Media Center Extender...

I too hate having to still use my Xbox 360, just to watch TV. I recently swapped over to XBMC with the new Media Center plugin: ServeWMC. I use any android stick / windows machine to run XBMC and have ServeWMC running on my main Media Center PC. It works
great with full EPG, live TV, and recording capabilities. The only catch is that I can't watch HBO, but with the advent of HBO GO, this is less of a big deal that in was in the past.

I believe that Plex has a port of ServeWMC in the works, or already out that would allow you to use Media Center directly on the Xbox One. I don't have a plex subscription, so I haven't tried it.

I'm hopeful that with Windows 10, Xbox One will be able to run XBMC and I can finally get rid of an entire device just to do what should already be easy on the Xbox One: Watch Media Center.

-Jim

 

Unfortunately, I now have little confidence that MS will come through for Media Center, inexplicably. I presume it has something to do with shadowy inter-corporate interests that actual satisfied customers are powerless to influence. Why else would the
Xbox "One" be completely inadequate compared to its predecessor when it comes to what it was actually touted as - a single solution for all your media and entertainment needs? If I can't get to all the DVR and media on my PC, this is a laughable claim. Unfortunately,
I just want an off the shelf solution, and with my TV tuners becoming more unreliable by the year due to lack of support, I for the first time am considering other options. If Win10 and XB1 don't quickly make it clear that DVR and media sharing/extension are
in the cards, I'll be segueing out of the MS ecosystem at the next update cycle, and shopping for convenient alternatives to what Media Center and the 360 combo did for me.

 

Still loving my whole home DVR based on WMC. I've even setup 3 other households with it. I've refused to buy an XBOX One because of it's lack of WMC. As my system ages or becomes obsolete, TIVO is looking like an option. It appears that they have reduced
their prices, such that we can pay one fee for a whole home setup instead of a fee for each device in the setup. Still hoping Win10 continues WMC.

 

A media center app on the XB1 is only a stop gap solution from my perspective. Ideally W10 should improve the experience by integrating live and recorded TV option through the oneguide. This could be accomplished in a variety of ways. Booting into Media
Center from the XB1 dashboard is silly given that everything else, guide, movie and TV store is already integrated. I love Media Center but I want a BETTER solution with 10. That should be the goal here.

 

I also agree. There needs to be media center extenders support on the xbox one. What a joke that it does not already have it. The One is supposed to be media centered device. Wake up Microsoft!!!!

 

For anyone still following this thread... It looks like someone is finally picking up the ball that MS dropped.

www.kickstarter.com/.../hdhomerun-dvr-the-dvr-re-imagined

Time will tell if the final software turns out to be as great as advertised, but it looks like these guys are going to be doing things right and will finally create something that blows WMC out of the water. And it includes cable card support!

 

Looks promising, but there might be issues (see promises section at bottom) with copyrighted/protected content..Good to get someone making something that is dedicated for TV, after all the xbox is, you know a gaming console.

 

It's just annoying. I'm sitting here watching protection flagged Game of Thrones right now. i have 1 cable card, 1 multituner card, 1 computer running every tv and screen in my entire house. i have zero cableboxes and i love it. This has worked flawlessly
for years and now here we are...

I get where MS is coming from. We all know broadcast/cable tv is a dying beast. This will all be streaming in three years and HDHR and Hauppage will be dead. It's a shame but true. I just need MS to keep this supported for another three years and i'll be
happy.

 

Thanks for bringing that kickstarter to my attention! CableLabs support will be the big win...

 

So Media Center will apparently not exist on Win10 (which most of us reading the tea leaves probably already concluded) but Paul Thurrott apparently has reason to believe that the Xbox One itself may be capable of recording TV in the somewhat near future.

www.thurrott.com/.../confirmed-media-center-is-dead

If anyone would have good inside MS sources, I suppose it would be Paul Thurrott. This by itself does not mean that the Xbox One will go so far as supporting a CableCard solution and being able to record and playback DRM protected content. It may just
mean that the XB1 will be able to one day record OTA via its recently announced adapter. That would be a disappointing half step, but I hope MS goes all in on this. It makes sense to kill WMC if your home console that sits under everyone's TV anyways performs
all of the chores that WMC did in the past. I also believe that anyone with a cable bill and an ability to do basic arithmetic could figure out that a CableCard enabled Xbox One DVR solution would pay for itself in about 1.5 -2 years, which would be a HUGE
selling point IMO.

If that solution never comes to pass, I do like the sounds of SiliconDust's kickstarter project. I'm going to back it just to hedge my bets.

HDHomeRun DVR. The DVR re-imagined.

 

Will the One be able to stream that recorded media to other devices though? If not then it isn't going to be a replacement for Media Centre on a PC.