The Sumvision Cyclone X4+ is a new low cost Android box aiming to take over your living room.
The Cyclone X4+ is a nice small size and has an internal WiFi antenna. If you’d rather there is the option to use Ethernet instead. Round the back you also have an optical out and round the side you have 2 x USB ports and a memory card slot.
On the inside Sumvision have managed to pack in a quad core 64bit CPU, 1GB DDR3 RAM, 8GB storage which can be expanded up to 32GB via an SD card, bluetooth 4 and it all runs via Android 5.1.1.
Along with the Cyclone X4+ you also get a small remote, batteries for the remote and a HDMI cable.
The remote is OK for use with the big button menu but you’ll likely want to replace it with a keyboard/mouse combination or an airmouse. The interface is simple to use and very smooth. The Cyclone X4+ doesn’t have too many apps pre-installed leaving you with a relatively blank canvas. Once installed the apps are easy to add to the main menu for quick access.
One app pre-installed on the Cyclone X4+ is kodi, a great media management app. Although there is nothing wrong with the version installed, it wasn’t the latest version and wouldn’t update via Google Play, so before setting it up it’s a good idea to uninstall the provided version and reinstall the latest version from the Play store. This will also get you the latest version (Jarvis at the time of review), rather than the older version pre installed.
As a media streaming box this works really well not only with Kodi but also Netflix and Amazon. Unfortunately at the time of review Google Play movies didn’t work, the app opens fine but when you press play it reports the device isn’t supported. With only a couple of movies owned under Play (thanks to the PRingles giveaway) this was only a minor niggle during review.
Where the Cyclone X4+ really stands out against other android boxes recently reviewed is in gameplay. Plug in a control pad, such as the recently reviewed Gamesir G3w gamepad, fire up a game such as Asphalt 8 and you actually get a console like experience with the game running really smoothly and looking great on a large TV.
Of course being Android and having USB there are loads of opportunities for things this could be used for, for example add a webcam and use Skype on your TV or add a keyboard/mouse and use this as a workstation.
The Sumvision Cyclone X4+ is a great all round Android box for the price, offering great streaming and gaming experience for a low price.
Available now from Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/1QDjjXN
