How do you consume media? Do you have cable, netflix, or both? When shopping for an internet provider, is speed or cost more important? Do you use bit torrent? Songza? Spotify? Do you still (gasp) buy CD's? How we consume media is rapidly changing, and computer technology is driving that shift.
Some of you may know that I run GreenMachine Solutions, a technology consultancy. A topic that many of my clients have recently been asking about is the notion of custom-built media centers, and their capabilites. As a result, I thought I'd profile my own system, how I built it, and what to consider if you're thinking of constructing your own.
Be warned, there are many off-the-shelf solutions out there: Apple TV, Google TV, Roku, Boxee, Slingbox, etc. This article covers none of those.
But my tablet...
First, it's important to define what I am talking about when I say "media center." Ideally, a media center encompasses four parts:
- Platform
- Interface
- Playback
- Storage
These days, anyone can connect their laptop or tablet to a TV via HDMI. It's relatively easy to get that working, but what have you accomplished? Essentially, you're mirroring the display from the portable device, with no consideration of how that might work on a large, non-touchscreen TV. Don't get me wrong, it works, but it's not ideal.
Let's examine what I considered when I built my system.
Platform (not shoes).
Basically, the term "platform" describes the foundation the media center is built on. Windows, Linux, or Mac. Android or iOS. Blah, blah, blah. The big tech companies love to pit users of each platform against each other. Frankly, as a technology ambassador, I couldn't care less which platform is used, as long as it meets the requirements I need. Steve Ballmer is a blow-hard, Linus Torvalds can be over-zealous much of the time, Google tracks everything you do, and well, Steve Jobs is dead. This is the current landscape of technology platforms we have to deal with.
That being said, there are certain platforms, due to several factors like closed eco-systems (Apple, smarten up), popularity (who knows what Ubuntu is?), etc., which self-select themselves out of the running.
Windows, Ubuntu, or Android
I originally built my media center around Windows 7, but Ubuntu would work just as well. However, due to recent advancements in processor power and app development, Android has really caught my attention with respect to viable media center systems. In fact, as I will detail later, an Android device is what powers my current ideal media center setup. Who knew?
Interface
If you want to get technical and jargony, click interface in the definition block at the end of the article. Instead, and while the technical definition is certainly correct, I'm primarily concerned with how well the media center allows a non-techie to navigate menus, listen to the music they want, and play the videos they want. It must be simple, yet informative, provide appropriate feedback, and ultimately not possess a steep learning curve. These requirements are a tall order, no doubt.
As a result, I always bounce between two different interfaces:
To be honest, I usually gravitate towards XBMC because it's free, open-source, and very customizable. Plex, on the otherhand, attempts to build the perfect media interface, which ultimately locks much of its functionality down, but also delivers a slick experience. Both are good choices, and it's interesting to note that Plex began as a fork of XBMC.
Perhaps the most obvious difference between the two, is that PLEX requires two parts: a server and client; whereas, XBMC is an all-in-one solution.
I should write a future article dedicated to the features of each interface, because as simple to use as they are, they possess a depth of features that warrant it.
Playback
Playback, admittedly, is becoming less and less relevant since almost everything can play almost anything these days. The basic consideration can be formulated as, "can the hardware play the broadest range of files without error or user intervention?"
Playback ubiquity notwithstanding, choosing the correct hardware can have a drastic effect on the quality of playback, so it is still something to be considered carefully. If the hardware you choose doesn't support 1080p decoding, good luck watching HD movies. If it doesn't support audio decoding, have fun listening to 5.1 DTS or Dolby surround sound.
Manufacturers are sensitive to these considerations, so most of the homework is taken care of with modern hardware, but it's always good to research what you've selected.
Storage
Okay, this is where things start to get interesting. How do you store media with a system like this? Do you use the cloud? Nah, too slow and expensive. So, locally stored then.
The first aspect I consider is capacity; do I want to permanently store media? The answer to this question will dictate the technology used. I like to collect media, rather than watch and delete, so the more space, the better. As a result, I typically choose a network-attached storage system or NAS.
Basically, a NAS is a small computer dedicated to managing an array of hard drives. It's hooked-up to the network, and any computer on that network, can access its files. They come in a variety of configurations, ranging from two bays to more than eight, with each bay storing an individual hard drive. In this way, you can increase capacity across the whole NAS by installing larger drives in each bay.
Like all technology, the more features, the more expensive a NAS tends to be. Therefore, the most affordable NAS starts around $170 CAD for two bays, not including the hard drives - add another $200 for those.
Of course, if your goal isn't to permanently store media, capacity isn't as much a concern. Instead, one can simply plug-in a portable, external USB hard drive, deleting videos as they're watched.
Whew... that was a lot of information; bored yet?
Now you understand the basics of a media center; what to consider; and what to research. In Part II, I'll detail the exact components I use to build an entry-level system with 4 TB (terabytes) of capacity. Stay tuned, and as always, comment early, comment often.
HDMI: is a compact audio/video interface for transferring uncompressed video data and compressed/uncompressed digital audio data.
Interface: the point of interaction with software, or computer hardware, or with peripheral devices such as a computer monitor or a keyboard.
Fork: when developers take a copy of source code from one software package and start independent development on it, creating a distinct piece of software.
NAS: only operates as a file server, but is specialized for this task either by its hardware, software, or configuration of those elements.