Custom firmware for local files someday? - Fire TV Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

The first time that I read about FireTV I was excited, so much power in a tiny box and I was hoping to replace my aging WDTV live for good. I'm one of those guys whom prefers local media and some quality so I'm not into the streaming bandwagon also broadband speed still a little expensive and slow in my country.
So with that in mind, I would like to ask you guys, do you believe that someday soon would be able to homebrew the fireTV for a modified OS which allow real local content (without the need for Plex).
I would like to know the possibilities for this in a near future, near future being before this year end for example.
Regards

Nehemoth said:
The first time that I read about FireTV I was excited, so much power in a tiny box and I was hoping to replace my aging WDTV live for good. I'm one of those guys whom prefers local media and some quality so I'm not into the streaming bandwagon also broadband speed still a little expensive and slow in my country.
So with that in mind, I would like to ask you guys, do you believe that someday soon would be able to homebrew the fireTV for a modified OS which allow real local content (without the need for Plex).
I would like to know the possibilities for this in a near future, near future being before this year end for example.
Regards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can do that with Kodi no need for Plex unless you really like plex for example : SMB,DLNA (I use my nas server via SMB) plenty of ways

Oh no, no DLNA please. Tried several times with different options and there's always an issue with subtitles. I really like the WDTV but feels like slow to many times.

Nehemoth said:
Oh no, no DLNA please. Tried several times with different options and there's always an issue with subtitles. I really like the WDTV but feels like slow to many times.
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try nas server,I use buffalo linkstation. It even has torrent app

I have a Diskstation. It supports SMB, NFS and DLNA.

Thank you guys but still I would like to know something about my main cuestión.

Nehemoth said:
Thank you guys but still I would like to know something about my main cuestión.
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I don't think we understand what you meant by "a modified OS which allow real local content (without the need for Plex)." Do you wish to connect a USB hard drive and store your files there? You can do that if your Fire TV is rooted. I believe what others were saying is that you don't need plex at all since Kodi (XBMC) can stream files locally or over a network without the need for transcoding. Usually people need plex because the device doesn't support the right codecs or doesn't have the processing speed. (Roku for example.) The Kodi app can handle pretty much any video format you throw at it, so no need for plex. Just point it to a SMB, NFS, or DLNA server and it just works.

Sorry, my bad English as Always. Image that I could be able to load on a FireTV a custom version of Android or something else, which transforms the firetv in a local media server ala WDTV and also support to apps like Netflix

If I understand you correctly, you're going to want to run a variant of XBMC - either kodi or SPMC.
Side load SPMC and see if it works for you.
Do you have the ability to root? You cannot add external USB HDD directly to the fire TV without root. However, you can add a USB HDD to your computer and share it to your fire TV for playback.

Nehemoth said:
Sorry, my bad English as Always. Image that I could be able to load on a FireTV a custom version of Android or something else, which transforms the firetv in a local media server ala WDTV and also support to apps like Netflix
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Click to collapse
I'm thinking you want the fire TV to store local media files via USB HDD and you want it to act as a server as well for your other devices.
The answer is yes, BUT you MUST BE ROOTED. AND rootable fire TVs are getting harder to come by so if you're in the US I'd start looking now at bestbuy and staples.
If you're not in the US you can't get a rootable one in stores. EBay might be your only chance and you will pay a lot more. If craigslist is an option, I've found items to run cheaper there but of course there is less options and more traveling on your part.

Running fire tv as a server is useless it has 8gb of storage.. without root it's even worse.. nas server is best and easiest and most comfortable option. I also have Samsung home sync before I got fire tv it has 1tb drive I also have root on it but it's almost useless no netflix,hulu nothing.
Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

Related

Wifey bought me a FTV!

I currently use plex for my media management solution, which is fantastic. I have a quad processor server with 18TB of storage, 12TB usable as its configured for Raid6. I chose plex due to the fact that plexapps are available for my Samsung smart tvs, and for simplicity with my chromecast.
The wife knows my love of tinkering and that I've been eyeballing the AFTV for a while now. Can anyone provide some insight? I'm looking to further enhance my cord-cutting future as we are moving to South Korea next year and will need to rely on my server as well as streaming content for entertainment.
I'm tired of horrible firstrow streams for my football games, as well as UFC matches and indycar/rally races. Are there "alternatives" available with much improved quality?
Anything I should do first to the AFTV? How can I integrate it into my existing content delivery system?
Thanks in advance!
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Free mobile app
cliff p said:
Anything I should do first to the AFTV? How can I integrate it into my existing content delivery system?
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Might want to see if you can root the Fire TV before you ever hook it up. This allows for harnessing the power of the device with XBMC and the addons that are available. The How to setup a new Fire TV without blocking Root guide is a great starting point. Otherwise, the Fire TV will primarily be an Amazon centric box. And where is the fun in that?
That was generally the idea (to root the device first before doing anything else with it).
When I first started looking into Media Servers, I worked very little with XBMC. A few friends with Plex suggested it to me, and it seems to fit the bill more for me. With that being said, can XBMC be integrated or coexist with PMS?
EDIT: Disregard the XBMC question, I did a quick search and found that I can install PlexBMC that will work with the PMS backend.
So I've rooted the AFTV, Installed BB and SuperSU, and XBMC. Added a few "add-ons" like 1Chan and some others. Pretty cool little device! Kinda wishing there were more HD capable streams for certain programs, since there isn't much difference streaming the actual website steam via my laptop to my TV via HDMI.
I may put it in my VPN route and see if I can get my NFL games in HD at least.
Quite honestly wondering if it was worth installing Plex on, since my Samsung TV already has Plex and is a bit more seamless. I may use the device in place of the Chromecast dongle I have in the bedroom, though.
Can anyone point me in the right direction for some higher quality feeds, etc?
Almost forgot: Themes for the XBMC? Is it more worthwhile to have XBMC autostart on boot? I don't have a subscription for Amazon Prime, Netflix, Hulu, etc. I use Plex, and use it heavily with Sickbeard/Couchpotato/Headphones/Etc.
THX.
Take a look at the [LAUNCHER] XBMC for Fire TV (Root). This XBMC launcher replaces the Fire TV launcher and at the same time allows access to it if you were to have Amazon content.
mjbxx said:
Take a look at the [LAUNCHER] XBMC for Fire TV (Root). This XBMC launcher replaces the Fire TV launcher and at the same time allows access to it if you were to have Amazon content.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Works great! Thanks!
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Free mobile app

Best Amazon fire TV that's preloaded with add-ons?

I'm looking to purchase another Amazon TV that's already preloaded with extras. There's so many people doing it I don't know who I should go with...?? I've looked at them on eBay some are going for $200 others less and one guy says this guy is copying me the other guy says that guy is copying me an back-and-forth. So I'm looking for some direction. Any recommendations for A preloaded Amazon TV? I don't want all of the adult channels and porn channels or whatever you call it loaded on to it. I don't know if I can customize it so they are not there....
Also with all those "free" movies and TV shows and such can you get in trouble with your Internet provider or whatever like the DMCA and get notices from your using such features as all of these add-ons that are provided?
I had gotten A notice in my e-mail from Comcast once when I downloaded something I didn't know about. Just wondering if that can happen again a notice of copyright infringement
superfly611 said:
I'm looking to purchase another Amazon TV that's already preloaded with extras. There's so many people doing it I don't know who I should go with...?? I've looked at them on eBay some are going for $200 others less and one guy says this guy is copying me the other guy says that guy is copying me an back-and-forth. So I'm looking for some direction. Any recommendations for A preloaded Amazon TV? I don't want all of the adult channels and porn channels or whatever you call it loaded on to it. I don't know if I can customize it so they are not there....
Also with all those "free" movies and TV shows and such can you get in trouble with your Internet provider or whatever like the DMCA and get notices from your using such features as all of these add-ons that are provided?
I had gotten A notice in my e-mail from Comcast once when I downloaded something I didn't know about. Just wondering if that can happen again a notice of copyright infringement
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just buy a regular AFTV somewhere and follow the steps in the link. You get XBMC/Kodi with pretty much everything you could ask for and with the tool mentioned in that link you don't need to be a rocket scientist to install it on your AFTV
http://www.tvaddons.ag/install-kodi-amazon-fire-tv/
And if you are scared to get caught watching movies or tv shows like this, don't do it. It depends on the laws of your country how they treat people that don't really download content but stream it (which is basically downloading).
It looks like a massive amount of customization when i look at what some of the pre programmed ones have on ebay??? At least when you look at the options they give you on the pre programmed amazon TVs. I basically would want the live TV, hbo and some movie channels I don't really need the most current movies like the handy cam versions I would rather see it in HD and I would not like any of the porn channels LOL not interested in that.
Thanks for the link! I'll read through it and see what I can do. I don't remember if I mentioned it I already have have an Amazon TV with XBMC on it but it's the Gotham version. I was trying to get it so it would recognize my silicone dust network tuner but couldn't get that to work. I have to work on it more yet... I also was trying to get my synology NAS recognized so I can share the files I do have on it but was having trouble with that as well... I'll figure it out eventually just wish it was sooner than later. Thanks for the advice I'm going to give it more of a go. i still am interested in those pre set amazons as an option. but ill work on mine too!
thanks again!
superfly611 said:
It looks like a massive amount of customization when i look at what some of the pre programmed ones have on ebay??? At least when you look at the options they give you on the pre programmed amazon TVs. I basically would want the live TV, hbo and some movie channels I don't really need the most current movies like the handy cam versions I would rather see it in HD and I would not like any of the porn channels LOL not interested in that.
Thanks for the link! I'll read through it and see what I can do. I don't remember if I mentioned it I already have have an Amazon TV with XBMC on it but it's the Gotham version. I was trying to get it so it would recognize my silicone dust network tuner but couldn't get that to work. I have to work on it more yet... I also was trying to get my synology NAS recognized so I can share the files I do have on it but was having trouble with that as well... I'll figure it out eventually just wish it was sooner than later. Thanks for the advice I'm going to give it more of a go. i still am interested in those pre set amazons as an option. but ill work on mine too!
thanks again!
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I also have hdhomerune prime there is many ways to watch live tv,my provider is fios and I will need to learn how to use the PVR addon for xbmc but I saw it works great!
If you have an HDHomeRun you probably want to setup a PVR backend for watching live/recorded shows through XBMC/Kodi. It's not too difficult but you need (or probably highly desire) to set this up on a computer that is always on. Here is a good place to start: http://kodi.wiki/view/PVR_backend
As for which pre-loaded FireTV to buy - none of them. Spending $200 for a $100 device is a waste. There are plenty of great guides and videos to help you set it up however you want, just ask here or on an XBMC/Kodi forum or do a bit of googling to get started. You are going to want to know how to do it yourself anyway to keep up on updates, side-load different apps, and generally set-up your device the way YOU want it. Once you go through it the first time and have an understanding of it all it's easy.
I have to agree with skeptic_always and Ultraschorsch, Buying a plain FTV and installing yourself is very easy.
You mentioned you already have XBMC, download TVMC and install it. It won't overwrite your XBMC, it will load as a separate app and it will install many addons when first started... probably the same addons Ebay sellers are installing for that $100 premium.
wqwrqrfq said:
I have to agree with skeptic_always and Ultraschorsch, Buying a plain FTV and installing yourself is very easy.
You mentioned you already have XBMC, download TVMC and install it. It won't overwrite your XBMC, it will load as a separate app and it will install many addons when first started... probably the same addons Ebay sellers are installing for that $100 premium.
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Isn't TVMC same as XBMC? just with some tweaks.
patt2k said:
Isn't TVMC same as XBMC? just with some tweaks.
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Click to collapse
It has a lot of tweaks, repos and plugins installed by default. You pretty much just start it and you are good to go.
thanks all Very cool! I have TVMC installed and it's working! I am having trouble with my PVR. I would've liked to have conneted it wirelessly but not sure if thats the problem or what. I am only 10 feet away from my router wouldve thought wifi is fine. I had set up Live TV viewing before but maybe I did not do it correctly?? When I go to live TV then TV channels I get a listing of TV channels that I'm guessing is from my silicone dust TV tuner. When I select the channel it shows me what is on the channel but it does not play. Also it does not show me that HD stations abnormal TV such as ABC, Fox, NBC and such. It goes from 1 to 541. On my Comcast it goes all the way up to the 800s I believe and that's where the HD stations are. Even when I select channel 3 which is not HD but regular prime channel I guess it does not display it just sticks. Also, it's mind-boggling how many things there are for the TV MC.
Is there a list for guide for installing the best channels or whatever you call it such as these below. . . . Really wouldn't want channels that are just crappy like. My ultimate goal would be at a set when these and make it easy enough for my parents to use and get rid of cable TV which I'm not sure my parents will ever learn LOL
HBO Entertainment, HBO 1, HBO 2, Disney XD, HGTV, National Geographic,
Discovery, TNT, Fox, Fox 11, Sky Movies, Comedy Central, The CW, USA Network,
Spike, Cinemax, Animal, History HD, Food Network, A & E, FilmOn, Animal Planet, BIO, CNN,
Comedy Net, The Country Network, AMC, Fox Movies, Fuel TV, FX, NBC, RMC Top 40, TLC, TNT, Toons, TruTV, NASA, Starz HD, Discovery Turbo, Discovery Science, Bite TV, Bravo, CBS, ABC, ABC Family, NHK World, SYFY, TLC, BBC HD, iTV 2, iTV 3,GM Channel, Fox 2 Detroit, Film HD, icefilms, 1channel, ..........
I definitely don't want the adult channels on it but I do want live TV which I'm still trying to get my PVR running. I'm probably not doing something right. I will keep trying.
Also I read somewhere that the new Amazon fire TVs you can't jailbreak or put XBMC on it? If that's the case where's the best place to buy another one that I can customize before they become too scarce?
Thanks in advance again
superfly611 said:
Is there a list for guide for installing the best channels or whatever you call it such as these below. . . . Really wouldn't want channels that are just crappy like. My ultimate goal would be at a set when these and make it easy enough for my parents to use and get rid of cable TV which I'm not sure my parents will ever learn LOL
HBO Entertainment, HBO 1, HBO 2, Disney XD, HGTV, National Geographic,
Discovery, TNT, Fox, Fox 11, Sky Movies, Comedy Central, The CW, USA Network,
Spike, Cinemax, Animal, History HD, Food Network, A & E, FilmOn, Animal Planet, BIO, CNN,
Comedy Net, The Country Network, AMC, Fox Movies, Fuel TV, FX, NBC, RMC Top 40, TLC, TNT, Toons, TruTV, NASA, Starz HD, Discovery Turbo, Discovery Science, Bite TV, Bravo, CBS, ABC, ABC Family, NHK World, SYFY, TLC, BBC HD, iTV 2, iTV 3,GM Channel, Fox 2 Detroit, Film HD, icefilms, 1channel, ..........
I definitely don't want the adult channels on it but I do want live TV which I'm still trying to get my PVR running. I'm probably not doing something right. I will keep trying.
Also I read somewhere that the new Amazon fire TVs you can't jailbreak or put XBMC on it? If that's the case where's the best place to buy another one that I can customize before they become too scarce?
Thanks in advance again
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The fire TV should ALWAYS be able to have XBMC put on it, no need to worry.
As far as all those channels you'll just have to do a search for those (i.e. "XBMC Discovery", XBMC "TNT", etc.) ustvnow.com gives you 6 channels free and if you want more there's a minimal charge. There's a repo(sitory) named Superrepo which when installed gives you hundreds of possible addons, I'd be surprised if you don't find everything you need in there.
bought mine at staples yesterday and it was still running the old firmware.
dcmtnbkr said:
bought mine at staples yesterday and it was still running the old firmware.
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What's that matter? Are you saying that because with new firmware you cannot load all the add-ons? Just curious...
User "wqwrqrfq" stated that you should always be able to load XBMC and add-ons.
One question for everyone... How long should it take to load certain Channels? By the way am I calling whatever each connection or option you can select right? Are they called something else? Just want to make sure I'm referring to it right. Also originally I had my Amazon TV connected on Wi-Fi but I know wire would be better. I connected by way of ethernet but it still takes A minute or more sometimes to load. Is that normal? Is that because of processing power from the Amazon TV or connection speed? I get about 30 to 40 Mb per second on my Internet connection.
thanks in advance
superfly611 said:
What's that matter? Are you saying that because with new firmware you cannot load all the add-ons? Just curious...
User "wqwrqrfq" stated that you should always be able to load XBMC and add-ons.
One question for everyone... How long should it take to load certain Channels? By the way am I calling whatever each connection or option you can select right? Are they called something else? Just want to make sure I'm referring to it right. Also originally I had my Amazon TV connected on Wi-Fi but I know wire would be better. I connected by way of ethernet but it still takes A minute or more sometimes to load. Is that normal? Is that because of processing power from the Amazon TV or connection speed? I get about 30 to 40 Mb per second on my Internet connection.
thanks in advance
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Click to collapse
Thought someone had asked above where you could still buy one that can be rooted.
Oh okay. you don't have to root the Amazon fire tv to put XBMC on it right? What is the benefit of rooting it?
Change launchers, remove crap, edit system files, install google play store, etc
You can install most apks by sideloading via abd and the ip address. It plays emulators surprising well.

Fire Tv & XBMC and Noob questions

Hi all,
I am glad I found this great forum and I hope I am posting on the correct subforum.
I am considering getting a Fire TV. It is currently at a great price on Amazon.de (84 euro), but since I want to replace my WD Live that i currently use, I want to have xbmc on it. On ebay there are many pre-rooted Fire TV with xbmc and add ons. but at an average of about 150 euro, I think it is stupid to buy them now if I can do it myself and if I can avoid rooting even better.
My main needs for the Fire TV (in priority irder) are :
1. SInce I am a Prime User of Amazon, I want to use Instant Video of Amazon
2. Stream HD video from my libraries from NAS drives
3. Other streaming add ons on xbmv like xStream, Navi-X, Sportsdevil
4. Web browsing, emulators, amazon apps
So my questions are ;
1. If I buy right now a new Fire TV, can I install xbmc using one of the guides without rooting it ? Are there sepcific models/versions of Fire TV that won't allow it ?
2. Can I use the streaming and other add ons of xbmc without rooting , or are there specific ones that require root ?
3. Do any of the streaming add ons using Bittorent ? In Germany while you currently have no issues with streaming or download , using torrents will get you quick and easy problems with the law. Feedback of german members is highly appreciated here.
Sorry for a very long first post, I hope the questions are clear and easy to answer. Please feel free to add anything you think it might be helpful in my case.
Many thanks and cheers !
Nf13 said:
Hi all,
I am glad I found this great forum and I hope I am posting on the correct subforum.
I am considering getting a Fire TV. It is currently at a great price on Amazon.de (84 euro), but since I want to replace my WD Live that i currently use, I want to have xbmc on it. On ebay there are many pre-rooted Fire TV with xbmc and add ons. but at an average of about 150 euro, I think it is stupid to buy them now if I can do it myself and if I can avoid rooting even better.
My main needs for the Fire TV (in priority irder) are :
1. SInce I am a Prime User of Amazon, I want to use Instant Video of Amazon
2. Stream HD video from my libraries from NAS drives
3. Other streaming add ons on xbmv like xStream, Navi-X, Sportsdevil
4. Web browsing, emulators, amazon apps
So my questions are ;
1. If I buy right now a new Fire TV, can I install xbmc using one of the guides without rooting it ? Are there sepcific models/versions of Fire TV that won't allow it ?
2. Can I use the streaming and other add ons of xbmc without rooting , or are there specific ones that require root ?
3. Do any of the streaming add ons using Bittorent ? In Germany while you currently have no issues with streaming or download , using torrents will get you quick and easy problems with the law. Feedback of german members is highly appreciated here.
Sorry for a very long first post, I hope the questions are clear and easy to answer. Please feel free to add anything you think it might be helpful in my case.
Many thanks and cheers !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1/ No, you can install without need for root.
2/ No, addons install in XBMC does not require root.
3/ No, streaming protocol is different from bit torrent. You can choose to install an addon that acts as a bit torren client to download files and watch it, but it is your choice. No addons in XBMC will trick you into using bit torrent without your acknowledgment. If you are worry about piracy,you are better off paying for Hulu and such since using primewire or 1channel is the same as illegal torrenting.
vi6s said:
1/ No, you can install without need for root.
2/ No, addons install in XBMC does not require root.
3/ No, streaming protocol is different from bit torrent. You can choose to install an addon that acts as a bit torren client to download files and watch it, but it is your choice. No addons in XBMC will trick you into using bit torrent without your acknowledgment. If you are worry about piracy,you are better off paying for Hulu and such since using primewire or 1channel is the same as illegal torrenting.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Many thanks for your answer :good:
Ordered it today, still at the same good price, but I have to wait a week for delivery as the demand was probably high (until 2 days ago it was next day delivery). They also had the Logitech K400 keyboard at a reduced price today so I added this as well, from what I read through the forum it is well supported. I have to search a bit more about game controller though.
I downloaded ADB, xbmc Gotham 13.2, copied all video files from various HDD to the NAS drives, and now we wait....
You are going to love it. I was using a WD Live TV unit previously as well. It did not have support for Amazon Prime and it was very slow when loading directories with a lot of files. The Fire TV with XBMC/Kodi loaded is a great replacement!
jpage101 said:
You are going to love it. I was using a WD Live TV unit previously as well. It did not have support for Amazon Prime and it was very slow when loading directories with a lot of files. The Fire TV with XBMC/Kodi loaded is a great replacement!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am quite excited to be honest, amazon also send me an email that it will arrive today instead of Monday as originally planned (so now I have to find somewhere to send my wife and the kids until I set everything up , a day pass at theme park probably )
The lack of Amazon Video and the speed was the main reason for me too. Especially after the root on WD to use Movie Sheets for the movies it became slower that death ...
As I am not familiar with xbmc, if I have a movie file , named after the movie (as it appears on imdb), is there an add on that creates a movie sheet (info, thumbnail, etc) or do I have to create them manually ? Any link will also help.
Cheers
Really enjoying it so far !
Everything runs smooth and I found the answer for anything xbmc related in the xbmc forums.
Sideloading apps was extremely easy following one of the guides found, the only issue (if you can call it "issue") was the command :
adb install blahblah.apk
it failed because of multiple devices. I run adb devices and it was an emulator-5554. Did some research you can either kill it or use this command :
adb -s <Fire TV IP: Port> install blahblah.apk instead and it works like a charm.
Hope it helps if someone faces this issue.
Cheers !
jpage101 said:
You are going to love it. I was using a WD Live TV unit previously as well. It did not have support for Amazon Prime and it was very slow when loading directories with a lot of files. The Fire TV with XBMC/Kodi loaded is a great replacement!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Curious how you use this as a replacement local streamer over WD TV Live.
I have WD, it's UI is terrible, BUT. I need full non transcoded blu-ray video(H.264,VC-1), 7.1 DTS-MA and True-HD sound. Am I missing something or is none of this really possible with Fire?
Not trying to be a jerk, but want to make sure I am not missing something about the Fire. If so PLEASE fill me in.
gottahavit said:
Curious how you use this as a replacement local streamer over WD TV Live.
I have WD, it's UI is terrible, BUT. I need full non transcoded blu-ray video(H.264,VC-1), 7.1 DTS-MA and True-HD sound. Am I missing something or is none of this really possible with Fire?
Not trying to be a jerk, but want to make sure I am not missing something about the Fire. If so PLEASE fill me in.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As local streamer, I use xbmc and NAS drives and it works perfectly. I don't have the same needs in sound, so I am more than ok with the formats supported. H.264, VC-1 is supported afaik.
Cheers
Nf13 said:
As local streamer, I use xbmc and NAS drives and it works perfectly. I don't have the same needs in sound, so I am more than ok with the formats supported. H.264, VC-1 is supported afaik.
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interesting specs say vc1 but ...
according to this http://kodi.wiki/view/Amazon_Fire_TV it dont work nor does dtsma passthrough. Too bad.

Nvidia Shield Capabilities- UK based User

Hi,
First time on this forum and am looking for some advice if possible? I am looking at getting an Nvidia Shield TV (either for Christmas if a relative is feeling generous, or if not will buy one after) Ideally, I want it to replace all the kit I've got and make it my main TV box, but the important thing is it's good (and easy) enough for the kids and wife to use without getting angry at me
Currently I have a Now TV box, Youview box, DVR box, and DVD player, with a Soundbar (I'm based in the UK, so in case there is any confusion, Now TV is a Sky over network offering, and YouView is BT's set top box) So loads of different remotes, I do have a Logitech Harmony, but think the Shield will be a very good option for me.
Now I know, that I can't get it replace everything, but if I can get it close enough, and have gaming capability too, I'll be very happy. So, questions are as follows-
1. Live TV -
I have looked through the forums, and see that there are some USB tuners that work with it, as well as this -
Not allowed to post the link, as it's my first post, it's a HD homerun, available on Amazon. If anyone knows of a cheaper alternative, that would be great.
Which all look good, but I need to be able to record and have good EPG functionality. Has anyone tried these, is recording possible, to either a networked server, or an external USB 3 drive?
2. Now TV- Is there an app available for this, or are you able to Googlecast it from Ipad, Android phone, etc?
3. BT sport App- anyone been able to cast BT sport to it?
4. Gaming- I will probably sign up to the Nvidia streaming service, as my home desktop is not particularly powerful. However, I would like the flexibility of using my home PC as a game streamer. Does anyone know the minimum specs needed to successfully use a PC to stream games to the Shield? Does anyone have a preference Nvidia streaming, or home network gaming?
5. Would like to install Kodi on it for media streaming? Anyone have experience of this, does this work well?
6. This is certainly not a deal breaker, but anyone know if it can integrate with Philips Hue Lights, and Nest thermostat?
I know there's a lot of questions here, I have trawled through the forums and found a few answers, just need to get it all clear in my head, so any advice/info gratefully received.
Thanks
Dan
Hi, I'm from the UK too. Most of your questions are about paid streaming services which I don't use, so I can't help you there. As for minimum streaming PC requirements, I bought a GeForce laptop, which is more than capable of playing the games which I want to play. However I later found out that GameStream is restricted to GTX cards only (even the oldest GTX cards, but not even the latest non-GTX). Nvidia kept that quiet. I completely regret spending the extra money on what I thought was a GameStream ticket. There are alternative game streaming services which do work without GTX (even without Nvidia graphics at all) but they're quite buggy and not very polished.
I haven't used it extensively but Kodi runs as smoothly as you would expect on the hardware (exceptionally smoothly). As for replacing your current setup, I've heard that you can hook up a USB optical drive and play DVDs (but not Blu-Rays) through KODI. However it lacks many UK streaming services, like Channel 4, Channel 5 and ITV. So you might want to keep the Now TV box around for a little while.
BenjiHansell said:
Hi, I'm from the UK too. Most of your questions are about paid streaming services which I don't use, so I can't help you there. As for minimum streaming PC requirements, I bought a GeForce laptop, which is more than capable of playing the games which I want to play. However I later found out that GameStream is restricted to GTX cards only (even the oldest GTX cards, but not even the latest non-GTX). Nvidia kept that quiet. I completely regret spending the extra money on what I thought was a GameStream ticket. There are alternative game streaming services which do work without GTX (even without Nvidia graphics at all) but they're quite buggy and not very polished.
I haven't used it extensively but Kodi runs as smoothly as you would expect on the hardware (exceptionally smoothly). As for replacing your current setup, I've heard that you can hook up a USB optical drive and play DVDs (but not Blu-Rays) through KODI. However it lacks many UK streaming services, like Channel 4, Channel 5 and ITV. So you might want to keep the Now TV box around for a little while.
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Great, that's very helpful. Thanks. I plan to integrate it slowly, so that might work well. Is there another game stream service you can recommend?
hdhomerun can that run sky services?
kyrusdemnati said:
hdhomerun can that run sky services?
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Click to collapse
Not as far as I'm aware, but I could be wrong
i dont think it does... after research on sat forums

Plex Media Server on Shield TV

Just announced today *drool*
I've been thinking of upgrading my NAS to a more powerful machine, however, with this, it won't be necessary. Perfect.
https://blog.plex.tv/2016/06/09/nvidia-shield-you-complete-us/
"You read that right: the SHIELD is so powerful that it can not only run our Android TV interface better than just about anything out there, it can also run the full media server, including support for hardware-accelerated video transcoding (H.264, MPEG2 and HEVC)! With multiple simultaneous streams! As for storage, you get up to 500GB right on the SHIELD, and you can easily add more via USB or over the network."
https://shield.nvidia.com/blog/plex-media-server
"With our next software update in a couple of weeks, SHIELD will get a major upgrade that includes Plex Media Server. With this upgrade, SHIELD becomes the first smart TV device to support a more streamlined, mainstream Plex experience - one that combines the Plex media player and the Plex media server into a single, pre-installed, easy to use app. Combined with SHIELD Pro’s 500 GBs of internal storage and 1080p hardware-accelerated transcode, Plex fans will enjoy a seamless, all-in-one experience that enables them to more easily access their media collection."
Right now I am using the Full Android AOSP build, so I hope it can be ported over without too much trouble. I *might* go back to Stock for this though!
This is seriously...big news.
How many simultaneous transcoding streams do you think it can handle?
grievous2004 said:
How many simultaneous transcoding streams do you think it can handle?
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I can answer that. About 2-3 1080p streams.
Read comments on this page: https://blog.plex.tv/2016/06/09/nvidia-shield-you-complete-us/
Emilio answers:
"Generally speaking about 2-3 1080P stream but it all depends on the files, network, and if there is anything else going on at the same time, whether it can use the hardware decoder or must it use the software (the CPU). It is not an Apples to Apples comparison. a 30BG HD bluray high bitrate rip input file is not going to transcode well as something smaller. Direct Play streams are less intensive than ones that need transcoding obviously"
The apps already been published in the playstore, we just can't install it yet.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.plexapp.mediaserver.smb&hl=en
How can we get a 3.2 ROM beta to try? Can anyone post the APK to apkmirror? com.plexapp.mediaserver.smb?
It's interesting that the beta isn't available here for the developer program. https://developer.nvidia.com/gameworksdownload#?search=SHIELD%20ANDROID%20TV%20Pro%20Developer&tx=$additional,shield
Plex Server Problem
Got the update today but i have a Problem.. If i try to search for data on an Extertal sd Nothing happens.. The korrekt fordert are just on the intern sd but can that be? I just have one Extertal sd and i dort Want to Mount it to add it to the internat sd. If i try to create a movies Folder on the Extertal sd Nothing happens.. Can i Chance the pad plex Server is Looping for?
Is it possible to uninstall the Plex Server crap through normal means, or is the code baked into the system and not possible to remove?
EDIT: OK it can be disabled like any normal app.
Has anyone figured out how to get the HDHomeRun stuff working? Plex server is amazing, and the HDHomeRun PRIME is amazing.
So far, I have rooted my 3.2 shield TV, and I've installed the HDHRViewerV2-beta-0.07c from http://hdhrviewer.zynine.net/download/ into the folder /data/data/com.plexapp.mediaserver.smb/Plex Media Server/Plug-ins/HDHRViewerV2.bundle
in that folder is "Contents", so I have
Code:
[email protected]:/data/data/com.plexapp.mediaserver.smb[/email]/Plex Media Server/Plug-ins/HDHRViewerV2.bundle/Contents # ls -l
ls -l
drwxrwxrwx root root 2016-07-01 03:08 Code
-rwxrwxrwx root root 6458 2016-07-01 19:03 DefaultPrefs.json
-rwxrwxrwx root root 690 2016-07-01 19:03 Info.plist
drwxrwxrwx root root 2016-07-01 03:08 Resources
drwxrwxrwx root root 2013-09-27 22:14 Strings
Does this look right? I'm new to plex server, and I don't see anything for this in the web interface.
Thanks, and I hope we can crack it! Imagine, you get all the cable provider channels DVR unlimited, watch anywhere, and on any device!
Is plex really free? I am trying stream movies on my phone from the shield TV but every 1 minutes or so it stops. I read online saying that there is a monthly fee or a one time fee for life
Sent from my ONE A2005 using XDA-Developers mobile app
Plex media server software is free but the dedicated app for playback usually cost a one time fee like many Android apps. If you do the Plex Pass subscription or one time Plex pass for life payment, then the app is free. I can't remember if the app has a playback limitation because I purchased it the very first day it became available.
Look at the release notes in Google play store to see if it mentions any limitations on the trial version your using. Maybe the information is there.
Sent from my SM-T700 using Tapatalk
The Plex app for Android is a demo version with a $5 upgrade to the full version. (No idea if that's per household or per device, and if it's the latter, if it's possible to transfer between devices.) Some free alternatives to try are PleXBMC and PlexKodiConnect.
Anyone here know how to change where PMS keeps its appdata? I have a 16gb shield and a 128gb SD that I want to keep the metadata on. I have a NAS with a TON of data, the metadata gets really large. If someone could point me in the right direction I would be willing to make a guide, as I'm sure I'm not gonna be the only one looking for this info.
What's plex do that kodi can't?
Neo3D said:
What's plex do that kodi can't?
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With plex server now on my shield tv at home, I can load up plex.tv at work, and watch all my movies/tv shows when the boss is not in
Neo3D said:
What's plex do that kodi can't?
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Click to collapse
With nas, you are your own personal Netflix.
With an hd homerun prime, you can rebroadcast a cable provider channel set to anywhere.
And... You can cast it so you can remove any unused cable equipment and with a Chromecast, any tv becomes hd live capable.
gffmac said:
With plex server now on my shield tv at home, I can load up plex.tv at work, and watch all my movies/tv shows when the boss is not in
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm trying to do that but it's not available in the other end do you have any tutorials on how to achieve this? Thanks in advance!
pmgnet said:
With nas, you are your own personal Netflix.
With an hd homerun prime, you can rebroadcast a cable provider channel set to anywhere.
And... You can cast it so you can remove any unused cable equipment and with a Chromecast, any tv becomes hd live capable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can You send Sling Tv or Xfinity Go App channels to other connected tvs?
Manster3354 said:
Can You send Sling Tv or Xfinity Go App channels to other connected tvs?
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Click to collapse
I don't use sling. The xfinity app doesn't cast.
I use Plex and I'm attempting to get the hd homerun prime plugin working.
I just tried to set it up but can't figure out how to get it to see my NAS.

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