[droidelec]

@Big Bopper

Hub is great little device, Jean-Luc from CNX had issues with his sample, which is isolated case. When user said should he buy Shield instead of Hub, I think it would be too much lame to keep convicting somebody what to buy for his own money, at least we dont need that type of adverts, and we are here to give support, not to advertise or keep convicting people on what they should spend their money.

[droidelec]

Nice that you just registered to share your concern with us Issue with sample of CNX is definitively something else.

With your money feel free to buy anything you want.

Hi should I get worried? I read that cnx was having trouble with he's HUB.

http://www.cnx-software.com/2016/03/09/w...processor/

Really considering to cancel my order and buy a second Shield, just hard to justify spending 200€ for a bedroom media player.

Yep, new registration and first post but a lurker for a good few years.

The unit he received appears to be defective and a replacement review unit is being sent to him. So far this seems to be an isolated issue. Even Nvidia has their fair share of occasional defective units, but both companies are quick to send replacements.

Thanks for you answers, I of course do realize that hardware products from other manufacturers can also be defective.
The difference with them is that I buy them from a local (web)shop so warranty issues would be more easy than resolve then dealing with a company from Slovenia.
I'm really wondering how Wetek handles warranty issues and shipping costs if I receive a defective unit.

In case you receive defective device, it is substituted free of charge.

[nativesys]

Hey guys!

I've got a question: I own a Wetek Core. I bought a 4k TV this week and wanted to upgrade my movie/series collection from SD and BDrips x264 files to 1080p/2160p x265 HEVC. Problem: It seems the Core ist not able to play this Codec. Stuttering, wrong colors, crashes, offsync etc.

Can the Wetek Hub play this files without problems (1080p/2160p x265 HEVC I mean)?

Sadly I don't know much about Codecs, etc. I've read things like 10bit HEVC 2160p. Possible on the Hub?

[droidelec]

Yes, Hub support 10-bit HEVC playback.

[nativesys]

So, if I upgrade to the Hub, I will be able to play all x265/HEVC files without problems, compared to the Core? The Hub has 1GB less RAM than the Core, will this be in any way noticeable?
Sorry if I am maybe asking stupid questions.

[wrxtasy]

This is such a common question I think I will add it to a FAQ on page #1.

You do not need more than 1GB RAM to play 2160p 10bit HEVC files, you could probably get away with 512MB or RAM or even less for use as a Kodi media streaming device.
Android Lollipop has efficient Garbage collection and housekeeping routines to keep everything running smoothly. LibreELEC is very efficient and does not even use 500MB of RAM when running. You can easily stream media in excess of the UHD HEVC 10bit - Max bitrate without problems.

The only use for more than 1GB I can see is for games with lots and lots of 3D textures and maybe torrenting, when a lot of data may be held in memory.
A PC running a comparatively bloated OS like Windows for Kodi use would need more than 1GB of RAM.

---

The Core running OpenELEC can Software decode 10bit Low Bitrate 720p HEVC if you turn amcodec Hardware acceleration off. 1080p/2160p 10bit HEVC. No Chance.

[Raybuntu]

To make fist things clear. I'm not a Wetek employer nor an endorser but full disclorure: I got my Wetek Hub for free as a developer for testing purpuses because I work on some amlogic kernel drivers. I can NOT reproduce cnx issues with neither the recent android firmware nor wrxtasy's or kszaq's builds. I run my C2's and the Hub almost 24/7 and I don't see any overheating or unresponsive Kodi. With my C2 I've a bug in the hdmi kernel driver in which occasionally I have a black screen after 12-18h. Amlogic's stock kernel is partly in very bad shape but overall thanks to great contributions from Hardkernel and Wetek we have really nice devices.

[nativesys]

You do not need more than 1GB RAM to play 2160p 10bit HEVC files, you could probably get away with 512MB or RAM or even less for use as a Kodi media streaming device.

I thought so, but my concern was for example scrolling through my movies in Openelec. Is the less RAM noticeable related to things like slower loading thumbnails, etc.?

The Core running OpenELEC can Software decode 10bit Low Bitrate 720p HEVC if you turn amcodec Hardware acceleration off. 1080p/2160p 10bit HEVC. No Chance.

But the Hub can do this without problems? This would be the only reason for me to upgrade right away. In any other way the Core fits my needs perfectly.

Edit: Are there HEVC "formats" the Hub is not able to play? Like I said before, sorry if this a stupid question.

[wrxtasy]

You do not need more than 1GB RAM to play 2160p 10bit HEVC files, you could probably get away with 512MB or RAM or even less for use as a Kodi media streaming device.

I thought so, but my concern was for example scrolling through my movies in Openelec. Is the less RAM noticeable related to things like slower loading thumbnails, etc.?

Flash / physical storage Read speed will ultimately dictate how fast Posters, thumbnails and Metadata will appear when scrolling through long lists of movies. SSD > HDD > eMMC > microSDHC.

The ODROID C2 can use eMMC Flash storage exclusively to store and access all that data. For LibreELEC at the moment it will be a bit faster. It is noticeably faster when scraping Metadata and writing it to storage than LibreELEC running exclusively from a micro SDHC, that the Hub currently uses. Android Lollipop / Kodi runs from eMMC on the Hub.

Eventually you will be able to Flash LibreELEC or OpenELEC to Hub eMMC Flash storage as well, but the disadvantage with that is that Android cannot run from a microSDHC card. You have to reflash the Android OS again. With the C2 you just change SD or eMMC cards.

BTW. I would use proven Samsung EVO+ UHS1 Class 10 microSDHC cards for both. Sandisk if Samsung is unavailable.

---

For AMLogic S905 SoC's only:
HDR10 HEVC currently plays but will not display colors correctly. They appear faded and washed out.

DolbyVision 10bit HEVC will play but color output will be dithered (mixed down) to the 8bit color and output, colors still look good. This is good news for casual display of DolbyVision video content, without the need to actually upgrade Hardware just to play encoded video.
You will definitely need DolbyVision Hardware in the display and media player for full monty DolbyVision support that includes all the belles and whistles.

[Stimmenhotel]

The hub don't output 10bit, I think. AM I right?
You can feed the files, but you still get 8bit output.

As for the other formats ... I have seen a chart somewhere that told you what can be played at this moment. (I will have a quick look if U can find it)
Edit: Oh yes ... Post#2 ...

[Draghmar]

Eventually you will be able to Flash LibreELEC or OpenELEC to Hub eMMC Flash storage as well, but the disadvantage with that is that Android cannot run from a microSDHC card. You have to reflash the Android OS again. With the C2 you just change SD or eMMC cards.

I wonder...Let's say I have 16GB eMMC laying around. Is there a chance that I could make partitions and install Android and LibreELEC on the same drive and dual boot from it?

[nativesys]

I don't really care if it outputs 8bit or 10bit.The thing I want/need is a Box that can play and run all the current x265 HEVC files and Open/LibreELEC smoothly. I don't want to have to check every file I have or which I will download for compatibly with my box. Edit: I don't need Netflix, Amazon, Android, what so over. The files I want to watch are on my NAS, which I retrieve with OpenELEC. I don't need more.

The question remains for me: Does the Hub satisfy this needs? Or should I get another Box?

Thanks so far for your great answers wrxtasy!

[droidelec]

10bit HEVC 1080p and 4K plays smooth in both OE/LE at Hub.

[nativesys]

Is variable frame rate a problem for the Hub?

[Ned Scott]

A fair warning, there are some "sources" (*cough*animegroups*cough*) out there that are foolishly using 12-bit HEVC. Those might not play back correctly, but they seem to be in the minority for what is "in the wild".