[MediaPi]

Thanks Jönke for the quick reply !

Sorry to persist but if I dont care @LAN/wifi (since I DONT need) ..Can I not continue using the generic version of CE on the Kinhank, even if support is closed ..
At @70 USD, seems like a great box with S905x4 & 4GB RAM. I dont want to get a more expensive SBC since I have no other use of it ..

But again, if the Kinhank boot loader is locked (is it shipped locked ?? - my original question) and if proper support from Kinhank for unlocking (via their facebook page) is not available, I guess I would be left with no other option but to look elsewhere !!

Thanks again ..

look for a Amazon Fire TV 2nd gen Cube need to buy a sealed unit on ebay and unlock 47 the bootloader. It has full DRM (Netflix, Widevine L1, Playready) support. However, it lacks a built-in Ethernet port and only has one Micro-USB 2.0 port.
it needs to be on older firmware, I've heard they easily go for $60 alll the time. this will spank any S905x4, youeven got cache performance on this too.
if not that then do yourself a favour and wait a little, I'd say a month to see if they can get the S298X working with FEL.
you can grab 8GB 64GB Ram for $128 and you'll get 10 years support from CoreELEC and it's waaaaaay faster than S905x4
plus if they get FEL working on that SOC, then S299X SOC days are numbered.

[clarkss12]

My first post and a newbie to CE - Need a dedicated (4GB RAM) box for CE use ONLY (not connected to internet and DONT need DV) - will use CE for USB playback of content .. I am considering the Kinhank G1 :-)
The Kinhank G1 boxes shipping NOW from aliexpress.. do they have the locked bootloader already installed or u get the latest locked loader only when u do a new fw install ? Any recent purchase experiences ??
My plan, again, is to NEVER connect the box to the internet (so NO update at all) -  DONT need the Android side of things, boot CE from the SD card.

Any latest info would be appreciated ..

For your needs, I highly recommend the TOX3.  On AliExpress it is less than $60USD ( a year ago it was less than $50USD).  You can install CoreELEC onto the internal NAND so no more Android.  It has the best cooling of any of the budget media players, and it uses The Amlogic S905X4 SoC.

[nowwhereman]

I'm using the cmp build on my am6+ now, I think it's CE21. I read some people talking about running CE22. Do you recommend updating to CE22? What does CE22 add over CE21?

[Sholander]

Not much yet, but looses DV FEL, and there is no CPM build for CE 22...

[pkaa]

Thanks @clarkss12 - Ordered the TOX 3. Hopefully, High bitrate 4k with TrueHD audio (using CE) works fine ??

[clarkss12]

Thanks @clarkss12 - Ordered the TOX 3. Hopefully, High bitrate 4k with TrueHD audio (using CE) works fine ??

Yes, it will work fine for your needs.  Supports all of the HD audio codecs.

[ashlar]

Also keep in mind just because CE may not release a version 22, that doesn't mean that a v22 of Kodi couldn't come to a device running CE 21.

any device i would install CoreELEC on would be a cheaper device and with that i expect to replace in ~12 months
so it's really not a hardship if you buy a device now that runs 21 which does everything you want/need and then in a year buy a new one with better hardware to run 22

but that could just be me

I think it becomes a matter of why CoreELEC exists in the first place. It's a media player-centric endeavour, isn't it? To stop updating the only hardware that ticks all the boxes is, to me, counterintuitive at best.

I would not object at all if S928X-J supported DV P7 FEL, but since that is not the case and it still looks like it's gonna be stuck like that... the truth of the matter is that there is no box that one could buy to substitute a AM6b+, in order to access Kodi 22 *and* keep FEL playback.

There is NO content locked behind AV1 I'm aware of. YouTube, when it uses it, it does to save bandwidth more than anything else.

[codio]

A noob question, X96 X10 is cheaper than AMB6+ (I don't know why?!?) and it's newer hence longer support so if DV P7 FEL support doesn't matter to someone like me then it's a no brainer choice, right? or I am missing something?
What's the state of CE support for X96 X10? Is there a stable build for it?

[izprtxqkft]

What's the state of CE support for X96 X10? Is there a stable build for it?

why don't you ask them https://discourse.coreelec.org

[Sholander]

There is NO content locked behind AV1 I'm aware of. YouTube, when it uses it, it does to save bandwidth more than anything else.

Netflix uses AV1.

[Hitcher]

'Uses' not 'locked'.

[noggin]

There is NO content locked behind AV1 I'm aware of. YouTube, when it uses it, it does to save bandwidth more than anything else.

Netflix uses AV1.

No Netflix content is AV1-only though - so not supporting AV1 doesn't lock you out from viewing that content in full quality in HEVC/h.265 etc. does it?

I'd imagine most AV1 destinations for Netflix are mobile devices at the moment?

[ashlar]

There is NO content locked behind AV1 I'm aware of. YouTube, when it uses it, it does to save bandwidth more than anything else.

Netflix uses AV1.

noggin and Hitcher have already clarified what I meant. For the time being (and the foreseeable future) I don't see anything being AV1 only to get max quality (since, as I stated, AV1 is mainly used to reduce bandwidth, not increase quality).

[MediaPi]

Also keep in mind just because CE may not release a version 22, that doesn't mean that a v22 of Kodi couldn't come to a device running CE 21.

any device i would install CoreELEC on would be a cheaper device and with that i expect to replace in ~12 months
so it's really not a hardship if you buy a device now that runs 21 which does everything you want/need and then in a year buy a new one with better hardware to run 22

but that could just be me

I think it becomes a matter of why CoreELEC exists in the first place. It's a media player-centric endeavour, isn't it? To stop updating the only hardware that ticks all the boxes is, to me, counterintuitive at best.

I would not object at all if S928X-J supported DV P7 FEL, but since that is not the case and it still looks like it's gonna be stuck like that... the truth of the matter is that there is no box that one could buy to substitute a AM6b+, in order to access Kodi 22 *and* keep FEL playback.

There is NO content locked behind AV1 I'm aware of. YouTube, when it uses it, it does to save bandwidth more than anything else.

here is a quote by VascoCoreELEC Team https://discourse.coreelec.org/t/best-de.../52405/189

N2+ is supported in NO and ce-22. I’d say you have 4 to 6 more years with the beast if you want. I really see CoreELEC ending before the support for that family is dropped.
The problem is DV and FEL support for the rest of the “family”. We’re always hoping on a breakthrough in newer kernels so the team can focus on improving one kernel and each generation of Kodi. It’s a long way until ce-21 is dropped. Let’s wait where life leads us.

"I really see CoreELEC ending before the support for that family is dropped"

It's misinformation that is being spread around thinking support for AM6B+ and other hardware that has the S299X chipset will end with Kodi 22. chances are you'll have support for as long as CoreELEC will be alive. The team members are slowly one by one are having less and less time to put into this.

[MrCrispy]

How is state of playback esp AV1 on FireStick 4K Max? That device is on sale in US for $40 a bunch of times and seems like a very good value?

I've been thinking of encoding my media into hevc but then realized that AV1 seems like an even better option but playback will be very limited. I have an old Odroid N2 which I've used with CE but it doesn't do DV or AV1.

How is the speed of TOX3 compared to a N2/Shield, both of which have a S922x which according to benchmarks is 2x faster than S905 series. How will Tox3 perform with complex skins and large libraries?