A Computer for Minable Video Playback?

I need a simple and small Windows computer than can play 30 fps 1080p videos.  Hdmi, and USB  outputs, optional ethernet input.  Nothing else.

Can anyone offer a suggestion or what specs to look for?

TIA,

Honestly virtually anything sold today. The issues are the format of the file. Maybe.

Many small laptops have dropped ethernet connections but the other stuff? Shouldn't be challenging.

Form factor? Budget?

NickZ2016 wrote:

Honestly virtually anything sold today.

Yes, that was my thought until I bought a small desktop as a close-out at a major chain.  It choked on 30 fps 1080p (.mp4).

I'll look around.

What file format? Which software?

Richard Frederick wrote:

I need a simple and small Windows computer than can play 30 fps 1080p videos. Hdmi, and USB outputs, optional ethernet input. Nothing else.

Can anyone offer a suggestion or what specs to look for?

TIA,

Download Potplayer or VLC and it should work.

I have a 10 year old Celeron with virtually no ram and it plays 1080 without a hitch.

Richard Frederick wrote:

NickZ2016 wrote:

Honestly virtually anything sold today.

Yes, that was my thought until I bought a small desktop as a close-out at a major chain. It choked on 30 fps 1080p (.mp4).

I'll look around.

Something sounds fishy...

Please share the specs of that computer (CPU, graphics card, RAM , hard drive type / speed, operating system version - windows 11? Windows 10? Vista???).

Really, my old core2 duo running windows 7 with 12gb of RAM and spinning hard disks plays 1080p 30fps fine, and that computer was made around 2005 or sometime around then.

Older Intel computers completely choke on HEVC 10bit 422 color, no matter what the resolution or frame rate and no matter what the player or editor.

Later Intel chips hardware decode HEVC 10bit. But it is necessary that the players/editors make use of that capability.

So, it is possible for an old computer to choke on merely 1080 video, if the codec is demanding.

The simplest solution to having a cheap computer that will in hardware decode and encode any codec - an m1 Apple computer. Mac mini m1 with 8GB does fine, as does a MacBook Air m1.

It did surprise me that the computer I bought would not play the videos I wanted.  Perhaps something else is the problem.  I have posted the specs as JPGs for your information.

Thanks for the replies.

You haven't mentioned what file types and what software. That's a seven year old CPU but even so I'd expect VLC to play most stuff.

I have both Ifranview and VLC, but neither will play the following file types on the problem computer.

The files are 30 fps,1080p, .MP4s that were rendered by Davinci Resolve Studio.

and yes, I would think any contemporary the computer should handle those which is why I bought the thing on price rather than specs.

Does it play inside of Resolve? What did you render out to? 264?

Something doesn't make sense

I am in a computer replacement project currently, so I cant check for sure, but the files played in Resolve and were probably rendered in 264 rathe than 265.

Something weird IMHO is going on.  I can't think what.

Thanks for the input.  I relieved the little computer from running an Irfanview slideshow 24/7, created new 30 fps 1080p .mp4 and .mov files.  They ran just fine like you said they would.  Indeed, something else was wrong when files failed to run at the start of this.

Thanks again,