Reading Time: < 1 minuteIntegration with services and plugins Plex integrates with third-party apps and services, such as Tautulli for usage statistics. It also supports plugins for enhanced functionality. Finally, Plex also includes free, ad-supported streaming content (movies, TV channels, web shows). The above mentioned characteristics add to Plex functionality as an entertainment tool. Read more
Reading Time: < 1 minuteWhat Is Plex? Plex is one of the most powerful tools for the setup of a home cinema system, offering a robust foundation for a home cinema experience. It is a client-server media platform that turns a computer or NAS (Network Attached Storage) device into a powerful media server. It Read more
Reading Time: < 1 minuteSmart plugs are very useful for the smart home and the smart home cinema. They control several appliances. There are several smart plug brands out there. IKEA also produces a smart plug at an affordable price. However, they are defective. During the last three or so years I have bought Read more
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe different parts of our home cinema setup are connected to each other with cables. Several years ago there were different video and audio cables available: Composite video cables DVI cables Coaxial video cables Component video cables Stereo RCA cables Coax digital S/PDIF cables Optical cables HDMI Speaker cable. Today Read more
Reading Time: 2 minutesHTPC and sound Sound is an essential component of a home cinema setup. Its new surround formats, such as Atmos or Auro-3D, add dramatically to the overall experience. The main feature of Atmos is the addition of height channels. Auro 3D consists of three distinct layers (base Read more
Reading Time: 3 minutesMovies and media files A good HTPC system can handle all types of media you throw at it. If we already have many movies or intend to build up a library of movies, we need a storage medium to store media files, i.e., build a digital library. Nowadays nobody uses Read more
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe big screen In previous posts we examined what we need to set up a PC-based home theater (or cinema, HTPC). Now we need a screen, on which we will project the HT part of the HTPC, and the sound system. With respect to the screen, there are two different Read more
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe new Sonos headphones, the Ace, are out. They are certainly very expensive, especially when compared to other headphones out there that are cheaper. However, the Ace is an excellent companion of the smart home cinema setup when this is based on the Sonos Atmos Read more
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe new foldable smartphone Samsung Z Fold 6 has been announced. Although it is very expensive it is a very good home cinema driver. The reason is that it has a lot of screen estate for displaying smart home devices in various platforms. Read more
Reading Time: < 1 minuteMusic videos, YouTube videos as well as other personal videos are more enjoyable on the home cinema large screen. For instance it is always more fun to watch Miley Cyrus’ Flowers on the large screen than on your phone. And naturally one enjoys Eleni Fureira’s concert better on Read more