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iTunes vs Plex

Do you use iTunes or Plex for videos?

  • iTunes

    Votes: 118 47.4%

  • Plex

    Votes: 131 52.6%
  • Total voters
    249
R

robertpolson

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 24, 2011
162
152
I am curious, what do you use for your media needs, iTunes or Plex.

Ever since iTunes 11 came out I began thinking of using it (with iVI) for playing my videos instead of using Plex. However, iTunes has a clunky NAS support and is not as convenient as Plex.

I am curious, what do you use for your media an why?
 
robertpolson said:
I am curious, what do you use for your media needs, iTunes or Plex.

Ever since iTunes 11 came out I began thinking of using it (with iVI) for playing my videos instead of using Plex. However, iTunes has a clunky NAS support and is not as convenient as Plex.

I am curious, what do you use for your media an why?
Click to expand...

For music, iTunes. For movies, TV shows, music videos, etc., Plex, hands down. Plex can handle far more file types, automatically downloads artwork, metadata, subtitles, etc., can be controlled remotely with the Plex mobile app, easily plays content from any networked drive and deliver it to any computer, iOS device, etc. on the network. It can also play content across the internet.
 
I am a HUGE fan of Plex. That being said, I recently converted all of my videos over to M4V and now use iTunes exclusively. It is simply a more fluid user experience to use the AppleTV interface than to use the Plex app on an iOS device and then AirPlay to the AppleTV. The family appreciates it.

I also find that using iTunes is more stable and I don't get any buffering or drop outs at all. Using Plex and AirPlay would occasionally hiccup (say 1x out of every 10 videos I watched).

If Plex were to have a native AppleTV app I would certainly go back to using it.
 
Plex does more and is more versitle, but all my movies are m4v and I add all my meta data with iDentify so I do not really need a feature or ability that iTunes does not do for me so thats what I use
 
iTunes all the way but only because of the hard work by people like dynaflash and micJ who help us noobs to convert our blu rays to an iTunes friendly format. The iTunes movie prices are too steep to warrant a purchase from their store. So iTunes but only due to handbrake :)
 
I do not believe in having optical media anymore so I use ATV3 and ITunes on my MAC Mini. So if I want to watch any programs on Netflix, Hulu etc. I use Apple TV 3 and I use home sharing on Mac Mini and IPhone 5 and ATV3 to see all movies and listen to music.

MAC Mini is on GigEthernet @ 300Mbps and all other devices are WIFI via Apple Extream.

Do I need a media server in this setup?

All connected via HDMI to my 65 inch plasma VT50
 
I am sorry, new to forums. My question is should I use both or neither? Also how would I?

Thanks!

----------

I connect my Apple TV and Mac mini directly to HDTV via HDMI.

is this redundant in my setup with no optical media?
 
nrc2112 said:
I am sorry, new to forums. My question is should I use both or neither? Also how would I?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Welcome to the forums !!!

As far as what you should use for your media needs, it's up to you which like best :).

In my previous post, I was just asking the original poster to add the poll choices both and neither for those people that use both iTunes and Plex for their media and for those people who don't use iTunes or Plex for their media.
 
Thanks!

How would plex be useful? If I did purchase movies on disk? I stream everything but if plex is offering something?
 
nrc2112 said:
Thanks!

How would plex be useful? If I did purchase movies on disk? I stream everything but if plex is offering something?
Click to expand...

Plex plays pretty much every file extension (avi, m4v, mp4, mpg, mpeg, divx, mkv,etc)

iTunes is a much smaller list


Plex adds the meta data automatically, ie the DVD cover, movie description, list of actors directors

Itunes can display this but you have to add it to the file first manually

there is more difference but here is an example of two
 
Hello,

If I do not have any optical media to rip to Plex, is it good for anything else?

Thanks again for helping this newbie!
 
Plex is far more advanced than iTunes.

Having said that, I do use iTunes, simply because I use Apple TV 3s.

And having said that, if anyone came out with a small, polished sub-$200 Plex box, I'd dump my Apple TV (and iTunes by extension) in a second and move to Plex.

Plex has far more and far more useful channels. Even Netflix is better on Plex (and face it, Apple TV is basically a glorified Netflix box, unless you are stupid enough (and I suppose, a technical imbecile) to be spending your unemployment checks on overpriced media from iTunes).

So, while I am currently stuck with iTunes, because of Apple TV, Plex is far better, IMO.
 
I use both. I use MakeMKV and Handbrake (Apple TV3 preset) to get Blu to m4v, then store the m4v in iTunes on the Mac Pro server downstairs. But I still have a Plex server on that same Mac Pro.

The Apple TV3 streams movies from iTunes using home sharing. But when we want to watch something on the iMac, we use Plex. Why not use home sharing on the iMac to stream from the Mac Pro? Because Plex has a much better interface. No other reason.

As others have said, if there was a Plex client for an Apple TV3 that looks like the one for a jalbroken Apple TV2, I'd be all over it.
 
I do not own any DVD or bluray as I stream everything, would plex be better at streaming than Apple TV 3.
 
both,

itunes home sharing for home,

plex for family access when away,




plex is simple enough that my folks in their 60s can have access to my full library on an ipad and airplay it to tv at great quality, keeping me from having to maintain a seperate htpc for them.
 
heisenberg123 said:
Plex is a media manager, it has to be music/movies/photos on your computer or hard drive, its not for streaming
Click to expand...

Plex on the company website states that it streams all media to IPHONE IPAD. However DRM with older ITunes may not be streamed. So I guess if I had optical media on my hard disk then I can use plex but since I do not
It is not for me. I may try it to become familiar with the interface. Seems that iTunes does the same only the media may be more expensive
 
robertpolson said:
I am curious, what do you use for your media needs, iTunes or Plex.

Ever since iTunes 11 came out I began thinking of using it (with iVI) for playing my videos instead of using Plex. However, iTunes has a clunky NAS support and is not as convenient as Plex.

I am curious, what do you use for your media an why?
Click to expand...

I use iTunes for movies I want to see more than once. I use Beamer for movies I just want to see once. I do not use Plex, because it is 32-bit, I have XBMC (64-bit) installed, but as the ATV3 isn't jailbroken yet I haven't been able used it.

----------
heisenberg123 said:
Plex is a media manager, it has to be music/movies/photos on your computer or hard drive, its not for streaming
Click to expand...

I think that both Plex and XBMC can stream as well:

Plex wibsite
"Extend the functionality of connected TVs, add low cost streaming with a Roku or Google TV and get the most out of DLNA compatible devices like the PS3 and Xbox 360".

Next to this they also stream content form an Apple device to a ATV.
 
JGRE said:
I use iTunes for movies I want to see more than once. I use Beamer for movies I just want to see once. I do not use Plex, because it is 32-bit, I have XBMC (64-bit) installed, but as the ATV3 isn't jailbroken yet I haven't been able used it.

----------



I think that both Plex and XBMC can stream as well:

Plex wibsite
"Extend the functionality of connected TVs, add low cost streaming with a Roku or Google TV and get the most out of DLNA compatible devices like the PS3 and Xbox 360".

Next to this they also stream content form an Apple device to a ATV.
Click to expand...

yes in that sense of the word stream it will let other devices stream whats in your plex library, but the plex library needs the digital copies stored on a hard drive on your network

----------
nrc2112 said:
Plex on the company website states that it streams all media to IPHONE IPAD. However DRM with older ITunes may not be streamed. So I guess if I had optical media on my hard disk then I can use plex but since I do not
It is not for me. I may try it to become familiar with the interface. Seems that iTunes does the same only the media may be more expensive
Click to expand...

maybe I was not sure what you meant buy not owning and dvd's you stream everything, if you mean you use torrent sites to get all your movies than yes plex will work with those downloads
 
I have no idea what Torrent is. What I mean to say is that I have all my stuff in a cloud with no cd DVD or bluray. No drives either. So if I buy a movie I download to my hard drive
 
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