The smart TV makes it much easier for us to watch Netflix, YouTube and other media directly on our TV. If you still have a “dumb” TV, there are ways to get your TV to act like a smart one. The Xiaomi Mi Box 3 is one of those ways. You just connect the Xiaomi Mi Box 3 to your TV (with HDMI) and you got instant access to numerous apps and games to play on your TV. There are different media boxes available, but today we have a look at the Xiaomi Mi Box 3!
Since I’m not an Apple user, I did not want to use the Apple TV. For years I used the Google Chromecase to stream some media to my TV. Now I do have a Smart TV, but this Xiaomi Mi Box 3 never left my mind after I saw it. Right now I don’t need it to stream to my TV or watch Netflix, but I was able to buy it second hand, which I did ofcourse!
You can watch the YouTube video here!
Introduction & Specification
To make your “dumb” TV smart, you need a smart media box. There are dozen of alternatives, but I really like the brand Xiaomi, that is why I choose to get the Xiaomi Mi Box 3. The specs are good and the games and other apps come from Google Play, which offer a great amount of apps to use.
Size and Basic Specs
- Length: 101mm
- Width: 101mm
- Thickness: 19.5mm
- Weight: 176.5g (+/- 1g)
- Color: Black
- Output Resolution: Up to 4K 60fps
- Processor: Quad-core Cortex-A53 2.0GHz
- GPU: Mali 450 750MHz
- RAM: 2GB DDR3
- Flash: 8GB eMMC
- System: Android TV 6.0
Wireless Connectivity and Video Output
- Wi-Fi: 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Dual-band Wi-Fi 2.4GHz/5GHz
- Bluetooth: Bluetooth 4.0/3.0
- VP9 Profile-2 up to 4K x 2K @ 60fps
- H.265 HEVC MP-10 at L5.1, up to 4K x 2K at 60fps
- H.264 AVC HPat L5.1, up to 4K x 2K at 30fps
- H.264 MVC, up to 1080P at 60fps
- Supports HDR10/HLG HDR processing (software upgrade required)
Others
- HDMI: HDMI 2.0a x 1 port (HDCP 2.2)
- USB: USB 2.0 x 1 port
- AV: SPDIF Out / 3.5mm audio output x 1 port
- Power: 1 port
- Remote: Bluetooth voice remote control, powered by 2 AAA batteries
- Included accessories: Bluetooth voice remote control, HDMI cable, user guide
- Power input: 100~240V 50/60Hz input, 5.2V, 2.1A output
Unboxing
As I bought this product second hand, it did come with some dents on the box, but that did not damage the product at all. The box is different from what I’m used to see from Xiaomi. Normally it is simple box with not that much information on it. Well, this box is the opposite of that. There are bright colors, lots of pictures and almost all the information on the box. I still think the packaging is done perfectly and it really looks cool!
First we see the Xiaomi Mi Box 3, which I think looks really good. It is small and slim and has a lot to offer. Good job to the design team of Xiaomi! If we take out the Mi Box 3, underneath the box we find everything else. There is a (small) HDMI cable, an European power adapter and ofcourse the remote!
Install and Setup
This is really easy with the Xiaomi Mi Box 3. You got everything you need in the box (exept the 2xAAA battries). You just need to plug it all in and you are good to go! You will set up the language, the country you are in and log in with your Google account. Once the setup is done, you are in the Xiaomi Mi box and it gives suggestions and installed apps.
Ofcourse Netflix is a suggestions, which I use as well! With the remote you can click on Netflix and install it. Simple as that. You install apps just with a simple click on the remote.
Once that is done, you can log in with your account by typing the password and username, or, since we are using your Google account, you can log in using Smart Lock from Google. This is so handy and will fill in the login details. You don’t have to do anything!
Usage
Netflix, YouTube and Spotify are available to stream your online content to your TV, but besides that, there numerous other apps available for you. Is the app you use not available? Like Videoland in the Netherlands? No problem, there is a Google Cast in the Xiaomi Mi Box 3, just stream to there! It works like the Google Chromecast, but it is build in the Xiaomi Mi Box 3.
I wished there were more apps, like Videoland, available on there, but I’m able now to watch my series (Suits right now!), listen to my music and be able to play a fun simple game on the tv.
When I want to see some Netflix, the start up and going to my serie is really smooth and fast. There is no long loading screen, no software bugs or anything, it just works. Which is something we expect, but not always happening.
Going to the cinema can be really expensive. The movie itself is $10 per ticket and then the popcorn and drinks are 3 times the price that you pay in the grocery store. It really pays off to watch the movies at home, which is possible with the Xiaomi Mi Box 3. You can watch (not the latest) Hollywood movies for a few bucks. This not only saves time and money (going to the movies and back, buying drinks, tickets and popcorn) but you can pause it whenever you want and continue to watch an hour later. I really like this flexibility, but some people also like to go to the movies as a night out, which I can totally understand.
The Remote
The remote works really simple. There is a round click buttons, which indicates where the selection of the screen will go to. In the middle there is a round clickable button, which is the same as the left mouse button, it activates the selected field.
Below the round button are 3 smaller buttons, the left button is for “Back” so you can go the previous page or menu. The middle one is to go back to the home screen. The right one is for voice search. Here is the interesting part, Xiaomi Mi Box 3 is able to search your voice commands. If you want to know the weather in New York, just press the right button and ask it. Google will look it up and tell and show it to you.
And ofcourse there are volume buttons on the remote.
Setup the remote
To use the remote, you have to activate it when starting up the Xiaomi Mi Box 3. If you connect the HDMI and the power cable, you see that the Xiaomi Mi Box asks for a remote. You need to press the “Back” button and the “Home” button together for a few seconds till you hear a small beep from the Xiaomi Mi Box. That’s it! You can use the remote now and use it with all the functions named above.
Conclusion
Overall I’m really pleased with the performance of the Xiaomi Mi Box 3. It works really easy and there are a lot of apps to install. You can really make it your own Mi Box. There are a lot of apps available, but I still think there can be more apps for the xiaomi Mi Box 3. Again the example of Videoland in the Netherlands, but I geuss there are many other services which are not available for the Xiaomi Mi Box 3.
The performance is really good, no lag, no software bug or something like that. It is a well designed, perfect made product which will be a great addition to anyone who watches Netflix, listen to Spotify or want to play a game on their TV.
Xiaomi Mi Box 3
€59
Pros
- Design
- Available Apps
- Remote
Cons
- Missing apps
- Voice Search Language
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