[calris]

I'm looking at retiring the multitude of media players we have here at home with a single all-in-one solution. At the moment, neither of the boxes we have can play Netfix, Spotify, and the various files I have in my DLNA NAS (FLAC seems to be a complete no-go on one box for example).

I only need 1080p support right now as I don't have a 4K TV. My amp is a rather old 2003 Denon AVR-2803, so I don't need pass-through of the latest audio formats.

As I need to play Netflix and Spotify, I'm thinking I'm going to need an Android box (from what I can tell, there are no officially supported Kodi plug-ins that will enable playing of DRM Netflix/Spotify/etc. content)

I have the skills and tools to build new firmware images from scratch, so the Raspberry Pi, ODROID, et. al. would be perfectly fine, except that a) I want a box that looks professional, and b) I would like a nice remote that comes with the box.

So basically, I'm after the best bang-for-buck 1080p device that will handle any video and audio format that I throw at it which looks good and has a nice, usable, remote.

[wrxtasy]

Basically your choices are narrowed to what Boxes support DRM 1080p Netflix and other Android Apps from the START HERE sticky thread. Ones that have a decent remote and can play the required Android TV OS Apps, for ease of use on a big screen TV.
3 choices basically, nVIDIA Shield, WeTeK and Amazon (but maybe Windows 10 has the required Apps as well)

If you need to play Interlaced TV streams it narrows the field to WeTeK, unless you are a US user and then ATSC mpeg2 Interlaced content will play properly on the Shield.

The added complication will arise if you need an S/PDIF/Optical out to feed your old AVR.
Does you current TV support basic 5.1 AC3/DTS optical passthrough ?
(List TV makes and model pls.)

The FireTV1 has Optical out built in and so do some of the WeTeK devices. I believe it can be added to the Shield with a USB Turtle Beach adapter. Confirmation would need to be sought that Netflix and Spotify feed Audio out correctly over optical in all these cases.

To help this is the list of remote control friendly Android TV OS Apps that currently works on WeTeK devices.
See HERE
Be aware Netflix is 2.0 Audio only using the tweaked Android TV OS app on WeTeK.

I believe there are certain Android Audio limitations for playback of FLAC. Some well supported LibreELEC Kodi devices have no such limitations as seen HERE. See the sticky thread already mentioned for Android audio limitation specifics.

Unsure about DNLA, most of us just use Networked Servers and connect over Samba, SMB.

[calris]

Thanks wrxtasy - You pretty much confirmed what I suspected. Looks like the WeTek devices are the go. A bit pricier than I would have liked, but they'll do 4K if I end up with a 4K TV.

Any idea where the best place to get one delivered to Australia would be?

[KoopaTroopa]

Kodi just made it onto the Windows 10 Store, so that's a good option you might want to try.

There are quite a few HTPC's or NUC's or Chromebox style little PC's that have an optical out for you to use with your "old" receiver.

Windows 10 Store has both Kodi and Netflix, and then you can install Spotify separately. That would allow you to get everything working all-in-one.

Another option is a Mac Mini, I use one myself for Kodi and Spotify (but not Netflix, which I **could** use but I have an ATV4 for Netflix). My 2009 Mac Mini has a digital out which i use with the Optical-In of my Onkyo receiver (2012 model). I use the old Apple Remote for my Kodi use. Spotify I just use the mouse to navigate.

In both cases, I would say macOS and Windows would both deliver better FLAC playback compared to Android.

I agree with wrxstasy, most of us (including me) use SMB exclusively for network servers. I have a TON of media on my 17TB nas, and have various Kodi players playing the content back.

Any idea where the best place to get one delivered to Australia would be?

Also, the "best" place to get Wetek Hub would be from Wetek themselves.

[noggin]

Kodi just made it onto the Windows 10 Store, so that's a good option you might want to try.

Important to say that whilst it is great that Kodi is in the Windows Store, it should be remembered it's been available as a normal, non-store, Windows application you install yourself for many, many years. People shouldn't think that "Kodi is finally on Windows" because of this announcement, as it has been on Windows for a very long time.

[noggin]

Netflix in HD + Spotify + Kodi probably means :

Windows x86 PC (too many to detail models and depends on exact requirements as HD Audio can dictate certain CPUs in Windows)
nVidia Shield
Google Nexus Player (though this is now EOL I think)
Wetek Core, Hub or Play 2
Amazon Fire TV or Fire TV stick

A Mac running OSX is also an option - though cost may be an issue.

DLNA as a file-access protocol for Kodi is not a great fit. I'd go for SMB (aka CIFS aka Windows Networking aka SAMBA) or NFS instead. Your NAS should support one or both of these, and they are a better fit for Kodi and NAS access.

[teki4u]

Windows and OSX solutions would require a mouse/keyboard combo remote control for the best experience.
I use Windows 10 and Netflix from play store and spotify from a direct link to browser. To be able to use Netflix with an IR remote (btw you'll need an IR receiver integrated in the htpc box or an external adapter like the flirc) you must use Netflix Remote Controller: http://sticky-ux.com/apps/NetflixRemoteController/
which works but its not perfect and sometimes unresponsive.
For web apps you must use a mouse and keyboard unless you go to youtube.com/tv which work out of the box with IR remotes.

I sincerely recommend you to avoid it and go for an top brand android box.

Enviado desde mi Moto X vía Tapatalk!

[KoopaTroopa]

Kodi just made it onto the Windows 10 Store, so that's a good option you might want to try.

Important to say that whilst it is great that Kodi is in the Windows Store, it should be remembered it's been available as a normal, non-store, Windows application you install yourself for many, many years. People shouldn't think that "Kodi is finally on Windows" because of this announcement, as it has been on Windows for a very long time.

Yes personally I know, I've been using Kodi on my work Windows PC since 2010!

I mentioned it the Windows 10 Store because it just makes it easier for some people to have it linked to their "cloud accounts" and with Netflix there, just that tiny bit easier to move platforms at any time.

[calris]

Thanks for the recommendations... I just ordered a Play 2 directly from WeTek - I'm really looking forward to seeing what it can do