Modded XBox The Ultimate Multimedia PC?

Anonymous writes "Can a modded Xbox running homebrew software really beat all existing designed-for-the-living-room multimedia devices hands down?! Tom's Hardware Guide seems to think so. They reviewed Xbox Media Center (XBMC) and say the free open source software turn an Xbox into The Ultimate Multimedia Center, the ideal home playback system for audio and video. (Apparently there is a PC software version available too: Media Portal)" The article also explains some of the more convoluted issues surrounding XBMC. But I definitely agree that this is a great system.

Comments

no question...

[nomayogr]

XMBC is the first media center type application that I have found that runs on $150 worth of hardware. That says a whole lot about it's success.

Re:no question...

[vanDerGraaf]

Kudos on the low hardware cost, but if it is going to choke on HD video what kind of a media center is it (or is this a low cost viewer for 10s pr0n)? Even with the increased clock speed, it is still likely to stutter on high quality DivX as well.

Re:no question...

[Osty]

If you hook a component video cable to the Xbox, it does indeed drive a 480p display.

A standard, un-modded XBox with the DVD player attachment will not do progressive output for DVDs, even with the HD pack. However, that's not a limitation of the hardware, but the software. There are hacks that can change that, and if you're already hacking your XBox to run XBMP, you may as well do the hack to play DVDs in progressive output.

Modding my Xbox was the best possible thing I could've done for it. Microsoft is incredibly foolish not getting on-board with an "official" application like XBMC for people who wish to have run it on Xboxes that aren't modded. It would be very popular.

It's also not the target demographic of XBox. It would compete with the Windows Media Center PCs, and gets away from the idea of XBox as a gaming platform. More importantly, if Microsoft were to release a supported XBMC-like application for XBox, you and everyone else here would be screaming foul, saying that Microsoft is trying to leverage their weight to take over your living room.

XBOX os

[kunudo]

Might be a little offtopic, but since the XBOX is an x86, and at least some people have the expensive flash burners/readers it takes, why hasn't anyone taken the XBOX os and put it on a PC? Maybe run it inside emulated XBOX hardware? I wanna play XBOX games on my PC... :)

I am waiting for DVD Upscaling

[mikejz84]

I have thought using an X-box based HTPC, but for the moment I need something that will scale DVDs to custom resolutions for my CRT projector--I guess I have to wait on that one.

It's great

[zeth]

A modded xbox + xbmc is perfect! I use it daily, so I know.
The only thing missing is a video-in card. Currently I have to use my desktop PC to record shows and then stream to the xbox. It works, but it would really be perfekt if one could use normal PCI-cards on the xbox.
Anyone know about this problem and if the xbox2 has the same limitations?

Re:It makes sense

[lukewarmfusion]

all while MS makes a loss on the XBox.

Every time someone says this, a bunch of people come out and claim it's a myth and that MS makes money or breaks even. I've never seen any numbers on this - my Google searches never turned up anything, either. Anyone have a reliable source on that?

More on-topic: I've been holding off on buying a dedicated piece of hardware for this... I don't want to pay for a service and I can't afford to spend that much. This looks like a hell of a package to slap onto a cheap PC (and hide behind my TV!).

I've been considering this

[Dark Paladin]

There's a place selling modified Xbox's for about $450 that does all of this stuff that I've been considering.

For the most part, a modified Xbox would be my "dream TV box". Sit it in the living room (it's about the same size as the DVD/VCR combo machine - thicker, but not as long), and I could have an archive of my legally purchased DVD's. As a guy with 2 kids who are always trying to ruin the DVD's with their grimy little fingers, this would be a great machine for my household.

"Here, kids - want to watch 'Blue's Clues on a Deserted Island and Joe Dies Horribly' again? OK - let me just use the remote on the Xbox." Boom - there goes my XVID ripped DVD movie on. Originals are kept safe, kids are happy.

I'm kind of dissapointed we haven't seen a company come up with a solution like this. A Cappachino sized device with the same capabilities, running Linux so I could FTP/SSH into it for upgrades/other mods would sell like hotcakes. (And as an avid fan of hotcakes, I know what I'm talking about.)

Biggest issue

[vlad_petric]

Binaries - there's no "clean" way of getting them, AFAIC. You need VS.NET and ask M$ for the devel kit in order to compile them (at which time you're bound by their EULA, which disallows redistribution). Well, I definitely wouldn't mind a download link though :)

Re:Another Rip Off

[stanmann]

Name one closed source interface that isn't blatently stolen from xerox or a relic that looks like 1985?

Re:I modded my xbox...

[gosand]

...now all I use it for is MAME! XBMP rules too, but it is hard to get used to the joystick as a means of controlling it. I should just break down and buy a DVD remote.

You really should get an XArcade controller for MAME. You can even get an XBox adapter to use it with your Xbox. (I use mine with my PC) It isn't *quite* the same as the arcade games, but about as close as you'll get without having the original game.

Re:It makes sense

[Pluvius]

However, most contrary arguments are arguing that MS is not losing money when you buy an Xbox. Of course they're not, the Xbox was already made and just sitting there. If no one bought it, MS would lose whatever it cost to manufacture, package, and ship.

The problem with this is that it assumes that MS won't manufacture another XBox to replace the one that you bought. While this assumption is probably true towards the end of the XBox's life, it's not in the middle.

Of course, it's not like MS can just start and stop XBox production on a dime. XBox production is, for the most part, a sunken cost. And, as you say, stronger XBox sales lead to a stronger reputation for XBox in the gaming industry. So chances are you're not really hurting MS if you buy an XBox without using it for its "intended purpose," and even if you were, it would be a drop in the bucket compared to revenues that dwarf GNPs of third-world countries. The best way to hurt MS is to simply not use its products.

Rob

Re:Another Rip Off

[FesterDaFelcher]

Imagine if the wheel had been square when it was first invented. Everything would be terrible.

Not if all roads were shaped like inverted catenaries.

Re:It makes sense

[Jstncase]

320G Drive currently running in my XBOX. Basically any size IDE drive there is out there on the market the XBOX can currently run it. They mainly have a BIOS if your drive is = 160 and another one for 160+.

Also you can even add a switch to your XBOX to have 3 additional HDs (only 1 can be used at a time) which would give you 320G x 4 = 1.2Tb of spaec available on your XBOX.

Now you ask why would anyone need all that space? Drive 1- Original Untouched XBOX, Drive 2- All XBOX Games, Drive 3- DVD, SVCDs movies etc and Drive 4- plain old dump drive for FTP, downloads, web browsing and overflow.

question about noise levels

[blowfish99]

I don't own an X-Box but had a loan of one a while back and from memory it was quite noisy. I don't want to watch my movies with a jet engine in the room. Does anyone have any feedback on what the noise levels are from this unit. I have done a lot of work getting my PC down so its near silent. Am I going to have embark on a similar project once I get my modded X-Box home?

Well, they did improve it.

[Inoshiro]

The model 50001 DVD playback is higher quality stuff. I haven't done a side-by-side comparison, though.

The server software's just the byte-code they provide. The decoding's all done on the PS2, which is why the resolution's limited to 512x384. I just use Mencode to tranlate stuff to the apropos resolution.