MP4 playback?

My wife and I tend to watch a lot of movies and have an extensive MP4 library.  Considering that the TV's (Furrion) that come in my travel trailer isn't smart we are looking for options.

One option that we are looking at is just replacing the TV, I just have to measure my available space since I have a slide that would restrict that.  I also don't want to try to remount or move the current articulated tv mount.  The RV is brand new so I don't want to be filling it with holes! 

Another is to look at getting a box like a Roku to plug our hard drive into.  The only thing I see an issue with here is the remote and if I mount the box to the wall the IR reciever would be pointing at the floor.

Another option I guess would be to replace the Head unit that is in the travel trailer with one that supports the MP4's. 

So my questions to you wonderful people are as follows:

1) What would you recommend?
2) Is there a way to get my TV sound to pipe through my external and internal speakers that the radio plays on?
3) How hard would it be to move a TV mount?
4) how do you fix holes?  since it's like a wallpapered hardboard wall.

Any advice would be appreciated.  This is our first RV so I'm hoping to learn from the pros! 

Thanks.

I have found not everything is happy with MP4.. But there is hope.. All my windows boxes play MP4 just fine  So do my 'droids (and by the way thanks for a reminder) using VLC media player.  And most modern TV's have VGA inputs. So can "monitor" your computer.

Many can also play MP4 and MP2 files off a flash drive.

I purchased a pretty inexpensive media player from Amazon and play my movies from that (on USB memory sticks).

http://jdfinley.com/digital-media-player/

Nothing fancy but it works.

Roku isn't going to be able to play your local content unless you have a PLEX server on your network.  Does Apple TV have a USB port for external drives?  If so that's probably the simplest and safest solution.

The best media player I've used is Kodi.  It plays everything.  It streams TV  (stick to legal content or be flagged by your ISP), music, news, sports, Worldwide TV.  https://kodi.tv/download/

It takes some knowledge/help to set it up.  I recommend a small computer that can run OpenELEC. 

I use a Mac Mini and a WeTek Play most.  Also works on Raspberry Pi, PCs, Linux, Apple TV (old version), Amazon Fire (but a difficult install for most),  most compute sticks, Intel NUCs etc.

Of all those the WeTek is the easiest to use and most like a real TV.  The WeTek also includes a NTSC tuner and can function as a video recorder, but I have never used it as such.  The Mac is the most reliable and easiest to use with external disks.

Best source for configuration advice is www.tvaddons.ag

This is 10x more than I had to start with.  All I had was a 1/4 second flash of a Kodi splash screen when someone was trying to sell me a $50 'Android Entertainment System' at a home show, for $300.

I have an OpenELEC cookbook that covers a simple but well functioning setup.

This is not for everybody, but mine came with an integrated DVD player, which was what controlled all the sound. It was mounted in a perfect laptop-sized shelf below the TV.

I have no use for a DVD player, so I removed it, sacrificing having surround sound for my movies and music (which all comes through the TV's speakers now). A little disappointing, but I reasoned that my neighbors certainly wouldn't appreciate my surround sound.

I'm using one of my old laptops for all media now. The media laptop is easily controlled remotely from any other computer. I was already browser-streaming anything I didn't own anyway, including all TV shows.

Added plus: I never have to care whether my satellite can pick up a signal, unlike mostly all of my RVing neighbors.

yeah I am trying to not have to have a laptop or anything to do this with.  My Samsung smart tv works in my "Bedroom area" but that is not in the living area of the trailer.  I may switch to a smart tv, It's really a matter of space.  I'm trying to get a unit that does 1080p and for small areas there are not many that do that. 

As to the Roku, I think the newer Roku 4 allows you to pull from a USB source.  I used to use the Western Digital Live TV box for this but they are getting harder to find locally, I know amazon still carries them but its going out.  Apple TV I think can do it if you hack the device, which is always an extra step and a PIA. 

I do run PLEX at home, I just don't want to have to find somewhere to put a small laptop that can run PLEX or a NAS that could do it.  I could probably fit the NAS in the bathroom cabinet though.  Just means I would have to cut holes, which I don't want to do yet.  Still a new trailer. 

so yeah, looking for an easy way with the tv or a small box addition.

Look at the Chromecast from Google.  You can stream almost anything from your phone or tablet.  It's only $35.

so yeah, looking for an easy way with the tv or a small box addition.

You mean something like this you can stick to the back of the TV with Velcro?

http://www.frys.com/product/8696540?site=sr:homepagecooltech1text

I have an android TV box and it will play virtually any video format. Here's a list of several available from Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=s905&rh=n%3A172282%2Ck%3As905

@8Muddypaws:

8Muddypaws said:

The best media player I've used is Kodi.  It plays everything.  It streams TV  (stick to legal content or be flagged by your ISP), music, news, sports, Worldwide TV.  https://kodi.tv/download/

It takes some knowledge/help to set it up.  I recommend a small computer that can run OpenELEC. 

Click to expand...

I have OpenELEC installed on a Raspberry Pi here and it's wonderful to play local content (MP4 files on a pendrive). What I would like is to use it to watch online content, specially the Olympics.

Can you give me some pointers? I tried installing a couple of " sport streaming" addons but none worked OK, or else had very poor content selection.

Thanks!

Unfortunatly I m on the road for another day.

The R Pi doesn't have quite enough horsepower to run the entire Spartan repo but if you want sports that's the one you'll want.  Find Spartan Repo on YouTube and follow the instructions.  Then switch back to the confluence skin and then manually install only the apps/plug ins you want.

It's not unusual for Things in Kodi to be broken.  It's a constantly moving target.  I use USTVNOW, US TV VOD, and Exodus more than just about anything.

8Muddypaws said:

Roku isn't going to be able to play your local content unless you have a PLEX server on your network.  Does Apple TV have a USB port for external drives?  If so that's probably the simplest and safest solution.

The best media player I've used is Kodi.  It plays everything.  It streams TV  (stick to legal content or be flagged by your ISP), music, news, sports, Worldwide TV.  https://kodi.tv/download/

It takes some knowledge/help to set it up.  I recommend a small computer that can run OpenELEC. 

I use a Mac Mini and a WeTek Play most.  Also works on Raspberry Pi, PCs, Linux, Apple TV (old version), Amazon Fire (but a difficult install for most),  most compute sticks, Intel NUCs etc.

Of all those the WeTek is the easiest to use and most like a real TV.  The WeTek also includes a NTSC tuner and can function as a video recorder, but I have never used it as such.  The Mac is the most reliable and easiest to use with external disks.

Best source for configuration advice is www.tvaddons.ag

This is 10x more than I had to start with.  All I had was a 1/4 second flash of a Kodi splash screen when someone was trying to sell me a $50 'Android Entertainment System' at a home show, for $300.

I have an OpenELEC cookbook that covers a simple but well functioning setup.

Click to expand...

I also use Kodi.  I went through several different media players as well as using a laptop.  More recently, I got a Raspberry Pi for about $90 with Kodi pre-installed.  It works great and is about the size of pack of cigarettes.  It accepts USB thumb drives if that's where your library is stored or can connect to your home network via wireless or Ethernet.  It connects to your TV via HDMI port.  Setup can be a bit tricky for "non-techies", but if you are only playing mp4s from a thumb drive, it is not too difficult.  For the more techie types, Kodi will play most all formats, not just mp4, including most music files and can display photos.

For about $35 get an Android TV Box. Here's a list of features for a typical unit:

Android tv box MXQ PRO Android 5.1 Amlogic S905 Quad-Core [email protected] 1+8GB
Penta-Core Mali-450@600MHz+
Key Features:
Support HD MPEG1/2/4,H.265,4K-HD, HD AVC/VC-1,RM/RMVB,Xvid/DivX3/4/5/6 ,RealVideo8/9/10
4 High speed USB 2.0,support U DISK and USB HDDAudio formats include MP3,WMA,WAV,AC3, AAC and so on.
Support SD/SDHC/MMC cards
SD/HD max.1920x1080 pixel
Support standard RJ45 cable network connection and wireless network connection
Power Supply Specifications:
Power Supply: DC 5V/2A
Power Indicator (LED): Power ON :blue; Standby :Red
Features:
OS: Android 5.1
Support mouse and keyboard via USB;Support 2.4GHz wireless mouse and keyboard via 2.4GHz USB dongle
USB host: 4 High speed USB 2.0,support U DISK and USB HDD
Card reader: SD/SDHC/MMC cards
HDD file system: FAT16/FAT32/NTFS
High Definition video output: SD/HD max.1920x1080 pixel
OSD type of languages: English/French/German/Spanish/Italian/ etc multilateral languages
LAN: Ethernet:10/100M, standard RJ-45
Mouse/ Keyboard: Support mouse and keyboard via USB;Support 2.4GHz wireless mouse and keyboard via 2.4GHz USB dongle
AV: Support
Software Specifications:
Network Function: Skype chatting,Picasa,Youtube,Flicker,Facebook,Online movies,etc