Futeko MiniMX Android vs HiMedia Q5 Pro

[MickeySlim]

[futeko.com]

We don't have the full spec of Q5 Pro yet. Specs on our site are a mix of HiSilicon 3798CV200 specs and Himedia's published specs for Q10 Pro (which in terms of core features will be identical). As soon as Himedia publish final specs we will post them on our site. It will be after CNY, prob late Feb.

So I can only reply in general terms.

Q5 Pro will be more powerful. The GFlops per core figure on the Mali Wikipedia page states that Mali-450 scores 14.6 and Mali-720 81.6. This indicates a raw performance increase of some 5x per core. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mali_%28GPU%29

I would advise waiting until someone tests Moonlight. My suspicion is that Q5 Pro will work fine but MiniMX will struggle, but that's only a guess. I've done a few searches and can't find any reports of s905 being tested with Moonlight streaming. We don't have a suitable PC to test it here. If you want to test it we would refund all costs (i.e. postage and price) if it doesn't work and you want to return the MiniMX. PM me.

[hdmkv]

MiniMX Android vs. HiMedia Q5 Pro are like apples vs. oranges.

Former is a cheap Kodi box for basic video needs (no 23.976, no HD audio, no 3D), with OpenELEC version of it doing partial HD audio & partial 3D for now (very early development stages).

With Q5 Pro, if anything like present-gen Q5, then a serious home theater box for enthusiasts who demand full 3D + proper framerates + great PQ + full HD audio support, and now also full 4K.

[MickeySlim]

So why does it say in the description of the MiniMX that it supports 4K and 7.1 HD audio?

I use an AV-Reciever so I'm looking for 7.1 passthrough for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD, Atmos and DTS:X would be a bonus but I know it's still early stages for this on android boxes.

Does it use the HiMedia wrapper to achieve HD audio as kodi on the play store doesn't passthrough hd audio (that I'm aware of) without an external player.

[hdmkv]

I have a stock Beelink Mini MX Android box... HD Audio videos have significant video & audio break-ups, and stutter with all:
- TrueHD 5.1 passed as 2.0
- TrueHD 7.1 passed as 2.0
- DD+ 5.1/7.1 = no audio at all
- DTS-HD MA 5.1 passed as standard DTS 5.1
- DTS-HD MA 7.1 passed as standard DTS 5.1
- LPCM 5.1/7.1 passed as 2.0
- 3D ISO's & MVC MKV's play in 2D mode

With the OpenELEC version:
+ TrueHD 5.1/7.1 bitstream well
- 3D ISO's & MVC MKV's play in HOU/TAB mode (not proper 3D); half-rez render (as with all AML boxes)
- DTS-MA 5.1/7.1 output w/core DTS (must disable 'Adjust display refresh rate to match video')
- Due to lack of refresh rate match (for DTS &/or 23.976 videos to not cause Kodi to blank out), all videos output at 60Hz (or whatever Kodi UI is set to)
- Framerate issues: skips, judders, etc. noticeable
- DD+ 5.1/7.1 = no audio
- Standard DD/DTS not working properly (reported in Amlinuxmedia forum)
- LPCM 5.1/7.1 = no audio

[futeko.com]

I have a stock Beelink Mini MX Android box... HD Audio videos have significant video & audio break-ups, and stutter with all:
- TrueHD 5.1 passed as 2.0
- TrueHD 7.1 passed as 2.0
- DD+ 5.1/7.1 = no audio at all
- DTS-HD MA 5.1 passed as standard DTS 5.1
- DTS-HD MA 7.1 passed as standard DTS 5.1
- LPCM 5.1/7.1 passed as 2.0
- 3D ISO's & MVC MKV's play in 2D mode

With the OpenELEC version:
+ TrueHD 5.1/7.1 bitstream well
- 3D ISO's & MVC MKV's play in HOU/TAB mode (not proper 3D); half-rez render (as with all AML boxes)
- DTS-MA 5.1/7.1 output w/core DTS (must disable 'Adjust display refresh rate to match video')
- Due to lack of refresh rate match (for DTS &/or 23.976 videos to not cause Kodi to blank out), all videos output at 60Hz (or whatever Kodi UI is set to)
- Framerate issues: skips, judders, etc. noticeable
- DD+ 5.1/7.1 = no audio
- Standard DD/DTS not working properly (reported in Amlinuxmedia forum)
- LPCM 5.1/7.1 = no audio

What firmware does your box have? It may be different to ours.

4K is no problem. MiniMX supports 4K.

HD-audio..

In Android with stock 'MoviePlayer' app:

- Dolby Digital 5.1. Passed as 5.1
- TrueHD 7.1. Passed as 7.1
- DTS 5.1. Passed as 5.1
- DTS-HD MA 7.1. passed as DTS 5.1

We don't say MiniMX supports full 3D. It probably never will.

In Android with Kodi:

- Dolby Digital 5.1. Passed as 5.1
- TrueHD 7.1. No sound.
- DTS 5.1. Passed as 5.1
- DTS-HD MA 7.1. passed as DTS 5.1

It performs reasonably for HD-Audio now. S905 is very popular so support in vanilla Kodi will improve with time.

Regarding stuttering, MiniMX will play 99%+ of videos the average customer will have with no problem. If you push the envelope then it won't perform as well as Himedia H8/Q5/Q10, but it is half the price.

I agree with your reported performance in OpenELEC, but actually think this is pretty good for a budget product. Refresh rate / framerate issues are the main problem at the moment, but the rest is a lack of support for formats which customers buying the box will probably never use. 7.1 audio and 3D are fairly niche formats. I see MiniMX as a good box for those wanting Kodi for the unmentionable + playing 99% of video they have now and will have in future (i.e. 4K).

[hdmkv]

There seems to be a good deal of attention on Mini MX @ Freaktab & at Amlinuxmedia forum, so it's a good thing.

[futeko.com]

Also, new 105 firmware released on Saturday.

I'm preparing an USB update package and will post a forum thread today / tomorrow.

[hdmkv]

Will look forward to that, thanks. When you install OpenELEC, it installs on NAND, so Android image is needed to get back to Android OS.

Still, OpenELEC firmware/progress looked better last I tested.

[futeko.com]

Will look forward to that, thanks. When you install OpenELEC, it installs on NAND, so Android image is needed to get back to Android OS.

Still, OpenELEC firmware/progress looked better last I tested.

We'll be posting a guide to getting back to Android from OpenELEC. I know it requires connecting to a Windows PC and the Amlogic flash app.

[hdmkv]

BTW, nice job w/this media comparison you posted.

[MickeySlim]

Thanks for the comparison, really useful. Can you use HiMedias wrapper on the MiniMX to point Kodi at Android's MoviePlayer as default?

[futeko.com]

No. The wrapper is just for the Himedia Q5/Q10/M3.

Something similar would be possible on MiniMX but you'd need to create it yourself.

See here: http://kodi.wiki/view/HOW-TO:Use_external_players_on_Android

The file you need to create is called 'playercorefactory'. There's loads of info and example files online. If you do get it working please post result here!

[MickeySlim]

Just ordered a MiniMx Android. Will have a look into the playercorexml and let you know how I get on plus thoughts on the box itself.

Thanks for all the help

[MickeySlim]

The MiniMX Android doesn't seem to support app multitasking. So when you click the home button it just closes the app you are using. This will make it difficult to use external players for kodi as every time you play something Kodi will close instead of continuing to run in the background.

I have added a playercorefile.xml which gives me the option to select an external player but MoviePlayer is not an option and the 17 choices available do not work.

Any ideas on the player that movie player actually uses?