Mac Mini 4 (Pro), Apple TV 4K or game console as the 4K TV media center?

[piccolamela]

Recently bought a 4K TV that supports .mkv and .mp4 files, among others, and decodes HEVC (H.265), VP8, VP9, AVC (H.264), AV1, VC1. However the TV itself will not have an online connection. I will be the sole user of said TV and device(s).

On said TV, I want to watch:

• sports subscriptions (MLS Season Pass among others) and Apple TV (+) that all have apps or web browser options.
• movies, series, and documentaries from a local storage device (around 5 TB currently on an HDD). The files are in 4K or the best resolution available and mostly .mkv and a few .mp4, respectively, and in Dolby Vision and/or HDR formats if available. If needed, will upgrade the HDD to an external SSD or other solution.

I'd love a simple setup and solution to occasionally access and watch stuff from that media library or stream content on the TV.

I'm pondering whether I should use my Xbox Series console or get an Apple TV 4K or even a Mac Mini M4 (Pro?) to use as my media center. If it's a Mac Mini M4 (Pro), I could even use it as my couch PC and web browser too for an all-in-one machine. Control by console controller or Apple TV remote is preferred, but not an important requirement, as I have a keyboard and mouse and lapboard too.


What are your suggestions?

 

[OverTheHill]

I’d look into Plex. Use a Mac mini or PC as the server. AppleTV for streaming to other TVs. If you need gaming, use an XBox with a BD drive in it (if you have physical media) and just download the Apple TV app. My brother is a big Plex user. I tried it for a bit several years ago, and it was just more work than it was worth. Ripping made it convenient, but you need a lot of storage when you jump to 4K. Now we just have AppleTVs with digital copies in our catalog and a PlayStation for gaming in one location and a couple of BD players in the house for when we want to pop in a disc.

Single TV solution. Mac mini and an XBox. PlayStation has a lot of reports of problem with Plex. If all your games can be streamed, then a Linux computer and Nvidia Shield is best (with Plex) for what you’re looking for. Thats what my brother has set up. He has a server and a few Nvidia Shield Pros. That will keep the setup as simple as possible. The need for some PC functions sounds like this might be out though for you.

One other device to consider is an OTA tuner from SiliconDust for locals if you can use an antenna for locals. It connects to the network and streams to devices. Plex has a built in guide for this with DVR. It’s pretty slick. Plug in the antenna and hard wire it to your network. If our internet goes down for some reason, we can still watch local TV if we want. Everything else is app based.

To be fair, we’re retired and don’t use a computer much anymore. It made things rather simple for us. We have a Mac in the office which is predominantly used to manage photos and videos. iPads/iPhones are our computers and AppleTV for streaming. Several HomePods for whole house music. Safari on AppleTV with a keyboard and mouse would be a nice touch, but the iPad usually does the trick.