OpenELEC

Software Screenshot:
OpenELEC
Software Details:
Version: 8.0.4 updated
Upload Date: 19 Jun 17
Developer: OpenELEC.tv
Distribution Type: Freeware
Downloads: 764

Rating: 1.5/5 (Total Votes: 4)

OpenELEC (Open Embedded Linux Entertainment Center) is an open source and minimalistic Linux distribution primarily designed to be booted from CompactFlash or other flash-based memory cards or solid-state drives, and used on embedded systems.

Supported hardware platforms

With a full install of approximately 80-125 MB, OpenELEC's hardware requirements are minimal and it can be deployed on Atom, Intel, ION, Fusion, Apple TV, Raspberry Pi ARM, ARCTIC_MC, as well as generic 32-bit and 64-bit hardware platforms.

Build from scratch around XBMC (Kodi)

It is a small, fast and completely free Linux-based operating system built from scratch around the powerful XBMC open source software and engineered to allow users to transform any computer or portable device into a modern media center in less than 15 minutes.

File sharing is supported out-of-the-box, as well as external storage devices. Being so accessible, users will be able to easily configure various system settings through the XBMC interface.

About XBMC (Kodi)

XBMC is a well known media center application that turns a standard PC into a flexible and modern Home Theater PC (HTPC) in no time. It allows users to manage their entire multimedia library by categorizing music, photos, TV shows and movies.

It features support for recording live shows (PVR), support for teletext and TV guide when watching live television, automatic download of thumbnails, banners, fanart, and movie information. Additionally, XBMC also allows users to manage their favorite TV shows by organizing them into episodes and series, create filters to display or hide certain multimedia content, view entire collections of photos, and much more.

Bottom line

OpenELEC is an acclaimed Linux distribution that does one thing and it does it extremely well. We feel obliged to recommend this distribution of Linux to anyone who wants to transform their dusty devices or computers (see above or the official homepage of the project for supported platforms) into a powerful, all-in-one media center.

What is new in this release:

  • fix crash in WeTek DVB driver on WeTek Play (1st gen).
  • enable Kernel NEON mode for RPi2 builds.
  • enable some more SOC sound drivers for RPi/RPi2 builds.
  • enable Regulator support on all builds.
  • enable Extcon support on all builds.
  • fix loading for some I2C sound modules on RPI/RPi2 builds.
  • fix loading splash screen on systems with Nvidia GPUs.
  • fix speed problems on Nvidia ION systems.
  • fix problems loading dvbhdhomerun addons.
  • fix using user created sleep scripts.
  • build PNG support with SSE support for x86_64 builds.
  • update to linux-4.9.30, mesa-17.0.7, alsa-lib-1.1.4.1, alsa-utils-1.1.4, kodi-17,3, mariadb-10.1.23, samba-4.6.4.

What is new in version 8.0.2:

  • disable RTL8XXXU driver, which was loaded together with RTL8192CU/EU driver and caused conflicts with some WLAN USB dongles.
  • add CONFIG_SND_SOC_STA32X and CONFIG_SND_SOC_WM8804_I2C for RPi builds, needed for some RPi Sound modules.
  • remove 0 byte database files in Kodi, to workaround database upgrade failures in Kodi.
  • build Kodi with SSE4 support for Generic builds.
  • fix broken Kodi addon library names for x86_64 builds.
  • force loading fuse module to fix mounting ntfs and exfat partitions.
  • update to mesa-17.0.4, dbus-1.10.18, linux-4.9.24 (Generic), linux-4.9.23 (RPi), libdrm-2.4.80 and curl-7.54.0

What is new in version 7.0.1:

  • Fix problems with the Installer on x86 systems.
  • Fix an issue which prevents booting SolidRun's Cubox i4pro

What is new in version 7.0.0:

  • Platform changes:
  • New Platform WeTek Core supported with a own Build
  • WeTek Core is the best Android TV box you can have to watch IPTV, Movies and TV Shows while you relax on your sofa.
  • With an AMLogic S812-H, 2GHz Quad-core processor, 4K Support and 8-bit H265, this box will give you all entertainment you are looking for.
  • Merged Nvidia_Legacy build to Generic build.
  • Users who used the Nvidia_Legacy build now have to use our Generic build.
  • Core OS updates and changes (old version in brackets):
  • ALSA updated to 1.1 (1.0.29)
  • Binutils updated to 2.26 (2.25)
  • GCC updated to 5.3 (4.9)
  • glibc updated to 2.23 (2.22)
  • Python updated to 2.7.13 (2.7.3)
  • LLVM updated to 3.8 (3.6)
  • Linux kernel updated to 4.4 (4.1)
  • Mesa updated to 11.2 (11.0)
  • ffmpeg updated to 2.8 (2.6)
  • libva updated to 1.7 (1.6)
  • connman updated to 1.31 (1.23)
  • libnfs updated to 1.11 (1.9)
  • libressl updated to 2.2 (2.1)
  • systemd updated to 229 (219)
  • xorg-server updated to 1.18 (1.17)
  • Driver and firmware updates and changes:
  • updated WLAN drivers and firmware
  • added new AMDGPU driver for new AMD Graphic cards
  • updated Intel Graphic driver
  • merged Nvidia with Nvidia legacy driver to support old and new Graphic cards with one build.
  • Kodi updates and changes (old version in brackets)
  • Kodi updated to 16.1 final (15)
  • New features:
  • Bluetooth Audio support (see below)
  • OpenVPN reincluded

What is new in version 6.0.3 / 7.0 Beta 3:

New in OpenELEC 7.0 Beta 2 (April 7th, 2016)

What is new in version 6.0.3 / 7.0 Beta 2:

  • update to Pillow-3.2.0
  • update to setuptools-20.6.7
  • update to bluez-5.38
  • update to xorg-server-1.18.3
  • update to inputproto-2.3.2
  • update to mesa-11.2.0
  • update to kodi-4cf382f/9809c3c
  • update to alsa-utils-1.1.1
  • update to alsa-lib-1.1.1
  • update to sqlite-autoconf-3120000
  • update to curl-7.48.0
  • update to cmake-3.5.1
  • update to ntfs-3g_ntfsprogs-2016.2.22
  • update to bcm2835-firmware-046effa
  • projects/WeTek_*/initramfs: set video state to disabled on boot
  • projects/RPi*/linux: enable CONFIG_LEDS_TRIGGER_TRANSIENT and CONFIG_LEDS_TRIGGER_CAMERA
  • projects/RPi*/linux: enable CONFIG_BACKLIGHT_LCD_SUPPORT, CONFIG_BACKLIGHT_CLASS_DEVICE, CONFIG_BACKLIGHT_RPI, CONFIG_BACKLIGHT_GPIO, CONFIG_LEDS_TRIGGER_BACKLIGHT, CONFIG_LEDS_TRIGGER_CPU, CONFIG_LEDS_TRIGGER_GPIO
  • Add Megaraid_sas support
  • add '8812au' to SUSPEND_MODULES

What is new in version 6.0.2:

  • full RaspberryPi 3 support including onboard WLAN and bluetooth
  • fixes to our settings addon, including fixes for backup/restore
  • add more USB-WLAN drivers to WeTek Play and WeTek OpenELEC box builds
  • Add new Amlogic CEC driver for WeTek Play and WeTek OpenELEC box
  • Nvidia graphic driver updates
  • updated RPi 1/2/3 firmwares and graphic drivers
  • more WLAN firmwares to support more chipsets
  • Patch for glibc's DNS exploit CVE-2015-7547
  • latest LTS 4.1 kernel (except iMX6 and Amlogic builds)
  • add entropy package to speedup start of WLAN drivers
  • add support for AVerTV Volar HD 2

What is new in version 6.0:

  • [DROPPED] Generic 32bit (i386) builds
  • We dropped our Generic 32bit (i386) build. The number of 32bit devices are declining and our stats system shows most 32bit Generic users have 64bit capable hardware that can be updated to the Nvidia_legacy build. Please refer to the Wiki for 32bit > 64bit migration instructions or use the forum to get support. Users with 32bit hardware can continue to use our 5.0 releases, or if they want to buy new hardware, we recommend switching to a RaspberryPi 2 or WeTek-Play.
  • [CHANGED] Generic 64bit (x86_64) builds
  • The Generic x86_64 build contains now the latest nVidia GPU drivers which drops support for some older nVidia GPU hardware. Supported GPUs can be found in the following list: http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/83686.
  • [INFO] AppleTV 32bit (i386) builds
  • Official OpenELEC builds for AppleTV hardware ceased at v4.2.1 but an unofficial 'community' v5.95.4 build with Kodi Isengard and CrystalHD support has been published by project staff member 'chewitt'. This build is noteworthy for solving CrystalHD playback performance problems that troubled historic AppleTV builds. For more information please read here: http://chewitt.openelec.tv/appletv.
  • [NEW] NVidia_Legacy 64bit (x86_64) build
  • This 64bit build continues to use the 304.125 legacy driver to continue support for older nVidia GPUs including popular ION devices. This build contains only nVidia drivers (no Intel/AMD). Supported GPUs can be found at http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/80134. Please be aware that at some point in the mid-term future a driver bump will be required that drops support for ION devices.
  • [NEW] WeTek_Play ARM build
  • WeTek offers a new dimension of technology, innovative products and solutions with the best support. Wetek is a company dedicated to designing and manufacturing products, which will satisfy all customer needs (in the sector of Home entertainment) and contribute to a better quality life for clients.
  • Starting with OpenELEC-6.0 we officially support Wetek's WeTek Play and OpenELEC's Box ARM devices. WeTek Play is a unique TV box. With Android and/or OpenELEC, WeTek gives your TV the full potential of Internet. Certified by Google, WeTek gives you access to thousands of Android applications through Google Play. WeTek Play includes Plug and Play DVB Tuners for Satellite (Twin Tuner), Cable, Terrestrial and ATSC (depending on the model) and you have a unique experience of DVB and Multimedia in one small device.

What is new in version 5.0.7 / 6.0 Beta 5:

  • gdb: update to gdb-7.10
  • kodi: update Isengard backport patch
  • xf86-video-intel: update to xf86-video-intel-300319e
  • libdrm: update to libdrm-2.4.64
  • libvdpau: update to libvdpau-1.1.1
  • bcm2835-bootloader: update to bcm2835-bootloader-fc95251
  • bcm2835-driver: update to bcm2835-driver-fc95251
  • xf86-video-nvidia: update to xf86-video-nvidia-352.41
  • Update libbluray to 0.8.1
  • projects/RPi*/patches/kodi: update RPi support patches
  • Include RPi 2 overlock mode preset
  • bcm_sta: add patch to fix nullpointer crash with kernel 3.18+
  • Revert "Exchange xf86-input-evdev for xf86-input-libinput"
  • Revert "Remove package - xf86-input-evdev"

What is new in version 5.0.7 / 6.0 Beta 3:

  • The most visible change is the update from Kodi-14.2 Helix to Kodi-15.0 Isengard (rc 2). Beginning with Kodi-15 most audio encoder, audio decoder, PVR and visualisation addons are no longer included in our base OS, but they are available via Kodi's addon manager and must be installed from there, if needed. Our own PVR backends such as VDR and TVHeadend will install needed dependencies automatically. Other than that, please refer to http://kodi.tv/kodi-15-0-isengard-rc-2/ to see all the changes in Kodi-15.
  • Our OS is updated to latest ffmpeg (2.6), Mesa (10.6), Xorg-1.17, libva-1.6, Kernel 4.1 (except iMX6 / WeTek_Play platform), systemd (219), Binutils (2.25), Glibc (2.21), libressl (2.1.7) and LLVM-3.6. Also we updated the whole OS with recent releases of all packages and we added support for Xorg's new input driver system based on libinput and updated many Xorg libs and GPU drivers to more modern releases.
  • We now officially support WeTek'sWeTek Play devices with a build that can be installed to the internal NAND or as a dual boot system together with WeTek's Android version on SDCard. Our iMX6 build supports now all Solidrun CuBox-i/TV devices, Solidrun Hummingboard and OSMC's Vero (but we recommend that you use at least Solidrun CuBox-i2eX / Hummingboard-i2eX or better).
  • Because we are now using NVidia's latest stable GPU drivers, older ION-based systems are no longer supported via our Generic build. To continue support of older NVidia-based hardware, we introduced a new build called "NVidia_Legacy" which must be used on such hardware. Be aware NVidia will drop support for this device in the next few years.

What is new in version 5.0.7 / 6.0 Beta 1:

  • The most visible change is the update from Kodi-14.2 Helix to Kodi-15.0 Isengard (beta 1). Beginning with Kodi-15 most audio encoder, audio decoder, PVR and visualisation addons are no longer included in our base OS, but they are available via Kodi's addon manager and must be installed from there, if needed. Our own PVR backends such as VDR and TVHeadend will install needed dependencies automatically. Other than that, please refer to http://kodi.tv/kodi-15-0-isengard-beta-1/ to see all the changes in Kodi-15.
  • Our OS is updated to latest ffmpeg (2.6), Mesa (10.5), Kernel 4.0 (except iMX6 / WeTek_Play platform), systemd (219), Binutils (2.25), Glibc (2.21), libressl (2.1.6) and LLVM-3.6. Also we updated the whole OS with recent releases of all packages and we added support for Xorg's new input driver system based on libinput and updated many Xorg libs and GPU drivers to more modern releases.
  • We now officially support WeTek'sWeTek Play devices with a build that can be installed to the internal NAND or as a dual boot system together with WeTek's Android version on SDCard. Our iMX6 build supports now all Solidrun CuBox-i/TV devices, Solidrun Hummingboard and OSMC's Vero (but we recommend that you use at least Solidrun CuBox-i2eX / Hummingboard-i2eX or better).
  • Because we are now using NVidia's latest stable GPU drivers, older ION-based systems are no longer supported via our Generic build. To continue support of older NVidia-based hardware, we introduced a new build called "NVidia_Legacy" which must be used on such hardware. Be aware NVidia will drop support for this device in the next few years.
  • Supported Platform Changes:
  • [Dropped] Generic 32bit (i386) builds:
  • We dropped our Generic 32bit (i386) build. There are not many more devices which are used with OpenELEC. This mainly affects users with one of the first NVidia ION devices. Most users running this build are able to switch to our 64bit build (x86_64) because the hardware supports this. Please refer to our Wiki for instructions for migrating a 32bit build to 64bit or use our forum to get support.
  • Users with 32bit hardware can use our 5.0 releases. If they want to buy new hardware, we recommend switching to a RaspberryPi 2 or WeTek-Play
  • [CHANGED] Generic 64bit (x86_64) builds:
  • The Generic x86_64 build contains now the latest NVidia GPU drivers, which drops support for older NVidia GPU hardware. A list of supported Graphic hardware you can find at http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/83686.
  • [NEW] NVidia_Legacy 64bit (x86_64) build:
  • Due to the drop of older NVidia Hardware in our Generic 64bit build, we provide a legacy build with legacy NVidia drivers. This build contains only NVidia Graphic drivers (no Intel/AMD GPU hardware is supported). A list of supported Graphic hardware can be found at http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/80134. Please update to this build from Generic build if you have this hardware. Be aware that NVidia will drop support for these devices in the next few years.
  • [NEW] WeTek_Play ARM build:
  • WeTek offers a new dimension of technology, innovative products and solutions with the best support. Wetek is a company dedicated to designing and manufacturing products, which will satisfy all customer needs (in the sector of Home entertainment) and contribute to a better quality life for clients.
  • Starting with OpenELEC-6.0 we officially support Wetek's WeTek Play ARM devices. WeTek Play is a unique TV box. With Android and/or OpenELEC, WeTek gives your TV the full potential of Internet. Certified by Google, WeTek gives you access to thousands of Android applications through Google Play. WeTek Play includes Plug and Play DVB Tuners for Satellite (Twin Tuner), Cable, Terrestrial and ATSC (depending on the model) and you have a unique experience of DVB and Multimedia in one small device.

What is new in version 5.0.7:

  • update to bcm2835-bootloader-ffda51e
  • update to bcm2835-driver-ffda51e
  • update to linux-3.18.10 for RPi2
  • update to gdb-7.9
  • update to kodi-14-7cc53a9
  • update to nano-2.4.0
  • update to wireless-regdb-2015.03.13
  • update to kodi-addon-xvdr-39d66cd
  • update to libdrm-2.4.60
  • update to libva-intel-driver-1.5.1
  • update to libva-1.5.1
  • update to libXfont-1.5.1
  • update to openssh-6.8p1
  • update to libvdpau-1.1
  • update to vdpauinfo-1.0
  • update to libevdev-1.4
  • update to glib-2.42.2
  • update to dbus-glib-0.104
  • update to wpa_supplicant-2.4
  • update to libaacs-0.8.1
  • update to libevdev-1.3.2
  • update to libXxf86vm-1.1.4
  • update to randrproto-1.4.1
  • update to font-util-1.3.1
  • update to libX11-1.6.3
  • update to kodi-pvr-addons-4854fbe
  • projects/RPi*/patches/kodi: update RPi support patches
  • projects/imx6/patches/kodi: update imx6 patches
  • projects/imx6/patches/kodi: IMX - implement render capture (wolfgar)
  • projects/imx6/patches/linux: Add 352Mhz patch
  • add new package 'gpu-viv-g2d'
  • libva-driver-intel: VPP: Make sure the store buffer is allocated
  • linux-imx6: update to latest stable/linux-3.14.y - Linux 3.14.36
  • projects/imx6/linux: include some firmwares
  • libva-intel-driver: Fix Advanced deinterlacing on IVB SNB BYT
  • projects/Generic: Add rtl8180 kernel driver
  • Use neon-vfpv4 fpu on RPi2
  • Intel: Fix EDID overriding (makes audio work)
  • linux-imx6: fix m88ds3103 in the TT CT2 patch (DVBSky S960 & PCTV 461e)

What is new in version 5.0.2:

  • update to bcm2835-bootloader-374e3af
  • update to bcm2835-driver-374e3af
  • update to xf86-video-nvidia-340.76
  • update to xf86-video-nvidia-legacy-304.125
  • update to libpciaccess-0.13.3
  • update to sqlite-autoconf-3080802
  • update to linux-3.8.6 for RPi2
  • kodi: add PR6376
  • kodi: add PR6361
  • kodi: add PR6356
  • kodi: add NFS chunksize patch
  • projects/RPi2/patches/linux: update RPi support patches
  • projects/RPi*/linux: enable CONFIG_VMSPLIT_2G, thanks to popcornmix
  • bcm2835-bootloader: fix install of dtb files on update
  • noobs: add support for noobs 'supported_hex_versions'
  • noobs: move distro icon to distri folder
  • noobs: add support for PROJECT based multiple noobs builds
  • projects/RPi2/patches: add patch to build 'RTL8812AU' driver with kernel 3.18 and enable this driver for RPi2 builds
  • libc: install package 'arm-mem' only with TARGET_CPU=arm1176jzf-s
  • lirc: fixed ir blasting
  • bcm2835-bootloader: fix install of dtb files
  • systemd wrapper: also restart services on upgrade
  • connman: add upstream patches
  • avahi: start after network.target
  • Mesa: Fix the performance regression in an upstream conform way
  • Linux: Remove radeon workaround - Mesa patch was suggested by upstream
  • Mesa: Fix performance regression when sw decoding on AMD APUs

What is new in version 5.0.1:

  • Added support for RaspberryPi-2.

What is new in version 5.0.0:

  • The headline change is the update from XBMC 13 (Gotham) to Kodi 14 (Helix) and the big switch from XBMC to Kodi branding. Both project teams have conducted a major find/replace but if you spot residual mentions of XBMC anywhere please let us know. The name change affects more than the GUI; all references in code have been changed and in the OpenELEC filesystem /storage/.xbmc will be recreated as a symlink to /storage/.kodi to ensure hardcoded paths in addons or scripts continue to work. For information on Kodi 14 you can find on http://kodi.tv/kodi-14-0-helix-unwinds/ .
  • Supported Platform Changes:
  • We are adding Freescale imx6 support for a limited number of boxes, starting with the CuBox-i and CuboxTV mini devices. Also, after many years, support for the mk1 (silver) AppleTV build has been discontinued, and there will be no official v5.0 (Kodi) release for Apple devices. This decision was partly driven by the Kodi development team removing CrystalHD acceleration support in Kodi v14.0 and the unrelated removal of the CrystalHD driver from the v3.17 Linux kernel. In both cases CrystalHD code has not been maintained for several years, and as surrounding codebases moved forwards over time the level of compatibility and optimisation has gone distinctly backwards. At the same time, XBMC's gradual increase in size breached the limits of the 256MB RAM available in the box to cause a cascade of playback problems for an increasing number of users. Our AppleTV user base has grown sizeable over time, and to the users upset by this announcement we apologise. However, the project staff felt that it was time and that v4.2 should be the final AppleTV release.

What is new in version 5.0 RC3:

  • update to bcm2835-bootloader-2f9828c
  • update to bcm2835-driver-2f9828c
  • update to OpenELEC-settings-0.5.7
  • update to kodi-14-8fb5660
  • update to vdpauinfo-0.9
  • update to boost-1_57_0
  • update to libvdpau-0.9
  • update to xorg-server-1.16.3
  • update to ethtool-3.18
  • update to rpcbind-0.2.2
  • update to dbus-1.8.12
  • update to dosfstools-3.0.27
  • update to linux-3.17.7
  • update to kodi-pvr-addons-9f63d1b
  • update to arm-mem-2e6f275
  • update to connman-1.27
  • projects/RPi/patches/linux: update RPi support patch
  • projects/RPi/patches/kodi: update RPi support patch
  • IMX: Disable deinterlace by default (user can enable it manually)
  • imx6: fixup reboot
  • busybox: Increase the limit for the number of lines in less.
  • util-linux: specify more configure options, build with losetup and libsmartcol support
  • kodi: add patch to disable unsupported powerfunctions for iMX6 builds
  • projects/*/linux: build RTSX USB and PCIe cardreader drivers statically
  • init: warn on obvious KERNEL/SYSTEM mismatch
  • Build BCM2708 watchdog driver as module for RPi
  • linux: Port fixes for gpu hang to 3.17
  • projects/imx6/options: dont setup firmwares twice, readd BT firmwares, this fixes non working BT on cubox-i & co.

What is new in version 5.0 RC2:

  • The headline change is the big switch from XBMC to Kodi branding. Both project teams have conducted a major find/replace but if you spot residual mentions of XBMC anywhere please let us know. The name change affects more than the GUI; all references in code have been changed and in the OpenELEC filesystem /storage/.xbmc will be recreated as a symlink to /storage/.kodi to ensure hardcoded paths in addons or scripts continue to work. For information on Kodi 14 you can find on http://kodi.tv/kodi-14-0-helix-beta-1-springs-forward/ .

What is new in version 5.0 RC1:

  • The headline change is the big switch from XBMC to Kodi branding. Both project teams have conducted a major find/replace but if you spot residual mentions of XBMC anywhere please let us know. The name change affects more than the GUI; all references in code have been changed and in the OpenELEC filesystem /storage/.xbmc will be recreated as a symlink to /storage/.kodi to ensure hardcoded paths in addons or scripts continue to work. For information on Kodi 14 you can find on http://kodi.tv/kodi-14-0-helix-beta-1-springs-forward/ .

What is new in version 5.0 Beta 4:

  • The headline change is the big switch from XBMC to Kodi branding. Both project teams have conducted a major find/replace but if you spot residual mentions of XBMC anywhere please let us know. The name change affects more than the GUI; all references in code have been changed and in the OpenELEC filesystem /storage/.xbmc will be recreated as a symlink to /storage/.kodi to ensure hardcoded paths in addons or scripts continue to work. For information on Kodi 14 you can find on http://kodi.tv/kodi-14-0-helix-beta-1-springs-forward/ .

What is new in version 5.0 Beta 3:

  • The headline change is the big switch from XBMC to Kodi branding. Both project teams have conducted a major find/replace but if you spot residual mentions of XBMC anywhere please let us know. The name change affects more than the GUI; all references in code have been changed and in the OpenELEC filesystem /storage/.xbmc will be recreated as a symlink to /storage/.kodi to ensure hardcoded paths in addons or scripts continue to work. For information on Kodi 14 you can find on http://kodi.tv/kodi-14-0-helix-beta-1-springs-forward/ .

What is new in version 5.0 Beta 2:

  • The headline change is the big switch from XBMC to Kodi branding. Both project teams have conducted a major find/replace but if you spot residual mentions of XBMC anywhere please let us know. The name change affects more than the GUI; all references in code have been changed and in the OpenELEC filesystem /storage/.xbmc will be recreated as a symlink to /storage/.kodi to ensure hardcoded paths in addons or scripts continue to work. For information on Kodi 14 you can find on http://kodi.tv/kodi-14-0-helix-beta-1-springs-forward/ .

What is new in version 5.0 Beta 1:

  • The headline change is the big switch from XBMC to Kodi branding. Both project teams have conducted a major find/replace but if you spot residual mentions of XBMC anywhere please let us know. The name change affects more than the GUI; all references in code have been changed and in the OpenELEC filesystem /storage/.xbmc will be recreated as a symlink to /storage/.kodi to ensure hardcoded paths in addons or scripts continue to work.
  • Other notable "under the hood" changes include a version bump from v3.16 to v3.17 Linux kernel, and a switch from OpenSSL to LibreSSL following the heartbleed disclosure. The LibreSSL package includes better licensing and allows OpenELEC to be simplified by removing support for other cryptographic libraries such as GnuTLS.
  • Supported Platform Changes:
  • Finally, after many years of support the mk1 (silver) AppleTV build has been discontinued and there will be no official v5.0 (Kodi) release. This decision was partly driven by the Kodi development team removing CrystalHD acceleration support in Kodi v14.0 and the unrelated removal of the CrystalHD driver from the v3.17 Linux kernel. In both cases CrystalHD code has not been maintained for several years, and as surrounding codebases moved forwards over time the level of compatibility and optimisation has gone distinctly backwards. At the same time, XBMC's gradual increase in size breached the limits of the 256MB RAM available in the box to cause a cascade of playback problems for an increasing number of users. Our AppleTV user base has grown sizeable over time, and to the users upset by this announcement we apologise. However, the project staff felt that it was time and that v4.2 should be the final AppleTV release.
  • Users thinking about upgrading an ageing AppleTV might like to consider the ultra-compact CuBox-i devices from our partner Solid-Run. Second generation Cubox-i devices are based on the Freescale i.MX6 system-on-chip (SoC) platform with multiple Cortex-A9 CPU's, hardware 2D/3D GPU decoding, and a broad range of peripheral ports including 1080p HDMI and S/PDIF. Solid-Run are running a special promotion for OpenELEC users that gives a 10% discount on the recommended CuBox-i2ex and CuBox-i4pro models, including a larger 8GB micro SD (up from 4GB) that comes preinstalled with OpenELEC instead of Android.

What is new in version 4.2.1:

  • WLAN not working (using Aetheros HTC based WLAN sticks)
  • double keypresses with remotes
  • showing Xorg mouse cursor in various situations, like after wakeup from dpms/standby...
  • no or corrupt ASS/SSA subtitles
  • non working cpu temperature output on some systems
  • "stuttering" while playing videos on systems with Intel GPU

Screenshots

openelec_1_68042.jpeg

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