How do We get MiBox S to Play 4K Netflix on MiTV4 ?

28 Apr 2019

# ARC # MiTV4 # sound system

1) How to Connect to MiTV4?
2) How to Set up and Test?
3) The Netflix 4K Video Playing Requirements
4) Mibox S/MiTV4 Combination Cannot Play 4K Netflix
5) Where Can I Find the Netflix Test Pattern? 
6) How Long Should the Test run?
7) Helpful APK's and other Tips
8) Playing Netflix Movies in Xiaomi TV4 (MiTV4)
9) Where Can I download APK for MiTV4?

 # MiTV4,  Mibox S,  Netflix 4K,  Youtube 4K 
https://tinyurl.com/y2x3lkbo

MiTV4 has a 4K screen but it cannot play Netflix and Youtube 4K video because it does not have VP9 video decoders to play 4K Youtube videos;  also,   it does not have the Netflix certification  to play 4K Netflix  movies.   The  best and cost effective solution is to get a MiBox S.

What is MiBox S?

 MiBox S is a TV box manufactured by Xiaomi specially for the international market.

The Specification of MiBox S can be found here.   The  full review of MiBox S can be found here.  This article will only give the summary and some details and tips not covered in these 2 documents.

MiBox S uses almost the same hardware as many MiTVs as well as many other Mi TV Boxes.  The differences between MiBox S and MiTV are as shown here.

	MiBox S	MiTV4	Remarks
Operating System (OS)	Android TV 8.1	Patchwall	same for other MiTV4 models such as 4A, 4S etc except the Pro series made for India and Indonesia markets have Android TV as well as Patchwall OS
CPU	Amlogic A905X (Cortex A53)	Amlogic T968
Number of cores	4 core	4 core
CPU speed	1.5 Ghz	1.8 Ghz	Other models of MiTV4 such as 4A,  4S have 1.5 Ghz CPU
VP9 built in OS chip	Yes	No	MiTV cannot play Youtube 4K video
Digital Right Management (DRM)	Level 1	Level 3	Level 3 can only play Netflix @ 480p
Netflix Certified	Yes	No
Play Netflix @ 4K on MiTV4	Yes	No	Maximum @ 480p on MiTV4

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How to Connect to MiTV4?

The Mibox S came with a 5 Volt power supply,  a Bluetooth remote control that has special Netflix and Live buttons  and a cheap and short pair of HDMI cable. There is no connection for Ethernet cable  and the box must be connected to the wifi network either via 2.4 Ghz or 5.0 Ghz.  Just connect the MiBox S to any other HDMI connector at the back of MiTV and hook up the box to the Power Supply provided.

It was found that MiBox S worked  pretty well in 4K Netflix videos with the 5 Ghz Wifi Network that ran at a speed around  5 Mbps.  
If the Wifi Network isn't performing as expected,  one can install a USB 2.0 Ethernet adapter;  those with 3 additional USB extension is worth considering.  As MiBox S has only an USB 2.0 outlet,  the USB 3.0 Ethernet adapter will not work on MiBox S.
The short and cheap looking HDMI stock cable worked without any problem.

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How to Set up and Test?

Description	Actions	Remark (Double click picture to enlarge)
1.  At the Main Menu	Select the correct HDMI where MiBox S is connected to the MiTV4	In this example,  Mibox S is connected to HDMI1 The following  Android TV screen will appear
2. Select to change the Display resolution	1.  In the Main Menu,  select the Setup gear at the top right hand corner 2.  In the [Setup] screen,  select [Display]  3.  In the [Display] screen,  select [screen resolution] to set the [Display Mode] to [4K2k-60 Hz] 4  Back to the [Display] screen,  select [HDR to SDR] and turn it [Off] 5.  Then select [SDR to HDR] and turn it [On].	1.  SetUp Screen 2  Display Screen 3. Screen Resolution Screen  Note:  HDR would require [Color Space] to be changed from 8 bit to 10 bit and to have auto switch turned on for such changes 4.  Display Mode Screen
3.  Back in the Android TV screen,  select to play Youtube	If Youtube is not shown in the first page,  select [App] to find Youtube and doubleclick the Youtube icon.  In the Youtube screen,  select [Search] and type [4K video]	All the 4K video should appear on the screen
4.  Test Youtube videos	Select to play any 4K video;  find and check the screen resolution under [Quality]	The 4K wording should be  displayed;   if not,  check other videos.
5.  Select to play Netflix videos	Select to play Netflix from the main menu of the Android screen	Netflix is always shown on the first page of the MiBox S.  Make sure one has the right to play the Netflix video in UHD or 4K mode
6.   Test Netflix videos	Search and select to play any 4K video	The [4K UHD] wording should appear in the first summary screen;  otherwise,  the system cannot play the video in 4K

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The Netflix 4K Video Playing Requirements

To play 4K quality movie in Netflix , one would need 3 things

1. A player certified to play Netflix and a TV that can play 4K; 

2. The player and TV are complying with HDMI 2.0 and HDCP 2.2; 

3. The cable must be of high speed grade or have it as short as possible; 

 MiTV4 and MiBox S have 1 & 2. 

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Mibox S/MiTV4 Combination Cannot Play 4K Netflix

Despite having properly connected up the Mibox S to MiTV4 and use the correct settings,    many users are still not able to get Netflix to play 4K movies @ 3840 x 2160 resolution .  The best  resolution they can get is 1920 x 1080 which is High Definition or HD as shown by this Netflix [Test Pattern].

There is always the last step to try:

1.   Remove all connected HDMI devices from the MiTV4;  left only the MiBox S connected;

2.  Switch off the TV and MiBox S for a few second and restart/reboot the MiTV4 & MiBOx S

After this,  the MiTV should be able to play 4K Netflix videos. This last step is to make sure that MiTV will set Mibox S as the default player and no other HDMI device can "hijack" the controls between MiTV and MiBox S.

When Mibox S detected there is a 4K movie,  it will start searching if  MiTV4 has HDCP 2.2.  If it cannot find the complying TV, it will not play the movie in 4K.  

When the combination is able to play 4K Netflix movies,  reconnect back all the other HDMI devices.  If necessary,   do a reboot and recheck again.

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Where Can I Find the Netflix Test Pattern?

Just do a simple search in the Netflix screen by typing "Test Pattern",   the icon [Test Pattern] should appear.

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How Long Should the Test run?

Usually less than 2 minutes.   

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Helpful APK's and other Tips

The helpful APK to be used in MiBox S are :

1)  [Sideloader Launcher].   This APK allow the display of all the APK icons,  including those non-Android TV APKs which one could never find them in the Andriod TV pages;  one could add this launcher  icon to the front page for easy access;

2)  [ES File Explorer] :  This APK will allow one to explore what is in the MiBox S;  usually,  it is installed as part of the MiBox's Apps.  This APK could not be found in MiBox's Google Store.  The installation will require side loading the APK from USB stick or from the Cloud Drive like Google Drive. 

3)  [Aptiode TV] .  This is a popular APK that is working like an alternative to Google Store.  It has all the TV APKs,  certified or non-certified by Google.   This APK also could not be found in MiBox's Google Store and must be side loaded from USB or installing it from ES File Explorer's Favorite Section;

4.  [Puffin TV] :  This is a useful TV browser that contain many US TV station apps.  It can also be used as a useful TV web browser.