I am looking to build a standalone Plex HTPC client (separate from my server). I have used nuc’s in the past. I am looking for recommended specifications for the Plex HTPC app. Looks like Plex recommends Ubuntu LTS for this setup (if using linux).
Thanks in advance for taking the time to help
A NUC does make a pretty decent player. I’ve recommended them in a different thread asking similar: NUC or equivalent choice for 4K movies without any transcoding (Atmos / DTS / DolbyVision / IMAX ) - #6 by gbooker02
If you want HDR playback, you will really need to look at running Windows. Otherwise running the snap on Ubuntu is quite easy.
From the post gbooker02 linked:
"Intel: These work well for the low to mid range. I’d highly recommend not getting an UHD Graphicsline but instead a Iris Xe"
I can personally confirm this to be good advice.
I bought a Beelink n100 mini pc but it couldn’t handle HDR at any quality setting and seemed to play lower resolutions using way more CPU/iGPU than it should (50-80%)
I returned it and upgraded an old SFF Optiplex I had sitting around with a GTX 1650 for the same amount of money and it works 1,000 times better (2-8%)
If you go with Windows I recommend using a FLIRC usb with almost any generic IR remote.
I bought and returned 3 remote/dongle combos before I tried the FLIRC
Plex HTPC with qt5 on Windows can be a bit odd with certain older hardware. One of my HTPC/Plex server can transcode 1080p HEVC for remote players and direct play them on PMP and Plex HTPC perfectly fine. However, the GUI of Plex HTPC is so laggy it’s practically unusable.
On more recent hardware Plex HTPC works reasonably well with Windows 11, as auto switching to HDR mostly works. Windows 10 is a different story.
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