Comment on Thousands of Android TV devices come with unkillable backdoor preinstalled

• ChaoticNeutralCzech@feddit.de ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

  1. Connect old PC to TV. Both can be 15 years old.
  2. (optional) For better performance, get a small SSD alongside the big HDD (a 64GB / partition will do), maybe have a homemade NAS ready too
  3. Install Lubuntu, Mint XFCE, Puppy Linux or any other distro of choice
  4. Set up KDE Connect, qBittorrent and VLC
  5. Enjoy

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  • SEND_NOODLES_PLS@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Cheers, I’m using this as a jump off point for a weekend project maybe. Would anything change if I was interested in casting content too?

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    • ChaoticNeutralCzech@feddit.de ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      I think Kodi does some casting… Not 100% sure.

      Make sure TearFree is enabled in the graphics configuration (google it).

      The hardest part in my project was recalibrating the colors because my TV in HDMI-RGB mode (as opposed to YCbCr) displays everything below 10% brightness as black. The rest was done very quickly. I don’t even need a sequential-chunk torrent software because I use FreeRapid Downloader and ulozto.net (can download fast enough to play while downloading at reasonable 720p/1080p bitrates, otherwise ulozto-downloader and a 10min wait is needed).

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    • loutr@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Kodi supports DLNA, a media library sharing/casting standard.

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  • TwanHE@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Stremio on a old windows laptop is a good easy alternative

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  • Mojojojo1993@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Could you use a pi ? Do you have any recommendations on ssd / hdd

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    • ChaoticNeutralCzech@feddit.de ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      You can use a relatively cheap Pi as a NAS (network-attached storage), and possibly add Kodi media server capabilities (useful for smart TVs). Check if that model supports a sufficiently fast disk interface (USB 3.0, SATA etc.) and Ethernet (100 Mb/s or better if 4K is required). Boot from an SD card and use a 2TB+ HDD (1TB could be enough if you barely store anything).

      I don’t know which Pi models can smoothly play HD video without overheating, I don’t own any. But those that can are likely a lot more expensive than old PCs you could use otherwise. I would just get a cheap one for a NAS and probably some other common network use cases (web server, Pihole etc.)

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      • Karyoplasma@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        My RPi 2B plays HD vids without stuttering or overheating. 4K doesn’t work tho, so if you want that, get a newer model.

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    • danque@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Yes just research how to install Plex or Kodi on your pi. I just did it this evening for an update. For that I used docker with Linuxserver/Plex. It takes some time to get all the settings but there are good YouTube tutorials on how to do it.

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      • Mojojojo1993@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        Great news. I have a pi I’m not really using. Be a good project for it.

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    • Lupara@lemmy.sdf.org ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      You’d be better off with a used office pc, something with a 4. Or 6. gen Intel CPU is usually cheaper than a RPI and way more versatile. Only thing you lose on is size and power consumption.

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      • Mojojojo1993@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        I’ll need to look into that then

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  • Limit@lemm.ee ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    OK I’ve tried in the past to make a decent streaming box from both windows media center edition and various Linux distros. But I need something that is simple, can be controlled entirely from a remote, and has the major streaming apps (Netflix, disney, etc). I haven’t really found any solution that’s easy enough for non techie people to use. I have a standalone roku box that works ok we also have a roku TV which is a giant piece of garbage, and I’m considering buying an external roku or nvidia shield as a streaming box instead, I do have a couple of raspberry pi 4s I could use one but again I’m faced with the same issues.

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    • sin_free_for_00_days@sopuli.xyz ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      This may seem like a bit much, but it pretty much holds your hand to guide you through the install.

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    • itsraining@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Have you tried Kodi?

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• AngryCommieKender@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

  Look into Plex servers, that should keep you busy for the next six months till you get it up and running.

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  • Blackmist@feddit.uk ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Or Jellyfin. Because free.

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    • Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      That will keep you busy for a full year.

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      • charlotte@feddit.de ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        What are you talking about. First time I set it up, had it running on my local network in less than 5 minutes. 5 more minutes for external (granted, already had the infrastructure for that in place).

        Then maybe 20min going through the settings to personalize my account? And maybe another 20min looking if there are any plugins I wanted to use.

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    • Mojojojo1993@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Is jellyfin a better alternative?

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      • PlexSheep@feddit.de ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        Yes

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      • Blackmist@feddit.uk ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        Yeah, it’s free and open source. I just pointed it at a few folders of TV, movies and music that I downloaded years ago, and it catalogued them all, downloaded all the blurbs and posters.

        Like a mini Netflix that you host yourself.

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      • pycorax@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        The Android TV app seems better too.

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  • CmdrShepard@lemmy.one ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    It’ll only take a few minutes to setup. Once you get hooked you’ll spend a lot more time automating everything and adding more storage.

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