Android tv box

[bikerbobw]

Hi All
I am new to all this smart technology
I have a home theater Pioneer VSX-831 and Samsung series 7 4K tv and would like to use an android box with Kodi
First question will any box provide 4k reception provided the box has Android 6 (marshmello)
Second question is there are a 1000 boxes out there; what would you recommend?
I am considering the Leelbox MXQ Pro or the Wetek play 2
Do you have any experience with either of these to boxes
Thanks for your reply
Bikerbob

 

[americanaudiophile]

No. The box needs to specifically provide 4k with HDMI 2.0 and HDCP 2.2. I don't think the OS has anything to do with it. It's a hardware issue. HDR would be nice to have too.
Can't help with specific boxes. Would suggest that the seller with the best tech support and warranty be a priority.

 

[Barty1884]

Almost any box can provide 4K output, provided the media is available in 4K resolution. HDMI 2.0 isn't necessary. 4K @ 30Hz (the 'norm' for media) has been available since 1.4

Although almost any box "can" do it, in theory..... most lack evenly remotely close to appropriate hardware to do so smoothly.. Many are even marked as "4K boxes", but trying to run 4K on the available resources can be painful. Skipped frames, freezing etc.

From an OS perspective, I believe 4K playback has been supported since 4.4.

I haven't researched too many boxes in a while, so not sure of what's available overall. The reason I haven't researched in a while, is I own a Nexus Player and an nVidia Shield. I can't recommend them highly enough. The cheap(ish) boxes usually have limited support/updates and become (relatively) obsolete pretty quickly.

I bought a Nexus player a couple of years ago for $50 CAD, and it's performed better than any other "Android box" I've used - up until the Shield.
The NP is on Nougat, and sees frequent updates. I would highly recommend, if they were available for decent prices today.... but generally, they're not.
The hardware inside would likely be a little lacking for 4K playback smoothly too.

The Shield is an amazing box - miles ahead of anything else on the market. But it is a substantial outlay. ($250-$300 CAD, $200 USD).
https/www.amazon.ca/NVIDIA-SHIELD-TV-Streaming-Media-Player/dp/B01N1NT9Y6

I can say though, I have a few friends who have had 2-3 boxes (in the $50-$100 range each) in the last couple of years.
Most people will likely end up in a similar position, so opting for a Shield would be a smarter long-term investment IMO.

 

[bikerbobw]

Almost any box can provide 4K output, provided the media is available in 4K resolution. HDMI 2.0 isn't necessary. 4K @ 30Hz (the 'norm' for media) has been available since 1.4

Although almost any box "can" do it, in theory..... most lack evenly remotely close to appropriate hardware to do so smoothly.. Many are even marked as "4K boxes", but trying to run 4K on the available resources can be painful. Skipped frames, freezing etc.

From an OS perspective, I believe 4K playback has been supported since 4.4.

I haven't researched too many boxes in a while, so not sure of what's available overall. The reason I haven't researched in a while, is I own a Nexus Player and an nVidia Shield. I can't recommend them highly enough. The cheap(ish) boxes usually have limited support/updates and become (relatively) obsolete pretty quickly.

I bought a Nexus player a couple of years ago for $50 CAD, and it's performed better than any other "Android box" I've used - up until the Shield.
The NP is on Nougat, and sees frequent updates. I would highly recommend, if they were available for decent prices today.... but generally, they're not.
The hardware inside would likely be a little lacking for 4K playback smoothly too.

The Shield is an amazing box - miles ahead of anything else on the market. But it is a substantial outlay. ($250-$300 CAD, $200 USD).
https/www.amazon.ca/NVIDIA-SHIELD-TV-Streaming-Media-Player/dp/B01N1NT9Y6

I can say though, I have a few friends who have had 2-3 boxes (in the $50-$100 range each) in the last couple of years.
Most people will likely end up in a similar position, so opting for a Shield would be a smarter long-term investment IMO.

 

[bikerbobw]

I have a Xbox 360 would it substitue for the nexus player
My primary objective is to cut cable
The theater system is used for watching news weather sports and movies; and listening to music

 

[Barty1884]

Your 360 *may* serve as a substitute, but that entirely depends what you wish to use.
Apps like Netflix, Hulu et al are available - would be more "cable shaving" (reducing your outlay, but still paying) opposed to "cutting" which is generally considered to be 'free' options only.

For example, where the 360 would fail would be in utilizing Kodi. It's no longer supported outside of Windows/Android/Linux/iOS/MacOS.
Then, in using Kodi, there are a lot of "unofficial" addons that can stream "free" TV. I would expect any discussion beyond that (Kodi and "free" TV addons) would be a little too 'grey' from a legal perspective to discuss in any more detail here.

There used to be an option to run Linux on a 360.... not sure where that stands these days.