Buyer’s guide to the Top 10 media players according to hotline.ua.

Although mod­ern TVs usu­al­ly have a Smart TV, media play­ers are still pop­u­lar. And all because most TVs do not have the most pow­er­ful proces­sors, and often they work quite slow­ly. In addi­tion, many more sources of con­tent are avail­able with the set-top box. We have col­lect­ed ten of the most pop­u­lar and inter­est­ing media play­ers, which we will talk about in our arti­cle.

Although mod­ern tele­vi­sions usu­al­ly have Smart-TV, media play­ers still remain pop­u­lar and in demand. And all because most TVs are far from the most pow­er­ful proces­sors, and often they work quite slow­ly. In addi­tion, there are many more sources of con­tent with the set-top box. We have col­lect­ed ten of the most pop­u­lar and inter­est­ing media play­ers, which we will talk about in our arti­cle.

Xiaomi Mi Box S

Xiao­mi Mi Box S is the most pop­u­lar media play­er at the moment. Although the mod­el is no longer new, it appeared at the end of 2018, it is dif­fi­cult to call it out­dat­ed, since it con­stant­ly receives updates.

It is ide­al for those who want to buy a media play­er and not deal with sub­tle set­tings, but sim­ply use stream­ing ser­vices.

You can safe­ly choose Xiao­mi Mi Box S for grand­par­ents — they will def­i­nite­ly deal with it.

Also, this media play­er will appeal to those who want to watch online movies in 4K. But still, the proces­sor is not the most pow­er­ful, so heavy 4K HDR movies can be a dif­fi­cult test for her.

Plus­es: ease of use and set­up, Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion, afford­able price.

Cons: weak “iron” by mod­ern stan­dards.

Xiao­mi Mi Box S — this media play­er has long been the most pop­u­lar mod­el

Xiaomi Mi TV Stick

If the Xiao­mi Mi Box S is appre­ci­at­ed by those who need 4K sup­port, the max­i­mum of the Xiao­mi Mi TV Stick is Full­HD.

The set-top box is made in the stick form fac­tor, so it can gen­er­al­ly be called portable, it is con­ve­nient to take with you on a busi­ness trip or trip.

It is also suit­able for unde­mand­ing peo­ple who do not want to both­er with set­tings, but just watch YouTube, MEGOGO, OLL TV, Sweet TV or NETFLIX.

Plus­es: stack form fac­tor, ease of use, afford­able price, Net­flix sup­port.

Cons: No 4K sup­port.

Xiao­mi Mi TV Stick is an ide­al solu­tion for Full­HD TV own­ers who are look­ing for an easy-to-man­age device

MECOOL KM2

MECOOL KM2 is an inter­est­ing set-top box with a fair­ly pow­er­ful proces­sor, thanks to which it can eas­i­ly cope with dif­fi­cult 4K HDR movies.

Despite the fact that the mod­el comes from the sky, it is cer­ti­fied by Net­flix.

The com­plete remote con­trol is con­ve­nient, mul­ti­func­tion­al. Unfor­tu­nate­ly, the auto frame rate can only be changed man­u­al­ly, and HDR is always active.

Oth­er­wise, it is a very good media play­er for lit­tle mon­ey, a com­peti­tor of Xiao­mi Mi Box S and sur­pass­es it in terms of speed and proces­sor pow­er.

Plus­es: per­for­mance is suf­fi­cient to watch 4K HDR movies, Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion, con­ve­nient remote con­trol, price/functionality ratio.

Cons: man­u­al auto frame rate, inabil­i­ty to dis­able HDR.

MECOOL KM2 is a fair­ly pro­duc­tive and not very expen­sive media play­er

TOX1

TOX1 is a mid-lev­el con­sole that runs on pure Android.

It is dif­fi­cult to rec­om­mend it to every­one, but if you like and know how to cus­tomize devices for your­self, and you are not afraid to read forums, then you will like it.

This media play­er has many fea­tures — work with 4K HDR res­o­lu­tion, work­ing auto frame rate, giga­bit Eth­er­net, the abil­i­ty to con­nect mul­ti-chan­nel sound and the avail­abil­i­ty of Root rights. There is no Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion, so if you need it, it will only work in SD qual­i­ty.

The remote con­trol is quite sim­ple, mod­est and unmod­ern in appear­ance. It does not have a voice search and this is a rather sig­nif­i­cant minus. But there is a way out — to buy anoth­er remote con­trol and “friend” it with the set-top box.

Plus­es: per­for­mance, wide func­tion­al­i­ty, speed, work­ing aut­oframe rate, giga­bit Eth­er­net.

Cons: not suit­able for the aver­age user, no Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion, sim­ple remote, pure Android.

TOX1 will turn your TV into the screen of an Android device, which is why it is not suit­able for every­one

MECOOL KM6 Deluxe

MECOOL KM6 Deluxe is a set-top box for those who want a func­tion­al device, but are not ready to use pure Android.

It is quite well equipped: giga­bit Eth­er­net, SPDIF, two USB ports, HDMI 2.1, micro sd and AV out­put.

The media play­er runs on Android TV 10, sup­ports 4K HDR, and eas­i­ly opens 100 GB video files.

Unfor­tu­nate­ly, there is no Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion, so you will not be able to use the ser­vice.

The con­trol pan­el is pleas­ant, with sup­port for voice search.

Plus­es: high per­for­mance, a large num­ber of con­nec­tors, a con­ve­nient remote con­trol with voice search.

Cons: No Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion.

MECOOL KM6 Deluxe is a good set-top box, but with­out Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion

Ugoos X4 Pro

Ugoos X4 Pro is a pro­duc­tive set-top box that will appeal to those who are ready to under­stand and adjust it to their pref­er­ences.

The media play­er has many con­nec­tors for con­nect­ing periph­er­als, it works under the con­trol of “pure” Android 11, which means that by con­nect­ing it to a TV, you will get a large tablet.

The set-top box sup­ports many codecs, auto frame rate, but still it is a device for geeks.

The con­trol pan­el is sim­ple and many will not like it.

Plus­es: pow­er­ful uten­sils, wide pos­si­bil­i­ties of con­nect­ing periph­er­als, auto­mat­ic frame rate.

Cons: the device is unlike­ly to be under­stood by an ordi­nary user.

Ugoos X4 Pro is a great choice for those who are ready to deal with it

Apple TV 4K 2021

Apple TV 4K 2021 – this media play­er will be of inter­est pri­mar­i­ly to own­ers of the Apple ecosys­tem.

It has Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion, ide­al for watch­ing videos from stream­ing licensed ser­vices.

Sep­a­rate­ly, I would like to note the qual­i­ty of the remote con­trol: it is met­al and very easy to use.

With the lat­est update, Siri sup­port in Russ­ian appeared, now find­ing your favorite movies and series has become much more con­ve­nient and eas­i­er.

Plus­es: per­for­mance qual­i­ty, con­ve­nient remote con­trol, Siri sup­port.

Cons: high price, suit­able only for view­ing con­tent from stream­ing ser­vices.

Apple TV 4K 2021 is a set-top box for Apple fans

Google Chromecast 4K with Google TV Snow

Google Chrome­cast 4K with Google TV Snow is a sim­ple and inex­pen­sive media play­er from a well-known man­u­fac­tur­er.

The mod­el is com­pact, except for HDMI, there is only USB Type‑C, which is used for charg­ing. To con­nect a flash dri­ve, you will need to both­er with USB Type‑C adapters.

This set-top box is suit­able for those who just want to watch movies from stream­ing ser­vices and use IPTV. The per­for­mance is enough to play 4K HDR movies on Net­flix.

Sep­a­rate­ly, the con­trol pan­el should be praised — it is small and con­ve­nient. You can con­fig­ure the TV to turn on so that its remote con­trol will not be need­ed.

Plus­es: ease of set­up and use, high lev­el of pro­duc­tiv­i­ty, con­ve­nient remote con­trol, low price.

Cons: there are no addi­tion­al ports for con­nect­ing a dri­ve.

Google Chrome­cast 4K with Google TV Snow is an inter­est­ing set-top box from a well-known brand

NVIDIA Shield TV Pro

NVIDIA Shield TV Pro is the top media play­er on the mar­ket and not only because it is NVIDIA.

This mod­el is real­ly the most func­tion­al and pow­er­ful, it has Dol­by Vision cer­ti­fi­ca­tion, which is very good.

There is also sup­port for auto frame rate, voice search and Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion.

One of the fea­tures of the set-top box is sup­port for the GeForce Now game ser­vice, which turns the media play­er into a game con­sole.

Plus­es: the most pow­er­ful, con­ve­nient remote con­trol with voice con­trol, auto frame rate, man­u­fac­tur­er sup­port, Dol­by Vision cer­ti­fi­ca­tion and sup­port for the GeForce Now game ser­vice.

Cons: price.

Google NVIDIA Shield TV Pro is the most pow­er­ful and func­tion­al media play­er at the moment

MECOOL KD1

MECOOL KD1 is a media play­er in a stick form fac­tor. This is a plus, because the device is com­pact, but also a minus, because you will need to buy a microUSB to USB‑A adapter to con­nect a flash dri­ve.

Not many sticks sup­port 4K res­o­lu­tion in HDR mode, but the MECOOL KD1 is one of them.

The mod­el has a pow­er­ful proces­sor, it will be enough even for those who use not only stream­ing ser­vices.

Unfor­tu­nate­ly, there is no Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion, but the media play­er copes with the rest, because it runs on Google Android TV 10.

The con­trol pan­el is con­ve­nient, equipped with Blue­tooth and an infrared port, and can be con­fig­ured to con­trol the TV.

Plus­es: stack for­mat, per­for­mance is enough for a 4K TV.

Cons: no Net­flix cer­ti­fi­ca­tion, no free USB port.

MECOOL KD1 is a stack that sup­ports 4K TVs

We hope that our mate­r­i­al will help you choose a media play­er, and we wish you suc­cess­ful pur­chas­es from Hot­line!

Author: Vitaly Matvienko