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You have a ton of Android boxes. But very few Android TV boxes. Android TV is different OS than the regular Android.
The only cheap Android TV box is the Xiaomi MiBox (global versions).
Mibox s
I've owned the Mibox S for a couple of months now and have hardly ran into any of the supposed bugs or glitches people continuously bang on about on here. It's a great price and it's perfect for someone only looking for something to run light apps such as Netflix / Spotify / Youtube. Of course if you're looking to spend more and invest into something more powerful, go for the Shield. The Mi Box S was perfect for me.
As far as cheap, I'd recommend the Xiaomi Mi Box. Its fairly cheap $39 (i think).
and most importantly its officially affiliated with Google. Many cheap Android Tv boxes aren't officially affiliated and that could cause issues with some apps
Just because there seems to still be some confusion:
"Android box" = a set top box with normal Android installed. Think plugging your tablet into your TV. Not a great experience. You do not want this.
"Android TV" = an interface and apps made for using a remote control from the couch. These would include the Mi Box, Jetstream, Nvidia Shield TV, and even the Amazon Fire TV stick/box. This is what you want
Don’t get a cheap Chinese box. They are shit. You will REGRET it. Do yourself a favour and get a shield. Trust me on this one. I have used cheap boxes but nothing comes close to the shield.
You want the MiBox S or the Ematic Jetstream. All these other cheapo boxes (the ones that don't run Android TV) are hastily-created trash made by fly-by-night operations, and you will have nothing but problems with them.
Not sure what's available in your area for Android TV but you want ordered by price: Mi Box S, Jetstream, or Shield TV.
I know this is supposed to be posted in another forum, but I had to chip in. I don't recommend the MXQ Pro. For a cheap box I recommend the x96 Mini.
Source: I've sold hundreds of these. The MXQ is years old and has a failure rate of between 5-10%. The x96 mini came out recently with newer hardware and has a failure rate of less than 1%.
This IS too confusing for you. Save up for the Shield like you planned.
Fire TV Stick 4k should is probably the best $35 I've spent on a box. I prefer it to my Mi Box which was about $70 and it runs all the same apps or sideloaded APKs. It also supports actual 4k on most apps. Youtube is a bit of a pain, but still possible to load the official android TV app.
Yeah if you’re going to go cheap then the 4K Firestick is where you probably want to go. These other cheap boxes etc are generally cheap for a reason.
Netflix doesn't play nicely on a lot of the cheap boxes since they're not certified, so MiBox is your best bet.
Honestly though I would just get the Chromecast and then save the money for the Shield. You're still free to use your phone, it just acts like a remote when you cast something and you don't even need the app open while it's streaming.
I got a Mi box and it worked great for a long time with kodi.
At this time I cannot get it to propperly list and stream tv shows/movies (what the main purpose was when i bought it). I've used exodus, covenant but they all get unsupported after a while.
I've never used Real debrid since I wanted to stream for free.
ps.
If anyone has a up to date kodi skin that works let me know thanks!
Worth taking a look: https://www.android.com/tv/
I've been using a mibox (no 's') since they first appeared on the Walmart shelves. ZERO BUGGY BEHAVIOR. $40 is a steal and the odds are that you'll never need to 'upgrade' to a shield.
Kodi¹, bubbleupnp, acestream, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, etc.. all work perfectly.
Some apps do need sideloading or can be installed via Aptoide.
No, I don't use it in 4K mode, I'm not even sure it can handle 4K. I'm a normal human and cannot actually SEE in 4K resolution unless I'm practically licking the monitor.
The Shield is a nice piece of hardware, no doubt, but I fail to see the need to throw money at performance for performance's sake. I've not encountered a single limitation to the mibox as it pertains to its intended use.
¹ Kodi... If you are looking for free cable television and new release blockbuster movies, you should just avoid it unless you are both technically savvy AND willing to reconfigure the app very often. Kodi add-ons which handle this mostly unauthorized access to copyright material don't work well for very long. I use Kodi to access media stored on a local server.
Just get a fire TV stick. You can do all those things and can sideload apks. Later if you still want to they the shield, get the shield
MiBox is the way to go imo it’s the 2nd best android tv box after the shield. I do not recommend the fire sticks as those things only got 1 gig of ram...like it’s going to work but it’s slower. MiBox has 2 gig of ram and is enough to enjoy your Netflix, Hulu, crave tv, and whatever else you watch comfortably.
Firestick4k is great, brilliant remote, has all the Android TV apps.
It doesn't do Chromecast (except for YouTube, for some reason), fairly limited for playing games, and the interface is full of Amazon adverts. Otherwise it's the best thing you can get right now.
There is also a tutorial around that shows you how to change the launcher to something visually a bit nicer.
Dont confuse every android box with Android TV. The MXQ is not an Android TV box. The shield is, so is a MiBox.