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I want to put together a new XBMC box. I notice some instability issues on ATV1 and Eden. I'm looking for some advice from an experienced user on which device/operating system offers best performance and stability. Should I use Linux, Windows, Mac, ATV2? Thanks in advance.
Probably all about the same performace. Hardware is the real decider.

This thread has stuff you should read and links to more stuff.
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=117454

You can find more answers by searching the forums, chances are it is all there
Well, I've seen moderate performance on ATV1 with slim skins, but worse performance on Ubuntu with better hardware. Some say it needs tweaks to be made such as turning compiz off, etc. I'm looking for an XBMC setup that just works well out of the box with decent hardware. I was wondering if anyone out there has tested XBMC on different operating systems and has found one to be better overall than another esp. with respects to stability?
if you dont need 1080p, i would say the atv2 is great...
One of the threads linked to in the link i provided pretty much breaks up the requirements for you:
http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?p=8...post843683 See group 4

Better hardware is subjective especially when you take into account that the broadcom chip in the ATV1 is pretty nifty.

It's not really going to have an os stability problem, I would say XBMC is more likely to crash (not that it does).

I have a shuttle box running openelec, all I had to add was a hard drive and ram.
Awesome info. This will be hooked up to a 720p TV so 1080 is not necessary. I was already considering an ATV2. Reading the forum here made me think that maybe XBMC wasn't extremely stable on ATV2 yet. I was also considering a Mac Mini.
ATV1+BCHD (BCM970015)+Crystalbuntu will run better than ATV2. Hotter and more watts pulled, plus no Netflix, but still more hardware video decoding support, more umph in the CPU, better skin response (especially with Dirty Regions turned on), etc
I'm interested in trying out the dirty regions functionality. I've seen discussions in the past on BCHD. Maybe I should take a closer look at this again. Thanks.
I'm intrigued by the ATV options, but I'm worried about having to use a remote with so few buttons (basically just the up/left/right/down/select if I recall.)

Is it possible to use an ATV as the base platform but use a more full featured remote instead?
brucek2 Wrote:I'm intrigued by the ATV options, but I'm worried about having to use a remote with so few buttons (basically just the up/left/right/down/select if I recall.)

Is it possible to use an ATV as the base platform but use a more full featured remote instead?

It's really not that bad. With the additions of the short and long presses of the play and menu buttons on the remote in addition to the up/left/right/down buttons, you pretty much can access everything you need to. The remote is very small and light weight. I use it everyday, and I have no problems at all navigating.

However, I do understand what you're getting at. There are options. If you have another iOS device such as an iPod Touch, iPhone, or iPad you can use Rowmote Pro or Remote HD software to turn any of those into a Remote Control that work wirelessly over your Ethernet network. There are also XBMC controller apps that have been developed specifically that run on these devices as well. Those apps have quick shortcuts to common tasks that make navigation a breeze. If you really want to be geeky, plug a wireless keyboard into the back of it.
Pretty sure you can't plug usb stuff into it cos it doesnt act as a host?

Hense why you can't plug a usb hard drive straight into it
Not natively. But with the right kexts loaded, you can. I use my wireless keyboard and mouse on it all the time while watching Hulu or browsing in Firefox on my big screen. Also FYI, an external USB drive and USB bluetooth adapters are also possible with the right customization.
Sorry my bad, confusion between aTV's.
It sounds like u already have an atv1. If so, try crystalbuntu. It is very ez to try out, just install to USB drive & it runs from it without disturbing the atv software. Worth a try. I'm very happy with it. Much better than atv running osx.
brucek2 Wrote:I'm intrigued by the ATV options, but I'm worried about having to use a remote with so few buttons (basically just the up/left/right/down/select if I recall.)

Is it possible to use an ATV as the base platform but use a more full featured remote instead?

I use a Boxee Box remote on mine.
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