I made the mistake of purchasing this device directly from the manufacturer. When it finally arrived, I soon found out that the ethernet port wasn't working (and what good is an HTPC if it can't be connected to the network?!) The only option to contact them is via web-chat. After two tries, somebody finally instructed me to open a return request, which I did. After not having heard back from them after more than a week, I wrote to ask about the status. The brief email that followed was harsh and they suggested I read their returns policy (which is hidden deep inside their site) and that it will take "up to 10 business days" to get the return approved. Of course, after two whole weeks I still hadn't heard back from them. After having written another mail, I finally received word that I will have to ship the item to HONG KONG and that I would have to pay a restocking fee in case I want a refund!!! This is really incredible! I want to warn everyone out there not to buy anything from this company!! The product is lousy and the support is non-existent.
The XBMC as many of might know, has an excellent interface with so many options.
The problem is that this device failed to do what it is intended for playing movies!!! I have 1080p MKV movie files and this device failed to play them smoothly from my gigabit server, and even from usb-3 and usb-2 drives. I haven't tried 720p MKV files. So, for sure this device has a buffering problem even it comes with massive 4GB rams and, I assume, good video card.
I tried so many other version of XBMC software, Frodo, Ubuntu, and many. Still fails.
Also, cooling is another engineering failure of this device. It heats alot because the air flow is not properly thought of.
For continues play of movie files (one after another), there is no way, but to use the keyboard. I tried my best but couldn't figure it out.
Xtreamer forum is full of those who bought Ultra 2 seeking help with no results. The forum administrators and experts, and support services, will keep telling you that this is a PC! Which means that you HAVE to install windows 7, use the device as a PC, and play movies from there. In their advertisement, they say you can use the device and "Enjoy watching your media files" OUT OF THE BOX, while windows is just an option. However, after you buy it, they will tell you have to install windows if you want to watch HD movies. This means you go and buy windows 7 and try! maybe it will work.
I highly recommend not to buy this device until it comes with proper firmware/software, and not this poor beta version that causes alot of stucks, not allowing audio through HDMI, not able to watch HD movies, and many other technical issues that the people in the forum are complaining about.I bought this product for two reasons:
1) I didn't want to tinker with drivers, search hardware components, build my own device, read forums, etc.
2) I wanted a well supported and open media center, to address future codecs, add-ons, new builds, etc.
Ad 1)
yes, you get a fully assembled device with everything packaged in a compact box. It looks fancy, I like the style.
OpenELEC is compiled for Xtreamer Ultra 2. I got it working well and I got frequent updates from OpenELEC. The fan is a bit noisy, I would expect a passive cooling device though, without a fan. Also, you cannot expand the box, you need to connect your DVB-T or DVB-S/S2 to a USB port.
Ad 2)
I connected the device to my Hitachi HDMI 1.3 TV. It worked well, except that every 15-20 minutes I got a gap in my audio and sometimes video. The audio was jerky and I used the device for several months without a solution. Why? Because Xtreamer's support is non-existent. I wrote them several times and got no response whatsoever. Their support web-site is locked, you need to get a username and password (why? to search read forums?). However you cannot request a new username/password. Their web site is not working anymore.
Finally, I fixed it myself, reading posts on forums, I reconfigured my audio. This is exactly what I didn't intend and want to do. Now everything works flawlessly.
My verdict? I paid premium for a good device, but their lack of support completely undermines this great device. Xtreamer they have great marketing with all the bells and whistles, but when it comes to customer support, don't expect anything.
Think of other products with passive cooling, like Arctic. Check forums for good support.The headline summaries the drawbacks I have for this box.
Pro:
Remote, 32GB SSD and 4G RAM.
Con:
I used it only for streaming so I need as fast as networking as possible, that means 802.11n 5G supports. I have 4 WiFi routers, all support 5G so I used it to cover every floors of my house for streaming videos. I have three of them 802.11n 5G only and one 802.11 mix 2.4G.
I have a lot of Wifi devices: iPad, iPhones and Galaxy S2, two Touchpads, four laptops, smart TVs and AppleTVs and a smart Thermostat etc. Only my iPhone 4 and thermostat does not support 5G and I did not expect a 1 year old Xtreamer Ultra 2 does NOT support 5G.
I use OpenElec 2.99.1 so I don't know whether this is due t OpenElec or the device itself.
2. The box is too BIG and can not stand up right inside my entertainment console so I have to lay it down and the charger is too big with EU adapter.
3. Plastic makes it looks cheap.
Considering it is only $160 different from a much better looking, smaller and faster Mac mini, I think the drawbacks make it not very worth $400.
Updated: after near one month, I decided to return it. It is a capable HTPC, but it is just too big, plastic and the remote did not work properly with XBMC, the only purpose I used it for and it did not support 5G 802.11n.excellent product because it runs full hd video without any problems, besides being quiet and fast. advise paenas lead to a person empowered to configure windows on it if you do not want to use Linux. the only problem is the control that used the windows all the keys do not work, but is there a way to configure.
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