Tired of cheap TV boxes? Think cheap products remain cheap products? We do as well. So we decided to find one of the most anticipated smart TV boxes available in the market and find out what makes it so powerful and expensive. Honestly, it was very difficult to find such a device, because manufacturers try to come in with cheap products, and when looking for a really valuable TV box we have had only a few choices. One of them is the Beelink BT7, a Windows running smart TV box that can serve you as a full-featured desktop computer as well. This statement changes everything, because usually TV boxes run on Android, which limits the operations we can make on it. So when a device runs on Windows, we suppose many things can be done in the other way. Seems we are right, though it’s highly recommended not to replace your current desktop PC with this TV box.
Beelink BT7 Features
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit
- CPU: Intel Atom X7-Z8700
- RAM: 4GB
- Internal Memory: 64GB / 128GB / 320GB eMMC
- Network: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.0
- Interfaces: USB3.0 × 3, SD slot, LAN (RJ45), HDMI, audio, power supply
- Dimensions: 119.5 x 119.5 x 22.5 mm
- Weight: 316 g
In comparison to the most of Chinese TV boxes the Beelink BT7 is the way more powerful. It’s a single boot device, but the existent of Windows 10 is quite sufficient to implement what you imagine. As for the performance, it is packed with an Intel Atom X7-Z8700 CPU, which is the way better than the regular Z8300 found on many TV boxes including the Nexbox T10 and Minix Neo Z83-4. However, we have to look at the ley features more attentively, so let’s stop here and divide those into different groups.
Beelink BT7 Apperance
The first thing we think when looking at the packaging is the manufacturer has made it in the same color as Intel usually comes. Probably, the manufacturer has tried to distract us we are dealing with a Chinese product. On the other hand, it can be a dimple color option, and we are trying to find a sense in something that doesn’t have it.
The Beelink BT7 packaging includes the mini PC itself with an installed antenna, two HDMI cables at different length (the longest one is at 75cm), an utility disk, an English manual, power adapter, and a VESA mounter.
Unfortunately, I can’t claim whether it’s maid of stainless steel, but it’s metallic, for sure. However, there are several screws to fix the TV box to the mounter and use it wherever you want besides putting it on a table. Honestly, I don’t remember when I have seen a TV box coming with such a mounter. That’s why the packaging of the Beelink BT7 is the way heavier at 1.2kg.
Well, as for the design, the Beelink BT7 comes with an aluminum housing in grey. It is also hand-polsihed making the device look luxurious. Moreover, the edges are polished in silver. So the Beelink BT7 really looks very attractive. Agree if it was identical to other TV boxes with plastic housing that’s also glossy, it may affect the sales.
Anyway, the logo is on the top. The back panel carries a DC12V charging interface, a USB 3.0 port, a full-sized HDMI out port, a RJ45 LAN port for faster connectivity, and a 3.5mm audio jack. As for the WiFi antenna, it can be moved for better usability, but it can’t be removed from the body completely. Finally, there is also a small hole next to the audio jack for manual reset.
The left side carries only a vent. You have to know there is a special fan under the hood, and though mini PCs, and especially the Atom-powered products do not need additional fan system, the Beelink BT7 comes with it to insure all the unpredictable cases.
The right side carries an additional vent holes, a SD card slot to expand the memory, two USB 3.0 ports and a red power button. While you can ask why Beelink has spoiled the design, I have to say it’s part of the logo. So many users identify this brand due to this red icon.
The front side is blank but a small hole, which is a LED indicator showing different statuses of the TV box. For example, when you turn it on, the LED turns into blue.
The bottom side showcases some info on the product model, and there are four rubber foots to make the box stand a bit higher from a surface.
Beelink BT7 Performance
As I said at the beginning of the Beelink BT7 review, one of the key features of the Intel Atom X7-Z8700 processor is the 14nm technology it bases on. There are four cores running at 1.6GHz, but the turbo mode will boost the frequency up to 2.4GHz. Probably, this number won’t say anything worthy to simple users, so let’s explain in in this way – in comparison to the Z8300 the start-up, Windows Update installation, app installation and other identical operations will require shorter time. Moreover, when opening heavy images it will last less, so you can interact with the Beelink BT7 faster and make more operations. As a summary, the Intel Atom X7-Z8700 is considered to be a faster CPU than the i3 processor. It absolutely doesn’t mean this processor won’t face any problems when loading online games with heavy graphics. No, but you can be sure it won’t let you down in most cases.
The Beelink BT7 is packed with a 4GB of DDR3 RAM and a 64GB / 128GB / 320GB eMMC internal memory that can get additional 128GB memory space via a SD card slot. It supports for dual band WiFI 802.11a/b/g/n as well as Bluetooth 4.0.
The next selling point of this mini PC is the presence of Windows 10 on it. Thanks to the latest version of Microsoft’s operating system it can solve the problems during the work. Moreover, it comes with Kodi pre-installed, which means you will get access to a number of movies, TV shows and concerts. I am not talking about Office support. Thanks to all these features the Beelink BT7 supports 4K video at 60fps as well as Full HD at 60 fps. Thus it is capable of displaying videos at the highest resolution.
Conclusion
Earlier we have reviewed a few Beelink TV boxes including the GT1, GTQ, Mini MX, and MXIII. But all they were priced under 80, so we have had an impression Beelink comes in only with cheap products. The Beelink BT7 is great in this sense, first. It sports a list of astonishing features and capable of providing any performance you want. Thus we are dealing with a mini PC more rather than a regular TV box. There are three versions in terms of memory, and their pricing varies from $175 to $300. So you decide which one meets your requirements more.
Pros
- Luxury look
- Additional VESA mounter
- Three USB 3.0 ports
- Additional fan system
- Intel Atom X7-Z8700 quad-core CPU
- 4GB RAM
- Windows 10 64 bit
- Kodi
- Office Support
- 4K support
Cons
- Appearance – 9/10
- Hardware – 9/10
- Software – 10/10
- Connectivity – 10/10
- Price – 8/10
