multimedia or htpc device options?, TV sticks, raspberry pi, android?

jason41987

Distinguished
Jan 1, 2012
29
0
18,580
im wanting to have a device connected to my television to give it the ability to play netflix, hulu, spotify and pandora.. preferably through offcial apps, some old console emulators, and maybe even set it up to stream PC games through steam

so im looking at things like the amazon fire tv stick, roku stick, raspberry pi 2, and was even considering installing something on an old netbook i no longer use.. unfortunately android x86 on the netbook is impossible to get netflix functioning

my concern with the stick options you plug into the HDMI port of your TV is that most seem to be restrictive as to which apps you can actually install, it seems they need apps specifically for it and i dont have access to full android list of applications.. any way to remedy this or replace the OS with normal android?

in terms of the raspberry pi 2, can anyone confirm that android functions on this along with the android apps listed above?

basically what im looking to do is convert my television into a stationary, but fully functional android device
 

Mr5oh

Distinguished
Jul 28, 2004
75
0
18,610


I haven't done much emulation on android, just some very basic NES. However I can tell you from my experience with the HTPC I just built, if you plan on playing classic consoles at the 1080 resolution a PI will not be enough horsepower.

 

jason41987

Distinguished
Jan 1, 2012
29
0
18,580
hmm.. if we ignore emulators for the time being, will android TV devices allow me to install any native android app and use them on my TV?.. like the free spotify android client, plus hulu and netflix of course?
 

jason41987

Distinguished
Jan 1, 2012
29
0
18,580
im not looking to spend more than $50 though and the fire TV stick will do anything i need it to... either that or the raspberry pi which has similar specs and costs about the same but is a bit more "open" in design
 

rumble

Estimable
Apr 16, 2015
14
0
4,570
I've heard people install osmc (https://osmc.tv/) on Raspberry Pi for streaming purposes. Raspberry Pi can even play HD videos: http://raspberry-pi-tutorial.com/raspberry-pi-hardware/