OPENELEC vs RASPBMC

[jarpiii]

Hi guys,

So I know asking this will be a how long is a piece of string scenario but bare with me.

I have done a bit of research and found mixed options and still can't decide what distro to load on my Pi
to connect to my XBMC server.
I know the versions used in the reviews I have read are also effecting the results but on the current versions and history of stability and speed.
What have your personal experience been with each distro and why do you choose the one above the other.

thanks for your reply.

[redhawk]

For video playback all XBMC distros use omxplayer so on that part you won't see much difference.
As for user interface I've often found OpenELEC more responsive with the keyboard and mouse than Raspbmc or Xbian.
Maybe it's my setup or something but I've often been told that Raspbmc is faster than OpenELEC, I guess that's for you to decide.

One thing I do like about OpenELEC is it's so easy to install, just flash an image boot first time and it expands the file system to full capacity of card (not NOOBS version).
Raspbmc on the other hand uses a network installer which can be time consuming to run (why not distribute a working image??) (not NOOBS version).

If you're still having trouble deciding then do a tally chart of features, boot up speed, menu ui responsiveness, playback start jerkiness, bluetooth, wifi support and then find out who scores the best.

Richard S.

[jarpiii]

thanks for your reply Richard,

I think I will start with OpenELEC as so far it is my favorite and test it for a month and then try Raspbmc and compare results.
I started this post to rule out thing like inexperience of setting it up from my side and get multiple user input to make a better supported
decision. But thanks for your response, I will compile my experience with both and post it just to give my feedback.

From what I've seen OpenELEC is the wide supported version and with watching multiple videos its the faster version as well but will give both a fair chance.

[fruitoftheloom]

+1 for OpenElec it was developed to be an intregrated Linux Distribution.

[jarpiii]

Looks like OpenELEC is winning, I just saw a video of clocking RASPBMC and running it in super mode and its a lot faster.
does OpenELEC have a similar mode or setting.
and is it worth clocking the Pi to get that little bit more performance.

[fruitoftheloom]

Looks like OpenELEC is winning, I just saw a video of clocking RASPBMC and running it in super mode and its a lot faster.
does OpenELEC have a similar mode or setting.
and is it worth clocking the Pi to get that little bit more performance.

http://www.htpcbeginner.com/overclock-r ... i-openelec

[abishur]

My only complaint about openELEC is that it doesn't support add-ons as readily as RASPBMC does.

[sraue]

My only complaint about openELEC is that it doesn't support add-ons as readily as RASPBMC does.

what for addons are not supported in OpenELEC which are supported in Raspbmc? All Standard XBMC addons are supported, and OpenELEC comes with 2 standard own repos with additional OpenELEC specific addons.

[jarpiii]

My only complaint about openELEC is that it doesn't support add-ons as readily as RASPBMC does.

From the little research I have done I have not found incompatible add-ons but if you could list the ones you found that could be a big deciding point between who is the winner.
but it also depends on If everyone uses those add-ons.

[prefor]

So with Openelec i can't install add-ons from "File Manager"?
You know, the one in XBMC where you enter a repository website to download add-ons from the internet such as "Fusion" or "Superrepo"??

[fruitoftheloom]

http://wiki.openelec.tv/index.php?title ... rry_Pi_FAQ

[blockh34d]

How about Scamp? It's very lightweight, about as minimal as can be, but it does support all the important stuff any real media player should. Also, unlike openelec, it plays nice with raspbian! I run Scamp constantly, it never interferes with my Pi usage.

Recent updates allow up to 3 instances, also it now speaks russian (optionally) and soon many more languages. Also now you can edit/save/load your playlists, and create tabs from them, and they can be rescanned and updated from a directories contents (even through the network) very easily.

Scamp is no XBMC, or Openelec, not even close... but what it does, it does pretty well It can play up to 3 1080p video streams at once, no problem. Loads in less than a second, and has less than 1% cpu overhead.

To try it out, open Pi store and search for scamp. It's free, no ads, etc.

[redhawk]

Scamp is no XBMC, or Openelec, not even close

which probably isn't much use to the original poster since he clearly has his mind set on using XBMC.

Sure there are lightweight player alternatives if all you want to do is play from a USB memory stick for example omxplayer (which I use for Dailymotion access).
However if Scamp cannot support Flash based streaming sites like YouTube, Dailymotion or BBC iPlayer then I really don't see the point of using it.

Richard S.

[blockh34d]

It plays streaming video, comes stock with 5 BBC radio urls and a half dozen BBC tv urls.

It does not support youtube yet but that is the very next feature i'm adding. BTW it uses omxplayer for playback so it basically is omxplayer except with an interface you can use in/out of X or via SSH.

One nice feature is an easy ability to rescan a folders contents for new media, and an ability to map any folder to a Tab. Pretty much the fastest, easiest way i've found to navigate large media libraries.

[jarpiii]

Hi guys,

So blockh34d - The Scamp looks ok but I still prefer the interface and connectivity that XBMC provides, one feature I know I will be using from XBMC is the app
you can download on you mobile. I will install the app on my phone my tablet and my girlfriends phone and laptop so when ever she wants to watch a movie/season or just listen to
music she can just open up XBMC on her mobile and connect all our content.
I tested it with my phone wanting to have music outside the house I just connected my mobile to the wifi connected my phone to my portable speakers and I have all my music.
So I get that Scamp is a cool idea but not suitable for what I want out of it.

But thanks for the reply.

[blockh34d]

Sure, no problem. Yeah XBMC is a tough act to follow, thanks for having a look. Maybe check back from time to time, new features are added constantly.

[jarpiii]

I will defiantly install it and test it out and yeah will follow the progress, love seeing thing take form like that.