Best Streaming box?

[FrankRamiro]

Hi guys; in you opinion which Streaming box is better than Roku4!

 

[Kartajan]

Better in which ways? I like my Shield(s) and my Nexus Player, but you need to define your wants/ needs/ preferences for a good answer...

 

[hans007]

i work at a streaming company.

i personally at home have a roku stick 2. but i'm an android developer and have used all the latest devices . if you want a box that is separate from a TV (i hate it when its built into a tv and planned to be obsolete).

the nvidia shield is a decent box, but its overpriced and the game part of it is worthless. most of the services are on it now (except amazon) and if price isnt a concern its not bad. make sure you get the optional remote though, the controller sucks.

nexus player they dont sell anymore, and because its an intel chipset, there are some issues (yeah intel abandoned android and some of the DRM doesnt work, i have to deal with this....)

if you don't want to get a roku 4, and don't care about amazon support. wait for the new xaomi mi box. should be out soon ( i saw some walmarts have it). i've used it, and though not nearly as fast as the shield or nexus player, its a very nice piece of hardware.

supports 4k, dts, dolby, optical out, hdr. has hdmi 2.2 , playready 3000 etc. its very future proof and more and more apps will get on android TV. $70 too so its cheaper than the roku 4

 

[Kartajan]

the nvidia shield is a decent box, but its overpriced and the game part of it is worthless. most of the services are on it now (except amazon) and if price isnt a concern its not bad. make sure you get the optional remote though, the controller sucks.

nexus player they dont sell anymore, and because its an intel chipset, there are some issues (yeah intel abandoned android and some of the DRM doesnt work, i have to deal with this....)

new xaomi mi box. should be out soon ( i saw some walmarts have it).

1) NVidia Shield is more expensive, but the game part is definitely not worthless. And Amazon Prime video CAN be side loaded (I actually use it...) The controller is fine for those games you consider worthless, and is useable (even if not traditional for streaming control)

2) NP is available if you look. here is one place for $70 http://store.asus.com/us/item/201412AM240000002
(And I had no DRM issues, the lack of onboard Ethernet was my biggest issue)

3) Xiaomi Mi Box should be comparable to the NP. It may be slightly faster, but I would call it equivalent for streaming purposes. A early purchaser has provided some feedback: http://androidtv.news/2016/09/exclusive-hands-xiaomi-mi-box/
https://www.youtube.com/shared?ci=MUS3n1cDMbk

(My Mother loves her Roku(s), but I don't care for their interface nor their implementation of search- the lack of an integrated voice search really puts me off)

 

[hans007]

1) NVidia Shield is more expensive, but the game part is definitely not worthless. And Amazon Prime video CAN be side loaded (I actually use it...) The controller is fine for those games you consider worthless, and is useable (even if not traditional for streaming control)

2) NP is available if you look. here is one place for $70 http://store.asus.com/us/item/201412AM240000002
(And I had no DRM issues, the lack of onboard Ethernet was my biggest issue)

3) Xiaomi Mi Box should be comparable to the NP. It may be slightly faster, but I would call it equivalent for streaming purposes. A early purchaser has provided some feedback: http://androidtv.news/2016/09/exclusive-hands-xiaomi-mi-box/
https://www.youtube.com/shared?ci=MUS3n1cDMbk

(My Mother loves her Roku(s), but I don't care for their interface nor their implementation of search- the lack of an integrated voice search really puts me off)

The nexus player is intel. intel abandoned android more or less, if you plan to use widevine drm, well it may not work all the time because one of the secure libraries has an issue (actually also affects the zenfone... https://github.com/google/ExoPlayer/issues/725). So companies have to do workarounds.... it could lead to future less support and well it also doesn't support 4k so no 4k streaming if you care about that because it is not hdmi 2.0. The mi box I guess is the one i'd buy (i'm probably going to buy one if i dont get one for free) on paper it sounds like its as fast as the nexus player, but it isn't. its definitely more future proof. its a quad core cortex a53 , vs a quad core atom z3000 series. It feels noticeably slower than anexus player but it plays video fine.

I suppose for me , if i was considering a shield, i'd recommend someone just buy a real console like an xbox (which has basically the same streaming vendor support as the shield and well is an actual game console), when i said the controller sucked, i meant it sucked for navigating menus etc. the controller is worth it (or you can use your phone, but i'd say the real remote is worth it for the tactile feedback)

also what is nice about all these boxes is they function as chromecasts if a company doesnt yet support androidTV native

 

[Kartajan]

if i was considering a shield, i'd recommend someone just buy a real console like an xbox (which has basically the same streaming vendor support as the shield and well is an actual game console)

If the consoles had the UI/UX of the Shield, then I could agree.. For the living room content consumption model (especially as Live TV content is concerned), the consoles truly suck.
TBH, a lot depends on the usage model you are going for... Each platform has a sweet spot as far as which use model they best fit...

 

[npaladin-2000]

There is no "best" streamer box: there's just the best one for your needs, whatever those needs may be. On the other hand, the worst one is the Amazon FIreTV: you get all the lockdown of iTunes without the need, since you can watch Amazon on other devices.

Basically, AppleTVs are only for iUsers with iTunes media. That part is easy. As mentioned, FireTV should be avoided. That leaves AndroidTV and Roku. Roku's a classic and simple, easy to use setup for streaming, but it's not ready for UltraHD yet, the next gen of devices might be but they haven't been released yet. So if you want 4K, go with the SHIELD box (so far it's the only AndroidTV with VUDU support). A nice bonus with the SHIELD is support for some Android games, which will generally be cross-compatible with your Android phone at no additional cost. But if you don't need the 4k support, or the Android gaming support, it's not worth the premium over a Roku3, which is a pretty sweet device for the price.

I tend not to include game consoles when comparing streaming boxes. If someone wants a game console, they're going to buy it and play games on it, and as a bonus they already have streaming capability. But I don't recommend buying them as streamer replacements.

I'm very interested in seeing Roku's new, revamped lineup thats dropping in a couple of months, it may be worth it to wait for those and see how things shake up. If they can put a 4k device at the $100 price point or less, and Xiaomi can get VUDU onto the MiBox, we could have a very interesting competition.

 

[Kartajan]

...and Xiaomi can get VUDU onto the MiBox, we could have a very interesting competition.

it looks like the Mi has Vudu... It is on the "Mi Box Recommends" from the video I linked as well as listed on the box....

 

[npaladin-2000]

it looks like the Mi has Vudu... It is on the "Mi Box Recommends" from the video I linked as well as listed on the box....

That would be good if true. I heard NVIDIA had a period of exclusivity on it, but maybe that's expired.

https://www.engadget.com/2016/09/26/roku-2016-ultra-premiere-express/

Looks like the Roku Premiere will support 4K video for $80. HDR will require an upgrade to the $100 Premier Plus. That's still good competition, with the Mi Box being right around the same price. NVIDIA may have to figure out how to get the price down on the SHIELD, though frankly you get a lot for $150, provided you know how to use it. The Mi Box may end up being the more mass-market oriented AndroidTV box though.

 

[Johnhen]

The HooYL 4K Android TV Box 6.0 is a small, compact Android computer that you hook up to your TV and basically get all the functionality of an Android TV or Tablet but on your big screen.

https://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Keyboard-Android-Amlogic-Streaming/dp/B01K9OHVVC/

Streaming with NetFlix and YouTube and videos loaded fairly quickly. I installed a couple games and it performed pretty well.

 

[Kartajan]

The HooYL 4K Android TV Box 6.0 is a small, compact Android computer that you hook up to your TV and basically get all the functionality of an Android TV or Tablet but on your big screen.

https://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Keyboard-Android-Amlogic-Streaming/dp/B01K9OHVVC/

Streaming with NetFlix and YouTube and videos loaded fairly quickly. I installed a couple games and it performed pretty well.

HW looks ok, but not "Android TV", so not the same 10' UI/ D-Pad remote experience. Also- "Fully Loaded"= they shoved a bunch of piracy repos onto Kodi, so you could have issues with RIAA/ MPAA/ ISP letters/ Warnings/ Fines.
(If you prefer the "Tablet- like" interface (and know how to protect yourself from the risky add-ons), this could be better than Mi Box. I personally would skip it.)

 

[Kaido]

There is no "best" streamer box: there's just the best one for your needs, whatever those needs may be. On the other hand, the worst one is the Amazon FIreTV: you get all the lockdown of iTunes without the need, since you can watch Amazon on other devices.

That's pretty much it, there is no best box, just what fits your needs. Also, side note on the Amazon FireTV: it's simply an Android box. Enable developer mode & you can install whatever you want (like say KODI).

These days, most people I know use the $39 Amazon Fire Stick with KODI side-loaded on it, along with a variety of banned add-ons. A lot of them also use cheap OTA antennas for free channels, some with SD DVR's.

Personally, I just use Roku boxes (Amazon/Netflix/etc.) along with PLEX (to stream my own content). Super easy, family-friendly interface, no illegal stuff to worry about, and the Roku 3 boxes have been pretty reliable in terms of 24/7 operation.

 

[gus6464]

Roku Premiere+ will support Atmos passthrough BTW. Along with HDR support it's a no-brainer.