PlexConnect brings Plex goodness to the Apple TV crowd
Have media files and looking for a better way to stream them? Good news then. Plex, the amazing little server/client that helps users send media to all sorts of devices (and which originally forked from XBMC) just got better for Apple TV customers.
Plex's developer announces a new PlexConnect app built on its API. The same API which is used to port the service to the web, Roku, Samsung TV, Google TV and more.
This latest app adds full functionality where it never was before -- "there’s one little box in the living room which hasn’t been as fully compatible with Plex as we’ve liked, and that’s the Apple TV", says Plex.
PlexConnect is essentially a hack which allows a fully-functional Plex client on un-jailbroken Apple TV2 and Apple TV3 devices. The company explains the process as "you run a program on your computer which masquerades as the Trailer app. Next, change one setting on the ATV". Not exactly detailed instructions! Fortunately there is a Wiki to fill the void.
PlexConnect supports the new transcoder (with Sub-titles), iTunes DRM video files and AC3 5.1, with myPlex support on the way. To grab this new app, you will need to head over to Github.
Plex's Elan cautions that "these are early days still, you’ll need to know your way around a Terminal, but I expect a more polished installer isn’t far off. Check out their wiki for more information".
If Plex for Apple TV works half as well as it does for Google TV, then customers are certainly in for a treat. The Media Server and Media Client team together to make one of the smoothest services I have used.