Zidoo X7 RK3328 TV Box to Sell for $69 with Android 7.1

Rockchip RK3328 processor has been getting some attention recently with low cost RK3328 TV boxes, Pine64’s ROCK64 development board, and now Zidoo has announced they are working on their X7 TV box with slightly better specifications and a product that should get better support than the cheaper models. Zidoo X7 specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3328 quad core Cortex A53processor @ 1.5 GHz with Mali-450MP2 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 8GB eMMC flash + micro SD slot Video Output – HDMI 2.0a port up to 4K @ 60 Hz with HDR support + 3.5mm AV port (composite video) Audio Output – HDMI, AV (stereo audio), and optical S/PDIF Video Codecs – H.264/AVC Base/Main/High/High10 profile @ level 5.1; up to 4Kx2K @ 60fps H.265/HEVE Main/Main10 profile @ level 5.1 High-tier; up to 4Kx2K @60fps VP9, up to 4Kx2K @ 60fps Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, dual band 802.11ac WiFi and […]

HiMedia Q30 (Hisilicon Hi3798MV200) Android TV Box Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Teardown

I’ve often read praises about HiMedia TV boxes in the comments section of this blog, but so far, I had never tested any of their products. This is about to change, since the company has sent me their latest HiMedia Q30 TV box running Android 7.0 on Hisilicon Hi3798MV200 processor, a cost-down version of Hi3798CV200 processor with the same CPU,a lower-end Mali-T450 GPU, about the same media capabilities, and less I/Os. I’ll start the review by checking out the TV box and accessories, as well as the PCBA, before reporting the experience with Android 7.0 firmware in several weeks. HiMedia Q30 TV Box Unboxing I received the device is a package that read “HIMEDIA Q30” and “Android TV Box”, and shows some of the key features like 4K @ 60 fps, 10-bit HEVC, HDR and Kodi support. The devices ships with an IR remote control with IR learning function for […]

TX95D Android Set-Top Box with Amlogic S905D SoC, DVB-T2 Tuner is Selling for $52

We know have a decent choice of affordable Android TV boxes with tuners, but TX95D model powered by Amlogic S905D processor, and a single DVB-T/T2 tuner, appears to be a few dollars cheaper than the competition, as it sells for $51.99 shipped on Acemax’ Aliexpress store. TX95D Android STB specifications: SoC –  Amlogic S905D quad core ARM Cortex-A53 @ up to 1.5 GHz with Mali-450MP GPU System Memory – 1 GB DDR3 Storage – 8 GB flash + micro SD card slot Video Output – HDMI 2.0a up to 4K @ 60Hz with HDR support, and 3.5mm AV (composite video) jack Audio Output – HDMI, AV (stereo audio), optical S/PDIF Video Codecs – 10-bit H.265, and VP9 Profile 2 up to 4K60, H.264 up to 4K30, AVS+ and other codecs up to 1080p60 Tuner – DVB-T/T2 tuner with one coaxial RF input Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi USB […]

U5PVR Deluxe Set-Top Box & NAS Review – Part 2: Android TV, Debian, and Live TV App

U5PVR Deluxe is an set-top box with digital TV tuners that runs Android TV 5.1, and support 2.5″ and 3.5″ hard drive. I’ve received a model with a dual DVB-T/T2 tuner, and already posted “U5 PVR Deluxe Android Set-Top Box Review – Part 1: Specs, Unboxing, Teardown, and SATA HDD Assembly” a few weeks ago, where I described the hardware, and I inserted a one terabytes 3.5″ hard drive. I’ve now had time to test the device, but it took much longer than expected due to a partial firmware update issue, which forced me to redo many of the tests. There are also some undocumented features, so if you want to make the most of the device, be prepared to spend time in the forums. U5PVR Connections, OTA Firmware Update, and Setup Wizard The box have one USB 3.0 ports, and three USB 2.0 ports, so most people won’t need […]

A95X R2 (Rockchip RK3328) TV Box Review – Part 1: Specifications, Unboxing & Teardown

Rockchip RK3328 is a new TV box SoC competing with Amlogic S905(X) TV boxes thanks to its quad core Cortex A53 processor, Mali-450MP GPU, HDMI 2.0a, and its 4K VPU with HDR support. We’ve already seen a few products launched with the processor such as A5X Plus, and T98 4K Ultra HD TV boxes, but I’ve only just received my first RK3328 TV box – courtesy of GearBest – with A95X R2 model. In the first part of the review, I’ll go through the specifications, and check out the devices, and the hardware design, before testing the firmware in several weeks. A95X R2 TV Box Specifications SoC – Rockchip RK3328 quad core Cortex A53 processor @ 1.5 GHz with Mali-450MP2 GPU System Memory – 1GB RAM Storage – 8 GB eMMC flash + micro SD card Video Output – HDMI 2.0a up to 4K @ 60 Hz with HDR10 and […]

HiSilicon Hi3796M V200 UHD DVB + H.265 STB SoC Showcased at Broadcast Asia 2017

Broadcast Asia international digital multimedia & entertaiment technology exhibition & conference is taking place in Singapore on May 23 – 25, and I’ve been informed that Hisilicon showcased their latest Hi3796M V200 Set-top box SoC with support for 4K DVB, H.265, and high dynamic range technology such as HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision. Key features and specifications of Hi3796M V200 processor: CPU – Quad core ARM Cortex A53 GPU – ARM Mali-450MP Memory – DDR3, DDR3L, DDR4 Video Output – 1x HDMI 2.0a Tx with HDCP 2.2 Video format – HEVC, H.264, MPEG2, MPEG4, VC1, VP9, AVS 2.0 HDR – HDR10, HLG, Dolby Vision, HDR and SDR conversion HiVXE 2.0 VPU – Decoder – 4K60 10-bit; Encoder – HEVC/H.264 1080p30 or 2x 720p30 Ethernet – 1x Gigabit Ethernet, 1x Fast Ethernet USB 2.0 – 2x USB 2.0 ports SATA & PCIe & USB 3.0 – USB 3.0, SATA 3.0, PCIe […]

ARM Introduces Mali-C71 ISP (Image Signal Processor) for Automotive Applications

A camera in an embedded system is normally connected to an ISP (image signal processing) block inside an SoC to handle the data coming from the sensor, and with recent cars now requiring more and more cameras for car DVRs, car parking systems, and self-driving vehicles, ARM has now unveiled Mali-C71 ISP specifically designed for automotive applications with support for 4 real-time cameras and 16 camera streams with a single pipeline. ARM explains that you can’t simply use smartphone cameras in automobile, as automotive requirements in terms of clarity and reliability are much more stringent. For example, Mali-C71 supports UWDR (Ultra-wide dynamic range) up to 24 stops, against 15 stops for the best DSLR cameras, which removes noise and process multiple exposures from the camera, and allows the processor/computer vision engine to detect objects such as a pedestrian, while others systems may not detect it. The image is also much […]

Samsung & Amazon Introduce HDR10+ Standard with Dynamic Metadata & Tone Mapping

Most recent 4K Ultra HD televisions support high dynamic range (HDR) through standards such as HDR10, Dolby Vision, or Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG). Samsung and Amazon have jointly introduced an update to HDR10 with HDR10+ that adds dynamic tone mapping & metadata. The companies describe the issues for HDR10′ static metadata as follows: The current HDR10 standard utilizes static metadata that does not change during playback despite scene specific brightness levels. As a result, image quality may not be optimal in some scenes. For example, when a movie’s overall color scheme is very bright but has a few scenes filmed in relatively dim lighting, those scenes will appear significantly darker than what was originally envisioned by the director. HDR10+ will be able to adjust metadata for each scene, and even for each frame, hence solving the issue of darker scenes. If you already own a Samsung TV with HDR10,  it’s not […]