I know people are working on integrating TV into Plex. Plex has the potential, but if you want to be able to watch/record TV on your Mac, you still have to rely on separate software for this. Nor does it currently exist one application for MacOS X that handles all your media (movies, music, live TV, recording etc.). That’s because it is also so much more advanced than a TV. However, one should be aware that a computer solution never can be as smooth and easy to manoeuvre as, for example, a TV. You can smoothly operate all this with the Harmony, if you spend some time configuring it first. I can put the Mini to sleep as well as wake it up, start the applications I want and control the functions I like, from the sofa.

With the Harmony One remote control I manoeuvre most of the functions on my TV, stereo and computer. But now everything works great and smoothly. The setup of the Harmony One remote control, together with Remote Buddy, has undoubtedly been the most time consuming parts. However, this solution has taken me many hours of research and configuration. The rest is, so to speak, only icing on the cake. You don’t really need much more for a basic media centre. MacOS X together with iLife (that came bundled with the Mini) is a great combo. I am very satisfied with the solution, and I do not think I would have been equally happy with a Windows based solution. I must add that I already had an okay stereo system and a great TV. I guess the prize landed at around 16,000 SEK (around 1,600 USD) for all this (TV and receiver excluded), but not more. Technics Receiver (completly analogue, from the 90’s).These are the components included in my media centre solution: However, since I have a fondness for the Mac platform and my experience of it dates back to the early 90’s, I thought it – from a configuration point of view – would be the best solution. Windows Media Centre, DreamBox, PlayStation3, Xbox 360, Tvix, Popcorn Hour is perhaps the most famous ones. With open mind I had searched the market to find out if a Mac solution even was the best choice. Before deciding on witch components to build my Mac Mini media centre from, I had done lots of research.

Eyetv hybrid int