TBS®2910 Matrix ARM mini PC Quad Core Processor with Android Linux XBMC VDR and TVheadend Support

First I would like to say that I have been shopping around for a either a android stick or mini pc to run xbmc on. I came across a unboxing video on you tube, and decided to buy it. Right now I'm running android 4.2.2, which is running xbmc flawlessly. This device is also capable of running ubuntu, but i have not experimented with that yet.

This is a great little device, with 3 usb ports, you can connect a wireless mouse and keyboard, and you can do anything a tablet or phone can do. The only thing it does not have is google play store. BUT you can use 1mobile market which is almost as good as the play store, tons of apps and most of them free. Its a great alternative to the play store.

Also there is a fan on the board that keeps everything cool, never has this thing ever been a little warm, It streams full 1080p, has wifi and there is a mini pcie slot, where you could add Bluetooth and that would free up your usb ports. Not to metion you can also add a HDD, there's so many options.

Overall this is a fantastic device for xbmc, maybe in the future i will try ubuntu on it, but for now its working perfect and I would highly recommend this device, especially if your into xbmc.

I have just received my Matrix Mini Arm PC and it is even more powerful than what I expected. This device is an absolute beast compared to other Mini PC’s I have used in the past. It is very easy to use and switches between three different operating systems in just a matter of minutes. It comes equipped with three different USB ports where you can easily install a wireless mouse and keyboard along with an HDMI hookup to enjoy full HD video playback. Also the Matrix television OS is very unique and allows you to DVR favorite TV shows or stream them in your home network, along with music streaming and many other exclusive add-ons.
After running the Android 4.2.2 OS I found it quite interesting that it appears on my television exactly as it would on an Android Tablet, which makes it very easy to use. I downloaded the Netflix app which streams perfectly in 1080p. The Android OS is also very easy for children to use for apps and games. Furthermore there is always the Linux Ubuntu operating system which can be used to get everything you have on your desktop computer.
All in all this device is furnished with many different conventions, accommodating many types of computer users and I highly recommend the Matrix Mini Arm PC!

Out of the box, it seems fast and relatively easy to change the OS. I was able to install Ubuntu and later Android, both of which look polished and easy to use.

The board I received, however, has issues. First off, the system crashes after 5 to 10 minutes of use, possibly due to overheating because the fan is nonfunctional. I would love to give this device a glowing review but given the stability and quality issues, I just can't do that.

***Update
With the assistance of the TBS technical support, I was able to get this device running. Apparently, I had installed and was using the wrong version of the OS (v1.2) for my particular board (v2.1). Once the correct OS version was installed, the system booted properly and runs quite well without any issues.

That being said, it isn't without it's quirks.

1. The burn/boot method of installing the OS. Even though this method of loading the OS to the eMMC chip is relatively easy, you seem to be limited to TBS's supplied OS's (MatrixTV, Android, and Ubuntu) and their respective OS versions (at least using their MfgTool2 installation program). I did find an unofficial port of OpenElec which adds another OS to the list.

2. The Android v4.2.2-v3 provided a clean interface that was very polished and easy to use. It provided the ability to use other applications in addition to the VDR/XBMC support. I was able to install the ARM version of XBMC following the instructions from XBMC's Wiki. The video playback through XBMC, however, was not so good. I was streaming my videos from a my server over WIFI; the playback was grainy and would continually have to re-buffer after only a few seconds of play.

3. The latest version of Ubuntu available, via TBS download, is 12.04 not the current Ubuntu release of 14.04. The Ubuntu 12.04 interface was fast and responsive, however, I was not able to load XBMC because of difficulties in updating the software repositories via the desktop application or in a terminal using apt-get. This maybe more of my inabilities or lack of experience in programming via Linux but I would have thought that it would have been easier to use or, at least, had XBMC pre-installed.

4. The last item I have issue with is the built in WIFI. Even though it is running the 802.11n protocol, the connection speed leaves a lot to be desired. My connection is limited to 70 megs per second, even though my router is capable of providing 9-10 times that speed. TBS provided both USB2 and USB3, so why not build the board with a faster WIFI adaptor?

The shining light was the unofficial port of OpenElec. I was able to install this OS and it has XBMC 13.2 Beta (Gotham) built in. I was able to configure it for my video libraries and even stream live TV from my HDhomerun Prime cable tuner (yes, even with 70 megs WIFI speed). The live TV seemed to run fairly smooth (could be better but was pretty good) and the channel changes were faster than on my Raspberry PI over WIFI.

If TBS would update the board with a faster WIFI adapter and provide support for 5G on WIFI (either with a faster 802.11n or the newer 802.11ac protocol) plus make it easier to install any other OS, they would have pretty nice product capable of being a very inexpensive HTPC.

It was easy to get up and running. I attached a wireless keyboard and mouse, power cord; attached to HDMI monitor; got the WiFi configured. The fan is awesome. Low power consumption. Love to watch PBS and other videos with XBMC.

Perfect for Linux users. Installed Ubuntu. Fast! The 2GM memory and 16GB internal storage is plenty for most functions. An external hard drive is always an option.

Relatively simple to switch from one OS to another. Not for MS Windows.

Nice little package for the price.

The main intention for purchasing this device is to run xbmc and keep my Rpi for some development and hobby programming. The device came with pre-installed Android On top of it I installed XBMC but the video quality was poor and choppy. Therefore installed OpenElec which is still unofficial but thanks should go to the forum on tbstv all movies and video clips running smoothly. Hardware is a power house. Eagerly waiting for official OpenElec. Comes with number of port do the job for you. Nice if had incorporated USB3.0