Which Android stick to buy?

by Sieger179

I've been doing research for about 4 days and now I haven't come to a conclusion on which android stick to buy. I currently have a smart tv that works fine, so I only really need an android stick for kodi. I have been running an htpc for years, and I'm tired of the bulk. I just want my tv on the wall with nothing near it. I've gone back and forth between fire stick, shield, and nexus player to no end. The only thing that holds me back from the nexus is it's size. Can it be hidden behind the tv? I'd have gone with the shield except for the price. I'd have gone with the fire stick except I'm worried about Amazon cracking down on root access and I'm not a big fan of Amazon's skin on android (with the Android version on my friend's nook anyway). Stock android is greatly preferred. Ease of rooting is even better!

Ideally, I want something that can be or is hidden by nature of its size, and usb powered so I don't have a power cable to worry about. Obviously ports, expansion slots, ram, storage, etc, are all important. Price isn't really an issue with the form factor I would like to buy into, but sub $100 is preferred.

At this point I'm really leaning towards the nexus, now that it's only $50.

Any other solutions?

Thanks in advance!

cheeto0

Nexus player but its not a stick.

ronakg

You are in the wrong sub.

aviewdev

Can definitely recommend the Nexus Player over anything else. With a sufficiently short HDMI cable you could just pretend it's a Chromecast v2.

skeletonbutt

My Nexus Player is hidden behind my wall mounted TV. Doubt the TV's USB port could power it, though.

eightbitrob

You can put Kodi on a FireStick and have it autostart to the Kodi interface skipping Amazons skin. I have this setup on one of my TVs. My one warning is it is not a silky smooth experience. Its kinda slow and clunky on the FireStick but if its just the functionality of Kodi that you want it will work, its small and cheap.

The Nexus Player will give you a much better experience running Kodi though. Smoother and snappier.

Mr_You

There are no official Android TV "sticks". Price wise, as already suggested, you want the Nexus Player.

paticao

Go with the Shield if money is not a problem, otherwise for your needs the nexus player will be perfect too. It's $45 from newegg now http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?sdtid=8234754&SID=5002659e888011e590070eb8110bee850000&AID=10440897&PID=1225267&Item=N82E16815293034&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction- -cables- -na-_-na&gclid=CjwKEAiA64uyBRCVmKyT2vuAjzgSJADfINB6GL9QNtyiSeHHrG17fBpi0mkONu1s_paeUktRIiTLfhoCY8fw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds&cm_sp=

Sieger179

Thanks for the advice everyone. Sounds like nexus is the way to go.