Questions about the Nvidia Shield

by Makki10

Does the Shield provide a stable and good plex media server? (2-3 streams)

Is there any media player that is better than the Shield?

JimboLodisC

Two to three 1080p streams that aren't transcoding? Definitely. Once you start talking 4K or transcoding, then it starts to get a bit messy.

And I think the Shield TV is the best streaming device ever created.

FezVrasta

I use it with few friends and it works just fine. 1080p transcode at speed 6

Makki10

Is there any difference in the Pro and non-Pro version other than storage?

Could I just plug in my 2TB external harddrive in the non-Pro and be good to go? (after formating the drive of course)

Makki10

When the Shield is running as a media server, can you still use other apps? (Twitch, Youtube etc.)

Makki10

Do you know the quality/speed of the internal drive that comes with the Pro?

BiggussDikkuss

I actually stopped using Android TV all together because of the newly released Apple TV 4K that has better Apps support especially once you use it outside the USA. Apps are also integrated a LOT better into the Apple tvOS.

Why the fuss, well Google (& consequently NVIDIA) are pretty poor with the Android OS bug fixing updates and adding essential HDR features, the Shield does not have:

  • auto colorspace conversion/switching to output the correct color to a 4K HDR TV when watching mixed SDR / HDR content. Expect to manually fiddle with OS settings all the time for correct color outputs. It's a PITA.

  • no OS wide frame rate matching (TV refresh switching) for smooth video playback with ALL video streaming Apps. Not just Plex or Kodi. Plus I need auto 25fps / 50Hz TV refresh switching support.

  • poor 1080p > 4K picture upscaling vs the competition. Especially noticeable on big modern 4K TV's.

  • poor quality TV deinterlacing vs the competition.

  • no Dolby Audio licence, so too bad if you want 5.1 DD audio for an existing Soundbar or TV from DD+ Netflix & Amazon Video Apps.

  • you really seem to wait forever for even minor bug fixing Firmware updates. Still it's better than virtually all other Android devices getting about.

The Shield Hardware is fully capable but does not get enough developer resources from both Google and 3rd party App developers to iron out ongoing bugs out and implement OS features properly. Some of which are long standing well known bugs by now. The Shield has been on the market 2 years 8 months now.

The Shield is a great all rounder platform, but you have to put up with a lot once your Video playback requirements get too demanding.

I'm no longer blindly devoted to anything Android, I simply cannot put up with the ongoing hassles anymore, especially for mixed SDR / HDR usage that needs high quality, correct colored picture outputs.

And then there is ATV 4K DolbyVision support ;-)