[Watts]

Hi there people... I have been looking to replace my old minix neo x5 mini, which is not a powerhouse but does the job well and still works..... Thing that has always bothered me is the lack of smoothness in heavier skins,(in the context of the hardware used) like rapier for instance... Most people like to use confluence but i like to switch it up from time to time....

When it comes to loading artwork and changing views i like it snappy...

Now i have seen videos of more powerful devices like the amlogic devices, but they all seem to fail in the skin smoothness department.... Even navigation in those devices looks laggy... Which is strange because most of those devices are quad-core... Is it a graphics processor problem? A ram problem?

Yeah i know the best route is to build a htpc... But i am just so curious to find out if there sub 100 euro (or even dollar) devices out there, that can handle heavier skins without hiccups... Just as a cheap living room replacement! The new Pi2 seems slow as well... So i am opting out of that one as well...

Thanks in advance!

Watts

[neutronspin]

I would go with an HTPC build with a decent CPU then all your future problems would be eliminated...I prefer AMD APU's for the most bang for the buck. I have wasted more money on those cheap little boxes than I will admit....Just my two pennies....

[Watts]

I would go with an HTPC build with a decent CPU then all your future problems would be eliminated...I prefer AMD APU's for the most bang for the buck. I have wasted more money on those cheap little boxes than I will admit....Just my two pennies....

You are right on that.... Although i have to admit i have had no problems with my device, it does not fully do the kodi experience justice on a lot of levels...

I actually built a amd apu system for my sister and it works flawlessly with kodi, put ubuntu mate on it and it runs like a dream for everyday usage...

Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

Cheers,

Watts

[xbs08]

Have checked the wetek box?

http://openelec.tv/openelec-box

[wrxtasy]

Now i have seen videos of more powerful devices like the amlogic devices, but they all seem to fail in the skin smoothness department.... Even navigation in those devices looks laggy... Which is strange because most of those devices are quad-core... Is it a graphics processor problem? A ram problem?

I can assure you my highly tweaked and optimised $37 AMLogic S805 ODROID C1+ running my own distribution of OpenELEC - Kodi Isengard 15.2 is not laggy at all. This thing is CPU/GPU/VPU Overclocked and is stable. And this includes running a TvHeadend server in the background.
The more expensive S812-H WeTek Core running OpenELEC is damn quick as well, especially with its super responsive RF remote.

Just tried that Rapier Skin, its got the Bling allright! I'm having no problems scrolling through this Movie View and its all pretty snappy.
http://kodi.wiki/view/File:Skin.rapier.16.png

You need to run OpenELEC to really see what a highly optimised JEOS (Just Enough OS) system can do to Kodi performance.

[RockerC]

For the GUI in Kodi then the GPU (graphics) and disk read speeds are the two main bottlenecks.

Amazon Fire TV (the 2015 model) and Google Nexus Player should be good enough too with latest firmware.

http://www.amazon.com/Amazon-DV83YW-Fire...B00U3FPN4U
https://store.google.com/product/_nexus_player

Also try using Kodi 16.0 (Jarvis) Beta 1 or later as it too help improve GUI performance for many skins.

Mostly depends if Android as the OS is a must for you, if not then get build a HTPC with Nvidia graphics.

[wrxtasy]

Beware the Amazon FireTV has limitations when it comes to TV deinterlacing and certain codecs, potential purchasers would do well to read this thread first:

http://forum.kodi.tv/showthread.php?tid=246809

Closed Firmware devices like the Amazon FireTV and Google Nexus are at the mercy of the respective companies to fix any Kodi compatibility problems. Amazon are openly hostile to legal Open Source Software like Kodi and would be very unlikely to prioritize Firmware fixes to solve any Kodi playback issues. Users need to be aware devices like the Amazon Fire TV is sold at a loss to trap users in the Amazon ecosystem and make them pay for DRM video streams.

[menell]

I would go with an HTPC build with a decent CPU then all your future problems would be eliminated...I prefer AMD APU's for the most bang for the buck. I have wasted more money on those cheap little boxes than I will admit....Just my two pennies....

I agree with you. This is what I did and I am happy when I use kodi on a daily basis.

[noggin]

I would go with an HTPC build with a decent CPU then all your future problems would be eliminated...I prefer AMD APU's for the most bang for the buck. I have wasted more money on those cheap little boxes than I will admit....Just my two pennies....

These days I'd suggest Intel over AMD for pure media player use, particularly in Linux. The current (and recent) Intel GPUs have significantly better Linux driver support - with better deinterlacing (and I believe better HD Audio/Refresh rate handling) at lower power levels, meaning cooler and quieter builds. Of course if gaming is also an issue then that changes things.

I used to use AMD for HTPCs - but switched to Intel once they started having decent GPU support.

For sub €100/$100 devices I think you are really looking at either a Raspberry Pi 2 (or possibly ODroid C1+ if you don't need 3D or HD Audio support of any kind, or want HEVC) or a Celeron 2957U box on a special offer if you can find one (or an N3xx0 series Braswell box - again if you can find one).

The Pi 2 may not deliver quite what the OP wants in GUI terms - but delivers excellent video and audio quality. The C1+ may handle heavier skins better, but apart from HEVC support suffers in comparison to the Pi 2's AV handling (no 3D, no multichannel PCM audio for HD Audio lossless decoding)

The HP 260G1 was an amazing deal in the UK a few months ago - £100 for a 2GB/32GB/2957U box with Windows 8.1 with Bing activated. But that deal is now over.

[artou]

I would use some bucks more and go for a Nvidia SATV, Aeon MQ6 runs pretty smoothly there, it is the heaviest skin I used so far, and Rapier loads all screens almost instantly.

[bry]

They are what? $150 now?