MythTV, Kodi, Plex, OSMC, and DVBLink tested
Expedited TV
© Lead Image © Paolo De Santis, 123RF.com
Free and commercial media center programs promise streaming HD videos, television, music, picture galleries, and a few extra tricks for Linux PCs and the Raspberry Pi – all from the comfort of your living room.
Computer technology and consumer electronics are growing closer and closer, so it is no surprise that, in addition to the traditional multimedia computer programs, software suites now convert computers into home theater centers when combined with an HDMI-compatible TV or projector and a powerful sound system.
Media lovers can do more than just look at pictures and watch movies, they can listen to music, stream content from the web, and scroll through various TV offerings. The recording and editing functions leave little to be desired, but conventional DVD players, digital video recorders, and hi-fi systems might run into difficulties.
The large selection of home theater software for Linux begs the question: Which media center is suitable for me? To help make the choice easier, I compared five leading commercial, free media center solutions that cover almost every need: MythTV [1], Kodi [2], Plex Media Server [3], OSMC [4], and DVBLink [5] (Table 1).
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