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papampi · 2014-09-28, 16:54

I already have a Rpi it can play almost any thing but the performance and speed is too low,
got a Transmort S89 and it was amazing with AMlinux but it died after 6 months

so I'm looking for my next box, so the verdict is HP/Asus chromebox ?

zelenac · 2014-09-28, 17:40

(2014-09-28, 16:54)papampi Wrote: so I'm looking for my next box, so the verdict is HP/Asus chromebox ?

If you are choosing just between Chromeboxes, go for the ASUS one.

HP Chromebox has a fan! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_bP45QpW-U
Samsung Chromebox has only 2 display ports, no HDMI
Acer Chromebox looks like it still isn't at the market

I would definitely buy Asus Chromebox by myself if it wasn't almost 2x times more expensive in my country than the normal US price.

papampi · 2014-09-28, 17:47

but they say asus has fan too :

Despite ASUS’ initial claims that its Chromebox would be fanless, there is a single fan inside the machine. Air is brought in through the bottom and vented through the back of the chassis. Fan noise is minimal, and it is entirely possible to run the machine without the fan spinning up but open up enough tabs and you’ll find the fan humming away all the time.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7850/asus-...box-review

zelenac · 2014-09-28, 19:10

(2014-09-28, 17:47)papampi Wrote: but they say asus has fan too :

Despite ASUS’ initial claims that its Chromebox would be fanless, there is a single fan inside the machine. Air is brought in through the bottom and vented through the back of the chassis. Fan noise is minimal, and it is entirely possible to run the machine without the fan spinning up but open up enough tabs and you’ll find the fan humming away all the time.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7850/asus-...box-review

Wow, you are right. I missed that.

Matt Devo · (This post was last modified: 2014-09-28, 19:17 by Matt Devo.)

the HP is a *lot* louder than the Asus due to poor thermal design: https://plus.google.com/1156935452875979...piz5CKGKF8

I haven't had a chance to tear into the Acer or Dell Chromeboxes yet, but the Asus >> HP - quieter, 2 sodimm slots, less hassle to disassemble.

Also, when running my custom firmware on the Asus, it will be quieter than stock, due to slightly higher temp thresholds for the various fan speeds

zelenac · 2014-10-01, 19:27

(2014-09-27, 18:41)host505 Wrote: I don't know when "when" was but as of now (and thanks to popcornmix partially) and as popcornmix said any raw bluray file will work. With o/c, and if over lan with some advancedsettings.xml tweaks. All that under openelec, don't know about raspbmc.
Hdaudio I think will not passthrough, but it will be downmixed.
The mpeg2 licence is like 2-3$, and you'll pay for it in any machine that can hardware decode it - it's just fixed in the price of most.

Today I've downloaded the latest RaspberryPi OpenELEC image and tried playing a movie from USB stick on my RaspberryPi Model B (version with 512 MB RAM). XBMC was working good, but even when only a cheap wired keyboard was plugged in USB, XBMC froze about 10 minutes after boot up. When plugged in with wired keyboard + 16 GB flash disk it wasn't even able to boot up.

As a power I am using an original SAMSUNG power supply that came with my phone (5 months old).

Is this behaviour normal and I have to use a powered USB hub even when plugging in a wired keyboard or is this issue with my device?

papampi · 2014-10-01, 19:53

I think a better place to find your answer is openelec forum :

http://openelec.tv/forum/124-raspberry-pi

noggin · (This post was last modified: 2014-10-01, 19:57 by noggin.)

(2014-10-01, 19:27)zelenac Wrote:
(2014-09-27, 18:41)host505 Wrote: I don't know when "when" was but as of now (and thanks to popcornmix partially) and as popcornmix said any raw bluray file will work. With o/c, and if over lan with some advancedsettings.xml tweaks. All that under openelec, don't know about raspbmc.
Hdaudio I think will not passthrough, but it will be downmixed.
The mpeg2 licence is like 2-3$, and you'll pay for it in any machine that can hardware decode it - it's just fixed in the price of most.

Today I've downloaded the latest RaspberryPi OpenELEC image and tried playing a movie from USB stick on my RaspberryPi Model B (version with 512 MB RAM). XBMC was working good, but even when only a cheap wired keyboard was plugged in USB, XBMC froze about 10 minutes after boot up. When plugged in with wired keyboard + 16 GB flash disk it wasn't even able to boot up.

As a power I am using an original SAMSUNG power supply that came with my phone (5 months old).

Is this behaviour normal and I have to use a powered USB hub even when plugging in a wired keyboard or is this issue with my device?

Suspect your Samsung USB PSU isn't up to the task. You really need a decent PSU for the Pi - and many USB phone chargers aren't powerful enough.

**popcornmix** · 2014-10-01, 20:41

(2014-10-01, 19:27)zelenac Wrote: Is this behaviour normal and I have to use a powered USB hub even when plugging in a wired keyboard or is this issue with my device?

If you have a voltmeter then check the voltage
This is a recommended supply.

zelenac · 2014-10-01, 20:58

(2014-10-01, 20:41)popcornmix Wrote:
(2014-10-01, 19:27)zelenac Wrote: Is this behaviour normal and I have to use a powered USB hub even when plugging in a wired keyboard or is this issue with my device?

If you have a voltmeter then check the voltage
This is a recommended supply.

Thanks! I see it's 5V 2A instead of my 5V 1A.

Is it possible to run a basic wired keyboard AND a small USB stick (flash disk) simultaneously with the recommended power supply?

wrxtasy · (This post was last modified: 2014-11-10, 03:44 by wrxtasy.)

Seriously if you start seeing square rainbow boxes on the screen when running the RPi your power supply is not up to scratch. Most people that complain about the RPi always have this basic issue. These power supplies are now cheap to purchase.

A basic keyboard and a USB stick will happily run once you upgraded the power supply. I personally use a spare iPad one I had lying around and never have had any problems.

Once you have done that and to get the most out of the RPi you have to overclock it, I recommend these (reliable) settings in the config.txt file:

arm_freq=1100
core_freq=550
sdram_freq=600
over_voltage=6
over_voltage_sdram=4
avoid_pwm_pll=1

This will make a remarkable difference to the RPi once overclocked, especially running Openelec and a low textured skin like Confluence or the superb skin Eminence.

GermanDevil717 · 2014-11-10, 07:35

Hey guys,

Figured I would piggyback on this forum. I am going to build a more solid desktop PC for an HTPC at home, but for the time being I am looking to augment my setup with a small box that could be mobile connecting to external storage (looking to bring over to other peoples houses requiring them to provide only an HDMI port, power and wifi/internet access). Requirements are that it needs to connect to an external USB hard drive to run media files (running XBMC), run netflix AND amazon prime video. I have used a WDTV in the past which worked alright but it is pretty dated and laggy (and less customizable) and does not run amazon prime video. I did like the simplicity of the WDTV for my wife, also since it was cheaper and had a remote in the box.

Out of some of the boxes previously recommended in this post, what are you best thoughts for local (USB) hard drive storage, netflix, prime video and easier to use?

This is my first post so go easy on me (if I was repetitive or missed something). Thank you all for your help in advance.

nickr · 2014-11-10, 07:52

The netflix and prime requirements will probably point you to firetv, but only if you can root it to get access to USB drives.