Rockchip RK3188-T TV Sticks with 2GB RAM Are Now Selling for About $30 Shipped

It’s fun to report about the latest gadgets, but sometimes it can be a good idea to look back at older devices to find if there are any good deals out there. TV boxes and sticks based Rockchip RK3188 quad core Cortex A9 processors were clearly the most popular in 2013 and early 2014, and in many respects their performance is still quite similar to the one of recent 64-bit platforms barring new features such as H.265 and 4K video capabilities. The good news is that you can now get RK3188-T TV sticks such as CX919 or MK809IV with 2 GB RAM for about $30 shipped.

CX919 and MK809IV are very similar specifications, except CX919 comes with an external antenna [Update: MK809IV also has a retractable antenna, see red slider on picture above]:

SoC – Rockchip RK3188-T quad core Cortex A9 @ 1.4Ghz + Mali-400MP4 GPU
System Memory – 2GB DDR3
Storage – 8 GB internal flash + micro SD slot (up to 32GB)
Video & Audio Output – HDMI 1.4 (male) port
Connectivity – Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n + Bluetooth 4.0
USB – 1x USB Host 2.0, 1x micro USB OTG port
Power – 5V via DC port
Dimensions – 10 x 4 x 1.5cm
Weight – 33 grams

MK918IV runs Android 4.4.2, while CX919 runs Android 4.2.2, and both devices ship with a power adapter, a short HDMI cable, a USB cable., and a user’s manual in English.

If you’d rather use a custom ROM for the sticks, there’s a Finless ROM for CX919, and some alternative firmware are also available for MV908IV, but you may have to verify which WiFi module it is based on (Realtek or Ampak).

Beside the link to BuyInCoins above, you can also find the sticks on on Aliexpress, and Amazon US.

Thank to Onebir for the article idea.

Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)

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.