[SOLVED] What is the best option for transferring all of my DVD & Blu-Ray movies to a storage drive and watching them from that drive on a TV?

[olblue82]

We have hundreds of movie discs and with the digital download and streaming revolution it seems just buying movies via an online source will be the way to go eventually. And all of our movie cases take up too much room anyway. Thinking the best option would be to download all of our discs and just access them through whatever drive and watch on our tv’s directly from that drive device. Been hard to find a direct answer online so far. Devices from WD seem to be the leading candidate so far, but would still like some direction on this. Is a basic USB port on any TV good enough? Would it have to be connected through WiFi? An Ethernet cable? Ultimate a storage capacity needed for now and the future? There was so many variables to make sure we don’t waste money in making this transition. Any input is appreciated.

 

[Ancient_1]

I use PLex for all my vids to all the televisions in the house. Picture looks much better than playing directly from my pc. My TV's are smart and just need the app and network access.

 

[dingo07]

We have hundreds of movie discs and with the digital download and streaming revolution it seems just buying movies via an online source will be the way to go eventually. And all of our movie cases take up too much room anyway. Thinking the best option would be to download all of our discs and just access them through whatever drive and watch on our tv’s directly from that drive device. Been hard to find a direct answer online so far. Devices from WD seem to be the leading candidate so far, but would still like some direction on this. Is a basic USB port on any TV good enough? Would it have to be connected through WiFi? An Ethernet cable? Ultimate a storage capacity needed for now and the future? There was so many variables to make sure we don’t waste money in making this transition. Any input is appreciated.

I'm guessing you have thousands of hours to waste ripping all of your movies to HDD's of some sort. After the expense of purchasing storage enough to house all the data, time it'll take to complete it, and electricity to keep it running, I suggest against it.
It's much more efficient to purchase a monthly digital subscription to Netflix, Prime or what have you.

However, if you have the money a Kaleidescape device is the way I would go. It's the single most enjoyable way to watch a movie, period.

 

[olblue82]

I'm guessing you have thousands of hours to waste ripping all of your movies to HDD's of some sort. After the expense of purchasing storage enough to house all the data, time it'll take to complete it, and electricity to keep it running, I suggest against it.
It's much more efficient to purchase a monthly digital subscription to Netflix, Prime or what have you.

However, if you have the money a Kaleidescape device is the way I would go. It's the single most enjoyable way to watch a movie, period.

I’m fully aware of the time it would take to complete this process. No sarcasm required. Nor am I wealthy enough to go with your actual suggestion. I simply asked for some guidance and suggestion with my request, not denigration. Regardless, I thank you for your response.

 

[dingo07]

I’m fully aware of the time it would take to complete this process. No sarcasm required. Nor am I wealthy enough to go with your actual suggestion. I simply asked for some guidance and suggestion with my request, not denigration. Regardless, I thank you for your response.

No sarcasm or criticism was in what I wrote bud.
You haven't found "a direct answer online so far" because one doesn't exist. There's more than 10 ways - off the top of my head - to accomplish what you ask. Ultimately, depending on the manufacturer of Display you have will determine whether you use the Displays GUI to play the movies in the first place. Have you tried playing a movie from any of your Displays? Is it a PITA to get a movie started? Do you care about the GUI at all? How hard is it to Pause or control the movie? These are the types of questions you need to answer first, to determine if you want to even use your Displays to play the movie.

If I were to answer the Thread Question Directly... I would advise you to invest in a Plex server. But I have no idea if your "AV system" has the capability.
Have fun on your endeavor!