Which device to get (Mi Box S vs. Fire TV Stick 4K)?

by stoolpigeonfucker

Not sure if people get upset about these kind of questions here but here goes: I am currently living in Portugal and have looked at the following devices (idk anything about other similarly priced devices, but these seem to be the most popular):

  1. Mi Box S - €60
  2. Fire TV Stick 4K - €60

Obviously the Shield is much more expensive (€160) than the other two options so I'm probably not going to get it. I've looked at reviews about the two and read threads on here and it seems to be split 50/50 with half saying the Mi Box S is shit, while the Fire TV Stick is great (and vice versa). I think there is a difference in price between the two / they are cheaper in the US, but obviously here they aren't. I've also read about a potentially new Mi Box coming out soon, but that could be complete bullshit.

Anyway, my girlfriend and I would like to use either for the following:

  • Netflix
  • YouTube
  • BBC iPlayer (with proxy obviously)
  • Playing torrented media (is this even possible -- could buy external HDD or connect laptop I guess?)

Anything else is a bonus: for example, we don't have or use Amazon Prime, but I guess it's possible we might get it in the future, and who really games on it honestly? Either way, which one do you guys think is best to get?

Dudefoxlive

I have a Mi Box S and I have no issues with it. I think it's a great device plus you get a chromecast ultra built-in. The only thing I'm waiting on the device to finally get is Android 9 but that is in the beta stage right now and I hope to see it released soon. As for the external media, it does have a USB 2.0 port available so you can either share a folder on your laptop and use a file manager to access it or you should be able to use an External drive but with USB 2 speeds.

just_roc

Mi Box hands down. Android TV is better than a proprietary O/S by Amazon.

Greensleeves2020

I have the Mi Box and and think it's excellent. It's frustrating that it doesn't have more/faster ports but I bought a ugreen hdd hub and ethernet so I can not connect it to the router via Internet (more reliable) and have 3 USB ports. I use one with a 32gb flash drive to get extra storage for apps etc and a 2TB ext hard drive (I suspect it works with 4TB drives too but haven't tested that.)

jai5

I switched to a Fire stick 4k from mibox. It's easier to sideload apps, the apps on firetv are updated more often. It's less buggy overall and feels faster.

The remote also doubles as a universal 'smart' remote. Hitting the power button turns on the Tv, firestick and my ht receiver. The volume controls the receiver directly.

Kenzibitt

My Only problem with the Mi Box compared to the fire TV 4k is the availability of apps. New apps release instantly on the fire TV whilst on the Mi Box Android TV we don't see 8t as soon as possible, example is Disney+app that was released yesterday... It's on the fire TV but not the Mibox despite the announcement of availability on Android TV.

At the end of the day I think the Android TV is a bit fragmented with respect to apps... The shield is always the first in line for apps.

BigKahunaLV

MiBoxS for me. Loving the built-in chromecast. Also it has usb port in the back, so you can plug some usb in its ass and extend your storage. Kodi/Plex/YouTube/Netflix, you name it, its there and it works great. I usually use it for streaming movies from my seedbox or watching TV via dedicated app.

bbwolff

Any of the boxes. You'll need external hdd for torrenting. I have Beelink GT1A, but most in that range 50-60 € will do.

digimac_uk

I have both and find it hard to choose between them. I bought the Mi Box 3 off eBay by mistake ( I bid £50 thinking someone would outbid me, they didn't!) and I was worried about all the horror stories I had read about them. However, it has been flawless and is the box I use most. The Firestick 4K is fast and reliable too and can be bought from local electronic stores. I would recommend waiting a few weeks for Black Friday and ordering the Firestick 4K for €25/€30 when it is on offer. ETA: I wouldn't worry about torrenting to much, if I was so inclined (ahem!) I would install Cyberflix with a Real Debrid account and most of the popular VPN's have apps that are easy to install and use.

ccrisp31

Neither..nvidia sheild best on the Market..

PalebloodSky

Fire TV 4K gets decent reviews but I think only Mi Box S supports Chromecast built-in of those two, which I use frequently on my Shield TV. Just something to keep in mind.

itsme113

I have both, FTS4K cost half of Mi Box s. I did like Mi Box S and would have recommended it.

But there customer service is really bad, remote and power supply has only 6 months of warranty according to them.

They have no web site which lists there warranty information, they point me to a mandarin web site.

If something goes bad, it is next to impossible to get them to honor warranty.

arrowrand

I absolutely hated the UI of the Fire TV. It is one gigantic ad for all things Amazon, almost all of which is redundant and irrelevant to me.

I would choose a Roku Streaming Stick over a Fire TV Stick. At least the Roku ads and tracking can be blocked by PiHole, the Fire TV ad UI is something that you are just stuck with.

vikekhse

I am in the same predicament as you, but I'm thinking about Roku Streaming Stick+ instead of the Fire. I bought a Mi Box S from a local store here in Sweden to test out, Rokus' need to be ordered from abroad. I really liked the Mi Box for an hour, until it turned to shit. I must have gotten myself a bad device, because it seems that after being plugged in for 3 hours the processing power is 1 % of what it was before: Netflix stuttering like crazy for 1080p and Swedish public service TV app not even being able to load a video. I have plugged it out and in like 5 times and the same behavior after approximately 3 hours in sleep. Sadly, I now have developed a distaste for it.

As for playing torrented media there is plenty of options depending on how far you are willing to go. I guess both Mi Box and Fire TV have Kodi and with the Mi Box you could plug in a HDD I guess. Or you load the media over network with a NAS or a share on a computer. Or you can go the server-client way with e.g. Plex and have a server stream media to your client device and PC's and mobile phones.

Sarah_Ng

You can't go wrong either way. They're both great in their price range.

GravityDead

After using AndroidTV devices for a few years I've come to a conclusion to avoid them altogether whenever and wherever possible.

  • Almost all of the cheaper AndroidTV devices have major issues, especially with audio decoding.
  • The OS is a second citizen in Google's own life, you may look at the current Stadia support for example. The fact only few AndroidTV devices can play 4K HDR Youtube.
  • Lack or delayed applications for the OS. AppleTV+ app is available for FireOS but not for AndroidTV and same goes for many more vendores, especially the local companies in few countries.
  • Even Shield is not worth the price completely unless you need Android-specific features and high-end local audio, which I've read Apple has issues with too. Apple TV 4k has better stability, performance, 1st party support by Apple and priority application launch by major companies.
danrvm

If you do consider the Mi Box S you might give a look at the Jetstream box: https://go.shr.lc/2CJPu9K

Archolm

If you want to play with Emulation your better off skipping the Mi Box. It's a fucking hassle to sideload content onto it.