(Part 2) Best products from r/htpc

Some suggestions for keyboard/mice:

Lenovo N5902. Goes on sale regularly.

Logitech K400

Generic keyboard/touchpad remote. There are many slight variants on this.

I've found that due to the size/shape/content of my living room, a wireless receiver plugged into my HTPC doesn't work 100% reliably. I've connected a USB extension cable to the back of my HTPC and run it behind things and under my couch to give me the best reception. Generally you can go up to 15 feet; any longer than that and you need a powered extension.

If you have a Logitech Harmony remote, I highly recommend the OVU4003/00 (RC6) USB IR reciever. Once set up with Windows and the Harmony remote, it works with XBMC/Kodi out of the box. This receiver was branded as HP/Dell/Gateway/Philips and probably many more. A Flirc is another option but it is ugly (IMO) and more expensive.

Regarding hardware, if you aren't gaming you don't need a lot. When using older gear the most important thing is video hardware acceleration. For Intel machines, you need something with at least GMA 4500 (Q45 chipset) graphics or later, and for AMD you need something with at least a 760G chipset. This hardware dates back to 2008/2009. Dedicated graphics cards should be at least a Radeon HD 2600 or a GeForce 8500. These cards date back to 2006/2007. CPUs are a grey area, but any mainstream dual core CPU (Athlon X2, Core 2 Duo) from 2007+ should be able to handle most everything. My first HTPC had an AMD Athlon X2 5000+ and it's still working just fine with W7 and Kodi.

If you want to game (and don't want to use a device like the DOKO), you'll need to find a quiet case that supports full length video cards. There are a bunch available, and I'm not sure if this has changed in the last 2-3 years, but the vast majority of HTPC cases large enough to support full size gear and M-ATX motherboards are simply too long to fit in a standard A/V rack or TV stand. The only exceptions I am aware of are the Silverstone GD05 and GD04. I'd be willing to bet that Silverstone has some other cases that will work also.

Additionally, you'll want to find a PSU, case fans and CPU cooler that are quiet and efficient. The best resource for this is http://www.silentpcreview.com/.

Lastly, if your A/V receiver has only S/PDIF audio inputs (no HDMI) and you want to play games in 5.1 surround sound, you're going to need to find either a sound card or motherboard with an S/PDIF output that supports DTS-Connect and/or Dolby Digital Live. Motherboards stopped coming with this around 2008 (AFAIK) and the cheapest option to get it in an add-on card is the Sound Blaster Z.

Excellent build. I have nearly identical requirements to you and my rig is very similar to yours.

The processor I used was the A8-3870k (it was cheaper for me than the 3850 in Canada) and I went with a micro ATX setup because the case of my choice was mATX.

You will have no problems with that processor. It's simply a monster. Plays and processes flawlessly. XBMC runs perfect. I've got my OS and programs on a 120GB SSD so everything is snappy!

1. For the SSD mounting, you can pick up adapters for less than $10 that let you mount them into standard 3.5" bays. However, someone above mentioned using velcro which is a simple alternative and should work fine.
   
   
2. Wifi cards are a dime a dozen nowadays so you'll probably have to get a standard card. Just get one that's wireless n compatible with a solid speed (you can get a wireless n 300 Mbps card for about $30). Your router may not even be that fast so you can adjust accordingly.
   
   
3. I know you said you didn't want a keyboard/mouse but this one is really good I swear: [Logitech K400] (http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Wireless-Keyboard-Multi-Touch-920-003070/dp/B005DKZTMG). It looks nice and is very useful. You'll need a keyboard whenever you need to tweak things or use the web browser so this thing is great.
   
   I have the K400 and also a cheap [MCE remote] (http://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-Microsoft-Center-Control-Receiver/sim/B006TPPVKE/2) which is great for non-tech savvy people in my house.
   
   
   Overall I think you'll be very pleased with that build. Have fun!

The Xbox One Media Remote works beautifully for Kodi when paired with Flirc. It's what I'm using right now. Flirc is a little receiver that allows you to use any remote with your PC, so depending on how much money you feel like spending on your setup, you could get by with just a flirc and a remote you already own. Read more about it here (it has a built-in Kodi profile for Kodi-specific buttons). I've set mine up so every button on the remote is used: Xbox button for Home, view (top left) is mapped to tab (so it'll bring up/dismiss the Kodi interface while a video is playing),
menu (top right) is mapped to info, the OneGuide button to toggle subtitles, up/down pill to scroll to top/bottom of list, and the rest as they are labeled. It feels quite natural with the symbols matching up with the Kodi functions.

To control Windows with any controller you like (Xbox 360/Xbox One/any Xinput controller - so maybe even a DualShock depending on how you set it up), use this app called Controller Companion. It's an inexpensive little utility that makes navigating all aspects of the Windows interface a breeze. Has neat text input, so anything that requires a mouse and keyboard can be handled with this. I'm using it with my Xbox One controller + wireless receiver. I tried Xpadder before, but this felt more sophisticated. It optionally launches with Windows and disables itself when you enter a fullscreen game so you can play the game with the controller, taking over again when you're back at the desktop (can be overridden, also has customisable shortcuts). Supports Steam Big Picture and lets you launch it by pressing the Xbox Guide button.

Otherwise, +1 to that Logitech Harmony j4nds4 mentioned if you're looking for a more traditional remote, that's come up in the research I did too.

You mentioned PinMore for custom tiles. I use it, it's great, but it doesn't support regular apps. I haven't tested it yet but it looks like TileCreator can do that. Lastly if you want to get a little adventurous, check out EventGhost. Came across it a long time ago in the context of remotes but I use it for other things now (directory watcher). You may find it useful for your HTPC.

Couple of things:

Recording TV: The Hauppauge Collossus isn't a video card. It's a video capture system. I wouldn't recommend it for your purposes. Since you're already with Comcast, stick with them and pick up a cablecard tuner like a Ceton InfiniTV or SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime. Those will allow you to tune TV channels, record them (via Windows Media Center or various other options), and you can remove commercials with various tools. I wouldn't recommend switching to DirecTV or any US satellite provider since there are no PC satellite tuners that work with them.

Remote Control: To use your Logitech 900 remote, you'll need some sort of interface for your PC (something like this). These will be IR-based, but your 900 is RF so you'll need to find the IR blasters it came with.

Components:

• The i5 is way overpowered for what you'll be doing. You would be fine with an i3. IMHO, a build like this is better suited to AMD's APU chips based on power per dollar. That said, you won't need a separate video card with any of these, since the onboard GPUs are good enough for 1080p video (the AMD APUs have much better onboard GPUs unless you switch up to a Haswell CPU, but then that's super overkill)
  
• Your RAM is wrong. You should pair it (2x4GB, not 1x8GB) and 1866 is unnecessary for an intel-based build. Go with 1600 instead. However if you do switch to an AMD build, 1866 is a good idea.
  
• I really hope your RAID plans are to mirror the two 4TB drives together (4TB usable space), not striping them (non-redundant 8TB usable space -- if one drive dies, you will lose everything on them). Also, add a smaller (128GB or so) SSD for your OS and app installation. You don't want to install that on your data drives.
  
• Your power supply is way over spec. You probably don't need more than 300W, though I would look for a good 450-550W PSU from a reputable manufacturer and with a modular design (helps with keeping the interior nice and tidy, since you only need a bare handful of the connections provided). Something like this, for example.
  
• You say you want to rip Blu-Rays, but you don't have a BD-ROM. Gonna need to fix that.
  
  This is the HTPC that I just put together over the weekend (not mentioned there is the Microsoft-branded Windows Media Center IR receiver I use with my Harmony One). I already had some parts (power supply, data HDD, tuners) and went with a tower form factor case, but you should still get the idea.

I guess it depends on what specifically you would like to do. Windows has speech recognition which is actually something separate from [Hey] Cortana. It allows you to navigate and click things in apps, but the app has to be designed in a way that accessibility tools can work. I don't know how well it works with Plex, but I'd guess its not a great experience.

I think the best setup would be either an Amazon Echo or Google Home paired with a Logitech Harmony Hub. The Harmony Hub has a pair of skills that let you control various aspects of your home theater via Alexa or OK Google. Once you teach the Harmony Hub about your HTPC/Plex, TV, A/V receiver, etc its a pretty neat experience.

If you really just want to control only Plex Media Player then an Amazon Echo with the Plex skill might be enough.

I have a QNAP TS-420, which as of this posting is available on Amazon for under $500 (without drives). I currently have 3x 2TB Seagate drives in there in a RAID5 array with 1 bay currently free. I've been using it for a bit over 3 years now for a variety of uses and I'm very pleased with it. Some notes from my experience:

• Have had a drive die twice. Each time, I ordered a new drive, popped it in, the RAID5 rebuilt in under an hour and all my data was perfectly fine. Data was accessible in the interim.
  
• I run 2 HTPCs, one in the living room and one in the bedroom, which access media stored on this PC. Access and streaming of my >600 movie collection has been pretty flawless.
  
• I installed MySQL and both HTPCs use a shared database stored on the NAS instead of locally. This allows stopping in one room and resuming in another. Once I had XBMC configured correctly, this has worked pretty flawlessly for me as well.
  
• Apps, such as PHPMyAdmin, Plex server, Dropbox and much more are available to install using a useful/intuitive Admin UI, although probably a bit overstyled does make management easy.
  
• I also use this NAS as personal file storage for backup purposes so my data is stored redundantly to avoid loss. As a result, I don't need large storage capacities on any other of my systems. I actually don't have a desktop at all, just laptops that reach the NAS via SMB as a mounted volume.
  
• I do some local web development and I also use this NAS as my local MySQL server. This was no sweat, just a couple of clicks to install PHPMyAdmin and I was good to go.
  
  Here's a screenshot example of what my Storage Manager looks like to give an idea of layout and disk space overhead.
  
  I've been very pleased with this unit's performance to date and would recommend including it in your comparison. I previously had a Synology NAS that had several issues and then one day simply decided it would forget that my drives were in an array, would only see them as Unformatted and ask me if I wanted to create a new array, which basically made my data effectively gone without forensic retrieval, a huge PITA.
  
  TL;DR - QNAP TS-420 is a solid and affordable option. Would recommend.
  
  Hope this helps!

I have a Logitech K400 for the family room and a K830 for my bedroom.

Everyone in my house loves the K400 and it handles being treated like a remote (tossed on the couch, falling on the rug etc) very well.

Only thing is this: I personally turn off tap to click, tap to drag and a bunch of other stuff to keep me from accidentally clicking and dragging and zooming whenever I touch the touchpad. But the K400's software (SetPoint) doesn't retain its settings very well and I find myself doing all that crap anyway and having to re-apply my settings quite often.

So if you're considering the K400, I suggest focusing on the K400 Plus which is basically the same thing but uses newer software that actually retains whatever settings you want.

The K830 is very nice but it's pricey and was a bit of a splurge. The backlight is great, the software (Logitech Options) retains its settings and it has a premium feel to it. Honestly though, its a very close experience to the K400/K400 plus so I wouldn't spring for anything besides a 50 dollar refurbished one.

Just for reference, I've also used a Lenovo N5902. Although backlit, the sensor thingy was pretty awkward to use so I upgraded to this Iogear Multimedia Keyboard. It was comfortable to use but the trackball didn't survive long being used my my gf's kids. The keycaps would pop off as well. I've also used just a wireless keyboard and mouse which was a pain.

I have a Harmony Home Hub, Harmony Ultimate, and Harmony Keyboard.

https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Harmony-Keyboard-Ultimate-Remotes/dp/B00LTKGFCW?SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-brave-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B00LTKGFCW

https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Harmony-Control-Entertainment-915-000238/dp/B01KIKBZ5K?SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-ipad-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B01KIKBZ5K

https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Harmony-Ultimate-One-Universal/dp/B00IAKLM54?SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-brave-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B00IAKLM54

That gets you 1 remote that powers everything, 1 keyboard that can also control everything (meaning even if you just want to interact with your ps4, you can do it through the keyboard OR the remote) and a hub that ALSO allows you to control everything with your phone, control other smart home stuff (like lights) and keeps everything in sync (so they keyboard and remote both know the "state" of all of the devices, which input everything should be on, etc).

​

We have an 8 month old who's starting to crawl so i've been downsizing tech to prevent him from breaking stuff.

​

I just sold my HTPC and am looking to sell my harmony gear as a package. PM me and we can talk price cause its perfect for you. I just want it to end up in a good home.

This Lenovo Multimedia Remote is my favorite for a nondescript keyboard/mouse combo that's perfectly at home on a coffee table. It's extremely comfortable in your hand and is a nice, compact all-in-one controller for an HTPC. If you keep your eye out you occasionally see it go on sale for around $30. It's back-lit and works quite well, though the range leaves some to be desired. Get a USB extension and locate the receiver somewhere in the open for best results.

Also, the Logitech Dinovo Mini is quite popular but I don't have personal experience with it. I'd like to pick one up if it ever drops below $40 or so but I've been content enough with my Lenovo remote to not have a need to pay more to replace it.

With any HTPC, however, I strongly recommend having a cheap wireless KB+M combo hidden behind your couch or in a drawer for times when you need to spend time on the PC side. Doing extensive install/configuration or troubleshooting with just a basic HTPC remote will drive you nuts otherwise.

I use FlexRaid to create a raid for my data - and I have a few Green drives but now I only use WD RED drives. They're supposed to be better at being in an array, now I'm not sure if it actually is better or marketing hype - but it makes me feel better.

http://www.amazon.com/WD-Red-NAS-Hard-Drive/dp/B008JJLW4M/

Hey, thanks for the reply!

Could you give me a guide or some examples of plugins you use for WMC? Would I be able to stream netflix/hulu directly through WMC? I have been looking at assassin's htpc blog and see that he uses the Pearl theme and the cover art plugin (link)[http://assassinhtpcblog.com/?page_id=39].

As for the CPU, I am going to get the i3-2100T. It is 35W version of the i3-2100. It has Intel HD 2000 integrated graphics which I am a bit concerned about, but if anything starts to slow I can pop a fanless video card in.

I didn't see the benefit of going to H77 from H77. Any thoughts? It looks like it just enabled the ability to overclock (they both have hyperthreading, which i3-2100T should have), which I don't plan on doing.

Do you have a recommendation for a DTV card? I have a Mohu Leaf and with that I am looking at this DTV. I am confused between digital and analog, but I think I am 100% digital.

Yeah, I've decided to leave out the optical drive for now. No need for it immediately (the idea is to store all media there, not export it from there). Also, I think I will be fine with the audio situation. I will just have to see how it all works out, I've never had a problem before with those speakers.

Could you tell me a bit about your NAS setup? Are your HTPC and NAS connected via ethernet cords or is one/both wireless. Also what router are you using? What filesystem do you use (NTFS or exFAT seem like my options)? I have an interest in a Drobo FS, but I can't buy both a NAS and HTPC at the same time.

Thanks!

I've been trying to figure out how to squeeze a second 3.5 HDD into my Silverstone SG13. Same, it's my HTPC, so I don't have a GPU.

I saw a thread where someone mentioned a PCIE bracket for mounting HDDs. Most of them are for 2.5 HDDs but I did find this one: https://www.amazon.com/Crest-Panel-Mounting-Bracket-Internal/dp/B01LZQGZ95/ref=sr_1_4?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1542993345&sr=1-4&keywords=pcie+hdd+bracket

​

I haven't actually pulled the trigger (I still might go for the Seagate 4TB 2.5s, there's some shuckable externals on sale for a really good price in my area), so I can't comment on how well it works. One of the comments complains that it's not very sturdy with a heavy 3.5 HDD in there, but it looked like that was with a horizontal PCIE bracket / vertical motherboard. With a vertical PCIE bracket / horizontal motherboard like in the SG13 I think it should be a lot sturdier, since it has the whole length of the PCIE bracket to support the weight of the HDD against gravity instead of just the narrow width of the bracket. So I think it would be okay in a case with vertical PCIE slots.

Doesn't have to be the SG13, but it's an option you might consider if you can find a case with one 3.5 slot and for sure don't need a GPU or the PCIE slots.

I definitely considered this HTPC build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Type|Item|Price

----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i3-4130T 2.9GHz Dual-Core Processor | $140.14 @ Amazon
Motherboard | ECS H81H3-I/HDMI (V1.0) Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard | $56.99 @ Mwave
Memory | *Kingston HyperX Blu 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 Memory | $47.73 @ NCIX US
Storage | Crucial MX100 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive | $82.11 @ Amazon
Case | Antec ISK 300-150 Mini ITX Desktop Case w/150W Power Supply | $78.24 @ Mwave
Other| Windows 8.1| Purchased
| | Total
| Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available | $405.21
| *Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria |

And this NAS unit with one 3TB WD Green to start with. I'm still not sure if that would be better or worse, and it would come in at around the same price.

My home layout has the router necessarily located in my entertainment center, so the only options for "hiding the server" would be to go wireless or running a long wire, neither of which are great. I'd also like to be able to serve multiple 1080p transcodes simultaneously, so I'm very wary of dropping the server CPU.

I have one of these and it is the greatest thing ever. I have rechargeable batteries in it and I'm good to go. The air mouse feature is absolutely legit. I recommend placing the USB receiver somewhere close to your TV. Despite that it works over radio frequencies, it can sometimes behave like a line-of-sight device. I have my usb receiver attached to one of these -https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-Extension-Cable-Male-Female/dp/B014RWATK2/ref=sxin__pb?crid=ZP6W072XSS8A&keywords=usb+extension+cable&pd_rd_i=B014RWATK2&pd_rd_r=3c2dd2d2-78c5-4b11-8ed7-8f0644c82608&pd_rd_w=ZrxJO&pd_rd_wg=G5t6Q&pf_rd_p=50bbfd25-5ef7-41a2-86d6-74d854b30e30&pf_rd_r=GMHXBNSF7QH5XARH0PD2&qid=1572375861&sprefix=usb+exten%2Caps%2C140

taped to the bottom of my TV. You can't even tell the receiver is there.

Controlling the mouse with your remote is absolutely a game changer

edit: I mean you move your hand around with the controller to control the cursor

This was what I was running before I purchased a receiver: LP2020A+ Amp and Dayton Audio B652

This is only 2.0, but it sounded great and it was less than $100.

You would most likely need something like this if you plan on getting a passive subwoofer, or this if you plan on running a powered subwoofer.

I highly recommend anyone new to home audio head over to /r/zeos and then /r/hometheater

I have this keyboard. Use it in the living room. It's not terrible, but I find that it tends to click on stuff I didn't mean to click on, no matter how delicate I am with the touch pad. Maybe it's just mine but it's super annoying. For another room I decided to take a chance on [this] (http://www.amazon.com/Rii-Wirelesss-Touchpad-Keyboard-Android/dp/B00JO80LUI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1426788882&sr=8-1&keywords=rii+keyboard) and was surprised to find that it worked much, much better. I'm not saying don't go with the Logitech, but if you want to try something cheaper... Plus you can charge it via USB (no more batteries) and it has two options for mouse buttons (right and left) which I find are easier to use.

I love this thing. Works great on my raspberry pi. I'm getting a mini PC with a full desktop install because this keyboard/ mouse combo is great to use.

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00I5SW8MC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

OK, so for remote I use this with a flirc. That way I have a truly universal remote with physical buttons (better for operating in the dark) for not a lot of cash. I do have a Logitech K400 for the rare times when I need a full keyboard.

For a case, I have the Silverstone ML03B. Small form factor and really blends with the other components. Depending on your CPU, you may not even need an aftermarket cooler. I have the i3 4130T with a stock cooler and it's dead silent. I built 2 years ago, and at the time, the only gaming I was doing was emulating old-school NES through some Gamecube. EDIT: So I only used the intel integrated graphics (HD 4400). /EDIT If you do want/need a GPU, you'd need a half-height to fit the case. Just last week I picked up a GTX 750 ti. It improved Dolphin emulation dramatically, and runs Skyrim at 1080p on Ultra settings at 60 fps.

Hopefully that answered some of your questions. If you have any more, feel free to ask.

5½" high speakers are a tough find with any quality in mind. What sort of width do you have available? There is a chance you can get decent speakers and lay them down on their sides if you have some space.

These Emotiva XRM 4 monitors are a good example of a speaker that is EXACTLY 5½" wide. They are also on sale currently.

Since a HTPC is all you have you can get a setup like this.

• $32 Behringer UCA202 Better than just about any soundcard with proper RCA outs.
  
  
• $96 DTA-100a A good 50wpc T-amp for powering the speakers.
  
  
• $90 Dayton Sub-100
  
  How You wire this 2.1
  
  If you want the amp to auto power on and off you can look at some sort of Smart power strip.

Are you powering up from a full shutdown? If so, you could enable the 'power on after power failure' in the bios and use a remote like the Harmony home control to switch on the outlet that the computer is plugged into. You'll get some bonus vampire power savings when the computer is off too...

You could also do a similar thing with a smart power strip that has a control outlet and a switched outlet (like this) so that your HPTC receives power when, for example, you turn your TV on.

Or if you want to get goofier, you could hack a wireless doorbell to work as a power switch for your computer.

Also, it sounds like you just need to bend the contacts in the case's power switch connector to make better contact with the mobo pins.

>I need something that can get me closer to the tv

Small font size can be a problem with HTPCs, which is why good HTPC software includes a 10 foot user interface. These include XBMC and kylo for internet browsing.

>something with a keyboard and mouse tray

Aside from PC gaming, you can avoid this requirement with some research. merreborn's suggestion looks promising. I use a gyration air music remote and love it. Even with PC gaming, many people find game-pads more living-room friendly. With the right software, you can even use a game-pad as a mouse/keyboard replacement.

>I would also prefer the chair to be small enough to fit in a corner of the room when I'm not using it.

When you can do everything from the couch, it makes any extra sometimes-used furniture completely unnecessary.

For anything you need to do that isn't available in a 10' UI (such as torrenting or the like), consider a netbook or tablet for computing from the couch.

In any case, I would recommend getting in the paradigm of using an HTPC from the couch. It's such a better experience... or else move your TV to your desk. I've done the chair-in-the-living-room thing, and its the worst of both worlds.

I haven't really been looking into peripherals like that, as I was going to experiment with setting up some xbox360 controllers to do most everything for me. Perhaps something like this? It's not a name brand but it seems to get pretty good reviews overall.

I have a gyration air mouse for my htpc, and while the idea is cool, it sorta skips and laggy and stuff. I've determined the cause of this is due to a bluetooth keyboard I have that runs on 2.4 and stuff, so I have come to the conclusion for htpc you cant beat good old IR.

Consider getting a flirc, best money you will ever spend. THen you can use any remote you have in your house.

My personal favorite for the htpc is the xbox one remote.
https://www.amazon.ca/Microsoft-6DV-00005-Xbox-Media-Remote/dp/B00IAVDPSA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1481772101&sr=8-1&keywords=xbox+remote

For 20 bucks canadian, what else could you ask for? It's backlit and everything!

Yeah, it looks OK. I'm not crazy about having to stand-up (yet another) server port on my HTPC box, but meh... Would be really nice if the folks at Plex would build something native for Alexa or Google Home, but I'm not counting on that!

EDIT: Looks like Alexa has a Plex Skill.

For the love of anything holy, don't use green. WD Red!

I used Green and it bit the dust just within the warranty period. I begged WD and got an upgrade to Black.

I now run Red in my NAS with a Crashplan backup.

the idea with kodi (XBMC has been renamed) is that the user interface allows for opening those files via remote (another example), in a way that is easy to do from the couch. Hence a high wife acceptance factor. And since Kodi can be installed on a cheap android stick, apps can sit alongside your PC's saved content. example

Some other UI's

The Buffalo ones are nice; not too expensive but good features and interface, I use one at work.

At home I got started with this one: Lenovo IX2 2-Bay Diskless Network Storage (70A69003NA)

It's been great so far, it was cheap at the time and is solid. My only regret is that with only two days I don't have much upgrade room.

What remote are you using? I purchased an HP Media Center IR receiver (similar to: http://www.amazon.com/HP-REMOTE-CONTROL-RECEIVER-EMITTER/dp/B004PXJGXU/ref=sr_1_5?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1374425165&sr=1-5&keywords=hp+windows+media+center+remote) and it works great with my Logitech Harmony 900.

I use one of these (came with my little nettop), which removes the need for a mouse/keyboard tray:

http://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-Multimedia-Remote-Keyboard-N5901/dp/B0036VO67I

I wouldn't want to surf reddit with one, but it's good enough for starting a movie.

XBMC Remote, Gmote remote and Unified Remote are all Android apps that I use for controlling my htpc from my phone and tablet. I also have a wireless keyboard, a cheapo Windows Media remote (have never used) and that lenovo. All have their uses.

You can get one of these:
http://www.amazon.com/Multimedia-Remote-Keyboard-N5902-Non-backlit/dp/B00BV9N3M6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1407861553&sr=8-2&keywords=lenovo+remote

There is also a backlit version but its a bit more expensive.

Personally I use this:
http://www.amazon.com/Hausbell-H7-Wireless-Entertainment-Keyboard/dp/B00B9996LA/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1407861626&sr=8-2&keywords=htpc+remote

Haven't had any issues.