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Boxee Box or Acer Revo

post #1 of 4
6/6/11 at 7:11pm
Thread Starter 
Hi,

I've been contemplating a Boxee Box mostly for local media playback, but the internet streaming is also a nice to have. Reading all the issues with the Boxee Box, I'm wondering if it makes sense to get an Acer Revo 3700 (or some other htpc - suggestions are welcome) I'm open to running either Win7 or Ubuntu on the htpc.

The pros/cons as far as I can tell are..
1. Cost BB (200), Revo/htpc (350)
2. Flexibility - I'm assuming htpc wins.
3. Remote - Will need a USB dongle either way, but the qwerty key for BB probably wins
4. Playback stability - Audio dropouts, stuttering, etc ?? Would the htpc be much better in this regard?
5. Updates/bug fixes - is the htpc version released in lockstep with the BB version?
6. setup - How hard is it to setup a Revo going to receiver/720p plasma?
7. Heat/Always on - Can the Revo be kept always on? Can the USB remote start the BB/Revo from standby?
8. Content Blocking - Is there any difference?

Any others I might have missed?

Most of my local media will be on a NAS, or my linux server/SMB share?

Is there any real benefit to getting a Revo (or some other htpc) over the Boxee Box?
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post #2 of 4
6/6/11 at 8:39pm
Having tried both the Boxee Box and Acer Revo 3600, I decided to stick with Boxee. I found the 3610 underpowered and sluggish, Netflix stuttered, and like all HTPCs, it's just not as convenient to use as a dedicated media streamer. However, with a HTPC, you have flexibility to get to Hulu and other web video sites unrestricted. As far as your points...

1. BB is cheaper; I've seen it for $185-190
2. Yep, HTPC wins
3. I used the Lenovo multimedia remote with Revo, so as easy as Boxee remote
4. No HD audio with the Revo, but Boxee's is currently broken
5. If you mean Boxee for PC, it hasn't been updated in a long while
6. Easy to setup Revo, but initially very time consuming (Windows updates, settings, etc.)
7. Both can be left on 24/7
8. Yes, there is content blocking on Boxee (free Hulu namely)
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post #3 of 4
6/6/11 at 9:01pm
I don't know much about Revo 3700 but I do have a AMD Phenom II based HTPC with ATI 5450 graphic card for HD A/V. Tried Boxee and owned a Realtek 1073, 1185 and Sigma 8642 based media player.

I returned the Boxee because the audio droup out and I don't like the RF based remote that does not use standard AA or AAA battery. To me Boxee is really just an under powered special purpose PC. You are right, the HTPC is most flexible and able to play just about anything but not the most user friendly things around. I am using more of 1185/864X combo these days instead of the HTPC.
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post #4 of 4
6/6/11 at 9:49pm
For $350 - you can build your own HTPC with a more powerful CPU and GPU than the Revo... something similar to PawPawDog... but I recommend a Nvidia GTS 520 graphics card or AMD 6000 series card instead - that is more than powerful enough to do Full 3D in 1080p and bitstreams HD Audio via HDMI... and it can play Crysis (if you know what that means) LOL... plus you are more in control of your HTPC entertainment center and not have to rely on firmware fixes that may fix or cause more bugs... but if you want something easy to use and not have to worry about maintanence - Boxee Box is the best solution right now for combined web and local streaming...
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