[mihailuican]

Interesting, thanks. What Android version is this Slimbox?

[MediaPi]

impressive, looking at the guide, I saw this at the botton


do you have plans to install on your X96 X10?

[hdmkv]

Noticed that, but looks like users are having problems after installing on their X96 X10 Pro's. Mine's the low-end 4G/32G variant w/S928X w/o the -J, but surprisingly supports DV, both on the stock Android side & in CE. Don't want to risk potentially losing this by installing SlimBOXtv firmware.

@mihailuican, w/the Ugoos AM6B+, it's SlimBOXtv/Android 9 (see this & this). My initial excitement w/SlimBOXtv has already waned as it can't overcome the capabilities of the box. Installed Kodi 20.2, and DV playback was choppy & froze often w/P7 videos. Fared better when toggling to LLDV mode on box, but no reason to do so as the CE side can play full DV w/P7 FEL so well. Plex also performed so-so, w/DV videos rendered as HDR, and no HD audio. Bottom line: SlimBOXtv is a good OS replacement for stock Android on these non-official ATV/GTV boxes, and good for SmartTube, but that's it. Less than ideal for Kodi use, and as expected, not for premium streaming.

[MediaPi]

yeah I knew you had the lower version. When I buy that box in the future. I'm getting the higher version. Also you got lucky as the lower version isn't supposed to have DV right.

I'm guessing kodi buyers for AM6B+ aren't so high. the box is premium and worth it if you plan to install Kodi but other than that it has android 9, so who is it aimed at?
when the cheaper boxes have android 14. Their will come a time they won't order a new batch and you won't be able to buy it. probably in 2 years

[hdmkv]

Excellent video from @DMDreview (use YT's auto-generated English-translated captioning):

[pameijer]

So, pretty exciting... was able to flash one of my AM6B+ units w/SlimBOXtv. It's a huge improvement over the stock Ugoos Android launcher, and even using Projectivy. Why you may ask? Because it behaves like actual Android TV, and even better, w/o all the ads. It does wipe the CoreELEC eMMC partition if you installed it to internal flash w/dual boot, so CE needs to be reinstalled & moved to internal.

The f/w I used was sbx_ugoos_am6_encrypted_atv_54_17. Used AmLogic USB Burning Tool v3.1.0, and followed this guide. Encrypted = unrooted as I had guessed & ended up confirming (because I tried unencrypted first & it didn't work ). Also, used ATV vs. AOSP version as latter appears to be based on vanilla Android vs. TV. Anyway, SlimBOXtv is great as you get the benefits of ATV (ad-free) combined w/more options/settings...

https://imgur.com/a/2isaGAG

That is very cool! So you can also run all streaming services with 4k en bitstream audio-output? If so, this will be the one box solution destroying my hobby 

[hdmkv]

No, it's limited by the Widevine certification of the box. It can do SmartTube in 4K, but Netflix, Prime Video, etc., I'm guessing 480p, or at best 1080p.

[MediaPi]

not sure anyone outside UK can get this offer or if you can to be able to add to your existing subscription
https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/plex-pa...de-4524020

plex for 1 month

[himey]

Is this a good deal for someone who only cares about Kodi and not streaming? How much more would I have to pay for a better device? Thanks.

[p750mmx]

ATV 14 on the homatics still seems the the wild wild west to me. i would wait.

i use projectivy on the android side and as of right now, those jerks at sei / homatics put in some inane logic to block most custom launchers. you can get around it but the workaround then disables the ability to control brightness on the LED. it's a mess but apparently it's being fixed. 

i think i read you can boot into CE now with ATV 14 but it's still rocky as adjustments need to be made in CE to accommodate a fully functional experience.

i've been pretty happy with the device on ATV 12. in android i get all audio passthrough including DTS HD/X. the only issue there is multichannel pcm audio is broken on android. no issues dual booting CE either.

The update you are referring to is NOT shared by SEI/Homatics for public. It was leaked as recovery update by someone that should not have got this 2042 build for testing (kicked from closed testing a while back because of earlier leaking of builds).

Homatics officially shares the 1782 V14 update on request, that was momentarily shared publicly by mistake to Homatics and Dune users. So V14 1782 is the latest that Homatics shares, has no app blockage. The latest testbuild also has that blockage removed.

[hdmkv]

Is this a good deal for someone who only cares about Kodi and not streaming? How much more would I have to pay for a better device? Thanks.

It is at that sub-$100 shipped price. Homatics is fully Google certified & will do streaming well on the Android/Google TV side as well. On the CE side, which is where you'll want to use Kodi, it'll need to run off a USB stick. I repurchased one after getting one when it was first released (about 2 years ago), and I'm finding it an improved box on both CE/Kodi & Android sides. AM6B+ is still better/faster, but Homatics is not far behind. I plan to try moving what's possible of the CE data to the internal flash storage to improve performance further.

[jbinkley60]

Is this a good deal for someone who only cares about Kodi and not streaming? How much more would I have to pay for a better device? Thanks.

I personally don't like Android boxes just for Kodi but I am likely in the minority here.  I believe Android boxes are too limiting than Linux boxes and harder to support but for folks who want DV I believe they are about the only choice except the Vero V boxes, which I really like.  DV isn't a thing for me so I am able to have a larger set of choices.  I think it is important to understand what features you want and use that to help guide you.  Also, how much time you want to spend supporting it or just sit back and watch will matter, depending upon your box / OS choices..


Thanks,

Jeff

[himey]

Is this a good deal for someone who only cares about Kodi and not streaming? How much more would I have to pay for a better device? Thanks.

I personally don't like Android boxes just for Kodi but I am likely in the minority here.  I believe Android boxes are too limiting than Liunux boxes and harder to support but for folks who want DV I believe they are about the only choice except the Vero V boxes, which I really like.  DV isn't a thing for me so I am able to have a larger set of choices.  I think it is important to understand what features you want and use that to help guide you.  Also, how much time you want to spend supporting it or just sit back and watch will matter, depending upon your box / OS choices..


Thanks,

Jeff

The only reason I want a box is because of the hoops I have to go through to get my LG OLED to play Dolby Vision, and that with DV, it doesn't support lossless audio. Otherwise I am good with my ATV, Firestick 4k, and the LG TV media player streaming my Plex movies.

[hdmkv]

Yes, Android can be limiting, but using them as CE boxes can be really good... the Ugoos AM6B+ is such a (probably the best) CE/Kodi local media playback box we've ever gotten. For all the reasons listed in post #1, much of this thread, @DMDreview's YT comparison above, at AVSForum, etc.

[himey]

Yes, Android can be limiting, but using them as CE boxes can be really good... the Ugoos AM6B+ is such a (probably the best) CE/Kodi local media playback box we've ever gotten. For all the reasons listed in post #1, much of this thread, @DMDreview's YT comparison above, at AVSForum, etc.

Do you know where to get the best price on the Ugoos? I should probably just spend the extra money on the Ugoos rather than the Homatics. I don't need any streaming features. The Ugoos is $190 on Amazon which makes the Homatics very tempting.