Summary created by Smart Answers AI
In summary:
- PCWorld reviews Bunny Ears TV, a new Apple TV app that transforms your Plex Media Server library into 24/7 streaming channels with cable-like navigation.
- The app creates up to 26 themed channels from personal video collections, offering ad-free channel surfing with DVR controls and customizable features.
- Despite some usability issues and bugs, it provides an effective alternative to ad-heavy free streaming services for $3/month or $30 lifetime.
While lots of free streaming services offer lineups of live TV channels to flip through, they all have the same problem: Youâre not in control of the content, and youâre constantly interrupted by ads.
A new app called Bunny Ears TV aims to solve those problems with help from Plex Media Server. If you have an Apple TV box and your own collection of movie or TV files in Plex, Bunny Ears TV can spin them into dozens of round-the-clock streaming channels with practically no effort.
Itâs a neat app that mimics the channel surfing of cable using your own content, but unlike with cable, there are no commercial breaks.
A better way to watch free streaming channels
A quick refresher on Plex Media Server: This is a program you can run on a desktop computer or NAS device, and it will stream media files from that computer to your phone, TV, and other devices. Plex Media Server is free to use, though some features require a Plex Pass subscription.
Where do those media files come from? Plex itself offers an over-the-air DVR feature (Plex Pass required) that can record local channels from antenna. Beyond that, you can rip a DVD collection, record from streaming services with PlayOn, or use a tool like YT-DLP to download YouTube videos. (I wonât be naive and pretend that people arenât putting pirated videos on their Plex servers as well.)
Regardless of where the content comes from, Bunny Ears TV provides an alternative way to watch it, separate from…