Hi all,
I know, I should be making 2 different threads for this, but in my experience these 2 are closely related, therefore the 2in1 format. Here it comes:
In the last couple of months, since the release of Plex for iOS v4, with all the problems that appeared for syncing, I tried several other iPad video apps, as I travel on planes constantly and this helps thru all those infinite trips. I found a couple of ones which did the trick better than Plex for me. But because I love Plex and pay for it and mobile syncing is a feature that can still be greatly improved in my opinion, and as i’ve discovered, it is possible to do so, i would love those introduced here.
There is an iPad app out there in the wild called Infuse. I’m pretty sure you Plex Masters are very well aware of it. I even paid £7.99 for the pro version since I was so fed up of the Plex iOS app v4.
This app has 2 things that make it (in my ■■■■■■ opinion) superior than Plex:
A) It supports most of the most common video and audio codecs out there. This means, no need for transcoding most of the time (yes, funnily enough, you can (or at least could) sync into this app from a PMS, and yes, it does work, so it must be possible to do so in the Plex for iOS app too, so no more excuses about apple’s limitations on writing apps or whatever. time to find a new one, maybe).
B) The way it handles subtitles is beautiful. And let me explain. I am Spanish, and although I’ve been living in the UK for almost 8 years and I can finally(!) say my English is pretty decent, I like having my subtitles available in case I miss a word or don’t know a new expression, or there is a rare accent for me that I need help with.
The problem with iOS sync in PLEX, is that if you wanna have subtitles in you iPad, you need to burn them in, meaning that even media which is already in the right format for the iPad will have to be converted before downloaded into the iPad. Always. Take it or leave it. With (infamous) Infuse you could just download the media into the iPad, and then, once downloaded, from the iPad you click on the settings tab of each file and you have an option to search for subtitles in OpenSubtitles.com, you download them, which takes 0.276ms and away you go! Without leaving the app. Magic. You can even turn them on/off at your convenience!
These 2 combined make your syncing experience (in this scenario of a Spaniard trying to be cool and cosmopolitan in a globalised world neglecting his rural roots, of course) more than 80% faster, and saves you massive amounts of money on Paracetamol.
So, in conclusion, and hoping this will help make Plex better, I have to ask you, could you implement, at least the subtitle option, so PMS don’t have to transcode 80GB of media during 4 long days every time I want to sync content to my iPad? And then, if you add the codec support too, I could happily double my monthly subscription to PLEX (which, by the way, it would be nice if it would stop once you have reached the same amount as a lifetime pass, you know, looking after each other!)
Please and Thank You!
Love y’all,
Carlos
p.s. sorry for the essay! And sorry if this has been already requested, but I had to get it out of my system!
