The T95Z PLUS is an Android TV box that has some good hardware to run apps, games, and Kodi.
It has a hexagon shape with a clock and a soft light strip around the top of the unit that goes from green to blue.
One was sent to me to review with my honest opinion and results below.
Specifications
CPU: Amlogic S912 Octa-Core running at 2.0GHz
RAM: 3GB DDR3
Internal ROM: 32GB EMMC Flash
Wireless: Dual Band 2.4 GHz, 5GHz 802.11n
Bluetooth: 4.0
USB: 2 USB 2.0 slots
It comes with everything needed including the box, HDMI cable, power supply, remote control, and instructions.
The external ports include HDMI, 2 USB, power, optical, AV, Ethernet, and a SD-Card slot.
Starting the T95Z a standard android menu system comes up.
It has all the basic Apps installed such as a Browser, YouTube, Netflix, and Kodi.
The first step with any android TV box is to connect to the internet with a Ethernet cable or WiFi.
I setup a WiFi connection which is easy to do in Settings–>Network.
To test the WiFi I downloaded SpeedTest by Ookla which gave me 50.49 Mbps Down, and 5.66 Mbps Upload speed results.
My internet speed is max 50Mbps Down and 5Mbps Upload so it likely can go faster.
The wireless was much better than other boxes I have tested. The recommended Download speed from Netflix for standard 1080p HD videos is 5Mbps, with 25Mbps for 4K Ultra HD.
It should have no problems streaming High Definition videos over WiFi with a well placed router.
Next I started Kodi which it comes with Kodi 16.1 Jarvis installed.
Read the Update at the bottom of the page of it being updated to Kodi 17 Krypton.
It comes with the default Kodi Jarvis Confluence Skin which most will immediately recognize.
Going to System Information the resources being used to run Kodi was low, giving plenty of power to stream videos.
Lots of add-ons come installed including popular ones such as Exodus.
Add-ons can be installed or removed on any Kodi box but it is nice to have them already installed and ready to go.
For the last test I ran Antutu Benchmark which gave the AKASO T95Z PLUS a score of 41158.
When compared to a Nvidia Shield score of 65995 it may seem low, but is a good score since it cost much less.
Summary
The T95Z PLUS is a good mid-range android TV box that will have no problems streaming videos with Kodi, Netflix, or other sources.
The S912 processor is a good CPU with a slight improvement over the S905 and big improvement over the S805/S812 processors.
The 3GB of RAM will handle any HD 720p, 1080p, or the new 4K Ultra HD videos.
Internal storage at 32GB is better than many other boxes, of course this can always be expanded with a SD-Card, Flash Drive, or External Hard Drive.
Most android TV boxes have less than desirable wireless with the T95Z PLUS doing much better than others. The 50Mbps Down speed will be plenty enough to stream High Definition videos, of course a Ethernet cable would be the best option.
I am still testing the T95Z PLUS so far with good result and will update if there is any changes.
As always be sure to read the reviews on Amazon or elsewhere to be sure a box is a good fit for you.
*This post contains affiliate links.
Availability
Update
It been awhile since the original review on the T95Z PLUS and it is still going strong.
It was time to update to the newest version of Kodi 17 which it did and ran very well.
A fresh install of 17 did not use up much resources at all.
The older Kodi 16.1 Jarvis was also still working fine but with it getting older I decided to see how well it would run the 17 Krypton.
If you are using the T95Z PLUS with Jarvis there has been no clear benefit yet for upgrading.
If you would like to upgrade be aware all your old settings will likely disappear, as deleting the old Kodi version is best and installing a new fresh copy.
All the addo-ns will need to be setup again if this is done, so if you are happy with Jarvis there is no need to update yet.
Updating is easy enough to do from the Play Store or the Kodi Download page.
It also ran new add-ons with no problems.
Do I have to subscribe to IPTV to get channels ?
I’ve had one for a week and it has started freezing allready, I’m getting good broadband links on speed test but this thing just freezes every couple of minutes. STAY WELL CLEAR
Bought two of the T95Z boxes and they over heat. Seriously defective. there is no national or international safety certificate attached to these boxes. The defect must be well known to the industry. If you buy T95Z dont expect to use it for much more than twenty minutes at a time and if it burns your house down … we you have been warned.
Bought two of these. Both bricked. Got one running forbthirty seconds and google process media error. Both of these boxes go in the garbage.
T95Z tv box S912 is garbage. Bought two. Both are bricked and will not factory reset. 160 $cdn wasted.
HI,
I might be a bit late to the party, however,..
I have bought several of these and set them up for friends, but I choose the 3GB DDR4 version.
Personally, I think TV Boxes need a minimum 3GB to function properly.
Especially since our internet speeds are considerably slower in Australia.
On a good day, I will get 5mb down and 800kbs up. The extra RAM helps pull it down IMO.
I’ve never experienced any issues with WiFi and get consistent throughput from my D-link modem.
My personal box has been running faultlessly for over a year and I have changed the Launcher to something a little more attractive (from a Beelink box I believe) called Lighthome.
I am running And 7.1.2 and Kodi 17.6
The box’s only use is Movie/ Tv show apps… I might use Kodi, just for a change from time to time and have the Durex build installed.
I can play 1080p movies well as long as the file size isn’t too big and always opt for the H265 versions if available.
I have had minimal success playing 4K movies, largely because of my internet speed.
I also use a Real-Debrid account which offers up faster sources.
I’ve just spent an hour looking for a box that I might upgrade too for my personal use and have looked at the RK3399 with the belief that it is a much better chip than the S912, however, have been left quite disappointed that the best RAM on offer is 3GB of DDR3, which for me, seems like a bit of a backward step.
The Shield is not an option as I believe it is overpriced for its somewhat average internal specs. Maybe if I was a gamer, which I am not.
My Box is an unbranded eBay special.
During the last 9 months, I have purchased 6 T95Z PLUS 4K S912 3GB 32 GB boxes for me and my family and friends. All boxes are working great! Be sure to order the mini keyboard when you order this box. When you get the box, upgrade to Leia and then install the addons. Thanks
After working fine for a couple of months, it started to hang randomly, to the point that it’s become useless. Another bad point is that it has no Miracast capabilities.
I bought this box a few weeks ago from Amazon. I have 100mbs but only get around 20mbs when I run the speed test on the box. The box worked well for the first 2 weeks and now, no matter what time of day I try and watch it, it buffers to a point that it is frustrating. Box is terrible! Beginning to think it is useless!
Get MECOOL PRO. Pricey but rocks. 3 gb RAM DDR3, 32 gb ROM Android 7.1.2
most expensive box i’ve bought to date, worked ok for 2 weeks then had to be disconnected and left then reconnected and left to reboot, 3 weeks in nothing, do not buy this rubbish
The worst android box I have bought.
Wifi does not work.
For the price it’s terrible.
I have been using android boxes now for 3 years and this is the most expensive 1 I bought….. I have 1 in the bedroom which works perfect and was 10% of the price and I’m back using my old box in the living room which was also cheap.
Our wifi in the house is 40mbps+ so it’s not wifi issue.
I can’t believe every one gives this good reviews!!
By the way I live in Thailand.
hi, can u use it as a Hotspot?
I would like to know how to get the Ethernet cable to work rather than Wi-Fi. Can not find any info on it.
It should work as soon as you connect the LAN cable from modem to the box. Most Internet providers give you a dynamic IP so set it on Automatic IP address. If you have a static IP (always same) then use it instead. And, yes, static IP is always better than dynamic
Does anyone know if this box has to be reprogrammed every year? And are the updates done automatically or do I have to update myself manually?
Thanks!
hello i would like to know if you could send me a price list on your t95z plus dealer prices if possible thanks
A.P COMM
FYI – S912 struggles with DTS-MA, TrudHD and Atmos passthrough.
Thx, I think i’ll try one. I’m coming from the old HTPC atx mb which has the dvd player… But I usually rip them into mkvs/mp3s anyway.
-b