A few (personal) requirements, as previously mentioned, on my media centers/devices. 1) As thin of a (base) system as possible. 2) Primary and ONLY function as a media frontend. 3) Hard wired (wireless is always an option with adapter). 4) Absolutely no signups OR sign ins required.
The SBC presented some major challenges. A media frontend was possible, but with lots of bloat…lots of load time, and very heavy OS (for this purpose). The only option was to load the (media center) software on top of one of two quite heavy (full) operating systems (tying accounts to other accounts, and doing too much unnecessary “external” networking).
Remember those two PCs I mentioned earlier? Both seeing little use? Well, I decided the best option was to go with a trusty x86_generic image, and throw it on my old custom build. And although it’s a behemoth in physical size, it’ running a very light system and is extremely fast/efficient. The moment xbmc (frontend) was transferred from game console to PC was awesome! Who would have thought the tech would be around and be relevant, still useful?
So if you have an old PC, laptop, or netbook with an HDMI out on it. It may be a better option than spending money on a smaller form factor SBC. They are getting very pricey, and support is beginning to become very limited.
Remote control worked at boot, and I was watching euronews in no time! (Along with other shows/movies I missed)