2017-02-06, 21:18
I'll briefly describe my current set up. I currently have a 2011 Mac Mini with 8gb of memory and an SSD. But I literally pretty much just use it to run VLC, connect to my NAS where all of my downloads go, and use the browser for services like Netflix, Hulu, etc. I've experimented with Kodi and Plex. I like Kodi better but was disappointed to see that no set top players supported the app (e.g. Roku or what not). So that kind of stalled my fully adopting Kodi.
Since there are now solid Android set top boxes I think I can finally sell the Mac Mini and get something that's more of a smart tv/media center set up instead of clumsily using the browser and file explorer on a full on computer that I don't really utilize for anything but media. I just bought a Xaomi Mi Box 4k to replace the Roku 3 in the bedroom so we can access the Kodi library on the NAS. But when I posted in a NVidia Shield forum about replacing the Mac Mini with the Shield there were some tepid responses. I've looked at the pinned thread about Kodi set top box recommendations and consistently the Mi Box and Shield were most recommended. Mac Mini's would surface occasionally. My main annoyance is as stated, it's cumbersome even with a great wireless mouse to use an all out computer for media only, and it feels like I'm kind of wasting the power of the machine and by extension wasting some money. I would prefer just to switch inputs, and then control a set top box or Shield via a remote, or bundle it into my universal remote. I never had any luck with accessing Hulu or Netflix within Kodi so I usually start at the desktop and then open the Kodi app or another streaming service. If things go well enough I may put a Mi Box on our main tv in addition to the bedroom. What most intrigued me about a Shield is it's support, power, and Google Assistant coming in 2017 as I'm a pretty tightly integrated Google Home.
Thanks for the feedback and answering all of my noob questions
Mod edit I had to correct the spelling of Xiaomi in the thread title
Since there are now solid Android set top boxes I think I can finally sell the Mac Mini and get something that's more of a smart tv/media center set up instead of clumsily using the browser and file explorer on a full on computer that I don't really utilize for anything but media. I just bought a Xaomi Mi Box 4k to replace the Roku 3 in the bedroom so we can access the Kodi library on the NAS. But when I posted in a NVidia Shield forum about replacing the Mac Mini with the Shield there were some tepid responses. I've looked at the pinned thread about Kodi set top box recommendations and consistently the Mi Box and Shield were most recommended. Mac Mini's would surface occasionally. My main annoyance is as stated, it's cumbersome even with a great wireless mouse to use an all out computer for media only, and it feels like I'm kind of wasting the power of the machine and by extension wasting some money. I would prefer just to switch inputs, and then control a set top box or Shield via a remote, or bundle it into my universal remote. I never had any luck with accessing Hulu or Netflix within Kodi so I usually start at the desktop and then open the Kodi app or another streaming service. If things go well enough I may put a Mi Box on our main tv in addition to the bedroom. What most intrigued me about a Shield is it's support, power, and Google Assistant coming in 2017 as I'm a pretty tightly integrated Google Home.
Thanks for the feedback and answering all of my noob questions
Mod edit I had to correct the spelling of Xiaomi in the thread title