Hi there , I’m Jimmy.

 

 

First post here... apologies in advance for any questions that might sound dumb.

 

My plan: buy Android TV boxes and install Armbian to run browsers and remote control using AnyDesk.

 

I chose Android TV boxes - everything is complete and contained in a small box + very cheap.

For £45 for example, I can get with power supply - with 2GB RAM - not sure about processor though.

 

- Should I consider other options? Like Orange Pi? I've got a 3rd generation Raspberry Pi - that is so poor for speed, chokes on one or 2 browser tabs.

(I haven't tried Armbian - I will be doing shortly.)

 

- Need recommended hardware. Whether it's an Android TV box or other recommended... what's the BEST I can get for under £50 say?

 

- Backup image: I start with the TV box for example, I want to backup what I have before doing anything... what's the recommended tool for this?

 

Thank in advance.

 

 

Edited January 2, 20197 yr by ukzxcv

5 hours ago, ukzxcv said:

Armbian to run browsers

To give you some suggestion, we need to know what your daily use case is.

7 hours ago, ukzxcv said:

- Need recommended hardware. Whether it's an Android TV box or other recommended... what's the BEST I can get for under £50 say?  

What Tido said.
TV boxes are useful, but not very cutomisable.
If it's only to browse the internet, then be shure to check if the SoC has video hardware acceleration support in Linux. Otherwise you'll not be able to watch video in a decent quality on it.
You could also buy an SBC instead. There's anough choice for £50. Again it depends on what you need it to do. The RK3399's do well playing video, but are a bit more expensive.
For £60 you can buy the Rock Pi 4B with 2GB RAM, with PSU, cables, case, ... This is a very powerful board, may be overkill for your needs. But it will last a long time. Available software for it is rapidly growing.
https://shop.allnetchina.cn/collections/frontpage/products/rock-pi-4-model-b-with-dualband-2-4-5ghz-wlan-bluetooth-5-0?variant=15399293976678
 

Raspberry Pi's are the slowest boards around. The only thing good about it is the large choice of software. Orange Pi's are the worst in software support. Without Armbian support most would be completely useless.
FriendlyElec is a lot better for this. They've got a wide range of boards.
Before you buy a board, do good research on it. Ask on the Armbian Forum or their forum about the user experience of the board that you're interested in. Check if it can do everything you need without too much problems.
Otherwise the chance is great you'll have to buy something else again and pay 2x.
You can also watch my Youtube Channel for info about sbc's. I always test the video playback in browsers.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpv7NFr0-9AB5xoklh3Snhg/videos
 

Good luck.