- Rikomagic MK802 IIIS (Upgrade version of MK802 III)
- Bluetooth built-in; Google Play store pre-installed
- microSD card slot (2GB micro sd card included)
- Integrated with HD Media Player User Interface
- control from your phone or tablet
The MK802 IIIS run the latest version of Android at v4.1 (Jelly Bean) and comes with the full Google Play store. This is a big deal because many expensive tablets and phones aren't running Jelly Bean yet, but this sub-$100 device is.
Using this device requires some planning. Here are some questions you need to ask yourself before you use it:
How will I view this device?
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This sounds silly, but it needs considered. The only output of this device is its HDMI port. You have to plug it into your TV, projector, or monitor. Do you have a free HDMI port? Do you need an HMDI/DVI adapter (to plug into a DVI port instead)? I have tested it on a PC monitor with an HDMI/DVI adapter and it worked fine.
How will I hear this device?
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Again, this may sound silly, but it also needs considered. If you're plugging the MK802 IIIS into an HDMI TV with built-in speakers, you won't have any trouble. But many TVs don't have speakers, they're made to be used with home theater systems. So be sure that your TV has an HDMI pass-thru so the TV can pass the audio on to your sound system.
If you're using a computer monitor or projector, you've got problems. There's no audio out on the device aside from the HDMI port. So you can't plug speakers into the MK802 IIIS. Frankly, I don't know how you will get audio out of the device when using a projector or PC monitor. I plan to experiment with an HDMI splitter, but haven't purchased one yet.
How will I power this device?
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Some TVs will provide enough power from the HDMI port itself. But this can be unreliable. You're better off plugging in the device's USB power cable. Which brings up the question: does your display have a USB port on it? And does that USB port supply more than the usual 500mA of power? The MK802 IIIS will power-up with 500mA or 1A, but the device will misbehave, sometimes crashing, without more power. The device really needs 2 amps. A generic iPad charger works well, so long as it supplies 2 amps not all of them do.
How will I control this device?
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You've got several options here. If you own another Android device (a phone or tablet) and have a WiFi network in your home, you can download a free app that will connect to the MK802 IIIS. This app lets you use your phone/tablet as if it were the touchscreen of the MK802 IIIS. It is really cool. Remember that your phone/tablet must be connected to the same WiFi network as the MK802 IIIS in order to control it. The control app takes a few minutes to get used to, but it works great. I found the app to be more responsive than using a bluetooth mouse. The app starts off with most of the screen being a touchpad area where you can control a mouse-like pointer on the MK802 IIIS screen. Along the side and bottom of this touchpad area are two scroll bars for scrolling the screen (that took me a while to figure out!) And you can switch the app into a touch mode where your phone/tablet screen becomes the touchscreen for the MK802 IIIS. This is kinda hard to use, because you're touching your phone/tablet without being able to see where you're tapping/dragging on the MK802 IIIS screen. But it is useful for dragging/swiping when you need to. Also you can use the app's keyboard to type where needed. Lastly you can switch the app into a remote control mode, where you have buttons like on a TV remote four arrows, an enter button, volume control, back, etc. The app is well done, but there are no instructions so you kinda have to play with it to figure it out. It's not hard though.
Your next control option is bluetooth keyboard and/or mouse. You could get away with just the mouse, but having a real keyboard to type on is a serious bonus, especially if you want to use the browser, email, and other typing intensive apps. One down-side to using the bluetooth keyboard and mouse is that you need some other control method (such as the Android app/phone or tablet combo, or a USB keyboard) in order to get your bluetooth devices configured and paired. Let me say that again: you need something else to get bluetooth setup the first time. (And you'll need a USB keyboard or mouse in order to get your WiFi/network configured the first time, before the remote control app will work.)
A side note about using bluetooth devices. I had mixed results with different devices. I tried a "Microsoft Bluetooth Notebook Mouse 50000" and it was erratic and sluggish. It wasn't a nice mouse experience. But my Dell bluetooth mouse (Dell Part# PU705) worked great, just like you would expect a mouse to work. My Dell bluetooth keyboard refused to pair or connect with the MK802 IIIS. But my cheap Sharkk bluetooth keyboard worked fine. However, the Sharkk keyboard had some odd behavior in that the back escape key didn't work, but would work if combined with the function key.
Your last control option is an ordinary USB keyboard and/or mouse. Of course, this means you'll be restricted by the length of your USB cords on those two devices. Also, to use both a USB keyboard and USB mouse, you'll need a USB hub or a micro USB adapter. There are three USB ports on the MK802 IIIS. Two are micro-B and one is Type A sized. One of the micro-B ports is for power. The other can be used for a keyboard or mouse, and a Type A to micro-B adapter comes with the unit. I tried my Logitech mouse in both the Type A port and the micro-B ports and it worked fine. I plugged an ordinary Logitech keyboard into the type A port and it worked fine as well. I didn't try the micro-B with the keyboard, but I'm sure it would work there as well.
How will I get this device on my network?
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The most obvious choice is WiFi. If you have a WiFi network already, just connect to it and you're off and running. Remember you've got to have a USB keyboard or mouse connected in order to control the MK802 IIIS long enough to get it onto your WiFi network. Once it is on your network, you can use another Android device (phone or tablet) to control the MK802 IIIS. The MK802 IIIS is supposed to support 802.11b/g/n. It saw my 802.11g network right away, but it did not see my 802.11n network at all. Your mileage may vary. I tried a file copy from my PC to the MK802 IIIS over WiFi (802.11g) and it took 11 minutes 38 seconds to copy a 665MB file. That's a little less than 1MB/sec. Certainly that is not speedy. But I would bet that the bottleneck is writing to the unit's embedded memory and possibly an inefficient copy method (I used Root Explorer to cut/paste.) I also ran Speedtest.net's app and it tested my internet bandwidth at 18mbps down and 1mbps up, which is the same as I would get running the same test from my PC.
If you don't have a WiFi network, or you're not getting strong enough signal where your MK802 IIIS is located, you may have to go with a wired network. The MK802 IIIS doesn't have an RJ45 port for Ethernet, but you can use a USB to Ethernet device. I have not tested this. Your best bet is to search with Google for one that others have used and is known to work. I have read that they are not very fast, giving only about 4mbps transfer speeds. That may not be enough to stream 1080p movies over your network, so be advised of that.
Conclusion
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With all of that in mind, this is a great little device for a great price. With a little planning, you can turn a dumb TV into a smart TV with all kinds of additional functionality (email, web surfing, streaming, etc.) The device had no problem streaming video from Netflix or from my Plex server (search Google app store for Plex, it's a great app for streaming content from your PC to your android device.) The HuluPlus app reported that the MK802 IIIS was unsupported for video playback. I had no trouble with YouTube or playing local video files with MoboPlayer app. The device didn't have any trouble logging into my Windows shares or my OpenIndiana file server. There really wasn't anything that I tried on this device that didn't work (except Hulu).I bought my MK802IIIs directly from Geekbuying. A+ company, item came as described. Not sure if going through amazon you are paying for better shipping...but I used the standard free shipping from their website, which took about 3 weeks to get direct from China. As far as Geekbuying goes, I would buy from them again.
First let me say from reading the Rikomagic forums, some people were having wifi issues. I personally did not have any wifi problems, I am using an Actiontec wireless N router to my device which is about 15 feet away inside a closet. I get good signal strength and stable. I streamed a 1080p movie using Plex server (great program by the way) using highest streaming mode.
This device should work with just about any 2.4ghz wireless keyboard/mouse combo, have heard of some Bluetooth working but don't use Bluetooth myself so no opinion. Although the keyboard/mouse works well, I do not find it as cumbersome as using my Nexus 7 touchscreen. You can also use your android smart phone or tablet as a keyboard/mouse using an app, but I did not find this worthwhile.
Majority of the apps I have for my Nexus 7 are re-installed on the mk802 without issue as both use jellybean OS (no need to re-pay), but I did run into a few games that gave me trouble like Gta Vice City says not compatible, and NBA Jam gives a server code error, possibly due to restriction of using on more than one device (I blame EA sports for this).
The device is already rooted right out of the box, and the stock look is ok but I installed Nova Launcher which gives a better look and feel. I installed Firefox browser and several other apps that are must haves.
One of the pluses this mk802IIIS has over the older non-S model is the "power down" option so you can turn the device off when not in use.
All necessary cables are included but this forces you to basically keep the device located right behind your TV, so I purchased a "female to female" HDMI coupler which allows me to run my current HDMI cable through the wall into the closet. Pretty much if you intend to keep the device anywhere other than dangling from behind your tv you will need this connector which is not included.
This device is powered via USB and recommended supply is 5v up to 2amp. While your TV's USB slot might be sufficient, you might also run into problems if you intend to connect any USB devices through the rikomagic. So I purchased a wall plug dual USB rated 5v up to 3.1 amp. (Don't worry your device will only draw what it needs). Plus I keep mine in the closet so external USB power is needed for me.
You can also use a USB hub to connect more USB devices such as the keyboard/mouse and external hard drives etc. You can also connect a micro sd card for extra storage space, I am using 32GB SanDisk class 10 card. (32gb is max I'm fairly certain and FAT32 format)
I'm pretty new to Android, but getting more accustomed with my Nexus 7 and the rikomagic stick...it's a very simple device that can turn any HDMI connected Tv into a PC.
Also visit the Rikomagic forums, there has been a new firmware update that possibly addresses the wifi issue some people have been having.
Overall great little device.everything's fine , runs fine on TV , no sound on my Toshiba TV but i thing thats a Problem with Toshiba on my other TV's i have no Problems , and other have the same problem with Toshiba TV's .First off, great product (MK802 IIIS) I purchased from Geekbuying.com for $60.00. I opted for the free shipping and it took only 10 days from China to Los Angeles. I already had a bluetooth keyboard/mouse from logitech. I was not aware of two things but figured it out quickly. 1. the device does not have bluetooth built in as it says. You need to plug in the usb adapter that comes with most bluetooth keyboard/mouse products which gives the MK802 bluetooth but it is not built in. 2. It did not say anything about needing to be plugged in to any power source (but of course it does need that) so I plugged it in via the usb cable provided with the product to the back of my logitech revue (which I don't use anymore). I guess you could use a standard usb plug that you use to charge a cell phone. 3. Everything works great except HULU Plus will not play and it will not work using any of the browsers either. Apparently, they are working on it. 4. The device does not recognize that I am using a keyboard so when I open anything up, the "soft" keyboard comes up on the screen but no big deal.
That is about it. I would still recommend this product and do to everyone and would buy from Geekbuying.com for again. Enjoy!Rikomagic MK802 IIIS Dual Core Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Mini PC RK3066 1.6Ghz Cortex A9 1G RAM 8G ROM HDMI Wifi with 2GB micro SD Card and Power Adapter
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Device worked when arrived. But it failed to START/BOOT after 10 days without any reason. The shipping didn't come with power supply as stated, so I was using iPad charger to provide 2.1A to the device. The charger is still working, but the device shows no sign of power at all. In the user manual page 25, it says contact original distributor if symptom remains. But distributor refuse to return/exchange and request user to contact manufacture. Now I have a DEAD device and go no where. One Star for both product quality and reseller.
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