Generally speaking, boxes running genuine Google Android TV are easier to use and more reliable, although even on these you might have problems running Netflix or Amazon Prime without employing esoteric workarounds. The latter may or may not have access to the Google Play store and may run preinstalled versions of Kodi and popular video-streaming apps.

Only a handful of Android TV boxes actually run what Google calls Android TV – most simply run a version of Android with the manufacturer’s own TV-focused interface. The other thing to watch out for is software. If you’re buying one of the myriad Chinese-made boxes, we would advise looking for one with a quad or eight-core processor, 2GB to 4GB of RAM and 16GB to 32GB or more of storage – often confusingly labelled “ROM”.ĭual-band 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi plus 4K support are also useful extras, but don’t get too excited by claims of 6K or 8K support: until more TVs and streaming services support higher-than-4K resolutions, they’re virtually meaningless and it’s doubtful that the boxes have the horsepower to process all those pixels. READ NEXT: Best TVs What should you look for in an Android TV box?įrankly, it’s a chaotic market, with the specs, features and boxes themselves changing regularly. A good VPN will hide your traffic from your ISP and let you virtually change your location so your Kodi add-ons will work from anywhere. If you’re concerned about your ISP being able to see your Kodi activity, we highly recommend using one of our favourite VPN services when using something like an Amazon Fire TV Stick.

However, there are dozens of perfectly legal devices out there and there’s nothing illegal about the Kodi platform itself, provided you don’t use it with piracy-enabling add-ons. In the wilder parts of eBay, you might stumble across devices calling themselves Android TV boxes that claim to come unlocked or preloaded with what would normally be subscription channels or free content.

Many Android TV boxes market themselves as Kodi devices on which you can download the Kodi open-source software and gain access to music and audio streaming across an enormous range of services. In theory, this makes an Android TV box an incredibly flexible device for streaming content to your TV from the internet or a NAS drive or playing back media stored locally on the device itself.īest streaming stick 2023: Our favourite compact media streamers from Amazon, Google and Roku How to choose the best Android TV box for you What is an Android TV box?Īn Android TV box is a small set-top box, roughly the size of Apple TV, running either Google’s Android TV software or – more frequently – a reskinned version of standard Android.

Best cheap alternative to the Nvidia Shield: Xiaomi Mi Box S | £60.

Best all-around Android TV box: Nvidia Shield TV Pro | £180.

Best Amazon Android TV box: Amazon Fire TV Stick | £45.

Best budget Android TV box: Easytone T95 Super | £28.

With the help of our buying guide and recommendations based on extensive testing, you will be able to safely navigate your way to finding the perfect Android TV companion. With numerous options out there, many of which are from no-name brands you've never heard of, picking the best Android TV box for you can be a daunting experience.īut that's where we come in.

These versatile devices can be used to stream content to your television, play locally stored files, video games and more. Regardless of the form they take, there's no denying how useful a good Android TV box can be. The best Android TV boxes are weird and wonderful things there's no generally accepted definition of what they are and they're available in all manner of shapes and sizes.

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