Just brainstorming an idea

Post by r***@optonline.net
And I thought I'd ask if it sounds feasible.
I have a Sony Bravia TV, which has USB ports. I currently have two flash drives
plugged in with a bunch of .mp3 files and some .avi files of home movies I had
professionally converted from 8mm film a few years back. They play fine and I'm
happy with it.
I started thinking about an idea tonight. I did a little research and see that a
typical movie on DVD is 2-3Gb. I have a program whereby I can
convert a DVD to
an .avi file.
Theoretically, could I buy a large (say 4Tb) external hard drive, convert a
bunch of my DVD's to .avi, put them on the external drive, plug the drive into
the TV, and have a ready to go library of movies to watch without having to drop
a disk into my DVD player?
Just something to occupy my mind on a holiday weekend. So does it sound like
something that could be done before I go spend money on a drive?
Thanks.

I store and watch recorded video on 2TB and 5TB external drives
connected to an older Win7 laptop. Win 8 and 10 don't include Media
Center, which I use for recording. This works well enough though I
prefer 7 Media Center's simpler recording controls:
http://avertv.avermedia.com/avertv/Upload/AVerMediaTVSoftware/AVerMediaCenter3D_01.html

XP has trouble with drives over 2TB, and takes nearly 24 hours to
check, read or write all of a 2TB drive connected through USB2. That
means the drive could completely fail before you recover all the files
after noticing an incipient problem. USB2 is fast enough to play back
1080i HDTV.

USB3 supplies enough current to run a "portable" or port-powered
drive, USB2 may not, according to the specs. AC-powered external
drives don't draw port power and several of them can connect through
an unpowered hub. Mine don't spin up unless the computer is on.

All brands of drives can fail, so have backup(s). Some sizes from some
makers have significant failure rates, others from the same maker look
good so far:
https://www.backblaze.com/blog/hard-drive-reliability-stats-q1-2016/

--jsw

r***@optonline.net

2016-06-01 00:07:48 UTC

I store and watch recorded video on 2TB and 5TB external drives
connected to an older Win7 laptop. Win 8 and 10 don't include Media
Center, which I use for recording. This works well enough though I
http://avertv.avermedia.com/avertv/Upload/AVerMediaTVSoftware/AVerMediaCenter3D_01.html
XP has trouble with drives over 2TB, and takes nearly 24 hours to
check, read or write all of a 2TB drive connected through USB2. That
means the drive could completely fail before you recover all the files
after noticing an incipient problem. USB2 is fast enough to play back
1080i HDTV.
USB3 supplies enough current to run a "portable" or port-powered
drive, USB2 may not, according to the specs. AC-powered external
drives don't draw port power and several of them can connect through
an unpowered hub. Mine don't spin up unless the computer is on.
All brands of drives can fail, so have backup(s). Some sizes from some
makers have significant failure rates, others from the same maker look
https://www.backblaze.com/blog/hard-drive-reliability-stats-q1-2016/
--jsw

Thanks. But I want to watch the movies on a TV, not a laptop. I don't know if
the USB port on the TV is 2.0 or 3.0. I called Sony and they couldn't tell me,
which I thought was strange. And the drive I want to buy is a Western Digital
4TB My Book drive which has a power adapter so I don't need the USB plug to
provide power.

Jim Wilkins

2016-06-01 00:31:32 UTC

On Tue, 31 May 2016 07:20:08 -0400, "Jim Wilkins"

Post by r***@optonline.net
And I thought I'd ask if it sounds feasible.
I have a Sony Bravia TV, which has USB ports. I currently have two flash drives
plugged in with a bunch of .mp3 files and some .avi files of home movies I had
professionally converted from 8mm film a few years back. They play fine and I'm
happy with it.
I started thinking about an idea tonight. I did a little research and see that a
typical movie on DVD is 2-3Gb. I have a program whereby I can convert a DVD to
an .avi file.
Theoretically, could I buy a large (say 4Tb) external hard drive, convert a
bunch of my DVD's to .avi, put them on the external drive, plug
the
drive into
the TV, and have a ready to go library of movies to watch without having to drop
a disk into my DVD player?
Just something to occupy my mind on a holiday weekend. So does it sound like
something that could be done before I go spend money on a drive?
Thanks.

I store and watch recorded video on 2TB and 5TB external drives
connected to an older Win7 laptop. Win 8 and 10 don't include Media
Center, which I use for recording. This works well enough though I
http://avertv.avermedia.com/avertv/Upload/AVerMediaTVSoftware/AVerMediaCenter3D_01.html
XP has trouble with drives over 2TB, and takes nearly 24 hours to
check, read or write all of a 2TB drive connected through USB2. That
means the drive could completely fail before you recover all the files
after noticing an incipient problem. USB2 is fast enough to play back
1080i HDTV.
USB3 supplies enough current to run a "portable" or port-powered
drive, USB2 may not, according to the specs. AC-powered external
drives don't draw port power and several of them can connect through
an unpowered hub. Mine don't spin up unless the computer is on.
All brands of drives can fail, so have backup(s). Some sizes from some
makers have significant failure rates, others from the same maker look
https://www.backblaze.com/blog/hard-drive-reliability-stats-q1-2016/
--jsw

Thanks. But I want to watch the movies on a TV, not a laptop. I don't know if
the USB port on the TV is 2.0 or 3.0. I called Sony and they
couldn't tell me,
which I thought was strange. And the drive I want to buy is a
Western Digital
4TB My Book drive which has a power adapter so I don't need the USB plug to
provide power.

The standard is that USB2 has a black keying insert, USB3 has a blue
one. A USB3 hard drive is supposed to be backward compatible with
USB2, though I have some Seagates that don't always make good contact.

Bill Skaggs

2016-06-01 13:13:13 UTC

snip....

Post by r***@optonline.net
Thanks. But I want to watch the movies on a TV, not a laptop. I don't know
if the USB port on the TV is 2.0 or 3.0. I called Sony and they couldn't
tell
me, which I thought was strange. And the drive I want to buy is a Western
Digital 4TB My Book drive which has a power adapter so I don't need the
USB plug to provide power.

If your laptop has an HDMI output, run that to your TV. Works great.

Jim Wilkins

2016-06-01 13:21:19 UTC

On Tue, 31 May 2016 07:20:08 -0400, "Jim Wilkins"

snip....

Post by r***@optonline.net
Thanks. But I want to watch the movies on a TV, not a laptop. I don't know
if the USB port on the TV is 2.0 or 3.0. I called Sony and they
couldn't tell
me, which I thought was strange. And the drive I want to buy is a Western
Digital 4TB My Book drive which has a power adapter so I don't need the
USB plug to provide power.

If your laptop has an HDMI output, run that to your TV. Works
great.

My HDTV works fine on the laptop's VGA output, through a short cable.
Text is as sharp on the HDTV as on the built-in monitor which has
1680x1050 resolution.
--jsw

Jim Wilkins

2016-06-01 17:02:18 UTC

On Tue, 31 May 2016 07:20:08 -0400, "Jim Wilkins"

snip....

Post by r***@optonline.net
Thanks. But I want to watch the movies on a TV, not a laptop. I don't know
if the USB port on the TV is 2.0 or 3.0. I called Sony and they
couldn't tell
me, which I thought was strange. And the drive I want to buy is a Western
Digital 4TB My Book drive which has a power adapter so I don't need the
USB plug to provide power.

If your laptop has an HDMI output, run that to your TV. Works great.

My HDTV works fine on the laptop's VGA output, through a short
cable. Text is as sharp on the HDTV as on the built-in monitor which
has 1680x1050 resolution.
--jsw

I understand that you want to plug the hard drive directly into the
TV. If that fails an older Win 7 PC could salvage your investment in
the hard drive, and add some versatility from 7 Media Center, which
includes a DVR function, or the VLC Player which can extract and save
individual frames or scenes from recordings, such as one good song
from a long awards show.

I switched from desktops to laptops for this because they consume much
less power and no permanent table space. A 2GHz Core 2 Duo is fast
enough.

--jsw

g***@rr.com

2016-06-01 14:39:27 UTC

Post by r***@optonline.net
And I thought I'd ask if it sounds feasible.
I have a Sony Bravia TV, which has USB ports. I currently have two flash drives
plugged in with a bunch of .mp3 files and some .avi files of home movies I had
professionally converted from 8mm film a few years back. They play fine and I'm
happy with it.
I started thinking about an idea tonight. I did a little research and see that a
typical movie on DVD is 2-3Gb. I have a program whereby I can convert a DVD to
an .avi file.
Theoretically, could I buy a large (say 4Tb) external hard drive, convert a
bunch of my DVD's to .avi, put them on the external drive, plug the drive into
the TV, and have a ready to go library of movies to watch without having to drop
a disk into my DVD player?
Just something to occupy my mind on a holiday weekend. So does it sound like
something that could be done before I go spend money on a drive?
Thanks.

I store and watch recorded video on 2TB and 5TB external drives
connected to an older Win7 laptop. Win 8 and 10 don't include Media
Center, which I use for recording. This works well enough though I
http://avertv.avermedia.com/avertv/Upload/AVerMediaTVSoftware/AVerMediaCenter3D_01.html
XP has trouble with drives over 2TB, and takes nearly 24 hours to
check, read or write all of a 2TB drive connected through USB2. That
means the drive could completely fail before you recover all the files
after noticing an incipient problem. USB2 is fast enough to play back
1080i HDTV.
USB3 supplies enough current to run a "portable" or port-powered
drive, USB2 may not, according to the specs. AC-powered external
drives don't draw port power and several of them can connect through
an unpowered hub. Mine don't spin up unless the computer is on.
All brands of drives can fail, so have backup(s). Some sizes from some
makers have significant failure rates, others from the same maker look
https://www.backblaze.com/blog/hard-drive-reliability-stats-q1-2016/
--jsw

Many TVs have VGA/computer connectors. I have found sometime I get
better results on some TV using that instead of HMDI from a computer,
especially when trying to use the computer's desktop interface. You do
have the issue of getting your audio. I just keep a pair of good
quality computer speakers next to my TV I can plug into the laptop. I
rent a condo in FL that has terrible audio on the TV. I use this
method while on vacation.

You also might look into the free version of Plex. It will work with
Win 8 or 10. It has a great interface to use on a TV. I don't think it
will record but it can play back most any format video. It can access
the internet to get all the details about the movies you keep in its
database.

You might also consider something like a Samsung BluRay player. It can
play from USB HDs plus it supports Plex. Plex is similar to Win Media
Center interface. It can also play from DLNA on a computer.

I have 2 of the following and have recommended this model to several
friends who all have been happy with it. I usually buy them off Ebay.

Samsung BD-H6500 3D Smart Blu-Ray / DVD Player HD1080
some models claim they can upconvert to 4K quality. I don't know if
that is true of not.

Elmo P. Shagnasty

2016-06-01 10:51:21 UTC

Post by r***@optonline.net
And I thought I'd ask if it sounds feasible.
I have a Sony Bravia TV, which has USB ports. I currently have two flash drives
plugged in with a bunch of .mp3 files and some .avi files of home movies I had
professionally converted from 8mm film a few years back. They play fine and I'm
happy with it.
I started thinking about an idea tonight. I did a little research and see that a
typical movie on DVD is 2-3Gb. I have a program whereby I can convert a DVD to
an .avi file.
Theoretically, could I buy a large (say 4Tb) external hard drive, convert a
bunch of my DVD's to .avi, put them on the external drive, plug the drive into
the TV, and have a ready to go library of movies to watch without having to drop
a disk into my DVD player?
Just something to occupy my mind on a holiday weekend. So does it sound like
something that could be done before I go spend money on a drive?
Thanks.

Do it first and put a couple of .avi files on a thumb drive, and make
sure it works.

From there, it's just a matter of plugging in an external hard drive
full of .avi files.

r***@optonline.net

2016-06-01 12:59:04 UTC

Post by Elmo P. Shagnasty

Post by r***@optonline.net
And I thought I'd ask if it sounds feasible.
I have a Sony Bravia TV, which has USB ports. I currently have two flash drives
plugged in with a bunch of .mp3 files and some .avi files of home movies I had
professionally converted from 8mm film a few years back. They play fine and I'm
happy with it.
I started thinking about an idea tonight. I did a little research and see that a
typical movie on DVD is 2-3Gb. I have a program whereby I can convert a DVD to
an .avi file.
Theoretically, could I buy a large (say 4Tb) external hard drive, convert a
bunch of my DVD's to .avi, put them on the external drive, plug the drive into
the TV, and have a ready to go library of movies to watch without having to drop
a disk into my DVD player?
Just something to occupy my mind on a holiday weekend. So does it sound like
something that could be done before I go spend money on a drive?
Thanks.

Do it first and put a couple of .avi files on a thumb drive, and make
sure it works.
From there, it's just a matter of plugging in an external hard drive
full of .avi files.

Thanks. So, .avi or .mp4? Which, if either, is a better quality? Last night, I
took a DVD and converted it to an .mp4 file and put it on a thumb drive and was
very happy with the results. Looked great on a 65"screen. I went ahead and
ordered the hard drive. When I had called Sony to ask if the USB on the TV was
2.0 or 3.0, they didn't know. Figured. But they also said to make sure the drive
wasn't just for computers and would work on a TV. I've never seen that
distinction. So I ordered the drive anyway, and worst case scenario, I have a
spare 4TB drive. I'll be converting more files today so I have them ready when
the drive arrives. The only problem I see is running into DVD's that are
protected against any kind of ripping or converting.

Jim Wilkins

2016-06-01 13:11:45 UTC