*Official* Nixeus Fusion XS Thread

Nixeus, a Los Angeles based startup, will be introducing their Nixeus Fusion XS product shortly. There is already a Fusion XS board in their own forums.

Let us use this thread to discuss the player, its platform and exchange tips and tricks after the product comes to the market.

I will update this post as and when info becomes available.

Well, I do have information but it is under NDA right now. Probably next week or so, I can make public what I know.

NDA lifted Here is our analysis:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4214/n...he-dma-market/

Yes, each of the cores run at 900 MHz. However, on a per-clock basis, the MIPS CPUs in Sigma 8656 are slightly more efficient than the cores in the 88DE3010. However, because of higher clock rate in 88DE3010, the general performance is expected to be better on it.

I think there will be options to install apps, but that info and the remote etc. will be known only closer to launch time.

The official PR will come before the end of March (It has already been approved by Marvell also). It is just that AnandTech requested an exclusive on the launch (because we have been providing Nixeus feedback on what should be improved in Fusion XS and what features we think the market wants). I am also in touch with Marvell PR, and I know the project is definitely on

Just to give an indicator of how AnandTech operates (at least with respect to media streamer products), we have actually had the Fusion HD review sample since December 2010. Whenever we finish up a review, we give a preview link to the manufacturer to see whether they have any responses / bug fixes in the pipeline to resolve our issues. When Nixeus promised HD audio passthrough, I was not quite happy that it wasn't available from MKV container. There was no support for chapters or PGS subtitles in MKVs. I indicated these issues (amongst a host of others) to them, and they asked me to put the review on hold till these were resolve implemented.

Basically, AnandTech aims to make the product better for the consumer as well as the manufacturer. Only in very extreme cases do we actually put out a majorly negative review (when we know for sure that the item's firmware development is EOL or almost EOL, like the TViX Slim S1).

In the course of giving feedback about Fusion HD, I got to know about their plans for Fusion XS. For the last 2 - 3 months, I have been given frequent updates as to the status of the Fusion XS project.

Anyways, we do have official confirmation of the product on the Nixeus forums:

http://www.nixeus.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=203

The important thing to remember about media streamer products is that there is nothing which can fit all your criteria by giving all the flexibilities of a HTPC. It is a give and take policy. Knowing the limitations of the chipset and the maturity of its SDK will give you an idea of how much can be achieved with it. As I have mentioned countless times before, always read unbiased reviews and forum posts before purchasing the unit. All media players have shortcomings, and in our reviews at least, we make it a point to list them all.

PS: Let me also give a plug to another tangentially related thread I created yesterday, in case it skipped your notice: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1321163 ;

For Fusion HD, it is just a matter of priorities and standing out from the competition. As I mentioned in the original Fusion HD thread, your price needs to tally with the cost. The warranty and the bundled wireless-N and US support do not matter much to the end user if it doesn't deliver the features one wants. Why hype up those features and support the player initiailly?

In this context, the only fault that I can see with the Fusion HD is the user interface. Compare this with other 8654 / 8655 based platforms. How many of them have seamless Blu-Ray branching? How many have HD audio from MKV which is fast becoming one of the standard way to back up Blu-Rays after ISO format.

If you look at WDTV Live (same 8655), has there been any change in core functionality since launch (They are yet to do DTS-HD audio passthrough from M2TS / any HD audio from MKV)? It is all a matter of perspective. I repeat what I stated in my review, the Fusion HD is the best 8655 based player when you discount the user interface.

Also, never buy a media player till it does all you want. Don't expect firmware updates (if you get them, it is a bonus). Nixeus states it is still working on updates for PGS subtitles (which is the most required feature after HD audio in MKV) amongst other things. If those updates come through, it would be nice. If it doesn't, well, you already know the limiatations after reading the review. Hopefully, the player wasn't purchased if that feature was very important to the customer.


I don't think there is much hope. Yes, Flash 10.1 is there. But, this would just be like any other Android 2.2 device (can you watch Hulu on your tablet or smartphone running Android? Unlikely...);

Unfortunately, I don't have any Android tablets / smartphones capable of Flash to confirm this. My educated guess is that it is not accessible. I have asked some of my colleagues at AnandTech to look into this in particular.