Kodi 19.5 Matrix Released: Info – Features & Download

With Kodi 19.5 Matrix, a new major version with many new functions and features has been released. In this article we list the most important changes and information. We also show where Kodi 19.5 Matrix can be downloaded and how to install it.

Kodi 19, codenamed “Matrix”, is the new major release of the popular media center. The latest version is Kodi 19.5 Matrix. The developers have been working on the major update for almost two years. Since it is a so-called “major release”, there are a lot of new features and changes.

Kodi 19.5 Matrix: The most important changes at a glance

At this point, it must be emphasized once again that Kodi is a completely free software. The media center is 100% free and all developers involved work on the project in their spare time.

Switch to Python 3 affects all Kodi addons

Probably the biggest change to Kodi 19 Matrix is that from now on the Python 3 interpreter will be used. All Kodi addons must be written in the Python programming language to work in the media center. The interpreter then reads and executes the program code accordingly.

Until now, the interpreter was used in version Python 2, but this has officially reached the “end-of-life” on January 1, 2020, so it will no longer be further developed and supported. A so-called backward compatibility is not given due to the big differences between Python 2 and Python 3.

This means that all existing Kodi addons have to be rewritten to work under Kodi 19 Matrix. This is a big effort for the developers, but meanwhile almost all addons run with the latest version Kodi 19.5 Matrix. In addition, many new addons have been released that only work with the latest version of the media center.

Thus, there is no reason to use an older version of Kodi anymore, since there are enough Kodi addons that cover all functions.

Protection against unwanted updates

Another serious change regarding Kodi addons is that the media center will query the original installation source from now on. This means that updates for addons can only be installed from the repositories from which the extension was obtained. This is the developers’ reaction to some developments from the past.

Until now, it was possible to install updates for Kodi addons from repositories from which the extension was not originally downloaded. Some rogue Kodi sites like “TVAddons” have taken advantage of this and offered newer versions of well-known extensions, thus adding forced dependencies like “Indigo” with annoying popups and ads for their website.

Therefore, it is even more important than before to install Kodi addons best from the original repositories of the developers or at least use known and trusted repositories.

Video playback and subtitles

Kodi 19 Matrix supports the new AV1 codec. It is a free open-source video codec optimized for transmission over the Internet. AV1 is currently being tested by Netflix, Google and many other major providers. The codec is 30% more efficient than H.265 and will be the standard in video streaming in the future.

In the new version, the display of subtitles has also been massively improved. In addition to many technical changes, it is now possible to set a dark gray color and opacity for subtitles. This is especially helpful for HDR content.

Live TV and PVR

One feature that has become increasingly popular over the years is Live TV or PVR. With reminders, new widgets, an improved channel manager, more intuitive navigation, and many other improvements, the Live TV experience in Kodi is better than ever. For all the other information on IPTV via Kodi, check out our related article.

Music playback

Special attention has been paid to music playback and audio content display. Kodi 19 offers additional metadata tags and visualization options. The display of the music library has been greatly expanded; among other things, box sets with multiple CDs and albums are displayed more clearly.

Kodi 19.5 Matrix Download

If you want to install Kodi 19.5 Matrix, you can find the corresponding downloads on the official homepage of Kodi. Visit the developers’ download page, scroll down a bit and select your platform (section “Select Your Platform”).

The latest version for Android is currently not distributed via the Google Play Store. Instead, you have to download and install the APK file. We explain how this works in detail in this guide.

If you are already using an older version of Kodi and would like to update the media center, see our tutorial – How to update the media center“. There we explain easy to understand how to update Kodi on any platform within a few steps.

Technically inclined users can find all changes of Kodi 19.5 Matrix on GitHub. Since this is free software, all differences are published to ensure the greatest possible transparency.

Wrap Up

Kodi is the most popular and widespread media center software in the world. With the program you can turn any compatible device into a multimedia center – whether on a computer, a smartphone or on Amazon Fire TV hardware.

With Kodi, you can not only prepare your local collection of media such as movies and series with posters and information. The software can also be extended in its function by so-called “addons”. With some extensions, for example, video content can be streamed over the Internet.

And best of all: Kodi is absolutely free! It is free software that is regularly updated and improved by a voluntary team of developers.