The best Android TV boxes in 2021 Updated were thoroughly researched and a final recommendation was made. You should buy the best Android TV box if you plan to do so.
The complete guide can be found here.
Let’s begin,
How to choose the best Android TV box?
Are you looking for the best Android TV box ? Are you lost in the face of the vastness of the offers on the web? Do not worry any longer, Tech-Analysis to produce for you an article highlighting all the criteria to be taken into account before your purchase.
What are the selection criteria to find the best Android TV box ?
Design
Let’s start with the least important element when making your selection. The design, although it intervenes very little in the performance of your box can prove to be a relevant decision criterion.
At this level, your choice will have to be made according to your expectations but also to the place where you will position your Android TV box. In a traditional living room, it will be preferred a rather sober box without frills. But if you put it somewhere out of sight, the design shouldn’t be a drag. We think in particular of the NVIDIA Shield TV
which, although very elegant, is not the most discreet in a living room, especially if you opt for the model with the controller.
In our opinion, while it is important, the design of your Android TV box should not interfere with your selection of the ideal multimedia companion.
Memory capacity:
You will understand, in this article we will go from the least important criterion to the most important criterion. The memory capacity is, according to our editorial staff, a selection criterion for your secondary Android TV box. Most of the best Android TV boxes that you will find on the market will offer you fairly low memory capacities. We think in particular of the box from Xiaomi, the Xiaomi Mi Box S
which offers 8GB of memory capacity. The problem is ultimately not one since the box offers a USB port on which you can add an external hard drive or a USB key. And this is valid for most Android TV boxes requiring storage capacity at one time or another.
Games
Gaming features are one of the criteria to take into account when making your purchase. Do you plan to play with your box or simply go and use it to consume multimedia content (films, series, videos, music, etc.)
If you think you are going to play with your Android TV box, I advise you to opt for a model that provides a controller in its offer. This is, in general, an indicator that the box was also designed for the game.
Multimedia experience
The multimedia experience will allow you to choose your Android TV box in a more relevant way. Not everyone asks for, or just doesn’t have the hardware to view 4K or HDR video. This requires having a screen or a television adapted to this technology. However, you must ask your box to be able to display at least 1080p. It has become the norm, whether for Netflix series or even for YouTube videos , demand no less.
If you are a purist and you really want to see your content in 4K then nothing prevents you from taking a box that allows the use of this video technology.
Connectivity
Here too, we can qualify connectivity as a major criterion. Don’t worry, all the boxes on the market offer an HDMI connection. Since HDMI has become a universal standard, it is present on all televisions and is therefore present on all the best Android TV boxes on the market worthy of the name.
As explained above in the section devoted to memory storage, having one or more USB ports on the box can be very interesting. I advise you to choose a model offering USB 2.0 ports, it will be preferable for playing multimedia files.
If you want to add a sound bar to your box, it can be very interesting to choose one with an optical port. You can connect any sound bar or audio system to it.
The boxes that run on Android are perfect for connectivity in the Google Eco-system.
System
At this level, as the name of the article suggests, you will opt for a box running Android. The challenge is to know under which version of Android your box is provided. The latest version of Android being Android 9 Pie (I put a link to the FrAndroid blog which explains in more detail the novelties of this new version).
The remote control
For me, the remote control is a crucial criterion in choosing your box. First of all, as I explained earlier, you will need to decide whether you need a gamepad or not. This choice is important when buying the best Android TV box , so as not to have to take additional equipment later.
The remote control supplied with your box is also to be taken into account. Nothing worse than a remote control not optimized for your box. More and more box providers are focusing on this problem and trying to improve their system.
Little more not very useful but noticeable, the choice of a remote control with an integrated microphone can make your daily life easier.
