We’ve already seen a few Amlogic S802 with SATA support such as Zoomtak T8 with a SATA bay, or Eweat EW802 with an external SATA connector. Zoomtak has now introduced an updated version T8 Plus with Amlogic S812 that will run Android 5.1 and Kodi 15.0 by the end of August.
Zoomtak T8 Plus specifications:
- SoC – Amlogic S812 quad core cortex A9r4 @ 2.0 GHz with Mali-450MP6 GPU
- System Memory – 2 GB DDR3
- Storage – 8GB eMMC flash (16GB optional) + SD/MMC card reader + 2.5″ SATA bay
- Video Output – HDMI supporting 4K30 and 3D, composite output (RCA)
- Audio Output – HDMI, stereo RCA, and optical S/PDIF
- Connectivity – 10/100/1000M Ethernet, dual band 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi with external antenna, Bluetooth 4.0 (AP6234 module)
- USB – 3x USB 2.0 host ports
- Misc – IR receiver, “restore” pinhole, LED display on front panel, and power button.
- Power Supply – 5V/2A
- Dimensions – N/A (Aluminum enclosure in black or gold)
The box currently runs Android 4.4 and Kodi 14.2, but Android 5.1 is planned for the end of August, and Kodi 15.0 sometimes next week. Since the market has decided that SATA was not an important requirement, none of main Chinese TV box silicon vendors include it in their SoC, which means the implementation here is done via a USB 2.0 to SATA bridge.
Compared to the older Zoomtak T8, Amlogic S812 brings support for H.265 hardware video decoding and Gigabit Ethernet support in the newer hardware platform. It also looks like they’ve switched from NAND flash to eMMC flash. The device can be turned on and off with the remote control or the front panel button, as the power circuit is controlled by an MCU.
You can check out Zoomtak T8s Plus product page for details and contact the company if you plan to order in quantities. I could not find the device and retail websites yet, but it’s already listed on Alibaba.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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