Good day! I am trying to find a good alternative as not to use the"smart" functions or using an Xbox to consume our media. I found a few options ie like plasma big screen but it’s no longer in development. Essentially I would line love to have it running on an rpi4 and just hooked up to the TV.
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As others have suggested, OSMC is OK, but personally I prefer having Android so that I can use SmarttubeNext and access native apps for stuff like Jellyfin, Dropout, Nebula, etc. For years I played with various Linux options, but in the end I ditched it all for an Nvidia Shield and I couldn’t be happier with the results.
I also think Android has the best apps… SmartTube, Tivimate, and S0undTV can’t be beat and have no good alternatives on other platforms. I run 4k firesticks that I blocked from updates long ago so I could have my own launcher/home screen instead of the ad riddled default one, but want to upgrade eventually. Been wondering lately how well AndroidTV on x86 runs… couldn’t find anything on YouTube.
I literally have a rpi4 and just put libreELEC on it
Kodi is a great choice regardless of distro, whether that’s libreelec, osmc, or just regular Raspbian.
I installed Kodi on my RetroPie setup, and it works well.
I have been meaning to give this a try. https://osmc.tv/store/
Found my way to that from other mentions of OSMC and gonna order one of those in the coming weeks. Been looking for an alternative to my Roku Ultra for a while.
Edit: searching more I see Vero V forum posts from this year about things like Netflix and Amazon limiting streaming to 1080p or lower, and YouTube being a lethargic experience. Will save it and probably go the Nvidia shield route for now.
Damn, thanks for the info. I was hoping someone would make something new to replace the shield l.
Not OP but it looks good. I wanted an alternative to my Apple TV to watch movies from the NAS and it seems to do the trick for a slightly lower price.
Yeah, I have a mini pc that I use when I travel as most places have issues with Plex unless you use a VPN. But it’s just Ubuntu desktop. I want to try this out and see if I would recommend it to less than techno wizard friends as I don’t want to be their IT support at all hours.
I find having the full OS is useful, and this KDE environment proves great https://plasma-bigscreen.org/
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This looks cool but having the shell feel good on a TV is one thing, having apps is another. If I open Firefox on theat thing, am I going to see the same app as I do on desktop… only 10 feet away? I immediately asked this after I saw VS Code in the screenshot there because what is the point in having an accessible 10 foot UI to use it to launch an app where I won’t be able to read the menus and navigate around in an accustomed fashion?
As others are saying, OSMC might work. Most difficult part is making it so that the TV turns on when you turn on the computer since ARC isn’t a thing for most computers.
I ended up giving up on OSMC and bought an Apple TV since nothing else got the “wife approval” factor. It’s better than Google getting my data, has a Plex client, and let’s me stream my Steam library.
If Android is okay, I’d recommend the ONN 4K Pro player from Walmart (if located in the U.S.) with some privacy caveats:
- Do as little with Google: Make a throwaway login if Google requires one to get the device started up. Try to avoid Google Play Store as much as possible. If privacy from Google isn’t a concern, feel free to use your Google account to download apps from the Google Play Store.
- Learn how to sideload apps: There are multiple ways to do this, like a USB drive or FTP server.
- Pick an alternate launcher: This will replace the default Android TV OS UI with one that has much more flexability and no ads. FLauncher and Projectivity are ones that I recommend to friends.
The final product is a modern streaming device with much more flexability than any other store-bought device. Building a HTPC with Linux is probably the true self hosted option. Personally, I’m able to afford some privacy sacrifices with Google for something that “just works.”
I got one of these recently and it works well. Much smoother than whatever my Smart TV is natively running and it doesn’t crash constantly.
If it were just me I’d have set up a small HTPC with Kodi, but my family needs something that works without ever needing my intervention, and it needs to run the 100 streaming services we hemorrhage money to. These boxes are super cheap and let me run Jellyfin too.
It’s been years since I’ve shopped for a TV, but… can’t you just not connect it to the internet? I have a little microPC running Linux connected to our TV; it’s smarter than any other TV I’ve seen, but the TV itself is stupid.
Why can’t someone just get a smart TV and just never let it get online?
I mean, sure, if I had my 'druthers, I wouldn’t be paying for features I don’t use, but if it’s literally impossible to buy dumb TVs, what’s the issue?
I used to do that but it would constantly nag until I connected it
Hmm. Just curious: did you try creating a tar pit subnet for it, which it could connect to but not escape from?
Definitely curious as well, but so far haven’t gotten around to trying
I mean, someday I’ll get a new TV, and I’d just been assuming I’d leave it disconnected… but I hadn’t thought about the nagware, and that would definitely be an issue.
Mines connected for home automation but can’t connect to the internet. Blocking the Mac address from going out.
The option(s) other commenters gave are great! But just to give you more options, I’ll give you a few additional ideas.
- KDE Connect: You can still use a normal desktop (preferably KDE or Gnome), set your display scale to 150+%, and then use your phone remotely to control the cursor, media playback, and more.
- Bazzite: often used to replace SteamOS, it also boots into Steam big picture mode by default, where you can set applications in the start menu. It has a nice console-like interface, and you don’t have to maintain anything, e.g. updating. It also supports Waydroid and webapps by default.
- An old laptop or mini-PC with Bluefin or Aurora. They are basically like Bazzite, but without gaming stuff. You can set the display scale to 200% and enjoy a worry-free experience. Optionally, you can install Phosh or Plasma Mobile on top, which is made for mobile devices.
Is bazzite couch friendly? I’m expecting to need a mouse and that isnt my ideal setup
In big picture mode it’s couch/ controller friendly. In desktop mode you’ll need a mouse. Either way you’ll need a peripheral device for any platform.
I would like a controller. I’ll give bazzite a better look when I get to a home theater PC. Thanks for the input
Bazzite is my daily driver and I really like it
Fwiw - I have both an LG C2 and a newer Samsung QLED. Neither have ever been connected to the internet, never pester me to connect, and the both turn on right to to my Apple TV
Currently I’m working on a Plasma Bigscreen build that still gives some privacy and 1080p Netflix/Disney+/Crunchyroll etc by using extensions/WebApps and getting S-Tube and other android apps (including tv web browser) via Waydroid + Flauncher, all controllable through a simple IR controller.
If you pm me I’ll set it as a reminder for when I finish to share the package. It’s designed for an Odroid C4.
As for dumb tvs or more privacy friendly tvs, you can find them if you know where to look. Here’s some options from LG:
https://www.lg.com/us/business/digital-signage
They had a dumb 65" 4k OLED too but it’s currently out of stock.
