Best Android TV Boxes in the UK

Many of the televisions on the market now are trying to do away with the need for having extra devices connected by including smart functions. These smart functions typically give the TV native access to several streaming services, which usually includes the most popular ones such as Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and a few others. However, not everyone has a smart TV, and even with many who do have one, the smart functions may not cover the full gamut of options that you would like it to have. This is where the Xiaomi Mi Box S comes into play. This Android TV box gives you an easy and affordable way to upgrade your TV with smart capabilities, giving you access to all of the streaming options that you desire.

First off, this particular device isn't meant to compete with the more powerful options out there, as its specs are rather meager when compared to many of them. The 2 GB of RAM and 8 GB of internal storage certainly won't blow anyone away, being on the lower side of the spectrum of such devices. However, these specs still give this device enough power to easily run the most common apps that are needed, including ones for most streaming services that one would want to use. And they would still be a good upgrade over what most smart TVs provide on their own.

The Zedo X96Q looks almost like something you would see at a military base. Initially, the box looks a little boring, with its all-black finish putting the model in the same group where most Android TV boxes hang. But the mixture between the matte and glossy surfaces and the raised edges that separate these two finishes elevates the device's presence quite a bit. Plus, when more and more streaming boxes are sticking with crazy colours and out-there logos, there's something about the model's opposite minimalistic approach that we can get behind.

What we cannot quite get behind is the Wi-Fi module that this device incorporates. On the surface level, the module seems fine, but when you start experimenting with it, one problem becomes apparent - the module's range is lacking, usually introducing interference or connection issues once you put ~10 metres between the box and the paired peripheral.

The flip side is that, aside from not attracting unnecessary attention, the model also requires very little space, even less than the Android TV boxes we've reviewed before this one. At 8.8 x 8.8 x 1.9 centimetres, the device's compact footprint will fit the busiest entertainment centres without you moving the gaming console or pushing the loudspeakers to the sides.

Despite claiming 'pro', there's nothing professional about the HaiFen X88 PRO, at least not as far as we can tell. We're not saying that the model's bad though. On the contrary, this is a pretty good streaming box. We have nothing against its visually expressive profile. Some might find the colours a little tacky and the company's logo a bit obtrusive but, from where we're standing, there's nothing gaudy about it, and the design looks quite nice. Size-wise, the box sits at 10 x 10 x 1.7 centimetres, which is around what we've come to expect from Android TV boxes. What we do not necessarily expect is the LCD screen that this model adopts. With this screen, you can observe the time and current connections, including the Internet connection and connected devices.

What's also nice is the cutouts on the box's sides, improving its heat dissipation and preventing the hardware from overheating, which is great since the model's hardware needs that quite a bit. The Rockchip RK3318 CPU is alright: we're not complaining, but we're also not saying that the box couldn't use something a little more impressive. The good news is that the same cannot be said about the Mali-450 GPU. With this graphics card, the device can handle even the more relentless Android games without dropping frames or freezing. But running these games and running a separate application or two in the background will prove challenging. Capping at 2 GB, the model's random-access memory (RAM) will have a hard time juggling more than one app.

The EasyTone 795 Super Android 10.0 TV Box is a smart streaming device that supports 3D movie as well as most popular video, audio and image formats, making it a great alternative to more expensive brand devices. More to that, it comes with a slew of preloaded apps such as Netflix, Play Store, YouTube, and you can still install more apps if you want to go beyond those that you get shipped with the device onboard. These make the device an attractive deal, but its strengths do not end here.

Although the market is full of similarly built Android TV boxes, the EasyTone 795 isn't like most of them, offering you faster speed, greater performance and the ease of use. It comes with an upgraded Android 10.0 OS and boasts impressive compatibility, so you can use it with pretty much any kind of application as well as for play. In addition, it has 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of ROM. This means you get plentiful room to efficiently use it as a mini PC and install as many applications as you want. Plus, you get the opportunity to expand the memory by installing an additional TF card.

Speaking of connectivity technology, the EasyTone 795 can be connected in a few simple steps. It supports 2.4G Wi-Fi and has an Ethernet LAN, which solves the problem of small coverage by allowing the device to receive signals from everywhere. In addition, it has a USB port, so you can hook the device to an external drive and upgrade the software. The package of the EasyTone 795 is quite extensive too, comprising a DC adapter, an HDMI cable, user guide and a remote control.

The HaiFen Q PLUS Lite continues the company's tradition that compels them to design weird-looking streaming boxes and we hope they continue to do so. While this is not necessarily the weirdest model we've seen yet, you cannot call this device especially orthodox either, at least not regarding its visual aspect. While most Android TV boxes are, well, boxy, this one smoothes out its curves and rounds the edges, making the model look more polished and elegant as well as making sure that kids cannot hurt themselves with its' sharp corners.

Of course, visually speaking, the part that we like the most is the LED lights surrounding the device and the ones that are inside the logo, lighting up when you turn the box on and illuminating with countless colours. Still, as much as we would like to give this product an A+ on its construction, moving the interfaces to the back was not the smartest choice. Sure, the model looks more concealed this way, but that also makes the ports not quite as easy to access as they should be.

That being said, this is not where the product drops the ball. No, that would be the hardware department. Whilst the Allwinner H6 central processing unit is alright at image processing, the 2 GB RAM setup is not great and the 16 GB ROM is even less impressive. Sure, most people seldom install games on these streaming boxes anyway and the 16 GB that you're working with initially storage space-wise are usually enough for storing every app you need but some people will have to use the MicroSD card slot to expand storage space, which is a little unfortunate considering that they could have expanded the ROM from the get-go without making the product that much more expensive.