REVIEW: A95X MAX Plus with the powerful S922X SoC and Wii remote style

PRODUCT DETAILS

Unboxing

The A95X MAX Plus comes in a standard cardboard box with a image of the device in the top, inside we found the TV-Box, the Flymouse  Wii style remote control, IR remote, HDMI cable 4K@60fps compatible, Manual and a powerful DC 12V 2.5A adapter.

Description

The A95X MAX Plus is made of a hexagonal profile of aluminum and plastic parts, a design is certainly peculiar. This Box includes a Flymouse control similar to that of Wii although it does not have so many sensor axis, we will see it in detail in the games section of this review. We also have another conventional IR control in case we do not want to use the Wii control that needs a extra USB adapter.

Inside the audio jack of the Box we have the update button in case it is necessary to update the firmware, if we disassemble the bottom cover we can see the SATA 3 2.5″ bay we just have to slide the disk and fit it. On the motherboard we can see the Wifi ac Dual Band + Bluetooth 4.2 (AP6255) and the two internal Wi-Fi antennas.

• Remote Control: Flymouse Wii style / NO microphone / We can choose other alternatives.
• Alternate control: We can control remotely using the app Cetusplay.

SYSTEM AND PERFORMANCE

Environment and Android system

Connecting the power adapter at the A95X MAX Plus boots automatically and runs the default launcher based on boxes, we can customize the top row by adding icons. In the installed apps there are several games that can be controlled with gamepad, CetusPlay apps and Cetus TV remote control, and the Action Games icon that allows us to download the games for the Wii remote. The performance of Android 9 is very good at the desktop level or with heavy apps and works stable without forced closures of the classic apps, the launcher does not convince us much, something recharged and not very stable. You have to press the power button when connecting it to the power the first time, after that you can turn it on again from the IR control.

• Launcher: We can change launcher but only Pixel launcher works 100% / Android UI rendering at 1080p.
• Multitasking and access: Multitasking only available from lower bar / Have lower Android bar but NO upper bar.
• Languages and Google Play: All the international Android classics / Google Play installed.

• On/Off Controls: If we keep press the power button we have reset and power off option / Configurable in settings.
• System version and root: Android 9 Pie (32 bit) / The system IS root by default / YES root menu.
• Support: This brand don’t have official support site / Firmware available / Custom firmware not available yet.

Network, storage, RAM and ports

The A95X MAX Plus TV-Box has eMMC memory for internal storage and DDR4 RAM, it has two USB 3.0 port and SD card reader. In the network section it has a wireless adapter Wifi ac Dual Band + Bluetooth 4.2 (AP6255) and Gigabit Ethernet port and we can also install a SATA 3 2.5″ disk. As we can see in the tests the results are good, we have good Wifi speed although the range could be better and a fast internal memory.

• Storage: Total 32GB  – Free 29GB / NTFS + exFAT compatible / Expandable with a USB memory stick.
• RAM: Total 4GB – Free 3GB / DDR4.
• Network: Basic speed with two internal wifi antennas / Range 46dBm, basic. / Bluetooth OK.
• We recommend reading our Tutorial SAMBA on Android networks if we are going to use files from our network PC.

Power and performance

At the power level the A95X MAX Plus is enough for any Android app or game with the Amlogic S922X Hexa Core SoC with ARM Cortex-A73 processors and in the graphic section a Mali-G52 MP6 GPU that is in the mid/high range. This SoC is manufactured in 12nm, has a fairly controlled consumption and temperatures are controlled if we demand performance in powerful games or demanding applications. It does not reach the level of the S922X-H that we have seen in the Beelink GT-King Pro but it is at a very good level.

• Check our Amlogic S922X SoC Comparison against all SoCs in the sector for more details.

• Consumption: Off 0.6W / Standby 3.8W / Basic use 5.2W / Maximum 9W
• Thermals: Minimum 40ºC / Maximum 70ºC / Maintains performance up to 80% / Heat zone on the top / Noise 0db
• Games and emulators: IS possible to play titles such as PUBG with low settings / Emulators up to Wii / NO Vulkan support.

The A95X MAX Plus includes a Flymouse with accelerometer as standard that allows us to play several games designed for that remote thanks to the Action Games app, the download of the games is very slow so patience. The games are very simple and have no depth, the control with the wiimote only detects an action and not the axis, so moving the control is like pressing one button. Thanks to the Flymouse we can also point on the screen and that gives the option to play shooting titles. In general, a nice addition for children at home but little more to highlight, the titles will eventually fall short if they are not added to this app.

• Controls: Compatible with Gamepads by cable or bluetooth.

VIDEO AND AUDIO TEST

Video playback test

In the video playback aspect, the A95X MAX Plus features the Amlogic S922X SoC and a VPU Advanced Video Engine Gen10 compatible with most modern video formats such as h.265 and VP9 with 4K HDR native resolution, don’t have video quality settings. We can use players like KODI or PLEX without the slightest problem, the system comes by default with a version of KODI full of addons that we recommend uninstalling. At the audio level we can play DD and DTS sound up to 5.1 through the HDMI port. Check our Amlogic S922X SoC Comparison against all SoCs to see more details about A/V aspects of this SoC.

• Video Settings: Image quality settings / RGB and SDR / HDMI-CEC available / Automatic refresh rate with root + AFRd.
• Audio Settings: HDMI up to 5.1 audio / Stereo Jack.
• Media sharing: Chromecast NO / Miracast NO / DLNA with BlubblePnP / Airplay with Airscreen.
• LibreELEC: This model will be compatible with LibreELEC or CoreELEC.
• Tutorials: Install add-on in KODI / Judder effect, how to fix it / Multi-channel audio guide / Correct dark video playback in Android.

Video results

• The maximum bitrate depends on the port used to connect or the limitations of SAMBA Networks.
• SW = does not have hardware acceleration and may have have some frameskip in very heavy files.

Audio test results

• PCM – Stereo only doing downmix from DD or DTS
• Core – Only the core of the format is played back with what we passed to the Dolby / DTS base system
  * Our AV receiver does not support these native formats but we verify that it is played back to 7.1

Streaming services

In our usual tests with streaming services we see how the most popular services work. The A95X MAX Plus presents the classic configuration without certifications which limits us in quality in several streaming services, luckily if it is compatible with most services even if they are in its most basic quality of SD video

• DRM: Google Widevine L3
• Certification: No
• Tutorial: Change the size of the captions and the mouse pointer on Android / Install Addons in KODI in a simple way

CONCLUSIONS AND BUY LINKS

Score

Opinion

Once analyzed the A95X MAX Plus we can say that we are facing an interesting TV-Box with the powerful S922X SoC that allows us to play powerful titles such as PUBG for example. In addition, this model includes how we see a Wii-type remote that is basically a Flymouse with accelerometer, the games that it includes for this remote are very simple but can entertain our children. Also as a strong point we have a bay for 2.5″ disks that allows us to use this TV-Box as a multimedia storage center.

As for connectivity, the A95X MAX Plus has good performance thanks to its Wifi aC Dual Band adapter that reaches a good speed, also has Gigabit Ethernet port to be able to load all kinds of content over the network at maximum speed. At the software level, the default launcher is somewhat heavy and we recommend changing it, but in general the Android 9 system installed works without problems and we have as an extra with root selector for example.

In short, the A95X MAX Plus is a powerful and with extra options like a 2.5″ disk bay and a Flymouse Wii remote with several simple games adapted to this control. This model can be interesting if we found at good price and we need 2,5″.

Where to buy

• Consult our recommended models to see other alternatives.

Add-ons