Review of Vernee Apollo Lite Smartphone with Mediatek Helio X20 SoC – Part1: Unboxing, First Boot and Benchmarks

Vernee Apollo Lite is the little brother of Vernee Apollo, both based on Mediatek Helio X20 deca-core Cortex A72/A53 SoC, but with the Lite version having lower hardware specs otherwise, and being one of the few ARM Cortex A72 smartphones selling for less than $200 (at least in China). Tomtop, a Chinese online store, sent me a sample for review, and today, I’ll start by going through the tech specs, then check out the phone design and its accessories, and finally run a few benchmark, before posting a more detailed review in one or two weeks, where I’ll have more experience and feel about the phone. Vernee Apollo Lite Specifications I had posted some specs about the phone when it was first released, but they were incomplete at the time, and Vernee now released the full specs for their Apollo Lite: SoC – Meaitek Helio X20 (MT6797) deca-core processor with […]

96Boards Compliant Mediatek X20 Development Board is Now up for Sale for $199

Mediatek Labs and Linaro introduced X20 development board based on 96Boards CE specs, and featuring Mediatek Helio X20 deca-core Cortex A72/A53 processor a couple of months ago. At the time, if you wanted to purchase the board, you’d have to fill a form explaining the details about your project, and the company, Alpha Star, would then decided whether would sell it to you. The good news here is that you don’t need to do any of that anymore, and you can buy the board directly on Seeed Studio for $199, or on Taobao for 1399 RMB. Mediatek X20 development board specifications have not changed much since the first announcement, but the CPU and GPU frequencies have been lowered somewhat, and we have some more details: SoC – Mediatek Helio X20 (MT6797) deca-core processor with two ARM Cortex A72 cores @ 2.1~2.3 GHz, four Cortex A53 @ 1.85 GHz, four Cortex […]

$79 HiSilicon Poplar is the First 96Boards TV Platform Compliant Board

At the end of last month I wrote about 96Boards TV Platform specifications, and noticed Hisilicon had one such boards, but details were sparse. Linaro has now officially unveiled HiSilicon Poplar board, the first 96Boards TV Platform board, sold for $79 + shipping on Aliexpress. Poplar board specifications: SoC – HiSilicon Hi3798C V200 quad-core 64-bit ARM Cortex-A53 CPU up to 2.0 GHz per core with ARM Mali-T720 GPU supporting OpenGL ES 3.1/3.0/2.0/1.1/1.0, OpenVG 1.1, OpenCL 1.2/1.1 Full Profile, RenderScript, and Microsoft DirectX 11 FL9_3 Memory – 1 or 2 GB DDR3 (Specs are conflicting depending where you look) Storage – 8GB eMMC flash + micro SD card slot Video Output – HDMI 2.0a with HDCP 2.2 up to 4K @ 60Hz Video Decoding – H.265/HEVC Main/Main10 and VP9 up to 4K @ 60 fps Audio Output – HDMI, optical S/PDIF, 3.5mm audio jack Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n/ac WiFi […]

Qintaix Q912 Android mini PC Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Teardown

Qintaix Q912 was one of the first Amlogic S912 TV boxes featured on CNX Software, and now the company, Qintex Tech, has sent me a sample of their device for review. I’ll start by posting photos of the device, and looking inside to find more about the hardware and thermal design today, before reporting my experience in the second part of the review in a few weeks. Qintaix Q912 Unboxing I first thought they had sent me a chocolate box instead, but that’s refreshing to see a different retail package device. The bottom of the package shows the specifications in details, and I got the version with 2GB RAM and 16GB flash. The box comes with a 5V/2.5A power supply, HDMI and AV cables, an IR remote control with IR learning function require two AAA batteries. and a “Quick Install Guide”. The TV box is a little larger than the […]

Broadlink MP1 is a $20 WiFi Power Strip with 4 Independent Sockets

There are plenty of WiFi sockets going around such as Broadlink SP2 or Kankun KK-SP3, but in some cases it might be both more convenient and cheaper to get a WiFi power strip, and Broadlink MP1 offers just that with 4 sockets that can be controlled and programmed (timer) independently, and sold for just $19.88 on Banggood. Broadlink MP1 specifications: Connectivity – 802.11b/g/n WiFi, controllable over 3G/4G with smartphone 4 multi-standard (EU/US/AU, but not UK) sockets Power input – 10A/250V (max) Power output – 10A/250V (max) Rated power – 2000W Total Misc – Power button Dimensions –  254mm x 60mm x 32mm; 50cm sockets spacing; cord Length – 1.5m with AU plug (Adapter provided for other countries) Weight – 450g The power strip can be controlled via Broadlink ihc (Intelligent Hone Control) app available for Android and iOS, which lets you independently manually turn on or off or set timers […]

Tanix TX5 Pro TV Box Review – Part 2: Modding and Testing

Karl here with part 2 of Tanix TX5 Pro TV box. In the first part we peaked inside took a look at the specs and quick look at the UI. In part 2, we will get into the nitty gritty. When I first received the box there were several issues: Play Store incompatibility, issue with language reverting to Chinese, and green screen on YouTube. Tanix quickly followed up with an update and resolved these issues. Stuck in my ways So I have to admit that I am pretty stuck in my ways when it comes to the way I use Android. It started long ago with my first stick the MK808 with Rockchip Rk3066. It was basically the phone version of Android on the TV and I really liked it. We have come a long way since then and some changes have occurred in the box market UI, like the […]

VideoStrong KII Pro Android Set-top Box with DVB-T2 & DVB-S2 Tuners Comes with 2GB RAM

Based on the number of comments I get daily on my review of Videostrong K1 Plus T2 S2 Android TV box, the device is rather popular thanks to its dual DVB-T2/T2C and DVB-S2/S tuner, its low price, and OpenELEC community support. However, some people are possibly affected by the mere 1GB RAM in the system, with some apps being killed during use due to lack of memory. One solution is to purchase WeTek Play 2, but at $120 it’s in a different price range, and does not offer a dual tuner solution. But Videostrong has recently launched their KII Pro DVB T2+S2 model based on K1 Plus DVB T2+S2, but with 2GB RAM, 16GB storage, and 802.11ac WiFi. KII Pro specifications: SoC –  Amlogic S905 quad core ARM Cortex-A53 @ up to 2.0GHz with  penta-core Mali-450MP GPU @ 750 MHz System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 16GB eMMC flash + […]

Yotaphone 2 Smartphone with Dual AMOLED + E-Ink Display Sells for $150 (Promo)

Yotaphone 2 smartphone with the particularity of including a 4.7″ E-Ink display on the back on top of the front 5″ AMOLED display was first introduced at the end of 2014 in Russia, before being offered on Indiegogo for $525 in May of last year. This morning I got an email from Tinydeal claiming they sell Yotaphone 2 for $149.99 including shipping with coupon 149YOTAP (with Tinydeal app only), or $159.99 without coupon. Bear in mind that it is a pre-sale with delivering starting only on August 31st. Here’s a reminder of the technical specifications for the phone: SoC – Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 quad-core Krait processor @ 2.2 GHz with Adreno GPU System Memory – 2GB RAM Storage – 32GB eMMC Displays Front – 5″ AMOLED touch screen, 1920×1080 resolution,16M colors, 442ppi, with Corning Gorilla glass 3. Rear – 4.7”  e-Paper display, 960×540  resolution, 16-level gray scale, 235ppi, with Corning […]

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