[nzlug] Specs for Laptop as Home Theatre

[Roderick Aldridge]

Alex Thomson wrote:
> Roderick Aldridge wrote:
>> I plan to get a Linux-friendly laptop for general use. I would also 
>> like to get a good LCD screen to use with it when I am at home which 
>> would be capable of displaying Free-to-Air Digital TV and Blue-ray 
>> DVDs in true HDTV/Blue-ray resolution. I don't want to fork out for 
>> an HDTV as well. I have been Googling to find out what the minimum 
>> hardware requirements are and what would be the best hardware 
>> combination to do this, but I haven't found the right queries to get 
>> the answers i need. The resolution required seems to be 1920x1080.
>> Can anybody supply answers or point me in the right direction so that 
>> I can make a short-list of suitable hardware?
>> Then all I will have to do is make sure it is Linux-compatible and 
>> come up with the cash.
>> TIA
>> Rod
>>
> I think the cost will be getting up there for a laptop with a blu-ray 
> player, and I don't think there are linux friendly TV cards (let alone 
> external cards) that support the mpeg4 over DVB-T Freeview that we 
> have here in NZ (happy to be proven wrong here!)  What I use, and 
> recommend is getting a PS3- for under $800 you get a blu-ray player, a 
> DVD player that can upscale well, and also a box capable of playing 
> UPnP streamed media, which means you can have another linux box you 
> have lying around to serve up all you photos/mp3s/divx's over 
> wireless.  Work great.  Added bonus- near the end of the year they are 
> releasing PlayTV which will let you record/timeshift, etc. Freeview HD 
> using the PS3.
>
> There are some friendly gurus here that will be happy to help -> 
> http://www.freeviewshop.co.nz/forum/index.php
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Attention:
> This email may contain information intended for the sole use of
> the original recipient. Please respect this when sharing or
> disclosing this email's contents with any third party. If you
> believe you have received this email in error, please delete it
> and notify the sender or postmaster at solnetsolutions.co.nz as
> soon as possible. The content of this email does not necessarily
> reflect the views of Solnet Solutions Ltd.
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> NZLUG mailing list NZLUG at linux.net.nz
> http://www.linux.net.nz/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/nzlug
>
Thanks for the suggestion. If the $800 includes a console capable of 
displaying blu-ray and Freeview TV at full resolution that would  take 
care of that  part of it.  I like the thought  that MS  could be  
subsidising  that for me. However I would still like a laptop for 
general computing. I was thinking of getting a modest laptop and a good 
monitor now and getting blu-ray player and set-top box later when I hope 
they have both come down in price but I don't want to be caught out 
getting too low a spec hardware to do the job. Your suggestion opens up 
a possibly better and cheaper way of doing it which I will follow up.

Thanks Daniel also for warning about the HD DRM requirement. Would the 
Xbox get around this?

Rod