When Nvidia launched their first Shield TV device in 2015 it was a powerhouse but not the complete package due to some baffling decisions made by the top chaps at Nvidia. Who thought it was a good idea to launch without remote control in the standard bundle??
Fast forward two years and now this glaring oversight has been corrected. Have Nvidia delivered the ultimate media streaming box? Let’s find out.
The first thing to note with the 2017 Nvidia Shield is that the standard package that you can buy from Amazon etc includes the box itself (obviously), the game controller and the remote control which makes for a very welcome change from its predecessor.
Powered by the mighty X1 processor, the Shield is capable of outputting jaw-dropping 4K HDR images at a silky smooth 60fps. What this means in layman’s terms is that what ever TV you hook the Shield up to, it going to get the best picture possible from your TV!
The next key area for media streamer in my opinion is apps. All this power will be wasted if there’s no way to actually watch your favourite movies and TV shows in all their UHD, HDR glory. Thankfully Nvidia has us covered here too!
Thanks to a partnership with Amazon, the Nvidia Shield is the first streaming device to offer both Netflix and Amazon Video 4K HDR. This is a big win for Nvidia and likely to remain the only device capable of this for quite a while.
The Grand Tour looks beautiful in HDR, the cinematography on show here is breathtaking in places. The production team deserve a huge pat on the back!
Obviously as the new Shield is running on the Android TV platform, there’s a full suite of Google apps available too including YouTube, Google Play Movies & TV along side BBC iPlayer, Twitch and thousands of other apps in the Android TV Play Store.
Another benefit of using Android TV for the operating system is Google’s best in class voice search. In the mood for a classic action movie from the nineties? Simply as Google to show you some and it will respond with posters from classic Movies like Terminator 2! This is a great party trick.
Nvidia has promised to update the Shield to include the Google Assistant in the not too distant future so you’ll be able to control smart home devices too!
Nvidia have knocked it out of the park with this one and for anyone looking for an Android TV device, this is a no brainer. If you’re invested in Googles ecosystem of products and services, this is also the Media Streamer that I’d recommend for you. If you’re an iPhone owner and all your movies and TV shows are sat in iTunes, I’d wait for the 4K Apple TV which we’ll hopefully see a WWDC this June.
You can buy the Nvidia Shield for yourself on Amazon by clicking here now.
