New Product Review - Linkbox 500i HD H.265 FTA/IPTV Receiver

[Hyper]

New Product Review - Linkbox 500i HD H.265 FTA/IPTV Receiver


Here you go, all the pics and all the features/technical details.    


Pics i took myself, the features/tech details provided by Linkbox



 

[Hyper]

Linkbox 500i HD H.265 FTA/IPTV Receiver


FEATURES:


Fully HD up to 1080i/p
HEVC/H.265 Video decoding
WIFI support
Ethernet interface
BISS CAS Embeded
USB PVR ready : PVR / Time shift
Network Application supported : Youtube, Dailymotion, DLNA, Live TV, Weather forecast etc.
Automatic Firmware Update
NTP (Network Time Protocol)
Compliant of DVB-S & DVB-S2 (QPSK/8PSK/16APSK/32APSK) Digital & DVB broadcasting
Supports MPEG-2 MP@HL
Supports HEVC/H.265 MP@level 4.0 High tier
Supports H.264 BP (with no ASO/FMO), MP& HP@ L3/L4.1
Supports High Definition Video output : Digital Output
Full HD Resolution supported : 1080p, 1080i, 720p, 576p, 576i, 480p, 480i
Audio Decoding : MPEG-1 Layer1,2&3(MP3), MPEG-2 layer2, MPEG-2 AAC
Satellite Tuner : 950-2150 MHz Input Frequency, Symbol rate 1-45 Msps
Very Fast Smart Search (Blind Scan)
Demodulation : QPSK/8PSK/16APSK/32APSK
USB PVR Ready : FAT16 / FAT32 / NTFS Format function, Recording, Playback, EPG Time record, Time shift
Multimedia File Playback by USB : Movie, Music, Photo
Fast Channel Change (< 1second)
Supports Teletext subtile / DVB subtitle
10,000 channels TV & Radio channels
Channel Edittting Function : Favorite, Delete, Skip, Lock
8 Favorite List
User-friendly EPG(Electronic Program Guide)
16bits color OSD(On Screen Display)
Screen Format : 4:3, 16:9
Hardware Copy Protection
Software Upgrade through USB, Network
Multiple LNB switching control : DiSeqC 1.2 and USALS Compatible
Network : 10/100M Full/Half Duplex Ethernet Interface supported
Automatic Firmware Update through Network.
Supports WIFI Remote Controller
DLNA supported
Network TV supported : LiveTV, M3U8 Player, User IPTV
Network Audio supported : Buddha audio, Quranic audio
Weather Forecasting


TECHNICAL SPECS:


Tuner & Decoder

Tuner DVB-S/S2 support
Frequency range 950 ~ 2150 MHz
Input Level -25 ~ 80dBm
Input Impedance 75Ω
LNB Power 13V/18V/OFF DISEqC 1.0 /1.2/USALS
LNB 13/18V, 22 KHz Tone, DiSeqC 1.2 support
Demodulation QPSK, 8PSK, 16APSK, 32APSK
Symbol rate 1 ~ 45 MS/s

MPEG Transport Stream A/V Decoding

Transport stream MPEG-2 ISO/IEC 13818-1
Input Bit Stream Rate Max. 80Mbit/s @ MPEG2, Max. 60Mbit/s @ H.264/AVC
Video decoding HEVC/H.265 MP@level 4.0 High tier MPEG-2 MP@HL H.264 BP (with no ASO/FMO), MP& HP@ L3/L4.1 AVS Jizhun profile @ L6.0/ L4.0 AVS Broadcast profile @ L6.0/ L4.0 MPEG-4 SP Profile VC1 SP@ML, MP@HL, AP@L0~3 H.263 baseline profile
Video output Digital output
Video resolution 1080p, 1080i, 720p, 576p, 576i, 480p, 480i
Aspect ratio 4:3, 16:9
Audio decoding MPEG-1 Layer1,2&3(MP3), MPEG-2 layer2 MPEG-2 AAC
Audio mode Stereo L/R

Main system

Main CPU 32bit RISC CPU
Memory DDR3 1Gb(128Mbyte)
Flash Memory 8Mbyte SPI Flash

Front & Rear panel

LED Power, Tuner Lock
USB 1 X USB 2.0 Host Support
Ethernet RJ-45

A/V & Data interface

HDMI Support HDMI 1.4a (DVI mode support)

Power Supply

Type SMPS
Input range AC 110-240V, 50/60 Hz
Power Consumption Max 20W
Standby mode < 1W


Includes:

Linkbox 500i FTA/IPTV Receiver (US Power supply)
Remote Control
HDMI Cable
User Manual

[elbandido]

Full HD Resolution supported : 1080p, 1080i, 720p, 576p, 576i, 480p, 480i

The side of the gift box says 1080p 1080i 720p.

Is there a video connection for the 480i resolution? Or are you running the 480i resolution through the HDMI cable?

Thanks.

[Hyper]

No other video connections on this box, only the HDMI connection.

[elbandido]

I guess the side of the gift box is correct if there are no other connections.

The YouTube and a couple other features will likely require maintenance every few months by Linkbox. We will see...

Would be interesting to see some blindscan results of 83 west and 87 west c band. There are not many channels but there are many APSK transponders on these two satellites.

Anyway, it looks like this receiver will work to a degree on at least 7 out of 10 fta channels that can be received.
You can't expect much during a Pandemic like the one we are having now. It is doubtful there will be many new fta receiver models for 2021.

[Hyper]

Yes, it remains to be seen how long the support of the Youtube, other internet features will be supported. And i agree with you, i do not think too many new box's will be coming out in 2021. This last 11 months has really slowed down everything, for sure.

OK. Here is a true blind scan of SES 2 87.0W C Band (i deleted all TP's in the box to be sure)

8 Transponders

4080 H 23112
4158 H 4295
4176 H 2893
4080 H 23112
3740 V 34002
3780 V 34002
3820 V 3001
4091 V 13556
4127 V 4622


3 TV Channels Bahamas Mux  (4158 H 4295 )
1 Radio Channel  (4176 H 2893) english language

Only took just over 2 1/2 minutes for the full scan, but weird thing, it did not populate the Transponder list in the receiver afterword with the identified transponders.

Also so far i see nowhere where it lists the modulation 8PSK, QPSK etc..   Not unique to the Linkbox 500i, many receivers share this "problem". I just wish all new receivers going forward would get these kinds of details right for us hobbyists.


I will scan 83.0W shortly, but give me a easy TP or 2 to look for it if you dont mind. Making some changes here on my BUD and kinda starting over on motor positions.

[Hyper]

One thing i really like about the Linkbox 500i is the Signal/Quality Meter

Very sensitive, responsive, and accurate signal/quality meter
Very Large Signal/Quality on-screen display
Signal/Quality button on remote control


Past models of Linkbox (8000/9000i) this was an issue. Signal Quality was either at next to nothing or magically at 98% when you found the signal. Not the case with this box. It seems to move in almost real time. Very well done in my opinion.

And when you hit the Sig/Qual button on the remote, your eyes will not strain to see it on the screen, LOL. The largest on-screen read-out i have ever seen.

[Hyper]

Linkbox 500i HD FTA/IPTV H.265 Receiver

Pros and Cons List

As part of my review i am making a Pros and Cons list. As most of us know, there is no perfect FTA receiver, so this helps me to keep track of what i like and dislike about a receiver. I will be adding to this as i get more time to test it, so check this post in the near future for more info as each list will surely grow. Hopefully the Pros list will grow the most.

Pros

Good fast accurate Blind Scan  <<< still testing this, but results good so far
Very sensitive, responsive, and accurate signal/quality meter
Very Large Signal/Quality on-screen display
Signal/Quality button on remote
SID Info displayed
Manual PID entry
PVR
Wifi/Ethernet Internet Functions
US Power Cord  <<<  i dislike receivers when they come with a Euro power cord and the adapter. Too big and clunky and they come unplugged easily. C'mon people if you want to sell a receiver in the USA, give us a power cord for North America. Linkbox does!
NTP Keeps time perfectly   <<< still testing this, but results good so far
Scan QR Code and control receiver with your phone or ipad
Software Upgrade through Network, i have tested this and it works great*

*2 Updates in the last 7 days. Latest software version V 1.0.5. Not sure what all bugs/improvements they are fixing, but AC3 audio has been added with this update, although it is still not 100% fixed. Its still really new to me, i am just starting to test and review, so maybe in the future i will notice what the updates are doing. Maybe not, LOL

More on the AC3 issue:

http://legalfreetoair.com/index.php?topic=51168.msg190367#msg190367


Cons

AC3 Audio support*  They are working on fixing this
No modulation info (QPSK, 8PSK, etc..)
No Timer on Blind Scan
Does not come with USB Wifi antenna
Only 1 USB Port*

*If you want to take advantage of the PVR functions, you need the USB port, so your only option for Internet/IPTV features is to use the Ethernet
connection to your router directly. Of course this is best for these features anyway, but some situations you want to use wifi. Wifi works great by
the way, but you must use a USB Wifi antenna, so not open USB port for PVR if you use Wifi.



More to come as i test further.......



 

[elbandido]

The modulation 8PSK, QPSK is probably not listed because whoever wrote the code was not interested in fta scanning. The receiver was envisioned with transponders being known, which is pretty common in most parts of the world.

Below is what the Mini4k gets on 83w. Anything that is listed tp's 20-21 may be DVB-S2X so we cannot expect the Linkbox to scan or find those transponders. Active DVB-S2X transponders with fta channels are few and far between in North America. It is unknown when or if DVB-S2X will be used more.

There are several data transponders that switch off and on in this list. In the past, transponders that do that have made some receivers freeze during blindscan.
< File created on Sunday, January 31, 2021 at 10:49:58 >
< Satellite =  83.0W C-band AMC-18 83.1 W >
< Receiver = edision osmini4k >
< Enigma2 Image = Tnap 4.0 >
< Kernel Version = 5.9.0 >
< DVB Driver Date = 2021-01-07 >
< Blindscan Frequency Range = 3625 to 4800 MHz >
< Blindscan Symbol Rate Range = 1 to 60 Msps >
< Blindscan Only Free Channels or Services? = True  >
< Tuner = Tuner A: Availink AVL6261 (DVB-S2X) >
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 3745H / 9810 / 8/9' > Tp# 1
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 3754H / 6540 / 5/6' > Tp# 2
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 3791V / 16360 / 8/9' > Tp# 3 ---Strong TP---
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 3801V / 2540 / 5/6' > Tp# 4
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 3887V / 5090 / 8/9' > Tp# 5
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 3894V / 5627 / 8/9' > Tp# 6
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 3912V / 18910 / 5/6' > Tp# 7
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 3929V / 4181 / 5/6' > Tp# 8
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 3934V / 3727 / 8/9' > Tp# 9
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 3948V / 10910 / 9/10' > Tp# 10
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 3955V / 1872 / 8/9' > Tp# 11
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 3966V / 17289 / 5/6' > Tp# 12
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 3976V / 2490 / 8/9' > Tp# 13
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 3984V / 3645 / 5/6' > Tp# 14
< 'DVB-S2 32APSK 4016V / 3500 / 5/6' > Tp# 15
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 4029V / 12790 / 5/6' > Tp# 16  ---Strong TP---
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 4047V / 15300 / 5/6' > Tp# 17
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 4068V / 10063 / AUTO' > Tp# 18
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 4074V / 1454 / 8/9' > Tp# 19
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 4078V / 5636 / AUTO' > Tp# 20
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 4081V / 1000 / AUTO' > Tp# 21
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 4085V / 5909 / AUTO' > Tp# 22
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 4093V / 6499 / 3/4' > Tp# 23
< 'DVB-S2 16APSK 4116V / 1972 / 5/6' > Tp# 24
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 4121V / 8445 / 8/9' > Tp# 25
< 'DVB-S2 8PSK 4132V / 8217 / 5/6' > Tp# 26<

Blind Scan Time = 3 Min. 54 Sec.
0 Channels ( TV = 0  Radio = 0)  26 of 26 Transponders Scanned.

Try a small usb hub and see if you can run a small usb storage device and usb wifi at the same time. It is pretty common to have usb hub drivers installed without them being advertised.

[Hyper]

The Linkbox 500i HD H.265 FTA/IPTV comes with 205 IPTV channels.

Many of these are for the East Asia market, China, Tawian, Korea, Laos, Thailand, etc..  Tons of these channels

However, there are definitely some good ones in english

Such as

ABC News Live
Al Jazeera English
Bloomberg
Channel News Asia
MLB Network
NHK World
RT
SJY News
France 24 English


Most of the channels work great, some do not work at all.

Of course, these could stop working at any time, who knows. Or others could be added. No guarantee either way.


There is also a section to add your own User IPTV channels.  

I have not figured out how to do this yet, but i am working on it and will let you know.



 

[Hyper]

Other Network Features include:

Youtube
Dailymotion
DLNA
Live TV  << this is the IPTV section with 205 channels
M3U8 Player
User IPTV
Movie Box
Buddha Audio
Quranic Audio
Weather Forecast


I have tested all of these except the DLNA section and they all work good.