Performance soars: Millet box 3 is coming
On the 27th of millet's new conference, millet TV 3 (evaluation) was the highlight. In actual experience, its split design, 4K high-definition picture quality, and rich video resources all left a deep impression.
At the same press conference, the millet box also ushered in the third generation. This box continues the MITV system and video resources of the four licensees of Xiaomi TV 3, and its performance is further improved compared to the previous generation of millet boxes. It supports 4K@60FPS video playback for the first time, and comes standard with a new Bluetooth somatosensory remote control. The price of 299 yuan is the same, and the price/performance ratio is more prominent.
For the family already has a TV, just want to experience the TV content of millet, users who value the more value, which is currently the most worthy of the millet box. Here we take a look at how much this TV box has evolved compared to the previous one.
Millet classic kraft paper, world box packaging, simple and environmentally friendly.
In terms of appearance, the millet box 3 is very similar to the previous enhanced version of the millet box, small and sleek, the shell is still made of polycarbonate, there is a certain degree of matte effect. There is a ring of rubber pad on the belly to keep the box stable on the desktop.
Taking into account the need for 4K performance, the millet box 3 is not radical enough to use the millet box design.
Millet box 3 equipped with Amlogic S905 chip, is an upgraded version of the S802 millet box enhanced version, using a quad-core 64-bit architecture, support H.265 4K @ 60 frame hard decoding, therefore, millet box 3 is currently the most powerful performance on the market One of the TV boxes.
Interfaces, millet box has been doing subtraction, following the enhanced version to cancel the network port, now even the Micro SD card is saved, leaving only the DC power connector, HDMI 2.0 interface, USB 2.0 interface and AV interface a total of 4 interfaces.
Among these interfaces, the most worth mentioning is the HDMI 2.0 interface. Before Xiaomi's box used the HDMI 1.4 interface, which limited the hardware to only output 4K@30Hz video, but the millet box 3 can be realized. With 4K@60Hz output, the performance potential is fully realized and the usage scenario is more comprehensive.
Remote control is a major highlight of the millet box 3, using a new Bluetooth somatosensory remote control, listen to the name to know, this remote control has three major characteristics: Bluetooth, voice, somatosensory. This is also the second TV box of Xiaomi that provides a Bluetooth remote control. The previous one is a small box of Xiaomi. The brand new millet remote controller is priced at only 99 yuan, supporting millet TV 2/2S/3 and millet box 3 four products.
Currently, in Xiaomi's official website, only the millet box 3 and the millet box are left, and the enhanced version of the millet box has been removed. As a brand-new alternative, what is the performance of the millet box 3? Let's take a look together.
Hardware performance, decoding capability
Judging from the hardware parameters, Xiaomi Box 3 is undoubtedly the strongest box in the current millet, and it is also one of the strongest TV boxes at the moment. In addition to the use of the MTK program in Xiaomi's small box, Xiaomi's box processor comes from Jing Chen and now uses the latest S905 chip.
This chip we also introduced before, it is Jing Chen has just launched in March this year, located in the terminal chip OTT set-top box cost-effective, using TSMC 28nm process, 64-bit architecture, four Cortex-A53 core.
On the GPU side, this chip integrates the Mali-450 GPU. For video, it supports true 4K video hardware decoding and supports 10-bit H.265 hard decoding. On the audio side, it supports Dolby and DTS decoding.
In terms of storage, the millet box 3 is a standard 1GB+4GB combo. Like the previous 1GB enhanced version of the millet box, it is equipped with CMA's intelligent continuous memory allocation technology. It is specifically designed to solve the problem of 4K video playback that requires a lot of continuous memory to be reserved. It allocates reserved large blocks of contiguous memory for use by other programs, taking into account system fluency and 4K decoding.
After all, the TV box is not a mobile phone, and memory does not make much sense in 3G/4G. From the perspective of actual experience, a 1GB memory cube box 3 runs smoothly enough, whether it is interface switching or video loading speed can be satisfactory.
We used 30FPS and 60FPS videos to test the performance of Xiaomi Box 3:
4K video, 30FPS, bit rate: 16524Kbps
4K video, 30FPS, bit rate: 50398Kbps
4K video, 60FPS, bitrate: 8000Kbps
From the results, the millet box 3 has no pressure to face the three videos, and it can easily decode the 60 FPS 4K video and deliver it to the TV. This is what the Xiaomi box could not do before.
When it comes to 4K video, perhaps many people think it is a bit far. At present, most 4K videos are still at 30 FPS. However, you need to know that Youtube has already started uploading and playing 4K@60FPS, and millet box 3 has always been known for its performance, so starting to support this standard is also a general trend.
Local playback, you can play local movies by connecting a mobile hard disk or U disk to support almost all video formats on the market, such as 4K resolution source, MKV, AVI, MP4, MOV, Blu-ray HD and 3D video, and more.
Today, support for H.265 is not new on the TV box, but the actual meaning is not great at present. The millet box 3 supports H.265, and to some extent it is forward-looking. The key is also the S905 processor. Support this feature.
In fact, H.265 has been advertised for more than a year, but online video is still at an experimental stage. It is still H.264 occupying the absolute mainstream.
H.265 principle is not difficult to understand, in the past H.264 will be 16x16 pixels (or 16x8, 8x8, 8x4, 4x4 and other configurations), the screen is cut into several large blocks of the same size, and these giant areas The block is the smallest element of the code. H.265 is to cut the screen manually from the user to set the work, transferred to the encoder to determine, so that the encoder can be in the case of 16x16, 32x32, 64x64 and other sizes, the screen is cut into several coding tree units.
Because the larger the block size, the better the compression efficiency will be. It is through a series of optimization that H.265's video encoding compression technology can reduce the size of the same picture and quality movie files by half, and the time-consuming download time can also be reduced by half, providing limited network bandwidth. A more perfect video compression solution.
In general, compared to the current mainstream H.264 coding standard, H.265 video coding compression technology can reduce the video quality of the same picture quality to half, thereby reducing the download time and the required network bandwidth. It is bound to become the mainstream of the coming period.
System Interface + Video Resources
On the system side, Xiaomi Box 3 continues the MIUI TV version system. It is still a tiled display style, but it also has certain optimization in terms of details, mainly reflected in the addition of four classification entries under “Online Film and TVâ€, so that users can Jump directly to the movie or TV drama, this is consistent with the millet TV3.
The millet TV box 3 also integrates the "millet smart home". If you have millet bracelets, millet air purifiers, millet cameras and other accessories, you can view them in real time here.
Because the USB interface is provided, the millet box 3 can also be installed on the third party APP. This must be something that everyone hopes to see.
In terms of content, Xiaomi Box and Xiaomi TV are exactly the same. We also elaborated on the evaluation of Xiaomi TV 3, and Xiaomi TV (box) brought together the contents of iCNTV, GITV, Mango TV, and Hua Digital TV. (There are only 7 in the country.) There are now more than 100 partners and the content has increased from 240,000 hours to 440,000 hours.
The actual search found that the video content of Xiaomi Box 3 was indeed very rich. The blockbusters with a box office of over a billion yuan this year included more than half of them, including the Avengers Alliance 2 speed and passion 7 and so on. However, it should be pointed out that the vast majority of these large films are paid.
Because millet brings together videos from multiple licensees, these paid videos also come from different sources. This may cause some tangling in the payment. If you buy a movie alone, you feel that 3 or 5 bucks are nothing, but each If the department is to buy it, then it will be too much to eat. It is better to open a membership. But the problem is that if you open a member of this licensee, it may be that the next paid movie is on the other licensee's side. Will it be difficult for Chengdu to open a membership?
Therefore, we look forward to the day when Xiaomi can establish his own payment system. As long as one member is opened, he can have a complete overview of all the TV programs. With regard to the distribution of benefits, Xiaomi and resource providers can negotiate and reduce their own interests. Consumer time cost.
Also worthy of attention is that the new millet box 3 also comes standard with millet Bluetooth somatosensory remote control, support for somatosensory games, voice search, voice control, etc., remote control assembly Bosch 6-axis sensor, can play somatosensory game, I tried it For a game of tennis, the delay is acceptable.
Press and hold the remote control Home button to voice search
The millet box 3 itself supports the exclusive MIDI function, supports Miracast, Airplay, DLNA, SMB and WiDi, and can be used for images, videos, and Sohu videos, Tencent videos, PPTV and other applications on Xiaomi mobile phones, iPhones, iPads, and computers. Wirelessly cast onto the TV.
But here I still want to recommend a necessary APP for everyone, that is, cast screen artifact. In addition to implementing the screen-casting function, this APP also comes with a remote control function. Because Wi-Fi control through the local area network, it is possible to achieve a blind-free control similar to the Bluetooth remote control.
In addition, the app also integrates Xiaomi's online video and can be played directly on the Xiaomi box.
Real-time screenshots of television screens are also a major feature of screencasting artifacts. When they encounter good-looking television programs, many people like to shoot them down to the circle of friends, but the effect is too general. With the screenshot feature, just tap on the phone, the entire TV screen will be stored on the phone, and then share it directly, very convenient, and the quality is the best.
Summary: Still one of the most cost-effective TV boxes
As the latest generation of millet boxes, the appearance of Xiaomi Box 3 is not a big surprise, but it can be witnessed that Millet has spared no effort to simplify, the interface is only 4 now, and after several generations of product upgrades, it is difficult to guarantee the meeting. Became a small, extreme product like a small box of millet.
In terms of system content, MIUI TV version system interface operation is as simple as ever, easy to use, and easy to install third-party APPs through U-disks; in addition, if you have other products of Xiaomi, it can also display them on TV. A layer of fun is more likely.
Thanks to the support of the four major video licensees, Xiaomi Box 3 can be said to be very comprehensive in terms of content. All kinds of TV dramas, documentaries, and blockbusters at the box office cover most of them. Don’t worry about finding good looks; The problem that needs to be solved is that, after all, there are very few members of the full licensee who will have a lot of consumers, and it is very likely that people will be rushed to see third-party apps such as the all-inclusive, television cats.
In terms of performance, Xiaomi Box 3 is one of the strongest TV boxes at the moment. There is no problem with playing 4K@60FPS video, and once again it has come to the forefront of the trend. However, given that the TV box with the same processor has sold for 199 yuan, some people may say that the 299 yuan price of the millet box is no longer available. But don't forget that Millet Box 3 is offering a brand new Bluetooth-based somatosensory remote control, which costs only $99.
To sum up, the millet box 3 is still one of the most competitive TV boxes at present. At present, the millet official website has already removed the enhanced version of the millet box, and only the millet box 3 and the millet box are kept, which also indicates that the official is responsible for the successor. Confidence.
On the 27th of millet's new conference, millet TV 3 (evaluation) was the highlight. In actual experience, its split design, 4K high-definition picture quality, and rich video resources all left a deep impression.
At the same press conference, the millet box also ushered in the third generation. This box continues the MITV system and video resources of the four licensees of Xiaomi TV 3, and its performance is further improved compared to the previous generation of millet boxes. It supports 4K@60FPS video playback for the first time, and comes standard with a new Bluetooth somatosensory remote control. The price of 299 yuan is the same, and the price/performance ratio is more prominent.
For the family already has a TV, just want to experience the TV content of millet, users who value the more value, which is currently the most worthy of the millet box. Here we take a look at how much this TV box has evolved compared to the previous one.
Ornamental box 3 outside appreciation: new somatosensory remote control
Millet classic kraft paper, world box packaging, simple and environmentally friendly.
In terms of appearance, the millet box 3 is very similar to the previous enhanced version of the millet box, small and sleek, the shell is still made of polycarbonate, there is a certain degree of matte effect. There is a ring of rubber pad on the belly to keep the box stable on the desktop.
Taking into account the need for 4K performance, the millet box 3 is not radical enough to use the millet box design.
Millet box 3 equipped with Amlogic S905 chip, is an upgraded version of the S802 millet box enhanced version, using a quad-core 64-bit architecture, support H.265 4K @ 60 frame hard decoding, therefore, millet box 3 is currently the most powerful performance on the market One of the TV boxes.
Interfaces, millet box has been doing subtraction, following the enhanced version to cancel the network port, now even the Micro SD card is saved, leaving only the DC power connector, HDMI 2.0 interface, USB 2.0 interface and AV interface a total of 4 interfaces.
Among these interfaces, the most worth mentioning is the HDMI 2.0 interface. Before Xiaomi's box used the HDMI 1.4 interface, which limited the hardware to only output 4K@30Hz video, but the millet box 3 can be realized. With 4K@60Hz output, the performance potential is fully realized and the usage scenario is more comprehensive.
Remote control is a major highlight of the millet box 3, using a new Bluetooth somatosensory remote control, listen to the name to know, this remote control has three major characteristics: Bluetooth, voice, somatosensory. This is also the second TV box of Xiaomi that provides a Bluetooth remote control. The previous one is a small box of Xiaomi. The brand new millet remote controller is priced at only 99 yuan, supporting millet TV 2/2S/3 and millet box 3 four products.
Currently, in Xiaomi's official website, only the millet box 3 and the millet box are left, and the enhanced version of the millet box has been removed. As a brand-new alternative, what is the performance of the millet box 3? Let's take a look together.
Hardware performance, decoding capability
Judging from the hardware parameters, Xiaomi Box 3 is undoubtedly the strongest box in the current millet, and it is also one of the strongest TV boxes at the moment. In addition to the use of the MTK program in Xiaomi's small box, Xiaomi's box processor comes from Jing Chen and now uses the latest S905 chip.
This chip we also introduced before, it is Jing Chen has just launched in March this year, located in the terminal chip OTT set-top box cost-effective, using TSMC 28nm process, 64-bit architecture, four Cortex-A53 core.
On the GPU side, this chip integrates the Mali-450 GPU. For video, it supports true 4K video hardware decoding and supports 10-bit H.265 hard decoding. On the audio side, it supports Dolby and DTS decoding.
After all, the TV box is not a mobile phone, and memory does not make much sense in 3G/4G. From the perspective of actual experience, a 1GB memory cube box 3 runs smoothly enough, whether it is interface switching or video loading speed can be satisfactory.
With a new generation of crystal morning CPU and HDMI 2.0 interface, millet box 3 has maximum support 4K @ 60Hz decoding, the author also supports the 4K millet TV 3 on the test, after connecting the TV host with HDMI, you can manually adjust multiple 4K mode, Different frame rates, select 4K @ 60Hz mode here.
We used 30FPS and 60FPS videos to test the performance of Xiaomi Box 3:
4K video, 30FPS, bit rate: 16524Kbps
4K video, 30FPS, bit rate: 50398Kbps
4K video, 60FPS, bitrate: 8000Kbps
From the results, the millet box 3 has no pressure to face the three videos, and it can easily decode the 60 FPS 4K video and deliver it to the TV. This is what the Xiaomi box could not do before.
When it comes to 4K video, perhaps many people think it is a bit far. At present, most 4K videos are still at 30 FPS. However, you need to know that Youtube has already started uploading and playing 4K@60FPS, and millet box 3 has always been known for its performance, so starting to support this standard is also a general trend.
Local playback, you can play local movies by connecting a mobile hard disk or U disk to support almost all video formats on the market, such as 4K resolution source, MKV, AVI, MP4, MOV, Blu-ray HD and 3D video, and more.
Today, support for H.265 is not new on the TV box, but the actual meaning is not great at present. The millet box 3 supports H.265, and to some extent it is forward-looking. The key is also the S905 processor. Support this feature.
In fact, H.265 has been advertised for more than a year, but online video is still at an experimental stage. It is still H.264 occupying the absolute mainstream.
H.265 principle is not difficult to understand, in the past H.264 will be 16x16 pixels (or 16x8, 8x8, 8x4, 4x4 and other configurations), the screen is cut into several large blocks of the same size, and these giant areas The block is the smallest element of the code. H.265 is to cut the screen manually from the user to set the work, transferred to the encoder to determine, so that the encoder can be in the case of 16x16, 32x32, 64x64 and other sizes, the screen is cut into several coding tree units.
Because the larger the block size, the better the compression efficiency will be. It is through a series of optimization that H.265's video encoding compression technology can reduce the size of the same picture and quality movie files by half, and the time-consuming download time can also be reduced by half, providing limited network bandwidth. A more perfect video compression solution.
In general, compared to the current mainstream H.264 coding standard, H.265 video coding compression technology can reduce the video quality of the same picture quality to half, thereby reducing the download time and the required network bandwidth. It is bound to become the mainstream of the coming period.
System Interface + Video Resources
On the system side, Xiaomi Box 3 continues the MIUI TV version system. It is still a tiled display style, but it also has certain optimization in terms of details, mainly reflected in the addition of four classification entries under “Online Film and TVâ€, so that users can Jump directly to the movie or TV drama, this is consistent with the millet TV3.
The millet TV box 3 also integrates the "millet smart home". If you have millet bracelets, millet air purifiers, millet cameras and other accessories, you can view them in real time here.
Because the USB interface is provided, the millet box 3 can also be installed on the third party APP. This must be something that everyone hopes to see.
In terms of content, Xiaomi Box and Xiaomi TV are exactly the same. We also elaborated on the evaluation of Xiaomi TV 3, and Xiaomi TV (box) brought together the contents of iCNTV, GITV, Mango TV, and Hua Digital TV. (There are only 7 in the country.) There are now more than 100 partners and the content has increased from 240,000 hours to 440,000 hours.
The actual search found that the video content of Xiaomi Box 3 was indeed very rich. The blockbusters with a box office of over a billion yuan this year included more than half of them, including the Avengers Alliance 2 speed and passion 7 and so on. However, it should be pointed out that the vast majority of these large films are paid.
Because millet brings together videos from multiple licensees, these paid videos also come from different sources. This may cause some tangling in the payment. If you buy a movie alone, you feel that 3 or 5 bucks are nothing, but each If the department is to buy it, then it will be too much to eat. It is better to open a membership. But the problem is that if you open a member of this licensee, it may be that the next paid movie is on the other licensee's side. Will it be difficult for Chengdu to open a membership?
Therefore, we look forward to the day when Xiaomi can establish his own payment system. As long as one member is opened, he can have a complete overview of all the TV programs. With regard to the distribution of benefits, Xiaomi and resource providers can negotiate and reduce their own interests. Consumer time cost.
Also worthy of attention is that the new millet box 3 also comes standard with millet Bluetooth somatosensory remote control, support for somatosensory games, voice search, voice control, etc., remote control assembly Bosch 6-axis sensor, can play somatosensory game, I tried it For a game of tennis, the delay is acceptable.
Press and hold the remote control Home button to voice search
Indispensable "casting artifact"
The millet box 3 itself supports the exclusive MIDI function, supports Miracast, Airplay, DLNA, SMB and WiDi, and can be used for images, videos, and Sohu videos, Tencent videos, PPTV and other applications on Xiaomi mobile phones, iPhones, iPads, and computers. Wirelessly cast onto the TV.
But here I still want to recommend a necessary APP for everyone, that is, cast screen artifact. In addition to implementing the screen-casting function, this APP also comes with a remote control function. Because Wi-Fi control through the local area network, it is possible to achieve a blind-free control similar to the Bluetooth remote control.
Analog remote control, gamepad
In addition, the app also integrates Xiaomi's online video and can be played directly on the Xiaomi box.
Real-time screenshots of television screens are also a major feature of screencasting artifacts. When they encounter good-looking television programs, many people like to shoot them down to the circle of friends, but the effect is too general. With the screenshot feature, just tap on the phone, the entire TV screen will be stored on the phone, and then share it directly, very convenient, and the quality is the best.
TV screenshots are automatically stored in the phone album
Summary: Still one of the most cost-effective TV boxes
As the latest generation of millet boxes, the appearance of Xiaomi Box 3 is not a big surprise, but it can be witnessed that Millet has spared no effort to simplify, the interface is only 4 now, and after several generations of product upgrades, it is difficult to guarantee the meeting. Became a small, extreme product like a small box of millet.
In terms of system content, MIUI TV version system interface operation is as simple as ever, easy to use, and easy to install third-party APPs through U-disks; in addition, if you have other products of Xiaomi, it can also display them on TV. A layer of fun is more likely.
Thanks to the support of the four major video licensees, Xiaomi Box 3 can be said to be very comprehensive in terms of content. All kinds of TV dramas, documentaries, and blockbusters at the box office cover most of them. Don’t worry about finding good looks; The problem that needs to be solved is that, after all, there are very few members of the full licensee who will have a lot of consumers, and it is very likely that people will be rushed to see third-party apps such as the all-inclusive, television cats.
In terms of performance, Xiaomi Box 3 is one of the strongest TV boxes at the moment. There is no problem with playing 4K@60FPS video, and once again it has come to the forefront of the trend. However, given that the TV box with the same processor has sold for 199 yuan, some people may say that the 299 yuan price of the millet box is no longer available. But don't forget that Millet Box 3 is offering a brand new Bluetooth-based somatosensory remote control, which costs only $99.
To sum up, the millet box 3 is still one of the most competitive TV boxes at present. At present, the millet official website has already removed the enhanced version of the millet box, and only the millet box 3 and the millet box are kept, which also indicates that the official is responsible for the successor. Confidence.