List of Amlogic S905 TV Boxes and Sticks

Rockchip RK3368 TV boxes looked promising at the end of the summer, but ended up being disappointing, not because of their expected lower performance compared to RK3288, but simply because they could not deliver on their main selling point: 4K H.265 / H.264 video playback, and the sheer number of issues with the first devices selling for nearly the same price as equivalent Rockchip RK3288 devices. Rockchip RK3368 will soon have a worthy competitor with Amlogic S905, which won’t deliver amazing benchmark scores, but looks promising for its 4K 10-bit HEVC video playback, HDMI 2.0 and HDCP 2.2, and historically Amlogic delivers better video playback than Rockchip. The first Amlogic S905 TV boxes should start shipping by the end of the month, and prices are starting very low, just over $40, thanks to competition between the many manufacturers launching devices based on the new Amlogic SoC.

Amlogic_S905_Android_TV_BoxesThat’s why I’ve decided to make a list of Amlogic S905 Android 5.1 TV boxes and sticks:

  • Geniatech ATV495 TV Box – TV box with 2GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Fast Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, 2x USB 2.0 host ports and HDMI 2.0 and AV. Price: TBD
  • Geniatech ATV1950 STB – TV box with 2GB RAM, 16 GB flash, Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac, 4x USB 2.0 host ports, HDMI 2.0, and dual tuner (ATSC/DVB-T/DVB-T2/ISDBT). Price: TBD
  • Ugoos AM1 – TV box with 2GB RAM, 16 GB flash, Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac and Bluetooth 4.0, 3x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0. Price: TBD
  • Ugoos AM2 – Largish TV stick/dongle with 1GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth, 2x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x micro USB port, and HDMI 2.0 & AV outputs. Price: TBD
  • MXQ Pro TV Box – TV box with 1GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Fast Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth, 4x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0 & AV outputs. Price: $50 and up
  • Beelink MINI MX – TV box with 1GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth, 2x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0. Price: $42.99.
  • Guleek A8 Android TV Stick -> TV stick with 2GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth, 1x USB 2.0 host port, 2x micro USB ports, and HDMI 2.0. Price: TBD
  • Eny EM95 -> TV box with 1 or 2GB RAM, 8 or 16 GB flash, Fast or Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0, 3x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0 and AV output. Price: $56.99 with 1GB/8GB configuration.
  • Acemax G9C – TV box with 2GB RAM, 8GB flash, Fast Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, 2x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0 & AV ports. Price: TBD
  • Venz K1 Plus – TV box with 1 GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Fast Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, 4x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0 and AV outputs. Price: $42.99. Venz K1 Plus Hybrid is another version with DVB-S2, DVB-T2, ISDB-T, DTMB, or ATSC tuner.
  • MXQ Plus – TV box with 1 GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Fast Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, a few USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0 and AV outputs. Price: TBD.
  • Venz K5 – TV box with 2 GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Gigabit Ethernet, dual band Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, a few USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0. Price: TBD.
  • MXV Plus (MXV+) – TV box with 1 GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0, 3x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0. Price: $62.99.
  • Xiaomi 3 Mi Box – TV box with 1 GB RAM, 4 GB flash, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac and Bluetooth 4.1, 1x USB 2.0 host port, and HDMI 2.0 and AV ports. Price: $71.79. Please note: Chinese interface only!
  • Eweat M8V – TV box with 1 or 2 GB RAM, 8 or 16 GB flash, Gigabit Ethernet, dual band Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0, 3x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0 & AV ports. Price: $78.78.
  • Measy B4TS – TV box with 1 GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0, 3x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0. Price: $66.29.
  • Quintex S905 – TV box with 1 GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Fast Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and optional Bluetooth 4.0, 2x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0 and AV output ports. Price: $78.
  • M9+ (M9 Plus) – TV box with 1 GB RAM, 8 GB flash, Fast Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0, 4x USB 2.0 host ports, and HDMI 2.0 and AV output ports. Price: $54.99.

Most of the devices come with 1GB RAM and 8GB flash, and price disparity is rather large. In this category the best values appear to be Beelink MINI MX and K1 Plus TV boxes at $43 both. The only TV stick, Guleek U8, is not for sale yet.  Two TV boxes stand out in terms of specifications with 2GB RAM, 16GB flash, Gigabit Ethernet, and 802.11ac, namely Ugoos AM1 and Geniatech ATV1950, with the latter also including a dual tuner, but they are not for sale yet.

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101 Comments
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kusta
kusta
8 years ago

But from this list none of this companies are licensed for HDCP so there is no point of having HDCP 2.2 capable HW when no HDCP key loaded on it? No DRM….

nobe
nobe
8 years ago

So many s905 products…
Do you know if there are trustable brands among them ?
For example, is there some brands which :
– update their firmware more than 2 months after product launch,
– have a reputation of products breaking within a few months,
– etc…

RAF
RAF
8 years ago

Buiyng 1GB of RAM devices in 2016 makes no sense to me, better spend 20$-30$ extra and get something with 2GB of RAM. Also with prices of RK3288 going down and Lollipop arriving on it, it is still the best option if you don’t mind spending 20$ extra on top of an Amlogic 905 device or Rockchip RK3368 device. The big problem that RK3288 has and always had is that it micro stutters when playing movies or streaming content from internet and in some cases it can be quite annoying. Also even though the chip is almost 2 years old… Read more »

mirror
8 years ago

wow~~ ZIDOO S905 product coming soon.

Oren
8 years ago

Thanks for the list! 🙂 cannot locate some of them in the wild though.. like Quintex. is it a sticker brand?

Marius Cirsta
8 years ago

Well 1GB boxed are pretty cheap but then again as RAD said we are almost in 2016 and 2GB while not a must for casual stuff is kinda needed by the new Android ( btw is it me or is Android using more and more RAM ? )

extintor
extintor
8 years ago

@mirror you are moderator at zidoo forum and now we should believe to you and to buy zidoo products. That company is joke without any support

memeka
memeka
8 years ago

are the issues hw or software?

Tim
Tim
8 years ago

damn, I ordered a beelink i68 2 days ago…
But when I only use 1080p there should be no problems, right?

Tony
Tony
8 years ago


So if s905 has hw issue
Can you recommend best box/chip for good old 1080p AVC ? Don’t think I can wait for all those 4k chips to secure.

Ron
Ron
8 years ago

I would be very happy to hear new information about AMLogic S912 and about devices that use it.

Gabe
Gabe
8 years ago

cnxsoft :
@memeka
One of the issues won’t be fixable after the product is shipped.

Damn, I’ve ordered a Beelink Mini MX a few days ago. Is the isssue about that S905 doesn’t work with EMMC yet or something worse that will leave our devices without firmware updates, because of chipset problem? Or thermal throtting problem that plagued an Amlogic soc(s802 if I remember correctly)? Probably it won’t run up to 2GHz like in the specs!?

Teiko
Teiko
8 years ago

Yes, Amlogic had best stable 4K HW playout, we did extensive study and went for S8xx.

S8xx => S905 upgrade is only interesting for 10bit HEVC (if/when it works?)

Problem is they want to completely lock down the box to get silly HDCP 2.2 cert. Makes it totally uninteresting as OEM product for us.

We will go for first fab that provides COMPLETE open source firmware and working 10 bit HEVC.

Ron
Ron
8 years ago

Thanks for the lost.

next time, it would be better to write all the details in a table, which simplifies the ability to compare the specifications of all the models.

Ron
Ron
8 years ago

not lost… list!

memeka
memeka
8 years ago

hmm… not sure it’s a hw issue given that there are so many boxes out there already.
and was very cryptical 🙂 my feeling is that it’s probably HDCP certification – currently prob there is no key, but maybe amlogic will get the certification later on (december), and start loading the keys in the newer products. I am not familiar with the process tho`, who should get the certification – amlogic or the vendors?

massimo
massimo
8 years ago

mirror :
wow~~ ZIDOO S905 product coming soon.

good news

@Teiko
Amlogic S8XX have good support ,but best video playback are hisilicon SoC 😉

Javi
Javi
8 years ago

Gabe :

cnxsoft :
@memeka
One of the issues won’t be fixable after the product is shipped.

Damn, I’ve ordered a Beelink Mini MX a few days ago. Is the isssue about that S905 doesn’t work with EMMC yet or something worse that will leave our devices without firmware updates, because of chipset problem? Or thermal throtting problem that plagued an Amlogic soc(s802 if I remember correctly)? Probably it won’t run up to 2GHz like in the specs!?

eMMC is ok with S905 now

extintor
extintor
8 years ago

@memeka

Each company that need hdcp need to become hdcp license adopter which is 25k usd yearly and nobody from this companies will pay that money.

Eamonn
Eamonn
8 years ago

Really looking forward to a review of the geniatech or Venz atsc products. The devil really is in the details for these devices. All I really want is something that can do 1080p decoding consistently and change channels on ATSC sources quickly, and have a decent interface to do it in. Kodi I find is way to oriented towards having a media library — which isn’t how most people watch TV, most people I imagine are like me, they watch something new most of the time and on occasion rewatch something. Kodi goes so deep in to making things pretty… Read more »

choekstr
choekstr
8 years ago

Forgive my ignorance, but what is HDCP needed on a media playback device? Is it required for HD/4k Netflix?
Perhaps an ATSC/NTSC tuner box when in an area that does encrypted playback or premium channels?

But for most of these boxes they don’t have a tuner and so why do we care about HDCP?

memeka
memeka
8 years ago

all the current “tv boxes” run only the tablet version of netflix. they cannot run the android tv netflix version (HD/4k capable) that requires a higher level of DRM. so i think this is the issue here.

massimo
massimo
8 years ago

choekstr :
Forgive my ignorance, but what is HDCP needed on a media playback device? Is it required for HD/4k Netflix?
Perhaps an ATSC/NTSC tuner box when in an area that does encrypted playback or premium channels?
But for most of these boxes they don’t have a tuner and so why do we care about HDCP?

yes, Netflix 4k need HDCP 2.2 player and HDCP 2.2 TV.

FatMatt
FatMatt
8 years ago

“Apparently there are some other issues (which I can’t talk about, and I’ve just learned about them now), ..” That implies everyone that’s bought one has potentially bought a brick, why as a review site would you be so cagey about such an issue, are you bound by some NDA’s or threats no more review boxes from companies or something ? It’s information such as this that is the very reason people read your site (which is generally very informative btw). However, it’d be great if you could compile a league table of such boxes, maybe taking into account a… Read more »

FatMatt
FatMatt
8 years ago

“wow~~ ZIDOO S905 product coming soon.”

@mirror – Does this mean Zidoo now prefers the Amlogic SoC over the Rockchip? (which still seems to still have the usual video playback issues despite custom Kodi revisions).

Is there a link to where we can read about upcoming model or was that just one off teaser stunt ?

Gabe
Gabe
8 years ago

If he would tell the problem, then maybe nobody would buy these s905 boxes & they have to clear stock of faulty boxes(out with the old, in with the new.)

Eamonn
Eamonn
8 years ago

@Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) I am probably in the minority, but I use the browser to stream mp4s from a VPS that grabs files automatically. My connection speed is sufficient to stream 720p (and HEVC 1080p) but it is bothersome to have to download a file entirely prior to watching it (ala torrent). I am interested in the browser performance going forward because I believe that VP9 and maybe HEVC will nullify the need for external players, but only once browser playback is sufficiently good to supplant the existing methods. Think, wouldn’t it be nice to have a native HTML5 interface… Read more »

FatMatt
FatMatt
8 years ago

I’m beginning to think the hardware issue is lack of a license for DTS/Dolby and an enabled version will follow … getting warm ? (this will of course lead to market confusion, same happened with the S8xx series)

Any idea how long the S912 has been delayed ?

miniNodes
8 years ago

Has anyone seen a price mention on a 2gb RAM unit yet? Especially with that release of Linux and uboot source code, these might be worth investigating closer.

INPHIC
INPHIC
8 years ago

Add one more: INPHIC SPOT i7 > http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Inphic-Spot-i5-Android-TV-Box-with-KODI-Fully-loaded-Amlogic-S805-Quad-core-Android-4/1561112_32549747464.html

Black Friday $44.50 Free shipping. S905, 1GB RAM, 8GB eMMC, Gigabit ethernet, OTA updates…

Dommels
Dommels
8 years ago

What about the Xiaomi Mi Box TV3? it has S905 soc and looks interesting

Gabe
Gabe
8 years ago
Ido
Ido
8 years ago

Any updates about the Amlogic S905 issues?
Are they real or found out to not be a problems?

Thanks

Ido
Ido
8 years ago

@Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) I read your review on K1-Plus with Amlogic s905 and see that you mentioned the following issues as realted to the s905 (If I understand correctly): * Letterboxed when watching some high resolution movies while using Kodi. (Letterbox issue means that the frame is seen in only part of the screen, correct?) * No Audio with DTS and Dolby (only when setting to PCM output but not when setting to pass-through). * Any other issue that I missed and related to s905? Do you expect these issues also with other s905 devices or they might be related… Read more »

F3RDI
8 years ago


They informed me it was wrongly edited. I got refunded. Not complaining, got a coupon for compensation. Purchased a Miracast dongle for $1,- 🙂
I found also some great prices at:

http://m.gearbest.com/s905-_gear/

Gabe
Gabe
8 years ago
Gabe
Gabe
8 years ago

Use GBM18 or GBMX64 for the two boxes above to lower prices to $65.99 & $59.99.

lance
8 years ago

MRX 2GB DDR3 RAM, 8GB eMMC Flash, Dual Band WiFi (2.4G+5G WIFI), 1000M LAN ~
http://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=0&initiative_id=SB_20151228184033&SearchText=MRX

mdel
mdel
8 years ago

cnxsoft :
Sunvell T95 with front panel display for $41.99 @ http://www.gearbest.com/tv-box-mini-pc/pp_268277.html

That one is listed as Dual band Wifi (2.4 & 5GHz), are there any evidence supporting that claim ?
I haven’t found any other 1G/8G box being dual band on aliexpress and the wifi chip “8188” listed in the description (RTL8188) is not dual band as far as i can see.

Eben
Eben
8 years ago

@Gabe
Word of warning about the T95.
Irrespective of what you read this box does:
1. Not have 1000MB LAN
2. Not have Bluetooth
3. Not support 5.0G Wifi
4. Usable RAM(807MB)
5. Usable Storage 4,7GB

If anyone is interested I can send you the details logs and dumps from the device.

Eben
Eben
8 years ago


Word of warning about the T95.
Irrespective of what you read this box does:
1. Not have 1000MB LAN
2. Not have Bluetooth
3. Not support 5.0G Wifi
4. Usable RAM(807MB)
5. Usable Storage 4,7GB

If anyone is interested I can send you the details logs and dumps from the device.

Bob
Bob
8 years ago

@Eben

The front display can’t show time in 24Hour, i received mine from geekbuying and it also doesnt have bluetooth, so they are all the same..hdmi = 1.4 interface. Bunch of false specs.

Eben
Eben
8 years ago

@Bob yes I managed to get my seller to swap it for a beelink mx64. Just waiting for it to arrive.

mdel
mdel
8 years ago

@Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) i’d like to get your thoughts on the prices of those boxes, the cheap ones. I’m quite surprised to see such price differences between s905 and s805 boxes (or other manufacturers generations), you still find most s805 around 50e+ when many s905 are 40e or less.. What’s up with the socs generations not getting obsolete and removed / sold out, or at least getting their prices dropped at some point ? Is it that the 30e/50e price range is so low that it cannot go down any further no matter the state of the market ? Or… Read more »

virtu
virtu
8 years ago

Doubt that this box really has S905 with 2GB RAM and 8GB ROM. If it is so, wonder how about the firmware update. If we can apply MX64 firmware into this box, then it will be a perfect buy.

For few cents less than $40, I think it’s still hard to resist though.

Note: Many of the sellers box/dongle are Transpeed brand.

MXV Amlogic S905 Android 5.1 TV Box 64bits 2.0GHz 2G 8G Wifi 4K HDMI Kodi 15.2 pre-installed H.265 Smart TV better than MXQ pro
http://s.aliexpress.com/MV3Yfqyq

mdel
mdel
8 years ago

i’d be careful with “new product” descriptions on gearbest.
Take the example of the T95 box, listed with dual band wifi, Bluetooth and Gigabit, it didn’t have any of those specs.

So unless you have third party “in hands” confirmations, don’t expect to get what you’ve been told.

virtu
virtu
8 years ago


This Mini M8S looks good. Gearbest also seems a better seller than an ‘unknown’ aliexpress seller (?)

mdel
mdel
8 years ago

@virtu yeah gearbest is a reliable seller, but i would not entirely trust their product descriptions, so if you suspect something’s fishy there’s a chance you won’t get what you were expecting, not on purpose but still.. Then aliexpress extensively protects buyers. There’s very little chance you’ll get scammed and loose your money. Moreover if you feel cheated by the product description you can ask for a partial refund and i always got satisfaction when it was justified. I’ll also take the occasion to say that the KI Plus S2 T2 price is dropping on gearbest, it’s currently at 67e.… Read more »

virtu
virtu
8 years ago

@mdel This Mini M8S from gearbest is really tempting and the price is very fishy 🙂 I never bought anything from gearbest yet, but I did some purchases from aliexpress with good to great results. IMHO we must read the item description thoroughly before purchase any items from Aliexpress though. In Aliexpress, sometimes the seller put attractive title but if we read the item’s detail description, we’ll find that it describes less specification about it – i.e. lower processor, RAM, etc. I find this Mini M8S in Aliexpress, cost $63.58 shipped from ShenZhen MaxStar Technology (might be a quite reputable… Read more »

virtu
virtu
8 years ago


Thanks for your suggestion. This U4 Quad seems a great box, unfortunately still out of my budget.

mdel
mdel
8 years ago

@virtu well i meant that you can’t really trust gearbest (or other non aliexpress websites) to give exact and reliable descriptions. Then if you buy on aliexpress you have to know what you’re buying (from blog reviews, forums..) and consider ALL the descriptions to be bogus or purely dishonest, that’s just the way it is. Those chinese sellers will use every stupid trick to make their product look more appealing no matter how false or ridiculous, so you’ve been warned and the joke is on you. As a matter of fact, i’m also looking for a cheap (~70e) and functional… Read more »

mdel
mdel
8 years ago

@virtu
to complete my post above, please take a look at the comment i have added on the k1 dvb (t2) review on cnxsoft :http://www.cnx-software.com/2015/01/30/videostrong-k1-is-a-quad-core-android-tv-box-with-a-dvb-t2-tuner/#comment-523949

virtu
virtu
8 years ago

@mdel Actually I’ve never bought a linux based DVB-S2 box, so my knowledge about DVB-S2 linux box is very limited. I’ve only read about dreambox, enigma, vu+ boxes without knowing the details. I’ve also never tried tvheadend, but I hope one day I can try to configure a box that serve tvheadend for some clients to stream S2/T2 channels. I’ve searched google about WeTek Play, it seems a box with very good support, but amlogic mx2 is certainly won’t fit latest video formats, i.e. H.265 and 4K. I think you’d better wait a stable openelec or linux for any S905… Read more »

Dommels
Dommels
8 years ago

M8S plus 2GB/16GB w AC wifi around $60 shipped. http://m.aliexpress.com/item/32630516720.html

mdel
mdel
8 years ago

@Dommels careful it’s a mobile link, i can’t really read it in my browser and aliexpress won’t detect i’m not on a mobile device. i believe it’s that one : http://www.aliexpress.com/item/M8S-Plus-Gigabit-HDMI-2-0-Android-5-1-TV-Box-2G-16G-Amlogic-S905/32628789219.html If the wifi chips is actually an AP6330 it has no 802.11/ac support, and $60 is pretty steep, s905 boxes are the cheapest at the moment, many of them at $35 not sure it’s worth spending double. I’m also still wondering what’s requiring 2G of ram on those boxes, if it’s used for video only 2G of ram is definitely not necessary, 4k included. So only necessary for games… Read more »

dommels
dommels
8 years ago

Beelink MiniMXIII 2GB on presale @Gearbest for $43.75 with promo code GBMXI !
http://www.gearbest.com/tv-box-mini-pc/pp_349815.html

Khadas VIM4 SBC