I first tried Google Cloud Platform and this (or AWS, or some other self-service cloud provider) is a totally viable option, however in my experience it has a higher initial setup time, requires more careful and continuous management, and isn’t as inexpensive as other options. This can take some trial and error - as it did in my case - because it depends on your personal media setup and usage, as well as the time you’re willing to invest. What’s the solution? Let someone else run your server, in the cloud! Not all providers are created equally, and while I pay a monthly fee it’s considerably more fun and more manageable than the headaches associated with owning your hardware.

What I discovered very quickly is that landing a NAS that will serve you well in the long run plus a couple hard drives to cover your storage needs will easily set you back a minimum of $400-$600. But, Plex reportedly found the service untenable in the long-term considering their costs, and that’s what landed me on Amazon looking for Network Attached Storage boxes. Then Plex Cloud came along and solved most of those problems by allowing users to stream media directly from their favorite cloud storage provider (Google Drive in my case), alleviating the need to run your own in-house server. Plus, if you ever want to share your media with friends and family you’re fully beholden to whatever meager bandwidth and upload speed allotment your ISP has bestowed upon you. The idea of not needing a machine in my house on 24/7 to stream my movies and shows to my TV is very appealing: computers and NASes alike have a high upfront cost and a relatively high cost of maintenance (upgraded storage, anyone?), not to mention the cost of electricity to keep them running. For me personally, this was devastating news as I’d purchased a Plex Pass back in the “early days” of Plex Cloud. This September, the makers of Plex - everyone’s favorite way to stream your own media to any device, anywhere - announced their decision to sunset Plex Cloud.

Plex in cloud