Download OpenELEC 6.0 Beta 1

The first beta release of version 6.0 of the Open Embedded Linux Entertainment Center has been released. This Linux distribution is based on Kodi and can turn a computer into a full-fledged htpc. OpenELEC is easy to install, maintain and use, as well as being small and lightning fast. In version 6.0, among other things, the switch to Kodi 15 has been made, a large number of components from the OS have been updated and some changes have been made to the supported hardware. The release notes for this version, referred to internally as 5.95.1, are as follows:

OpenELEC 6.0 Beta 1 released

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 visualization 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 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 here†
• [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 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.
  For more information visit WeTekor Wetek’s shop†