Android Boxes

Backstreet Moyes

Does anybody know where to get these in town and if they are worth buying?

average_runner

Nuts102 wrote: »

Does anybody know where to get these in town and if they are worth buying?

Ordered them off the web as cheaper, I got one during the week, basically it's a streaming tool, links can go up and down etc

Backstreet Moyes

average_runner wrote: »

Ordered them off the web as cheaper, I got one during the week, basically it's a streaming tool, links can go up and down etc

Have you a link to the website to buy them online?

Also is it hard to switch around links not for myself but the father loves sport so this would be great for him but he wouldn't have a clue about streaming.

mytime

There's a place on Parnell street that sells them, I don't have one myself but passed this place the other day


https://www.facebook.com/smarttvbox.ie

Wanderer78

theres about a billion websites to buy these from at this stage. sorry cant recommend any of them since i havent purchased one yet as i run the main program that is used on these boxes on my computer. boxes are sold on the usual though, i.e. amazon, ebay, aliexpress, gearbest, DealeXtreme etc. just be careful purchasing from the asian sites, it looks like some are getting caught with customs charges upon delivery. i have realised these boxes arent exactly user friendly so that may be an issue for you and your father. links regularly go down and theres a lot of tinkering required to keep them going. these boxes work well on pre-recorded stuff, i.e. movies, tv shows etc, but live streams are very hit and miss, in fact they aint great even though im currently watching a fairly solid stream of ssf1. i suspect iptv boxes are a lot more robust and provide a better quality service than android boxes but boxes are generally more expensive and a subscription is required for services. i personally think satellite card sharing is the best of them all even though ive never used these services either. obviously a satellite dish, receiver and subscription are required for these services but be aware, sky are making shapes to pull the plug, but they have been doing that for a couple of years now, i.e. all these services are a bit of a risk. apologies for being vague but have to be for obvious reasons. there are plenty of sites out there selling the android boxes for a premium, some set up well others not so well. there is plenty of info on youtube on how to set them up if you're a tech tinker, theyre fairly handy to do so. other than that, google is your friend.

some interesting boards links!:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=1343
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057446012
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057313961
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=643

Wanderer78

mytime wrote: »

There's a place on Parnell street that sells them, I don't have one myself but passed this place the other day


https://www.facebook.com/smarttvbox.ie

personally wouldnt recommend him as i have seen one of his boxes and it wasnt set up very well. i knew of better services he hadnt set up on the box and he had a nice premium on the box for himself. the box was double the price of its original price. even though i wish the chap the best with his business, you could do a better, cheaper job yourself with the help of youtube and google. that box was purchased from him over a year ago so he may have upped his game since.

MentalMario

How is that lad on Parnell Street getting away with offering free Sky movies & sports?

I've a Kodi box myself and am well aware how he's setting them up/where he's getting the movies/sports but surely it's illegal to offer free Sky movies and sports.

Wanderer78

MentalMario wrote: »

How is that lad on Parnell Street getting away with offering free Sky movies & sports?

a very good question. its certainly a very risky business strategy. i certainly wouldnt be doing it but i think sky are more interested in catching the guys that are setting up the backbone servers that feed all these services. i really wasnt impressed with his box setup. the fella that showed me his box from that chap in parnell st asked me to put on more addons etc. what addons are you using? feel free to pm. how do you find it for live tv streaming? im not that impressed yet but maybe im not using the right addons. i have found a couple of gems though.

MentalMario

Sent you a PM there with addons etc... as I'm not sure if they can be discussed here. If they can, I'll throw them up for everybody (might be handy for people thinking of getting a box).

Some of the boxes that you can buy on Adverts seem to have decent setup and a custom add-on with all the channels etc... on it with a working EPG. They're dreamboxes for all the World. These are probably worth paying the extra money for if you want it set up already and don't want to go messing with add-ons.

I'm not sure what add-ons the lad in Parnell Street has but if it's just a basic Kodi setup, it's not worth paying for as an hour on YouTube and you'd have the mains add-ons and you could be saving €30 or €40 euro.

JourneyMan8

MentalMario wrote: »

How is that lad on Parnell Street getting away with offering free Sky movies & sports?

I've a Kodi box myself and am well aware how he's setting them up/where he's getting the movies/sports but surely it's illegal to offer free Sky movies and sports.

normally these people just advertise the box, as the box is legal obviously, I highly doubt he is advertising that he is selling Sky on it? when word of mouth gets around I'm sure it will be shut down, I know a guy selling boxes i got one off got busted recently in waterford. so moves are being made.

Wanderer78

JourneyMan8 wrote: »

normally these people just advertise the box, as the box is legal obviously, I highly doubt he is advertising that he is selling Sky on it? when word of mouth gets around I'm sure it will be shut down, I know a guy selling boxes i got one off got busted recently in waterford. so moves are being made.

he kinna is advertising sky in a roundabout way. silly boy. hes been going over a year now. surprised he hasnt been shut down yet. say hes making a fortune though. why would you bother getting into selling these. your head would be wrecked dealing with them

iseegirls

Wanderer78 wrote: »

why would you bother getting into selling these.

Wanderer78 wrote: »

say hes making a fortune though

Think you've answered your own question there. :cool:

Wanderer78

iseegirls wrote: »

Think you've answered your own question there. :cool:

think ive also answered why i wouldnt be bothered to

Wanderer78 wrote: »

your head would be wrecked dealing with them

more to life than just making a few quid

obezyana

As a primary source of watching tv these boxes are not ideal as for using it to watch certain things then they are fine. Regarding the source of the links....it can vary from being just good to very very bad so it can be a frustrating experience when using these boxes.

JourneyMan8

obezyana wrote: »

As a primary source of watching tv these boxes are not ideal as for using it to watch certain things then they are fine. Regarding the source of the links....it can vary from being just good to very very bad so it can be a frustrating experience when using these boxes.

the android boxes are sourced from links on the internet right, so unless you have super fast internet they'd be lagging alot? some boxes are run off satelittes/lines and are on par with sky boxes in terms of reliability and quality. but these type of boxes are very scarce in waterford by the sounds of it, unless someone on here knows someone?

obezyana

JourneyMan8 wrote: »

the android boxes are sourced from links on the internet right, so unless you have super fast internet they'd be lagging alot? some boxes are run off satelittes/lines and are on par with sky boxes in terms of reliability and quality. but these type of boxes are very scarce in waterford by the sounds of it, unless someone on here knows someone?

Android, Linux boxes are run from the internet so yes the speed of your internet is a big factor. There is a range of boxes out there called triple tuners which have streaming capabilities aswell as a Satellite & Terrestrial tuner. These boxes are very versatile as long as you can deal with the tech side of things.

CantGetNoSleep

Android boxes using Kodi are not really a replacement for satellite or cable tv (unless maybe you use a paid subscription), but a much better option than a laptop (even when connected to a TV) for streaming

The other satellite boxes (also known as dodgy boxes or Ballybeg boxes) probably cannot be discussed on here as their main aim seems to be to get around Sky encryption? There are many legitimate and legal uses for Android boxes or Kodi.

obezyana

CantGetNoSleep wrote: »

Android boxes using Kodi are not really a replacement for satellite or cable tv (unless maybe you use a paid subscription), but a much better option than a laptop (even when connected to a TV) for streaming

The other satellite boxes (also known as dodgy boxes or Ballybeg boxes) probably cannot be discussed on here as their main aim seems to be to get around Sky encryption? There are many legitimate and legal uses for Android boxes or Kodi.

What makes you think that an Android box is better than a Laptop? I run Kodi on my computer and I have zero issues bar the usual broken links.

CantGetNoSleep

obezyana wrote: »

What makes you think that an Android box is better than a Laptop? I run Kodi on my computer and I have zero issues bar the usual broken links.

Generally cheaper, use less power, IR remote controls and faster to boot (although these four reasons would not apply in all cases)

PTH2009

Imo if someone can afford to get upc or sky then they should get it instead of these boxes

Wanderer78

PTH2009 wrote: »

Imo if someone can afford to get upc or sky then they should get it instead of these boxes

i can debate that but this isnt the place for that. it involves a lot of boring moral stuff, economic stuff and a whole pile of other crap. these boxes and associated technologies is simply humans balancing things. i ll leave it at that.

obezyana

CantGetNoSleep wrote: »

Generally cheaper, use less power, IR remote controls and faster to boot (although these four reasons would not apply in all cases)

Cheaper yes, use less power yes, remote control = lazy, faster to boot not in all cases. A big thing in an android box is processer speed and some of these boxes have not got the speed so that can be another negative.

Wanderer78

JourneyMan8 wrote: »

unless someone on here knows someone?

i may know somebody running an iptv capable box in waterford but i need to see it running to be sure. its a multiple tuner box running a card sharing service as well

obezyana

Wanderer78 wrote: »

i may know somebody running an iptv capable box in waterford but i need to see it running to be sure. its a multiple tuner box running a card sharing service as well

The card sharing is illegal so whatever you do dont talk about it here or mention names or give numbers

There are plenty of Linux triple tuners on the market which of course is all good but the card sharing if used on Sky boxes or the likes is very illegal.

ZETOR_IS_BETTER

obezyana wrote: »

remote control = lazy

Odd thinking about a remote control

obezyana

ZETOR_IS_BETTER wrote: »

Odd thinking about a remote control

People have become too lazy when they wont get up and walk a couple of feet to use their system I say that as i use my remote to change channel but i have an excuse im just back from training

jmcc

PTH2009 wrote: »

Imo if someone can afford to get upc or sky then they should get it instead of these boxes

Many people suffer from shortterm thinking. They see such opportunities as a one-off bargain or a payment or a lower than the subscription fee bargain. However they don't realise that their one-off bargain only works until the programming provider comes up with the next fix or the main server in the network gets taken out. I'm just amazed that the theory I worked out around 1990 still works. What people think of as "card sharing" was invented in Waterford.

Regards...jmcc

obezyana

jmcc wrote: »

Many people suffer from shortterm thinking. They see such opportunities as a one-off bargain or a payment or a lower than the subscription fee bargain. However they don't realise that their one-off bargain only works until the programming provider comes up with the next fix or the main server in the network gets taken out. I'm just amazed that the theory I worked out around 1990 still works. What people think of as "card sharing" was invented in Waterford.

Regards...jmcc

Yeah thats why Android boxes just arent suited as a primary source for TV. Card sharing definitely wasnt a Waterford thing tho.

jmcc

obezyana wrote: »

Yeah thats why Android boxes just arent suited as a primary source for TV. Card sharing definitely wasnt a Waterford thing tho.

It was developed as a theoretical hack on smartcard based Pay TV encryption systems after the introduction of encryption on Sky (Sky Movies was actually transmitted in the clear initially). It also worked in practice using hardwire, radio and ethernet but until "always on internet" such as ADSL and Cable internet became a reality in the late 1990s, it wasn't commercially feasible and during the 1990s, there was a pirate smartcard problem. (Unlike you, I do know its history.) News Datacom (the company that developed Sky's VideoCrypt and VideoGuard) even had a few patents to try to stop it working. However it is a very difficult thing to stop effectively. These Android boxes and this approach is the kind of classic activity that takes place when there is no valid compromise of a Pay TV system. However such approaches are always short-term and vulnerable to the next fix or upgrade.

Regards...jmcc

obezyana

You havent stated anything about Waterford and your pretty ignorant by making assumtions about me. The TV Sat Terrestrial trade is something i know quite well actually so come down off that horse your riding.

Regards......Obe

Wanderer78

im very surprised sky havent pulled the plug on cardsharing already. i wonder how long more it ll go on. forums will explode the day it happens. im sure lads are setting themselves up with cable carding sharing to prepare for it.

jmcc

obezyana wrote: »

You havent stated anything about Waterford and your pretty ignorant by making assumtions about me. The TV Sat Terrestrial trade is something i know quite well actually so come down off that horse your riding.

And you probably have many satisfied customers. But Conditional Access systems and their development is not really the TV/Sat/Terrestrial trade. And the theory upon which all cardsharing is based was developed right here in Waterford.

http://www.google.ca/patents/US7436953

Regards...jmcc

obezyana

Wanderer78 wrote: »

im very surprised sky havent pulled the plug on cardsharing already. i wonder how long more it ll go on. forums will explode the day it happens. im sure lads are setting themselves up with cable carding sharing to prepare for it.

Sky are trying their best but as with everything things can always be gotten around at some point. People forget or dont know that Sky could possibly obtain the users ip address and bring proceedings against them. There has been a couple of cases in Ireland already with one case being where the accussed had to pay Sky 40k in costs. He was an installer from Dublin.

Wanderer78

obezyana wrote: »

Sky are trying their best but as with everything things can always be gotten around at some point. People forget or dont know that Sky could possibly obtain the users ip address and bring proceedings against them. There has been a couple of cases in Ireland already with one case being where the accussed had to pay Sky 40k in costs. He was an installer from Dublin.

ah yea im keeping an eye on it. i dont think sky would bother too much with most end users as i dont think it would be cost effective to chase them. im sure theyre more interested in the lads running the servers. heard about that chap in dublin alright but sure theres plenty of them around. wouldnt like to be looking at a 40k bill though and a potential stint in mountjoy. we all should be really using vpns

obezyana

Yeah Sky want the source but will prosecute the user if caught. Personally i dont care if some one card shares, professionally id never ever recommend it or even mention it to anybody.

Anyho enough about card sharing it is throwing things off topics and the thread will be shut

jmcc

Wanderer78 wrote: »

im very surprised sky havent pulled the plug on cardsharing already. i wonder how long more it ll go on. forums will explode the day it happens. im sure lads are setting themselves up with cable carding sharing to prepare for it.

Sky upgraded their smartcards a few years ago to implement some countermeasures. The problem from an broadcaster/operator point of view is the cost of upgrade versus the loss to piracy. A compromise like readily available pirate smartcards is a severe danger to a broadcaster because anyone can use them and all they require is an IRD or box. That is why Sky, having been pirated heavily during the 1990s, was so reluctant to licence its conditional access module and software. Once the main players were taken out of the smartcard piracy business, a changing legal framework (the EU Conditional Access directive and other local legislation) and a number of technological countermeasures made smartcard piracy more expensive, the only option was a cardsharing model. The problem with cardsharing as a business is that the more successful it becomes, the higher the chance of detection.

The Pay TV operators originally lobbied the EU to make piracy at a personal level an offence however the EU commission and the parliament, in the directive, decided to hit the distribution chain rather than the individual.

As long as it is not a major problem for Sky and other providers, it will be treated as a kind of legal housekeeping with the odd distributor or network operator getting prosecuted to keep others in line. The current legal framework is very friendly for operators like Sky but the costs of a prosecution, the likely recovery of lost subscriptions revenue and legal costs would always be factored into the decision on whether to prosecute any cardsharing network provider.

Regards...jmcc

Aquos76

Seriously lads, ye have gone way off topic here, I'm calling a halt to this thread now, if it was in the satellite forum it would have been shut ages ago.