Building A Home Media Center With A $35 Raspberry Pi And Kodi

How would you like to take charge of your own entertainment experience, listening to your music and watching videos and movies at your own convinience with any device without much spending on data? If this is something you want for yourself, then you’re in the right place.

Sure there are plenty of ways of building your own home media center. With a basic computer, an external hard-drive and windows media center software, you’re off on the road to organizing and enjoying your home media. But if you want something that will wow your friends, then you have to use some of the tried and tested tools.

In this post, I’ll try to show enthuasiasts how to build their own home entertainement system. This system will allow you stream music and videos, share photos and files with family and friends at home at a low budget. You’ll need a low-budet computer which in this case we shall use the Pi, an enternal hardrive that houses your media files, a wireless router for connectivity, a TV for your viewing experience and Kodi, the most advanced free media center I know. In summary;

The Ingredients

With knowledge of the different components that you’ll need, now we shall dig deeper each of them.

Raspberry PI

This little (officially) $35 device is an incredibly powerful and capable computer. I’ve been a fun of the PI ever since its inception four years ago. Produced by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, UK-based charity organization, the PI comes with quad-core ARM processor, 1GB of RAM, 4 USB ports, Full HDMI port, Ethernet Port. It also has a MicroSD card slot, Combined 3.5mm audio jack and composite video, Camera interface (CSI), Display interface (DSI). The Pi3 which is the latest release is twice as fast its predecessor, the Pi2.

The Pi3 comes with a 1.2GHz 64-bit quad-core ARMv8 CPU which is twice as fast as that of the Pi2, inbuilt 802.11n Wireless LAN (which is lacking in the Pi2) and Bluetooth 4.1.

The Pi is sold as a single-board device. But for the purposes of using it as a media center, you need to purchase a good casing, at least an 8GB SD card with “New Out of Box Software” (NOOBS) operating system. However, if you’re an advanced user, you can install Raspbian, OSMC, OpenELEC among other OSes that can run on the PI on just about any SD card out there.

The Pi is a low-power consuming device, so you can afford to leave it running without having to power it on and off. This is befitting for a home media center since you want to always access your media whenever you want from whatever device at home without having to power on the Pi.

External HDD

Next, you’ll need a big storage device which will store all your cat videos, music, movies, photos among others. This will be storage for the Pi.

For the ordinary user, we recommend a 500GB external drive. But if your media library is big, then you can go for a 2 TB external HDD. Power users want to go for a 4TB beast. There are plenty of External HDDs to choose from these days, but we recommend models from Seagate, Western Digital, Hatachi, Transcend or Toshiba.

Related post: It’s about time to replace your DVD/CD player with a USB External Hard Drive

We recommend that you get an HDD that’s powered by an external power source from your wall socket. That way, the Pi doesn’t have to supply power for your drive. Also having an HDD powered by wall socket means you won’t be tempted to move with it which might increase the risk of it being damaged or stolen, losing your data.

Wireless Router

A home media center couldn’t be complete without a wireless router. The router provides wireless connectivity of the PI to your other home devices. The faster your router is, the better streaming experience you will have. Basic routers support 802.11b/g/n with speeds starting from 11Mbps upto 300 Mbps.

Ordinary users are fine using their Mi-Fis as wireless routers. Since Mi-Fis don’t have LAN ethernet ports, you’ll need your Pi to have a Wi-Fi adopter (for the pi2) or better still get yourself the Pi3 which comes with onboard Wi-Fi chip.

Related Post: Want a MiFi? Here are the top 5 MiFi deals in Uganda with prices and where to buy

If your library contains some full HD movies (1080p), then you’ll experience some buffering with these kinds of routers. 4K video just won’t stream with these routers. Power users might consider going with a Gigabit wireless router that support 802.11ac. These such as Asus RT-AC88U Router boast speeds of up to 3, 167 Mbps.

Related post: Huawei B683 HSPA+ 3G wireless gateway: serve internet to all your devices at home or office

For better user-experience, we recommend you connect the Pi to the router via LAN ethernet cable instead of connecting them through Wi-Fi. LAN Ethernet is stable and won’t be affected by interference, so that guarantees that the Pi will always be connected to the router which is very important. Those using their Mi-Fis where this option is not possible, make sure your Mi-Fi is in close proximity with the Pi for maximum performance and connectivity.

TV set

We all love the lean-back experience that our TVs offer. While some of us watch movies on our little laptops, nothing beats the living room TV set where you can watch movies, videos with everyone at home.

You can hookup your TV in two ways; either directly through HDMI cable. In this case, your TV must have an HDMI port which is the case with most digital flat screen TVs. However, if you still own those CRT tube TVs, then you can use composite video (banana pins) although we’ve not tried it out.

Related post: These are the best Flat screen and Smart TVs with their prices in Uganda

The other way you can stream media from the Pi to your TV is via wireless through the DNLA/UPnP standard. However, your TV must have a Wi-Fi wireless LAN chip. This is mostly with advanced Smart TVs which are very expensive now. The advantage with this setup is that your living room can stay clean of messy cabling. If you’ve an entertainment unit, then you can stuck everything well, so cabling might not be an issue.

Once your TV and Pi are connected, you can use your TV’s remote to control playback and other navigation elements.

Kodi

Finally, a home entertainment center wouldn’t be complete without (arguably) the most popular home media center software out there. Kodi (formerly known as XBMC) is a free media center for playing videos, music, pictures, games, and more. It runs on Linux, OS X, Windows, iOS, and Android. Since Pi operating systems are based on Linux, works flawlessly well with the Pi.

Kodi allows you to play and view most videos, music, podcasts, and other digital media files from local (on the PC) and network storage media. Kodi can play all your music including AAC, MP3, FLAC, OGG, WAV and WMA formats. Kodi can do movies too! Supporting all the main video formats and sources, including streamable online media, ISOs, 3D, H.264, HEVC, WEBM. Kodi allows you to watch and record live TV all from the GUI interface. It is really powerful.

This media center supports add-ons which extend the functionality of Kodi even further. You can for instance install an add-on for lyrics so you can do Karaoke on the big screen. You can install add-ons that pull meta-data for your media. For instance your movies could be well-catalogued with movie reviews from IMDB, Metacritic, rotten tomatoes, cast info, director and the plot. There are add-ons that pull album art for your music, stream Internet-video-streams like YouTube, Hulu, Netflix, and Veoh, and play Internet-radio-stations .

We are big fans of Chorus, a web interface to Kodi which enables you stream your media library from any Web browser.

Finally, Kodi comes with variety of skins to customize the look and feel of your media center the way you like. It supports hundreds of major remote controls, including app-based remotes. It’s absolutely awesome.

Complete list of Kodi Supported formats:

• Physical digital media: Blu-ray Disc (unencrypted), CDs, DVDs, DVD-Video, Video CDs (including VCD/SVCD/XVCD), Audio-CD (CDDA), USB Flash Drives, and local Hard Disk Drives.
• Network protocol clients: AirPlay/AirTunes,UPnP / DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance), SMB/SAMBA/CIFS, AFP, DAAP, Zeroconf/Avahi/Bonjour, NFS, HTTP, HTTPS, WebDAV, FTP, RTSP (RTSPU, RTSPT), MMS (MMSU, MMST), Podcasting, TCP, UDP, SFTP, RTP and RTMP (including RTMP, RTMPT, RTMPE, RTMPTS, RTMPTE, RTMPS, DHCP, NTP.
• Network protocol servers: JSON-RPC server, D-Bus server, Web server, FTP Server, and UPnP AV media server, and a multi-protocol Event Server.
• Container formats: AVI, MPEG, WMV, ASF, FLV, MKV/MKA (Matroska), QuickTime, MP4, M4A, AAC, NUT, Ogg, OGM, RealMedia RAM/RM/RV/RA/RMVB, 3gp, VIVO, PVA, NUV, NSV, NSA, FLI, FLC, DVR-MS and WTV.
• Video formats: MPEG-1, MPEG-2, H.263, MPEG-4 SP and ASP, MPEG-4 AVC (H.264), HEVC (H.265), HuffYUV, Indeo, MJPEG, RealVideo, RMVB, Sorenson, VP8, VP9, WMV, Cinepak.
• Audio formats: MIDI, AIFF, WAV/WAVE, MP2, MP3, AAC, AACplus (AAC+), Vorbis, AC3, DTS, ALAC, AMR, FLAC, Monkey’s Audio (APE), RealAudio, SHN, WavPack, MPC/Musepack/Mpeg+, Shorten, Speex, WMA, IT, S3M, MOD (Amiga Module), XM, NSF (NES Sound Format), SPC (SNES), GYM (Genesis), SID (Commodore 64), Adlib, YM (Atari ST), ADPCM (Nintendo GameCube), and CD-DA.
• Digital picture/image formats: RAW image formats, BMP, JPEG, GIF, PNG, TIFF, MNG, ICO, PCX and Targa/TGA.
• Subtitle formats: AQTitle, ASS/SSA, CC, JACOsub, MicroDVD, MPL2, MPlayer, MPsub, OGM, PJS, RT, SMI, SRT, SUB, RealText, VOBsub, ubViewer, VPlayer.
• Metadata tags: APEv1, APEv2, ID3 (ID3v1 and ID3v2), ID666 and Vorbis comments for audio file formats, Exif and IPTC (including GeoTagging) for image file formats.

David Okwii is the Editor-in-Chief of Dignited.com and a seasoned tech enthusiast whose journey began in the early 2000s. He started blogging while at university, diving deep into mobile apps, smartphone reviews, and operating systems—from testing Linux distros to tweaking Windows machines. David also explores Chromebooks, experiments with Raspberry Pi projects, and brings hands-on curiosity to every review. With vast experience in Uganda’s tech ecosystem and deep knowledge of Africa’s startup landscape, he offers informed, grounded perspectives on consumer technology. When he’s not writing or tinkering, David enjoys connecting with nature and exploring the outdoors.

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Talkio Mobile , Uganda’s newest telecommunications service provider, is excited to announce a groundbreaking partnership with Banana Life Investments, a leading chain of mobile phone and retail shops. This strategic alliance aims to bring Talkio’s innovative telecom services closer to Ugandans.

This collaboration will leverage Banana Life Investments’ extensive retail network of 26 stores strategically located across Uganda in major malls, towns, and cities to provide customers with unparalleled convenience. Through this partnership, Talkio Mobile will offer its full suite of services, including SIM cards, airtime, and exclusive product offerings at any Banana Life Investment location.

This partnership is more than a business initiative—it’s a shared commitment to transforming lives. By integrating Talkio Mobile’s forward-thinking services & nationwide reach with Banana Life Investments’ retail footprint, the two brands are setting a new standard for customer convenience and inclusivity.

READ ALSO: 5 Things You Need to Know About Talkio Mobile: New Telecom Company in Uganda

“This partnership aligns perfectly with our mission of connecting Ugandans to innovative and transformative telecom solutions,” said Vianne Allan Ahura, CEO of Talkio Mobile. “By leveraging Banana Life Investments’ trusted presence and nationwide footprint, we are not only expanding our agent network but also bringing our services closer to the communities we serve. This collaboration ensures that our online customers can now enjoy a seamless offline experience right at their doorstep. Together, we are empowering Ugandans with the tools they need to stay connected, grow their businesses, and unlock new opportunities.”

Solomon Ssemuyaba, the assistant general manager at Banana Life Investments, echoed this sentiment: “We are proud to join hands with Talkio Mobile to deliver innovative, customer-centric solutions. This partnership represents our shared vision of fostering a connected future for Uganda. Together, we are redefining what convenience and accessibility mean for our customers.”

The partnership goes beyond retail distribution, introducing joint initiatives aimed at value addition and personalized service. Customers can expect seamless access to:

• SIM Card Sales : Available at all Banana Life Investments locations.
• Talkio phone number bookings : Book your preferred Talkio number at any Banana Life Investments location.
• Airtime Services : Recharge easily through in-store purchases.
• Customer Support : Friendly and knowledgeable staff trained to assist with Talkio Mobile products and services.

Additionally, the two companies plan to launch promotional campaigns and expand services to even more locations, ensuring no Ugandan is left behind in the digital transformation.

Solomon Obwot is a tech writer based in Kampala, Uganda, with extensive experience in the local tech startup ecosystem. He covers the latest news and analysis on consumer tech, writes in-depth smartphone reviews, and conducts insightful interviews with industry experts. Solomon is also a passionate podcaster, sharing his knowledge and engaging in discussions about Africa’s rapidly growing tech landscape. Send emails to [email protected]

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The Mobile World Congress (MWC) Barcelona , the world’s largest exhibition for the mobile industry, has just concluded. This annual event gathers leading technology brands to unveil groundbreaking mobile, AI, and digital solutions innovations. At MWC 2025, TECNO showcased a range of AI-driven products, reinforcing its commitment to cutting-edge technology.

The key launches included:

• CAMON 40 Series – AI-powered smartphones with One-Tap FlashSnap and advanced mobile imaging features.
• MEGABOOK S14 – The world’s lightest 14-inch OLED laptop, featuring AI-enhanced multitasking and Snapdragon® X Elite.
• MEGABOOK T14 Air & K15S – Lightweight ultrabooks with AI capabilities and extended battery life.
• TECNO AI Glasses Series – Smart eyewear integrating AI imaging, translation, and AR display.

Jan Stryjak, Associate Director at Counterpoint Research, shared, “In the past year, we have observed significant advancements in the field of AI. AI will continue to drive transformative changes in our daily lives. In this critical period for the economic development of emerging markets, TECNO’s AI technologies are unlocking potential for diverse needs.”

“The application of AI technologies is crucial and urgent in emerging markets. We’re committed to bridging the digital gap between emerging and mature markets,” said TECNO CMO, Laury Bai. “TECNO is taking a practical approach to make AI more accessible, ensuring users in emerging markets can access AI and cutting-edge technologies.”

Laury Bai, TECNO CMO

Driven by its commitment, TECNO has forged a robust partnership with MediaTek, establishing a joint AI laboratory dedicated to accelerating advancements in AI. At the event, James Chen, Vice President of Product and Technology Marketing at MediaTek, emphasized, “The synergistic R&D efforts between TECNO and MediaTek are set to democratize AI technology. Our collaboration powers a seamless, interconnected AI experience, bringing users a future of truly connected intelligence.”

James Chen, Vice President, Product and Technology Marketing at MediaTek

CAMON 40 Series Powered by AI One-Tap FlashSnap Revolutionizes Smartphone Snapshot Photography

TECNO’s Global Product Launch Officer, Olivier Mas, officially unveiled TECNO’s next-generation AI-driven products. Attendees at TECNO’s launch event witnessed the highly anticipated debut of TECNO’s new CAMON 40 Series, a device that embodies TECNO’s legacy of excellence in mobile imaging. Featuring One-Tap FlashSnap Mode and TECNO AI, the series sets a new benchmark in smartphone photography, delivering exceptional snapshot capabilities and AI-enhanced user experiences.

Olivier Mas, TECNO Global Product Launch Officer

The CAMON 40 Series exemplifies a commitment to innovation that transcends hardware and software, extending into strategic partnerships that deliver cutting-edge AI solutions to emerging markets. Matt Waldbusser, Managing Director of Global Solutions and Consumer AI at Google Cloud, remarked, “Our collaboration with TECNO on the CAMON 40 Series is a standout example. Leveraging Google Cloud’s capabilities, we’ve introduced groundbreaking features such as Ask Ella, AI Image Generator, AI Writing, and AI Translate. I am particularly impressed by the industry-leading and competitive edge of some of these innovations. For instance, TECNO’s AI supports text translation in 136 languages, voice translation in 44 languages, and photo translation in 51 languages. We are excited to further strengthen our partnership with TECNO, unlocking limitless potential to bring advanced yet practical AI capabilities to emerging markets in a convenient and secure manner.”

Matt Waldbusser, Managing Director of Global Solutions and Consumer AI at Google Cloud

The CAMON 40 Series’ innovative One-Tap FlashSnap leverages AI to enhance imaging capabilities, revolutionizing mobile photography. AI optimizes camera startup and continuous shooting for instant captures, while AI-powered multi-frame processing intelligently reduces noise and enhances details, delivering sharper, more refined images. Additionally, the BestMoment algorithm analyzes motion patterns, automatically selecting the optimal frames for precise, high-quality shots in dynamic scenarios, ensuring users an unparalleled mobile imaging experience.

TECNO CAMON 40 Demonstrates the Cutting-Edge FlashSnap Capability

To delve deeper into the imaging prowess of the CAMON 40 Series, TECNO invited Frédéric Guichard, CEO of DXOMARK, to share the image performance of CAMON 40 Pro. Frédéric highlighted, “The CAMON 40 Pro 5G has demonstrated exceptional imaging and performance capabilities in our rigorous evaluations. We’ve been particularly impressed with photo performance being the best for devices under 600$, and the 1st eligible device to our Smart Choice Label.”

Onsite photo of Frédéric Guichard, CEO of DXOMARK

Beyond its advanced rapid-capture functionality, the integration of TECNO AI further enhances the device’s capabilities. Intelligent imaging, a 360° AI Call Assistant, and productivity tools elevate creativity and efficiency. Powered by MediaTek’s latest chipsets, the series ensures smooth performance, fast processing, and extended battery life. With a sleek, durable, and water-resistant design, it seamlessly blends style with practicality for modern users.

MEGABOOK S14, the World’s Lightest 14-inch OLED Laptop, Inspires Creators and Game Lovers

The MEGABOOK S14 is TECNO’s first OLED laptop and the industry’s lightest 14-inch OLED laptop, featuring a 2.8K OLED display and incredibly weighing only 899g (31.7oz). The laptop is equipped with the outstanding power of the Snapdragon® X Elite compute platform, the flagship chipset for AI PCs from Qualcomm Technologies, and integrates TECNO’s world’s first self-developed edge-side large-scale AI model, to achieve AI-enhanced multitasking.

World’s Lightest 14-inch Laptop MEGABOOK S14

Specifically designed for next-gen AI productivity, TECNO AI enhances the Ella AI Assistant, AI-powered PPT generation, AI-driven image search, smart albums, and offline meeting transcription with multilingual support. The External Graphics Dock, equipped with a powerful NVIDIA graphic card, delivers scalable, high-performance capabilities for design, gaming, and content creation. The laptop’s 2.8K OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate ensures exceptional visuals, while DTS:X Ultra dual 2W speakers, Wi-Fi 6E, fingerprint login, and PC Manager optimize connectivity and user experience.

TECNO’s strategic partnership with Qualcomm Technologies was a highlight of the TECNO AI Ecosystem Product Launch event, demonstrating a shared vision for the future of AI PCs. Kedar Kondap, SVP & GM of Compute and Gaming at Qualcomm, took the stage to discuss the integration of Qualcomm’s cutting-edge PC chipset into the new MEGABOOK S14 laptop, underscoring TECNO’s commitment to delivering high-performance computing solutions.

Kedar Kondap, SVP & GM of Compute and Gaming at Qualcomm

In addition, TECNO also introduced several standout new products. The featherlight 999g (35.2oz) ultrabook MEGABOOK T14 Air, features high-speed storage and LPDDR5 memory, while the ultra-thin, all-metal MEGABOOK K15S, equipped with a powerful 70Wh battery and supported by a 65W PD GaN charger, offers a smarter and more long-lasting user experience. Both devices are empowered by TECNO AI with advanced AI capabilities such as AI Album and AI Voice Assistant, making them perfect companions for all aspects of life.

The Next Game-Changing Tech Innovation: See the World with the TECNO AI Glasses Series

TECNO’s new AI Glasses Series also took center stage with the introduction of TECNO AI Glasses Pro and TECNO AI Glasses, reimagining eyewear with cutting-edge imaging, intelligent interactions, and a sleek aesthetic. The TECNO AI Glasses feature an aviator design, while the Pro model showcases a browline style, both embodying timeless elegance and modern fashion.

TECNO AI Glasses Redefine the Way People See the Future

Equipped with a 50MP high-definition camera, the series integrates an OV50D sensor, a 100° ultra-wide-angle custom lens, and an AI ISP imaging chip, forming a mobile-grade imaging system. This system lets users capture stunning, high-resolution photos with advanced AI noise reduction and HDR capabilities. With real-time translation supporting over 100 languages, TECNO AI’s Ella empowers accurate translation even for less common languages, as well as voice control, AI-powered object recognition, and intelligent information summaries for ultimate convenience.

Additionally, the AI Glasses Pro features a MicroLED display with 7th-gen resin waveguide technology, offering a 30° field of view, over 1,500 nits of brightness AR display, and a lightweight, ultra-thin design. The AR display allows users to effortlessly enjoy features like translation display, navigation, information prompts, and teleprompting.

Equipped with a 250mAh battery, these glasses offer over 11 hours of music playback and 8 hours of mixed use with just 30 minutes of charging. An advanced ultra-linear speaker, bass enhancement, and spatial sound deliver an immersive audio experience, while Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.4 ensure seamless connectivity.

With these innovative launches, TECNO is setting new standards in mobile imaging and AI-enhanced technology, shaping a more connected and empowered future for consumers in emerging markets. Once again, TECNO has showcased its cutting-edge innovation on the global stage at MWC. With the brand essence of “Stop at Nothing”, TECNO’s relentless pursuit of innovation is making AI-powered technology more accessible, allowing consumers to experience the future ahead of time.

Solomon Obwot is a tech writer based in Kampala, Uganda, with extensive experience in the local tech startup ecosystem. He covers the latest news and analysis on consumer tech, writes in-depth smartphone reviews, and conducts insightful interviews with industry experts. Solomon is also a passionate podcaster, sharing his knowledge and engaging in discussions about Africa’s rapidly growing tech landscape. Send emails to [email protected]

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