REVIEW: Nokia Streaming Box 8000 a powerful certified Android TV-Box

PRODUCT DETAILS

Unboxing Nokia Streaming Box 8000

The small Android TV-Box Nokia Streaming Box 8000 comes in a cardboard box with a image of the device in the top, inside we found the TV-Box, Bluetooth + IR  remote, Manual, HDMI cable and a DC 12V 1A adapter.

Description

As we can see the Nokia Streaming Box 8000 has a sober design, in the rear area we have Ethernet 10/100 connector, USB-C charging, AV jack, HDMI 2.1 and power connector, while on one side we have a USB 3.0 OTG. We are surprised by the Bluetooth XXL remote control that has a microphone for Google Assistant and many keys but the vast majority we will not use them if we do not have a contracted Direct TV system, ee can also see it in the dark thanks to his backlit function.

This small TV-Box has a Wifi ac + Bluetooth chip with internal wifi antennas. The cooling system works perfectly because it hardly heats up. In the lower area there is a reset button to reboot the system if it suffers a software catastrophe.

• Remote Control: Basic BT + IR Remote with mic / Compatible with keyboard and mouse / App control for Android TV.
• USB port: It allows us to connect a USB 3.0 HUB, for peripherals.

SYSTEM AND PERFORMANCE

Environment and Android system

We turn on the Nokia Streaming Box 8000 and it starts automatically, an OTA update of 707 MB is installed before starting the system. We get to the configuration wizard where we can set the Wi-Fi, define which apps will be installed by default and select the type of content we want to see on the main screen. Once the configuration is finished we get to the new Android TV launcher based on rows with tabs of the contents or shortcuts to the installed apps. By default the system comes with some rows that can be disabled and leave the environment quite clean. The overall performance is excellent and we can move smoothly and quickly between menus.

• Launcher: We can change de the launcher / Android UI rendering at 1080p.
• Multitasking and access: Multitasking NOT available / Notifications the upper  icon.
• Languages and Google Play: All the international Android languajes / Google Play for Android TV installed.
• Check our Android TV User Manual to install classic Android Apps, prevent screen rotation and much more.

System

We check the system data and the options it includes as far as root is concerned, we also observe what power on/off system this device allows us. This TV-Box will have updates via OTA to correct possible failures.

• On/Off Controls: Sleep mode / Shutdown settings available.
• System version and root: Android TV 10 (32 bit) / NO rooted / NO root menu / CPU r1p0 (S905X3) / Model SEI400TV.
• Support:  Nokia OTA support / IMG firmware NOT available, only OTA update.

Network, storage, RAM and ports

The TV-Box Nokia Streaming Box 8000 has 2 GB of RAM memory and for storage we have in this version 8 GB eMMC that we can expand with a USB memory. It has a USB 3.0 OTG port to connect external drives (read only) or peripherals or a USB 3.0 HUB. In the network section we find a wireless Wifi ac + Bluetooth adapter that as we can see in the tests the results are good. The internal memory is fast and helps us to use the system fluently.

• Storage: Total 8GB  – Free 3.5GB / Expandable with a USB external memory.
• RAM: Total 2GB – Free 1GB / DDR.
• Network: Good speed with internal wifi antennas / Range 39dBm, good. / Bluetooth YES.
• Read/Write Ports: USB 3.0 OTG / On external USB drives it is only possible to read data.
  
• We recommend reading our Tutorial SAMBA on Android networks if we are going to use files from our network PC.

Nokia Streaming Box 8000 Benchmarks

Regarding performance, the Nokia Streaming Box 8000 has the Amlogic S905X3 Quad Core SoC made in 12nm with ARM Cortex-A55 processors and in the graphics section has a mid-range Mali-G31 MP2 GPU. This SoC is an improvement of the previous S905X2 and is very similar to the recent S905X4. As we can see in the results we have a good performance perhaps because of the hardware set quite better than in economic TV-Box, it is equal to the Fire TV-Box 4K and the new Googlecast TV, far exceeds the Xiaomi Mi TV-Box.

• CPU performance: Min 0.5 GHz / Working  1.1 GHz / Max 1.9 GHz
• Check our Amlogic S905X3 SoC Comparison against all SoCs in the sector for more details.

As for games we can run PUBG in medium/low quality and also cloud gaming services like NVIDIA GForce Now or Google Stadia using the APK to install it. In the emulators section we can get at most run some Wii titles, but we will not have problems with 2D games of classic consoles with emulators like Retroarch or using KODI, the full OS EmuELEC is not compatible.

• Games and emulators: NOT possible to play titles such as PUBG /  YES Vulkan support / Basic emulators in RetroArch or KODI.
• Controls: Compatible with Bluetooth or USB Gamepads.

This SoC is manufactured in 12nm, has a fairly low power consumption and the cooling system maintains low temperatures in normal use. The processor manages the speeds correctly so as not to heat up excessively.

• Thermals: Min. 40ºC / Working 42 ºC / Max. 60ºC / Maintains performance up to 100% / Heat zone on the top / Noise 0db
• Consumption: Off 0.9W / Min 3W / Working 3.2W / Max. 4.5W

VIDEO AND AUDIO TEST

Video playback test

As for video playback, the Nokia Streaming Box 8000 is compatible with most modern video formats such as h.265, VP9 with native resolution support 4K@60fps HDR, although it does not support the recent AV1 codec that for now has a testimonial use. It does not have a video quality settings app and no automatic refresh rate change. We have official HDR support to get the most out of streaming services.

It is possible to use players like KODI or PLEX without the slightest problem by installing them directly from the Android TV store. In terms of audio we can play DD sound up to 7.1 Atmos and DTS up to 5.1 through its HDMI port, 5.1 via SPDIF and stereo via the AV jack. The Chromecast system works perfectly with all compatible services.

• Video Settings:  NO image quality settings / RGB, SDR / HDMI-CEC available, see manual / Automatic refresh rate not available.
• Audio Settings: HDMI  7.1 / NO USB audio settings.
• Color and HDR: 10Bit / RGB / HDR 10+, HLG.
• Media sharing: GoogleCast YES / Miracast NO / DLNA with BlubblePnP / Airplay NO.
• LibreELEC: This model is NOT 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.
• We recommend reading the Setup Guide of our TV to get the best picture quality.

Video and audio 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.

• 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 or DTS base system / More info

Streaming services

We performed several tests on streaming services to check how the most popular services work. The Nokia Streaming Box 8000 offers maximum compatibility with all the most popular streaming services. We can watch in 4K HDR quality content from Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+ and in maximum quality others like HBO.

• DRM: Google Widevine L1 / Playready.
• Audio/Video certification: Dolby Digital+.
• Tutorials: 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 about the Nokia Streaming Box 8000

After testing the Nokia Streaming Box 8000 we can certainly say that we are facing a very interesting certified TV-Box. Thanks to the SoC Amlogic S905X3 we have enough power to move any app and far exceeds the popular Xiaomi Mi TV-Box. The XXL Bluetooth remote control with backlight included is very complete and we can use Google Assistant thanks to its integrated microphone.

In the connectivity section the Nokia Streaming Box 8000 integrates a Wifi ac adapter with good speed and we can also connect a USB 3.0 HUB to add peripherals. The system has Android TV 10 is very stable and gets OTA updates thanks to Nokia. It does not overheat playing video, in normal use or playing games.

This TV-Box has all the certificates for streaming apps allowing to play these channels in 4K HDR quality. We can also use other apps such as IPTV players, PLEX or KODI to watch local content, we have that some common limitations of Amlogic SoCs as the lack of image quality control or automatic refresh rate change.

In short, the new Nokia Streaming Box 8000 is a powerful TV-Box with multiple ports, but it has a high price and could have included features such as Gigabit Ethernet to compensate.

Where to buy the Nokia Streaming Box 8000

Add-ons

Nokia Streaming Box 8000

0.00

7.4

Design

7.5/10

Hardware

8.0/10

Conectividad

8.0/10

Support

8.0/10

Price

5.5/10

Pros

• Multiple connectors
• Fast Android TV 10
• Wifi ac and Ethernet
• Backlit BT remote control
• Chromecast and streaming certificates

Cons

• Expensive
• Ethernet 10/100 only