Android hardware

Devices

Android

Android hardware

This is a list of Android hardware devices that uses a SoC (System on a Chip, which integrates CPU, GPU, VPU, etc. on a single integrated circuit, also sometimes refereed to as as "chipsets" in this context) that will use hardware video decoding with XBMC.

For most high definition videos (in 720p, 1080p or higher resolution), hardware video decoding via an integrated VPU (Video Processor Unit) circuit is necessary for smooth video playback on these low-power embedded systems. While many newer SoC based devices might be able to playback standard definition video and to some extent even some 720p resolution content using soley software video decoding on the CPU, hardware video decoding on a VPU that is purposely designed to decode high definition videos is considered essential for most Android hardware devices.

Basic requirements

See also: Supported hardware

It is highly recommended for users to not make any hardware purchases in anticipation of running Kodi on Android without first researching the device you want to buy. Before you do buy, make sure multiple people have verified that it works! If in doubt, do not buy any hardware!

• Kodi v17 and later requires Android 5.0 or higher.
• x86 (Intel) or a NEON-compatible ARM-processor, (for example: Nvidia Tegra 3 and newer are fully supported by Kodi, while Tegra 2 and older are not).
• The main aim for the Android port of Kodi is to foremost target media-players/set-top-boxes/sticks that connect to a large screen television and uses a standard remote control as its main interface device, (that is the same market as for HTPC).

How do I know what chipset I have?

These are some good websites for looking up the SoC (System on a Chip) chipset used in your Android hardware device:

• http://www.iboum.com - Digital media players
• http://gsmarena.com - Phones
• Wikipedia:Comparison of Android devices
• http://www.androidcentral.com/devices

Also a referense you can compare different SoC (System on a Chip) chipset specifications on system-on-a-chip.findthebest.com

Compatible shipsets

Note: Please only list devices that are able to play at least one of the three "video decoding" columns in Full HD with either hardware decoding using VPU (Video Processor Unit) or hardware accelerated / assisted using GPU (Graphics Processor Unit).

A

Yes

mark indicates the device should be able to play those codecs at least 1080p or higher resolution using hardware video decoding or hardware accelerated / assisted video decoding, without soley relying on raw CPU power for software decoding.

Chip manufacturer	Chipset	Examples	Hardware video decoding							Notes
			H.264	MPEG-4 ASP	MPEG-2	VC-1 / WMV 9	HEVC / H.265	UltraHD	Other common codecs/formats
Allwinner	A31 / A31s	VidOn.me AV200, Justop Quadro, Mele A1000G, Mele M8, Mele M9, Measy B4K, Measy U4K	Yes	?	?	?	No	No	?
AMLogic	AML8726-M1 / AML8726-M3	Pivos XIOS DS (older hardware uses AML8726-M1 and newer AML8726-M3), G-Box Midnight, JynxBox M1	Yes	?	Yes	Yes	No	No	?
AMLogic	AML8726-M6 / AML8726-MX	GameStick (by PlayJam), Geniatech ATV1220/ATV520, MyGica TV420/TV500, G-Box Midnight MX2, JynxBox Android M6	Yes	?	Yes	Yes	No	No	?
AMLogic	M801 / M802 (AML8726-M8)	Geniatech ATV1800	?	?	?	?	No	No	?
Freescale	i.MX6	Wandboard, Utilite, Udoo, Matrix TBS2910, CuBox-i	Yes	?	Yes	Yes	No	No	?
MediaTek	MTK6589T		Yes	?	?	?	No	No	?
Nvidia	Tegra 3	OUYA	Yes	?	SD & some 720p	No	No	No	?
Nvidia	Tegra 4	Nvidia Shield	Yes	?	Yes (CPU)	?	No	No	?
Qualcomm	Snapdragon S4	Nexus 7 (2013)	Yes	?	?	?	No	No	?
Rockchip	RK3066	Imito MX1/MX2, Minix NeoG4/X5, MK808/802, Ugoos UG802/UG007	Yes	?	?	No	No	No	?
Rockchip	RK3188	Tronsmart T428/MK908, CS968, CR11s, J22, GM282, LT88, T-R42, CS919-II, K-R24, CS918, MK888, Jesurun DX05, Minix X7, MK802IV, MK809III, MK902, Ugoos UG007B	Yes	?	Yes (CPU)	?	No	No	?
Samsung	Exynos 3110		Yes	?	?	?	No	No	?
Samsung	Exynos 4210		Yes	?	?	?	No	No	?
Samsung	Exynos 4212		Yes	?	?	?	No	No	?
Samsung	Exynos 4412	ODROID-U2/U3/XU	Yes	?	Yes (CPU)	Yes (CPU)	No	No	?
Texas Instruments	OMAP4430		Yes	?	?	?	No	No	?

Avoid officially unsupported chipsets

Until further notice it is recommended that non-developers avoid hardware platforms that are not yet supported in XBMC mainline. Official support for chipsets that are not yet support today might be added at a later date, though there are no guarantees that they will all be developed for mainline.

Example:

• Allwinner A1x (A10/A10s/A13) and A2x (A20/A23) because its VPU is not yet supported in XBMC mainline, so you need to use third-party builds which are not officially supported, and those builds not recommended for mainstream use by non-developers.
• Freescale i.MX6 because its VPU is not yet supported in XBMC mainline, so you need to use third-party builds which are not officially supported, and those builds not recommended for mainstream use by non-developers.
• TeleChips TCC893x (TCC8930/TCC8933/TCC8935) because its VPU is not yet supported in XBMC mainline, so you need to use third-party builds which are not officially supported, and those builds not recommended for mainstream use by non-developers.

ARM SoCs without NEON support

Team XBMC had to limit itself to officially only support SoCs which feature support for NEON instruction set (ARM's general-purpose SIMD engine) or the overall experience of XBMC is deemed to be too slow without those extra optimizations.

Examples:

• Nvidia Tegra 1 and Tegra 2 SoCs CPUs lack support for NEON instruction set which XBMC mainline requires so will officially never be supported by Team-XBMC at xbmc.org or its community.