minix News - Page 8 of 11 - CNX Software

July 31, 2016January 3, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 25 Comments

Amlogic S905 vs S905X Benchmarks Comparison

We’ve already compared the main features between Amlogic S905, Amlogic S905X and Amlogic S912, with Amlogic S905X being an upgrade of Amlogic S905 with the same quad core Cortex A53 cores and Mali-450MP GPU but adding VP9 hard ware decoding, HDR support, and integrating 10/100 Ethernet PHY and audio codec to lower the cost. The CPU frequency was also said to be lowered to 1.5 GHz in early document, but TV manufacturers keep promoting Amlogic S905 as a 2.0 GHz processor, and I noticed CPU-Z and Antutu also reported the maximum frequency to be 2.02 GHz. In that case the performance should be about the same for both processors. Let’s find out by comparing benchmark results between Amlogic S905 based MINIX NEO U1 (Android 5.1) and Amlogic S905X powered MINI M8S II (Android 6.0) using Antutu 6.x, Vellamo 3.x, and 3DMark Ice Storm Extreme 1.2. A ratio greater than one […]

June 6, 2016June 6, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Intel Atom x7-Z8700 (Cherry Trail) vs Intel Celeron N3150 (Braswell) Benchmarks Comparison

Intel tend to release lots of processors, and it’s not also clear how they perform against each others, but generally the rank from slowest to highest goes something like Atom < Celeron < Pentium < Core M < Core i3 < Core i5 < Core i7. Recently, I’ve seen and reviewed a few low power Intel Atom x7-Z8700 “Cherry Trail” and Intel Celeron N3150 “Braswell” mini PCs, both quad core processors @ 1.6 GHz (base), and I could not find much differences between the two during use. So to have a clear and objective view of the relative performance of the two processors, I’ve compared the results I got with Intel Atom x7-Z8700 based Beelink BT7 mini PC to the ones I got with MINIX NGC-1 mini PC powered by Celeron N3150 processor in the table below. Both machines have been designed quite well (good heat dissipation) and with storage […]

April 25, 2016December 26, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 24 Comments

What’s the Best Android TV Box?

[Update December 26, 2017: I’ve posted a new version of this post entitled “What’s the Best Android TV Box (2017/2018 Edition)?“. I’ll leave the post below to have an historical perspective] I often get asked which TV box to buy, or what the best Android TV box is, and the answer is the TV box that fits your needs for the lowest price point possible. Considering there are around 2 millions apps for Android, they are multitudes of use cases, and you can’t provide a single answer for everybody. So I’ll provide a list of things to look for beside the processor, and three TV boxes that I think are worth considering, before providing alternatives for people who want cheaper devices. Things to Look for There are still a few things you may want to specifically look for before purchasing an Android TV box: History of regular firmware updates – […]

March 14, 2016March 14, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 39 Comments

SPMC 16.1.1 (Kodi 16.1 Android’s Fork) Adds Bluray 3D ISO Playback, HD Audio Pass-through, and Other Improvements

You may remember SPMC (Semper Media Center), a fork of Kodi/XBMC, was released a few years ago to fix some issues with Rockchip processors that would not make it to Kodi mainline code. Koying, the project’s developer, has now forked Kodi 16.1 to add some bug fixes and experimental features, and released SPMC 16.1.1. Changelog compared to Kodi 16.1: Based on Kodi 16.1 HD Audio pass-through (Nvidia Shield AndroidTV + some Amlogic devices such as Minix U1 & Wetek Core at least) Autostart at boot (xbmc.autostart=true in xbmc_env.properties) GUI size setting (Allows 4K GUI on Nvidia Shield) Only give codec priority to Mediacodec (Surface) for 4K Only stop video on minimize for Mediacodec (Surface) “System” screensaver to enable daydream; all other screensavers disable daydream Get removable storage names from system Basic Bluray 3D iso playback (experimental; amlogic) Android TV recommendations and voice search (experimental) SSL enabled MySql Stop video playback […]

February 11, 2016February 24, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 23 Comments

MINIX NGC-1 Review and Benchmarks with Windows 10 Home

MINIX NGC-1 mini PC is powered by an Intel Celeron N3150 quad core “Braswell” processor with 4GB RAM and a 128GB M.2SSD, and pre-loaded with Windows 10 Home. While the product aims to provide a convenient alternative to Intel NUC kits, as everything is pre-assembled and pre-installed, I’ll also compare the experience to Bay Trail and Cherry Trail mini PCs such as MeLE PCG03 or Tronsmart Ara X5. I’ve already provided NGC-1 specifications and some pictures, so today, I’ll test the capabilities of the device, and run some benchmarks in the review. MINIX NGC-1 Setup Once you’ve connected a USB keyboard and mouse, and the power supply, you are ready to start. Press the power button, the blue power will lit on the front of the device, and you’ll hear a beep and the very first time system will boot to Windows 10 setup screen where you’ll be asked to […]

February 4, 2016November 18, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

How to Check CPU Throttling in Windows 10 or Windows 11

Recent processors all have the ability to adjust the operating frequency to either decrease power consumption or make sure the processor does not overheat. That’s why for example Intel processors have a maximum junction temperature (Tj max) so that if this temperature is reached the processor can slow down (throttle) to cool things off and avoid damaging itself. That also explains why computers with the same processor, storage, and memory may have greatly different performance under load depending on their thermal design. I’m currently testing a fanless mini PC with an Intel Celeron N3150 Braswell processor, and yesterday I noticed the frequency would be stuck at 0.22 GHZ (yes, that’s 220 MHz) at all times, even when starting the web browser and loading long web pages. It was very slow, and I had a few “windows not responding” in the process. I checked the metal box temperature with an IR […]

February 2, 2016February 2, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 16 Comments

Unboxing of MINIX NGC-1 Windows 10 Edition mini PC

This morning I’ve received MINIX NGC-1 Intel Braswell fanless mini PC, so I’ve taken a few pictures of the device and its accessories, before starting testing the performance and reliability of this low power computer. Contrary to the black, gray and green packages I’ve come across for their Android TV box, MINIX has gone blue with their latest Intel mini PC’s package. The product announcements mentioned both Windows 10 and Ubuntu support, and I’ve received the Windows 10 Edition, which hopefully means there will also be a Ubuntu edition. Beside the mini PC, the package includes two external WiFi antenna, an HDMI cable, a 12V/3A power supply and corresponding power cord, as well as a multi-language setup guide, and MINIX product brochure. The power supply should work anywhere in the world as it takes 100-240V/1A input @ 50 or 60 Hz. NGC-1 is very similar to the one used for […]

January 31, 2016January 31, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 14 Comments

MINIX NGC-1 Braswell Mini PC Runs Windows 10 or Ubuntu

MINIX showcased some unnamed Braswell mini PCs at IFA 2015 last September, but since then the company has been pretty quiet about their new Intel based mini PCs. The good news is that MINIX NGC-1 will be launched in about two weeks with an Intel Celeron N3150 quad core “Braswell” processor coupled with 4GB RAM, and 128GB M.2 SSD, and beside running Windows 10 64-bit, it will also support Ubuntu. MINIX NGC-1 specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron N3150 quad-core processor @ 1.6 GHz / 2.08 GHz (Turbo) with 2MB L2 cache, and Intel HD graphics with 12EU (4W SDP / 6W TDP) System Memory – 4GB DDR3L Storage – 128 M.2 SSD Video Output – HDMI 1.4 up to 4K @ 30 Hz, and mini DisplayPort Audio I/O – HDMI, 3.5mm stereo jack (microphone + headphone), and optical S/PDIF Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11ac WiFi and Bluetooth 4.2 with two […]