Mi Box mini,
Mi Box Mini vs Google Chrome-cast
Clash of titan : Mi Box Mini vs Google Chrome-cast
03:02 MiuiOS.in 0 CommentsChinese Giant Xiaomi presently running at the track of invention. Recently The Company unveiled the Mi Box Mini with mesmerizing features. It is the world's smalest set top box. A tiny box, that having bigger values of specifications and price. The Google chrome cast is one of similar device, which leading the market till now. Let us see which device is better to fulfill our needs..
One of the fastest growing consumer electronics markets outside the smartphone is the digital media player. These are boxes like the Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV, and Nexus Player which allow users to stream content from the Internet or smartphones directly to their TVs.
A subset of this digital media player market is the mini digital media players market. These usually take the stick form factor like the Roku Stick, Fire TV Stick, or the market-leading Google Chromecast. But the hottest startup on the planet right now--Xiaomi in China--is releasing its own mini digital media player this week, the Mi Box Mini.
We take a look at how it stacks up against the Chromecast.
Specs
Lets start off by looking at the specs of the two digital media players.
Here’s the specs for the Xiaomi Mi Box Mini:
- Output: HDMI
- Processor: MediaTek Cortex-A7 quad-core 1.3GHz
- RAM: 1GB
- Storage: 4GB flash
- Max. Output Video Resolution: 1080p 3D video output
- Dimensions: not specified yet, but it’s a cube with each side measuring about the height of a credit card
- Weight: unknown
- Connectivity: Dual-band (2.5GHz and 5GHz) 802.11n, Bluetooth 4.0
- Power: Just plug the sucker into a wall outlet
And here’s the specs for the Chromecast:
- Output: HDMI
- Processor: Marvell 88DE3005 (Armada 1500-mini) system on a chip
- RAM: 512MB
- Storage: 2GB flash
- Max. Output Video Resolution: 1080p
- Dimensions: 72(L) x 35(W) x 12(H) mm
- Weight: 34 g
- Connectivity: 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
- Power: USB (Power adapter included)
Design
The most immediate difference between the two devices is their form factor. While both are small, the two are radically different in shape. The Chromecast takes the form of a stick, while the Mi Box Mini is cube-shaped and not much bigger than the power charger for your phone. The Chromecast plugs directly into your TV’s HDMI port, which would be as cool as it sounds if it didn’t also require you to plug it into an microUSB external power supply as well.
On the other hand, the Mi Box Mini’s power supply is built directly into the tiny box itself. Just fold out the power prongs and plug it into a socket, then connect the included HDMI cable to your TV and you’re good to go. The Mi Box Mini also comes in six colours including red, blue, green, orange, yellow, and pink.
Something I really like about the Mi Box Mini is that it comes with a dedicated remote control--which Chromecast lacks. This means you don’t need another device, like your smartphone, to operate the Mi Box Mini.
Features
Both the Mi Box Mini and Chromecast let you stream content to your TV--as almost every digital media player does. However, for the Chromecast this is the only way you can get content on your TV. That’s because the Chromecast has no on-screen UI. There’s no menu to navigate or channels to select. You use it by opening up the apps already on your smartphone and (if they’re Chromecast compatible) cast their content to your TV via the Chromecast casting button in the app.
But just because the Chromecast doesn’t have its own menu doesn’t mean there’s not a lot of content for it. Thanks to Chromecast support from apps like BBC iPlayer, HBO Go, Hulu Plus, Netflix, Pandora, Vevo, YouTube, blinkbox Music and Moves, BT Sport, Now TV, NPR, DailyBurn, and others you’re probably not going to be short anything to watch.
The Mi Box Mini on the other hand does also let you cast content to it from your devices, but it also features an on-screen menu like more traditional digital media players have. This built-in interface sports simple textual menus that expand to showcase the posters of any of the films or TV shows you’re browsing. In other words it’s a basic menu that does its job well.
As for gaming, both devices actually support gaming. The Chromecast supports gaming because you can cast the screen of your mobile device or laptop to it. In this sense, the Chromecast isn’t a true gaming machine, it’s just acting as an external monitor for a game running on another device. The Mi Box Mini has built-in gaming support, which means you can actually access causal Androidgame like Timberman, Flappy Bird and Plants vs. Zombies directly on it. This is because the Mi Box Mini runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat and offers support for most of its games.
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