Make your own set-top box

There are plenty of options for getting Kodi to the living-room TV, including a dedicated PC, Raspberry Pi or even an old Android device.

Kodi runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux, but you can also install it on your Android tablet (or jailbroken iPad), plus downloaded dedicated distros for turning a lowpowered computer, such as a net-top PC or Raspberry Pi, into a dedicated Kodi set-top box.

Kodi recently dropped all support for its dedicated Kodibuntu distro, which paired Kodi with Ubuntu 14.04. Existing Kodibuntu/XBMCbuntu users should be able to update to Kodi 17.1 through the Terminal, though: $ sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get-dist-upgrade

If you’re new to running a dedicated Kodi machine, then you’re left with two choices. Raspberry Pi users are best served by OSMC ( osmc.tv), which can also be installed on a jailbroken first-generation Apple TV. You can find links for downloading a tool to create the required microSD card on Windows, OS X and Linux, or you can download disk images directly.

OpenElec ( openelec.tv) provides dedicated builds for AMD/Intel-powered PCs (including lower-powered Atom and Fusion CPUs), plus the Raspberry Pi, and a selection of WeTek third-party devices, as well as Freescale iMX6 devices from the likes of Cubox.