I need some help before I push the buy button (Hardware)

1st Official Post

    I have been using misc boxes for a long time. I have tried several that were supposed to be the best hardware. It is always a trade-off between software capabilities and hardware capabilities and finally picture quality. I would really appreciate your feedback on these setups or if you have any better suggestions.

    Software = libreelec

    Hardware Odroid -C2
    Hardware Odroid -XU4 (Unclear if this is possible with libreelec) if not would you suggest Android op and kodi?)
    Hardware Intel® NUC Kit NUC6i5SYK

    I really like these remotes, and want the simplicity and size…
    Remote= Xbox One Media Remote (Unclear if Possible)
    Or amazon Firestix remote (Unclear if Possible)


    My Main goal above all else is Picture Quality! Then ease of use & stability. When I say Picture Quality I am comparing it to a Dune & Popcorn hour. I don’t want to start a War but I considered the Pq of the Shield to be subpar to both of those. If it were not for the Pq I would be using shield now + I don’t care about gaming.

    • Official Post

    That tradeoff will always be there. Be it stability, hardware compatibility, picture quality or something else. Comparing 40-60 dollar 'toys' like the Raspberry Pi or Odroid boards to an Nvidia Shield or fullblown PC's will also have their prices as additional factor.

    I'm curious which part of the picture quality could be a problem for you, compared to the Dune & Popcorn hour. Nvidia graphics have had the better capabilities for handling video in XBMC/Kodi. I have the Nvidia Shield TV myself, and it recently got another update. One thing it now supports is HDR. Not every device fully supports 10bit video yet. Sometimes 10bit color is decoded down to 8bit. Intel's Apollo Lake GPU has 10bit support, not so sure every Skylake has.

    I stlll find x86 devices to have the better stability since they can use proper HDDs/SSDs for storage. SD cards and USB sticks are too vulnerable and slow to me. NAND storage on Odroid or Wetek may be quicker, but I think there is no TRIM-support for that, AFAIK.

    As far as remotes go, they are not my field of expertise. I use CEC whenever available, something that a NUC does not offer by default. You'll need an extra USB-CEC adapter for that one.

    "I'm curious which part of the picture quality could be a problem for you, compared to the Dune & Popcorn hour."

    I really wanted to love the shield, but side by side comparison between Pch & dune seemed to lack deep color. The Shield almost looked washed out in comparison. Dark scenes were almost unbearable to watch. it didn't even look as good as my cable box. I tried every setting and waited to the last update. But still no change.

    Does your media library consist of any 10bit h265 videos? If not, do you expect it to in the forseeable future?

    If the answer to either of those is yes, either get the C2, or wait for the next generation of NUC's to be released.

    • Official Post
    Quote from Qualityofpicture


    I really wanted to love the shield, but side by side comparison between Pch & dune seemed to lack deep color. The Shield almost looked washed out in comparison. Dark scenes were almost unbearable to watch. it didn't even look as good as my cable box. I tried every setting and waited to the last update. But still no change.

    Can it be that the 16-235 limited colour range in the Video Output section is still enabled?

    For the Shield (Android boxes), there is also SPMC. A Kodi fork by former Kodi-developer Koying.

    For 10bit HEVC video, there is also the Wetek Hub and Wetek Play 2 to consider.