Last week we asked a question that is surely on the minds of many Google TV users: will Hulu Plus ever make it to Google TV? While there is no foreseeable timeframe for when we may see an answer, there is a way you can watch Hulu Plus on your Google TV using only your computer and a $0.99 app in the Google Play store. With the Plex Media Server and the Plex Google TV app, you can watch Hulu Plus on any Google TV device. Continue reading to learn how.
Plex is a cross-platform media server application that you install on your desktop or laptop computer and access on a variety of devices on your home network. To begin, go to the Plex download page and select your platform (Windows, Mac or Linux). You need to download and install both the Plex Media Center (the interface) and the Plex Media Server (the server) in order to access Hulu Plus on your Google TV.
Once both are installed, make sure the Plex Media Server is running and fire up the Plex Media Center application. From the menu on the left-hand side of the application navigate to Channel Directory. From there, you can easily find Hulu under the Most Popular channels. Simply highlight Hulu, press enter to bring up the available options, and press enter again to install. Once Hulu is installed, you will find it under the Video Channels option in the main menu.
When you open the Hulu channel you will see a variety of options. Visit “preferences” and enter your Hulu email address and password so you will have access to your Hulu Plus subscription. The final step is to visit the Google Play store on your Google TV and purchase the Plex application. It isn’t free, but for only 99 cents it’s a bargain for the ability to watch Hulu Plus on Google TV.
When you fire up the Plex app you are greeted to the settings page. Before you connect to your media server and launch Hulu I highly recommend you go to the bottom of the settings and change the Remote Plex Media Server video quality setting. The higher you can set this, the better quality the picture will be. Once you’ve set your video quality, the final step is to launch the Hulu channel and start watching! (note: if you cannot see your media server listed in the app settings, make sure that both your computer and Google TV are connected to the same network).
Obviously a dedicated Hulu Plus app would be a lot more convenient for users. However, if you’re itching to watch Hulu Plus on your Google TV this is by far the easiest and least expensive method I have come across. Also, stay tuned for a video version of this walkthrough.
8 Responses to How to watch Hulu Plus on Google TV using Plex
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I tried this with googletv but it doesn’t show up as a channel. I have the server running in chromium. I found many other channels but Hulu. Did they stop allowing Hulu?
it moved it is listed under a different category. Launch the Plex Client on your computer, scroll to and select Channel Directory, then select More…, then select “Foreign (Region-Restricted) Plug-ins, scroll down and there you select “Hulu”
Just tried this. Everything works exactly as described, up until the point where I go to actually play the show within Hulu. At that point, I get an error. Not sure what’s going on.
Same problem as @facebook-1097409107:disqus . Cannot get Hulu to play a show. No help at all on the Plex forums or searching around elsewhere, and Plex offers no support; I find this crappy, given that the app costs money ($5 on Android, $1 on GTV). I’ve had no one reply on the (100% volunteer) help chat room, so no help there either.
Just got a google tv from LG. Didn’t realize no Hulu! So I came here for a solution.
I have the exact same problem. Everything works until I try and play a video, then error. On computer AND smart Tv. Please help! may be the difference between keeping and returning a TV we thought we’d love.
Same here! It doesn’t even tell me what’s wrong, just that there was an error playing.
Glad I read the comments before i dove into Hulu. I think I can deal with Netflix, Torrents, and TV Mobili for the time being.
Thank god I read this first. I need Hulu on my google TV!