Smart TV or companion device (SHIELD) for streaming my movie/TV library from the NAS

by LeKnuth

[ I have asked something similar a while ago on the dedicated Nexus TV subreddit ( link ) ]

I'm looking to by a device with Android TV to stream from my library of movies and tv-shows on my Synology NAS.

The media is h264 AVC encoded in an MKV or MP4 container with either AC3 or DTS audio. Some are 1080p, most are 720p with a framerate of 23.97

I have checked some Smart TV's, including the SONY KDL-55W805 CBAEP (which i like so far), but I don't know if it is fast enough or comes with the necessary codecs to play media from my library. Especially I have read that most of those Smart TV's come with weak hardware, which makes their menus sluggish and overall annoying to use.

As an alternative, I would consider buying a companion-device like the nVidia SHIELD, if the Android TV on those Smart TV's will not suffice.

Any advice or experiences from you guys is very welcome!

OssotSromo

Go shield TV. Kodi can mount a NAS and will do all the Metadata look up as well. YouTube Kodi for an idea of how it will look. It'll also handle ANY codex combination you throw at it.

fraseyboo

Pretty much everyone on this subreddit will tell you to get a standalone device like the Shield TV and a normal television. This is mainly due to the limitations put in on some TVs, some manufacturers banned sideloading and the hardware can be significantly worse. It's much better to get a relatively cheap tv and supplement it with the shield TV.

It's worth noting that a relatively smart TV (Internet connected but not android) may already have a DNLA player enabled, my samsung tv is a 2010 model and can play off my NAS if needed.

jepatrick

To the same result but for a different reason: TV hardware cannot be updated, peripherals can. And additionally its at the vendors bequest that the software is updated, previous generation are pretty quickly abandoned, which feature wise is eh, but more importantly it may/will have massive security issues that will never get fixed.

I would actually recommend going with the Nexus Player, unless you are wanting it for the gaming. You can get it currently for about 50 dollars, vs 200 for the shield. The shield is definetly better hardware but Kodi runs without issue with 1080p video.

Also, semi-related, you should check out Emby to run on the NAS as well. It organises all the media, downloads subtitles, metadata, images, and allows you to pick up where you left off on any device. I've watched a movie on my TV, switched to my laptop, and then to my tablet seamlessly.