Plex can make you stream your massive TV/movie collection from computer to elsewhere. It is easy and simple enough for some people who are not proficient in complicated things. But the mobile apps aren’t free. You have to pay if you want to stream from your PC to your mobile device. So you maybe need a free Plex-like media server app or even a complicated way of being able to stream your video collection to remote devices over the WAN.
Here we gathered some alternatives to Plex to help you enjoy media conveniently.
You maybe also interested in the solutions: MKV to Plex, Blu-ray to Plex, DVD to Plex, AVI to Plex, ISO to Plex, etc.
Top 5 Plex Alternatives and Similar Media Server
#1: Emby
Emby, formerly Media Browser, is a media aggregator plugin for Media Center that takes your recorded, digital, or ripped media and presents it in a simple, easy to use interface. Emby prides itself on delivering a fast, intuitive, media rich experience for the whole family.
Read: Backup Blu-ray Collection to Emby Media Server
Universal Media Server is a media server capable of serving videos, audio and images to any DLNA-capable device. It supports any device capable of DLNA and runs on all major operating systems: Windows, OS X and Linux. It streams to many devices including PS3, Xbox One and 360, many TVs (Samsung, Panasonic, Sony, Vizio, LG, Philips, Sharp), smart phones (iPhone, Android, etc.), Blu-ray players, and more.
Learn >> Stream BD 3D Backup/ISO via Universal Media Server
#3: PS3 Media Server
PS3 Media Server is a DLNA compliant Upnp Media Server for the PS3, written in Java, with the purpose of streaming or transcoding any kind of media files, with minimum configuration. It is backed up with the Mplayer or FFmpeg packages.
It features no codec packs to install, no folder configuration and pre-parsing or this kind of annoying thing, all your folders are directly browsed by the PS3, there is an automatic refresh, and real-time video transcoding via MEncoder.
#4: Serviio
Serviio is a free media server. It allows you to stream your media files (music, video or images) to renderer devices (e.g. a TV set, Bluray player, games console or mobile phone) on your connected home network. Serviio works with many devices from your connected home (TV, Playstation 3, XBox 360, smart phones, tablets, etc.). It supports profiles for particular devices so that it can be tuned to maximise the device’s potential and/or minimize lack of media format playback support (via transcoding).
#5: KooRaRoo
KooRaRoo Media Server allows you to enjoy your movies, music and photos on a wide range of devices in your home, including modern TVs, Blu-Ray players (BDPs), games consoles (PS3 and XBox360), mobile tablets, smart phones and dedicated media players that support DLNA.
Comparison of Some Media Server
| Universal Media Server | PS3 Media Server | Serviio | KooRaRoo | Plex | |
| Web interface A web interface so it supports even devices without DLNA support |
Yes | No | Partial1 | Yes | Yes |
| Automatic bitrate adjustment Automatically changes video bitrate based on your network speed |
Yes | No | Yes | No | ? |
| Automatic maximum quality 100% video and audio quality is maintained when possible by muxing – not transcoding – compatible files. |
Yes | No | Yes | Yes | ? |
| Instant browsing View your files without having to wait for the folders to be scanned, which can take minutes or hours with large libraries. |
Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| Subtitles on all devices When your device does not support the subtitle format in the video, we add it to the video stream to allow you to view them anyway. |
Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| DTS support Pass along full quality DTS instead of downmixing it to another format. |
Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Live subtitles from OpenSubtitles If you don’t have the subtitles for your file, UMS will download and add them for you via options on your device. |
Yes | No | No | No | No |
| H.264 transcoding H.264 transcoding achieves the same quality as the traditional codec MPEG-2 with much lower filesize, making it a good option for wireless networks. |
Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Free UMS is and will always be free. |
Yes | Yes | Partial2 | No | Partial2 |
| True Motion (frame interpolation) This takes regular framerates, usually 24fps or 25fps, and adds frames in between to make the motion smoother and more realistic. This is done using InterFrame, which is an AviSynth plugin that uses SVP libraries. |
Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Overscan compensation If your TV has overscan – which means it cuts off the edges of videos – we can compensate so you see the whole video. Many people watch with overscan and never realize what they are missing. |
Yes | Partial 3 | No | No | No |
| Automatic plugin download/install Download and install plugins automatically. |
Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| Unlimited folders on PS3 & Xbox PS3 and Xbox 360 can only display a limited number of folders, but we work around that. |
Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| AviSynth support AviSynth is a powerful and flexible video and audio serving program. |
Yes | Partial4 | No | No | No |
| iTunes support Browse your iTunes library by playlist, artist, album and genre. |
Yes | Yes | ? | ? | Yes |
| Renderer search support We support renderers with search capability. |
Yes | No | ? | ? | ? |
| Maximum network bandwidth setting This allows you to set the speed of your network to ensure smooth playing. |
Yes | Partial5 | No | No | No |
| DVD support We support playing DVDs whether they are in your DVD drive or on your hard drive. |
Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Archive support Support for browsing archives like ZIP, RAR, GZ, etc. |
Yes | Partial | No | ? | ? |
| 3D SBS video support Most if not all renderers do not support receiving full 3D SBS video over a network, but we work around that. |
Yes | Partial | No | ? | Yes |
| High-quality video thumbnails Display the maximum quality and resolution thumbnails that your device can take. |
Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
1 Available as a paid plugin
2 Free and paid editions exist
3 No subtitle position correction
4 No multithreading support
5 Not as accurate as the UMS one
Related Software:
ByteCopy for Windows/Mac– It can rip Blu-ray/DVD to lossless MKV keeping multi-track subtile/audio and all chapter markers for Media Server.
BDMagic for Windows/Mac– The best Blu-ray solution to rip and backup any commercial and region-locked Blu-ray to Media Server.
DVDAid for Windows/Mac– Capacity of ripping copy-protected and homemade DVD to Media Server for playback with suitable format.
Pavtube Video Converter Ultimate for Windows/Mac– Function of converting Blu-ray/DVD, 4K/SD/HD video in any format to play on Media Server.
Pavtube ChewTunes– Record, convert both DRM-ed and non-DRM video and music to all popular video/audio formats in order to ensure free playback on Media Server for better viewing experience.
More Money-saving Tips:
ByteCopy($42) + Video Converter Ultimate($65)= Only $79.9, Save $27.1
Video Converter Ultimate($65) + ChewTune($29)= Only $74.9, Save $19.1
BDMagic($49) + ChewTune($29)= Only $49.9, Save $28.1
Related Articles:
- Master Your Plex Media Server with a QNAP NAS
- Top Blu-ray Ripper Comparison – Rip BD to VLC/Plex
- Play Supported/Unsupported Videos on PS4 with Plex via NAS
- How to Rip TV Series DVD to Episodes for Plex?
- Stream Blu-ray on Roku 4 via Plex
Pavtube New Official Site
