MediaPortal is a full-blown media center software that addresses the most common user requirements out of the box. Besides its TV and Radio services it is also offering a complete media management for movies, series and music, including posters, album and fan art as well as additional metadata (e.g. actor, director and much more) that are automatically downloaded from the internet. MediaPortal also provides access to online video sources such as Amazon Prime. Integrated news, weather information and management for your digital images complete this software package.
The modern client/server architecture in combination with the central database greatly simplifies the use and management of the system. New clients can easily be added to the environment and connected to the MediaPortal 2 Server for immediate use.
Performance
Unlike many other Media Center programs, MediaPortal was designed especially for Microsoft Windows. Thus, the performance and playback quality is unsurpassed. No additional hardware or commercial software is required.
You can play any file that you can play in Windows. In Windows 7, codecs are included, and supported by MP out of the box. So you do not need to install anything to play all your files.
Hardware and Network
MediaPortal works on many different configurations. You don’t need a fancy, expensive system. You can just connect your TV and sound system to your existing PC and be up and running in no time. Simply configure MediaPortal to display on your TV screen.
Use your mouse, a touch screen, keyboard or remote. Display either fullscreen or in windowed mode. It’s your choice.
If you prefer, you can set up a separate Home Theatre PC (HTPC) to run MediaPortal, and even connect it to your existing network.
Or, you can configure an advanced network with MediaPortal on the server and as many ‘client’ PCs as you like. Network architecture is fully supported, so you can stream radio, music, video and live or recorded TV throughout your home.
Remotes
Most common remotes are supported natively and you can easily configure them however you like. Or, configure MediaPortal to recognize your own remote. You can decide which keys you want to use for which actions.
IR Server Suite (IRSS) expands support to 28 more remotes, from iMON to Wii and MacMini. With IRSS you can create layers for your remote so one key can perform many functions. If you want to press the ‘Green Button” and start MP, then use the built in Tray Launcher application. Or, use Translator to create macros for control of other devices, like your Blu-Ray player.
User Interface
MediaPortal provides a variety of options to allow you to customize the interface yourself.
There are two Home Screens: Home and Basic Home. Both can be customized, but BasicHome allows even more flexibility in style and layout and is often used by community skins to support submenus, weather forecasts, RSS feeds and more all on the Home Screen.
Menus and Context Menus are available throughout MediaPortal to allow you to select and even configure options for the window you are viewing.
TV and PVR Support
MediaPortal offers you the most powerful TV Engine and PVR (Personal Video Recorder) available today. You can do everything a TiVO can do, and more, but for free.
There is no limit to the number of TV Cards you can use. A vast array of TV Cards are supported, including analog cards. With a single DVB/ATSC card you can watch and record more than one channel. Cards supporting BDA driver architecture require no configuration.
Internationalization
Over 30 languages are supported by MediaPortal. You don’t need to install a separate version or a plugin, just select your language and away you go.
Plugins & Skins
MediaPortal was designed to be extended. There are hundreds of amazing plugins available to do almost anything you can imagine.
Skins are more than just themes. They not only change the look and feel of MediaPortal, but often the way you interact with it. There are dozens of skins available, you are sure to find one that suits your taste.
Plugins and Skins are fully and smoothly integrated into MediaPortal. They can be installed and updated using a common Extensions Installer, and configured using the standard interface.
Installation
Installation is very easy with our installer (Deploy Tool). It will check your system and prompt you if any required components are missing or need updating.
Configuration
Configure all main features, plugins, and skins in a single, easy to use interface. The same interface is used to configure the TV Server and it’s plugins. User files, log files and updates to plugins and skins have links for easy access right on the Configuration screen.
Diagnostics
Diagnostics are built into MediaPortal – Watchdog will automatically capture log files whenever an error occurs. You can even choose the level of error reporting you wish.
The Debug-Mode shortcut, on the Windows Start Menu, automates the entire procedure, clearing previous logs, starting up MediaPortal collecting logs in debug mode when you exit and storing them in a zip file on your desktop for you to submit in the Forums.
What’s New
MediaPortal 2.5 is a full-blown media center software that addresses most common user requirements out of the box. Aside from its support for live TV and radio, it offers a complete media server for music, movies, and series. Info is automatically downloaded from various sources to provide posters, fanart, album art, and various additional metadata, such as cast, staff, and more. MediaPortal 2.5 also provides access to online video sources. Integrated news, weather information, and management for your digital images complete this software package. User management for your family let you configure users (e.g. kids) and restrict age dependend content and settings.
Installer
MediaPortal 2.5 comes with a brand-new installer, which is offering a smooth and comfortable installation process and also brings a cool design making the installer look fresh and modern.
New Features
In the installer you can choose between 3 TV engines (or non if TV functionality is not needed):
- TVE3 (only in NET4.8 version of MediaPortal 2)
- TVE3.5
- TVMosaic
You have a clear view of which packages are already installed, which will be updated, will which be added or removed. The installer takes care that all needed packages (e.g. NET) are installed in the background.
Previous Release Notes:
Highlights of this release
Bugfixes:
- [MP1-5064] – Obsolete text in SetupTV.exe /configure-db dialog
- [MP1-5130] – Stretched playback for videos with 1080×1920 resolution
Since Pre-Release :
- [MP1-5170] – Fix VCRedist 2008 detection in DeployTools
- [MP1-5172] – BASS: deadlock when accesing GetChannelData
- [MP1-5173] – GUIMusic: wrong start of music item if gui list includes playlist item file
- [MP1-5177] – MP Audiorenderer: video/audio sync issuse while seek/resume
New:
- [MP1-5154] – Mediaportal switch to SharpDX and Make x64 version
- [MP1-5167] – Add GUIFacadeControl to Home plugin
Improvement / Rework:
- [MP1-5163] – Update Titan skin
- [MP1-5164] – Update Gentle .Net in TV Server
- [MP1-5168] – Add Host Detect Method settings
- Update Default Wide HD skin
- Swedish language file update
Since Pre-Release :
- [MP1-5171] – Update to MPC-HC subtitle engine 2.0.0
- [MP1-5174] – Add Windows 11, 2019, 2022 support to TV Server
- [MP1-5175] – Rework swedish webepg grabbers
- [MP1-5176] – TvSpielfilm broken
Along with the above items we kept consolidating our software.
Notes: For use Bluray with BD-J support, please read the Wiki
MediaPortal 2.4.1 release notes
MediaPortal 2.4.1 is a full-blown media center software that addresses most common user requirements out of the box. Aside from its support for Live TV and Radio, it offers a complete media server for music, movies, and series. Info is automatically downloaded from various sources to provide posters, fanart, album art, and various additional metadata, such as cast, staff, and more. MediaPortal 2.4.1 also provides access to online video sources such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. Integrated news, weather information and management for your digital images complete this software package.
Flexible Aspect Ratios
All skins support flexible aspect ratios, so it does not matter if you have a 4:3, 16:9 or even ultra wide screen. The aspect ratio is detected automatically, there is no need to adjust settings manually.
International Language Support
MediaPortal 2 was lacking with the support of many languages yet, because some characters could not be displayed correctly. It was mainly related to a missing unicode font, that is licence free. With the Google Noto we have found a font, that can be used in open source projects.
Due to heavy development of MediaPortal 2 many new text strings were added last years, but are not localized yet. Everybody can support translating strings in our translation platform transifex. Every help to bring MediaPortal 2 forward is highly appreciated by our small development team.
Touch Display Support
If touch display support is enabled in skin settings, menus won’t slide in/out automatically any more, but only on press of the menu button. The support for touch display was extended further:
- A first press on a menu tile selects the home content (instead of auto selection on focus)
- A second press loads the corresponding media library
Because the menu item selection behavior could be also interesting for mouse users the same behavior can be also achieved with a new skin setting “Whether to select a menu item manually instead of auto selection on focus”
Other
- Fixed recording view not being compatible with new view mode settings
- Missing button content margin in DialogButtonStyle, “Manage series schedule” button not focusable by mouse
- TV: Missing gerne infos in EPG screens and recording details
- Overworked CurrentlyPlaying and Info screens
- TV: Visible information for schedule list items and details
- Display IsRecording indicator in notification bar and recording start and end indicators correctly
- Better virtual keyboard appearance
- TV: LoopScrolling in FullEPG, if activated in NereusSkinSettings
- Blank screen in screen-saver to avoid burn-ins for OLED screens
- Nereus: Fallback label for channel logo tiles in home content
- Nereus: ChannelLogos in program tiles and replacement of circular with linear progress bar
System
- Don’t lock WF Manager in VideoPlayerModel message handler as it can cause deadlock when the message handler is shutdown when exiting the model context
- Potential deadlock in Plugin Manager if different threads try to activate the same plugin
Media
- Fixed playback issues by using LAV Splitter Source directly
MediaPortal 1.30
Improvement / Rework:
- [MP1-5092] – Update MediaInfo and MediaInfo.Wrapper to 21.9.2
- [MP1-5104] – Create a numeric only keyboard
- [MP1-5105] – Update MetadataExtractor to 2.7.1
- [MP1-5106] – Update SQLite to 3.36
- [MP1-5107] – Improve tvgids.nl webepg grabber
- [MP1-5108] – Fix deadlock error while importing EPG
- [MP1-5109] – Update France.FreeBox_TV
- [MP1-5110] – Add Set watched status in TV/Radio recorded
- [MP1-5111] – Parallel DVB EPG
Since Pre-Release :
- [MP1-5112] – Cleanup NL and DE WebEPG grabbers
MediaPortal 2.4
MediaPortal 2.4 is a full-blown media center software that addresses most common user requirements out of the box. Aside from its support for Live TV and Radio, it offers a complete media server for music, movies, and series. Info is automatically downloaded from various sources to provide posters, fanart, album art, and various additional metadata, such as cast, staff, and more. MediaPortal 2.4 also provides access to online video sources such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. Integrated news, weather information and management for your digital images complete this software package.
View Mode Settings
- The view mode configuration was completely reworked and replaces many obsolete skin settings. Previously several options like watched flags could only be changed globally, everything can be set individually for every screen in a new intuitive view mode dialog now. Changes performed in the dialog are having immediate response in the background making it easy to observe the effect.
- If media details are hidden, the full screen is used for the arrangement of the media items and only very basic details are shown in bottom left of grid views as already known from home screen. In case of list views basic details are shown within the focus area, if details are hidden.
Extended Menu Editor
- The existing menu editor (menu key or right mouse on any menu item) offers already a comfortable way to arrange the menu. With version 2.4 we offer additional configuration options for the home content (just select the gear symbol in menu editor). You can arrange and hide content according to your preferrence.
Color Scheme Customisation
- Within the skin settings of Nereus skin you can find the new Color Scheme Customisation.
- Besides the predefined torquoise color setting you can select other color schemes, all areas of the skin will be affected immediately.
Touch Display Support
- If touch display support is enabled in skin settings menus won’t slide in/out automatically any more, but only on press of the menu button. This option can be also interesting for mouse users.
Other
- Visual overwork of media share screens with list index indicators
- Improved visual appearance of list buttons and dialogs
- Better bachground image without diffraction patterns when scaled to other resolutions
- Remember last main menu entry, when client is restarted
- Setting for optimized touch display support
- TV: Dynamic font scaling for EPG programs in relation to number of rows
- Fixed invisible audio button in OSD of PrimaryPlayer, if audio state changed for SecondaryPlayer
- TV: Re-added missing PiP functionality in MiniEPG and MainEPG
- Allow wrapping for settings HeaderLabel in screens without tiles to not exceed the “black” area
- Hide headers and icons for actor, directors, subtitles, audio tracks, if no content existing
System
- MP2-Server crashes if FileSystemWatcher is used for exFAT drives
- MP2-Client crashes while closing from power menu
- Set OpenPlayerConfigInOsd by default to false
- Deactivate IPv6 by default in settings, because causing mostly issues
- Moved HID handling to skin engine so HID messages can be filtered before they overload the message queue
- Changed updating of content list to only update if necessary. This will break content lists in plugins not part of the solution
- Possibly incorrect target index used in refresh rate changer on duplicated displays
- Wrong player key bindings included in Nereus and BlueVision DVD player screens
- DynamicResourceExtension is not thread safe and can crash the main render loop
- Fix race condition in plugin item creation and add test
- Don’t handle keyboard mappings if the focus is in a textbox
- Don’t set _lastMouseUsageTime on startup to avoid unnecessary mouse events when the home screen is first shown
- Include OV2 feature to use ffmpeg for download of streams on x64 and support for x86
Media
- Added year filter for series
- Support new movie rating format
- External subtitle resource index not updated correctly when merging with an existing media item
- MediaItemListModel can be recreated when closing the client
- Media lists not returning any/all possible results
- Improved handling of refresh of metadata and changed movie name matching to better take into account titles containing a year
- TV: Added option to disable automatic online update of channel logos
