Hardware to play video files on a TV?

QuadyTheTurnipQuadyTheTurnip Icrontian
edited December 2012 in Hardware
I'm trying to figure out what the cheapest option for playing video files on a TV would be. We have an old, SD TV (one of those last-generation CRTs) with just RCA inputs, and I'm trying to find something simpler than hauling my desktop into the living room and plugging in my s-video to RCA cable. I know that an Xbox 360 or PS3 could do so, but i'm trying to find something cheaper. I also will be completely unable to use any streaming services due to my bandwidth cap, so I have 0 use for a Roku box or Apple TV as I can't use Netflix or what-have-you...hopefully not needing streaming means I can find a cheaper option too.

Optimally I'd love just a box that goes from USB to RCA or something silly like that (with built in software to be able to browse and play video files), but I have no idea if that actually exists and I'm having little luck finding something similar.

I'd love any and all recommendations you may have, as it'd make an awesome Christmas gift.

Comments

  • BasilBasil Nubcaek England Icrontian
    edited December 2012
    Raspberry Pi?

    What video format and from what source?
  • mertesnmertesn I am Bobby Miller Yukon, OK Icrontian
    Yep. That's going to be the cheapest solution. And tastiest...
  • QuadyTheTurnipQuadyTheTurnip Icrontian
    I'd love to get a Raspberry Pi, but I had been under the impression they weren't avaliable due to backorders...

    Just found their distributors list...CANADA IS LIKE THE ONLY COUNTRY THEY DONT SHIP TO. D:
  • QuadyTheTurnipQuadyTheTurnip Icrontian
    edited December 2012
    Oooh, wait, I found a Canadian distributor! Sadly I think i'm too late for a by-Christmas purchase, but hey, It's a Raspberry Pi! Thanks guys!

    http://canada.newark.com/jsp/bespoke/bespoke7.jsp?bespokepage=newark/en_US/landing/raspberry-pi/rasp-pi-accessories.jsp&isRedirect=true
  • QuadyTheTurnipQuadyTheTurnip Icrontian
    Oooh, and a place that sells them in Toronto! Maybe I CAN get one before Christmas if I head over there...
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    You still haven't clarified what type of videos you'll be playing. The RPi has very limited hardware decode capabilities, and soft-decoding is not sufficiently powerful to accommodate unsupported codecs.
  • QuadyTheTurnipQuadyTheTurnip Icrontian
    edited December 2012
    Sadly, I don't think Raspberry Pi is the best option, as I was hoping I could lend it to my parents and the like for their usage, and while I still want to get one, I doubt anyone in my family would be willing or able to work with a Raspberry Pi.

    Video type isn't a huge deal, as I have video conversion software up the wazoo and I don't mind converting stuff to specific codecs. That said, given a choice I'd rather not have to deal with that, so the videos I have at the moment are all over the place: h.264 MP4s, AVI, MKVs, etc. And while I'm currently outputting to an SD TV, I have a whole range of definitions and formats of video files.

    EDIT: having done more reasearch into the Raspberry Pi, it's very different from what I was originally led to believe. I'll still probably get one at some point, but it's not the "one-solution to video on your TV"
  • WinfreyWinfrey waddafuh Missouri Icrontian
    edited December 2012
    I got one of these for cheap on sale at sears for $35. It's fairly idiot proof and plays the most common video file types. Just plug in your external hard drive or USB flash drive with the files on it and it'll work. Also you can hook it up to your network to play stuff from there, including netflix etc.

    It was a nice solution for me because I just have a desktop so this was an easy way to get movies and shows from my desktop to the big screen in the living room.
    QuadyTheTurnip
  • QuadyTheTurnipQuadyTheTurnip Icrontian
    Wiiiiinfrey! I think that's perfect! Sadly I doubt i'll find it for $35, but even for the $100 i'll have to buy it for, that might be perfect! (Also it turns out there's a $190 version that has a built in TB hard drive? Hmm!)
  • lmorchardlmorchard {web,mad,computer} scientist Portland, OR Icrontian
    edited December 2012
    For what it's worth:

    I have a Raspberry PI, and it's running RaspBMC right now. It works not too badly, and my TV passes along signals from the remote over the HDMI cable. The RasPI is fun in general.

    I also have a WDTV Live, no hard drive, flashed with 3rd party firmware. It also works not too badly, and my Harmony remote talks directly to it. The WDTV Live is less fiddly and more focused than a RasPI

    I've got a Synology NAS on my network that does all kinds of dirty dirty pirate things to get me old TV shows in various random formats. Both the RaspPI and the WDTV Live stream full HD videos over our LAN like champs.
  • lmorchardlmorchard {web,mad,computer} scientist Portland, OR Icrontian
    edited December 2012
    Oh, and FWIW, I got my WDTV Live for $70 from a Costco a year or two ago. So, you might be surprised for how cheap you can find these things.

    EDIT: And since I just noticed you're talking about standard def, you might even be better off finding one of the older generation (and hopefully cheaper) WDTV boxes. Pretty sure they come with composite RCA video cables. And a RaspPI has composite video right on the board, but those things are more exotic.
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