XBMC 12 Frodo - Beta 2 Now with Android!
Update: The permissions error on the Android download link has been fixed.
We are excited to announce Beta 2 of XBMC 12 today, as it brings with it many fixes and one long awaited major update. As you know, XBMC currently supports OSX, Linux, Windows, iOS, and the ARM-based Raspberry Pi. That’s a great list, but anyone paying attention could tell you that a massive, critical platform is still missing. Well, Scott Davilla and Cory Fields (theuni) have been working tirelessly to bring one more platform to the fold. And we’re all excited to say that we are finally ready to release the very first beta of XBMC for Android.
To run this beta, you will need a fairly modern Android phone, tablet, or other device. We have determined that any Android device that doesn’t include the NEON extension is simply going to run too slowly to be useable. If you are uncertain whether your device is supported, feel free to visit the XBMC for Android compatibility list.
Alternatively, you can simply install the XBMC for Android apk. If your device is not supported, XBMC will post a warning when you try to launch the app and exit out. If it is, and it isn’t included on the compatibility list, feel free to add it.
One Android issue worth mentioning: at present XBMC is likely to load fairly slowly on the first run as it unpacks itself. This is expected behavior. After first run, it should load quite a bit faster.
Update 2: Users should be aware that an update to Android 4.2 appears to have temporarily broken XBMC support for all you Nexus and Cyanogenmod users (and anyone else running 4.2). Beta3 should be right around the corner, and we hope to have a fix in place by the time that rolls out.
Controller Support
Without a doubt, one of the most popular controllers for PC at present is the Xbox 360 Controller. It is invariably the most supported controller for all AAA title Windows games (along with numerous games being ported for Steam for Linux), so it was undoubtedly time for the controller to become fully plug and play compatible with XBMC. Thanks to the work of Shiretoko212, rowan.border, and all those who contributed in this thread, the previously outdated 360 keymap has been updated and dramatically improved so that now almost any 360 controller, regardless of version, should be immediately recognized by XBMC assuming a driver is in place. For those interested in using their 360 controller to control XBMC, check out this 360 button map to show what all the buttons do in XBMC.
Audio Fixes
Easily the number one reported issue with Beta1 was a lack of sound in Windows. This issue was relatively simply resolved by switching from WASAPI to DirectSound as the default output. Users who prefer WASAPI can still easily switch back in System->Audio Output.
Other Fixes
Needless to say, there were numerous other fixes, including fixes to nodes and smartplaylists, the volume range of Airtunes in Windows, a speedup of EPG data importing, solving a minor files issue, and others. To see all the changes, feel free to refer to the Beta2 Git Changelog. Additionally, there are several other issues still being worked on, and more will likely crop up during Beta testing. If you would like to report an issue, please search for the issue in our forums first and report any verified bugs in Trac.
Conclusion
But enough of all that. Now is the time to get to downloading.
Let us know what you think of the changes in the comments below, or, if you like, via the donation button at the top of the page.
And if you have any problems, don’t hesitate to post about them in our forums and report verified bugs in Trac.
Confirmed working on my Onda vi10 Elite :D
Works great, although is struggling with some HD video.Still great to have as an app :D :D :D
Huzzah! XBMC runs on the Nook Color with CM10!
Works Verizon Galaxy Note 2.
Chokes the fps badly on 1080p video playback streaming over wifi from my xbmcbuntu htpc hdd though. Beautiful with streaming 480 resolution. Will try 1080p from sd card later. Going to check streaming 720p now. The note 2 is only 720 resolution anyway so not a big I problem if 1080 isn’t smooth.
Can’t wait for that “corner for 4.2″ to arrive lol
I WANT IT ON NEXUS 7 v 4.2.1
I’m happy to see this, it works on my Samsung Note, but my A500 is Tegra2 so it refuses to run… I’m disappointed that there isn’t support for Tegra2 as this pretty much wipes out any hope on the first generation of the *really nice* tablets… I’m kind of torqued that it works on a cheap ass 71 dollar android rockchip stick but not my 300+ dollar tablet.
XVBA support hasn’t been merged into the master branch of XBMC’s code, so you’ll still want to use the Wsnipex repo. Also, Wsnipex is our new official repo manager, so you can trust his XVBA repo to be as good as official, more or less.
@WeezulDK
Unofficial Tegra 2 (non-neon) builds can be found here: http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=Android_FAQ#Installing
Dont work on XOOM Everest (CM10)
unsupported device :(
Not working: Xperia Play
Confirmed working on the Fuhu Nabi 2 (Tegra 3/ICS 4.04) running update 1.9.37
Found a earlier Beta copy that is supposed to work. I uninstalled the version I had, installed this new one, and all I got was a blank black screen. Go here: –> https://www.box.com/s/qhwal8k9vjgawpy5jf2i <–
Found this file from this forum posting: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1813089&highlight=compiler&page=125
Just installed on at&t galaxy note… Working beautiful! Can’t wait to get my hands on my Ouya console for this exact purpose.
I am using the wsnipex repro for a very long time, works very well :) I thought the xvba code was already mergd, so i was misunderstood. Thanks for the heads up and keep up the good work :)
It can work in allwinner a10 deviece.
Works great on my telus SGS3 JB4.1.1
UI is pretty quick on my Galaxy Tab 2 7″ but video is playing at about 4fps from both network and local storage. Audio plays fine. Turning on ’sync playback to screen’ makes it a little better but still not watchable.
Where do I find the debug log on the android device? Will post it on the forums once I can find it. Hopefully it may help.
Great work as always devs
Hi, I’ve just install the package on a Acer Iconia Tab A510.
Everything seems to be ok, except for hw decoding (no HD yet …)
The bug I seen is with the official XBMC remote app : it works a few minutes, and after a while become crazy and freeze the whole app.
Is there anything that needs to be done if you upgrade from Eden to Frodo using SQL server?
I read some time ago that in Frodo the cachefiles would be saved into SQL aswell. Was that a rumor or does that work today?
On my apple tv i’ve installed the beta 1 .. but when i try to instalo/uppgrade the beta 2 the terminal says that i’ve yet the last version of xbmc …. any solution ??
Works on HTC Desire S. A bit choppy when watching a “real” movie (“Pirates”). Not choppy when watching a cartoon (“Winnie The Pooh”). I’m using 802.11g and wondering if 802.11n would remove the choppiness..
Frodo Beta 2 comfirmed working great with Yarvik TAB469EUK GoTab Yotta 9.7″ Tablet
@AstroHawk
Anyone try it on Asus Transformer TF300?
Great… XBMC on the Android !!!!
I have a personal blog with the specific step by step procedure to install the XBMC on android.
A special thanks to developers
@thy91
Same here in my Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 (GT-P3110 device). No configuration can make any video watchable. 480p x264 or XviD is slow, like 4fps. 720p x264 is more like a (slow!) slide show, totally unusable and UI lags a lot too. But the UI in menus and such is very usable and responsive, although the animations play a little slow. It is very stable, never hung on me even when trying some unplayable files, but without hardware aceleration has no practical use.
This is to good to be true!! I love XBMC
@thy91, @Paco: Are you on Honeycomb or Ice Cream Sandwich?
confirming xbmc installs on htc thunderbolt using android 2.3.7/4.0.1 hybrid, yet crashes after setup bar finishes…strange as thunderbolt has qualcom/snapdragon gpu and its not an apk problem cause if was it would refuse to install due to wrong android version…wondering if its the rom i use thats causing it..will backup current rom and flash to ics 4.0.1 and try it on there and confirm if working or not :)
@Olivier
Has been mentioned multiple times.
Try the Yaste remote for android.
Works well on 4.1 Galaxy Note 2, 720p.
Can you guys please fix/add stylus support for final release? Stylus support seems to work right of the bat on most apps even apps much older than the Galaxy Note 1, so I guess there’s something in the way you guys implemented touch support that’s different.
Thanks anyways though, I’m so happy to be able to use xmbc on the go with my phone :]
Try this version on Nexus 7, worked for me:
xbmcapp-armeabi-v7a-debug-2012-12-01-no-neon-f6636cfedd9295073bba4b6a70b65072d24c0b12.apk
Works well on my Equiso “Android on a Stick” (bought via Kickstarter). Still trying out all the options but so far, so good! Thanks XBMC!
this is amazing news, cannot wait to try it on my gnex when 4.2.1 support is available haha. XBMC team, you blow my mind on a routine basis! thank you for all the work you do!
@olivier…why they hell are you still using the official remote?! yatse is the way to go these days my friend! ;D
edit: quick note i just finished flashing ics 4.0.3 and installed xbmc and i am confirming this does work right after installing it on thunderbolt without problems so it was the rom i was using…ui by default my favorite color :D…weather section works,music section works and all audio is skip free,video section works and all movies play without lag and skip free, picture section works…little laggy at first but thats probably because of me just flashing and didnt let it settle i just jumped into the app :P..i am very happy with the app and i now have a proper use for my mini stylus now besides art apps..all my other media apps will be replaced by thisthank you devs and hope for many more great updates..as for thunderbolt users i recommmend this app :D..btw with the music playing i love the graphic animation in background of home screen are there any more? :D
Auto-screen rotation for Android would be a great addition too :)
So am I missing the add source option for videos on the android version? I can’t get it to add videos to the videos section, I have to go under files.
How do I make it work on Motorola Droid Bionic (2.2.3). It keeps saying: “There is a problem parsing the package”. What can I do to run it?
Works great on HTC EVO 4g (OG), initially had an issue with the first run, however the problem was lack of free memory. Make sure you have at least 100MB free for the first run.
Works great on HTC EVO 4g (OG) on CM7, initially had an issue with the first run, however the problem was lack of free memory. Make sure you have at least 100MB free for the first run.
Hey guys, thx for the update!
However, the iPad remote app now crashes as soon something starts playing!
Working great on hp touchpad cm10 thx
@David
It might run on a nexus q, but the real question is if anyone will ever be able to purchase a q:
http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/29/google-removes-nexus-q-store/
Just curious to know if Karaoke is being worked on. It seemed to not be functioning on Beta1 hopefully it will be resolved on this Beta2 but I’m doubtful. Anyways, keep up the great work.
Yes, check out http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=XBMC_v12_%28Frodo%29_FAQ and http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=HOW-TO:Sync_multiple_libraries/Upgrading_XBMC_to_v12
To install on my apple tv I had to first remove the package (apt-get remove org.xbmc.xbmc-atv2) and then install it again (apt-get install org.xbmc.xbmc-atv2), of course doing apt-get update before. Simply doing update and then install did not upgrade the package. Come to think of it, I probably should have done apt-get upgrade. Oh well.
I updated and now I cant play my 1080p HD movies smoothly, so i have reverted back to eden, its a pitty cause there are some really good additions to frodo. Is it known to not play movies smoothly? I have my own HTPC built by myself. It has a quadcore processor and Nvidia GT630 video card and 8gb ram. I played these movies of an external HDD.
@DrThomasHo
Yes working
Confirmed. Working on my Samsung Wonder i8150. But buttons very small. But great work xbmc team.
can confirm its working great on htc sensation on the latest viper s rom 1.4.1
Two words: simply works!
You guys are great, just finished setting up XBMC Frodo Beta 2 with PVR VU+plugin. working marvelously with my OpenPli 3.0 satellite receiver. Looking forward for the new Android beta version (unfortunately broken with Nexus 7 -JB 4.2.1). New donation is coming soon for you guys, keep it up!
Greetings from Greece!