The iOS Plex app costs $5, and the Xbox and PlayStation app both require a “Plex Pass” subscription that will cost you $5 a month. Want to use it on a computer? There’s a convenient web-based interface.īoth have fairly similar features, although Plex definitely offers a more comprehensive suite of apps - PlayStation, Xbox, and Fire TV support, for example.

There are also mobile apps for for iOS, Android, Windows Phone, and Windows 8.

Media Browser offers clients for the Roku and some other TV-streaming devices, including Chromecast support. There’s also a web interface and powerful Plex application for computers, if you hook up a computer to your TV. They offer mobile apps for iOS, Android, Windows Phone, and Windows 8. Plex offers clients for the Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox, and PlayStation platforms - as well as Chromecast support. You can install it on a desktop computer, a dedicated server, or get a pre-made NAS device that supports the server software. Plex and Media Browser both offer servers that run on Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, BSD, and various NAS devices. You could also try Kodi, formerly known as XBMC - it can be a bit more complicated to set up and works a bit differently. Both work similarly, offering a server you install on a desktop PC, laptop, NAS device, or dedicated home server. The two biggest solutions to recommend are probably Plex and Media Browser. RELATED: How to Set Up a NAS (Network-Attached Storage) Drive These apps often allow you to browse and access photos, too - perfect if you’re the type of person who keeps a local photo collection, too. If you have a large collection of local video and music files - perhaps videos ripped from DVDs and music ripped from audio CDs - this may be the ideal way to access that content on all your devices without relying on streaming services like Netflix and Spotify. There are some good free software packages for this, but you’ll need to bring your own media. RELATED: Why You Should Connect a PC to Your TV (Don't Worry It's Easy!)

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