Reviews - Page 86 of 127 - CNX Software

September 9, 2016October 24, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 30 Comments

Beelink GT1 4K TV Box Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Teardown

Beelink GT1 is among the cheapest Amlogic S912 TV boxes available today, selling for around $56, but despite the inexpensive price tag, its specifications are not too bad with Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11ac WiFi, 2GB RAM, 16GB flash, and 4K H.265 & VP9 video capabilities. The company sent me a sample for review, and as usual, I’ll start by posting photos, and having a look at the hardware design, before reviewing the firmware in more details in a the second part of the review. Beelink GT1 Unboxing My package appears to have had a rough trip, but apart from the edges of the black retail package nothing was damaged. The main specifications are shown on the bottom of the package together with CE and FCC certifications, and the type of power adapter inside the package. GT1 ships with a simple IR remote control, a shortish HDMI cable (~1 meter), a small […]

September 8, 2016September 23, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 22 Comments

MINIX NEO Z83-4 mini PC Review – Part 2: Windows 10 and Benchmarks

I’ve listed specifications and posted photos of MINIX NEO Z83-4 mini PC in the first part of review, and while NEO Z83-4 is yet another Intel Atom x5-Z8300 device, it’s clear the company has made specific efforts for the thermal design with a large heatsink and aluminum bottom cover, and provided a solid 12V/3A power supply. So in the second part of the review, I’ll check how Windows 10 performs in the device, and run some benchmarks to compare it to other low power Intel mini PCs. MINIX NEO Z83-4 Setup & System Information If you’ve connected USB mouse and keyboard, HDMI and Ethernet, a USB 3.0 hard drive to the USB 3.0 port, and the power cord. Pressing the power button on the right side will boot the device. A typical boot will take around 30 seconds to the desktop. My system was already configured with Z83-4 user, possibly […]

September 7, 2016October 23, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 28 Comments

Zidoo X9S (Realtek RTD1295) Android TV Box Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Teardown

Zidoo X9S is one of the first Realtek RTD1295 based TV boxes coming to market, and it has some pretty special features like running both Android 6.0 and OpenWrt simultaneously, HDMI input support for video recording and PiP, an external SATA interface, 4K media capabilities including HDMI 2.0a output, 4K 60 fps H.265 and VP9 & 4K 24 Hz H.264 video decoding, as well as HDR and 3D support. You can find the full Zidoo X9S specification in my previous post. The company has now sent me an early review sample, and in the first part of the review you’ll post photos of the devices and accessories, and perform a teardown to find out more about the electronics and thermal design. Later on I’ll publish articles with benchmarks, video performance, and the complete review. Zidoo X9S Unboxing The box comes in a light green retail package showing some of the […]

September 4, 2016September 4, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Coowell V4 Android TV Box Review – Part 2: Camera, Skype, Google Hangouts and Duo

Coowell V4 Android TV box is based on Rockchip RK3368 octa-core processor with 2GB RAM, and 16GB flash, and also includes a camera. In part 1 of Coowell V4 review, I have already taken photos of the device, and torn down the device to have a closer look at the board, and the camera which is based on a GC2145 2MP image sensor. Today, I’ll mostly test the camera and microphone, including firmware compatibility with Skype, Google Hangouts, and the latest Duo by Google app. Finally, it’s been a while since I’ve tested a RK3368 TV box, so I’ll run CPU-Z and Antutu again. Coowell V4 Hardware Setup and Launcher Coowell V4 hardware setup is pretty usual, and I connect an Ethernet port, and the USB RF dongle for MINIX NEO A2 Lite air mouse, as well as a USB keyboard to take screenshots. However, while normally I’d use my […]

September 3, 2016November 25, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments

Allo Sparky Audio Kit Combines an ARM Linux Board with Amplifier, Audio DAC, Reclocker and Capacitance Multiplier Boards

Last year I wrote about Allo Sparky SBC Linux and Android development powered by Actions Semi S500 quad core Cortex A9 processor, which mostly differentiates itself from the competition by the many add-on boards for audio, VoIP, and IoT (WiFi+Bluetooth+Zigbee ). While most of development boards are manufactured in China, Allo company is based in India, and all boards are manufactured there, which could be a benefit to Indian readers who want to avoid potential custom issues with other boards. The company has shipped me their complete audio development kit, and I’ll first check out the hardware, before taking time to experiment with the kit in a few weeks or months… I could find 6 different boards in the kit, which I detailed below, as well as a 5V/3A power supply with AU and EU adapter, a micro USB adapter, a micro SD card apparently pre-loaded with Ubuntu 12.04, a […]

September 2, 2016September 14, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 21 Comments

MINIX NEO Z83-4 Fanless mini PC Review – Part 1: Specs, Unboxing and Teardown

MINIX has just launched a new Windows 10 mini PC with MINIX NEO Z83-4 powered by an Intel Atom x5-Z8300 quad core processor, 4GB RAM, 32GB storage, Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11ac WiFi, etc.. The company sent me an early review sample, and today I’ll go through the specs, take pictures of the device and accessories, and tear it down to check out the PCBA, and the thermal design. MINIX NEO Z83-4 Specifications MINIX latest mini PC has slightly higher-0end specifications that most X5-Z8300 computers or sticks: SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Cherry Trail” quad core processor @ 1.44 GHz / 1.84 GHz (Turbo) with Intel Gen8 HD graphics (2W SDP) System Memory – 4GB DDR3L Storage – 32 GB eMMC 5.0 flash + micro SD slot Video Output – HDMI 1.4 and mini DP up to 4K @ 30 Hz Audio I/O – HDMI, 3.5mm earphone jack Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet, […]

August 31, 2016September 1, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments

VR SKY CX-V3 Allwinner H8vr All-in-one Android Virtual Reality Headset Review – Part 1: Specs and Unboxing

I’ve heard about standalone Android virtual reality headset for a while, but so far I had never tried one, except using my phone with a cardboard kit, which was not such a good experience. So when GearBest asked me whether I want to try one of the Allwinner H8vr virtual reality kits, I thought it was a good idea, and today, I received VR SKY CX-V3 model. Today, I’ll just list the specs, check out the device and accessories, and report my first impressions, before posting a review about my experience in a few weeks. VR SKY CX-V3 Virtual Reality Headset Specifications While I would have preferred a 2K or greater display, CX-V3 includes a 1080p display, but that’s probably good enough for a first experience: SoC – Allwinner H8 octa core Cortex A7 processor @ up to 2.0 GHz with PowerVR SGX544 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage […]

August 31, 2016September 1, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Review of Vernee Apollo Lite Smartphone with Mediatek Helio X20 SoC – Part1: Unboxing, First Boot and Benchmarks

Vernee Apollo Lite is the little brother of Vernee Apollo, both based on Mediatek Helio X20 deca-core Cortex A72/A53 SoC, but with the Lite version having lower hardware specs otherwise, and being one of the few ARM Cortex A72 smartphones selling for less than $200 (at least in China). Tomtop, a Chinese online store, sent me a sample for review, and today, I’ll start by going through the tech specs, then check out the phone design and its accessories, and finally run a few benchmark, before posting a more detailed review in one or two weeks, where I’ll have more experience and feel about the phone. Vernee Apollo Lite Specifications I had posted some specs about the phone when it was first released, but they were incomplete at the time, and Vernee now released the full specs for their Apollo Lite: SoC – Meaitek Helio X20 (MT6797) deca-core processor with […]