Please could someone explain to me how Android TV boxes work

by ELI5androidtvbox

So one of my Dad's friends told him that he had a box on which you can search for any tv series/film and it does a global search and finds the best quality version for you to watch. Father's day is coming up and I really want to get him one but there's so many options on the internet and if I'm totally honest, this isn't my specialty and I don't understand how they work at all. From what I could gather, the ones available on amazon etc. run Kodi and other software but I've also read that it's not really legit and will break without constant updates (which I will be totally incapable of). So basically my questions is: Do the legitimate models give free access to any film or do I have to have subscriptions to the apps that they run, for example do I need a membership to watch stuff through the amazon video app? And if anyone could explain to me properly how these things actually work it would be really helpful, thanks x

JimboLodisC

Is this you? Or did you just not bother looking before posting?

https://www.reddit.com/r/AndroidTV/comments/4muve2/what_is_an_android_tv_box_how_do_they_work/

hitideblastoise

There are only three legit android TV boxes: Nexus player, shield TV, and razor Forge. Correct me others if I'm wrong. All the other "android tv" boxes are just a box with an Android often designed for phones. They are made poorly and cheaply by Chinese companies. I assume kodi is what you want more information, but I'm not familiar. Most other shows through Netflix, amazon video, etc do cost money and won't be free.

nic2849

Do the legitimate models give free access to any film or do I have to have subscriptions to the apps that they run, for example do I need a membership to watch stuff through the amazon video app?

No you would have to install kodi and its plugins (such as genesis or exodus), or sideload piracy apps such as popcorn time. The boxes that they are referring to are those made in china android boxes that run the android tablet interfaces and not the android tv interface. The official android tv interface looks like this , while the android box have many looks such as this , this , or this

So the question you may be asking is which one to get? As of now you can get the nvidia shield or razer forge tv, although it is highly advisable not to get the forge tv. Nexus player is not available in many places, although you could try looking for it. That leaves with the nvidia shield, which many would find quite expensive. But if your father don't mind a late father's day gift, you could wait for xiaomi to release its android tv for potentially a lower price.