Bazzite, ChimeraOS and LibreELEC come to mind as distros fit for HTPC/console experiences.
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LibreELEC all day if you're just watching/listening (minus a little emulation support (OH and moonlight docker addon))
Just enough os for Kodi with a little more sizzle
ChimeraOS? digging in now
I used to run kodi on linux on intel NUC's connected to all our TV's a while ago. I don't remember it being particularly unreliable. The issue that made me change that setup was hardware decoding support in 4k for newer codecs.
What I've had doing that frontend function ( kodi, jellyfin, disney plus, netflix etc ) for the last few years is three Nvidia shield TV pro's which have been absolutely awesome. They are an old product now and I suspect Nvidia are too busy making money to work on a newer generation version of them,
The biggest surprise improvement was how good it was being able to ( easily ) configure their remotes to generate power on / off and volume up and down IR codes for the TV or the AV amp they were using so you only need a single remote.
Separating the function of the backend out from the frontend in the lounge has reduced the broken mess that happens around OS upgrades drastically.
Separating the function of the backend out from the frontend
this is the way.
home server in basement running almalinux, which provides mythtv, plex library, homeassistant, calibreweb, podcast management
desktop/gaming pc in home office
chromecast/google tv in living room with kodi, plex, other streaming apps, steam link for streaming games from downstairs and using bluetooth xbox controllers