OpenELEC vs Boxee

Struggling to choose between OpenELEC and Boxee? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

OpenELEC is a Gaming Software solution with tags like open-source, kodi, media-center, home-theater-pc, htpc, linux-distribution.

It boasts features such as Lightweight Linux distribution optimized for Kodi, Small disk and memory footprint, Boots directly into Kodi interface, Automatic updates for Kodi and addons, Supports Raspberry Pi, generic x86 computers, and other devices, Active community support and pros including Easy to setup and use, Great performance on lower-powered devices, Constant updates and improvements, Very customizable, Free and open source.

On the other hand, Boxee is a Video & Movies product tagged with media, video, movies, streaming, local-files.

Its standout features include Media library for movies, TV shows, music, and photos, Supports local media files and streaming services, Social features like sharing media and seeing what friends are watching, Apps and plugins to add more functionality, Remote control app for smartphones, Skins and themes to customize appearance, and it shines with pros like Free and open source, Intuitive and easy to use interface, Support for many file formats and streaming services, Active development community creating plugins, Available for multiple platforms like Windows, Mac, Linux.

Feature	OpenELEC	Boxee
Overall Score	N/A	N/A
Primary Category	Gaming Software	Video & Movies

Product Overview

OpenELEC

Description: OpenELEC is a lightweight, Kodi-centric Linux distribution designed specifically for media centers and home theater PCs. It comes preconfigured with Kodi media center software and runs well on lower-powered devices.

Boxee

Description: Boxee is a free media center software that allows users to play media files from local storage as well as streaming media services on a computer or television. It provides an easy-to-use interface to manage all your media.

Key Features Comparison

OpenELEC Features

• Lightweight Linux distribution optimized for Kodi
• Small disk and memory footprint
• Boots directly into Kodi interface
• Automatic updates for Kodi and addons
• Supports Raspberry Pi, generic x86 computers, and other devices
• Active community support

Boxee Features

• Media library for movies, TV shows, music, and photos
• Supports local media files and streaming services
• Social features like sharing media and seeing what friends are watching
• Apps and plugins to add more functionality
• Remote control app for smartphones
• Skins and themes to customize appearance

Pros & Cons Analysis

OpenELEC

Pros

• Easy to setup and use
• Great performance on lower-powered devices
• Constant updates and improvements
• Very customizable
• Free and open source

Cons

• Limited to just running Kodi
• Less flexibility than full Linux distro
• Manual updates required for core OS
• Limited hardware support

Boxee

Pros

• Free and open source
• Intuitive and easy to use interface
• Support for many file formats and streaming services
• Active development community creating plugins
• Available for multiple platforms like Windows, Mac, Linux

Cons

• Limited native codec support
• Some stability issues
• No longer actively developed
• Streaming service support can be spotty
• Closed captioning support is limited

Pricing Comparison

OpenELEC

• Open Source

Boxee

• Free
• Open Source