Kodi for Android in the future?
#1
In a recent discussion, I was warned not to get an android box. This is because the android kodi developers are not showing much interest any longer for android development or moving on to other projects.
Is this true? Considering a Shield, but now have doubts.
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#2
I don't remember any hardware future proof in my Life

(Tv, avr, decoder, lamp, pc etc)
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#3
There is no Android maintainer for Kodi currently, however, code for Android is still merged into Kodi not only from previous maintainers/developers (who have their own forks of Kodi) but by other developers.

Development of Android is now in "slow motion" but has not stopped and for the near future Kodi will still be offered. Who knows what will happen in the long term and it's always possible that development on Kodi for Android may stop all together, but that could happen with any platform.

If & by the time that happens though, the Android device that you buy now will most likely be defunct and any future version of Kodi may not work on it because it doesn't meet the minimum requirements or your device will not benefit from any newer features included in Kodi because it will be stuck on an old version of Android.

Bottom line is, Kodi on Android works well now and worrying about what may happen in the future is a waste of time because no one has a crystal ball.
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#4
Buy a s905 box for Android, you can always change to libreelec if Android+ Kodi becomes useless.
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#5
(2016-11-14, 00:27)nickr Wrote: Buy a s905 box for Android, you can always change to libreelec if Android+ Kodi becomes useless.
BUT Don't buy an AMLogic S905 box running Android Marshmallow 6.0 - Android Lollipop 5.1.1 only unless you want to put up with a bunch of features not working.

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#6
(2016-11-13, 17:51)BKSinAZ Wrote: In a recent discussion, I was warned not to get an android box. This is because the android kodi developers are not showing much interest any longer for android development or moving on to other projects.
Is this true? Considering a Shield, but now have doubts.

The 2015 & 2016 has being exciting years for new Hardware & technology in general, below are some of the examples.

HDMI 2.0 > HDMI 2.0a > HDMI 2.1 (2017)

HDR10 > Dolby Vision > Dynamic HDR10 & Hydrid log Gama for Broadcast (2017)

UltraHD > UltraHD with Dolby Vision (2017)

TV 8-bits panels > Mid to High-end TVs > 10-bits panels (2016)

Intel is the world’s largest chip maker but their support for HDR, HDCP 2.2 and a wide color gamut (Rec. 2020) has being available only this month with the first Nuc Kaby Lake-S.
I think nvidia is working for Linux HDR support but it will take some time.

The Android 7.0 already support the latest HDR-10, Dolby Vision & Hybrid log Gama.
On Hardware side its must faster to built System-on-a-Chip (SoC) based on ARM architecture, probably cheaper too.

For example :
Chromecast Ultra (available today) supports HDR10, Dolby Vision, VP9-PQ YouTube HDR.
Sigma TV UHD SOC STV7804 support all 3 along with 100/120hz frame rate converter... the other 2 SOCs SMP8980 and SMP8758 supports HDR10, HDR HLG (Hybrid Log Gamma) & Dolby Vision.
Oppo UDP-203 (available december 2016) has invested millions of dollars with MediaTek to develop a specialized UHD Blu-ray decoder SoC for their latest Bluray player..

Its obvious that the ARM & Android platform moves a lot faster than X86/Intel, and the Gap between them will might be higher in the future since Intel has announced the end of their Mobile SOC theres also an article from anantech about it.

Regarding the OP question, the Android is doing very well and its recommended, its INTEL / AMD / Windows / MAC / Linux / Kodi that are late to the game...
Anthem MRX310 | XTZ 93.23 DIY 5.1 (Seas Jantzen Mundorf) | DXD808 | Oppo 103D | LG OLED 55EC930V | Nvidia Shield | ATV3





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#7
You forgot HDMI-CEC, missing since inception of Intel Media playback platforms... Wink

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#8
Allt his hdr nonsense is going to be plug n pray until the big players step into the game. Kodi on Linux is dependant on so many factors, all of which has to support HDR. When it all comes together, it'll be beautiful (c Trump). As for HDMI CEC/ARC: C'mon get real. Use a Harmony.
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#9
(2016-11-14, 14:35)Soli Wrote: Allt his hdr nonsense is going to be plug n pray until the big players step into the game.

The HDR nonsense has a Huge list already available see the Master list of HDR content in 4K blu-ray, Netflix, Vudu, amazon, Sony (ultra) Youtube.


Available HDR External Streaming Devices
-Samsung 4k blu ray player K8500 (amazon HDR)
- Nvidia Shield (netflix HDR)
- XBOX 1 S (netflix HDR )
- Roku 5 Ultra
- Roku 5 PREMIER+
- Pansonic UB900
- chromecast Ultra

And the HDR TV/Projectors list has all the big players. available today.

Dont be late to the party...

Image
Anthem MRX310 | XTZ 93.23 DIY 5.1 (Seas Jantzen Mundorf) | DXD808 | Oppo 103D | LG OLED 55EC930V | Nvidia Shield | ATV3





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#10
it will be worth a read the links below:

Dolby Vision FAQ
BT TV in UK will double sports events in 4K with Dolby Atmos
Sony reduces HDR lag in TV Gaming Mode see here

Regarding the Hybrid log Gamma, the news today are another step forward to the future for Europe and particularly in UK...

Quote:HDR broadcasts in the UK have moved closer to reality, with the news that the DVB’s steering board has approved technical specifications for UHD Phase 2, in line with the ITU proposal for BT.2100. The DVB Technical Module committee has now green lit two HDR solutions for broadcast HDR: Hybrid Log Gamma (HLG) and PQ (Perceptual Quantizer). All UK broadcasters and service providers, including Sky, BT, VirginMedia, Freeview and YouView, work to DVB recommendations.

This Phase 2 specification also defines High Frame Rate (HFR) broadcasting above the current 50/60 Hz standard, and supports Next Generation Audio (NGA), in the form of both object based audio, and scene based audio. Both HDR and NGA can be used with Full HD and Ultra HD resolutions.

The advances will now go through the formal publication process, as BlueBook A157 and TS 101 154 v2.3.1. Broadcasters will then be free to adopt the technologies.

The new specification has been hailed as a milestone for the industry, enabling broadcasters and CE manufacturers to provide UHD-1 Phase 2 products and services. Expect to hear a lot more about HLG HDR from screen makers in 2017, with the first products likely to be unveiled at CES in January.

At IFA 2016, LG was the first TV manufacturer to publicly demonstrate HDR with High Frame Rate (HFR) at 100/120 frames per second. LG partnered with the BBC and the European Broadcasting Union to demonstrate HFR HLG content compatible with both MPEG DASH (IP streaming) and DVB-T2 transmission systems. This enhanced frame rate is ideal for sports coverage, as it gives smoother, more realistic onscreen movements.

via: insideci uk
Anthem MRX310 | XTZ 93.23 DIY 5.1 (Seas Jantzen Mundorf) | DXD808 | Oppo 103D | LG OLED 55EC930V | Nvidia Shield | ATV3





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#11
Ok guys, we're going off topic. The capabilities of Android are not in question here. Regardless of the capabilities Kodi still requires developers and that's what will determine the future of Kodi on Android.
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#12
Thank you for that list but that wasn't what i was implying. I was thinking about Nvidia, AMD and Intel on OSX/Win/Linux and the supporting gfx libraries and other supporting software. For *proper* HDR, the OS itself needs to be HDR aware and preferably be able do on-the-fly remapping of RGB values on, (desktop/icons when playing in a window, and/or Kodi GUI elements), when the gamut changes from one gamut to the other. I'll leave it to the experts on how to best implement this.

As of now, OSX might actually be the most suited since its color management is systemwide, it's even implemented fully in iOS10. Then again OSX doesn't support 23.976hz/bitstreaming/unscaled video levels playback. My guess it's up to Linux to tie everything together, or we'll be stuck with "plug and pray HDR" which you can witness on all the crappy Android boxes.
Mind you no consumer TVs today are accurate enough when displaying HDR with bt.2020 gamut.
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#13
The main problem with the android eco system is the complete lack of standards.
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#14
(2016-11-14, 21:06)nickr Wrote: The main problem with the android eco system is the complete lack of standards.

With standard Android yes, but not so much with Android TV which Google keeps a tighter reign on.
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#15
(2016-11-14, 21:06)nickr Wrote: The main problem with the android eco system is the complete lack of standards.

I don't understand this statement. There have been a lot of standards established just within the time that Kodi has existed for Android. It would be more accurate to say that Android has been slow to adopt standards, but they do exist, and more are coming.
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Kodi for Android in the future?0