xbox One S > NVIDIA SHIELD TV
> 
> I was just able to nag a Xbox One S Minecraft edition for $225 from Costco.



From a few reviews i have read on amazon, people report that the shield plays A LOT more stuff the xbox one s does not. The Shield is built for video playback, the xbox isn't. You can also put your shield in your pocket for easy transportation. Take it anywhere you want, even when traveling on holiday.


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## FordGT90Concept (Oct 10, 2017)

Playing stuff from a USB hard drive...I think it's going to be sketchy on all non-China boxes.  Both are meant to stream from a server, not pull from local storage.  I use Emby server and client across all hardware.

Both are also walled-gardens.  SHIELD maybe less so than Xbox but...I ultimately bought an Xbox because it has a fully functional, supported, web browser (Microsoft Edge) where SHIELD does not.


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## Sasqui (Oct 10, 2017)

Dimi said:


> I haven't tried webbrowsing but it has bluetooth so you should be able to connect a keyboard/mouse to it.
> I might try my old logitech wirless keyboard, cause it has an ir dongle and report back later how the experience was.



Yea, lemme know.  I was trying out the web browser on a Sony Smart BD player yesterday, and it was nothing short of useless.  So slow, I had to wait 10 sec for each cursor movement.  That was on the yahoo home page, which is pretty brutal on it's own lol

When I finally drilled into an article, navigating was even worse.  Total fail.


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## Dimi (Oct 10, 2017)

Sasqui said:


> Yea, lemme know.  I was trying out the web browser on a Sony Smart BD player yesterday, and it was nothing short of useless.  So slow, I had to wait 10 sec for each cursor movement.  That was on the yahoo home page, which is pretty brutal on it's own lol
> 
> When I finally drilled into an article, navigating was even worse.  Total fail.



I just tried it, i can't figure out how to make my old keyboard to work, i think it might be broken lol. The browser is blazing fast (chrome). If you want i can try to make a video. You can do screencapture on the shield.


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## Sasqui (Oct 10, 2017)

Dimi said:


> I just tried it, i can't figure out how to make my old keyboard to work, i think it might be broken lol. The browser is blazing fast (chrome). If you want i can try to make a video. You can do screencapture on the shield.



No sweat about a video.  If the browser is Chrome, I'll take your word for it 

Obviously a keyboard is important.  I check news, weather, stocks, FB, email etc.  I also do some light video editing and photos too, and office docs... so personally, I'm still leaning towards a windows based solution for myself.


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## StrayKAT (Oct 10, 2017)

As much as I like Pi for gaming roms, I'd just recommend an HTPC or NUC running Windows. It's not going to be as snazzy as an XOne's interface, but it'll never lack features like these other options. It's just Windows, after all.


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## FordGT90Concept (Oct 10, 2017)

The problem with Windows is it isn't very remote friendly.  Xbox and Android TV devices are.

No matter what device you go with, it isn't so much the ability to play said formats, it is more about are they hardware accelerated?  If no, the load will move to the CPU, which is shit in all cases (ultra low power processors with limited multimedia instructions), which is skippy/broken.  There's no way around that without having a robust CPU with multimedia extensions and a plethora of codecs.


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## Prima.Vera (Oct 11, 2017)

Right. Any chance there are any NUCs out there with remote control also?


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## StrayKAT (Oct 11, 2017)

I do fine with a wireless keyboard and mouse, when I want to kick back and control the PC from TV. I watch tons of movies and Netflix this way.

But yeah, remote is something that's been lacking. And Windows' interface isn't really suited to it either. It's why I wish they put an Xbox type of mode on, in the same way you can shift to a Tablet friendly mode.


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## AsherJames55 (Nov 6, 2017)

A PlayStation is the best way to go. They are so versatile and you can always install updates to handle any new formats. The ability to use different types of controllers is great too.


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## Jetster (Nov 6, 2017)

PlayStation has limited formats it can read. Fat32 and Exfat. Sony has always been anti movie sharing. PC is the way. Read any format, any file extension, any sound codex. as far a remotes I use a k400 keyboard and an IR controller to give is the XBox feel.


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