You can run Windows applications, so only if there's any specific Windows programs you might want to run that aren't on Android. Personally I avoid Windows for any media serving and use Linux, I also avoid Android as well as I personally think it's one of the worst bodged operating systems in existence.

I do use a Samsung S6 which runs Android as I don't like Windows phone or iOS, urghh why I am even saying this no one cares :smiley:

Whilst these do look pretty nifty, I do wonder that the point of these really is when you can get windows tablet of similar spec for this sort of price, which you can just connect up to a TV or monitor to achieve the same result. It's effectively hi just a very titchy desktop PC, and hardly anyone uses them these days do they?

Yeah, but its cheap!

Sorry, but these were terrible for when they were on clearance st £40, and are just as bad at £50.

On paper the specs are fine, however they have a fundamental design flaw that means that the performance falls off a cliff when you try and use wifi and Bluetooth together. It is due to the shared chip they use which isn't up to the task of using the BT and wifi chip together. They then also start to overheat which cases further problems. This means that using it as a computer is effectively a no no, unless you also add a USB wifi adaptor yourself which kind of ruins the form factor and takes up the USB port.

So, ask yourself why you want one. It WILL cope with kodi and a Bluetooth remote - but it's an expensive way to do that and you will do much better with an android device. It will also just about function as a Windows atom pc - but you can get a Linx Windows tablet for less money that does exactly that, but without the wifi/BT problem mentioned above. That would also give you a second screen etc as another benefit.

I bought one myself as I thought it was a cool idea but I returned it quickly. I really hope Intel come out with a V2 as it really is a great concept - but sadly this first generation is just poorly designed and is not fit for purpose.

Seriously, don't bother - or if you do buy it from Amazon so you can return is without any hassle.

Edit: seen the tablet idea mentioned and po pood above - remember the compute stick requires a power supply anyway and you don't need a long hdmi, a short one will do for most people..I have one plugged into my AV receiver so it's out of the way (using a dell venue 8 pro) and it's great :smiley:. Even works for a fair few games on steam - copes with portal/2, civ5 and most of the indie games just fine. I love the atom chips and devices, it's just a shame they screwed this particular one up so much.

Good price, saves time upgrading the windows version too, which was a problem for the windows 8 version.

Any benefits to running this OS over android in a home setup? Could be tempted.

I think TopCashback gives 2.02% for BT Shop purchases.

It's worth a try.

Just ordered, thanks!!

Whilst these do look pretty nifty, I do wonder that the point of these really is when you can get windows tablet of similar spec for this sort of price, which you can just connect up to a TV or monitor to achieve the same result. It's effectively hi just a very titchy desktop PC, and hardly anyone uses them these days do they?

What is this thing doing is it like Amazon stick with Windows ?

Computer scientists would have killed for this sort of performance just 20 years ago. It always boggles my mind when I see computers like this on a stick.

how would this be for streaming websites and kodi ?

Any good for emulation - NES, SNES, C64?

Is that a trick question? £56.99 * 0.02 = £1.14.
But as someone said, you might not get the cashback if you use a discount not approved by TCB.

Probably going to sound stupid but this wouldn't run Microsoft office word or PowerPoint? Also as previously asked could I use this instead of a raspberry pi for emulating the older concours I.e. Snes

I had one of these. Returned it because the wifi was awful.

​Yes it will but at snail speed. Because it's a crap Intel Atom cpu with only 2gb ram.

It's an Intel Atom processor PC with 32GB storage and 2GB RAM.

That's basically it. It has zero difference to buying a full size PC with the same specifications (except fewer USB/etc ports).

It can do anything and everything that a regular Intel Atom Windows PC can do, given the storage and RAM constraints (but you can attach more storage, just like with a regular PC).

I've had one for a year or more, paid about £120 for it and I use it in the bedroom. It runs kodi fine and as good as a fire stick but its good being able to use it to surf the web using my chrome browser as I would on a desktop PC, also handy to look at the odd word or excel file from the bedroom.

The wifi is a bit flakey but mine is right next to the router so I dont have that issue and the only other down side is the single USB port, I have a dongle for a wireless mouse plugged in which I prefer to a remote like the fire stick. I did try a USB 4 port expansion with an RJ45 socket but the mouse sometimes failed to bring the PC out of sleep when using this, also the mouse became un-responsive when web pages were downloading, must be a bottleneck.

Overall for £50 or £60 its great as a bedroom type PC which gives a bit more scope than a fire stick.

Bay trail long in the tooth, even the cherry trail platform would have been replaced by now if the replacement hadn't been cancelled. If using just for Kodi and media playback then an android device would be better IMO.

I currently have this plugged into my Samsung TV.
It has a quad-core Intel Atom processor, 2GB DDR3 RAM and 32GB storage ( with a MicroSD card slot for additional storage ), 802.11n WiFi, Bluetooth, 1 x USB port.

You plug it to the HDMI port of the TV and it needs to be powered by mains. Mine came with Windows 8.1. I have plugged a bluetooth mouse and can do all sorts of things from the comfort of my sofa. If I had a Logitech keyboard+mouse combo, I would have been able to do more.

I primarily use it for watching foreign channels not broadcast here such as HBO or AXN.

Seriously ??????

lol

its about half innit ?

Yawn. It will be fine, it's a Bay Trail quad-core Atom, the days of Atoms being absolutely useless are long gone. These are plenty fast enough and fine for basic productivity work, web browsing, emulation of older consoles, video streaming, etc. can't think of anything 'without normal scope' that people would want to do that this couldn't.

I imagine the reason it's cheap is this is a 3-year old chip now, we're on Cherry Trail and even that's been out a while but there hasn't really been any speed improvements, just better graphics and efficiency.

how do you connect keyboard/mouse is it bluetooth or usb or what
usb hub maybe??

Sorry, but these were terrible for when they were on clearance st £40, and are just as bad at £50.

On paper the specs are fine, however they have a fundamental design flaw that means that the performance falls off a cliff when you try and use wifi and Bluetooth together. It is due to the shared chip they use which isn't up to the task of using the BT and wifi chip together. They then also start to overheat which cases further problems. This means that using it as a computer is effectively a no no, unless you also add a USB wifi adaptor yourself which kind of ruins the form factor and takes up the USB port.

So, ask yourself why you want one. It WILL cope with kodi and a Bluetooth remote - but it's an expensive way to do that and you will do much better with an android device. It will also just about function as a Windows atom pc - but you can get a Linx Windows tablet for less money that does exactly that, but without the wifi/BT problem mentioned above. That would also give you a second screen etc as another benefit.

I bought one myself as I thought it was a cool idea but I returned it quickly. I really hope Intel come out with a V2 as it really is a great concept - but sadly this first generation is just poorly designed and is not fit for purpose.

Seriously, don't bother - or if you do buy it from Amazon so you can return is without any hassle.

Edit: seen the tablet idea mentioned and po pood above - remember the compute stick requires a power supply anyway and you don't need a long hdmi, a short one will do for most people..I have one plugged into my AV receiver so it's out of the way (using a dell venue 8 pro) and it's great :smiley:. Even works for a fair few games on steam - copes with portal/2, civ5 and most of the indie games just fine. I love the atom chips and devices, it's just a shame they screwed this particular one up so much.

There is a V2 - and as this review claims, it now actually works

There is a V2.. It's the 2016 version

It's Word and Excel not Crysis that the question was about. This computer will run Office perfectly fine!!

You could use a short hdmi cable and put the tablet behind the TV (the same way this would plug in to a tv, surely). Then use a wireless keyboard and mouse (the same way you would with this Compute stick). Surely this is pretty much the same thing, but a tablet has the added advantage of being usable in its own right once unplugged. But I'm no expert.

Thanks! I had missed this :smiley:

What about running Acestream? Seems that only Windows has working Acestream software.

I'm looking for something to use with BT Sport & Sky Sports online, are there Andriod Apps that would allow me to do that or do I need one of these?

[I'm doing this legally, not wanting to watch dodgy streams, I have accounts with both Sky & BT and currently use a full size computer which I want to get rid of.]

I would like one of these to remote into my VMs from my TV - preference would be to use the native Windows Remote Desktop app so this seems like a great solution - but is there another - I already have loads of android boxes and a Amazon Fire

would this be any good for connecting onto a machine using rdp?

Just get a Windows 10 tablet for around same price, it will be same or similar specs, most likely plug in to your TV and you get the advantage of it being portable and having its own screen. These sticks are pointless imo.

There will always be relatively obscure software like that where a windows device is needed - but if you need windows specifically, go for the tablet approach. Cheaper and it will perform better.

Or if it's for illegal streaming which does tend to require windows, then I really don't care - I have zero respect for thieves who steal content. (note I am not implying that you are one of those scum, just making the point :smiley::smiley: )

it's still competent but when the heck will the newer equivalent of the z3735 come out ? they z7300 is hardly any better but every budget win10 device uses the same chip even though it's years old.

You are right !! I don't care :confused:

Seems a bizarre suggestion. My windows tablet sits in a cradle next to the TV. Micro-HDMI cable to TV is under a metre long. If the tablet battery hints at running low I connect the TV USB output to the tablet's charging socket. Tablet is controlled via a standard bluetooth combined keyboard-with-trackpad. Works fine, and I have a self-contained portable Windows device when it is not plugged into the TV - unlike the stick option.

I've not heard good thing about this stick. The 2nd generation is a lot better I'm told.

Every compute stick I've used has been not so great. Even for free, they aren't my favorite. However I have not used this particular one.

The Core m3 Compute Stick is significantly faster in quite a few areas including speed (although it is obviously more expensive).

http://www.anandtech.com/show/10447/the-intel-compute-stick-core-m36y30-review

Sometimes the power supply being separate can be a massive advantage, the Linx 7 and 8 tablets, both charge through the only USB port (like most cheap Windows tablets), meaning you get full charge rate if you're not using the port for anything else, but once you connect a USB hub the charge rate drops to a trickle, which then means the device will eventually die if your software draws too much power, probably fine if you're only using the device for media playback, but you might come a cropper if you do much more.

Personally I think Intel missed the point when building this device, a simple small box with a network connection/usb ports and the ability to drive monitors without HDMI would have been more useful.

mike

With smart TV's all you do is screen mirror from tablet to tv, no wires at all

Add a 10 inch lcd panel and hdmi driver board from ebay china for about 50 quid.
Add a ipad bluetooth keyboard, and you have made your very own poor laptop

Can't really see what all the excitement is about.. It's the right price for what it is.. Just a cheap PC on a stick.. Nothing special

If I bought one could I put SLI GeForce Titan X's in it?

Ok, that explains my concerns.
But, how much does a Windows tablet with 2GB RAM cost ? I can see them at around £150ish

I know I'll get shot down for this as its the dreaded Gearbest, but (IMO) a better option for a similar price is - http://www.gearbest.com/tv-box-mini-pc/pp_324846.html (£54.76 from China or £65.31 from EU store. I have one of these and its a pretty good little box. Advantages to me are, Ethernet Connection, USB 3 and a better chipset (Not much better, but better is better)

Only those who like to have a more efficient work flow.

IMHO and I apologise for banging on about it, but tablets are great for mobile gaming/videos/email/browsing but for us non-milennials who need to do stuff that require lots of open windows and processing power and a modicum of privacy (potential app snooping with the permissions required), I prefer to use a PC any day of the week and after using a dual screen set-up for over 10 years, there really is no comparison.

In simple terms, try mass-editing the exif data on 20,000 photos and MP3 tag data on 25,000 MP3 files on your iPad/Android. No thank you.

Dual boot w10 + Android 5.1 2GB/32GB 8" tablets based on the far superior Z8300 CPU that can play x265/HEVC 8bit content with ease start at around £60 delivered.

can I do 4k gaming and 8k video editing on this?

Yes, agreed, but I was talking about Atom vs. Atom - a low power chip designed with that in mind, whereas Core m3 (and Core M) are full-blown Core architectures scaled down to very low TDPs so will always be faster but substantially more money as well.

​Not really. It sucks very bad.

Can you put kodi on this?

[quote=sam_of_london
​Not really. It sucks very bad.[/quote]
Rubbish!! Of course it will!! I've used one many times to run Office flawlessly. Have you or is it that you just haven't a clue really but want to talk down the product based on its specs?

Weird that £10.01 is removed...

Thanks op......ordered. I got the Lenovo Windows compute stick and it works like magic so this is ideal to connect to my sons room.

I keep seeing comments about a window tablet for the same money - anyone got a link?

Cheapest I can fine is about £70 but that's for a refurbished 10.1" tablet running Windows 8.1

I'm waiting for the 64-Bit version of this, so that I can plug it into my TV directly and run Zwift!

Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to let me know, I appreciate your time :smiley:

sounds interesting i like the idea of it, can it run an external bluray drive or dvd drive through a usb hub with keyboard and mouse?

compooter!

ah ive lost it.

off topic but anyway i went full linux last week and i've been pleasantly surprised. No more sluggish windows or viruses. and its gratis. id recommend giving it a try. It doesn't hurt much.

​Lol

At £20-30 I'd see the value in this but having managed to pick up one of the Archos 90 tablets when they were £50 with exactly the same specs as this, even though I know that offer isn't still available I just couldn't stomach this price.

The cpu and 2gb of ram are just dandy for running Kodi over for anything other than X265 10bit video. And with the latest Windows update I think my favourite feature is the Projecting to this PC function. This device will also likely do that so if you have a laptop or phone with miracast support you can transmit your screen wirelessly to it same as you would a miracast dongle. I wouldn't get this just for that though but it's a handy feature

With a tablet though that feature is brilliant. I effectively get a seceond wireless display for my laptop, with full touch functionality.

+1
Cannot find a Windows tablet with 2GB RAM and HDMI out for anything less than the £100 mark!

Honestly the amount of silly comments here

The wifi / Bluetooth issue is a bug but a £3 USB wifi sorts that and remember for things like sky go , the tablet won't work

Not to mention this is dinky and low powered plus with 2 years warranty who cares

Yes it's not going to function as your main pc but for occasional use and streaming / kodi you cant get better at this price my view

Hot from me

No 99 bargain stores :smirk:

You can pick up USB wifi from eBay and if you must have more USB ports then ok spend £7-8 on a powered hub

Again this is much better than a tablet that is locked when trying to connect to TV

Obviously a tablet offers its own benefits but for 2 years computing you can't go wrong

Sounds messy to me. Just buy a NUC like the MSI cubi N from scan .. 2gb ram £3.50 on CEX and you can boot Kodi if that's your purpose .. from a USB or get a cheap HDD for minimal outlay.

Mounts to the back of your TV so still hidden.

http://store.steampowered.com/browse/linux/

I think Valve see's it's future in Linux, it'll get there one day and it's far from useless now.

I think it's only a matter of time. Vulkan (API) is helping.

Hopefully Vulcan will help but in the Now where where we live Windows has a massive lead over Linux.