The Droid TV thread

Shalin_ZN said:
Amazon Fire TV gen 1/gen 2 (not the Fire TV Stick)

Nvidia Shield (Pro if you got the money)

Pretty much any "branded" Android TV box.

Have a look at the Minix brands as well, that's not too bad. The Neo Z64 is amazeballs.
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All the Android boxes are definitely not made equal especially when it comes to firmware support/updates (check forums to determine how often they update and what users are frustrated with) and drm capability for streaming. As far as I know dstv now will only work on the Amazon fire TV (not stick, I tried) and the Mygica atv582 (I have two). If drm dependent streaming is not a requirement then it does become a simpler task to compare.
 
would i assume the MXQ is struggling with streaming, or causing streaming issues. im struggling to stream a 720p Youtube video on a 4mbps line. Im syncing at around 3.6mbps, so one would assume it should handle it fine? yes/no?
 
Icemanbrfc said:
would i assume the MXQ is struggling with streaming, or causing streaming issues. im struggling to stream a 720p Youtube video on a 4mbps line. Im syncing at around 3.6mbps, so one would assume it should handle it fine? yes/no?
Click to expand...

A 4mbps line should be able to stream 1080p Youtube but on other less reliable streams you should expect 720p unless you can buffer the stream for a few minutes then 1080p is also possible but not in real-time.

Ask TelkomZA on Twitter to sync your line to 5mbps if not done already.
I now get 3.88mbps on a 4mbps account with a 5mbps line.

The MXQ also has a weak wifi signal since it's internal and obstacles like walls or electrical interference can effect it badly.
I think the wifi will start to loose signal(bars) more than 10m away from the router.
Better to run a speedtest app to see the actual speed you get on the device, in the same room as the router and where it's currently.
If you get better speed close to the router, you can buy a wifi extender or wifi-only router to extend the signal but it's a bit pricey.
It won't help to get a 5G router since the MXQ doesn't support ac wifi.
If you still get slow speeds, the wifi connector inside the box might have gotten damage, since the MXQ doesn't have a decent heat-sink, some don't even have one.
 
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xbmcfan said:
A 4mbps line should be able to stream 1080p Youtube but on other less reliable streams you should expect 720p unless you can buffer the stream for a few minutes then 1080p is also possible but not in real-time.

Ask TelkomZA on Twitter to sync your line to 5mbps if not done already.
I now get 3.88mbps on a 4mbps account with a 5mbps line.

The MXQ also has a weak wifi signal since it's internal and obstacles like walls or electrical interference can effect it badly.
I think the wifi will start to loose signal(bars) more than 10m away from the router.
Better to run a speedtest app to see the actual speed you get on the device, in the same room as the router and where it's currently.
If you get better speed close to the router, you can buy a wifi extender or wifi-only router to extend the signal but it's a bit pricey.
If you still get slow speeds, the wifi connector inside the box might have gotten damage, since the MXQ doesn't have a decent heat-sink, some don't even have one.
Tv boxes with external antennas can be placed much further away without loosing signal.
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I already asked them to sync me higher, but they said max attainable rate I can get is 4. Whatever that means.
 
SL1v3R said:
All the Android boxes are definitely not made equal especially when it comes to firmware support/updates (check forums to determine how often they update and what users are frustrated with) and drm capability for streaming. As far as I know dstv now will only work on the Amazon fire TV (not stick, I tried) and the Mygica atv582 (I have two). If drm dependent streaming is not a requirement then it does become a simpler task to compare.
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Yebo, yes.

Firmware is one of the most important things. That's why I recommended buying a box from a well known manufacturer. There's a much better chance of getting software support. Amazon has been good with supporting the FTV, gonna get an upgrade to Android 5 soon.

I feel they also use better quality parts (WiFi modules, etc), have better remotes and better app support (DSTV Now).

Icemanbrfc said:
would i assume the MXQ is struggling with streaming, or causing streaming issues. im struggling to stream a 720p Youtube video on a 4mbps line. Im syncing at around 3.6mbps, so one would assume it should handle it fine? yes/no?
Click to expand...

3.6mbps is more than enough to stream 720p YT. As a quick test connect your unit via ethernet, then you'll know for sure if it's the WiFi module in the MXQ.

It could also be that WiFi network (router) is too slow to stream 720p video, it isn't fast enough to supply 3.6mbps over WiFi. I know my WiFi clocks out at around 4000kbps in the lounge where my FTV is.
 
Can the droid tv play x265 files? Mine is stuttering or totally failing. I've tried many apps: xbmc, Mx player, vlc, but all either get the sound right or the video, but never both.
 
ReenenLaurie said:
Can the droid tv play x265 files? Mine is stuttering or totally failing. I've tried many apps: xbmc, Mx player, vlc, but all either get the sound right or the video, but never both.
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Yes, but stuttering is a known issue with these cheap devices.
 
ReenenLaurie said:
Can the droid tv play x265 files? Mine is stuttering or totally failing. I've tried many apps: xbmc, Mx player, vlc, but all either get the sound right or the video, but never both.
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Short answer is no.

Long answer is that unless it has hardware decoding for x265 it uses the CPU to decode and the CPU isn't powerful enough on most of these devices(also phones, tablets and laptops struggle). x265 is the future, the future just isn't here yet.
 
Question, in recent weeks, video files of over 1GB in size fails to play via Kodi, but will play via the internal video player on the MXQ.

So I'm stumped as to why this is, and can't seem to find a setting within Kodi to change this.
 
Right @AVSupply it's been quite long enough! Where is my firmware for the mg 582, hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!?!?!?

;) ;) ;)

And now to the reason for my post, anyone know why when you have an AVR connected via HDMI playing DTS(or any passthrough audio) in KODI and you touch the volume button on the remote that it instantly sets the volume to full, the sound drops and is replaced by a deafening hiss?

LOLROFLMFAOWTFGGWP, if there weren't enough acronyms in that post.
 
ScottulusMaximus said:
Right @AVSupply it's been quite long enough! Where is my firmware for the mg 582, hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!?!?!?

;) ;) ;)

And now to the reason for my post, anyone know why when you have an AVR connected via HDMI playing DTS(or any passthrough audio) in KODI and you touch the volume button on the remote that it instantly sets the volume to full, the sound drops and is replaced by a deafening hiss?

LOLROFLMFAOWTFGGWP, if there weren't enough acronyms in that post.
Click to expand...

Kodi doesn't support AMLogic devices pass-through natively like for other Android devices.
So there are going to be audio problems.
Only way to fix it is with firmware updates that aren't released anymore because the device is entering retirement age.
AMLogic has moved on to the S905,S905M & S912 chipsets and the S805 I don't think will get more support, only from custom firmware developers on freaktab perhaps.

With Android Media Players today you need monthly firmware updates since video playback, Kodi and all the Lollipop, Marshmallow updates all bring new features and bugs. Just relying on the stock firmware a device comes with will introduce several bugs down the line that will start to get noticed.
 
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ScottulusMaximus said:
Right @AVSupply it's been quite long enough! Where is my firmware for the mg 582, hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!?!?!?

;) ;) ;)
Click to expand...

I wanted to add the new theme to the LPOP firmware. Let me check if there's been any new releases
 
xbmcfan said:
Kodi doesn't support AMLogic devices pass-through natively like for other Android devices.
So there are going to be audio problems.
Only way to fix it is with firmware updates that aren't released anymore because the device is entering retirement age.
AMLogic has moved on to the S905,S905M & S912 chipsets and the S805 I don't think will get more support, only from custom firmware developers on freaktab perhaps.

With Android Media Players today you need monthly firmware updates since video playback, Kodi and all the Lollipop, Marshmallow updates all bring new features and bugs. Just relying on the stock firmware a device comes with will introduce several bugs down the line that will start to get noticed.
Click to expand...

I'm on the latest from AVSupply, just waiting for them to release their take on the latest firmware. Much prefer theirs over the MyGica firmware.

Thanks for all the info, it works fine as long as you adjust the volume on the AVR and not on the MG582 whenever it's running on pass-through. Luckily my amp has a blue light come on whenever it's decoding so the household has been informed of the potential disaster.

AVSupply said:
I wanted to add the new theme to the LPOP firmware. Let me check if there's been any new releases
Click to expand...

Thank you kindly!

PS: I need to find something to buy from you again;)
 
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Thor187 said:
Do you have media players, I went to the website but didn't find any.
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Not at the moment, but will definitely look to stock ICASA approved Netflix media players in the near future :)
 
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