Streaming is easier if you want to watch on your laptop, but my wife likes watching on TV, using a remote to navigate. Streaming won't solve that need. Quality is also MILES better, and my wife can easily tell the difference.
Quality is definitely better if you can download it yourself.
It's also great to have the convenience of a remote. However, it's possible to set up remote controls with laptops or other computers. I don't go through the trouble of doing it though. I just use a wireless keyboard/mouse combo.
I have tried the laptop/PC-remote combo and it's bad. Plex has an HTPC build which is okay, but restrictive. She also uses YouTube and other apps, and we find the Nvidia Shield has the best UI and performance. Computer OSs also have a bad habit of stealing focus, updating, and overlaying notifications. These require a lot of effort to disable, and in Windows, it's impossible to get it all working like a dedicated streaming box.
I take your point above, though. Plex is trickier than streaming. So if the use case is laptop or maybe tablet, those streaming sites are great.
Yes, I think the worst part about using a laptop is having to plug it in and unplug it when you're finished. You'll also need a keyboard/mouse combo.
I like the design of paid streaming services and smart TV UI. Usually it's really accommodating to remote users. The problem is that it limits what you can do with it, which a computer can overcome.
Streaming is easier if you want to watch on your laptop, but my wife likes watching on TV, using a remote to navigate. Streaming won't solve that need. Quality is also MILES better, and my wife can easily tell the difference.
Quality is definitely better if you can download it yourself.
It's also great to have the convenience of a remote. However, it's possible to set up remote controls with laptops or other computers. I don't go through the trouble of doing it though. I just use a wireless keyboard/mouse combo.
I have tried the laptop/PC-remote combo and it's bad. Plex has an HTPC build which is okay, but restrictive. She also uses YouTube and other apps, and we find the Nvidia Shield has the best UI and performance. Computer OSs also have a bad habit of stealing focus, updating, and overlaying notifications. These require a lot of effort to disable, and in Windows, it's impossible to get it all working like a dedicated streaming box.
I take your point above, though. Plex is trickier than streaming. So if the use case is laptop or maybe tablet, those streaming sites are great.
Yes, I think the worst part about using a laptop is having to plug it in and unplug it when you're finished. You'll also need a keyboard/mouse combo.
I like the design of paid streaming services and smart TV UI. Usually it's really accommodating to remote users. The problem is that it limits what you can do with it, which a computer can overcome.