How to turn the TV into a PC without spending a small fortune (read on)

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stupar

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When I am using the PC for my photography (which is a lot) the wife has no means of getting on to do stuff she would like to e.g surf the net, download e-books, do word documents etc etc.

Now you could argue that she could do all that from her phone but even her note 2 screen is too small for a lot of use. We don't have a tablet and laptop is out of the question given the fortune I am going to spend on the new PC shortly.

My thoughts immediately turned to something as simple as raspberry pi bolted to the back of the tv operated by a wireless mouse and keyboard.
Granted it isn't going to frighten of a true HTPC but for what she would need and HTPC would be overkill.

Is there anything else out there that I should consider that is equal to or greater than the raspberry pi but still ultra affordable?
 
There are various small atom based units. The intel LUN (I think) could be a good bet.
 
No. A Pi is never going to make your missus happy for all that. Plus once you've factor on the price of a psu, case and input devices it's not that cheap. Get her a 2nd hand netbook for a ton or a Nexus 7 for 100 quid, or maybe a tesco hudl. Trust me, the WAF will be way better.
 
If you want to do Word docs, you need a PC. OpenOffice just isn't compatible enough...
 
You can probably power the Pi off the TV USB port, not a bad option for some light usage, although media heavy websites can be slow.

I wouldn't recommend LibreOffice for work usage but general word processing, letters, the odd spreadsheet, it's perfectly fine.

Give the pi a go. Next step up to a tablet or netbook/micro PC is going to cost many times more.
 
stupar said:
When I am using the PC for my photography (which is a lot) the wife has no means of getting on to do stuff she would like to e.g surf the net, download e-books, do word documents etc etc.

Now you could argue that she could do all that from her phone but even her note 2 screen is too small for a lot of use. We don't have a tablet and laptop is out of the question given the fortune I am going to spend on the new PC shortly.
Click to expand...

Can't she use your current PC once the new one arrives?
 
The occasional word documents are nothing work related she just uses it to make templates for here greetings cards.
She would be about as media heavy as anything facebook would throw back at her.

I think she would like the concept of a wireless keyboard/mouse from the comfort of the sofa - its how I can bring that to her as cheap as possible.

As for old PC - A) to big for the livingroom and B) it is getting sold to fund a Dell U2412 :D
 
stupar said:
The occasional word documents are nothing work related she just uses it to make templates for here greetings cards.
She would be about as media heavy as anything facebook would throw back at her.

I think she would like the concept of a wireless keyboard/mouse from the comfort of the sofa - its how I can bring that to her as cheap as possible.

As for old PC - A) to big for the livingroom and B) it is getting sold to fund a Dell U2412 :D
Click to expand...

from what I read, this basically turns your tv in to a nexus 7, you might be able to download apps for this to do office docs.

http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/40428...7817|rnd:1746078358866405974|dvc:c|adp:1o2|mt:

install this app Kingsoft Office for Android
 
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Buy her a laptop and stop being so cheap! Simple solution is for you to not spend the fortune on a new pc and make do with what you have while making sure your mrs has a laptop she can use. Then save up for the new pc. If the current PC works ok for you now then it can work ok for a bit longer. Try and be a little less selfish than you appear to be now :D
 
srichards said:
Buy her a laptop and stop being so cheap! Simple solution is for you to not spend the fortune on a new pc and make do with what you have while making sure your mrs has a laptop she can use. Then save up for the new pc. If the current PC works ok for you now then it can work ok for a bit longer. Try and be a little less selfish than you appear to be now :D
Click to expand...

You try using an old socket 775 based PC overclocked to within an inch of its life with huge files from a 5D2 then you may understand the need for a new PC.
It's not being cheap and its not being selfish. A laptop is overkill for a little facebook/ template making whilst sitting on the sofa with feet up and cuppa in hand.

Just in case your smiley represents tongue in cheek then :D back at ya! :D:D:D
 
Well it's your missus, but I'm willing to put money on it being a bad move to expect her to be happy with android or a Pi. Get a cheap used netbook.
 
Face and palm are getting very close together.
We used to have a laptop....she hated that. We had a netbook from virgin....she hated that.
 
Shoot jpg. Problem solved ;) :D

By the time you've bought all the bits a pi will probably end up costing just as much as a cheap laptop. Maplin starter rasberry pi kit is £79 on its own. If you can get second hand laptops from £99 which will run word (which a pi won't) then the pi will probably turn out to be an annoying waste of money...

http://www.valucomputers.co.uk/acatalog/stock-clearance-gradeb-laptops-from-89.html

Plus you can use a laptop for tethered shooting which you can't use a pi for....

Seeing as she hates laptops then keep your old pc for her instead? But still get your new one?

Only other thing I can think of is whether there is some remote desktop option that would let her use the pc from a tablet or a pi. Having remote gui windows from a linux machine is easy but it was always a pain in the bum with MS windows.
 
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If she hated laptops and netbooks then she is going to hate using a TV.

Get an old PC off ebay.
 
stupar said:
The occasional word documents are nothing work related she just uses it to make templates for here greetings cards.
Click to expand...
You misunderstand my point... Take a document written in OpenOffice and then transfer it to a PC and open it in Word (I assume she will want to do that at some point). It may well look different which isn't great for a WYSIWYG system!
 
arad85 said:
You misunderstand my point... Take a document written in OpenOffice and then transfer it to a PC and open it in Word (I assume she will want to do that at some point). It may well look different which isn't great for a WYSIWYG system!
Click to expand...

Apologies. By using the term word document most folk probably think Microsoft. It is open office we use on the big PC at the moment.
My error by classing any writing document as a word document.
 
Stick to windows so she can use the same software.

What was bad about the laptop/net book?

How would she use the TV as a PC? Wireless keyboard and mouse/touchpad? Sitting on the sofa?

When it comes to getting something for your wife, ease of use is critical.

Was it the touchpad she hated on the laptop/net book? Why not get a mouse?
 
As above. If it's the keyboard, touchpad or screen she hates, they can all be replaced using USB devices or other connection options. All the laptop/netbook or whatever needs to do is handle the processing and storage.
 
mid_gen said:
If she hated laptops and netbooks then she is going to hate using a TV.

Get an old PC off ebay.
Click to expand...

Definitely agree on the laptop - I have always hated the things. The only time I would use one is if I had no other option, such as being a commuter on a train who needed to work.
Generally you will get far more for your money with a "desktop" pc than with any laptop.
 
What is wrong with the laptop? is it the keyboard and touchpad?
 
Ok I will try and tick all your question boxes.

Firstly, there is no room for a standard sized PC in the living room....even if there was I wouldn't want one. My current PC once replaced will be sold to fund my monitor upgrade so it is not staying.

Secondly, her dislike of laptops and netbooks is the touchpad mouse, small screens and a weighty warm chunk of hardware on her lap (keep the thoughts clean :p)

My only reason for suggesting pi was its small and can be bolted to the back of the TV using the wall mount holes (nice out of sight idea). It connects to the TV by HDMI, it will be 2 feet away from my Virgin hub for ethernet connection and it has USB slots for the wireless input devices.
Software wise there are a couple of OS's that are fairly simple to use, e.g. point and click on icon for internet etc etc.

She might not be a gadget geek like me but she aint stupid either so the ease of use thing being critical is null and void, especially when its just for pleasure.

Noted re the suggestion for the Android box. She certainly knows Android like the back of her hand, I will check this out in more detail.
 
Why not a netbook tucked behind the TV with DVI output?
 
Just seems a backwards step, I'm not sure about other netbooks but the one we used to have required you to use the Fn keys to switch between screens - minor inconvenience. Boot times (unless spending money to put in an SSD, but that goes against the point of the exercise).
Pi just sits there nicely compared to a slab of netbook and even if it has to be switched on, it's ready in a matter of seconds.
 
Think your going to have bite the bullet and up the budget to get what your wife needs.

I'd go for the cheapest Intel NUC, (you'll need a mSATA SSD and some memory, oh and a power cord!). They're really small (come with the VESA mount to attach to the TV), have HDMI, network and USB so a wireless keyboard/mouse and your away. We have one behind the tv as a HTPC with xbmc running very well.

They boot fast and will run the software fine.

Forgot to say, they're virtually silent too.
 
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Look, I'm not being funny but the usability issues your wife is quoting means that she is never ever ever going to be happy with a Raspberry Pi. If you really must attach something to your TV to discover this, then get an Android USB/HDMI stick for 20 or 30 quid and try it out as it'll be cheaper, easier and there are things like Facebook apps etc that she'd be able to use.

Use a cheap PC - as other have suggested, a cheap netbook hooked up to the TV (you can get a wireless mouse and keyboard) would be an economical way of doing this. Plus you can use it as a normal netbook when you want to.

FWIW, I've never had a good experience using any computing device on a TV except for limited periods of time using a conventional keyboard and mouse. This is one of the reasons that Apple sell so many iPads...there's a big market for people who want to consume content on the sofa...
 
landwomble said:
.......

FWIW, I've never had a good experience using any computing device on a TV except for limited periods of time using a conventional keyboard and mouse. This is one of the reasons that Apple sell so many iPads...there's a big market for people who want to consume content on the sofa...
Click to expand...

The only place where I have ever used my home PC is whilst on the sofa - I once tried using a desk for my home PC but hated it (too much like being at work!) so the screen sits on a low table (about 2 ft high) and I use a Logitech k400r keyboard with built in trackpad, and the PC case fits nicely under the table.
 
I have a small Asus media PC running behind the TV, purely to run iTunes off the NAS via Apple TV. It has a little wireless keyboard with a track pad, no optical drive, 200gb internal HDD and a couple of gig memory. If I wanted I could easily surf the net and do whatever else as ultimately it's a Windows 7 machine. It cost me £100 second hand with a clean install and sounds like it might well be perfect for your needs. It'd about 7" x 7", totally silent, and has hdmi and digital optical outputs for connecting to the tv and cinema system etc.
 
I discovered today that my Toshiba Encore 8" is pretty good connected to my TV, (I was bored this afternoon). It will output 1920x1080 via HDMI and work in either Metro or normal desktop. I was using a wireless keyboard and touchpad and it was really impressive. At least next time the weather screws with Sky I can connect and watch via SkyGo :).

Browsing the net on a 42" screen is something different after becoming used to using either an iPad or Ultrabook.

Office is also included free and also works extremely well on it.
 
Quick update.
Its not the route I wanted to go down but for the price it is worth a punt.
Add on gumtree for samsung N150 with dodgy screen and no power supply. Seller wanted £30 but I got them down to £15.
Just need a power supply which is 7 quid and a vga cable for 2 quid.
 
Just scored again on gumtree.
This time a free wireless Microsoft keyboard and mouse.
 
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