MXQ Plus M12N (Amlogic S912) TV Box Review – Part 1: Specs, Unboxing, and Teardown

Shenzhen Shiningworth has just sent me the first Amlogic S912 Android TV box for review with their MXQ Plus M12N model. The first part of the review will focus on specifications, accessories, and hardware design, and in the second part I’ll connect and boot the device to make a thorough review of the firmware. MXQ Plus M12N Specifications The specifications are pretty standard and comparable to the ones of yet to launch Amlogic S912 TV boxes: SoC – Amlogic S912 octa-core ARM Cortex A53 processor @ up to 2.0GHz with ARM Mali-820MP3 @ up to 750MHz System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 16GB eMMC flash and SD slot up to 32GB Video Output – HDMI 2.0a up to 4K @ 60Hz with CEC and HDR support, and AV port (composite) Audio Output – HDMI, AV (stereo audio), and optical S/PDIF Connectivity – Fast Ethernet, dual band WiFi 802.11 b/g/n/ac, […]

Hacker H3 Smart Home Multimedia Gateway Combines Amlogic S905 and Mediatek MT7628AN Processors

There are plenty of Amlogic S905 TV boxes on the market, but Hacker H3 has some notable features such as an internal 2.5″ SATA bay, as well as MediaTek MT7628AN WiSoC and MT7612E 802.11ac 867Mbps chip to provide router functionality via one WAN port, two LAN ports, and WLAN. Hacker H3 media gateway specifications: Media SoC – Amlogic S905 quad core Cortex A53 processor @ up to 2.0GHz with penta-core Mali-450MP GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 @ 1866MHz Storage – 16 or 64GB eMMC flash + 1x SATA bay up to 6TB Network SoCs – Mediatek MT7628AN MIPS 24KEc CPU @ 580MHz + Mediatek MT7612E 867Mbps 802.11ac chipset Video Output – HDMI 2.0 port up to 4K @ 60 Hz Audio Output – HDMI + 3.5mm audio jack Connectivity WiFi 802.11 b/g/n up to 300 Mbps, 802.11ac up to 866 Mbps (AC1200 router) with two built-in antennas 2x 10/100M […]

VersaLogic Osprey is an Industrial & Military Grade Intel Bay Trail Single Board Computer

Versalogic Osprey “Embedded Processing Unit” (EPU) is a single board computer powered by Intel Bay Trail-I CPU modules with 2 to 4GB RAM, up to 8GB flash, dual Gigabit Ethernet, two mini PCIe slots, working at industrial temperatures (-40 to 85°C),  and compliant with MIL-STD-202G military standard for shocks and vibrations. VersaLogic Osprey VL-EPU-3311 specifications: SoC Intel Atom E3845 quad core processor @ 1.91GHz with Intel HD graphics or Intel Atom E3827 dual core processor @ 1.75GHz with Intel HD graphics or Intel Atom E3815 single core processor @ 1.46GHz with Intel HD graphics System Memory – 2GB or 4GB DDR3L (soldered) Storage 8GB eMMC flash with E3845 model; 4GB eMMC flash with E3827 model; no flash for E3815 model MicroSD slot SATA 2.0 port with latching connector mSATA via mini-PCIe slot Display Single-channel 18/24-bit LVDS up to 1024×768 @ 60Hz Dual mini-DisplayPort++ with HDMI and audio support up to […]

NEXBOX A1 Amlogic S912 Android TV Box Presells for $71

NEXBOX A1 was one of the first announcements of an Android TV box powered by Amlogic S912 SoC, but there weren’t many details at the time. Since then several other boxes has been announced, but few have prices, and GearBest now informed me that they were taking pre-orders for NEXBOX A1 for $70.99 including shipping with coupon GBNA1. NEXBOX A1 specifications: SoC – Amlogic S912 octo-core ARM Cortex A53 processor @ up to 2.0GHz with ARM Mali-820MP3 @ up to 750MHz System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 16GB eMMC flash and SD slot up to 32GB Video Output – HDMI 2.0 and AV ports Audio Output – HDMI, AV, and optical S/PDIF Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet, dual band WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 USB – 2x USB 2.0 ports Misc – IR receiver, power button Power Supply – 5V/2A Dimensions- 9.3 x 9.3 x 1.5 cm Weight –  190 […]

Star Cloud PCG61 Intel Celeron “Braswell” Ubuntu 16.04 / Windows 10 Pro Mini PC Features Up to 8GB RAM

MeLE showcased their PCG61U mini PC powered by an Intel Celeron N3150 processor and running Ubuntu last April at the Hong Kong Electronics Fair. The company has now launched Star Cloud PCG61 on Aliexpress where it sells for $149 and up with either Windows or Ubuntu. Star Cloud PCG61 specifications: SoC – Intel Braswell Celeron N3150 quad core processor @ 1.60/2.08 GHz with 12 EU Gen8 Graphics(6W TDP) System Memory – None, 4 or 8GB DDR3L Storage – 0, 64 or 128 GB mSATA SSD (upgradeable up to 256GB), micro SD card up to 512GB Video Output – HDMI 1.4 & VGA Audio – HDMI, 3.5mm microphone and earphone jack Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n & 802.11ac WiFi, and Bluetooth 4.0 USB – 2x USB 3.0 ports, 2x USB 2.0 ports Misc – Power button, Kensington security lock, reset BIOS button,  mini PCIe slot (likely already used by wireless […]

Review of GOLE1 mini PC with 5″ Display – Part 1: Unboxing and Teardown

GOLE1 is a portable mini PC running Windows 10 and Android 5.1, featuring a 5″ touchsceen display, and powered by an Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Cherry Trail” processor. The device was launched on Indiegogo, and the project raised close to $300,000. I’ve now received an early sample with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage for review, with – I was told – a 1,800 mAh battery instead of the 2,600 mAh battey backers will receive. I’ll do a 2 or 3 parts review, starting by checking out the hardware, before testing both Windows 10 and Android 5.1 on the platform. GOLE1 Unboxing The device is packed into a simple white box with “GOLE1 Designed by GOLE” string. The mini PC ships with a 5V/3A power supply which should be powerful enough to connect a USB 3.0 hard drive, an HDMI cable, and a user’s manual in English. The device looks a little […]

Sunty SP-001 Portable Windows 10 mini PC Features a 7″ Touchscreen Display, an HD Projector

Sunty SP-001 mini PC looks quite similar to GOLE1, but comes with a large 7″ touchscreen display, and adds a TI 720p DLP projector. You can also carry it around thanks to its 6,500 mAh, and the brain of the device consists of an Intel Atom x5-Z8300 processor coupled with 2GB RAM and 32GB flash. Sunty SP-001 specifications: SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Cherry Trail” quad core processor @ 1.44 GHz / 1.84 GHz with Intel Gen8 HD graphics (2W SDP) System Memory –  2GB DDR3L Storage – 32GB eMMC flash + micro SD slot up Display – 7″ capacitive touchscreen display with 1280×800 resolution Video input – HDMI 1.4 port Audio I/O – HDMI, 3.5mm headphone jack, speakers, built-in microphone Projector – 0.3” TI DMD, DLPC3438/DLPA3000/DLP3010 DLP, 720p resolution, 200 Lumen brightness, 5000:1 contrast ratio, 20 to 300” screen size, autofocus, and 3000 hours life; Connectivity – Dual band […]

Intel Apollo Lake NUC6CAYS & NUC6CAYH NUC mini PCs Specifications Released

Intel Apollo Lake is the next generation of low power processor family that should replace Braswell Celeron processors, and Fanlesstech got hold of the specifications for two upcoming “Arches Canyon” NUC6CAYS and NUC6CAYH NUCs (Next Unit of Computing) mini PCs based on the processors, as well as the 2016-2018 roadmap for the complete (consumer grade) Intel NUC family. The only differences between the two models are that NUC6CAYH is a barebone model without memory or storage, nor operating system. So I’ll just list NUC6CAYS specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron Jxxx quad core processor @ x GHz to y GHz (burst) with Intel HD graphics up to z MHz (10W TDP) System Memory – 2GB DDR3L-xxxx SO-DIMM (dual channel), upgradeable up to 8GB DDR3L-1866 Storage – 32GB eMMC flash, 2.5″ SATA3 bay for 9.5mm hard drives, SDXC slot with UHS-I support Video Output – HDMI 2.0 (4K @ 60 Hz), VGA […]