Kodi is a really good media player for your local home network. It's easier to access those files than VLC. PLayback is more reliable than say Plex apps. I dont' really use any of the apps, but spin up kodi to play files on my network. You can use it to play slideshows of photos too. I wish I used it more, depended on it because it's so good.
It's a good move to move the name 'Kodi' away from piracy though as it's now a household name just like Napster was.