Intel recently announced their 2016
Compute Stick with the newer Atom X5-Z8300 Processor and better WiFi is now shipping. Lets see if it is any better than the flawed
2015 Version! Basic Specs for the STK1AW32SC that I have picked up are:
- Bigger than the 2015 Stick, about the size of a small remote control
- HDMI for Audio and Sound (just plug it into your TV or Screen)
- 2GB of RAM & 32GB GM of storage + a SDXC V3 MicroSD Slot so you can "add another drive"
- Dual Band Wifi with AC and Blutooth 4.0
- Two Full sized USB Ports (1 x USB3 and 1x USB 2 Ports), and a Micro USB for power (note: this adds an additional USB port from the 2015 model)
- I paid about US$120 / A$185 and it includes Windows 10
Install: See attached pics for what came in the Box
- HW (5 Min) : Oddly for a device sold in Australia it came with power plugs for the US, EU and UK so the supplied PS is useless to me. No worries, plugged it into an un-powered USB Hub and I had trouble booting Windows, it would get past POST then reboot in a loop. Powered up my Hub and it was all fine. I also had to use a RF Keyboard/Mouse for the setup as there seems to be no way to pair a BT Keyboard/Mouse combo at this point of the setup (plus you will need this if you ever need to go to the BIOS)
- Updating Win10 (15 Mins) : All fine. Windows did the usual critical updates during the initial setup but nothing unusual (and Device Manager does not report any missing drivers). Ran Windows Update and it updated a few more things. Paired with all in one BT Keyboard/Mouse
- Updating Drivers / BIOS (20 Minutes) : It came with the latest BIOS already installed. The BIOS is pretty dull with few options and I've left it as is. One thing I've noticed is that it can take longer than other PC's to show post / boot after a power cycle. Intel's site also had what looked like later drivers for the BT (turned out be be the same), and WiFi (did update). Finding the latest Intel HD Graphics drivers was impossible, but using the Device Manager --> Update Driver did get a later version dated 2015/08/03 (10.18.15.4263)
- Initial MC Install (5 Mins) : Painless to set up as a Library Server Client
Tweaks / Other: TBA
Results: Here is what I've found so far:
- Wifi: The 2015 model maxed out at 40mbps and this was a deal breaker as it was not capable of streaming BD quality video. This is fixed in the 2016 model with the move to a AC7265 Wifi Module. I've have no problems connecting with AC and had no issues in streaming BD. See the following posts for more discussion on this.
- Video: I can not believe it, but both RO Std
and RO HQ (madVR with default settings) work. I tested standard BD content (both 264 and VC1) and it worked not only with 1080/24p but also with interlaced (50i / 60i) material that the 2015 model could not do. Quick test of other formats showed it was also fine with H265 at 1080p but was stuttery on a 100mbps 4K clip even when played off its internal storage (note: I don't have a 4K screen). All the MC Video goodies such as Auto Frame Rate Switching and Video Clock worked without issue.
- Audio: No problems with decoding Audio over HDMI for all formats including up to 192K / 24-Bit when using WASAPI Exclusive. Interestingly, in "shared mode" the implementation only supports 16 Bit with Multi Channel Audio (or 24-Bit when in 2Ch). Also the Bitstream'ers will not be happy as it appears to be limited to DD, DD+, DTS - no DTS-MA, TrueHD.
- Power: You're going to have issues powering this from many USB Connectors on devices like PC, TV, AVR etc. According to the specs (and that on the wall wart) you need a 5v/3amp power supply. I had to use a Wall Wart or Powered USB hub to get it to work. More on power requirement testing in the following posts as this requirement is a little flexible. The good news is the BIOS is set to turn on when powered up. So if it is plugged in behind a screen it will boot up when power is restored (no fiddling around try to feel for the power button).
- Storage Space: Of the 32GB it comes with, I have 17.8GB free of 27.8GB total
- Noise: It does get hot and while it has a fan I've not noticed it yet in my testing unless it was under stress and you sat close to it (it then sounded like a little rattle/buzz).
- Other: No IR, so you are going to have to control this over BT or WiFi.
Conclusion / Initial Rating: 8/10 Well what a difference a year makes! My first impression is that this is a great general MC Library Server Stick. It's not all perfect but for the price this is what these sticks promise:
The Good:
- WiFi works
- It can run RO HQ (madVR)
- It worked out of the box for all std media types
- You get an additional USB Port
The stuff to figure out:
- Audio Support, I'm not sure if this can be tweaked to support bitstreaming DTS-MA / TrueHD, or 24 Bit Multi Channel Audio in Shared Mode (not that either impact me)
The Bad
- Power Supply requirements, you're just not running this from most USB ports - you'll need something with at least 2amps for best performance.