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Boxee vs. Zinc vs. Hulu
For those with a Windows PC and some time for TV, DeviceGuru writes "Which is the best Internet media streaming application for a media-center PC? Boxee, Zinc, or the new Hulu Desktop? A post at DeviceGuru.com reviews these three media streaming platforms and draws some interesting conclusions. Key pros and cons are tabulated and numerous screenshots are included. Interestingly, despite lots of Boxee hype, Zinc already has a number of valuable features that Boxee is scrambling to add to its next version, due out in the fall. On the other hand, Boxee boasts far more third-party content-access applications support."
slashdot focuses mainly on the us, but i'd like to see statistics of their userbase... i wouldn't be surprised that alot of users are from other countries, as google would seem to indicate: http://www.google.com/trends?q=slashdot.org
Hulu Desktop is nothing more than a dedicated browser for the Hulu website. It gives you a flashier interface, smoother video playback, and [in my experience] better buffering. It's entirely Flash-based.
That having been said, I've switched over to it exclusively for my Hulu viewing. One less program running (IE) is a huge benefit on my less-than-stellar Celeron when playing full-screen video.
It does not, however, display your media library, or in any other way act like a Media Center application.
Cheers!
A small comparison of interest:
Windows: Public School. Mac: Private School. Linux: Homeschool. Assembly: Unschool.
I have really been liking Zinc - very smooth operation, plus it looks so cool. Since I can use Zinc to access Hulu (and it does a pretty good job of runing Hulu - maximizing when it can, letting me pause and skip and so forth with the remote) and so many other sources, I see no need for Hulu Desktop. My Media Center bliss is nearly complete... If only it would aggregate Justin TV (a nice source which could really use a UI makeover)
This is not a self-referential sig.
Nice overview Rick.
For myself, I'm still finding that Apple TV and iTunes are the best combo. The new Apple TV firmware upgrade 2.4--http://practical-tech.com/entertainment/apple-tv-2-4-well-worth-the-download/--in particular has really made the Apple TV more useful than ever. Apple doesn't whisper a word of it, but the code's really been cleaned up and the result is a much more efficient media box.
The list of my problems with that combo--starting with the simple fact that it's proprietary as proprietary can be--is longer than my arm. Still, for me it's the best choice.
Steven
Maybe because Plex is Mac-only.
This is not a self-referential sig.
(sorry guys: OSes now corrected in the table)
I use Hulu from the UK through the Witopia VPN service. Such services totally break IP-based location checking systems.
Media Center Software:
Streaming Content Services:
so .. apples to apples next time?
"What's the use of a good quotation if you can't change it?" - Doctor Who
> I ran MythTV for 5 years. It works decently if you record a lot of stuff from
> TV but it doesn't work very well as a general media player because MythVideo
> has (or had) no organization functionality. For example it can't group videos
> by the TV series name and such, or provide series and episode information.
MythVideo is basically a file manager. If you want to impose some sort of
organization on your media files, just do it. What MythVideo won't handle is
MULTIPLE ways of organizing your media files based on different keys and sort
of dynamic metadata searches.
I'm not sure if XBMC/Boxee has this either.
MythVideo also quite handily supports TV and Movie metadata. It's not as
slick or automated as XBMC but it's certainly there. Although it's more
accessable to simple hacks. This can easily make MythVideo a much more
usable interface.
As far as local content goes, Boxee looks "prettier" for about 5 minutes.
It's the web based stuff where MythTV really falls down. The plugins here
are either nonexistent, crude or abandoned.
A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
Actually Boxee falls down here even harder unless you are using
the Browse view in which case you are using it in the same way
that you would be using MythVideo. Separating movies from show
and then throwing them in a big pile isn't really an improvement.
A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
Since stupid rights managements mean they're only usable in one country.
Uhm, Boxee has the BBC iPlayer for use in the UK, is actively trying to get Canadian content, and has many "Apps" that are location agnostic.