Android hardware: Difference between revisions

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{{mininav|[[Android]]}}
{{mininav|[[Android]]}}
<section begin="intro" />For most [[wikipedia:High-definition video|high-definition video]]s (1080p or higher resolution), hardware video decoding is necessary for smooth video playback on Android devices. And this article contains a list of SoC chipset hardware, (SoC stands for "System on a Chip" which contain the CPU plus GPU and VPU circuits combination, and is also known as a "chipset"), as on Android platforms this SoC chipset is what can playback common video codecs smoothly using {{Kodi}}.  
<section begin="intro" />For most [[wikipedia:High-definition video|high-definition video]]s (1080p or higher resolution), hardware video decoding is necessary for smooth video playback on Android devices. And this article contains a list of SoC chipset hardware, (SoC stands for "System on a Chip" which contain the CPU plus GPU and VPU circuits combination, and is also known as a "chipset"), as on Android platforms this SoC chipset is what can playback common video codecs smoothly using Kodi/XBMC.  


The fact is, while some devices might be able to smoothly decode [[wikipedia:Standard-definition television|standard-definition video]]s and even some 720p or higher resolution videos using only software video decoding with raw CPU compute power, offloading a large part of video decoding tasks to an integrated VPU (Video Processor Unit) that is optimized specifically for this job is considered essential for most Android devices to be able to smoothly playback high definition videos.<section end="intro" />
The fact is, while some devices might be able to smoothly decode [[wikipedia:Standard-definition television|standard-definition video]]s and even some 720p or higher resolution videos using only software video decoding with raw CPU compute power, offloading a large part of video decoding tasks to an integrated VPU (Video Processor Unit) that is optimized specifically for this job is considered essential for most Android devices to be able to smoothly playback high definition videos.<section end="intro" />
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==Compatible chipsets==
==Compatible chipsets==
These specific mass-market hardware SoC chipsets listed below should have at least partial hardware accelerated video decoding support for some popular video codecs in the latest official {{Kodi}} builds for Android. However understand that for some devices you might first need to upgrade the hardware firmware image on the device to achieve smooth playback at 1080p or higher resolution. Please contact your hardware manufacturer support for an updated system update firmware and apply that upgrade image before installing {{Kodi}}.
These specific mass-market hardware SoC chipsets listed below should be capable at least partial hardware accelerated video decoding support for the more popular video codecs in the latest official Kodi builds for Android. However understand that for some devices you might first need to upgrade the hardware firmware image on the device to achieve smooth playback at 1080p or higher resolution. Please contact your hardware manufacturer support for an updated system update firmware and apply that upgrade image before installing Kodi.
 
 
{{note|Most Android devices do support hardware video decoding, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it functions well when using Kodi. The reasons for this can be for many reasons (e.g. firmware bug, Kodi bug, API bug, etc). '''The table below should reflect real-world testing, which means someone was able to confirm, with their own eyes, that the hardware played the codec in Kodi'''.}}
 


{{editor note|Please only list devices that are able to play at least one of the five popular codecs under the "hardware video decoding" columns in Full HD (1080p). Codecs that are less commonly used are currently not listed here.<ref name="other codecs">Such as VP8 (WebM v1), Xiph Theora (VP3/Ogg), On2 TrueMotion VP6, and RealVideo/RMVB (RV 8/9/10)</ref> }}
{|
{|
| A "|| {{yes}} ||" mark indicates that the chipset should be able to play those codecs at least 1080p.
| A "|| {{yes}} ||" mark indicates that SoC (System-on-a-Chip) chipset should be able to decode those codecs at least 1080p in Kodi without issues.
|}
|}
{| width="100%" class="datatable"
{| width="100%" class="datatable"
|-
|-
! rowspan="2" | Chip<br />manufacturer !! rowspan="2" | SoC chipset !! rowspan="2" | Examples of Android media players and development boards using these SoC chipsets with {{Kodi}} support !! colspan="5" | Hardware video decoding !! rowspan="2" | Notes
! rowspan="2" | Chip<br />manufacturer !! rowspan="2" | SoC chipset !! rowspan="2" | Examples of Android media players and development boards using these SoC chipsets with Kodi support !! colspan="4" | Hardware video decoding !! rowspan="2" | Notes
|-
! H.264 !! MPEG-2 !! VC-1 / WMV 9  !! HEVC (H.265)
|-
| Actions Semi || S500 / ATM7029 / ATM7039S / ATM7059 || ActDuino S500 Development Board, Kaiboer F5 Plus  || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||
|-
| Actions Semi || S900 / ATM9009 || 96Boards Bubblegum-96 Development Board  || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||
|-
|-
! H.264 !! MPEG-2 !! VC-1 / WMV 9  !! HEVC <ref name="HEVC 10-bit (hardware accelerated)">Hardware accelerated decode of HEVC (H.265) encoded video should include both 8-bit and 10-bit decoding support of HEVC. This will ensure maximum compatibility for any video playback capabilities on the platforms listed in the table. Some hardware only feature 8-but support and can therefor not properly decode the additional 10-bit information, thus should not be listed here. Example of hardware only capable of accelerated decode of 8-bit HEVC is Intel 4th Generation Intel Core Processors with HD graphics 5000/4600/4400, Iris graphics 5100, Iris Pro graphics 5200, you can read more about that here: http://communities.intel.com/thread/59216</ref> (H.265) !! VP9
| ALi || M3773 || Uyesee L100T2, Zidoo D1 || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||
|-
|-
| Allwinner || A31 / A31s / A33 || Justop Quadro, Mele A1000G/M8/M9, Measy B4K/U4K, VidOn Box, VidOn.me AV200 || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi">There are mixed reports about reliability of hardware video decoding support in official {{Kodi}} on these SoCs. Until users can reliably confirm hardware video decoding, do not assume that is will work as it you would normally expect.</ref> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || <ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/>
| Allwinner || A31 / A31s / A33 || Justop Quadro, Mele A1000G/M8/M9, Measy B4K/U4K, VidOn Box, VidOn.me AV200 || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||
|-
|-
| Allwinner || A80 / A83T || Tronsmart Draco AW80, Rikomagic MK80 || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || <ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/>
| Allwinner || A80 / A83T || Tronsmart Draco AW80, Rikomagic MK80 || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||
|-
|-
| Allwinner || H3 / H8 || Orange Pi 2, Orange Pi Plus, Inphic i8 || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/><ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| Allwinner || H2+ / H3 / H8 || Inphic i8, Orange Pi 2/Plus, Tronsmart Draco H3, Zidoo X1 || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||  
|-
|-
| Allwinner || A64 / H64 || || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/><ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| Allwinner || H5 / A64 / H64 || Nobel64 Development Board || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||  
|-
|-
| Broadcom || BCM2836 || [[Raspberry Pi 2|Raspberry Pi 2 (2015)]] || {{?}}<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}}<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}}<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
| [[Amlogic]] || AML8726-M1 / AML8726-M3 / AML8726-M6 / AML8726-MX / AML8726-MXS / AML8726-MXL || [[Pivos XIOS|Pivos XIOS DS/XS]], GameStick (by PlayJam), Geniatech ATV1220/ATV520/ATV1610, MyGica ATV420/ATV500/ATV1610, JynxBox M1/M6, Matricom G-Box Midnight MX2, [[WeTek Play]] || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{no}} ||
|-
|-
| Broadcom || BCM28145 / BCM28155 || [[Amazon Fire TV Stick|Amazon Fire TV Stick (2014)]] || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
| [[Amlogic]] || S801 / M802 / S802 / M802 (formerly AML8726-M8) || Geniatech ATV582 / MyGica ATV582, Minix Neo X8/X8-H, Eny Technology ES8, Tronsmart Vega S89/S89-H, Beelink S82/S82H/M8, XiaoMi Mi Box Pro/Enhanced (third-generation XiaoMi Mi Box) || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{no}} ||
|-
|-
| Broadcom || BCM7250 / BCM7252 / BCM72502 || Smart Labs SML-482, Freebox Mini 4K || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/><ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| [[Amlogic]] || S805 / M805 / S806 / M806 / S812 || Eny Technology EM9/M8S/M8C/EM6Q-MXQ, Geniatech ATV585/ATV1810 / MyGica ATV585/ATV1810, Minix NEO X6 /X8-H Plus, Ugoos S85, Sumvision Cyclone X4, Xtreamer Wonder, ODROID-C1 || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(8-bit only)}} || <ref>Amlogic S805/M805/S806/M806/S812 hardware video decoder is limited to only supporting the Main HEVC (H.265) profile which means 8-bit color range only, they do not support the Main10 HEVC (H.265) profile which is uses 10-bit color range.</ref>
|-
|-
| Amlogic || AML8726-M1 / AML8726-M3 / AML8726-M6 / AML8726-MX / AML8726-MXS / AML8726-MXL || [[Pivos XIOS|Pivos XIOS DS/XS]], GameStick (by PlayJam), Geniatech ATV1220/ATV520/ATV1610, MyGica ATV420/ATV500/ATV1610, JynxBox M1/M6, Matricom G-Box Midnight MX2, [[WeTek Play]] || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
| [[Amlogic]] || S905 / S912 || || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||  
|-
|-
| Amlogic || S801 / M802 / S802 / M802 (formerly AML8726-M8) || Geniatech ATV582 / MyGica ATV582, Minix Neo X8/X8-H, Eny Technology ES8, Tronsmart Vega S89/S89-H, Beelink S82/S82H/M8, XiaoMi Mi Box Pro/Enhanced (third-generation XiaoMi Mi Box) || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||
| Broadcom || BCM2836 || [[Raspberry Pi 2|Raspberry Pi 2 (2015)]] || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||
|-
|-
| Amlogic || S805 / M805 / S806 / M806 / S812 || Eny Technology EM9/M8S/M8C/EM6Q-MXQ, Geniatech ATV585/ATV1810 / MyGica ATV585/ATV1810, Minix NEO X6 /X8-H Plus, Ugoos S85, Sumvision Cyclone X4, Xtreamer Wonder, ODROID-C1 || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{?}} || <ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best">HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered slightly experimental.</ref>
| Broadcom || BCM28145 / BCM28155 || [[Amazon Fire TV Stick|Amazon Fire TV Stick (2014)]] || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||
|-
|-
| Freescale || i.MX 6 series (i.MX6 / i.MX6S / i.MX6SL / i.MX6D / i.MX6DL / i.MX6Q) || [[SolidRun CuBox-i]], SolidRun HummingBoard, UDOO Neo/Duo/Quad, Wandboard Solo/Dual/Quad || {{no}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{no}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{no}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{no}} || {{no}} || <ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet">While this hardware does support hardware video decoding for most common codecs, there is not yet official implementation for its VPU offloading in {{Kodi}} on Android. There is no ETA on when of if {{Kodi}} will add official support for it on Android, so recommendation is not to buy one if you main reason for will will be using {{Kodi}} on Android.</ref>
| Broadcom || BCM7250 / BCM7252 / BCM72502 || Smart Labs SML-482, Freebox Mini 4K || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||  
|-
|-
| HiSilicon || Hi3798C / Hi3798M || HiMedia H7-II/M3/Q5-IV/Q10-IV || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/><ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| [[Freescale]] || i.MX 6 series (i.MX6 / i.MX6S / i.MX6SL / i.MX6D / i.MX6DL / i.MX6Q) || [[CompuLab Utilite]], [[SolidRun CuBox-i|SolidRun CuBox-i & CuBoxTV]], [[SolidRun Hummingboard]], [[UDOO|UDOO Neo/Duo/Quad]], [[Wandboard|Wandboard Solo/Dual/Quad ]] || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||
|-
|-
| Intel || Atom E3815 / E3825  || Intel MinnowBoard MAX Development Board || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
| HiSilicon || Hi3798C / Hi3798M || HiMedia H7-II/M3/Q5-4K/Q5-IV/Q5X/Q10-IV, PixePlay KURO || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||  
|-
|-
| Intel || Atom x3 / x5 / x7 (x3-C3130 / x3-C3230RK / x3-C3440 / x5-8300 / x5-8500 / x7-8700) || || Maybe || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||  
| Intel || Atom E3815 / E3825 || Intel MinnowBoard MAX Development Board || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||  
|-
|-
| Intel || Atom Z3530 / Z3560 / Z3580 / Z3735 || [[Google Nexus Player]], Minix Neo Z64 || {{yes}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
| Intel || Atom x3 / x5 / x7 (x3-C3130 / x3-C3230RK / x3-C3440 / x5-8300 / x5-8500 / x7-8700) || || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||  
|-
|-
| MediaTek || MTK6589 / MT6589 / MT6589T / MT6589M ||  || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || <ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/>
| Intel || Atom  Z3530 / Z3560 / Z3580 / Z3735 || [[Google Nexus Player]], Minix Neo Z64 || {{yes}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
|-
|-
| MediaTek || MT8685 / MT8685A / MT8685B || UTStarcom MT8685/MC8685A/MC8685B, Xiaomi Mi Box Mini || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/><ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| Intel || Celeron N3000 / N3050 / N3150, and Pentium N3700 || || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||  
|-
|-
| MStar || MSO9180 / MSO9180D1R / MSO9810 || Kaiboer F5/Q6/C9-M, MeLE V10/X2000, UyeSee T1H, Xtreamer Prodigy, Zidoo X9 || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| MediaTek || MTK6589 / MT6589 / MT6589T / MT6589M || || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||  
|-
|-
| Nvidia || Tegra 3 || [[OUYA]] || {{yes}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
| MediaTek || MT8685 / MT8685A / MT8685B || UTStarcom MT8685/MC8685A/MC8685B, Xiaomi Mi Box Mini || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||
|-
| Marvell || ARMADA 1500 Ultra ||  || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||
|-
| MStar || MSO9180 / MSO9180D1R / MSO9810 || Egreat A9, Kaiboer F5/Q6/C9-M, MeLE V10/X2000, UyeSee T1H, Tronsmart Pavo M9, Xtreamer Prodigy, Zidoo X9 || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||
|-
| Nvidia || [[Tegra 3]] || [[OUYA]] || {{yes}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
|-  
|-  
| Nvidia || Tegra 4 / Tegra 4i / Tegra 4s || ZTE FunBox, Mad Catz M.O.J.O., NanoTech Nuvola NP-1 / NP-C / NP-H1, UTStarcom MC8768, Google ADT-1 (Android TV Developer Kit), [[Nvidia SHIELD Portable]] || {{Yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
| Nvidia || [[Tegra 4]] / [[Tegra 4i]] / [[Tegra 4s]] || ZTE FunBox, Mad Catz M.O.J.O., NanoTech Nuvola NP-1 / NP-C / NP-H1, UTStarcom MC8768, Google ADT-1 (Android TV Developer Kit), [[Nvidia SHIELD Portable]] || {{Yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || 
|-
| Nvidia || [[Tegra K1|Tegra K1 (TK1)]] || Unuiga Game PC U1, Snail Games OBox, UTStarcom MC8718, [[Nvidia SHIELD Tablet]] || {{Yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||  
|-
|-
| Nvidia || Tegra K1 (TK1) || Unuiga Game PC U1, Snail Games OBox, UTStarcom MC8718, [[Nvidia SHIELD Tablet]] || {{Yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||
| Nvidia || [[Tegra X1|Tegra X1 (TX1)]] || [[Nvidia SHIELD TV]] || {{Yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{Yes}} ||  
|-
|-
| Nvidia || Tegra X1 (TX1) || [[Nvidia SHIELD Console]] || {{Yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{?}} || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon 410 || DragonBoard 410c Nobel64 Development Board || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||
|-
|-
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon 600 || [[Amazon Fire TV|Amazon Fire TV (2014)]], Compulab Utilite2 || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || 
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon 600 || [[Amazon Fire TV|Amazon Fire TV (2014)]], Compulab Utilite2, Inforce 6410Plus Development Board || {{yes}} || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||  
|-
|-
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon 610 / 615 || || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon 610 / 615 || || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||  
|-
|-
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon 800 / 801 / 805 || Razor Forge TV || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||   
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon 800 / 801 / 805 || [[Razor Forge TV]] || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||   
|-
|-
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon 808 / 810 || || Maybe<ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/> || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon 808 / 810 || || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||  
|-
|-
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon S4 ||  || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || 
| Qualcomm || Snapdragon S4 ||  || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||  
|-
|-
| Realtek || 1195 (RTD1195) ||  || {{no}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{no}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{no}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="Hardware video decoding support have not been tested for stability in official Kodi"/><ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| Realtek || 1195 (RTD1195) ||  || {{yes}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{?}} ||  
|-
|-
| Rockchip || RK3066 || Imito MX1/MX2, Minix NeoG4/X5, MK808/802, Ugoos UG802/UG007 || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
| Rockchip || RK3066 || Imito MX1/MX2, Minix NeoG4/X5, MK808/802, Ugoos UG802/UG007 || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
|-
|-
| Rockchip || RK3188 || Jesurun DX05, Minix X7, MK802IV, MK809III, MK902, Ugoos UG007B, Tronsmart T428/MK908, CS968, CR11s, J22, GM282, LT88, T-R42, CS919-II, K-R42, CS918, MK888 || {{yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} || <ref>Some devices might need an updated firmware system update image from the hardware manufacturer for smooth 1080p playback.</ref>
| Rockchip || RK3188 || Jesurun DX05, Minix X7, MK802IV, MK809III, MK902, Ugoos UG007B, Tronsmart T428/MK908, CS968, CR11s, J22, GM282, LT88, T-R42, CS919-II, K-R42, CS918, MK888 || {{yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || <ref>Some devices might need an updated firmware system update image from the hardware manufacturer for smooth 1080p playback.</ref>
|-
|-
| Rockchip || RK3036 / RK3126 / RK3128 || Eny Technology EKB318 || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{yes}} || {{?}} || <ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| Rockchip || RK3036 / RK3126 / RK3128 / RK3288 || Firefly-RK3288, ChipSpark PopMetal, Uyesee G1H, Nagrace HPH NT-V6, Eny Technology EKB318/EKB328, Kingnovel R6/K-R68, Beelink R28, FireFly FirePrime Development Board, Ugoos UT3/UM3, Rikomagic MK902 II, Measy B4S, Ruach A20s, CloudMedia OpenHour, CloudnetGo CR12/CR13CR16, Tronsmart Orion R28, Youku Box K1, Unuiga Game Box 19-6R || {{yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{?}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(8-bit only)}} ||  
|-
|-
| Rockchip || RK3036 / RK3126 / RK3128 / RK3288 || Firefly-RK3288, ChipSpark PopMetal, Uyesee G1H, Nagrace HPH NT-V6, Eny Technology EKB328, Kingnovel R6/K-R68, Beelink R28, Ugoos UT3/UM3, Rikomagic MK902 II, Measy B4S, CloudMedia OpenHour, CloudnetGo CR12/CR13CR16, Tronsmart Orion R28, Youku Box K1, Unuiga Game Box 19-6R || {{yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{?}} || {{yes}} || {{?}} || <ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| Rockchip || RK3368 || Beelink i68, CloudnetGo CR18/CR13 Plus, Eny Technology EKB368, Himedia H7 III, Measy B4T, Rikomagic MK68, Tronsmart Orion R68 || {{yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(8-bit only)}} ||  
|-
|-
| Rockchip || RK3368 ||  || Maybe || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}}<ref name="SoC hardware support but no official Kodi implementation yet"/> || {{?}} || <ref name="HEVC (H.265) support in any versions of Kodi should be considered highly experimental at best"/>
| Samsung || Exynos 3 Single (formerly Exynos 3110) ||  || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||  
|-
|-
| Samsung || Exynos 3 Single (formerly Exynos 3110) || || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||  
| Samsung || Exynos 4 Dual/Quad series (formerly Exynos 4210 / 4212 /4412) || [[ODROID|ODROID-U3/U2/X2]] || {{yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{no}} ||  
|-
|-
| Samsung || Exynos 4 Dual/Quad series (formerly Exynos 4210 / 4212 /4412) || ODROID-U3/U2/X2 || {{yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||
| Samsung || Exynos 5 Hexa/Octa series (Exynos 5260 / 5410/ 5420 / 5422) || [[ODROID|ODROID-XU/XU2]], [[ODROID|ODROID-XU3/XU3 Lite]], Arndale Octa || {{yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{no}} ||  
|-
|-
| Samsung || Exynos 5 Hexa/Octa series (Exynos 5260 / 5410/ 5420 / 5422) || ODROID-XU/XU2, ODROID-XU3/XU3 Lite, Arndale Octa || {{yes}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{yes}}<br />{{smaller|(CPU)}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||
| Samsung || Exynos 7 Octa series (Exynos 7410 / 7420) || || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{?}} ||
|-
|-
| Texas Instruments || OMAP4430 / OMAP4440 / OMAP5430 / OMAP5432 ||  || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} || {{no}} ||
| Texas Instruments || OMAP4430 / OMAP4440 / OMAP5430 / OMAP5432 ||  || {{yes}} || {{?}} || {{?}} || {{no}} ||  
|}
|}


== Common codecs currently without hardware decoding in {{Kodi}} ==
== Common codecs currently without hardware decoding in Kodi ==
Videos encoded with these codecs can only be played back in {{Kodi}} using software video decoding using CPU, meaning no decoding tasks are offloaded to optimized VPU or GPU hardware. Many videos may still play back just fine at standard definition resolutions, while others might have severe issues with playback.
Videos encoded with these codecs can only be played back in Kodi using software video decoding using CPU, meaning no decoding tasks are offloaded to optimized VPU or GPU hardware. Many videos may still play back just fine at standard definition resolutions, while others might have severe issues with playback.


As platforms with faster CPUs come out for Android software video decoding using CPU will get better, but do not expect miracles from the average Android box. It still all can depend on how demanding the decoding of that particular video encoding is or how high resolution it uses, and how powerful the CPU is.
As platforms with faster CPUs come out for Android software video decoding using CPU will get better, but do not expect miracles from the average Android box. It still all can depend on how demanding the decoding of that particular video encoding is or how high resolution it uses, and how powerful the CPU is.


* H.264 Hi10P - No hardware decoders for [[Hi10P]] (High 10 Profile, also known 10-bit H.264) currently exist for any ARM hardware. Most H.264 Hi10P videos will not play smoothly as most ARM CPUs are just not powerful enough to software decode it fast enough.  
* H.264 Hi10P - No hardware decoders for [[Hi10P]] (High 10 Profile, also known 10-bit H.264) currently exist for any ARM hardware. Most H.264 Hi10P videos will not play smoothly as most ARM CPUs are just not powerful enough to software decode it fast enough.  
* H.264 MVC - No open source software decoder or hardware decoding for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiview_Video_Coding MVC (Multiview Video Coding)] stereoscopic 3D video decoding currently exist for {{Kodi}} on any platform. {{Kodi}} relies on FFmpeg for software demuxing and decoding, so {{Kodi}} have to wait for FFmpeg to first add software decoding support of MVC for H.264, and for hardware decoding {{Kodi}} relies on the SoC chipset hardware manufacturer to add support for this to their SDK (Software Developer Kits) and for the media player box manufacturers to implement that into their firmware images.
* H.264 MVC - No open source software decoder or hardware decoding for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiview_Video_Coding MVC (Multiview Video Coding)] stereoscopic 3D video decoding currently exist for Kodi on any platform. Kodi relies on FFmpeg for software demuxing and decoding, so Kodi have to wait for FFmpeg to first add software decoding support of MVC for H.264, and for hardware decoding Kodi relies on the SoC chipset hardware manufacturer to add support for this to their SDK (Software Developer Kits) and for the media player box manufacturers to implement that into their firmware images.
* H.265 MVC (HEVC MVC) - No open source software decoder or hardware decoding for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiview_Video_Coding MVC (Multiview Video Coding)] stereoscopic 3D video decoding currently exist for {{Kodi}} on any platform. {{Kodi}} relies on FFmpeg for software demuxing and decoding, so {{Kodi}} have to wait for FFmpeg to first add software decoding support of MVC for H.265 (HEVC), and for hardware decoding {{Kodi}} relies on the SoC chipset hardware manufacturer to add support for this to their SDK (Software Developer Kits) and for the media player box manufacturers to implement that into their firmware images.
* H.265 MVC (HEVC MVC) - No open source software decoder or hardware decoding for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiview_Video_Coding MVC (Multiview Video Coding)] stereoscopic 3D video decoding currently exist for Kodi on any platform. Kodi relies on FFmpeg for software demuxing and decoding, so Kodi have to wait for FFmpeg to first add software decoding support of MVC for H.265 (HEVC), and for hardware decoding Kodi relies on the SoC chipset hardware manufacturer to add support for this to their SDK (Software Developer Kits) and for the media player box manufacturers to implement that into their firmware images.
* RealVideo/RMVB (RV 8/9/10) - There is currently no support in {{Kodi}} for RealVideo hardware video decoding, though software decoding of RMVB videos is possible via FFmpeg but can struggle with high definition sources on older or low-end hardware.
* RealVideo/RMVB (RV 8/9/10) - There is currently no support in Kodi for RealVideo hardware video decoding, though software decoding of RMVB videos is possible via FFmpeg but can struggle with high definition sources on older or low-end hardware.
* VP8 (WebM v1 video) and VP9 (WebM v2 video) - There is currently no support in {{Kodi}} for VP8  hardware video decoding, though software decoding of VP8 videos is possible via FFmpeg but can struggle with high definition sources on older or low-end hardware. Most hardware manufacturers have not even implemented API support for VP8 decoding in the firmware images of Android for their devices, and this is despite the fact that the WebM project licenses VP8 hardware accelerators (RTL IP) to semiconductor companies for 1080p encoding and decoding at zero cost. Nvidia and Rockchip and a few other less known companies does however provide hardware decoding of VP8 in their SoCs, for Tegra 4 and RK29xx respectivly. ARM, Broadcom, Texas Instruments, and Qualcomm as well as ZiiLABS, ST-Ericsson, and Huawei have all announced upcoming support for hardware acceleration of the WebM format and VP8/VP9 codecs. Intel have also let its intention known that they will add hardware-based acceleration for WebM and VP8/VP9 codecs in its future Atom-based chips if the format gains popularity.
* VP8 (WebM v1 video) and VP9 (WebM v2 video) - There is currently no support in Kodi for VP8  hardware video decoding, though software decoding of VP8 videos is possible via FFmpeg but can struggle with high definition sources on older or low-end hardware. Most hardware manufacturers have not even implemented API support for VP8 decoding in the firmware images of Android for their devices, and this is despite the fact that the WebM project licenses VP8 hardware accelerators (RTL IP) to semiconductor companies for 1080p encoding and decoding at zero cost. Nvidia and Rockchip and a few other less known companies does however provide hardware decoding of VP8 in their SoCs, for Tegra 4 and RK29xx respectivly. ARM, Broadcom, Texas Instruments, and Qualcomm as well as ZiiLABS, ST-Ericsson, and Huawei have all announced upcoming support for hardware acceleration of the WebM format and VP8/VP9 codecs. Intel have also let its intention known that they will add hardware-based acceleration for WebM and VP8/VP9 codecs in its future Atom-based chips if the format gains popularity.
* VP9 does not appear to have hardware decoding support for most Android ARM SoCs.


==Notes==
==Notes==
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Here are a few device-specific guides/help areas that the community has provided.  
Here are a few device-specific guides/help areas that the community has provided.  


{{notice|These are community maintained pages and should not be seen as an endorsement of any specific type of hardware.}}
{{Device notice}}


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{{Helix updated}}
{{Isengard updated}}


[[Category:Android]]
[[Category:Android]]
[[Category:Hardware]]

Revision as of 14:33, 25 August 2015

Home icon grey.png   ▶ Android ▶ Android hardware

For most high-definition videos (1080p or higher resolution), hardware video decoding is necessary for smooth video playback on Android devices. And this article contains a list of SoC chipset hardware, (SoC stands for "System on a Chip" which contain the CPU plus GPU and VPU circuits combination, and is also known as a "chipset"), as on Android platforms this SoC chipset is what can playback common video codecs smoothly using Kodi/XBMC.

The fact is, while some devices might be able to smoothly decode standard-definition videos and even some 720p or higher resolution videos using only software video decoding with raw CPU compute power, offloading a large part of video decoding tasks to an integrated VPU (Video Processor Unit) that is optimized specifically for this job is considered essential for most Android devices to be able to smoothly playback high definition videos.

Basic requirements

Stop hand.png It is highly recommended for users to not make any hardware purchases in anticipation of running Kodi on Android without first researching the device you want to buy. Before you do buy, make sure multiple people have verified that it works! If in doubt, do not buy any hardware!
  • Kodi v17 and later requires Android 5.0 or higher.
  • x86 (Intel) or a NEON-compatible ARM-processor, (for example: Nvidia Tegra 3 and newer are fully supported by Kodi, while Tegra 2 and older are not).
  • The main aim for the Android port of Kodi is to foremost target media-players/set-top-boxes/sticks that connect to a large screen television and uses a standard remote control as its main interface device, (that is the same market as for HTPC).

How do I know what chipset I have?

There are so many out there so it can something be difficult to find out, but these are some good websites for looking up the SoC (System on a Chip) chipset used in your Android hardware device:

Also as a reference you can compare different SoC (System on a Chip) chipset specifications on system-on-a-chip.findthebest.com as well as in http://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1GT7I4P8MDlfYvRaL9Wv0NplQJryl54pO_6-9P3g7Fvk/

Compatible chipsets

These specific mass-market hardware SoC chipsets listed below should be capable at least partial hardware accelerated video decoding support for the more popular video codecs in the latest official Kodi builds for Android. However understand that for some devices you might first need to upgrade the hardware firmware image on the device to achieve smooth playback at 1080p or higher resolution. Please contact your hardware manufacturer support for an updated system update firmware and apply that upgrade image before installing Kodi.


Note: Most Android devices do support hardware video decoding, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it functions well when using Kodi. The reasons for this can be for many reasons (e.g. firmware bug, Kodi bug, API bug, etc). The table below should reflect real-world testing, which means someone was able to confirm, with their own eyes, that the hardware played the codec in Kodi.


A " Yes " mark indicates that SoC (System-on-a-Chip) chipset should be able to decode those codecs at least 1080p in Kodi without issues.
Chip
manufacturer
SoC chipset Examples of Android media players and development boards using these SoC chipsets with Kodi support Hardware video decoding Notes
H.264 MPEG-2 VC-1 / WMV 9 HEVC (H.265)
Actions Semi S500 / ATM7029 / ATM7039S / ATM7059 ActDuino S500 Development Board, Kaiboer F5 Plus ? ? ? ?
Actions Semi S900 / ATM9009 96Boards Bubblegum-96 Development Board ? ? ? ?
ALi M3773 Uyesee L100T2, Zidoo D1 ? ? ? ?
Allwinner A31 / A31s / A33 Justop Quadro, Mele A1000G/M8/M9, Measy B4K/U4K, VidOn Box, VidOn.me AV200 No No No No
Allwinner A80 / A83T Tronsmart Draco AW80, Rikomagic MK80 No No No No
Allwinner H2+ / H3 / H8 Inphic i8, Orange Pi 2/Plus, Tronsmart Draco H3, Zidoo X1 ? ? ? ?
Allwinner H5 / A64 / H64 Nobel64 Development Board ? ? ? ?
Amlogic AML8726-M1 / AML8726-M3 / AML8726-M6 / AML8726-MX / AML8726-MXS / AML8726-MXL Pivos XIOS DS/XS, GameStick (by PlayJam), Geniatech ATV1220/ATV520/ATV1610, MyGica ATV420/ATV500/ATV1610, JynxBox M1/M6, Matricom G-Box Midnight MX2, WeTek Play Yes Yes Yes No
Amlogic S801 / M802 / S802 / M802 (formerly AML8726-M8) Geniatech ATV582 / MyGica ATV582, Minix Neo X8/X8-H, Eny Technology ES8, Tronsmart Vega S89/S89-H, Beelink S82/S82H/M8, XiaoMi Mi Box Pro/Enhanced (third-generation XiaoMi Mi Box) Yes Yes Yes No
Amlogic S805 / M805 / S806 / M806 / S812 Eny Technology EM9/M8S/M8C/EM6Q-MXQ, Geniatech ATV585/ATV1810 / MyGica ATV585/ATV1810, Minix NEO X6 /X8-H Plus, Ugoos S85, Sumvision Cyclone X4, Xtreamer Wonder, ODROID-C1 Yes Yes Yes Yes
(8-bit only)
[1]
Amlogic S905 / S912 ? ? ? ?
Broadcom BCM2836 Raspberry Pi 2 (2015) ? ? ? No
Broadcom BCM28145 / BCM28155 Amazon Fire TV Stick (2014) Yes Yes ? No
Broadcom BCM7250 / BCM7252 / BCM72502 Smart Labs SML-482, Freebox Mini 4K ? ? ? ?
Freescale i.MX 6 series (i.MX6 / i.MX6S / i.MX6SL / i.MX6D / i.MX6DL / i.MX6Q) CompuLab Utilite, SolidRun CuBox-i & CuBoxTV, SolidRun Hummingboard, UDOO Neo/Duo/Quad, Wandboard Solo/Dual/Quad ? ? ? No
HiSilicon Hi3798C / Hi3798M HiMedia H7-II/M3/Q5-4K/Q5-IV/Q5X/Q10-IV, PixePlay KURO ? ? ? ?
Intel Atom E3815 / E3825 Intel MinnowBoard MAX Development Board ? ? ? No
Intel Atom x3 / x5 / x7 (x3-C3130 / x3-C3230RK / x3-C3440 / x5-8300 / x5-8500 / x7-8700) ? ? ? ?
Intel Atom Z3530 / Z3560 / Z3580 / Z3735 Google Nexus Player, Minix Neo Z64 Yes No No No
Intel Celeron N3000 / N3050 / N3150, and Pentium N3700 ? ? ? ?
MediaTek MTK6589 / MT6589 / MT6589T / MT6589M ? ? ? No
MediaTek MT8685 / MT8685A / MT8685B UTStarcom MT8685/MC8685A/MC8685B, Xiaomi Mi Box Mini ? ? ? ?
Marvell ARMADA 1500 Ultra ? ? ? ?
MStar MSO9180 / MSO9180D1R / MSO9810 Egreat A9, Kaiboer F5/Q6/C9-M, MeLE V10/X2000, UyeSee T1H, Tronsmart Pavo M9, Xtreamer Prodigy, Zidoo X9 Yes Yes ? ?
Nvidia Tegra 3 OUYA Yes No No No
Nvidia Tegra 4 / Tegra 4i / Tegra 4s ZTE FunBox, Mad Catz M.O.J.O., NanoTech Nuvola NP-1 / NP-C / NP-H1, UTStarcom MC8768, Google ADT-1 (Android TV Developer Kit), Nvidia SHIELD Portable Yes Yes
(CPU)
? No
Nvidia Tegra K1 (TK1) Unuiga Game PC U1, Snail Games OBox, UTStarcom MC8718, Nvidia SHIELD Tablet Yes Yes
(CPU)
? No
Nvidia Tegra X1 (TX1) Nvidia SHIELD TV Yes Yes
(CPU)
Yes
(CPU)
Yes
Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 DragonBoard 410c Nobel64 Development Board ? ? ? No
Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 Amazon Fire TV (2014), Compulab Utilite2, Inforce 6410Plus Development Board Yes Yes ? No
Qualcomm Snapdragon 610 / 615 ? ? ? ?
Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 / 801 / 805 Razor Forge TV ? ? ? No
Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 / 810 ? ? ? ?
Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Yes ? ? No
Realtek 1195 (RTD1195) Yes No No ?
Rockchip RK3066 Imito MX1/MX2, Minix NeoG4/X5, MK808/802, Ugoos UG802/UG007 Yes ? No No
Rockchip RK3188 Jesurun DX05, Minix X7, MK802IV, MK809III, MK902, Ugoos UG007B, Tronsmart T428/MK908, CS968, CR11s, J22, GM282, LT88, T-R42, CS919-II, K-R42, CS918, MK888 Yes Yes
(CPU)
? No [2]
Rockchip RK3036 / RK3126 / RK3128 / RK3288 Firefly-RK3288, ChipSpark PopMetal, Uyesee G1H, Nagrace HPH NT-V6, Eny Technology EKB318/EKB328, Kingnovel R6/K-R68, Beelink R28, FireFly FirePrime Development Board, Ugoos UT3/UM3, Rikomagic MK902 II, Measy B4S, Ruach A20s, CloudMedia OpenHour, CloudnetGo CR12/CR13CR16, Tronsmart Orion R28, Youku Box K1, Unuiga Game Box 19-6R Yes Yes
(CPU)
? Yes
(8-bit only)
Rockchip RK3368 Beelink i68, CloudnetGo CR18/CR13 Plus, Eny Technology EKB368, Himedia H7 III, Measy B4T, Rikomagic MK68, Tronsmart Orion R68 Yes Yes
(CPU)
Yes
(CPU)
Yes
(8-bit only)
Samsung Exynos 3 Single (formerly Exynos 3110) Yes ? ? No
Samsung Exynos 4 Dual/Quad series (formerly Exynos 4210 / 4212 /4412) ODROID-U3/U2/X2 Yes Yes
(CPU)
Yes
(CPU)
No
Samsung Exynos 5 Hexa/Octa series (Exynos 5260 / 5410/ 5420 / 5422) ODROID-XU/XU2, ODROID-XU3/XU3 Lite, Arndale Octa Yes Yes
(CPU)
Yes
(CPU)
No
Samsung Exynos 7 Octa series (Exynos 7410 / 7420) ? ? ? ?
Texas Instruments OMAP4430 / OMAP4440 / OMAP5430 / OMAP5432 Yes ? ? No

Common codecs currently without hardware decoding in Kodi

Videos encoded with these codecs can only be played back in Kodi using software video decoding using CPU, meaning no decoding tasks are offloaded to optimized VPU or GPU hardware. Many videos may still play back just fine at standard definition resolutions, while others might have severe issues with playback.

As platforms with faster CPUs come out for Android software video decoding using CPU will get better, but do not expect miracles from the average Android box. It still all can depend on how demanding the decoding of that particular video encoding is or how high resolution it uses, and how powerful the CPU is.

  • H.264 Hi10P - No hardware decoders for Hi10P (High 10 Profile, also known 10-bit H.264) currently exist for any ARM hardware. Most H.264 Hi10P videos will not play smoothly as most ARM CPUs are just not powerful enough to software decode it fast enough.
  • H.264 MVC - No open source software decoder or hardware decoding for MVC (Multiview Video Coding) stereoscopic 3D video decoding currently exist for Kodi on any platform. Kodi relies on FFmpeg for software demuxing and decoding, so Kodi have to wait for FFmpeg to first add software decoding support of MVC for H.264, and for hardware decoding Kodi relies on the SoC chipset hardware manufacturer to add support for this to their SDK (Software Developer Kits) and for the media player box manufacturers to implement that into their firmware images.
  • H.265 MVC (HEVC MVC) - No open source software decoder or hardware decoding for MVC (Multiview Video Coding) stereoscopic 3D video decoding currently exist for Kodi on any platform. Kodi relies on FFmpeg for software demuxing and decoding, so Kodi have to wait for FFmpeg to first add software decoding support of MVC for H.265 (HEVC), and for hardware decoding Kodi relies on the SoC chipset hardware manufacturer to add support for this to their SDK (Software Developer Kits) and for the media player box manufacturers to implement that into their firmware images.
  • RealVideo/RMVB (RV 8/9/10) - There is currently no support in Kodi for RealVideo hardware video decoding, though software decoding of RMVB videos is possible via FFmpeg but can struggle with high definition sources on older or low-end hardware.
  • VP8 (WebM v1 video) and VP9 (WebM v2 video) - There is currently no support in Kodi for VP8 hardware video decoding, though software decoding of VP8 videos is possible via FFmpeg but can struggle with high definition sources on older or low-end hardware. Most hardware manufacturers have not even implemented API support for VP8 decoding in the firmware images of Android for their devices, and this is despite the fact that the WebM project licenses VP8 hardware accelerators (RTL IP) to semiconductor companies for 1080p encoding and decoding at zero cost. Nvidia and Rockchip and a few other less known companies does however provide hardware decoding of VP8 in their SoCs, for Tegra 4 and RK29xx respectivly. ARM, Broadcom, Texas Instruments, and Qualcomm as well as ZiiLABS, ST-Ericsson, and Huawei have all announced upcoming support for hardware acceleration of the WebM format and VP8/VP9 codecs. Intel have also let its intention known that they will add hardware-based acceleration for WebM and VP8/VP9 codecs in its future Atom-based chips if the format gains popularity.
  • VP9 does not appear to have hardware decoding support for most Android ARM SoCs.

Notes

  1. Amlogic S805/M805/S806/M806/S812 hardware video decoder is limited to only supporting the Main HEVC (H.265) profile which means 8-bit color range only, they do not support the Main10 HEVC (H.265) profile which is uses 10-bit color range.
  2. Some devices might need an updated firmware system update image from the hardware manufacturer for smooth 1080p playback.

Device specific info

Here are a few device-specific guides/help areas that the community has provided.


Stop hand.png These pages are maintained by the community and should not be considered an endorsement or recommendation. Device pages are made when there's a bunch of useful information for a particular device, and someone takes the time to make that page. Keep in mind, some devices simply don't need a page of specific information, but are still excellent devices. *