Watching TV today is considered bad manners. The quality of the programs that are fed to the general public does not stand up to criticism. At the same time, the world produces a huge amount of interesting, smart content every day that you will never find in the broadcast network of national channels. To get out of this situation, the smartest thing to do is to purchase a smart TV set-top box, with which you can organize your personal television.
Smart TV Box X9S is the latest set-top box from the ZIDOO brand, which specializes in the production of such gadgets. To be honest, I had never encountered the products of this company before, so I was even a little surprised by the fact that it has been around for more than 10 years and is very popular among fans of wide screens.
Contents of delivery
ZIDOO X9S is delivered in a neat double dense box made of white cardboard, which carefully protects the console from all the troubles of a long trip. The kit includes a set-top box, removable antennas, a remote control, a power adapter, a cable for connecting a hard drive, an HDMI cable, and a user manual. This kit is quite enough to connect the TV box to your TV and start using it.
Specifications
ZIDOO X9S is by far one of the most powerful and functional devices in its category. The device runs the Android 6.0 operating system, has an HDMI input for video recording and PiP (picture in picture), a SATA interface for connecting an external hard drive, supports 4K resolution, can decode H.265 and VP9, and also works with HDR and 3D. In addition, the device can run the popular OpenWrt firmware, so it can be used as a router and network-attached storage (NAS).
Here is a complete list of device specifications.
- Housing material: aluminum.
- Processor: Realtek KEV1295 Cortex-A53 (64 bits).
- Graphics accelerator: ARM Mali-T820 MP3 (3-core).
- RAM: DDR3, 2 GB.
- Operating system: Android 6.0.
- Built-in memory: eMMC, 16 GB.
- Wi-Fi module: IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n, 802.11ac; 4.9–5.8 GHz (5.0 GHz ISM Band); dual-band Wi-Fi module RTK8821.
- Network card: RJ-45 Ethernet Jack (10/100/1000 Mbit/s).
- Bluetooth 4.0.
- HDMI port: HDMI2.0a output, support 4K, HD Audio (7.1 CH); HDMI2.0a input, PIP support, HDMI IN, streaming recording and broadcasting via UPD/RTSP.
- SD/TF card reader (1–32 GB).
- Two USB 2.0 ports.
- USB 3.0 port.
- IR port.
- Composite video and audio port.
- S/PDIF interface (2 CH, 5.1 CH).
- Interface SATA 3.0 (6 Gbit/s).
- VFD.
- Video support: HDR, HEVC/H.265 up to 4K (60 fps), H.264 up to 4K (60 fps), VP9 up to 4K (60 fps), BDISO/MKV.
- Audio support: 7.1 CH.
- Power supply: DC 12 V/2 A.
Features, ports, etc.
As we said, the device runs on Android 6.0, has 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal memory, Bluetooth 4.0, IR port and Wifi module. Regarding ports, it’s also not poor: 2 x USB 2.0, 1 x USB 3.0, 1 x HDMI, 1 x HDMI 2.0a, CardReader. In general, you can write a lot of clever words about the characteristics, which sometimes will not be clear to all people who understand technology. Therefore, detailed characteristics will be below, and we will continue to talk about what the device is all about.
Interface design is almost the main thing you need to pay attention to. Sometimes you come across interfaces that are so unsightly that it is simply impossible to work with them, not to mention comfortable use. In this case, we have no complaints: material design, neat large application tiles - everything is visible, everything is for the user. Do not forget that almost all applications from the Play Market are available to us, which you can install and even play some games (by connecting, for example, a joystick/mouse, etc.)
Having a fairly good Internet connection (high speed), you can watch any channels absolutely free using IPTV. IPTV is the same television signal, only transmitted via the Internet. That means you don't even need an antenna to watch TV.
| Specification | |
| Brand | ZIDOO |
| Model | X9S |
| operating system | Android 6.0 |
| CPU | Realtek KEV1295 Cortex-A53 (64 bits) |
| Graphics accelerator | ARM Mali-T820 MP3 (3-core) |
| RAM | 2 GB, DDR3 |
| Built-in memory | eMMC, 16 GB |
| Wi-Fi module | IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n, 802.11ac; 4.9–5.8 GHz (5.0 GHz ISM Band) |
| Network card | RJ-45 Ethernet Jack (10/100/1000 Mbit/s) |
| Bluetooth | 4.0 |
| HDMI port | HDMI2.0a output, 4K support, HD Audio (7.1 CH); HDMI2.0a input, PIP support, HDMI IN, streaming recording and broadcasting via UPD/RTSP |
| Card reader | SD/TF (1–32 GB) |
| USB 2.0 | Two ports |
| USB 3.0 | One port |
| Video support | HDR, HEVC/H.265 up to 4K (60 fps), H.264 up to 4K (60 fps), VP9 up to 4K (60 fps), BDISO/MKV |
| Audio support | 7.1 CH |
| Nutrition | DC 12V/2A |
| Video support | HDR, HEVC/H.265 up to 4K (60 fps), H.264 up to 4K (60 fps), VP9 up to 4K (60 fps), BDISO/MKV |
| Audio support | 7.1 CH |
| Nutrition | DC 12V/2A |
Enabling and setting
Even a child can handle connecting Smart TV Box X9S to a TV. You just need to insert one end of the included HDMI cable into the set-top box, and for the second, find a suitable connector on the TV. After that, connect the box to the network, press the power button and activate the HDMI output in the TV settings.
Oh yes, don’t forget to insert batteries into the control panel or install a special program on your smartphone with which you can control the set-top box.
To perform the initial setup, the set-top box has a special utility in the form of a step-by-step wizard, which allows you to set the language, establish a connection to the Internet, and so on. But it is much more useful, in my opinion, to open the operating system settings page and perform all the necessary actions there. After all, inside is the familiar Android, so most users will cope with this task without difficulty.
Z9X Specifications
| Configuration | |
| Frame | Aluminium alloy |
| CPU | Realtek RTD1619DR ARM Cortex-A55 (6 cores) |
| GPU | ARM Mali-G51 MP3 |
| OS | Android 9.0 |
| RAM | 2 GB DDR4 |
| Built-in memory | 16 GB eMMC |
| Playing video | |
| Frame frequency | Support precise frame rates 23.976, 59.94, 25, 30, 50, 60 |
| Codecs | HEVC/H.264/10bit/12bit |
| HDR | HDR10+,HDR10 and Dolby Vision |
| Containers | Blu-ray (BDMV / ISO / MVC 3D), MKV, M2TS, MPEG, VOB, etc. |
| Playing audio | |
| Audio formats | SACD ISO, DFF, DSF, APE, FLAC, WAV, DTS, MP3, AAC, M4A, OGG, WMA, AIF, M4R, MP2, AMR and CUE playlists |
| Sampling | Up to DSD 256 / PCM 192 kHz |
| Player options | |
| HDD | HDD system: EXT3. EXT4. NTFS. FAT32. EXFAT; HDD up to 14 TB; support SATA HDD and USB HDD. |
| LAN | NAS and NFS support. SMB VI. SMBV2. SMBV3. DLNA. |
| Connections | |
| HDMI Output | 2.0a Main, support [email protected] 12 bit, HDR10 / HDR10+ / Dolby Vision; Dolby Atmos pass-through |
| HDMI 2.0 Input | Support [email protected] , PCM stereo, PIP |
| USB 2.0 | x 2 |
| USB3.0 | x 2 |
| SATA 3.0 | x 1 |
| Ethernet | x1 RJ-45 (10 / 100 / 1000 Mbit/s), WOL support |
| WiFi | 2.4G + 5G, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac 2×2 MIMO 867 Mbps |
| Bluetooth | BT 4.2 |
| Video output | 3.5 mm AV x1 (as well as analog audio output L/R) |
| Optical output | SPDIF (2.1CH/5.1CH) |
| RS232 | 3.5mm RS232 serial port |
| Dimensions and weight | |
| Dimensions (W x D x H) | 189 x 129 x 25.5 mm |
| Weight | 1.2 kg |
Price Z9X The Zidoo Z9X media player can be purchased in online stores at a price of 16,500 rubles. This is the cost of a set with a regular remote control. If you add the V9 Air Mouse, the cost will increase to 19,000 rubles.
Z9X Review Summary
At the end of the review of Z9X from Zidoo, we will make a brief summary. It's hard not to love the Z9X. It features a faster chip, more features, updated dedicated apps, and includes the Dolby VS10 engine. The new approach to media streaming services is also commendable.
If your budget won't bear spending big on a high-performance, latest generation media player for local file playback and organization, then the Z9X video player is your only choice.
Zidoo Z9X review 2020-09-17T00:59:51+00:00 SemenPlayers and devicesplayersThe new Android TV Box Zidoo Z9X replaces the previous media player Zidoo Z9S. This is a flagship TV box. It is designed for the most demanding public in terms of 4K HDR video playback quality and Hi-Fi audio. The device is based on a 6-core Realtek RTD1619DR chip with updated ARM Cortex-A55 processors. Support for HDR10+ and...SemenSemen EditorUltraHD included
Software interface
After turning on the set-top box, the proprietary ZIUI shell appears on the TV screen. The main elements are made in the form of tiles, so you can easily move between them using the remote control.
Directly from the main screen you can access the following sections:
- Weather is a simple application that displays current weather conditions and a forecast for several days.
- Applications - a list of all programs installed on the device.
- Media Center is a file manager that allows you to detect and play media files stored on the set-top box or connected media.
- HDMI IN - if you connected an external source, then this is for you.
- Browser - viewing sites.
- Settings - ZIDOO X9S options page.
- Cleaning - launching a special utility that will clear the device’s memory of debris.
At the bottom there is a row of buttons to launch the most popular programs. You can add your own apps here, such as your favorite games and media players.
Functions
Smart TV Box X9S has such a wide range of functions that it would be necessary to write more than one article to describe them in detail. Therefore, I will limit myself to a list of the main features of this console.
Playing media files
Of course, this is the most important purpose of Smart TV, for which most people buy a set-top box. ZIDOO X9S can play almost any files from internal memory, from removable media (USB, HDD) and from online sources. I searched for a long time, but among my films I never found one that would have any problems playing back.
To play video, audio and listen to Internet radio stations, you can use the built-in media center ZDMC, which is a modified version of the well-known KODI. The main feature of this program is that its functionality can be expanded by installing plugins. These plugins change the appearance of the media center, add localizations, codecs, new content sources and much more. I will definitely devote one of the following articles to this program.
If you don’t like ZDMC, then you can install any other program from the Google Play catalog or a third-party source that is designed to deliver online content. TVzavr, Megogo, IVI, Google Play Movies, YouTube - their names are legion.
Games
Android games have come a long way in terms of graphics quality lately, so why not enjoy them on your big screen TV?
The quad-core Cortex-A53 processor, working together with the ARM Mali-T820 MP3 graphics accelerator and two gigabytes of DDR3 RAM, is quite capable of handling any modern games and delivering high-quality images without stuttering.
Of course, not all games will be convenient to control using a remote control, so it makes sense to take advantage of the free USB ports of the console, to which you can connect a full-fledged game joystick. Great picture on the big screen + easy controls = double the fun!
Connecting external sources
Not everyone will need this feature, but in some cases it may be useful. The presence of a separate HDMI IN input allows you to connect modern multimedia equipment to the ZIDOO X9S. This way you can, for example, record broadcasts from a satellite receiver.
Watching IPTV TV shows
Real life hackers don't watch TV. But if you suddenly decide to take a look at what is happening in the world, then just feed the console one of the playlists with channel addresses, and you will immediately gain access to a huge number of television programs from all over the world. Without an antenna and completely free - you just need a fast Internet connection.
additional services
As I mentioned above, the set-top box runs two operating systems at once: Android 6.0 and OpenWRT, which allows you to use the Smart TV Box X9S as a router and network storage.
This opens up broad prospects for those of our readers who are tech-savvy and want to create a sophisticated home entertainment center based on this device.
Smart TV Box X9S comes with a number of useful applications installed by default, including AirPlay and AirMirror, DLNA and MicroCast, Zidoo RS and Google Remote. It is always possible to additionally install any other necessary programs, which allows you to significantly increase the functionality of the set-top box.
Review of Zidoo Z9S - TV box, aka media center, aka NAS, aka DVR and that's not all
A new model for the end of summer 2020 is the Zidoo Z9S TV box. Fresh Realtek 129 processor, gigabit ethernet, dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11ac 2T2R MIMO (up to 867 Mbit/s) and 2x external SATA 3.0 interfaces. And this is just the beginning!
Zidoo has a very diverse lineup, I had the Zidoo H6 PRO model in my hands and it left very conflicting impressions. But this model is inexpensive and there was nothing special to demand from it. And there is the flagship model X20 PRO, and with its price of 500+ dollars, it really can do everything that is on the TV box market.
The Zidoo Z9S model can do almost everything and at the same time costs far from $500 – https://ru.aliexpress.com/item/Zidoo-Z9S-Media-Player-4-Smart-Box-Android-7-1-NAS -2-DDR-16/32922601859.html
- OS – Android 7.1 + OpenWRT (NAS) running simultaneously
- CPU – Realtek RTD1296DD ARM Cortex-A53 Quad-Core
- GPU – Mali T820 MP3
- Memory – 2 GB DDR
- Internal Storage – 16GB eMMC
- Connectivity – Wifi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac 2×2 MIMO 867Mbps, GIGABIT LAN RJ-45 Ethernet connector (10/100/1000Mbps), Bluetooth BT4.1
- HDMI Port:
- HDMI 2.0a output, support 4K@60fps, HDR10
- HDMI 2.0 input
- Video decoding – HDR, 10-bit HEVC/H.265 up to 4K@60fps, VP9 up to 4K@60fps, H.264 up to 4K@24fps
- Audio Decoding - Supports HD multi-channel audio and stereo decoding
- USB port – 2x USB3.0, 2x USB2.0
- Power – DC 12V/3A
- Other interfaces: 3.5mm RS232, IR receiver, 3.5mm Cvbs Audio R/L, OPTICAL (2CH, 5.1CH), reset button, 2x SATA3.0 (for Serial ATA connection), VFD display (with LED backlight), LED indicator
- Aluminum alloy housing, silver
- Dimensions – 245 x 201 x 81 mm
- Weight - 1.20 kg
What do I mean by the vague “can do almost everything”? I mean the ability to connect to your home network with a cable via a gigabit port and transfer hundreds of GB back and forth on your home network, and at the same time create an access point and distribute files from the connected HDD|SSD at a speed of almost the same gigabit, transfer images to TV or receive a video signal from surveillance cameras and record it/simultaneously broadcast it to the network, be able to connect a regular external hard drive, two hard drives via USB 3.0 ports, a bear/keyboard via USB 2.0. And all this AT THE SAME TIME. And we have not yet reached the point of playing 100 GB files.
Connectors:
2 x SATA 3.0 – for hard drives 2 x USB 3.0 – high-speed data port 2 x USB 2.0 – for connecting peripheral devices 1 x SDIF – for connection connections to stereo system 1 x CVBS – for connecting to TVs that do not have HDMI 1 x HDMI Out 2.0a – for connecting to output devices, with the ability to transmit not only a video signal, but also audio 1 x HDMI IN 2.0 – for recording the screen of other devices Features and functions PIP 1 x RS232 – for communication with computers and peripheral devices
On the front side there is a small screen demonstrating the main processes - downloading, wired/wireless connection/resolution of the connected screen. Below is a picture from the process of disassembling the Zidoo Z9S and we will see the rest of the internal details.
Among the interesting details regarding the package (except for the combined sat + power cable seen above - unfortunately, there is only one such cable in the kit, but there are two ports and where can I get the second one?) - there is also a power supply of as much as 3A and 36 watts.
And there is a complete learning remote control - do we see a designated area from above? These are buttons that can be trained to imitate the buttons of a TV remote control and thus you can control both the TV box and the TV from one remote control, and at the same time the training manipulations are very simple. According to the instructions on the remote control itself, place both of them next to each other, and alternately press and adjust the included remote control for the Zidoo Z9S. I’ve seen an extended set of TV boxes on Ali, which also adds a larger remote control with a mini-qwerty keyboard on the back... But it seems to me that if you need something like this, it’s better to choose a proven model from Rii - it’s not for nothing that they specialize in such accessories .
The first turn on and I immediately set it to Russian... Then I looked in the upper right corner, thought and returned it to English again =)
It’s a simplified launcher and it’s clearly designed for a remote control, the ability to scroll through multimedia sections - photos/videos/music and not really bother with any other gaming tasks or anything completely office-related. After all, this is a media center, it should move any files and produce a cool picture.
Therefore, without leaving the cash register, upload 60 GB of Deadpool to the connected SSD disk and let’s drive it back and forth. Rewinding, autoframe rate, various settings and subsettings. So that life doesn’t seem like raspberries to the TV box, and so that I understand what its meaning is.
Here is a full video with HDR/HDR10 switching (with 10-bit color depth), with HDR and SDR and much, much more.
In addition to the goodies and organic loads, it was also worth studying the system. Here are the traditional difficulties with updates (although, to Zidoo’s credit, it’s worth remembering that the H6 was still released, even if it was necessary to download them and update them the old school way, indicating where the update file was on my flash drive). I have already mentioned partial Russification and this is also infuriating at first.
I was more struck by the difficulties with the playmarket. In H6 Pro I had to delete the playmarket and reinstall it on the TV box, but here everything is even more stubborn - just download the apk and install it through them. On the one hand, everything is real, you take it and do it. On the other hand, why do everything in such a strange way? Maybe there is simply some hidden sacred meaning here that I simply did not catch?
And on the third side, there is a clear positioning of the Zidoo Z9S as a media center and its functionality is tailored to specific tasks. It was funny to see in the menu settings a branch for disabling the activity of the connected hard drive. After all, in fact, during idle time it can be annoying with sounds and use it in vain.
In addition to the connected HDD+SSD+mouse+keyboard, you can get through to the local network and it’s better to still bother with running a cable to the Zidoo Z9S TV box, especially if you use it as a NAS on your home network. With the software component, everything here is ready for connection and without much dancing with a tambourine.
When I played 4K video back and forth, the heating became noticeable, and it had to do with it on top of the TV box. I thought and thought, and decided to take it apart. No active cooling was heard here, and only the air intake openings at the bottom were visible. But it gets hot from above!
There is only one chip on the bottom and you need to unscrew 4 more bolts to get to the insides.
So now it’s clearer - the radiator removes heat from the processor and with direct contact to the metal case it turns out like a huge passive radiator. I was amused by the presence of a battery, like in a PC - I’ve never seen anything like this in a TV box. The rest is a clean board, all parts are marked and everything is neat. But in the last photo there are some mistakes near the antenna contacts.
What can I say as a result - the Zidoo Z9S TV box is interesting not only as a TV box, but also as a media center/NAS/DVR and there can be many, many uses. The box handles any of the most demanding multimedia tasks and doesn’t even strain itself when rewinding 100 GB of files on a connected SSD drive. If you really, really want to look for some shortcomings, then perhaps the only thing in the kit is the presence of only one cable for connecting a drive, although there are two connectors. And the very solution of external ports VS special trays for hard drives in cooler models is, yes, not the height of grace. But you also need to understand that the price of the Zidoo Z9S is still one and a half hundred dollars, and not 500 or more like the flagship models =) And finally, I will advise you to use EPN cashback - the most profitable cashback for Chinese shopping. And do not lose the opportunity to return about 5-10% of the money spent on Aliexpress and in Chinese stores (now on Gearbest EPN generally gives an excellent return percentage, but this is temporary). That is, for a total of 100 bucks spent on Ali on different products and different orders, the total cashback will return about 5-10 dollars, sometimes even more. And the final price for all of them will no longer be 100, but 85-90 bucks. Here is the invitation link with all the details - https://cashback.epn.bz/?i=41c2a
20.10.2018 @ 19:15
TV boxes and accessories for them
aliexpress, aliexpress
