Ouya versus Pivos versus ...?

jumbobreakfast

Hi, I'd like to run XBMC and play up to 8GB video files but I also want to run Netflix. I've heard that only the linux version of the Pivos firmware works well but using linux rules out Netlfix as far as I know. The Ouya looks decent but can it play large movie files and is it's XBMC android version better than the Android one on the Pivos?

It's difficult to compare the hardware on these ARM boxes, perhaps I'm missing some other device that blows these two away?

Kur4mA

It's XBMC Android version (built in one available on Ouya market) was just recently release and is buggy in my opinion. The libstagefright version of Android which people have been running on Ouya for a while now is the best Android version of XBMC available right now and in my opinion, it runs better on Ouya than on anything else.

I'll just quote myself from other threads/posts...

kyub wrote: »

There is no comparison between this box and the Ouya in terms of performance. I just went from a Geniatech MyGica EnjoyTV 520 (more powerful than the LittleBlackBox) to an Ouya and the difference in performance is significant and quite noticeable. Here's a quick spec comparison:

LittleBlackBox
Chipset Family: ARM Cortex A9
Chipset Model: Amlogic 8726-M3
Chipset GPU: Mali400
RAM: 1GB

Geniatech MyGica 520 Geniatech manufacture the Pivos boxes and this is actually made in the same factory as a Pivos Xios is, but has a more powerful M6 CPU versus the M3 in the Xios.
Chipset Family:ARM Cortex A9
Chipset Model: Amlogic 8726-M6 (dual core)
GPU: Mali400MP2
RAM: 1GB

Ouya
nVidia Tegra 3
CPU: ARM CortexA9, Quad Core @ 1.6GHz (or 1.7GHz in single-core mode)
GPU: 520MHz ULP GeForce (8 pixel shader units)
RAM: 1GB 1600MHz DDR3

The Tegra is the key. It just spanks anything Mali can put out.

kyub wrote: »

If you have your heart set on an Android media box, I'd give the Geniatech MyGica520 a shot, or else either the Geniatech MyGica 510 or a MiniX Neo X7 for a bit less power. Both are available here:

http://www.futeko.com/browse.php?cat=mp

I've bought from futeko and from dealextreme(shipped from China) and learned my lesson. You think you're getting a bargain from China, but then it takes 3+ weeks to arrive and you get stung on customs. Never again!

One thing I will mention for media, specifically if you are looking to setup XBMC then give these Android boxes a miss. For all the touting, none of them provide a good enough quality XBMC experience imo, apart from the Ouya. It's technically a "console"... I call BS on that BUT it makes a fantastic small form factor media player/centre.

I've tried many combinations of XBMC over the past couple of years, starting with running it on a laptop, then moving to an Acer Aspire Revo running Windows 7. I decided to start simplifying my setup a bit more and switched to XBMC for Android because it's pretty stable these days.

My advice is to get the Ouya and I am telling all of my friends and family the same thing. After trying many of these Android boxes including the Geniatech MyGica EnjoyTV 520 (This is made in the same factory as a Pivox Xios but has a higher spec CPU) and also a non-branded G-Box Midnight, none of them come close to XBMC on Ouya. They do a pretty good job but you won't be able to use certain skins/themes on these lower powered boxes and will notice stuttering and skipping in videos every so often. On the Ouya, XBMC just runs smoothly (the way it should!) even with 1080p HD and you will never see any stuttering plus all of the high end cool looking skins are perfect on it. The key is the nVidia Tegra chip it uses for graphics and it has a slightly better CPU compared to those other boxes too.

NOTE: Passthrough audio (hdmi-cec) does not work on the Ouya so far. If you absolutely must have surround sound audio then don't bother with the Ouya for now. Personally, it doesn't bother me.

So, in terms of a VERY small form factor Media Centre running XBMC on your TV I can guarantee you that right now there is no better bang for buck android solution out there as good as the Ouya.

FYI, all of my content is streaming from a Synology DS212J.

massy086

i am a bit biased as i sell pivo,s units running linux.but i have used both and the pivo,s based boxes once running xbmc linux fly along and play evrything you trow at them.i had two apple tv 2,s and sold both as the pivos boxes run quicker

jumbobreakfast

Kyub, your hands-on experience is what I was looking for so thanks for sharing. I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner but I just looked up the Android performance of the Ouya versus Pivos and the Ouya beats it hands down.

However, the benchmarks can't show the performance of the Pivos when you put the Linux version of XBMC on it which is meant to run a lot better than the Android XBMC version at least on the Pivos. The Pivos has an edge if you only want to run XBMC as the support for the Linux XBMC version on it is more evolved.

massy, thanks for the advice but I want to run Netflix as well as XBMC so that rules out putting Linux on the Pivos. I have to choose an android device and according to the benchmarks the Ouya beats the Pivos hands down.

The lack of HDMI-CEC doesnt bother me right now and it looks like they will fix it.

Benchmarks: http://www.androidbenchmark.net/

Kur4mA

It'll be a long time before Mali can put anything out to rival nVidia in my opinion. That's why the Ouya is outperforming all these other boxes. Yeah, they should hopefully have HDMI-CEC sorted out on the Ouya in a couple of months.