2014-07-18, 07:44
Hi,
First, let me apologise for beating a dead horse; I'm sure you've had this question a billion times. For that I am sorry.
Unfortunately, the market changes seemingly HOURLY, and the new hotness becomes garbage almost immediately. I've read dozens (hundreds?) of threads on the Internet, and they're all full of contradicting (and old) information.
I've spent hundreds of dollars on devices to use as a set-top box (because I'm an idiot), and have regretted most of them. Price is not a concern; I'll pay a king's ransom for something that doesn't suck at this point.
I'd really really like to know what the best current Android-based box that will do XBMC is (at least in the opinion of all of you).
So far I've tried:
- Pivos. This device SUCKED. It may have just been the one I had, but I found it slow, clunky, and the wifi was unbearably slow (topped out at 5-6Mbps on my network which is capable of 250Mbps), and somehow, the WIRED connection was even slower!
- MK808. This device was low grade crap. It worked OK, but then it lost its ability to connect to wireless, started locking hard, and eventually bricked itself. Again, it may have been the one I had. My luck SUCKS.
- Some little usb/hdmi device off of kickstarter. I forget what it's called now, but it's not important: it sucked too.
(I've also had other non-Android devices like a roku, a neotv, and a chromecast, but they suck for different reasons.)
The reason I'd like to stick with Android is because I want Netflix, NHL GameCenter, and Spotify. Those won't work on straight Linux installs. I am a software developer by trade, so I try my best not to pirate, and I also don't support Microsoft or Apple, so straight up computers are pretty much out.
I have ripped all of my Blurays and DVDs and stored them on a local SAMBA share, so a nice install of XBMC would be fantastic, with the ability for me to use those other apps in Android land.
1080p is a nice-to-have, but not a necessity. Nor is 3D (I'm physically unable to see it, and don't own a TV that does it anyway). DTS passthru would be nice, but not a dealbreaker.
The most important features to me are stable XBMC that doesn't freeze, good IR support (I have a logitech harmony), and a complete version of Android so I can get the apps I want from the market.
... does such a thing exist?
First, let me apologise for beating a dead horse; I'm sure you've had this question a billion times. For that I am sorry.
Unfortunately, the market changes seemingly HOURLY, and the new hotness becomes garbage almost immediately. I've read dozens (hundreds?) of threads on the Internet, and they're all full of contradicting (and old) information.
I've spent hundreds of dollars on devices to use as a set-top box (because I'm an idiot), and have regretted most of them. Price is not a concern; I'll pay a king's ransom for something that doesn't suck at this point.
I'd really really like to know what the best current Android-based box that will do XBMC is (at least in the opinion of all of you).
So far I've tried:
- Pivos. This device SUCKED. It may have just been the one I had, but I found it slow, clunky, and the wifi was unbearably slow (topped out at 5-6Mbps on my network which is capable of 250Mbps), and somehow, the WIRED connection was even slower!
- MK808. This device was low grade crap. It worked OK, but then it lost its ability to connect to wireless, started locking hard, and eventually bricked itself. Again, it may have been the one I had. My luck SUCKS.
- Some little usb/hdmi device off of kickstarter. I forget what it's called now, but it's not important: it sucked too.
(I've also had other non-Android devices like a roku, a neotv, and a chromecast, but they suck for different reasons.)
The reason I'd like to stick with Android is because I want Netflix, NHL GameCenter, and Spotify. Those won't work on straight Linux installs. I am a software developer by trade, so I try my best not to pirate, and I also don't support Microsoft or Apple, so straight up computers are pretty much out.
I have ripped all of my Blurays and DVDs and stored them on a local SAMBA share, so a nice install of XBMC would be fantastic, with the ability for me to use those other apps in Android land.
1080p is a nice-to-have, but not a necessity. Nor is 3D (I'm physically unable to see it, and don't own a TV that does it anyway). DTS passthru would be nice, but not a dealbreaker.
The most important features to me are stable XBMC that doesn't freeze, good IR support (I have a logitech harmony), and a complete version of Android so I can get the apps I want from the market.
... does such a thing exist?
