TV box News - Page 4 of 108 - CNX Software

September 23, 2022September 23, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 15 Comments

Chromecast with Google TV (HD) features Amlogic S805X2 CPU with AV1 video support

Google has launched the new Chromecast with Google TV (HD) powered by an Amlogic S805X2 quad-core Cortex-A35 CPU that offers a cheaper alternative to the Chromecast with Google TV (4K) that is limited to 1080p60 resolution, instead of the 4Kp60 video output supported by the Amlogic S905X3 model. While the processor is slower, the system comes with less memory (1.5GB vs 2GB), and only supports 1080p60, it supports the more efficient AV1 video decoding and as well as A/B partitions for seamless updates since the firmware does not need to be downloaded to the internal storage before the Chromecast with Google TV (HD) specifications: SoC – Amlogic S805X2 quad-core Cortex-A35 processor with Mali-G31 MP2 GPU, 1080p60 H.265, H.264, VP9, AV1 video decoder System Memory – 1.5GB RAM Storage – 8GB eMMC flash with support for “virtual A/B updates with compression“ Video output – HDMI up to 1080p60 with HDR support […]

September 12, 2022January 5, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 19 Comments

8K TV box powered by Amlogic S928X Cortex-A76/A55 processor showcased at IBC 2022

Amlogic S928X multi-core Cortex-A76/A55 8K media processor, which may have been initially known as S908X, is being showcased at ICB2022 in Amsterdam in the “SEI 8K Box” developed by SEI Robotics. Amlogic S908X/S928X was first discovered in a roadmap in 2019 and was expected to launch by the end of 2020 at the time. But after a long wait of nearly three years, the Amlogic S928X processor is finally showing in SEI 8K box with an HDMI 2.1a 8K video interface, supports for HDR and advanced audio codecs like Dolby Atmos and DTS, and support for Smart Home functions through an IoT module with WiFi 6E, Zigbee and more. SEI 8K box preliminary specifications: SoC – Amlogic S928X multi-core Cortex-A76/A55 processor, next-gen GPU (likely Mali-G610?); 12nm process System Memory – 64-bit DDR Storage – eMMC flash Video Output HDMI 2.1a up to 8Kp60 (7680 x 4320 resolution) with HDR10+/HLS, Dolby […]

August 23, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 23 Comments

$29 Inovato Quadra Arm mini PC runs Armbian on Allwinner H6 processor

Inovato Quadra is an Arm Linux mini PC based on Allwinner H6 quad-core Cortex-A53 processor with 2GB RAM, 16GB flash, and running Armbian-built Debian 11 Bullseye 64-bit. If the device looks like a repurposed Android TV box, it is because it is based on the T95 Mini model with one HDMI 2.0 port, USB 3.0 and 2.0 ports, a microSD card slot, a Fast Ethernet port and WiFi 4 wireless connectivity. Inovato Quadra specifications: SoC – Allwinner H6 quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 processor @ up to 1.7 GHz with Arm Mali-720 MP2 GPU System Memory – 2GB RAM Storage – 16GB eMMC flash, MicroSD card slot Video & Audio Output HDMI 2.0 port up to 4Kp60 3.5mm AV port with video composite and analog audio Networking 10/100M Ethernet port Wireless Quadra – 2.4 GHz 802.11n Wi-Fi 4, no Bluetooth (can be added with a USB dongle) Quadra Plus – Dual-band 802.11ac […]

July 30, 2022July 31, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 41 Comments

Allwinner H618 processor powers Android 12 TV boxes

Allwinner H618 processor has started to show up in several TV boxes running Android 12, and capable of playing 6K/4K VP9 and H.265 videos with devices such as T95Z Plus and T95 Max, which may be confusing, as companies are reusing those model numbers over and over. Featuring a quad-core Cortex-A53 processor, an Arm Mali-G31 MP2 GPU, and 6K video support, the Allwinner H618 looks exactly like the Allwinner H616 processor except it can run the more recent Android 12 operating system. There’s not much public information about Allwinner H618 at the time of writing, but let’s check T95Z Plus specifications to see if we can find any other new hidden features: SoC – Allwinner H618 quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 processor @ up to 1.5GHz with Arm Mali-G31 MP2 GPU System Memory – 2GB or 4GB RAM Storage – 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB eMMC flash, MicroSD card socket Video Output HDMI […]

April 8, 2022June 13, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Amlogic T962E2 quad-core Cortex-A55 TV box board supports 4K HDMI input & output

Amlogic T962E2 is an upgrade to the Amlogic T962E quad-core Cortex-A53 SoC we first found in the Alfawise H96 Mini TV box with both HDMI output and HDMI input ports. The new processor offers similar features but comes with more efficient Cortex-A55 cores, a Mali-G31 MP2 supporting modern Vulkan and OpenGL ES 3.2 APIs, and some other improvements including 4K AV1 video playback. While mostly designed for Smart TVs, I found the Amlogic T962E processor in a TV box board with up to 4GB RAM, 32GB eMMC flash, HDMI 2.1 output, HDMI 2.1 input, Gigabit Ethernet, a wireless module, and allegedly running either Android 8, Android 9, or Android TV. TV box boards specifications: SoC – Amlogic T962E2 quad-core Arm Cortex-A55 processor @ up to 2.0 GHz with Arm Mali-G31 MP2 GPU support OpenGL ES 3.2, Vulkan 1.1 and OpenCL 2.0, 1.2 TOPS AI accelerator, 2x HiFi4 DSP System Memory […]

March 23, 2022March 24, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Mecool KD3 Android 11 TV HDMI dongle supports 4K Netflix, Prime Video

We noted some Android TV dongles with Amlogic S905Y4 Cortex-A35 processor in January 2021, and one of the first Amlogic S905Y4 devices available in this form factor is the Mecool KD3 with a certified Android 11 TV operating system. The KD3 is equipped with 2GB RAM, 8GB storage, and the minimal design only offers only one HDMI 2.1 port and a Micro USB port used for power, and of course WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity. Mecool KD3 specifications: SoC – Amlogic S905Y4 quad-core Arm Cortex-A35 processor with an Arm G31-MP2 GPU System Memory – 2GB LPDDR4 Storage – 8GB eMMC flash Video Output – HDMI 2.1 port up to 4Kp60 Video decoder AV1 MP-10 @ L5.1 up to 4Kx2K @ 60fps VP9 Profile-2 up to 4Kx2K @ 60fps H.265 HEVC MP-10 @ L5.1 up to 4Kx2K @ 60fps AVS2-P2 Profile up to 4Kx2K @ 60fps H.264 AVC HP @ […]

March 21, 2022March 22, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Linux 5.17 release – Main changes, Arm, RISC-V, and MIPS architectures

Linus Torvalds has just released Linux 5.17: So we had an extra week of at the end of this release cycle, and I’m happy to report that it was very calm indeed. We could probably have skipped it with not a lot of downside, but we did get a few last-minute reverts and fixes in and avoid some brown-paper bugs that would otherwise have been stable fodder, so it’s all good. And that calm last week can very much be seen from the appended shortlog – there really aren’t a lot of commits in here, and it’s all pretty small. Most of it is in drivers (net, usb, drm), with some core networking, and some tooling updates too. It really is small enough that you can just scroll through the details below, and the one-liner summaries will give a good flavor of what happened last week. Of course, this means […]

January 20, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

MECOOL HomePlus – A 2-in-1 smart speaker and 4K TV box with DVB Tuner

We’ve reviewed MECOOL devices in the past, such as their hybrid set-top boxes with DVB-T2 and/or DVB-S2 tuners. But MECOOL HomePlus (aka MECOOL KA1) packs even more features as it serves as both a 4K Android set-top box with a DVB tuner and a smart speaker compatible with Google Assitant. Based on Amlogic S905X4 Arm Cortex-A55 processor, and equipped with 4GB RAM and 32GB storage, MECOOL HomePlus runs a Google-certified Android TV 11 OS with far-field voice and hands-free TV control. MECOOL HomePlus (KA1) specifications: SoC – Amlogic S905X4 quad-core Arm Cortex-A55 processor with Arm G31 MP2 GPU RAM – 4GB LPDDR4 Storage – 32GB eMMC flash Video Output – HDMI 2.1 port with HDCP 2.2 Video Codes – 4K AV1, VP9, H.265, H.264 Audio Built-in two linear microphone array 2x 5W RMS speakers Tuner – RF antenna input for DVB T/T2/C tuner (optional) Connectivity 10/100M Ethernet RJ45 port Dual-band […]