Remember Amlogic S905L Processor? Me neither, but I wrote about it in September 2016, with the processor being an updated version of Amlogic S905X without VP9 support, and adding HDMI 2.0b output with support for Hybrid Log Gamma (HLG) HDR.
One reason most people won’t remember it is because so far, no TV boxes featured the processor, but this has now changed with Xiaomi introduced Mi Box 4 & 4c TV boxes for the Chinese market.
Xiaomi Mi Box 4c is the entry level model (Black color), and Mi Box 4 is slightly higher end with more memory and Bluetooth (White color), but both devices share most of the same specifications:
- SoC – Amlogic S905L quad core ARM Cortex-A53 @ up to 1.5GHz with penta-core Mali-450MP GPU @ up to 750 MHz
- System Memory
- Mi Box 4c – 1GB RAM
- Mi Box 4 – 2GB RAM
- Storage – 8GB eMMC flash
- Video & Audio Output – HDMI 2.0b up to 4K @ 60 Hz, and AV port (composite video + sterro audio)
- Audio
- Mi Box 4c – DTS-HD support
- Mi Box 4 – Dolby Audio and DTS-HD support
- Mi Box 4c – DTS-HD support
- Video Codecs – 4K H.265 @ 60 fps, 4K H.264 up to 30 fps, MPEG1/2/, VC1, DivX 4/5 up to 1080p60
- Connectivity
- Mi Box 4c – 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz)
- Mi Box 4 – 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz) + Bluetooth 4.1 LE + EDR
- Mi Box 4c – 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz)
- USB – 1x USB 2.0 port
- Power Supply – 5.2V/2.1A
- Dimensions – 95 x 95 x 16 mm (ABS plastic case)
- Weight – 145 grams
The device runs some version of Android supporting Chinese language (similar to Xiaomi Mi Box 3 Enhanced), and ships with an infrared remote control, batteries, one HDMI cable, some instructions, and a power adapter.
While it’s interesting to find a TV box with Amlogic S905L, it will only be useful to end users in China, and maybe oversea Chinese wanting to watch Chinese series or movies from another country, provided they can find a VPN that works well enough.
Xiaomi Mi Box 4C will sell for 249 CNY (~$39 US), and Mi Box 4 for 349 CNY (~$55) starting on February 1, 2018. More details can be found in the product page (in Chinese)
Via AndroidPC.es
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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Hmm – it is annoying that HLG support appears to require a different SoC support. Literally the only difference – it seems – between playing SDR Rec 2020 and HLG Rec 2020 content is inserting a couple of different values into the HDMI Infoframes.
As HLG doesn’t require any content-based metadata – you don’t have to send any Max/Min Luminance values etc. like HDR10. It does strike me that if a SoC HDMI output stage is designed flexibly you should be able to send custom Infoframes, rather than requiring a totally new piece of silicon?
no VP9 support 1080p or UHD? is youtube not that big in China?
@Björn:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Websites_blocked_in_mainland_China
@animtakhnet
OMG. I did not expected that. I knew some parts of google and FB, but YT and even xvideos.com
Whats the name of the youtube equivalent in china?
@Björn
YouKu
Is there any working VPN can unblock Chinese Mainland geolocked content?
@morning
Cat and mouse game
theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/22/man-in-china-sentenced-to-five-years-jail-for-running-vpn
I know of plugins/system to hide openvpn as https/ssl trafic. And tor does its best. (No personal experience, just an openvpn fanboy 🙂 )
Which version of Android TV or Android OS does this Xiaomi Mi Box 4 come with? Many owners are upset that Xiaomi have yet to update Xiaomi Mi Box (international/global version) to Android TV 7.x (Nougat).
Xiaomi Mi Box (international/global version) was suppose to been developed in parnership between Xiaomi and Google as an alternative to Nexus Player.
I think that many bought Xiaomi Mi Box (international/global version) based on the promise from Xiaomi that they would keep releasing OS updates for it.
Its kinda sad that Boxes from 2014 have more power than stuff from 2018 ?
It allmost seems Amlogic and the S905 is here to stay forever (Along the mali 400/450 gpus).
I’m missing something in between this low power s905 and a nvidia shileld. S912 is overheating crap. Rockchip RK3399 is fast but they again are horrible with the sdk ect.
> It allmost seems Amlogic and the S905 is here to stay forever (Along the mali 400/450 gpus).
Nonsense. You get what you pay for.
GeekBuying has decided to sell the things (prices include shipping):
* $69.99 for Mi Box 4C
* $79.99 for Mi Box 4
Those are the original versions for the Chinese markets, so Chinese language only.
https://www.geekbuying.com/item/XIAOMI-Mi-Box-4C-China-Version-Android-7-1-1GB-8GB-TV-Box-392551.html