which adroid tv box should I choose. New on this market...

[Tranquil 93]

And that won't

 

Just out of curiosity, why are you using HTTP and not NATIVE ??

 

 

I have some .ISO files on my server where I had problems to mount them to KODI. It seems to work even better to do it with Emby and let emby decide what to stream to KODI.

 

I'd most likely will not use the http method. My unraid nas is a local machine so I will access the filesystem directly.

 

I cannot see the specs you quoted on tapatalk but I am aware of the limited support of the appletv.

 

I'm about 99% sure I will go for the shield :-)

 

 

Verzonden vanaf mijn iPhone met Tapatalk

 

I noticed that Tapatalk issue on my Android device too. Its just showing wired characters. 

[plessers@gmail.com 24]

I'm still not convinced. It seems that the Shield is an excellent thing, but it cost to much. Setting up a server-client environment, I was expecting thin (=cheap) clients. The RPI is such a client.

 

So beside from the Shield: what is my best option for +/- 100 eur?

 

( and also: maybe I should redefine my question in: how can I integrate Netflix in my Rasplex/Kodi boxes...)

 

kind regards,

B

[Pirlo1966 22]

Sounds great, probably will order one this or next week... Seems that the prices are fixed at 200 euro so no use waiting for a good deal. ;-)

 

I have a shield and it should be able to play almost everything without the need for transcoding but the emby app still need some serious development. For instance, if you have pgs subtitles it will need transcoding (actual beta emby android tv app). Atmos true hd audio also triggers transcoding. And DD5.1 often gets out of sync.

[Martijn76 4]

Could these be Emby app (software) issues instead of hardware issues or do these problems also occur with Kodi (for instance)?

 

 

Verzonden vanaf mijn iPhone met Tapatalk

[CBers 6771]

I'm still not convinced. It seems that the Shield is an excellent thing, but it cost to much. Setting up a server-client environment, I was expecting thin (=cheap) clients. The RPI is such a client.

 

So beside from the Shield: what is my best option for +/- 100 eur?

 

( and also: maybe I should redefine my question in: how can I integrate Netflix in my Rasplex/Kodi boxes...)

 

kind regards,

B

RPi3's it is then

[Martijn76 4]

RPi3's it is then

Isn't the RPi3 limited compared to the shield? Would you have 4K (or even fhd) Netflix?

[CBers 6771]

Isn't the RPi3 limited compared to the shield? Would you have 4K (or even fhd) Netflix?

Ok, we're going round in circles

 

If you want the best, save your money up and get a Shield.

 

Or, how about a Roku?

[Martijn76 4]

Ok, we're going round in circles

 

If you want the best, save your money up and get a Shield.

 

Or, how about a Roku?

Just exploring the options to make the best decision. The price of the shield is somewhat steep since I need two devices, but if it's the best (worry free) option and I don't have to upgrade my server (for transcoding) it would be worth it.

[Vidman 589]

It's the best option and worth it... IMHO

[MSattler 387]

RPi3's it is then

 

RPi3 is great except for:

 

Not 4k Compatible

No Netflix, Google, or other apps

No TrueHD/DTS-HD Passthrough

No build in 802.11ac 

No remote

 

By the time you buy a Rpi3 with power supply, micro sd card, etc you are spending typically $50-70, and then another $10-20 for a remote/ir receiver.  So you are already at $60-$90, half way there to a Shield.

[RanmaCanada 344]

Rpi3 also can NOT do HEVC.  Best bet would be to wait for the next series of Amilogic chips to come out.  As per my post with Chinese android boxes, the S905 plays almost perfectly with Kodi (SPMC) as an external player, it just has issues with DTS passthrough as it is not licensed for it, so it doesn't play perfectly.  The only other issue with a cheap chinese made box is the netflix will NOT play in HD because of the lack of DRM.  There are some manufacturers that have the DRM in them, but the prices of the boxes are double.

 

cnxsoftware has reviews on the boxes and uses real world media tests to let you know what the boxes and chipset will play vs what they are "supposed" to play.  

[Madic 13]

RPi3 is great except for:

 

Not 4k Compatible

No Netflix, Google, or other apps

No TrueHD/DTS-HD Passthrough

No build in 802.11ac

No remote

 

By the time you buy a Rpi3 with power supply, micro sd card, etc you are spending typically $50-70, and then another $10-20 for a remote/ir receiver. So you are already at $60-$90, half way there to a Shield.

What about the new Amazon fire TV?

It can 4k, Netflix, Amazon Instant Video and it costs around 99$/€

[MSattler 387]

What about the new Amazon fire TV?

It can 4k, Netflix, Amazon Instant Video and it costs around 99$/€

 

Fire TV 2 is limited in the codec's it supports.  The Shield has much better codec support, and has a faster response time as well.  For me, HDHomerun View works better on the Shield than the FireTV 2.  I also like the menu on the Shield <Android TV Menu> much better than the Amazon menu.  The Amazon Menu clutters the interface with app advertisements, and all of the Amazon content.  It's great if all you want is Amazon and Netflix.

[Pirlo1966 22]

Could these be Emby app (software) issues instead of hardware issues or do these problems also occur with Kodi (for instance)?

 

 

Verzonden vanaf mijn iPhone met Tapatalk

 

No, it's emby app related. Shield can handle these things.

[Snapper 20]

I'm still not convinced. It seems that the Shield is an excellent thing, but it cost to much. Setting up a server-client environment, I was expecting thin (=cheap) clients. The RPI is such a client.

 

So beside from the Shield: what is my best option for +/- 100 eur?

 

( and also: maybe I should redefine my question in: how can I integrate Netflix in my Rasplex/Kodi boxes...)

 

kind regards,

B

 

That's fine that you feel that way, so then accept the limitations of the cheaper boxes, pick one, and move on.  Complaining on here about the price of the Shield isn't going to accomplish anything for you or anyone else.  It costs more, because it has better hardware and is licensed for more formats.

 

 

Rpi3 also can NOT do HEVC.  Best bet would be to wait for the next series of Amilogic chips to come out.  As per my post with Chinese android boxes, the S905 plays almost perfectly with Kodi (SPMC) as an external player, it just has issues with DTS passthrough as it is not licensed for it, so it doesn't play perfectly.

 

I assume this also includes DTS-MA?  If so, that represents a lot of movies.  I never looked for statistics, but DTS-MA seems to be much more heavily used by than TrueHD for HD movies.  Just thinking about my collection, it has to be upwards of 66-75%.

[Ponyo 22]

If you are going to spend 200 you are getting very close to intel nuc territory.

 

The plus side is that it's a pc so it's going to play everything (just be careful with windows as intel didn't bother to enable hd bitstreaming in the drivers even though the hardware is fully capable... )

 

The downside is that it's much less plug and play and if you plan on running other services as Netflix on it it's less than ideal. It can be done semi-pretty but that's about it.

 

Sent from my HTL23 using Tapatalk

[epayson85 72]

People use their Android device for bit streaming? My audio receiver is connected to my PC which powers the main TV for the best experience. Android boxes in my opinion are for extending to other TVs in the house. I literally have mini PCs I built for $200 a pop that were for each tv and I went to Android boxes to save money on electricity. The shield is WAY TOO EXPENSIVE for what it does or should I say doesn't do. Nexus player for $26 when you can find them at Walmart and $60 on eBay is the best deal. The new Amazon fire TV was junk until it's latest update. Now it works perfectly with emby. My 2 NPs are wireless and work perfect. If you have issues with wireless check your router / signal strength with wifi analyzer. My firetv is hardwired in my bedroom obviously works perfect, but I have my parents on wireless with a brand new Asus router and they have had no issues.

 

I hope some new players get into the Android TV market that either blow the shield out of the water or at least cause nvidia to drop their prices. I don't want crappy mobile games that nickle and dime me every 5 seconds, it's not a gaming box, it's for watching media. The sooner nvidia figures that out the better. I'm sure it's a great product but it's way over priced.

[MSattler 387]

People use their Android device for bit streaming? My audio receiver is connected to my PC which powers the main TV for the best experience. Android boxes in my opinion are for extending to other TVs in the house. I literally have mini PCs I built for $200 a pop that were for each tv and I went to Android boxes to save money on electricity. The shield is WAY TOO EXPENSIVE for what it does or should I say doesn't do. Nexus player for $26 when you can find them at Walmart and $60 on eBay is the best deal. The new Amazon fire TV was junk until it's latest update. Now it works perfectly with emby. My 2 NPs are wireless and work perfect. If you have issues with wireless check your router / signal strength with wifi analyzer. My firetv is hardwired in my bedroom obviously works perfect, but I have my parents on wireless with a brand new Asus router and they have had no issues.

 

I hope some new players get into the Android TV market that either blow the shield out of the water or at least cause nvidia to drop their prices. I don't want crappy mobile games that nickle and dime me every 5 seconds, it's not a gaming box, it's for watching media. The sooner nvidia figures that out the better. I'm sure it's a great product but it's way over priced.

 

I use my Android box (Shield) and have full TrueHD/DTSHd support through Kodi/EmbySync.  Audio Receiver is hooked up to it and have no issues.  

 

 The Emby apps, as well as Kodi work much better on the shield than devices such as the FTV, FTV2, FTV Stick, etc.  If using the Emby app the codec support is much better than any of the Fire devices, or the other Android devices I've used.  As for being too expensive, you are comparing it to a Nexus Player at clearance price.  The original purchase price for the Nexus Player was $125, so in all reality original MSRP for the shield is only $75 more than it was originally for the NP.  And let's be honest, most people did not get one for $26, and you will have trouble even finding them for $60 on ebay as most of the clearance units people picked up to resell are sold off.  Add to that the OTG adaptor and USB -> Ethernet adapter costs as well if you want to go hard wired.   In my house, 3 of my 4 shields are hard wired. because let's face it, wifi is never perfect.

 

The wireless adapter on the Shield allows for higher throughput than my Nexus Player did.  Using the Nexus Player was overall a crappy experience, as it even had issues with live tv playback through the Google Channels and View app which the Shield has zero issues with.

 

The NP was clearanced off for a reason.  And there is a reason that the Shield has not been updated so far, or had it's price decreased.  It's a good quality unit, and it simply works.  The Android TV interface is loads better than your standard Android interface as well, and to get that you are limited to Shield, Razor, or NP.

[Vidman 589]

The shield is WAY TOO EXPENSIVE for what it does or should I say doesn't do.

What doesn't it do in your opinion?

The only feature missing in kodi is 3D as far as I'm aware

Everything else is plugin (download) and play

Edited April 26, 2016 by Vidman

[speechles 1917]

It doesnt play ps4/x1 games, or for that matter pc games. He mentioned this as the end of his post. For the money you spend you can integrate a true pc gaming machine to work for emby too. The shield is not a true gamers console. Its for retroarch/mame/mobile.

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[Vidman 589]

But it does allow you to stream those said PC games and does have a couple of premium games

Edited April 26, 2016 by Vidman

[speechles 1917]

Touche, there is a silver lining to every cloud. I agree with you. Its the other fellow who is less than impressed.

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[raven-au 17]

 

mmm, I thought this was more straightforward. 

 

The same conversation here: https://forums.plex.tv/discussion/214789/which-adroid-tv-box-should-i-choose-new-on-this-market#latest but my first conclusion is that there are some problems with formats (not every player has HW-decoding), problems with apps (emby/plex sometimes need external players), srt-subtitles, Hardware (with a RC chipset, you can't update kodi), etc...

 

The NVIDIA SHIELD is mentioned a lot, but apart from its ugly desing, it stretches my budget to 200 EUR and up.

 

The MINIX NEO X8-H Android looks OK and is affordable. Does anybody knows it is compatible with CEC on a Samsung TV? Differences between MINIX NEO U1 / X8-H / X8-H Plus ?

 

 

I have a NEO X8-H Plus and have retired it to its box because it will never get an Android TV firmware version, which I think is essential.

 

What annoyed me most is that it took quite a while for the MINIX people to even get what I was talking about when I spoke of "Android TV" and eventually got a "this is never going to happen" response.

 

I struggled with Android on this box and it was painful from a navigation POV using a remote and not much better using the air mouse that comes free with X8-H Plus.

 

So I can't recommend these boxes at all.

The Nexus Player is much cheaper and works pretty well although I haven't used mine for a while now.

 

For my part I'd like to buy a Shield too but I'm not going to unless they are actually released here in Australia.

 

Ian

[plessers@gmail.com 24]

Thanx all for replies! Very interesting for a newbie on the android market. :-)

[MSattler 387]

I have a NEO X8-H Plus and have retired it to its box because it will never get an Android TV firmware version, which I think is essential.

 

What annoyed me most is that it took quite a while for the MINIX people to even get what I was talking about when I spoke of "Android TV" and eventually got a "this is never going to happen" response.

 

I struggled with Android on this box and it was painful from a navigation POV using a remote and not much better using the air mouse that comes free with X8-H Plus.

 

So I can't recommend these boxes at all.

The Nexus Player is much cheaper and works pretty well although I haven't used mine for a while now.

 

For my part I'd like to buy a Shield too but I'm not going to unless they are actually released here in Australia.

 

Ian

 

So I owned two Neo X8h Plus's, because I thought they had TrueHD and DTSHD support only to find out they didn't.  You could have it autoload to the Emby App or Kodi w/ Emby Sync.  Navigation on the unit is horrid, and firmware updates have slowed down quickly.  It was a pretty decent box, but the interface and lack of TrueHD/DTSHD was it's downfall for me.

 

Not sure how much you paid for the X8H Plus, when I bought them they were $160 a piece so the $199 price for the shield isn't terrible IMHO.