2014-11-28, 16:45
In the UK, we were getting ATV1200s in the form of the Sumvision Cyclone Android X2, and it's these that are no longer available to buy as they've been replaced by the Cyclone X4. You may well still get ATV1200s from Geniatech but they're very old hardware now, and AMLogic has dropped the G02REF board from their latest kernels. (That's one of the reasons why we can get Codesnake's OpenELEC port for the G18REF/MX2, but not for the G02REF).
Just looking at a photo of the Armada Mach 8, it seems to be a version or clone of the ENY/Acemax EM8 (K200 board?) which has an S802 SOC and I don't think Geniatech make this box. The M8 is probably the most cloned box around and it seems quality varies dramatically. To be honest, I am not an expert on all these Android boxes and I'm confused about who makes what and what exactly is the current best although I am hearing good things about the MXIII.
I am not a box shifter or seller: I've purchased a few for my own use and set them up for some friends and colleagues. The boxes I've bought come from a local bricks and mortar PC store that I have used for years and years. Any problems I can just take them back to the shop. No doubt there are better boxes available online, but I have just made do with what they stock, and so far it's been decent stuff.
OpenELEC is basically a minimalist version of Linux designed purely to run XBMC as an appliance. If you can handle MX Linux, you can handle OpenELEC. You switch the box on and within a matter of seconds XMBC/Kodi is on your screen. OpenELEC has some nice features over MX Linux, but to be honest I haven't really explored it in depth: I just did enough to get a wireless connection and that was that. Linux is Linux for the most part so they feel very similar from the command line if you ever log on with PuTTY. OpenELEC appears to be the future of Linux on these AMLogic boxes so picking one that OE works on is the important thing IMO.
The Cyclone X4 box I have is not a TV110 and the circuit board isn't even the same shape, but as far as ROMs go, they seem to be the same which is why the TV110 OE port worked. I have just learned that the same box is available under the name Smartron S805 - god knows who the manufacturer is or what the long term reliability will be like, but I trust Sumvision to have done a bit of homework before picking this one. The MXQ is another S805 box, which seems to be better equipped, having a power button, SPDIF etc. The box I have is pretty basic with just HDMI, 2 USBs, micro SD, no power button and a barely adequate remote so don't take this specific model as a recommendation from me over other boxes that are available.
If you want to try OE then get a box that Codesnake is porting to: even an old dual core MX2 will do the trick, but he's got a beta for the M8 (S05 K200 board) out and says he's working on the MXQ (S805). There are forks of Codesnake's work around by JustMe and Kerber (TV110) for other boxes, but Codesnake is the main man for OE on AML as far as I can tell. You can also try out Stane's AMLinux which is more of a direct descendent of MX Linux for the S802.
Just looking at a photo of the Armada Mach 8, it seems to be a version or clone of the ENY/Acemax EM8 (K200 board?) which has an S802 SOC and I don't think Geniatech make this box. The M8 is probably the most cloned box around and it seems quality varies dramatically. To be honest, I am not an expert on all these Android boxes and I'm confused about who makes what and what exactly is the current best although I am hearing good things about the MXIII.
I am not a box shifter or seller: I've purchased a few for my own use and set them up for some friends and colleagues. The boxes I've bought come from a local bricks and mortar PC store that I have used for years and years. Any problems I can just take them back to the shop. No doubt there are better boxes available online, but I have just made do with what they stock, and so far it's been decent stuff.
OpenELEC is basically a minimalist version of Linux designed purely to run XBMC as an appliance. If you can handle MX Linux, you can handle OpenELEC. You switch the box on and within a matter of seconds XMBC/Kodi is on your screen. OpenELEC has some nice features over MX Linux, but to be honest I haven't really explored it in depth: I just did enough to get a wireless connection and that was that. Linux is Linux for the most part so they feel very similar from the command line if you ever log on with PuTTY. OpenELEC appears to be the future of Linux on these AMLogic boxes so picking one that OE works on is the important thing IMO.
The Cyclone X4 box I have is not a TV110 and the circuit board isn't even the same shape, but as far as ROMs go, they seem to be the same which is why the TV110 OE port worked. I have just learned that the same box is available under the name Smartron S805 - god knows who the manufacturer is or what the long term reliability will be like, but I trust Sumvision to have done a bit of homework before picking this one. The MXQ is another S805 box, which seems to be better equipped, having a power button, SPDIF etc. The box I have is pretty basic with just HDMI, 2 USBs, micro SD, no power button and a barely adequate remote so don't take this specific model as a recommendation from me over other boxes that are available.
If you want to try OE then get a box that Codesnake is porting to: even an old dual core MX2 will do the trick, but he's got a beta for the M8 (S05 K200 board) out and says he's working on the MXQ (S805). There are forks of Codesnake's work around by JustMe and Kerber (TV110) for other boxes, but Codesnake is the main man for OE on AML as far as I can tell. You can also try out Stane's AMLinux which is more of a direct descendent of MX Linux for the S802.
