Android set top boxes

[gegs]

Does anybody have any experience of Android set top boxes running TV / audio apps?

The Joggler was the device that introduced me to XBMC (thanks BuZz) and I bought an Apple TV 2 specifically to jailbreak and run XBMC on. With iPlayer, iTVPlayer, 4oD, Demand 5 - and the fantastic TVCatchup addon showing what XBMC is capable of with official dev support - I couldn't be happier. Especially now it has Netflix too. Sadly though, it is getting harder to obtain the easily hackable ATV2, now that the ATV3 is out. The new iteration of Apple's 'hockey puck' is proving a harder nut to crack and it may be some time before XBMC appears on the new model. If ever.

The good news is that XBMC devs have announced that an Android version of full XBMC (not an XBMC remote app) will be released shortly - after it has been tested for compatibility with various 'droid devices. This means that it will be available officially on Android, no jailbreak necessary. It also means that it will soon be available on cheap Android set top boxes. It has been sponsored by Pivos to run on their XIOS DS box, which runs Gingerbread 2.3, but will run on other Android hardware.

It would be great if the average Joe or Jane could buy a STB and install XBMC officially, along with hundreds of other Android apps, without resorting to telnet/SSH or jailbreaks that could be disabled with a firmware update. It could push XBMC into the mainstream and could possibly kill off the Apple TV, which has very few official apps and needs a jailbreak to be useful. These Android boxes are also £30 (or more) cheaper than the Apple TV.

Now the only question that remains is - are these Android STBs any good? Does anybody on the forum have any experience with them?

[danfoshizzle]

It all depends on what devices the communities like, anything allwinner based IE:MK802, already has an active community, and should be ok, but all the other android boxes may have problems, as getting hardware acceleration working may be a bitch,but if the hardware is good enough, software rendering may not be a problem.

Android also runs a Plex client, so once XBMC is out, Android may just become the goto if you need a cheap HTPC, I am hoping it does, with all of the cheap devices coming out, and with them getting even cheaper, it all is looking good!

[hawsey]

Just tried the full xbmc app on a scroll excel ICS after reading a post on the Xbmc4xbox forum : watched a video on you tube after installing the you tube add on.
Its all looking good so far
No good on my ZTE blade tho lol

[danfoshizzle]

Sort of on topic, can people keep an eye out for an Android stb with a component output, cant seem to find one, TV has only component only at the moment as the hdmi is buggered

[gegs]

You'll be looking for one of these babies (the white one) or something similar:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dn6eVuL-CY

[danfoshizzle]

Thats composite/av, I am after YPbPR/component. cheers though!

[gegs]

Watching the video on a crappy small screen (not the Joggler) with the sound off doesn't help. I just saw the coax audio output and my eyes welled up with tears of joy and everything else became a blur.

[danfoshizzle]

Yeah the coax is nifty, I saw it too lol

[gegs]

How about this?
http://cdjx.en.alibaba.com/product/5756 ... p_Box.html

It looks pretty nifty on the site but doesn't say what version of Android it runs. It has composite, component, S-video and HDMI video connections, although I'd like to have seen them on the device, not a drawing.

[danfoshizzle]

That would do, how do you buy from alibaba/alixpress?

[gegs]

I don't know. I think it is a site for traders to advertise their wares rather than a shopping site. You might just have to fill in the "Email to this supplier" form at the foot of the page.

[talkingbollox]

How about http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_trksi ... x&_sacat=0?

[monkums]

This may be worth more investigation, especially if it will run XBMC.

http://www.vizio.com/costar/overview