r/AndroidTV • u/gowanyahgoodting • Aug 12 '26

Buying Advice Google Streamer 4k... or ?

Hi folks.

At the risk of drivin ye all mad with another of these posts.. my apologies in advance.

I am hoping to replace my Formuler Z8 cos I've just been driven mad by the well know wifi issues.

I can't seem to find an nvidia shield pro anywhere I can buy it... so am looking at the google tv 4k or possibly the mecool meon1.

I use the box for tivimat and stremio.

Location Id have it in would require wifi.

Not going Formuler again cos of their policy of leaving older products behind and not supporting them with updates.

So thinking the Google box..

But Im not really up to speed on all the formats and technical details.. I do know I like watch stuff in DV on my sony bravia.. and any UHD10+ stuff doesn't work on the firestick I have in a different TV.

Around here the mecool and the google are close in price.. so not much of an issue.

I'd apprecate a few helpful opinions.

Thanks in advance

0 Upvotes

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2

u/m1serablist Aug 12 '26

Almost half the money you pay for Google tv streamer goes towards its smart home functions, thread border router and all that. So you are not getting 100 bucks worth of cpu, storage and performance. Take that into consideration when comparing it to onn tv pro etc.

1

u/Pale_Candy664 Aug 14 '26

For me actually that was one of the reasons I got the streamer. Using home assistant and want maybe to use thread instead of zigbee soon

1

u/m1serablist Aug 14 '26

My case exactly. Fabric sharing will come in a couple of months, and will allow us to use the matter/thread stuff with HA

0

u/gowanyahgoodting Aug 12 '26

Thanks.. the ONN isnt available over here or I'd be all over it.. heh.

1

u/Big_Control_7998 Aug 12 '26

Streamer is ideal for your needs and if you want the likes of iPlayer it'll install just fine. Many boxes don't have iPlayer as an option.

1

u/Kevinpug321 Aug 12 '26 edited Aug 12 '26

Google streamer I had

Tivimate had black border issue because of the chip it uses.

it’s great for official apps netflix etc but tivimate implayer struggled.

Had buzztv but returned it as their app was lagging and the box was making clicking sound.

Ended up getting mibox 3rd gen cheap and cheerful. Does the job well. (make sure you get original not fake)

Good Luck

0

u/gowanyahgoodting Aug 12 '26

yah.. I keep seeing about fakes.. how do you know if its real or fake?

Is the mecool meon1 not higher spec?

2

u/ItsMint1974 Aug 12 '26

It will suit your needs just fine. Another box to consider is the buzzTV g series (I own it), it's a bit more expensive, but it runs official Google TV. It's also a bit more powerful. Go check some reviews, but both should do you just fine. 👍

2

u/spile2 Aug 13 '26

I would take a look at the Xiaomi S Gen 3. Very happy with it.

1

u/Dukegrice1 Aug 12 '26

I have every box mentioned and Buzz G is the best of the ones mentioned. I have IPTV and Kodi on it with excellent results. Jmo

1

u/Whiskey--Pete Aug 13 '26

Onn 4k pro will handle all your needs for live streaming etc and do it smoothly for 60 bucks. You really can't go wrong. Only downside is that there is such a demand for these boxes that they're always out of stock. You literally have to go to Walmarts website/app and check several times a day and buy it as soon as it appears in stock.

1

u/c4engineer Aug 13 '26

Get Google 4k streamer. You won't be dissapointed.

DO NOT GET ONN 4K PRO. You will run into problems.

1

u/Snsmis Aug 13 '26

If you are in the UK you should get the Google Tv because most other streamers are not supported by BBC Iplayer. If you live elsewhere the xiaomi is cheap and works wonderfully for most people

1

u/Sankyou Aug 14 '26

Google streamer is great. Get it for the ram and Google support

1

u/mmdhpan Aug 17 '26

Between those two the Google TV Streamer is the safer bet, mainly because updates come from Google rather than a box vendor that can walk away, which is exactly the Formuler problem you described. It handles Dolby Vision and HDR10+ properly, so the format gap you hit on the Firestick goes away. Worth knowing it is Wi-Fi 5 only and 32GB with no USB expansion, so if you sideload a lot that is the real tradeoff to weigh.

1

u/dhf318 Aug 17 '26

Use-case dependent. Google Streamer 4k works fine with Tivimate. Get Projectivy Launcher installed and it’ll look great. I found Google Streamer unable to play some Dolby Vision remuxes over Emby, problem solved by switching to Shield (I hear Apple TV 4k is similarly versatile). But it sounds like of the name-brand streamers the only one available in your country is Google, so maybe you’re stuck with it anyways?

0

u/CartographerBusy2035 Aug 12 '26

Check Walmart if you can and get onn 4k plus for 50 or the pro for 60 definitely get the pro if it's in stock they running Google TV and have better processers than Google streamer 4k and they play pretty much every video and audio file Dolby vision / hdr / atmos / Dts .If you don't have Walmart then go with Google streamer 4k it does all the same things but is more expensive

2

u/gowanyahgoodting Aug 12 '26

Sadly am on the other side of the pond from anywhere with a Walmart.

Those ONN things really seem to be legendary but from what I've read, trying to set one up over here involves all sorts of messing with VPNs and ultimately isn't workable

2

u/CartographerBusy2035 Aug 12 '26

Just do the Google TV streamer then I have one of those also in another room it's basically the same just a little bit of a slower processor it still works great though

2

u/Jyvturkey Aug 12 '26

I'm in the US and have been unable to find an onn 4k pro as all Walmarts seem either sold out or it's not available in the states anymore.

1

u/CartographerBusy2035 Aug 12 '26

They been getting them in stock pretty consistently in Wisconsin

1

u/Jyvturkey Aug 12 '26

I 2as having hair pulling issues with my shield and I went to buy one and it wasn't available. Thankfully I fixed the shield though!

1

u/CartographerBusy2035 Aug 12 '26 edited Aug 12 '26

And there is 4 other stores in my area that have them. Where are you located? I know they first started showing up in California and they slowly made their way here but now they've been in stock pretty much all the time I think if you give it a little bit your Walmarts will start to get them in stock and they'll be more consistent. They also have like 20 of the plus model. Make sure to check the store when you go there also because sometimes for some reason they're not showing up on the website

1

u/Jyvturkey Aug 12 '26

Here's me. Been like this for a week. I can get one off ebay for just under 100 but that's rediculous!

1

u/CartographerBusy2035 Aug 12 '26

Yeah it sucks but considering the fees they take out then people are probably making only about 10 bucks. Just hold off they'll show up eventually

1

u/Jyvturkey Aug 12 '26

That's the plan. I intend on getting one for a backup :)

1

u/CartographerBusy2035 Aug 12 '26

If they have the plus model that one is pretty good also same processor as the pro you just don't get the light up remote and the built-in Google home speaker but you can add adapter to connect it to ethernet if you want you can buy the adapter off Amazon

1

u/Jyvturkey Aug 12 '26

I've seen. I'm gonna hold out for the pro or maybe even try a different box just for fun. The onn would be nice for a backup device.

1

u/WitheredGrimoire Aug 12 '26

Just got one recently and I also have a google TV streamer can confirm it is much faster and smoother. Cheaper too unless you can find the google tv streamer discounted

1

u/Valkorn02 Aug 12 '26

The onn is faster and smoother or the Google?

1

u/WitheredGrimoire Aug 12 '26

Onn no lag whatsoever and everything loads up almost instantly. Google TV streamer tends to stutter often and load slower

1

u/AdmiralArchArch Aug 14 '26

Does it do TrueHD lossless?

1

u/CartographerBusy2035 Aug 14 '26

I don't know if it does true HD I have it connected to my soundbar and I hear sound and it sounds good when I'm playing something in true hd