israelg Posted April 30, 2019 Share Posted April 30, 2019 https://www.amazon.com/Intel-Compute-Computer-Processor-BOXSTK1AW32SC/dp/B01AZC4NHS Anyone with experience with such a device, this one specific or another member in this family... Is it good enough for running emulators such as Stella, Retroarch various cores Etc. ??? What about input devices Bluetooth gamepads from 8Bitdo work on this ? Could be an easy solution for an existing TV with HDMI input...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
israelg Posted April 30, 2019 Author Share Posted April 30, 2019 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnkMc3aj0JY I found this video... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr_me Posted May 1, 2019 Share Posted May 1, 2019 Should be fine as long as Stella and retroarch continue to support 32-bit windows. Otherwise you could go to 64-bit linux. The cpu performs like a PC from 2005. https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Atom+x5-Z8300+%40+1.44GHz&id=2585 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Gemintronic Posted May 1, 2019 Share Posted May 1, 2019 I've bought many Atom based systems including 1st gen compute sticks, a 4gb newer compute stick, WinBooks and a GPD Win. If you're using Windoze it's *barely* acceptable for normal tasks at 4gb RAM. You quickly run out of onboard storage at 32gb with Windows itself (and forced updates). It's tough to boot to even EFI based media like Windows discs. Booting off of the TF card is impossible. The internal graphics are not great either. Atom based systems even today are like a Cyrix and off-brand x86 CPUs of old: they get real slow at weird times. The onboard storage is so underwhelming booting Windows off of an external USB stick was seemingly faster! So, long story short-er: get at least 4gb model with 64gb storage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youxia Posted May 1, 2019 Share Posted May 1, 2019 Unless small size is absolutely a must you can get a much beefier second hand laptop or mini PC for this money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
israelg Posted May 1, 2019 Author Share Posted May 1, 2019 Unless small size is absolutely a must you can get a much beefier second hand laptop or mini PC for this money. I want to connect it and be invisible... so need it small... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forrest Posted May 1, 2019 Share Posted May 1, 2019 I have setup a few Raspberry Pi's using RetroPi and think this is a better alternative. A new Raspberry 3B+ will cost you $70-$100, after you add the case, power supply, SD card and a USB Game controller. The system is fast enough to run a web browser, so you can download files from the internet. A Raspberry 2 or later (4 core CPU) will all work fine. 2600 and NES emulation will work on a Raspberry Pi Zero or Zero W, but web browsing is very slow because of the single core CPU and limited memory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+stephena Posted May 1, 2019 Share Posted May 1, 2019 2600 and NES emulation will work on a Raspberry Pi Zero or Zero W, but web browsing is very slow because of the single core CPU and limited memory. It's unlikely that the latest Stella will run on these systems. The R77 has a quad-core ARM CPU @ 1.2Ghz, and it is just enough to run the most demanding titles in Stella. A 3B+ will probably be fine, and perhaps even a 2. But the Zero will probably not be sufficient. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forrest Posted May 1, 2019 Share Posted May 1, 2019 I've played many 2600 games thru RetroPi with a Raspberry Pi Zero W - no problems at all. Atari 800 games also run, but you really need a keyboard attached. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+stephena Posted May 1, 2019 Share Posted May 1, 2019 I've played many 2600 games thru RetroPi with a Raspberry Pi Zero W - no problems at all. Atari 800 games also run, but you really need a keyboard attached. Yes, but have you used Stella 6, or an older 3.x-based version? The older one is faster, but much less accurate. And the newest one is very accurate, but quite a bit slower (as all emulators tend to get when they are cycle-exact). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forrest Posted May 1, 2019 Share Posted May 1, 2019 I used the version of Stella that's automatically installed when RetroPie 4.4 is installed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+stephena Posted May 1, 2019 Share Posted May 1, 2019 OK, so that looks like 5.0.2. The latest is 6.0, which may run a little slower due to the new cycle-exact sound core. But otherwise I guess it should be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
israelg Posted May 2, 2019 Author Share Posted May 2, 2019 So Stella will run fine on versions less then 6.0 on an intel computer stick...? Anyone can confirm this ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted May 2, 2019 Share Posted May 2, 2019 https://www.amazon.com/Intel-Compute-Computer-Processor-BOXSTK1AW32SC/dp/B01AZC4NHS Anyone with experience with such a device, this one specific or another member in this family... Is it good enough for running emulators such as Stella, Retroarch various cores Etc. ??? What about input devices Bluetooth gamepads from 8Bitdo work on this ? Could be an easy solution for an existing TV with HDMI input...? I have that exact model of Computestick, and will strongly recommend against attempting to use it for any sort of emulation. With 2GB of RAM, running Windows 10 Professional on it is agonisingly slow. If there are any OS updates taking place in the background, don't even bother trying to use it. It just doesn't have the guts it really needs to be useful. About the best thing I can say for it is that it was given to me, so at least I didn't pay for the punishment. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
israelg Posted May 2, 2019 Author Share Posted May 2, 2019 I have that exact model of Computestick, and will strongly recommend against attempting to use it for any sort of emulation. With 2GB of RAM, running Windows 10 Professional on it is agonisingly slow. If there are any OS updates taking place in the background, don't even bother trying to use it. It just doesn't have the guts it really needs to be useful. About the best thing I can say for it is that it was given to me, so at least I didn't pay for the punishment. OK, Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr_me Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 Make sure you manually activate windows 10 game mode. It's suppose to prioritise resources against background processes. Failing that you can install lubuntu. This thing should easily outperform a raspberry pi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 Make sure you manually activate windows 10 game mode. It's suppose to prioritise resources against background processes. Failing that you can install lubuntu. This thing should easily outperform a raspberry pi. Game Mode should make a difference, but it doesn't. At least, not much of one. This is a machine that's been on the market for over three years and that contains a low-performance 32-bit CPU coupled to only 2GB of RAM and 32GB of eMMC storage. It's just not going to be a performance powerhouse. And yep, you could run lubuntu or similar on it - or, for less or around the same money, do that on hardware that performs better and offers more flexibility. If it really has to be WIndows on x86/x64, though, there are also SBC alternatives in or around the same price bracket that will outperform the ComputeStick. They simply aren't good value for money, and better alternatives are out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr_me Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 (edited) It's a 64-bit quad core processor. If installing lubuntu I'd try the 64-bit version. With windows 10 game mode, not only do you have to turn on the feature in windows but you have to activate it for each specific emulator program. If it stops windows update, that alone is something. I use a 14 year old dual core processor computer for emulation without problems. It comes down to bang for the buck. Maybe you can get something much more powerfull for a few dollars more. Edited May 4, 2019 by mr_me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 It's a 64-bit quad core processor. If installing lubuntu I'd try the 64-bit version. With windows 10 game mode, not only do you have to turn on the feature in windows but you have to activate it for each specific emulator program. If it stops windows update, that alone is something. I use a 14 year old dual core processor computer for emulation without problems. It comes down to bang for the buck. Maybe you can get something much more powerfull for a few dollars more. It's a 64-bit processor, but only 32-bit OSes are supported on it. See this thread for details; there's a lot more than just that that has been written about these over the years. Oh, and speaking from practical experience: I can assure you that no, a 64-bit OS will not install on that hardware. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr_me Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 (edited) In that thread 64-bit Ubuntu was installed. If that is a problem you can go 32-bit lubuntu but I'd try 64-bit first. And I'd try the default os before that. Yes, installing an unsupported os might void the warranty. It's still a low performing cpu, some of the more demanding libretro cores might have issues. Edited May 4, 2019 by mr_me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 In that thread 64-bit Ubuntu was installed. If that is a problem you can go 32-bit lubuntu but I'd try 64-bit first. And I'd try the default os before that. Yes, installing an unsupported os might void the warranty. It's still a low performing cpu, some of the more demanding libretro cores might have issues. Double-check the thread. The OS is running 32-bit CPU addressing with 64-bit memory addressing. It's not truly 64-bit. In any event, it doesn't matter; there's better (truly 64-bit) hardware out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr_me Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 So it's a 64-bit cpu, with 64-bit linux installed, with 64-bit programs running on a 64-bit os, yet it's all 32-bit. You can't always believe what some guy writes on a public forum. There's better sources of information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 So it's a 64-bit cpu, with 64-bit linux installed, with 64-bit programs running on a 64-bit os, yet it's all 32-bit. You can't always believe what some guy writes on a public forum. There's better sources of information. You mean like a Google search and blindly drawing conclusions based on information found within those searches? You're absolutely right: that's at least a million times better than someone speaking from personal experience, and couldn't possibly be subject to error. Feel free to go buy one and make a 64-bit version of Windows run on it. Clearly, I and others have never tried to make that happen without success and there's absolutely no way we could know what we're talking about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr_me Posted May 5, 2019 Share Posted May 5, 2019 Never said you should install 64-bit windows on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted May 5, 2019 Share Posted May 5, 2019 Never said you should install 64-bit windows on it. This is pointless. As much as you love being right, I'm afraid you're going to have to find someone else to do it with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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