Question about MINIX NEO U9-H

1st Official Post

    Hi,

    I am thinking about getting a MINIX NEO U9-H for Libreelec. Before I am wasting money on this I'd like to know if this box does what I want it to do in conjunction with Libreelec.

    That's what I need in Kodi/Libreelec:

    • 4K HEVC/VP9 playback with HDR support
    • Automatic refresh rate switching and smooth 23.976 fps playback
    • Kodi rendered at 4K (especially for picture viewing)
    • Bitstreaming of Dolby TrueHD, DTS:X and Dolby Atmos
    • 7.1 Channel LPCM support
    • A little deinterlacing (not too important, just interesting for my old DVD rips)

    Should this box be okay or will the S912 cause trouble?


    Thanks in advance, Geraud

    Yes to all that, and it will be snappy if you use a wireless remote. The A2 lite is preferred.

    Kodi's user interface is only 1080p, the TV or media player upscales it to 4K.

    Normally you leave the AMLogic LE Kodi user interface at 1080p and any 4K video content will auto resolution (& refresh) switch and output at 4K. Any non 4K content will be upscaled by the TV's superior upscaling hardware.

    .

    In my LE 8.2.4.x Kodi will also resolution switch downwards 4K <<-->> 1080p for video playback.

    I'm not sure if Kodi auto resolution switches for 4K pictures, It may work it may not. If it does not just set the Kodi GUI to 4K.

    Quote from wrxtasy

    Yes to all that, and it will be snappy if you use a wireless remote. The A2 lite is preferred.

    This sounds great, thanks. I've always used my Logitech Harmony with Kodi (over Bluetooth) so I'll check if that works first. If not, I'll get back to your recommendation.

    Quote from wrxtasy

    In my LE 8.2.4.x Kodi will also resolution switch downwards 4K <<-->> 1080p for video playback.

    I'm not sure if Kodi auto resolution switches for 4K pictures, It may work it may not. If it does not just set the Kodi GUI to 4K.

    AFAIK resolution switching for pictures is not possible with Kodi. So if the Kodi interface can be rendered at 4K and LE automatically switches down the resolution during video playback (if required) then this sounds perfect to me.

    Thanks again for your help. I'll start looking for a good NEO U9-H deal then.

    Edit: Darn, I just read about that 10-bit 4:2:2 issue. For me this means no HDR playback then, because my TV does not support 4:4:4@10-bit. I'll keep my fingers crossed that the issue is fixable :)

    I'm also thinking of buying U9-H as a bit of future proofing for UHD content and installing LibreElec/Kodi. Do you know if the Official Kodi Remote iPhone app will work. It doesn't seem like there would be any reason it wouldn't?

    Thanks Chewitt. Which device would be a better option going forward? I would mainly use it for watching HD and UHD films ripped from Blu-rays but a bonus feature would be something that could run other streaming apps such as Netflix, iPlayer, Amazon Prime if it was ever possible in the future?

    Quote from SliceOfPi

    I would mainly use it for watching HD and UHD films ripped from Blu-rays but a bonus feature would be something that could run other streaming apps such as Netflix, iPlayer, Amazon Prime if it was ever possible in the future?

    Regarding these dual boot AMLogic devices...

    For 1080p Netflix you need a device that has HDCP 1.x and Widevine L1 DRM in Android Firmware

    For 1080p Amazon Prime you also need Microsoft Playready DRM

    Amazon it seems have relaxed their restrictions on devices that can now run the 32bit ARM Amazon Prime App

    A bunch of MECOOL devices have Android TV ROM's available that will give you 1080p Netflix, but careful research has to be done for devices that have Microsoft Playready DRM also in Firmware. I suggest the Freaktab Website for detailed research on that.

    Having said all that the U9 I have dual boots into a Marshmallow Android TV ROM and 1080p Netflix and 1080p Amazon Prime Video works on it with 5.1 DD+ passthrough audio. All that is needed for DD+ audio passthrough is my correct audio Framework which the U9 ATV ROM's have.

    The U9 is my go to 4K HDR Kodi device at the moment simply because of it's integrated, Wireless Mini Keyboard remote that works in both LE and Android seamlessly. The Mini Keyboard comes in real handy for Kodi keyboard shortcuts.

    I also get HDMI-CEC - TV / AVR - Off / On functionality all from that single remote. And it's fast and smooth - plus never overheats due to it's far superior heatsink vs any other AMLogic device on the market (except the MINIX U1).

    Not enough people pay attention regarding day to day usability IMHO with a single Wireless remote - this make a BIG difference long term.

    Personally I do not care much if Kodi Linux / LE support stops at Kodi v18 Leia, because even the current LE Krypton handles pretty much everything I throw at it - from a user point of view. That is virtually all types of audio and 4K HDR video.

    If you need long term Kodi support buy a Gigabit Ethernet equipped S905D - but pay careful attention to heat management if you want bulletproof reliability.

    Be aware there is no Kodi User Interface rendering at 4K. It's all upscaled from 1080p. I've no idea about 4K Picture viewing support in any LE Kodi, even when the user interface is run in 4K.

    Thanks Guys, a lot of things to consider here. Do the boxes that Have Netflix and Amazon Prime change the output to be same as source? It's a real bugbear of mine that more expensive commercial boxes don't offer this as an option and no matter how good the hardware is I hate seeing dropped or duplicated frames!?

    I like using the Kodi iPhone app as I also have a Broadlink RM2 so control my TV and other boxes either via IR or RF, I hate cluttering up the sofa with remotes!

    Be aware the Android TV version of Prime Video only works on select devices that have Microsoft Playready DRM, you have to be really careful which devices you choose that have that included.

    The only 4K HDR device that has reliable Frame Rate Matching for Apps like Netflix, Prime Video, iTunes, Infuse, MrMC and other Apps is the Apple TV 4K:

    https://support.apple.com/en-au/ht208288

    That is it.

    Amazon are attempting to add Frame Rate Matching to their Fire TV 4K Gen 3, not sure how well it works yet:

    Explanation of the new Frame Rate Matching feature on the Amazon Fire TV and how it works | AFTVnews

    Apparently that device is not a very good mixed use SDR / HDR device due to all content being output in the wrong colorspace once you view HDR video.

    However if you run Android Kodi Leia on a platform with Widevine L1 DRM and one that has working Android Kodi refresh switching like the MINIX U9 you can do this:

    MECOOL KM8 Google Certified Android TV Box with Voice Remote - S905X Android 8.0 2/16GB VP9 HDR10 Dolby Audio YT 4K - FreakTab.com

    For day to day Apps usage, personally I would use the ATV 4K all the time vs anything else.

    Demanding Kodi usage, then it's LibreELEC Kodi Krypton on Gigabit equipped hardware.