Had a sale at my favorite local online shop and ended up picking a 4k tv on the cheap. So my old Tv has gone into the bedroom. Therefore I need something to pump content to more than one screen.

I don't like the smart tv ui's at all and need to set up a home media server of some sort, but just hooking up an old laptop won't cut it anymore.

So anyone have a suggestion for a decent home media solution? I looked into plex and the idea that I have to subscribe to something doesn't appeal to me at all. Also don't really need to streaming media over the internet to anywhere in the world option.

I have my brothers old pc chassis with the mobo, cpu and ram still in there, so perhaps I can set up some sort of a media server, if I buy a some sort of a gpu. But I am really rather outside of my comfort zone so perhaps I don't need to?

 

You don't need to subscribe for Plex to work. Plex subscription is only required if you want to stream through the internet. It will work on your local network without any issues.

Kodi is also an option for streaming.

 

Along those lines, Chromecast is literally built into a number of TVs. I know the OP said he doesn't want to stream through the television, but depending on the TV you have, it might simply be redundant with no upside to stream into a stand-alone machine, then to the TV.

 

Checked out plex again. Once I understood that it does home network streaming it looked like the thing I wanted. Got excited for the "free unlimted streaming to your android device from your media server.". Only to discover that when you load up the app it's "LOL 6 euro plz". I would call that a scam tbh. It's plastered all over their website and you only see that you have to pay if you install the app.

Kodi it is than I guess

 

If your android device and the server are on the same network, it should work iirc.

 

Why do you need to root the chromecast? What is the benefit?

My two solutions are:
Chromecast, usually used for youtube/netflix.
TV plugged into network, external HD plugged into TV. Movies/TV Shows DL straight to HD.

 

Wait, how do I root chrome cast Zombie? I've been using VideoStream (chrome app) to stream local files to Chromecast. It's a bitch because for any reasonably high definition file, it gets super slow or just stops.

And wasn't VLC Player coming out with a local Chromecast streaming solution?

 

My experience with ChromeCast was that on anything exceeding smartphone resolution it lags. Streaming 720p from my computer was a pain, and I haven't touched the thing since.

 

Do you guys have 1st or 2nd gen Chromecasts? I never had any stuttering/quality loss etc. Even on a 15gb+ movie. It just works.

I do have the Chromecast less than 2 meters away from the router, so perhaps that helps also.