Upgrading my cheap Android box

by terrythevillan

I currently have a cheap MXPro which has served me well overall, but it doesn't boot sometimes and have to take plug out to restart, even this usually takes a few attempts. It's also generally slowing down, so I want to upgrade to a dependable box mainly for streaming.

I did purchase this Leelbox but despite the apparently excellent specs, the video when streaming is choppy on all apps tested and displays worse than my MXPro! Very disappointing

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07MJPGPTX/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I now recognise these are labelled as the cheap Chinese boxes not optimised for TV which I've noticed people recommend avoiding.

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I've come across "real" Android TV boxes below.

Couple of general queries - 1) Would I need to sideload all apps (eg Showbox)? 2) Will my Rii keyboard work with these?

- The Nvidia Shield which is too pricey and I don't need it for gaming. If it really is THE absolute must buy I could extend to that price range.

- The Mi Box - have seen people complain with Wifi issues and also booting it up. This box looked like the answer until I saw these issues.

- MeCool M8S Pro L - Is this an Android TV box or Android box or somewhere in between? Not sure based on this review:

https://hometheatrelife.com/mecool-m8s-pro-l-review/?&ampcf=1

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Is there anything on https://www.entertainmentbox.com/ which is good or are these all similar to the Chinese boxes not optimised for TV? The X96 Max looks good...

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Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

just_roc

The Mi Box S is a great choice for the money and the negative comments should be taken with a grain of salt. I have 6 of them among family and friends and have not had one problem with them. A lot of comments are from people that load them up with crap and then wonder why they don't work.

I have a Shield in the living room and it's quick but since I don't game I can't really justify the cost compared to a Mi Box.

Get a Mi Box S because it's Google Certified and get's updated unlike the Chinese box you mention.

BiggussDikkuss

At the cheap end of the legit Google Certified Android TV market...

Mecool's new KM3/KM9 are faster vs the old Mi Boxes and Jetstream 4K Ultra HD:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSHp_EUdnhw&feature=youtu.be

Downside = no Netflix Approval. So it's no go for that App.

The best bang for the buck is the really well supported, by Amazon - FireTV Stick 4K.

It's a powerful little thing for the price paid with about the best wireless remote you can get.

Cheap Chinese AMLogic S9xx chipset devices can be turned into great Kodi Media players with this OS, running from a microSDHC card:

https://coreelec.org/

krasburn

Some apps that are not available in the store will need to be side loaded. You will find that the big streaming apps are going to be available so you might only need to add a couple more depending on what you need. Regarding the mi box. I have two, one was purchased at Walmart and the other one bought in AliExpress directly from China. I have found that the one I got from China sometimes has issues coming out from sleep mode. Both boxes have been pretty solid streaming devices for me for the last 2 years. I hope this helps.

bowlcut

Honestly the shield is the best buy. It's lasted me longer than the mi box did. I have 3 shields, one in the living room one in the bedroom one in the kitchen. I started with the shield, but then for the kitchen i thought 'just save a few bucks since its the kitchen'. Well even with that light use, it just wasn't 'good enough'. I'd have lockups, weird resolution issues since Im using a monitor not a 'tv'. Shield I've had 0 issues. Mibox is now sitting in a box. 100% not a 'living room' acceptable experience. I lived with it for like 6 months in the kitchen, then when a Shield went on sale I bought my 3rd shield.

The MiBox is 'ok'. I could put up with it honestly. If you have a person in the house that isnt able to put up with tech issues I wouldnt buy one. WiFi was fine for me, but I do have pretty good wifi in the house. I never had boot issues. I had resolution switching issues and such. For the price its ok...but honestly the Shield is the way to go really.

Not sure about UK pricing and all, but they do go on sale decently often (tho it usually is like just get the controller for free type of sale). And Shield is an officially supported device... which says a lot to me. Not a hack like the cheap ones.