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MG FACTS by Marriott_Guy
ZTE and The9 Company entered the growing market of micro-consoles with their release of the FunBox on April 10, 2014. Following in the footsteps of the OUYA and GameStick, the FunBox is designed to provide an alternative to traditional gaming consoles by utilizing Android's popular open-sourced operating system (4.3 Jelly Bean in this case). The system was initially released in China, with international distribution following shortly thereafter. Like similar entries in this field, the FunBox has an extremely small footprint. The black cube-shaped housing is non-obtrusive with an entirely functional design. A single power button resides on the top of the unit, while the aft section contains the various ports - HDMI 1.4a, Ethernet port, 3.55mm headphone jack, USB 2.0 and a micro USB port. The hardware is powered by a NVIDIA Tegra 4 SoC, sports 2GB DDR3L RAM with 8GB of internal Flash Storage. Wireless connectivity is supported (Wi-Fi 802.11 a\b\g\n) in addition to the standard 100Mbit Ethernet connection. Bluetooth 4.0 wireless input devices are supported (limited at this point).

A proprietary gamepad is included with the system. This wireless Bluetooth 4.0 controller is designed with the same control layout as the standard DualShock 3 controller used with the PlayStation 3. The FunBox currently supports up to four wireless controllers to be used simultaneously. A nice touch is the included Media Remote, allowing access to very basic functions of the FunBox (volume, Home, etc.). Curiously, this remote does not include a power on/off button for the actual console. That said, this addition is welcomed and not something that is provided by the competition. As of this writing, control by smart phone or tablet is not supported.
Main GUI	Settings Menu
The FunBox utilizes a customized version of the Android 4.3 operating system. Updates to the system can be manually conducted or set to be performed automatically behind the scenes with virtually no interruption while interacting with the system. The default language is Chinese, but this can be changed to English using the Apex Launcher. FunBox natively supports apps from NVIDIA TegraZone as well as the Google Play Store (via root). Quick access to popular TV and online streaming content is readily available for those in China, but international users will have to be content with accessing like features through their own initiative (root). ZTE and The9 seems to have hit a homerun with this initial release of the FunBox, experiencing minimal glitches through the first few months that the system has been available. The price point may be slightly higher than the competition, but so is the upside with the advanced technical specs and performance.

SPECS & MANUALS
For the hardware enthusiasts out there - all the detail you\we love.

Processor Type	Processor Speed	Other Processor Information	RAM \ Video RAM
NVIDIA Tegra 4	1.8 GHz	72-core GeForce GPU (included via SoC)	2GB DDR3L RAM
Screen Resolution	Color Palette	Polygons \ Sprites	Audio
720p \ 1080p	32-bit	Unknown	5.1-Channel Surround Sound (Dolby Digital and Linear PCM)
Media Format	Media Capacity	Games Released	Other Supported Formats
Digital (Streamed)	Varied	200+	Open platform with support for the TegraZone, multiple Audio/Video Codec support
Internal Storage	External \ Removable Storage	Game Controllers	Other Game \ Peripheral Devices
8GB eMMC	microSD card supported via USB Card Reader	Gamepad featuring two analog sticks, D-pad, eight action buttons, Start/Select/Home buttons, micro USB port (?)	Includes a media remote control, supports commons USB \ Bluetooth devices (keyboard\mouse\drives)
Controller Ports	Network Ports	Other Ports	Audio \ Video
Bluetooth 4.0 (1-4 controllers)	100Mbit Ethernet Socket, Wi-Fi (2.4 \ 5.0GHz)	USB 2.0 port, micro USB port, 3.5mm Headphone Jack	HDMI 1.4a
Power Supply - External	Other Outputs	Other Details \ Notes
Input: AC 110\220V, 60\50Hz Output: 12V, 1.5A	None	Customized Android 4.3 OS
Manuals
Not available.