Ois & Nix

Mirek recently released a great Android 5.1 ROM for the Teclast X98 Plus Dual OS . Based on my tests so far, the performance has improved and the battery time is much better than with the original ROM. All the Chinese apps you usually don't need were removed. You can find the download files, the change log... here:  http://techtablets.com/forum/topic/x98_plus_android_5-1_mirek190_v1-0-rom/ The installation is very simple: Double cehck that the tablet is fully charged before you start Download the ZIP file and open it on a Windows PC with the latest version of 7zip Run FIRST_INSTALL_IT Run SECOND_INSTALL_IT Shut down the tablet (it should not be connected to the PC at this stage) Press and hold down the power button and the volume up/down until you see the Teclast logo with a "DnX" fastboot note in yellow above the logo Connect the tablet to your Windows PC Run FLASHER_v1.0 and follow the instructions on the screen. I would recommend the clean install. ...

Unfortunately, the Himedia H8 media box does not have an built-in microphone. If you want to use Google Voice Search and OK Google commands, you have to connect a webcam. I used a Logitech C270 . The webcam was automatically detected by the H8 and the OK Google command was immediately working after activating it in the Google Now launcher settings. According to other blogs/forums, other Logitech webcams should also be supported by the Himedia H8. Voice control can be extremely powerful if you combine it with Tasker, AutoVoice and AutoInput. You could command your LED lights or your music easily. See also  Start Spotify radio with shortcut .

I was looking for an affordable dual OS tablet with good specifications: quick processor, enough storage (go for 64Gb if you want to have a dual OS tablet!), HDMI output and a good battery life. I stumbled upon the brand Teclast. They have different models, I decided to go for the X98 Plus. It has a better processor and more memory than the X98 Air III. The latest version of the X98 Air III has only a Z3735F, 32GB storage and 2GB memory. The X98 Plus, however, has a Z3200, 64GB and 4GB memory. Here a short review/first test of the Teclast X98 Plus Dual OS (Windows 10 and Android 5.1). Specifications Brand & Model: Teclast X98 Plus (A5C8) Display: 9.7 Inch 2048*1536 IPS capacitive touch screen Operating system: Windows 10 + Android 5.1 CPU: Intel Cherry Trail Z8300 Quad Core 1.84GHz CPU GPU: Intel HD Graphics Gen8 Storage: 4GB LPDDR3 RAM + 64GB eMMC ROM, TF card supports 128GB max Cameras: Front 2.0MP + Rear 5.0MP OV Lens with AF Others: Bluetooth 4.0/WiFi/Mic...

I started to test firmware 1.0.9 yesterday. Overall I am quite happy with it so far. Positive: Quick and easy upgrade A bit strange but some of the settings and files were still there (e.g. documents in the download folder) The status/notification + navigation bar is back - also in the normal Google Now launcher. That is already a huge improvement. The image in the previous firmware version seemed to be very pale & colorless. With the new firmware version I found out why: The default brightness level is relatively high. In the old version you did not have the notification bar, so brightness could not be changed. In the new version you can adapt it and now the colors look way better. No lip sync issues so far Room for improvement: What is still problematic is the internal storage reserved for the system & apps (the default location) which is still limited to 2GB. If you install new applications the message about not enough storage still appears - although there...

It took a bit, but Himedia just released a new firmware (1.0.9) for the Himedia H8 octacore box. The firmware can be downloaded here . More information and a short manual about how to do the upgrade can be found on the Himedia support page .

Goal: I have two Android devices (a smartphone and a streaming box). I wanted to start a Spotify playlist on my streaming box, triggered by an NFC action on my smartphone. The streaming box is connected to my AV receiver, so it was important that the music is not played on my smartphone but on the streaming box. What you need: Two Android devices (e.g. a smartphone which supports NFC and an Android streaming box) NFC tags Tasker AutoRemote Trigger Spotify How it is done: I don't want to go through every step in detail, mostly it is selfexplanatory once you have the different components. On the streaming box: Install Tasker, AutoRemote, Spotify Create the task which should be triggered on the streaming box (e.g. Spotify play - see my other blog posts). Create a new profile in Tasker using AutoRemote on the streaming box to listen to a specific input (e.g. "spot") from the second device. On your mobile phone Install Tasker, AutoRemote, Trigger ...

Goal: I run Spotify on an Android streaming box and I wanted to start a radio station with a shortcut on my keyboard. What you need: Android TV box (e.g. CR11S) Keyboard (e.g. Logitech K400 ) Apps: Spotify Tasker AutoInput (Tasker Plugin) External Keyboard Helper Optional: AutoVoice How it is done: Create the tasks in Tasker to start Spotify, wait a bit, launch AutoInput and then go through the click actions to start the radio station you would like to have. You can download and import this " SpotifyPlay.xml " as an example. IMPORTANT: Please be aware that if Spotify changes the UI of there app, the click actions need to be adapted. The guided mode in AutoInput will help you there. Feel free to improve the xml and let me know. In External Keyboard Helper first define the "application shortcuts", e.g. A0. Then customize your keyboard mappings. Add a new key mapping - press e.g. F1 on your keyboard and then type in A0 in the "normal...

I recently bought a  HiMedia H8 64bit Octa-Core  and want to share my first impressions. This short review is based on firmware version 1.0.7: Audio & Video I mostly use 720p MKV files from an SMB share via WLAN and have no problems with video and audio quality. Dolby digital works fine. One time I noticed some lip-sync issues with Kodi but I now mostly use Mizuu +  MXPlayer  and I am quite happy with it. I have not tested any 3D content. EDIT: The lip-sync issue sometimes happens on MXPlayer and Netflix as well. I could not figure out when unfortunately. The box works in general fine for Netflix or Spotify streaming. Be aware that you will not get Dolby Digital with Netflix for Android. It is not supported. Android & the box in general I am using the normal Google Now launcher. The problem I see here with the current firmware version (1.0.7) is that you don't have a navigation bar on the bottom or a status/notification bar on top. Especially the ...

I am using a very nice smart DNS service: SmartDNSProxy . I can highly recommend it. However, if you install the latest Netflix version on your Android device, Google's DNS servers cannot be avoided - meaning that your smart DNS will not work. There are different options to avoid this: Use an older version of the Netflix app (3.7.1). You can download it here . Configure your router to reroute Google's DNS to your smart DNS servers. Configure iptables in AFWall+ on your rooted Android device. To do this, create a custom script with the following two lines: iptables -t nat -A OUTPUT -d 8.8.8.8 -j DNAT --to-destination 54.93.173.153 iptables -t nat -A OUTPUT -d 8.8.4.4 -j DNAT --to-destination 54.229.171.243 The destination in this case goes to two  SmartDNSProxy  servers I use Do not forget to take care of the static DNS settings with the same IP addresses on your Android device's WIFI interface

Google recently announced a new bonus scheme for active Google Insiders. You can earn points by writing reviews, uploading pictures, adding new places, correcting information or answer questions. Depending on how many points you have earned, you get certain goodies. For 200+ points you get 1 TB in your Google Drive for 2 years for free. Not a bad deal! In addition, you receive a free gift every year. This time it was a nice Google Insider t-shirt. You can see your points and your level on the Google Maps smartphone app. You will not see it on the Google maps website. Be patient - it can take several weeks to see your extended storage in Google drive after you have reached your level. See also https://www.google.com/local/guides/benefits/

I recently bought a set of Milight (aka Limitless LED, Mi-Light, Easybulb) bulbs including the Wifi bridge. It is really easy to configure and a great value for money. Goal: Since I am operating a CR11S Android box, I thought it would be great to control my lights with the box. The website  http://www.limitlessled.com/dev gives you an overview of commands you can send to the box via UDP. What you need: Milight bulbs + wifi controller Android device (e.g. CR11S) Tasker  UDP Sender How it is done: I have two bulbs in the living room (group 1 and 2) and one in my bed room (group 3) and I've set up the following things: The perfect light for watching TV Switch group 1 off, set group 2 to orange and start Netflix Tasker XML file: PerfectTVLight.xml Good night Switch on group 3 and group 1, wait for 7 minutes then turn off group 1, 2 and put the Android box into standby. Tasker XML file: GoodNight.xml Good morning - Sunrise alarm clock / Wake Up Light Sw...