Quick review. Can't take claim for this I'm afraid as I found it over at another site:
Inside the box is the STB wrapped in the static bag, the NEW remote, and power cord with the adapter already attached. There are no batteries. There is also no instruction manual. This is no big deal as most China manuals are all but worthless anyway. A small trifold sheet was included showing stuff about cardshare. It actually looks like it is from a S9 by the menus shown, not an S10.
Here is a picture to show how tiny the OpenBox S10 HD PVR is. The bottom unit is the AZ Premium HD+, the middle is an OpenBox S9, and on the top is the new OpenBox S10 HD PVR.
Each unit had prescanned channels in it from Asia, they had apparently tested each piece. The menu layout of the S10 is a bit different than the S9. Instead of the main menu items being vertical on the right, they are horizontal across the top. It took all of about 2 minutes to get used to this. Otherwise it functions just like a S9. The Ali 3602 chipset has the ability for the engineer to change the look and feel of the box, and that is all they did. Same trick that the so-called “Manhattan” is using to make it look like something new.
The USALS and DiseqC 1.2 motor controls like the S9, both are flawless. 22kHz and DiseqC switch settings also work fine. The signal meter appears to read and curve just like the S9. Ku and C-band on the small dish work just like the S9. The tuner is the same Sharp high sensitivity tuner, except that it is mounted on a module/board and can be replaced. I have yet to see a tuner fail in an OpenBox so this shouldn’t be necessary.
Blindscan
Blindscan functions similar to the S9 with the latest 0321 “greenfix” file. It is somewhat slower than earlier firmware, but it is accurate and still faster than a great many units out there. Like the S9, the OpenBox S10 HD PVR scans for DVB-S and DVB-S2 at the same time.
Remote control
The OpenBox S10 HD PVR is available with either the v3 or a new remote control. As much as I personally like the v3, it has caused many people issues with accidental pressing of the VFORMAT button and losing picture because it only cycles thru PAL modes. The latest remote has a much smaller VFORMAT button that is harder to hit by accident. This is the smallest OpenBox remote control yet. It seems well built, button presses are good, and the range/angles are probably better than the v3. It has its own satlist button. The “zoom” button still activates the satlist just like on the v1, v2 and v3’s. The S10 also works with the v1, v2 and v3 remotes. The only downside I see to the new remote is some of the buttons are tiny. If you have chubby hands they might be a bit harder to hit. Personally I am not having issues other than learning the slightly different layout.
As for a name for this remote, I guess we can call it the v4.
The new “v4” remote is pictured on top, the v3 is in the middle, and the v1 is on the bottom. The “v4” is the smallest remote yet from OpenBox.
Hardware Changes
I don’t have to say how tiny the new OpenBox S10 HD PVR is. Other than the tiny design I observed the following changes:
* SCART has been eliminated. Unless you have an old EU analog TV or VCR, this is not used in North America.
* Video and audio output is simple now: HDMI or composite (analog 480i) output. There is no component (Y/Cb/Cr) outputs. There is also no S/PDIF output. Dolby/AC-3 is either thru HDMI or thru the RCA red & white jacks.
* Replaceable modules for HDMI and Tuner. I have yet to see a tuner fail on an OpenBox, but I did have a guy fry his HDMI port before.
* Smaller mainboard, power supply, ect. That is a given for the much tinier case size.
* 12V, 50mA power output. This is not an 0/12V switch which we could use. It appears to be a continuous 12VDC output. I see no legitimate use for this, but it is there.
Heat
I had to wondered about heat with everything being so tiny. The OpenBox S9 literally ran cold. I’ve had an OpenBox S10 HD PVR running for over an hour, C-band LNBF, switching, PVR/HDD. I’d say 250mA continuous. It is luke warm, that’s it.
Audio/Video
As noted before, you get HDMI or analog composite. HDMI picture is just as good as the S9 or AZbox. HDMI modes are NTSC 480i/480p/720p and 1080i. EU PAL modes are also supported at 50HZ: 576i/576p/720p and 1080i.
Analog/composite supports 480i NTSC, 576i PAL, PAL-M and PAL-N or whatever those goofy modes are. All are tested and work with my NTSC/PAL TV.
The S10 does not appear to have the “green” tint issue observed with 480i analog on some NTSC TV’s with the older S9 files.
OpenBox S10 HD PVR Utilities and files
The S10 played my S9 PVR files perfectly and uses the same .dvr format. The PVR Tool, serial loader and Ali Editor all work with the S10. The OpenBox S10 also loaded my S9 TP_PROG.dbs file fine. The only thing I did not test was a full S9 to S10 firmware flash, I am not in the mood to fry a S10 on the first day.
Recommendation for S9 owners and guys that were going to buy the S9
Other than the tiny size, guys with the S9 are not missing anything. They did change the GUI, but function wise it is the same Ali technology. The real time clock still resets when rebooting and they have not yet put the H/V polarity scan back in the unit. S9 guys are fine with what you have.
If you were looking at an S9, buy the S10. It is the newest model and as such I would expect it will receive factory improvements first. Should anything go wrong, the replaceable modules should make repair and turnaround time faster. The wife might like the cute, tiny little box better too.
”New” GUI
As noted before, the OpenBox engineers went in and changed the GUI. It effectively functions like the S9 or a Traxis, just with horizontal layout for main item access instead of vertical. Looks fancy and new, but it is in all Ali 3602 based STB’s. Here are some screens…
Inside the box is the STB wrapped in the static bag, the NEW remote, and power cord with the adapter already attached. There are no batteries. There is also no instruction manual. This is no big deal as most China manuals are all but worthless anyway. A small trifold sheet was included showing stuff about cardshare. It actually looks like it is from a S9 by the menus shown, not an S10.
Here is a picture to show how tiny the OpenBox S10 HD PVR is. The bottom unit is the AZ Premium HD+, the middle is an OpenBox S9, and on the top is the new OpenBox S10 HD PVR.
Each unit had prescanned channels in it from Asia, they had apparently tested each piece. The menu layout of the S10 is a bit different than the S9. Instead of the main menu items being vertical on the right, they are horizontal across the top. It took all of about 2 minutes to get used to this. Otherwise it functions just like a S9. The Ali 3602 chipset has the ability for the engineer to change the look and feel of the box, and that is all they did. Same trick that the so-called “Manhattan” is using to make it look like something new.
The USALS and DiseqC 1.2 motor controls like the S9, both are flawless. 22kHz and DiseqC switch settings also work fine. The signal meter appears to read and curve just like the S9. Ku and C-band on the small dish work just like the S9. The tuner is the same Sharp high sensitivity tuner, except that it is mounted on a module/board and can be replaced. I have yet to see a tuner fail in an OpenBox so this shouldn’t be necessary.
Blindscan
Blindscan functions similar to the S9 with the latest 0321 “greenfix” file. It is somewhat slower than earlier firmware, but it is accurate and still faster than a great many units out there. Like the S9, the OpenBox S10 HD PVR scans for DVB-S and DVB-S2 at the same time.
Remote control
The OpenBox S10 HD PVR is available with either the v3 or a new remote control. As much as I personally like the v3, it has caused many people issues with accidental pressing of the VFORMAT button and losing picture because it only cycles thru PAL modes. The latest remote has a much smaller VFORMAT button that is harder to hit by accident. This is the smallest OpenBox remote control yet. It seems well built, button presses are good, and the range/angles are probably better than the v3. It has its own satlist button. The “zoom” button still activates the satlist just like on the v1, v2 and v3’s. The S10 also works with the v1, v2 and v3 remotes. The only downside I see to the new remote is some of the buttons are tiny. If you have chubby hands they might be a bit harder to hit. Personally I am not having issues other than learning the slightly different layout.
As for a name for this remote, I guess we can call it the v4.
The new “v4” remote is pictured on top, the v3 is in the middle, and the v1 is on the bottom. The “v4” is the smallest remote yet from OpenBox.
Hardware Changes
I don’t have to say how tiny the new OpenBox S10 HD PVR is. Other than the tiny design I observed the following changes:
* SCART has been eliminated. Unless you have an old EU analog TV or VCR, this is not used in North America.
* Video and audio output is simple now: HDMI or composite (analog 480i) output. There is no component (Y/Cb/Cr) outputs. There is also no S/PDIF output. Dolby/AC-3 is either thru HDMI or thru the RCA red & white jacks.
* Replaceable modules for HDMI and Tuner. I have yet to see a tuner fail on an OpenBox, but I did have a guy fry his HDMI port before.
* Smaller mainboard, power supply, ect. That is a given for the much tinier case size.
* 12V, 50mA power output. This is not an 0/12V switch which we could use. It appears to be a continuous 12VDC output. I see no legitimate use for this, but it is there.
Heat
I had to wondered about heat with everything being so tiny. The OpenBox S9 literally ran cold. I’ve had an OpenBox S10 HD PVR running for over an hour, C-band LNBF, switching, PVR/HDD. I’d say 250mA continuous. It is luke warm, that’s it.
Audio/Video
As noted before, you get HDMI or analog composite. HDMI picture is just as good as the S9 or AZbox. HDMI modes are NTSC 480i/480p/720p and 1080i. EU PAL modes are also supported at 50HZ: 576i/576p/720p and 1080i.
Analog/composite supports 480i NTSC, 576i PAL, PAL-M and PAL-N or whatever those goofy modes are. All are tested and work with my NTSC/PAL TV.
The S10 does not appear to have the “green” tint issue observed with 480i analog on some NTSC TV’s with the older S9 files.
OpenBox S10 HD PVR Utilities and files
The S10 played my S9 PVR files perfectly and uses the same .dvr format. The PVR Tool, serial loader and Ali Editor all work with the S10. The OpenBox S10 also loaded my S9 TP_PROG.dbs file fine. The only thing I did not test was a full S9 to S10 firmware flash, I am not in the mood to fry a S10 on the first day.
Recommendation for S9 owners and guys that were going to buy the S9
Other than the tiny size, guys with the S9 are not missing anything. They did change the GUI, but function wise it is the same Ali technology. The real time clock still resets when rebooting and they have not yet put the H/V polarity scan back in the unit. S9 guys are fine with what you have.
If you were looking at an S9, buy the S10. It is the newest model and as such I would expect it will receive factory improvements first. Should anything go wrong, the replaceable modules should make repair and turnaround time faster. The wife might like the cute, tiny little box better too.
”New” GUI
As noted before, the OpenBox engineers went in and changed the GUI. It effectively functions like the S9 or a Traxis, just with horizontal layout for main item access instead of vertical. Looks fancy and new, but it is in all Ali 3602 based STB’s. Here are some screens…
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