BACKSTORY - you could skip this part if you'd like to
Hey guys and gals, so I'm moving out to my own place in Sweden and don't have the luxury to bring with me my ps4 but I do have my beloved TV. I only use the TV to watch Netflix, Viaplay (streaming service that shows live soccer games) and sometimes I download shows my father has recorded and uploaded to tpb and watch them with something called popcorn time, I'm wondering if the nvidia shield android tv could do those things (I think Viaplay streams on chrome on desktops but I'm not sure, though they have a native app for phones).
I've was leaning between using a Intel NUC and getting KODI on it until I read that KODI works on the Raspberry Pi B 2, but then I started thinking about androids Netflix app which seems nice etc. So I was back to the NUC but discovered it needed RAM and SSD and an OS so I started thinking about building my own
..thanks if you read the backstory, here are my questions
WHERE I AM TODAY - the real post
Is it so that the nvidia shield android tv will eliminate my need for any HTPC for the main reasons of using it as: streaming hbo, netflix, viaplay, ufc, watching torrented files from my fathers uploads through KODI or just simply home recorded videos from a usb stick.
The Shield TV is one of the nicest options out there if you really need both Netflix and Kodi. Other devices can play Netflix, but don't always show it at full resolution or don't have fully remote-control friendly clients, etc.
There are other Android devices that are also good and have the same Netflix support, like the Nexus Player and various other stuff out there, but the Shield is Nvidia's baby. That means that, unlike other boxes of the past, it actually does alright as an ARM gaming machine. Think of high end phone/tablet games but with proper controls, with Nvidia's graphics abilities. Not quite "desktop" level, but really good for the price.
I'm kind of a cheapskate myself, so I'm not sure if I would ever actually splurge on a Shield TV, but it is tempting. I doubt you would be disappointed with the purchase.