When you find an episode you want to watch, hit “Enter” again and a dialog box will load asking the size you’d like to view the episode.Īs the episode plays, you can hit “ M” to view the control options (pause, stop, play, etc) for the video. To watch an episode of a show you like, hit the right arrow button to navigate to the channel you want then hit “Enter.” The channel will open and all programs associated with the channel will be on the left side of the screen. After you navigate to “ Video Channels,” you will see all of your channels displayed horizontally.
When you find a channel you like, you’ll need to install the channel in order to add in to your queue located in the “ Video Channels” area.Īfter you’ve added channels you like to your profile, watching them in in the “ Video Channels” area is easy. To begin adding shows to your queue, hit the down arrow on your keyboard to navigate to “ Channel Directory,” then scroll through all of the channels available. On the left side of the screen is the menu for everything you can do in Plex. When using Plex, all the navigation is done with your keyboard so keep that in mind when first using it. Once Plex starts up, you will see a large black interface designed to give users a clutter-free viewing experience. Once it’s done, you’ll see a confirmation window and the option to start the program right away. Plex for Windows 8 is very much aimed at touchscreens rather than regular desktop users, but at least it provides access to your Plex library via your Windows RT tablet.Click “ Next” and follow the prompts to complete the installation.
No trial download is currently available. The download link at the top takes you to the Windows Store in your browser, where you can review Plex further and make a purchase. All the additional functionality you need can be found via the App Bar. It works very much as you'd expect - you can browse one of three ways: on deck basically includes all content you've previously watched without finishing, while each library can be manually browsed or you can quickly scan items recently added to your library. It provides a gorgeous visual entry point to all your media - as you'd expect from all Plex clients, such as Plex for iPhone/iPad and Android. If you're running the cut-down Windows RT on a tablet or phone, or you want to try the Plex app full-screen on your PC using your touchscreen or mouse, then this app is for you instead. You then have a choice: if you're running Windows 8 proper on a laptop or desktop PC, you might prefer to try Plex Media Center, which runs full-screen from the desktop, is free and supports keyboard and remote control input. Note, previous Mac builds combined both media server and client in a single application – this is no longer the case from 0.9.5 onwards.
Plex comes in two parts: you’ll need to download and install Plex Media Server separately on the PC or Mac that’s hosting all the media content you wish to share. These are served via the use of special Plex PMS Plug-ins, some of which are included with the main download, while others are available for separate download and install. Plex also lets you tap into online content too, allowing your clients to access internet-hosted media like YouTube, NetFlix and more through the same interface. It allows you to share the media content – photos, music, video and recorded TV – from selected folders on the host computer as well as any network shares, but that’s not all.
How can you possibly keep on top of it all while making it possible to access your media while away from home on your portable device? You’ve got all that media – photos, videos, recorded TV, music and more – scattered across your network, and now there’s a load of online media to tap into as well.