
- #Compare atv flash silver with atv flash xbmc edition for free
- #Compare atv flash silver with atv flash xbmc edition 720p
- #Compare atv flash silver with atv flash xbmc edition 1080p
- #Compare atv flash silver with atv flash xbmc edition install
- #Compare atv flash silver with atv flash xbmc edition drivers
This truly is a great media centre setup & I cant beleive all in it cost less than an ATV3 for so much more than that box is capable of.
#Compare atv flash silver with atv flash xbmc edition install
The openelec install is self updating (set to auto update in openelec settings) & comes with Samba setup so you can access the Media Centre from any machine on your network, making it easy to copy files, access logs, change keymaps or mess with advancedsettings.xml The Openelec install also has various options in settings so you can configure wifi (either built in if you opt not to install a broadcom card, or USB dongle wifi if you so wish). Truly a wonderful addition to our media centre collection.
#Compare atv flash silver with atv flash xbmc edition 1080p
I can watch my 1080p blu ray rips with ease & stutter free. This is a really fast media centre & will play anything I throw at it. Now simply add your media sources & build your library.
#Compare atv flash silver with atv flash xbmc edition drivers
The Broadcom CrystalHD drivers will be installed automatically & selected for Hardware Acceleration in XBMC. Post installation you will have a fast booting & extremely responsive XBMC installation. This is essentially a highly customised version of Linux with only the required files to boot on Apple TV, and only the required drivers for the hardware. It will then automatically download the latest available version and install openelec XBMC. The Patchstick will partition the internal HDD and you will lose the native Apple TV OS – no big deal. Just make sure you have the Apple TV connected via Ethernet. Installation instructions for Apple TV are available here. You will need a USB flash drive, I used a Sandisk Cruzer 16GB drive. I have since switched to OpenELEC 2.0 (RC 1) – 1.99.1 ATV i386 and I’m really impressed. I used Crystalbuntu for a good few days & it is flawless, however the installation procedure is a little harder & Sam (the developer) seems to be concentrating support more on Crystalbuntu for Raspberry Pi. You have 2 options, Crystalbuntu by Sam Nazarko or Openelec. This is where 3rd party Linux distros come into place. As I said before the Apple TV is showing it’s age & the native menus are very clunky & slow. You can then install XBMC (kodi) and the CrystalHD drivers from the new maintenance menu. You will need to use Firecore’s ATV Flash software to create a patchstick.

Now there are drivers available for the standard Apple TV software. You then install the Broadcom card in the wifi cards place & you are good to go. This will leave your Apple TV with Ethernet only, unless you add a USB wifi dongle which is possible, but for 1080p content I would really recommend an ethernet setup. To fit the card you open up the case (4 torx screws) and remove the pre-installed wifi card. I purchased the following card for £14 and it’s a worthy purchase. However, if you head over to eBay and purchase a Broadcom BCM970012 Hardware HD Video Decoder Card this low powered computer becomes a media powerhouse. As such it is not an ideal candidate for a modern 1080p media centre.

#Compare atv flash silver with atv flash xbmc edition 720p
It’s slow & can just about display some types of 720p files using XBMC (kodi). It includes a Nvidia graphics chip and a wide array of I/O ports.Īs standard the Apple TV is really showing it’s age. This box is a low powered computer with a 1ghz mobile intel processor, 256mb ram and a 40GB hard drive (it is available with a 160GB drive but as my stuff is all stored on a NAS it’s not required). It came in the form of an original 1st Generation Apple TV. So I went on the hunt for an alternative. Also it tends to lock up using addons such as streaming video addons & can’t handle 720p Xvid or Divx files. This is understandable as the ATV2 is essentially an ipod touch without the screen. Secondly, whilst videos play perfectly due to hardware acceleration available in the ATV2, the menus are certainly not as snappy or responsive as they are on XBMC (kodi) on our macs.

Firstly it’s reliant on a jailbreak, which isn’t ideal. I really love the XBMC (kodi) on the jailbroken ATV2 and it’s served me well for almost 2 years, but I have a few gripes with it. mp4/.m4v/.mkv files so we can watch them without going to find the disk.
#Compare atv flash silver with atv flash xbmc edition for free
It works wonderfully for our needs & we now don’t have any subscription TV services (granted we download TV episodes but we have a TV license & could watch them for free on our set top box so hardly a crime). I’ve always used XBMC (now Kodi) since it’s birth, even before when it was Xbox Media Player & my family have become accustomed to how everything works. With the lack of ability to jailbreak the Apple TV 3 and the rising prices of the ATV2 due to it’s jailbreak friendliness I was torn between spending a lot of money on another Apple TV 2 or going down a different media centre route.
