Mini Review of G9C Android Media Player

Shenzhen Tomato sent me their G9C Android TV box at the beginning of December, but as Google Play was not working reliably in the first firmware, I decided to delay the review a little, and the company has provided a new working firmware a few weeks ago, and I’ve now taken the time to test some the main issues I normally find on Amlogic S905 Android TV box. I’ve also ready shown pictures of the device and the board, so today, I’ll only report my experience with the firmware. First Boot and First Impressions I’ve connected all necessary cables, and several USB devices include an harddrive and RF dongles for MINIX NEO A2 Lite air mouse and Tronsmart Mars G01 gamepad. The device started automatically upon connecting the power, and on average the boot takes between 25 to 30 seconds. Not bad at all for an entry-level device. The launcher […]

Zappiti Player 4K Duo UHD Media Player Supports Two 3.5″ Hard Drives for Up to 16TB Video Storage

If you are the kind of person who mostly likes to watch online videos, Zappiti’s media players won’t have much to offer over cheaper alternatives, but if you have a large library of videos, either downloads or your own Blu-Ray rips, and would like to watch your movies both at home or on the go, Zappiti Player 4K Duo media player may fulfill your needs thanks to its two 3.5″ SATA bays providing up to 16TB storage, and a RealTek RTD1195 dual core processor supporting 1080p60 and 4K30 video playback. Zappiti Player 4K Duo specifications: SoC – Realtek RTD1195 dual core ARM Cortex A7 processor @ 1.1 GHz with Mali-400MP2 GPU System Memory – N/A Storage 5 GB  internal memory (I assume available space out of a 8GB NAND flash) 2x SATA Bay with 3.5″ hard drive up to 8TB each formatted with FAT16/FAT32, EXT2/EXT3, NTFS, or Mac OS enhanced […]

MeegoPad T09 Cherry Trail mini PC Features a USB Type C Port with DisplayPort, Data & Power Capabilities

MeegoPad T01 was one of the first Intel based TV Stick, having launched months before Intel’s own Compute Stick, and over the last couple of years, the company has introduced a dozen of Intel Bay Trail and Cherry Trail mini PCs and TV Sticks. MeegoPad has now unveiled three new Cherry Trail devices with MeegoPad T09, MeegoPad T10, and T05 Pro. While the last two models look more of the same with MeegoPad T10  mini PC, and MeegoPad T05 Pro TV stick powered by Intel Atom x5 processors with 2 to 4GB RAM, and 32 to 128 GB storage, I find MeegoPad T09 more interesting with a thin form factor with an Ethernet port, and a USB type C connector that supports data at USB 2.0 speeds, DisplayPort over USB-C, and USB Power Delivery. MeegoPad T09 specifications: SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8300 or x5-Z8500 quad core processor with Intel 12EU […]

GOSTICK Intel Atom x7-Z8750 TV Stick Comes with Up to 8GB RAM (Crowdfunding)

After products like MagicStick or MeegoPad T07, GOSTICK is yet another crowdfunding campaign for an Intel Atom Cherry Trail TV stick. The device does have some interesting specifications with an Intel Atom x7-Z8750 quad core processor, 4 to 8 GB RAM, and 64 to 128 eMMC flash. There are three version of the stick GOSTICK Standard (4GB RAM/64GB flash), GOSTICK Enhanced (8GB RAM/64GB flash), and GOSTICK Extreme (8GB RAM/128GB flash) that beside different memory and storage capacity basically share the same specifications: SoC – Intel Cherry Trail Atom x7-Z8750 quad core processor @ 1.6 GHz/2.56 GHz (Turbo) with HD Graphics 405 System Memory Standard – 4GB RAM Enhanced and Extreme – 8GB RAM Storage Standard and Enhanced – 64GB eMMC flash + micro SD slot up to 128 GB Extreme – 128 GB eMMC flash + micro SD slot up to 128 GB Video Output – HDMI Audio Output – […]

U4 Quad Hybrid Android TV Box Unboxing and Teardown with DVB-T2, DVB-S2 and ATSC Tuners

Yesterday, I wrote about U4 Quad Hybrid Android Digital TV receiver based on HiSilicon Hi3796M processor, and supporting for DVB-T2/T/C, DVB-S2, and ATSC standards. Today, I’ve received the device, taken a few pictures, and torn it down to find out more about the hardware. The full review will come out in a few weeks. U4 Quad Hybrid Unboxing DHL did their job quickly as I received the set-top box in about two days in the following package. The box comes with a 12V/1.5Am AV and HDMI cables, a WiFi antenna, an IR remote control requiring two AAA batteries (not included), a user’s manual in Korean language only and… a separate tuner… So let’s check that tuner more in details… The demodulator chip is LG3390A, so an ATSC tuner is included in the package. Not very useful in Thailand, but it’s good to know it’s included. I also open the cover […]

PIPO X9S Atom x5 mini PC comes with 4GB RAM, 64GB Storage, and a 8.9″ Touchscreen Display

PIPO has a line of products that few others companies have. They are not really simple mini PCs, not really tablets, and not exactly panel computers, but some mixture of all three. They started their mini PCs with tablet display with PIPO P8 model featuring a Bay Trail processor, and they now have an upgraded version called PIPO X9S that features an Intel Atom x5-Z8300 processor with 4GB memory, 64GB eMMC flash, and a 8.9″ display, and is itself upgrade over PIPO X9 featuring less memory and storage, and an Atom Z3736F processor. PIPO X9S specifications: SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Cherry Trail” quad core processor @ 1.44 GHz/1.84 GHz with Intel Gen8 HD graphics System Memory – 4 GB DDR3 Storage – 64 GB flash, and micro SD slot up to 64GB Video Output – HDMI 1.4a Audio Output – HDMI, 3.5mm audio jack, and stereo speakers Connectivity – […]

Tronsmart Ara X5 Plus mini PC Comes with Faster Storage, 802.11ac WiFi, and Higher USB 3.0 Speeds

Tronsmart Ara X5 was one of the first Intel Atom Cherry Trail mini PCs to launch on the market. It came with an Intel Atom x5-Z8300, and the now typical 2GB RAM combined with 32GB flash. But in my review of Tronsmart Ara X5, I found out that the flash was quite slower than other Windows mini PC I tested, and the USB 3.0 port would not recognize my 1TB Seagate USB 3.0 hard drive. The company has now introduced an upgraded model simply called Tronsmart Ara X5 Plus with a faster Samsung eMMC 5.0 flash, faster USB 3.0 read and write speeds (and hopefully better compatibility), 802.11ac WiFi support by replacing Ampak AP6330 module by Intel Wireless-AC 3160 and adding an external antenna, as well as fixed some micro SD card compatibility issues, and an updated UEFI binary that should reduce blue screen of death appearances in Windows. The […]

MeLE Star Cloud PCG60 Plus Cherry Trail Mini PC Comes with HDMI and VGA Outputs, Gigabit Ethernet and More

Most Cherry Trail mini PCs on the market features only one video interface, usually HDMI, and only support 10/100M Ethernet. After introducing MeLE PCG03 Plus a few months ago, MeLE is about to launch a new Cherry Trail mini PC called Start Cloud PCG60 Plus that includes both HDMI and VGA video output, two USB 2.0, but also faster networking thanks to Gigabit Ethernet and 802.11ac. MeLE Star Cloud PCG60 specifications (highlights in bold show improvements over MeLE PCG03 Plus): SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Bay Trail” quad core processor @ 1.44 GHz / 1.84 GHz (Turbo) with Intel HD Gen8 graphics System Memory – 2 GB DDR3L Storage – 32 GB eMMC + micro SD card slot up to 128 GB Video Output – HDMI 1.4, and VGA Audio I/F – HDMI, 3.5mm earphone jack Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.0 USB – 2x USB […]