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Top 10 Smart TV Boxes on the Market

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Alexis Walls
Top 10 Smart TV Boxes on the Market

Smart TV boxes are a great option for those who want a smart TV, but don’t want to pay the hefty price tag that often comes with them. Bingeing Netflix aside, many offer a host of other features such as gaming, voice control and 4K display. Here’s the best smart TV boxes on the market right now.

  1. Nvidia Shield TV Pro

Price: $199

 

A powerful and versatile streamer, perfect for movie and video game fans alike. The Nvidia Shield TV Pro features an updated Nvidia X1+ CPU and 3GB RAM for ultra-fast performance. The premium Android TV box also boasts impressive AI-enhanced 4K upscaling, compatible with all the major streaming platforms. That said, the thing that sets the Shield Pro apart is the integrated GeForce Now. This service lets you play a plethora of high-end PC games without the need for a gaming PC – provided you have a moderately fast internet connection.

 

  1. Amazon Fire TV Cube

Price: $199.99

 

Amazon’s latest Fire TV Cube has come a long way since its first release in 2017. The newest version is faster, beefier and supports the most dynamic AV formats, including Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. You can also control both your TV and your home using your voice, thanks to the built-in virtual assistant Alexa. It’s worth noting that it comes with a visual version of Alexa, which can display song lyrics or tell you which actors are on-screen while watching a movie.

 

  1. Chromecast with Google TV

Price: $49.99

 

Google is no longer in Amazon’s streaming shadow. The most notable feature is the intuitive Google TV user-interface that comes with it. It also displays excellent HDR picture and has Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos support. The remote is very handy, with dedicated buttons for YouTube and Netflix, alongside Google Assistant voice search. While it doesn’t offer the widest range of apps, the Chromecast with Google TV is still just as flexible. You can easily cast anything you want to watch from your smartphone or tablet.

  1. Apple TV 4K

Price: $199

 

The Apple TV 4K box will treat you to a slick user experience, lots of apps, stunning picture and immersive sound. Provided your TV supports 4K, Apple TV will automatically detect this and show everything you watch from that point in 4K. It comes with Apple’s virtual assistant Siri, which offers the most intuitive voice controls on the market. For example, if you missed some dialogue, say “What did he/she say?” into the remote’s mic to repeat the line with subtitles. 

  1. Roku Streaming Stick+

Price: $39

 

The Roku Streaming Stick+ offers the best bang for your buck. The device includes 4K streaming, smooth performance and a huge range of apps. It’s simple USB connection makes it highly portable, and it comes with an enhanced remote that offers TV power and volume control. The only drawbacks are no HDMI port, which could make set-up more awkward, and no headphone jack in the remote. But for the price, you can’t go wrong. 

  1. TiVo Stream 4K

Price: $49.99

The best streaming device for live TV. The Tivo Stream 4K has Sling TV integrated to bring a plethora of live channels. The box is easy to set up and has a large remote with plenty of buttons. The only downside is TiVo’s UI, which is placed on top of Android TV. It offers the same apps but arranged differently. This can be confusing when you’re switching between the two.

  1. Xiaomi Mi Box S

Price: $59.89

 

Those who want 4K on a budget should look no further than the Xiaomi Mi Box S. It boasts a clean Android interface and a simplified button layout on the remote for easy navigation. A great no-nonsense 4K box, however this device’s performance may slow down under heavy loads.

  1. Dynalink Android TV Box

Price: $49.95

One of the lesser-known boxes on this list, but no less powerful than other budget options mentioned. This small but mighty machine packs a punch with 4K HDR streaming, Dolby Audio support and voice-control integration. However, it’s still running on Android 10 and lacks expandable storage, which will cap at 8GB.

  1. XBMXMart Smart Android TV Box

Price: $98.99

 

When you hook this box up to your TV, you’ll find it’s delightfully simple to get started. The amount of content already available is impressive, as it comes with Kodi pre-installed alongside add-ons that offer the latest movies and TV shows. The XBMCMart Smart TV Box is a great option for those who want a wide range of free content at their fingertips. However, it runs on a dated version of Android (Jelly 4.2.2) and only 8GB rom, so it’s best suited for those who only want streaming capabilities. 

 

  1. Mecool MK9 Pro

Price: $58.79

 

The Mecool MK9 Pro offers great visuals with HDR10 video encoding, which provides stunning picture clarity and depth of color. It comes with Bluetooth voice control and Google Assistant for convenient navigation, and can display YouTube in 4K. However, if you watch a lot of Netflix, this may not be the box for you, due to the streaming service being banned across all Mecool boxes.

 

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