Android TV Box

xiaofan

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pls recommend a reliable source to buy the Beelink GT1 Mini.

Lazada should be okay. Price seems to be around S$80 to S$110 depending on the configuration, 2GB/32GB, 4GB/32GB and 4GB/64GB.

Make sure you understand what you are buying. Buying this box means you will not get Netflix HD (you will get only 480p) and no support of Chromecast. It is a good box based on reviews if you do not need such capabilities.

If you need Netflix HD, you have to go for Mi Box S or Amazon Fire Stick 4k at sub S$100 price range, you actually get Netflix 4k.

If you need Netflix HD and Chromecast the the only choice is Mi Box S or the older Mi Box Global version at sub S$100 range.
 
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xiaofan

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FYI the IPTV box from mainland China and Taiwan are mostly based on Amlogic CPU or HiSilicon (Huawel IC subsidiary).

Ref: https://zh.m.wikipedia.org/zh-sg/中華電信MOD
Latest 5th gen Chunghwa Telecom MOD boxes are with Hi3798MV200 CPU, 2GB RAM and 8GB storage and Android 7. Seems to be decent for its purpose.

Many mainland China IPTV/OTT box by the telecom operators are with Amlogic S905L (same class as Mi Box S, similar to S905X) but with only 1GB memory and 8GB storage. There are also quite a lot of boxes based on Hisilcon ICs with same 1GB/8GB configuration, many of them are still running Android 4.4. They are locked down system to run a few apps only. But there are hacks on various website to add Dangbei or Shafa market to add more apps. The problem is with the 1GB memory, so it is better to remove Dangbei/Shafa market after finished with the setup.

In Taobao such boxes are being sold at S$18-S$24 (RMB 90- RMB 120), but they are not recommended because of lower RAM and old Android 4.4 version. They also do not have Google play store or Google services as Google services are not available in mainland China.

BTW there are also a lot of better spec boxes in Taobao from Xiaomi, Huawei, Huawei Honor, HiMedia, etc, but they are meant for the mainland China market. So do not buy them. For one thing they will have no Google Play Market.

All in all Taobao is not a good place to buy Android TV Boxes unless you know what you want to buy. For example Mi Box S has very little presence in Taobao and the price is higher than Lazada/Shower/Qoo10.
 
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geotowf

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Hi xianfan,
May I know those TV boxes in taobao like KM9, magicsee n5 and n6 max etc, do you recommend them to buy and use in sg as a hdisk player to play movie from portable hd? Thank you.

FYI the IPTV box from mainland China and Taiwan are mostly based on Amlogic CPU or HiSilicon (Huawel IC subsidiary).

Ref: https://zh.m.wikipedia.org/zh-sg/中華電信MOD
Latest 5th gen Chunghwa Telecom MOD boxes are with Hi3798MV200 CPU, 2GB RAM and 8GB storage and Android 7. Seems to be decent for its purpose.

Many mainland China IPTV/OTT box by the telecom operators are with Amlogic S905L (same class as Mi Box S, similar to S905X) but with only 1GB memory and 8GB storage. There are also quite a lot of boxes based on Hisilcon ICs with same 1GB/8GB configuration, many of them are still running Android 4.4. They are locked down system to run a few apps only. But there are hacks on various website to add Dangbei or Shafa market to add more apps. The problem is with the 1GB memory, so it is better to remove Dangbei/Shafa market after finished with the setup.

In Taobao such boxes are being sold at S$18-S$24 (RMB 90- RMB 120), but they are not recommended because of lower RAM and old Android 4.4 version. They also do not have Google play store or Google services as Google services are not available in mainland China.
 

xiaofan

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Hi xianfan,
May I know those TV boxes in taobao like KM9, magicsee n5 and n6 max etc, do you recommend them to buy and use in sg as a hdisk player to play movie from portable hd? Thank you.

Hmm your Taobao is different from my Taobao...

I see only a few listing for Mecool KM9 with a few buyers only and very few listing for Magicsee N5 or N6 Max with zero buyers (Edit: 1 buyer for N6 Max). These types of boxes are mainly meant for export or so called 外贸盒子.

Magicsee N6 Max is a high end box based on RK3399 and it is considered as overkill for streaming purpose. For local media consumption it has a good point of USB 3 support but no so sure it can support enough current for your portable HDD.

Magicsee N5 is a low end S905 box but should be okay for streaming or even local media consumption. Not so sure whether it can provide enough power to your portable HDD though.

Mecool KM9 is based on new S905X2 but it runs an unofficial Android TV OS with no support of Netflix HD and no Chromecast support -- which defeats the purpose of using Android TV OS. It has good thing like USB 3.0 support but not so sure if it can supply enough current for your portable HDD.

I think all three will work if you use an external powered desktop type HDD or NAS. I myself use only streaming.

For HDD local media consumption, you may want to look at things like Zidoo X9S which has good review and support adding HDD. Zidoo has other higher end stuff as well. It is also okay for streaming as long as you do not need Netflix. It has official Tmall shop as well.
 
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gregory_choo

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Hi xianfan,
May I know those TV boxes in taobao like KM9, magicsee n5 and n6 max etc, do you recommend them to buy and use in sg as a hdisk player to play movie from portable hd? Thank you.

cheaper and better to buy from lazada or shopee.
 

geotowf

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Thanks for the reply and suggestions, much appreciated..
I am old generation ah peh so not sure about all this IT stuffs. I have number of portable hd 2 to 4 T have many movies. But those are no power supply type so a bit worry about the box may not support. I ALREADY HAVE 3 BOXES AT HOME BUT ONLY Ig ram so start up and operation is slow.
I di consider x9 or z9...I have Sony TV so no issue with Netflix and YouTube...
I do plan for Chinese movie from mainland but guess when the government pass the rule all will be stop so not sure how.
Thanks again...I guess s9 is not that expensive. I understand those boxes I name not much buyer but I only look into their HW only...

cheaper and better to buy from lazada or shopee.
 

gregory_choo

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Thanks for the reply and suggestions, much appreciated..
I am old generation ah peh so not sure about all this IT stuffs. I have number of portable hd 2 to 4 T have many movies. But those are no power supply type so a bit worry about the box may not support. I ALREADY HAVE 3 BOXES AT HOME BUT ONLY Ig ram so start up and operation is slow.
I di consider x9 or z9...I have Sony TV so no issue with Netflix and YouTube...
I do plan for Chinese movie from mainland but guess when the government pass the rule all will be stop so not sure how.
Thanks again...I guess s9 is not that expensive. I understand those boxes I name not much buyer but I only look into their HW only...

don't bluff, old generation ah peh knows how to buy using taobao? many youngsters also don't know how to do it.

by the way

you can connect your hd to your sony tv.

if you are only interested to play movies from hd, your existing 3 boxes should be good enough.

what you need to do is a factory reset, so that all those useless app installed previously are removed, most likely the slowness of the box is caused by these apps.

to make it even faster, you can disable google play services and playstore.

what you need is only 2 apps - file manager and media player.

I suggest es file explorer and mx player.
 

geotowf

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Hi, thanks for the reply. Am honoured to say that born in 1951 and am first/second NS man.
Yes I do reset fir all my 3 TV boxes and only one is little faster.
Buying from Tao pow is easy just to have account to buy. Get a local delivery to assist you.
What I am trying to do in my first place is to get those Chinese movies and multimedia programs in the TV box but then after read out think if the government pass the rule wont get a chance to view. My generation mostly Chinese only.
It's hard to tell you why we only view Chinese movie.
Thank you.



don't bluff, old generation ah peh knows how to buy using taobao? many youngsters also don't know how to do it.

by the way

you can connect your hd to your sony tv.

if you are only interested to play movies from hd, your existing 3 boxes should be good enough.

what you need to do is a factory reset, so that all those useless app installed previously are removed, most likely the slowness of the box is caused by these apps.

to make it even faster, you can disable google play services and playstore.

what you need is only 2 apps - file manager and media player.

I suggest es file explorer and mx player.
 

xiaofan

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Hi, thanks for the reply. Am honoured to say that born in 1951 and am first/second NS man.
Yes I do reset fir all my 3 TV boxes and only one is little faster.
Buying from Tao pow is easy just to have account to buy. Get a local delivery to assist you.
What I am trying to do in my first place is to get those Chinese movies and multimedia programs in the TV box but then after read out think if the government pass the rule wont get a chance to view. My generation mostly Chinese only.
It's hard to tell you why we only view Chinese movie.
Thank you.

Good to know that you are okay with Taobao.

As for Chinese Entertainment there are many choices. I myself am only interested in Chinese Entertainment (Mandarin, Cantonese and Hokkien).

For example I am paying for Youku VIP and there are lots of Chinese movies and TV series there, there are also western movies and TV series with Chinese subtitles as well. The price is not expensive in reality. There are also many other free/paid services, some of them may require VPN (eg: Tencent Video and iQiyi) but some of them do not. Many of them should not be affected by the government's proposed IP protection law.

For live TV programs at least the mainland Chinese live TVs are free and there are many apps as well.

The following link is for iPhone but can be a reference for you.

https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/...phone-chinese-entertainment-apps-5929935.html
 

geotowf

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Thanks Xiaofan, that is the answer to all I want to know. I dont know how to do all this so I want to buy the box to do or ask the seller install the programs for me. Same I enjoy those Chinese programs from China which I have not done yet for my 3 boxes.so the box I will get should be either n6 or s9.
Thanks again.
Sorry I dont like iPhone so never use before.


Good to know that you are okay with Taobao.

As for Chinese Entertainment there are many choices. I myself am only interested in Chinese Entertainment (Mandarin, Cantonese and Hokkien).

For example I am paying for Youku VIP and there are lots of Chinese movies and TV series there, there are also western movies and TV series with Chinese subtitles as well. The price is not expensive in reality. There are also many other free/paid services, some of them may require VPN (eg: Tencent Video and iQiyi) but some of them do not. Many of them should not be affected by the government's proposed IP protection law.

For live TV programs at least the mainland Chinese live TVs are free and there are many apps as well.

The following link is for iPhone but can be a reference for you.

https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/...phone-chinese-entertainment-apps-5929935.html
 

xiaofan

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Thanks for the reply and suggestions, much appreciated..
I am old generation ah peh so not sure about all this IT stuffs. I have number of portable hd 2 to 4 T have many movies. But those are no power supply type so a bit worry about the box may not support. I ALREADY HAVE 3 BOXES AT HOME BUT ONLY Ig ram so start up and operation is slow.
I di consider x9 or z9...I have Sony TV so no issue with Netflix and YouTube...
I do plan for Chinese movie from mainland but guess when the government pass the rule all will be stop so not sure how.
Thanks again...I guess s9 is not that expensive. I understand those boxes I name not much buyer but I only look into their HW only...

Since you have the boxes and Sony Android TV, you may want to follow Mr Choo's advice of using ES File Explorer and MX Player to see if your existing boxes and Sony TV are already good enough. Maybe the boxes or your TV can already supply enough power to your portable HDD.

I assume your Sony TV runs Android TV OS because you mentioned Netflix and YouTube. So you may want to explore more streaming apps for Chinese Entertainment. Streaming is the future.

I am also more looking at the Hardware specifications myself but I will check if the boxes have enough buyers in Taobao. In fact I am buying two more boxes just to have access to different type of boxes -- a Tanix TX5 Max S905X2 box and the Tanix TX6 Allwinner H6 box.

It is a bit painful to use 1GB memory box once you are used to better boxes. I was helping my relative to install apps on the China Mobile OTT box by ZTE and it is really slow with a few apps added. So it is perfectly okay to buy better spec boxes if you are willing to pay.

Zidoo X9S has very good reviews and you can check on YouTube. It is not that expensive either if compared to RK3399 boxes but the support and quality will be much better.

Another option is Nvidia Shield TV which is top of the line Android TV boxes out there.
 
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xiaofan

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Thanks Xiaofan, that is the answer to all I want to know. I dont know how to do all this so I want to buy the box to do or ask the seller install the programs for me. Same I enjoy those Chinese programs from China which I have not done yet for my 3 boxes.so the box I will get should be either n6 or s9.
Thanks again.
Sorry I dont like iPhone so never use before.

The link is for iPhone but the apps are also available for Android. In fact I had a thread for Android as well last time but it was deleted by the admins. You can use it as a reference for paid services like Youku, Tencent Video and iQiyi.

Of course Android has more free choices than iOS but for paid services the two are similar.

Magicsee N6 Max will be a powerful box with RK3399 and from the reviews Magicsee should be an okay brand as well.

Zidoo X9S has the better brand and the extra feature of HDMI input for recording if you care for that feature. The CPU is not as powerful but the software is said to be very good for local media consumption.

Both boxes will be okay for streaming as well. And I will say that streaming is the future and downloading contents will not be the future.
 
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geotowf

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Yes, I do consider safe $ and use my old 3 boxes but 1 need USB 3 to read more than 1TB HD, and my old box not for 4k so now if you need to view good movie old box cant, and I need blue tool for some add on. Plus if the new box can view main land programs which my old 3 if add in sure very slow.
Yes my Sony is Android OS.
I do eyeing on tx5 and tx5 and beeline gt1 too.
Since buy from taobao no warranty so I mostly need to know is review plus hw. Like s9 got good reviews. It's not that expensive and I did msg the support staffs about help to install app to view China programs and she said ok. But it's not sure how long can last
So I am still have to try my luck.
I did view many movies by using my old boxes but when come to 4k all cant read. I did thinking of add more ram like PC but dont think it will work.

Since you have the boxes and Sony Android TV, you may want to follow Mr Choo's advice of using ES File Explorer and MX Player to see if your existing boxes and Sony TV are already good enough. Maybe the boxes or your TV can already supply enough power to your portable HDD.

I assume your Sony TV runs Android TV OS because you mentioned Netflix and YouTube. So you may want to explore more streaming apps for Chinese Entertainment. Streaming is the future.

I am also more looking at the Hardware specifications myself but I will check if the boxes have enough buyers in Taobao. In fact I am buying two more boxes just to have access to different type of boxes -- a Tanix TX5 Max S905X2 box and the Tanix TX6 Allwinner H6 box.

It is a bit painful to use 1GB memory box once you are used to better boxes. I was helping my relative to install apps on the China Mobile OTT box by ZTE and it is really slow with a few apps added. So it is perfectly okay to buy better spec boxes if you are willing to pay.

Zidoo X9S has very good reviews and you can check on YouTube. It is not that expensive either if compared to RK3399 boxes but the support and quality will be much better.

Another option is Nvidia Shield TV which is top of the line Android TV boxes out there.
 
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geotowf

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Thank you xiaofan.
I will keep the link for reference and consider both boxes you suggested.

The link is for iPhone but the apps are also available for Android. In fact I had a thread for Android as well last time but it was deleted by the admins. You can use it as a reference for paid services like Youku, Tencent Video and iQiyi.

Of course Android has more free choices than iOS but for paid services the two are similar.

Magicsee N6 Max will be a powerful box with RK3399 and from the reviews Magicsee should be an okay brand as well.

Zidoo X9S has the better brand and the extra feature of HDMI input for recording if you care for that feature. The CPU is not as powerful but the software is said to be very good for local media consumption.

Both boxes will be okay for streaming as well. And I will say that streaming is the future and downloading contents will not be the future.
 

xiaofan

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Just for reference, other than the king of Android TV box which is Nvidia Shield TV, RK3399 based boxes are the best in terms of raw performance.

The issues are that it is of higher cost and overkill for most of the intended users of Android TV boxes, so there are not many boxes available with RK3399. RK3399 chips are more common in Chromebooks and maker boards because of the performance.

Magicsee N6 Max is actually one of the newest RK3399 TV boxes with relatively good review.

Ref: https://youtu.be/9-I3_yGwn0U
Ref: https://youtu.be/ySyhndTgX0k

Most of the people can safely skip RK3399 boxes for streaming purposes. But if you want good smooth experience with the box in normal operation and for example playing 4k video of different format in Kodi, it may be an good option.

Lazada price is around S$130-140.

Taobao price is about RMB620 or S$124 with few buyers so I do not know if the shops are good or not. Adding the GST and shipping fees the cost is actually the same as Lazada but you lose the service by Lazada.
 
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geotowf

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Sorry I rest early now then reply.

Yes I agree with you both boxes are good.
3399 is over kill to buy if not for gaming but not much box out there have good hw.
I need to get peoples to install app to view China programs so not sure will lazada help to do or not. Price is almost the same except app/software in there. If lazada getting from China then taobao is the same. As for warranty both I dont really care cos bad experience with all this online stuffs.if want to buy just have to take the risk.
I did some homework for all the main boxes over the market and come out with few boxes to consider mainly for usb3;4k & bt.
Thank for all the help and suggestions.
I dont know what is the service from lazada only bought one time from them. Taobao bought few times got good and bad experience.


Just for reference, other than the king of Android TV box which is Nvidia Shield TV, RK3399 based boxes are the best in terms of raw performance.

The issues are that it is of higher cost and overkill for most of the intended users of Android TV boxes, so there are not many boxes available with RK3399. RK3399 chips are more common in Chromebooks and maker boards because of the performance.

Magicsee N6 Max is actually one of the newest RK3399 TV boxes with relatively good review.

芝杜ZIDOO X9S网络播放机顶盒4K hdr蓝光3D硬盘播放器双频WIFI
962 reviews not sure how true the reviews was
From taobao:
Root+pte app+ oversea set rmb 700 if add BT remove rmb 825
Ref: https://youtu.be/9-I3_yGwn0U
Ref: https://youtu.be/ySyhndTgX0k

Most of the people can safely skip RK3399 boxes for streaming purposes. But if you want good smooth experience with the box in normal operation and for example playing 4k video of different format in Kodi, it may be an good option.

Lazada price is around S$130-140.

Taobao price is about RMB620 or S$124 with few buyers so I do not know if the shops are good or not. Adding the GST and shipping fees the cost is actually the same as Lazada but you lose the service by Lazada.
 
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xiaofan

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Sorry I rest early now then reply.

Yes I agree with you both boxes are good.
3399 is over kill to buy if not for gaming but not much box out there have good hw.
I need to get peoples to install app to view China programs so not sure will lazada help to do or not. Price is almost the same except app/software in there. If lazada getting from China then taobao is the same. As for warranty both I dont really care cos bad experience with all this online stuffs.if want to buy just have to take the risk.
I did some homework for all the main boxes over the market and come out with few boxes to consider mainly for usb3;4k & bt.
Thank for all the help and suggestions.
I dont know what is the service from lazada only bought one time from them. Taobao bought few times got good and bad experience.

Good that you have done your research. Since you have experiences with Taobao and the vendors there can provide the service you need, just go for it. My own experiences with Taobao are mostly positive.
 
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Since you need Netflix 1080p, you do not really have many choices. If you can pay a bit higher cost get Nvidia Shield TV. If not get Mi Box S. They support up to 4k. Non certified box only support 480p. There are hacks from box vendors like Mecool to run Netflix 720p/1080p/4k with unofficial Android TV OS but Netflix will eventually catch them.

Youku is okay once you pay for the VIP, the TV version is called 酷喵影视 so you need to pay for the higher tier of VIP, still not expensive though. I am paying for the normal VIP so it is only good for phone/tablet. You can subscribe by yourself using iOS actually and pay in SGD. Take note there are three three tiers of VIP, 优酷VIP, 酷喵VIP and 体育VIP. Now there is an offer for 酷喵VIP 3month for S$10.98, just checked my iOS.

TVB Anywhere is very bad, it does not support TV boxes and it does not support Chromecast.


Tagging on these, can some experts share,

i'm looking for a tv box that can be used to watch like live sports (epl), youku, chinese movies, and Korean dramas, hollywood as well. Preferably decent resolution.

I have a netflix app installed on my smart 4k TV. So i think this is not a worry for me.

Any suggestion on which tv box to get?

THANKS IN ADVANCE
 

xiaofan

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Tagging on these, can some experts share,

i'm looking for a tv box that can be used to watch like live sports (epl), youku, chinese movies, and Korean dramas, hollywood as well. Preferably decent resolution.

I have a netflix app installed on my smart 4k TV. So i think this is not a worry for me.

Any suggestion on which tv box to get?

THANKS IN ADVANCE

Many boxes will have no issues with 1080p and 4k video streaming, including Mi Box S. If you like to have a box with higher hardware specifications, you can consider new S905X2 based box, for example Tanix TX5 Max and Beelink GT1 Mini.

A quick glance at Lazada shows the price for Tanix TX5 Max is about S$90 for the 4GB/32GB model. Beelink GT1 Mini 4GB/32GB model is a bit higher at around S$95.

As for the apps, you have to use Google.
 
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