Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie

Android Box Recommendation

Options
  • 28-04-2016 2:14pm
    #1
    VandC
    Registered Users Posts: 3,008 ✭✭✭


    Hi. I'm buying an Android box as a present and feel a bit overwhelmed by the amount of them but there doesn't seem to be a huge difference. Can someone help with finding a suitable one for me? I'll list out things I've read (no ideas if they are just money spinning) and what I need:

    Needs Wifi
    Be able to watch HD seamlessly
    Doesn't hang and isn't slow
    Easy to use (I don't want to end up being tech support for technophobe end user)
    Around 100 (obviously the cheaper the better :P )


    Is it worth buying the keyboard?
    Is 5.1 lollipop really more stable (and worth it) than 4.4?
    Should MXQ boxes be avoided
    Does it matter if it's cloned and is it something I should be looking out for?
    Is it worth getting 2gb ram?
    Does it really matter what comes pre-installed? i.e. if it didn't have uktvnow for example is it easy to install?

    Thanks for your help with this. I really think I have spent too long looking at these now and head is truly melted :o


Comments

  • Options
    #2
    shrapnel222
    Registered Users Posts: 3,118 ✭✭✭shrapnel222


    VandC wrote: »
    Hi. I'm buying an Android box as a present and feel a bit overwhelmed by the amount of them but there doesn't seem to be a huge difference. Can someone help with finding a suitable one for me? I'll list out things I've read (no ideas if they are just money spinning) and what I need:

    Needs Wifi
    Be able to watch HD seamlessly
    Doesn't hang and isn't slow
    Easy to use (I don't want to end up being tech support for technophobe end user)
    Around 100 (obviously the cheaper the better :P )


    Is it worth buying the keyboard?
    Is 5.1 lollipop really more stable (and worth it) than 4.4?
    Should MXQ boxes be avoided
    Does it matter if it's cloned and is it something I should be looking out for?
    Is it worth getting 2gb ram?
    Does it really matter what comes pre-installed? i.e. if it didn't have uktvnow for example is it easy to install?

    Thanks for your help with this. I really think I have spent too long looking at these now and head is truly melted :o

    Needs Wifi
    Be able to watch HD seamlessly

    these 2 don't go well together



    Easy to use (I don't want to end up being tech support for technophobe end user)
    Trust me you will be...constantly. These boxes are great but are not to be given as presents, especially not to technophobes.


  • Options
    #3
    grogi
    Registered Users Posts: 8,615 ✭✭✭grogi


    shrapnel222 wrote: »
    Needs Wifi
    Be able to watch HD seamlessly

    these 2 don't go well together

    Interesting, very interesting...

    I can't envision an issue with watching 8Mbps streams at all, so I really don't know where you're coming from.


  • Options
    #4
    shrapnel222
    Registered Users Posts: 3,118 ✭✭✭shrapnel222


    grogi wrote: »
    Interesting, very interesting...

    I can't envision an issue with watching 8Mbps streams at all, so I really don't know where you're coming form.

    Plenty of issues streaming HD over wifi (especially if there's a bit of distance between box and router). much better to have an ethernet connection.

    Good for you if yours works perfectly.


  • Options
    #5
    grogi
    Registered Users Posts: 8,615 ✭✭✭grogi


    VandC wrote: »
    Hi. I'm buying an Android box as a present and feel a bit overwhelmed by the amount of them but there doesn't seem to be a huge difference. Can someone help with finding a suitable one for me? I'll list out things I've read (no ideas if they are just money spinning) and what I need:

    Needs Wifi
    Be able to watch HD seamlessly
    Doesn't hang and isn't slow
    Easy to use (I don't want to end up being tech support for technophobe end user)
    Around 100 (obviously the cheaper the better :P )


    Is it worth buying the keyboard?
    Is 5.1 lollipop really more stable (and worth it) than 4.4?
    Should MXQ boxes be avoided
    Does it matter if it's cloned and is it something I should be looking out for?
    Is it worth getting 2gb ram?
    Does it really matter what comes pre-installed? i.e. if it didn't have uktvnow for example is it easy to install?

    Thanks for your help with this. I really think I have spent too long looking at these now and head is truly melted :o

    I am using a Transmart Meta S95.

    It is based on very good S905 CPU - what's unique to it is that it comes with HEVC/x265 hardware decoding up to 4K.

    As described, it works flawlessly over Wi-Fi (it even has dual band connectivity - over 2.4 and 5GHz). But as shrapnel222 mentioned, the connection must be okish (I have -54 dBm which is around 50% strength). Audio output over optical, minijack and HDMI. Comes with a remote too.

    Generally I am very pleased with it, however despite Widevine DRM Level 3 support, I cannot directly stream some Polish TV channels. NetFlix works fine.

    I would not touch anything with ancient android 4.4 and with 1GB ram. Keyboard - I guess no. It speeds things up, especially at the begging when you need to type your passwords in. But I had other BT keyboard I could use.

    You'll install everything from Google Play. IMHO the less software is included, the better.


  • Options
    #6
    bigmike99
    Registered Users Posts: 99 ✭✭bigmike99


    grogi wrote: »
    I am using a Transmart Meta S95.

    It is based on very good S905 CPU - what's unique to it is that it comes with HEVC/x265 hardware decoding up to 4K.

    As described, it works flawlessly over Wi-Fi (it even has dual band connectivity - over 2.4 and 5GHz). But as shrapnel222 mentioned, the connection must be okish (I have -54 dBm which is around 50% strength). Audio output over optical, minijack and HDMI. Comes with a remote too.

    Generally I am very pleased with it, however despite Widevine DRM Level 3 support, I cannot directly stream some Polish TV channels. NetFlix works fine.

    I would not touch anything with ancient android 4.4 and with 1GB ram. Keyboard - I guess no. It speeds things up, especially at the begging when you need to type your passwords in. But I had other BT keyboard I could use.

    You'll install everything from Google Play. IMHO the less software is included, the better.

    nice box id say. available from amazon too cheaper than the chinese sites.
    I was close to getting this model, What would you need to spend more on the Telos model for a SATA input?! sure you have sd card who needs a sata input for a device that you will mostly use to stream from, am i missing something?

    wish id had gone with your choice. especially fulfilled by amazon i think they just reduced the price since i was looking..its now only 66 quid free delivery.
    @VandC
    there are 3 models of the trosmart Vega, but given what others have said about wifi the vega TElos might be the best option for an extra 15quid,
    it has an extra bandwidth for 5g wifi or better wifi card!, " 802.11ac Dual-Band Wi-Fi(2.4GHz/5.0GHz)ap6335" or a better wifi chip is it the ap6335?!
    Im not sure how this works,can you set your router to 2.4 or 5G wifi or both and it runs 5G if available at the time or both! can someone else explain that for me though? do our irish broadband providers even support the 5ghz in basic packages.


    i got the dual boot tronsmart mini pc. with kitkat4.4.4 Its sucks because cant transfer my apps to SD or when i set to save to SD!
    need help? tryed ES explorer to run them from the SD and they just save to internal which has little space for apps because the the 32GB is split more so towards to win10 side.
    Definate;y go with android 5.1 and make sure not android 5.0


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #7
    grogi
    Registered Users Posts: 8,615 ✭✭✭grogi


    bigmike99 wrote: »
    it has an extra bandwidth for 5g wifi or better wifi card!, " 802.11ac Dual-Band Wi-Fi(2.4GHz/5.0GHz)ap6335" or a better wifi chip is it the ap6335?!
    Im not sure how this works,can you set your router to 2.4 or 5G wifi or both and it runs 5G if available at the time or both! can someone else explain that for me though? do our irish broadband providers even support the 5ghz in basic packages.

    When it comes to broadband providers, support for 5GHz has nothing to do with the broadband package one has, only the hardware. I have an old UPC (Thomson TWG-870 ) router and it support both ranges, but only one at a time. Newer routers have two radio units and can provide coverage in both ranges.

    However the client (notebook, phone or tv box) can use one frequency at a time, 2.4GHz or 5GHz.

    2.4GHz waves provide better penetration, hence better range. For the same reason there will be a lot more interference from the neighbours in this range.
    The fastest connection over 2.4GHz can be 600Mbps - but that requires a fancy router and very fancy client card. 300Mbps is easily achievable - and that would provide approximately 10MB/s of real-life transfers.

    5GHz has smaller range, thus it is less congested. Fastest standards atm is the AC - which gives 1300Mbps. But again - very hard to achieve, with 300Mbps being reasonable.

    In general, the 5GHz should be preferred if client and AP both support it. This will leave the 2.4GHz band less congested. Lack of that support does not mean end of the world though.

    Should you have further questions, don't hesitate to ask.


  • Options
    #8
    bigmike99
    Registered Users Posts: 99 ✭✭bigmike99


    @grogi thanks for the explanation. I did google it before but didn't know for sure how it worked, So cheers for that lesson.
    Bit stupid having the sata interface in a tvbox isn't it? Sure it's only use is for watching movies from the drive to TV. Which you can do with SD or flash drive. I guess some people have hdds and would find it handy. I just thought it was abit useless for a tvbox.

    I wish id have bought this box now... Not really using the windows side of my one! And Android 4.4 sucks as I can't write to SD.


  • Options
    #9
    VandC
    Registered Users Posts: 3,008 ✭✭✭VandC


    shrapnel222 wrote: »
    Needs Wifi
    Be able to watch HD seamlessly

    these 2 don't go well together



    Easy to use (I don't want to end up being tech support for technophobe end user)
    Trust me you will be...constantly. These boxes are great but are not to be given as presents, especially not to technophobes.

    The box will literally be located on the other side of the house from the modem. I can't remember what they're called, but you know the things you use to plug the ethernet cable in to a socket and beside where the other piece of hardware is - would this be better than wifi? (I would assume better than wireless but not as good as if the box was directly connected to the modem).

    Crap - really? How much maintenance do these things need?


  • Options
    #10
    grogi
    Registered Users Posts: 8,615 ✭✭✭grogi


    VandC wrote: »
    The box will literally be located on the other side of the house from the modem. I can't remember what they're called, but you know the things you use to plug the ethernet cable in to a socket and beside where the other piece of hardware is - would this be better than wifi? (I would assume better than wireless but not as good as if the box was directly connected to the modem).

    For that distance and number of walls WiFi is not suitable...

    PowerLine adapters - but again, the speed is not ideal. And the more circuits it goes through, the less bandwidth it will have... It all depends on the actual wiring in the house, YMMV.
    VandC wrote: »
    Crap - really? How much maintenance do these things need?

    How much does the phone need?


Advertisement