Connecting Time Capsule to Samsung TV

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Hi,

I have a samsung smart TV and want to connect my time capsule to it to view all my movies, pictures & music. The time capsule is connected to my router (BT hub 3) via a network cable and to the TV via a USB cable. My Mac sees the time capsule on the network but the TV does not recognise it at all.

I have made sure that the TC has a short name with no spaces or funny characters, I have set security to WPA 2 personal
The network name is also short without spaces etc.

The TV does not see the TC at all, what am I not doing/doing wrong?

I know Apple & Samsung are not exactly buddies but the TC should surely work with a smart TV?
 
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They need to be on the same network. No USB connection.

You need to connect your TC (in bridge mode if you're using the BT router) and the TV to the BT router.

You TV also needs to be able to navigate folder structures. No all can. Some need the network disk to be DLNA compatible.
 
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welshred
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Hi,

Thanks for your reply, the TC is connected to the TV via USB but it is also connected to my router via a network cable. Do I need to remove the USB?

My TV is the Samsung UE46F8000
 
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Yes, remove the USB. It's doing nothing but confusing the issue.

I've looked at the Samsung site for that TV and the capabilities aren't clear as much as it's in Manufacturer-specific-speak like "allshare" and "connectshare".

If you can navigate folders etc on the TC from your Mac it's obviously on the network and configured correctly.
To the same end if you can connect to the internet features of the TV then that must be connected to the network OK.

So it's just finding the right feature/function on the TV to browse network folders.
 

bobtomay

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The TV does not support HFS+... it reads FAT, exFAT and NTFS.

And I especially like these lines in the owners manual:

The TV may not be able to recognise the USB device or read the files on the device
Certain digital cameras and audio devices may not be compatible with the TV
If there are multiple USB devices connected to the TV, the TV might not be able to recognise some or all the devices
USB devices that use high-power input (500mA or 5V) may not be supported
When connecting a smartphone or tablet to the TV using PTP mode, it may not be recognised

In other words - we put a USB port there, but you are on your own, we do not support this option on this TV.

You really need to open the owner's manual for any shot at getting it working - available here if you don't have yours.
 
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I went out and bought a WD passport drive (2tb) as the guy in the shop assured me it would work. I was not so sure as it was bus powered not mains powered but the option was better than mains powered as I'd be moving the drive often between TV and Mac.

Took it home, reformatted it to be Mac compatible but it was not recognised by the TV due to the file system (as you pointed out above) which I realised when it did not work.

I reformatted it again and the TV then recognised the drive so I thought RESULT...I have cracked it but then it would not play a movie I had put on the drive, the TV would freeze then switch itself off when I played the movie file.

My only conclusion is that the TV could not handle the data rate from the drive via bus power so back to the shop I go today for a refund and I'll purchase a mains powered 2tb drive instead.

I am confident a mains powered drive will do the trick.
 
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What happened to the TC?

Hopefully you'll have more luck with a mains powered drive. But in my experience SMART TVs tend to be anything but. As you can see from the manual there are so many caveats to success.

You'll have far more success and ease of use getting a dedicated player. A network capable blu-ray player or even something like a RaspberryPI with RASPMC (XBMC) on it would do the trick. It'll read from your TC no problem.
There are many options out there but I don't know one person that uses a 'SMART' TV as a regular and reliable media player. Hopefully you'll be the exception
 
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I still have the TC but have given up on using it for this purpose.

Can you elaborate on a dedicated player? you mention network blu-ray player?

If it helps, I have the following devices...

2 x iMacs
Time Capsule (currently used to back up 2 iMacs (hourly, as I run a business)
WD 1TB My Book World edition (the white light model) this is what much of my media is on currently but it is not compatible with the TV
Samsung smart TV model UE46F8000

All I want to achieve is all my media in one place accessible on my TV without the need for my iMac to be on.
I am going down the HDD route but would consider a dedicated player if it suits my needs better.
 
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The WD drive you have is DLNA compatible NAS drive. That's perfect for this situation. I'm VERY surprised you're TV can't pickup content straight from here (connected to the network not USB).

You have to log into the drive and make sure the content folders are setup to be 'advertised' on the network by the DLNA server built-into the drive. This is a one time setup.
Basically DLNA servers advertise 3 folders Pictures, Music, Video. Using the web interface for your WD drive you point the DLNA setup to the folder that has your videos in. Assuming this is your drive see Page 70 onwards.

Once that's done your TV will see the content. I believe Samsungs Allshare is their re-branding of the DLNA standard.

Going down the dedicated player route consider something like this:
WD TV Play Media Player: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics
or
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00BHBFECU/

With any kind of playback you need to check where the formats your content is in is compatible (e.g. mp4, xVid, AVI, MKV and the many variants).
 
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I have just spoken to WD and Samsung and apparently "allshare" is not DNLA but there own software to work seamlessly with other samsung products such as their smartphones. DNLA products are not compatible.

apparently my only option is a standard USB external drive that is mains powered or as you say a media player.

So it's back to the shop for me to switch the Passport drive for a main powered one.
 
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welshred
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Hmmm, they were adamant on the phone it won't work, problem is I have a Mac not a PC and even then it's a streaming option via my PC (Mac) not direct to TV from device.

I had hoped the TV would recognise the network drive in the network without going through a PC/Mac.

The only access I have to a PC is via my cloud based server I use for my business. That is windows.

I did spot this on the web, not sure if it's of any use though...

SAMSUNG KIES
 
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The source (PC/Mac/NAS drive etc) doesn't matter so long as it's a DLNA server
 
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It can't do any harm to drop a file in the videos folder on your NAS and try and reach it from the TV
 
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I tried that but it did not work, I have just returned from my local electronics store with a brand new WD 3TB USB drive. I will partition it now so my Mac recognises it then I'll drop a couple of files on it and see what happens when I connect it up to the TV. I'll report back when it's done.
 
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Didn't work in what way?

Bear in mind your USB disk will need to be formatted in a way the TV can read. I.e. fat32, exFat or NTFS
 

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