I Feel Sad.....

[Ray(str)]

Firstly - I absolutely "Love" the Droidbox, and have bought not one but TWO since I discovered it "BUT" I feel sad that the box has real problems with BUFFERING and also jerky playback - so much so, that I wouldn't buy another one
(I wonder how long it will be before my post is withdrawn from the forum)
I hope not, as it might actually help in some way.

I have tried EVERYTHING - you name it - I've tried it but it still produces rubbish jerky playback.

For the record - 40 meg download speed - Fibre connection!

I have uninstalled down to the bear bones, and reinstalled with SEVERAL builds but the box just won't handle it.......IS ANYONE ELSE HAVING SIMILAR ISSUES?

I am about to GIVE UP....and look elsewhere for another manufacturer as there definitely seems to be a buffering problem and playback issue with the Droidbox streamers - WHY do I say this?

BECAUSE I HAVE SEEN MANY OTHER POSTS FROM FORUM MEMBERS WITNESSING THE SAME PROBLEMS!

Come on Droidbox - you have a fantastic product here but we shouldn't be having these problems - what's wrong, and is there ANYTHING we can do to help!

I have posted before but unfortunately, nothing has really helped....

I have just about had enough - the last thing I want to do is power my SK*Now box up but at least it won't buffer and jerk all over the place.......and YES - it produces 100% streaming without a problem!

Sorry for my post Droidbox....really disappointed!

Ray(str)

 

[David Savage]

I'm sorry to hear...can you try these setting to see if it helps, if not I'm sorry but it's worth a go.
https://droidboxforums.com/posts/29775/

 

[David Savage]

Can you also make sure you have the latest firmware and have cleared data in kodi before you run a wizard.
Plus keeping kodi clear of unwanted stuff is good use a maintenance tool like Ares wizard to clear thumbnails, packages and cache is good. Keeps things running good...hope this helps and sorry to hear about these problems.

 

[Michael Robinson]

Droidbox t8 mini.What a piece of shit.My Ota still won't update.Its always something on it.My firesticks runs way better.Im very disappointed.

Sent from my SM-G930V using DroidBOX Forums mobile app

 

[toonarmy9752]

the old T8s was way better than this T8S plus - I am mortified that ive bought this box and is going to be obsolete soon with no updates to openelec and thus no update to the kodi 15.2 built into it - bear in mind Kodi v17 wont be long and OE v7 wont be long either - which is what works - Librelec is pants on this box and just doesnt perform....... i think its the worst business decision ever and has ruined a damned good product just by going with Librelec - Why DB are defending this i have no idea.....

 

[Nigelar]

Hi Ray.
Can you be a bit more specific about the problems you are seeing?
Are you referring to android or the Librelec side?
Which Addons are you getting problems on?
Is it live sport? Or movies/tv? (I suspect the former, but you can clarify).

When you say "I am about to GIVE UP....and look elsewhere for another manufacturer as there definitely seems to be a buffering problem and playback issue with the Droidbox streamers - WHY do I say this?"

You need to be aware that Droidbox does not stream anything. There are no Droidbox streamers. Everything comes from servers run by persons unknown. Kodi Addons grab ("scrape") content from these servers. Buffering is a fact of life especially with live sports streaming. Primarily due to the servers getting hit by large numbers of users. This is especially prevalent on HD or 720p live streams. SD streams seem to be better. All android box users suffer from these problems, not just Droidbox.

Some people use paid subscriptions which by their nature limit the numbers of users and hence get better performance. But if you want free, then buffering is a fact of life. Looking for less popular live streams (including foreign language streams) or compromising on quality seems to be the only feasible solution currently unless you are willing to pay. Kodi in general is suffering from its own popularity.

I doubt Droidbox will delete your post. All views are welcome here unless they are personally abusive or malicious.

 

[David Savage]

Droidbox t8 mini.What a piece of shit.My Ota still won't update.Its always something on it.My firesticks runs way better.Im very disappointed.

Sent from my SM-G930V using DroidBOX Forums mobile app

The T8mini has just had an update is this the one you are on about, plus I think the mini is a great box. The fire stick isn't bad but you can't put much on it as kodi then starts having issues.
Could you list the problems you are having so we can help.

 

[Ray(str)]

WOW! So many replies - Thank You.....I will try to answer all your comments as best I can....

1. I have used Ares Wizard to do a clean install
2. I have downloaded the LATEST OTA update from Droid, which includes 16.2 and LibreElec
3. The problem occurs on pretty much all sources (Exodus - Specto etc, when streaming a movie
4. Slight jerk every few seconds - buffers a lot - Far from smooth playback - Unwatchable!
5. I have altered the refresh rate all the way down from 60hz/50 hz to even lower.
6. I have altered the FPS to 24fps
7. I have tried a wired "DIRECT" connection and also "Wireless" both are as bad.
8. I have cleared everything, then tried running a movie from Android - still jerky!
9. I have even tried to run from within Kodi (no LibraElec) - Still Jerky!
10. I have run a speed test (43mb) (and tweaked the video adjustment) from within Ares (it's in the tweaking section) still Jerky!

Hope this all helps fellers. I am convinced that the box JUST ISN'T GOOD ENOUGH to cope with the demands - no matter what I try, it doesn't help.

I have now reached the stage where I can't use it because of the problem, and like I say, it is such a shame because it's a lovely box.

For the record - I have two other boxes, a Roku, and also my old Now TV streamer - both work flawlessly! so correct me if I'm wrong - IT HAS TO BE THE DROID!

They are not the cheapest by any means and I have found the support to be pretty non-existent. I don't understand "WHY" nothing is being made available for the T8-S, in fact it pretty much
went belly up right from the start. I know new boxes are the priority but the T8-S is less than a year old, and not a whisper of any new firmware, is this so you will BUY a new box? makes you think!

In Droids defence, they have produced the recent LibraElec upgrade, and the new Kodi, so it's not all doom and gloom I suppose. Problem is, this doesn't help the T8-s which is being ignored completely!

Finally, if someone from Droidbox is reading this please respond - we are your customers - YOUR BREAD AND BUTTER!

Regards,
Ray(str)

 

[Nigelar]

We can do an experiment Ray. I have an updated t8s plus

Both of us need to do exactly the same thing and observe results.

We do this in Android using DBMC.

Choose your addon - name it so i can select the same.
Choose your movie and importantly the source and quality (hd, sd, 1080p) and state them.

We both need to run it and report results.

 

[toonarmy9752]

I have the T8S Plus and cant even get to Librelec at all - took it back to factory condition with the help of a file from Droidbox - the original factory reset didnt help either- and that is the one with OE and Kodi 15.2 - - wanted to the OTA to update box the box to LE v7 - doesnt work, the box boots into Librelec Splash screen then a blank screen everytime..no matter what i do or what cables i use or what tv i use or what settings on my tv are.. tried them all...

 

[toonarmy9752]

i have noted that in android since i now get the stuttering video but only since the update was applied on android - now ive got it back to OE and Kodi 15.2 i dont have the stuttering in OE / Kodi 15.2

 

[Nigelar]

You might want to join the test then toonarmy.
Details as above.
Im surprised about the android problems as nothing has changed to the os. Only a new version of dbmc and some other apps updates as far as i know. If dbmc is playing up i should see it too. You could also try vanilla kodi.
If you want to help us all get to the root of the android problem then join in.

 

[David Savage]

I'm sorry to hear...can you try these setting to see if it helps, if not I'm sorry but it's worth a go.
https://droidboxforums.com/posts/29775/

Ray can you try these setting in LibreELEC see if they help...I had issues and this sorted it out, plus a few other people have tried and it's worked for them.

 

[Ray(str)]

Actually - just read Nigelars earlier post and to be honest you make some valid comments mate - maybe we do expect too much bearing in mind the content is indeed FREE......point mate!

I have also read your post above, and can't thank you enough for your help - I like the idea of "an experiment" sounds like fun Nige....I will do some checking then get back to you in due course. (Maybe we can do a PM) if it would be easier.

Toonarmy....you seem to be having fun too mate - maybe our friends on the forum can help you.....it's odd as I haven't had any problems in the loading of LibreElec. It sounds like you might have corrupted the boot sequence in some way.
Might be a good idea to do a SEPERATE post mate.

Thanks Again you lot!
Ray(str)

 

[Nigelar]

Ok ray. Look forward to it. Avoid 3 - 5pm as i watch the mighty swans plunge to inglorious defeat at spurs.

 

[Ray(str)]

Toonarmy - Don't understand why you are running Kodi 15.2, when the Droid update offers you the latest (16.1)....have I misunderstood you pal?

 

[Nigelar]

He has

Toonarmy - Don't understand why you are running Kodi 15.2, when the Droid update offers you the latest (16.1)....have I misunderstood you pal?

He has reverted to an earlier version of openelec runnin kodi 15.2. I dont know what he is running on android - he can confirm that when he gets back to us if he wants to run the trials.

 

[toonarmy9752]

I bought the T8S plus with Openelec / Kodi 15.2 as thats the way it was advertised and came and I thought thats ok as an update to 16.1 must be due soon...i was certainly not aware of any plans to ditch OE in favour of LE...... Am not too fussed about android to be perfectly honest i rarely if ever use it - i wanted this box for its OE capability and the android side was just to play with..... my choice of this box was made due to its build quality and design plus the OE / Kodi combo... and the fact id configured and installed several T8s for friends successfully and was impressed with the functions and the OE software.... superb

However when i bought mine it was fine initially (android and OE / kodi 15.2) but then realised the plans to ditch OE and eventually the OTA mechanism was offering the upgrade to LE and on researching it it seemed a virtual direct replacement for OE and almost identical - so i thought yeah why not do it - so i did - not a good move for me - i followed the instructions and the video supplied online and from that day to this a period of 8 weeks or so - i still have not seen LE on this box as it will not do so - all i get is the boot sequence with the LE Just enough OS for Kodi splash screen and then a blank screen = the box led display goes thru the Boot phase and then to the clock with blank screen..and thats the way it stays - - - its not hdmi cables or resolution related for sure or speed or latency issues nor is it connection issues..... ive been thru all the options with the DB team and still no joy - now the problem is do i spend another £20 to send it to them and then pay again for its return (i dont live in UK) and tbh am not inclined to do so

so they offered a software fix to get me back to the original condition of android and OE/Kodi 15.2 .. which is fine but eventually that is gonna cause issues with the addons and the eventual update to Kodi v 17 - and when we try OTA update again in a vain effort to get it to a LE that works it does exactly the same thing.

 

[toonarmy9752]

I would be more than happy to ditch android in favour of an updateable OE system with an updateable Kodi version. but thats now highly unlikely

 

[toonarmy9752]

BTW android runs on Kodi 16,1 but it is stuttering and have played with the settings etc with only a little success... have had three years or more with various androids etc and about two years experience with OE and for me its OE with Kodi all the way - had i known that the OE side demise was planned i sure wouldnt have bought it.