Is android TV for me?

by bobniborg

Cut was cut years ago. I have about 4tb of videos on WDcloud devices (the cheap $100 ones). I have used WDTVs for years to play these. Since my videos are in different formats, they decode MKVs, AVI, MP4s, etc. Well, the WDTVs have died and their lack of flexibility for anything else makes me think I want to move on. I don't usually stream, but my daughters are doing more youtube and of course pandora. We may get HBO go or Netflix in the future so android tv was suggested to me.

1 - Will android tv play my files? Do I just point it to my movies, series and kids folders and go from there or do I need plex or something? Is there a cost for those (one time I'm fine with but I am trying to avoid monthly costs).

2 - am I ok with just the nexus player? $50 bucks is doable and I can get 3 for each of my tvs. I am worried about stream 3 at once though. I used to have one ethernet'ed and stream 2 but the nexus doesn't have an ethernet. Will that be a problem? I saw the 199 nividia on here a bunch. I'm thinking I may try one Nexus player and then move that to the master bedroom if Android TV works for my family and then get the more powerful Shield for the main tv next year.

Any other ideas/advice.

thedave1022

I'm a shield owner and love the box. I use it for Kodi, which plays all my movies (MKV, MP4) from my NAS (1 GB network between the two). Netflix and HBO Go work fine along with anything you cast at it. I run NHL GameCenter Live through Kodi as well at 5000 kbps and it looks pretty much like cable tv. There are some minor issues, and you should check the Shield Android TV forum on Nvidia if you need anything specific.

Cant really comment on the Nexus Player, but for me the choice wasnt close. I also use it to stream my PC library to the TV whenever I want to sit on the couch and play.

https://forums.geforce.com/default/board/159/

skeletonbutt

Nexus Player is great. It will do what you want it to do. I have three.

7HR4SH3R

Plex is free, and the app is under $5, I totally recommend it.

I used to use XBMC (what is now Kodi) but Plex just has a much more polished feel to it, worth the paid app for sure.

nooneisreal

If your wifi signal is not that great you might need to invest in a usb ethernet adapter for the nexus player.

While my connection was mostly adequate, I initially had issues with streaming 1080p mkv files through Kodi. 720p stuff seemed to be OK and of course no issues with Netflix or any other online streaming service.

It turns out my wifi connection was just not good enough to be able to stream large mkv files without issue.

I purchased a USB ethernet adapter and now my connection is rock solid. Speeds are amazing. Have tested streaming 20GB+ 1080p files without a single issue.

So yeah, I think the nexus player really should have come with an ethernet port out of the box, but i'm quite happy with it now. I almost ended up buying a Shield TV, but happy I did not spend the extra money. Heck, I will probably take the extra money I saved and buy another one for my other TV when I can find some more stock here in Canada.