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Comparison · Collab

Kodi vs SiYuan

A side-by-side editorial comparison of Kodi and SiYuan — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

Kodi vs SiYuan: at a glance

FeatureKodiSiYuan
SectorCollabCollab
Velocity score2.56.3
Sparks · 30d00
Top themesmedia-center, blu-ray, pvr, ffmpegknowledge-management, ai-agent, mcp, cross-platform
Last editorial update14d ago1d ago
WebsiteVisit →Visit →

What is Kodi?

Kodi's v22 'Piers' cycle is a long rebuild of playback, Blu-ray and PVR

Kodi is deep into the v22 'Piers' pre-release cycle, running alpha and beta builds while still patching v21 'Omega'. The v22 work concentrates on media playback foundations: Blu-ray menu support, a redesigned Movie Versions and Extras system, chapter handling, and a PVR overhaul with custom timers and one-minute EPG resolution. FFmpeg has been carried from 7 to 8.x across the cycle.

Read the full Kodi trajectory →

What is SiYuan?

SiYuan stabilises 3.8.1 after a seven-build beta run, all of it widening the agent surface it opened in 3.8.0

SiYuan has just cut 3.8.1 stable, the endpoint of a beta chain that ran six builds in five days. The release groups into three areas: AI integration work - custom editor actions syncing across devices, an Agent panel shortcut, user-level skills read from a shared agents directory, nested rerank API formats and OpenAI Responses API support; editing and database throughput, including virtualised grouped-table rendering and faster document loading; and cross-platform reliability covering HEIF/HEIC previews, PDF export and mobile behaviour. A batch of MCP and publishing-service fixes rounds it out.

Read the full SiYuan trajectory →

Kodi vs SiYuan: editorial side-by-side

K
Kodi
COLLAB
2.5

Kodi's v22 'Piers' cycle is a long rebuild of playback, Blu-ray and PVR

◆ Current state

Kodi is deep into the v22 'Piers' pre-release cycle, running alpha and beta builds while still patching v21 'Omega'. The v22 work concentrates on media playback foundations: Blu-ray menu support, a redesigned Movie Versions and Extras system, chapter handling, and a PVR overhaul with custom timers and one-minute EPG resolution. FFmpeg has been carried from 7 to 8.x across the cycle.

◆ Where it's heading

This is a foundations release rather than a features release — FFmpeg 8, Python 3.14, and a MySQL charset migration to utf8mb4 are the kind of changes that pay off in what becomes possible later rather than in what users see now. Note that the alpha 3 and beta 1 entries are dated out of order in this feed, so the sequence here should not be read as the release order.

◆ Prediction

Expect further v22 beta builds consolidating the Blu-ray and PVR work before a Piers release candidate; v21 patches will continue in parallel until it ships.

S
SiYuan
COLLAB
6.3

SiYuan stabilises 3.8.1 after a seven-build beta run, all of it widening the agent surface it opened in 3.8.0

◆ Current state

SiYuan has just cut 3.8.1 stable, the endpoint of a beta chain that ran six builds in five days. The release groups into three areas: AI integration work - custom editor actions syncing across devices, an Agent panel shortcut, user-level skills read from a shared agents directory, nested rerank API formats and OpenAI Responses API support; editing and database throughput, including virtualised grouped-table rendering and faster document loading; and cross-platform reliability covering HEIF/HEIC previews, PDF export and mobile behaviour. A batch of MCP and publishing-service fixes rounds it out.

◆ Where it's heading

This is consolidation of the surface 3.8.0 opened, not an extension of it. The agent, semantic search and MCP endpoint arrived in the 3.8.0 line; 3.8.1 makes them portable and pluggable - skills come from a directory the user controls, editor actions follow the user between devices, and the provider layer now speaks the OpenAI Responses API rather than one bespoke shape. The high beta count against a modest final diff shows a project stabilising a young subsystem rather than building a new one.

◆ Prediction

The next line most likely pushes on the skills directory - discovery, sharing or marketplace distribution of user-level skills - since that is the piece 3.8.1 made user-editable without giving it a distribution path.

Alternatives to Kodi and SiYuan

Other Collab products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Kodi or SiYuan.

See all Kodi alternatives → · See all SiYuan alternatives →

Recent activity from Kodi and SiYuan

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 2d agoSiYuanSiYuan 3.8.1 stabilises the agent, skills and Responses API work
  2. 3d agoSiYuanSlash menu items become configurable; table column widths distribute evenly
  3. 4d agoSiYuanTable headers left-align by default; double-click closes tabs
  4. 4d agoSiYuanUser-level agent skills and virtualized grouped-table rendering
  5. 5d agoSiYuanAI features move to the OpenAI Responses API
  6. 5d agoSiYuanAgent panel gains a shortcut; blockquote input fixed
  7. 28d agoKodiv22.0a3-Piers
  8. 2mo agoKodiv22.0b1-Piers
  9. 4mo agoKodiv22.0a2-Piers
  10. 9mo agoKodiv21.3-Omega
  11. 1y agoKodiKodi v22 opens with Blu-ray menus, PVR overhaul and Movie Versions redesign
  12. 1y agoKodiv21.2-Omega

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Kodi and SiYuan?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. SiYuan is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 2.5), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is Kodi better than SiYuan?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. SiYuan is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 2.5), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Collab products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to Kodi?

Top Kodi alternatives in Collab are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Kodi alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/kodi for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to SiYuan?

Top SiYuan alternatives in Collab are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "SiYuan alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/siyuan for the full list with editorial commentary on each.