Google Almost Got Me (Pixel TV (box) would have nabbed me!)

by kayshaw86

Man I've been really disappointed with Apple lately.

Google's Pixel 3 event really got me to want a Google Home Hub and convince me that the Pixel 3 would be OK to switch from iPhone.

I'm also trying to decide if I want to go all in on Alexa or Google Home for my smart home.

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BUT the TV options are a little sub-par in my opinion.

I'll say my Apple TV 4K isn't perfect for sure but it's solid.

So is the Nvidia Shield, but I feel like it's a little dated.

I got really excited that there's an always listening assistant but only if you buy the ugly game controller and leave it sitting out someplace it can hear you. Even then it won't turn the TV on to acknowledge your requests with visual cues from what I've read.

Also I looked into the Chromecast Ultra, but that seems to have missed the refresh wave...

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Wouldn't it be perfect if Google unveiled a Pixel TV!?

I'd like it to be like the Amazon Fire TV Cube, where it sits on your entertainment center, listens and responds to you with a little built in speaker that could respond if visual aid won't help the response or turn the TV on and show Google Home Hub like results. It would use the cheap speaker to tell you it was doing something and then switch to the TV speakers after a time delay to account for TV startup time.

It would support multi-room audio with your other Google Home devices.

It would have a pull down menu similar to the Google Home Hub that you could access from the remote that's stolen from the Apple TV, I love that thing!

Of course the remote would control TV volume just like the Apple TV.

I know many don't like a thing sitting up on the entertainment center, so maybe the remote could always be listening and have a little speaker in it to respond immediately.

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That would have gotten me to switch to the Google ecosystem.

And would be my ideal setup.

Just thought I'd share my thoughts and desires.

pawdog

Yeah, you're going to need to explain what you think is dated about the Shield.

JimboLodisC

Don't let the fact that NVIDIA released a chip back in 2015 that still beats out anything in 2018 and anything coming down the pipe in 2019 mislead you into thinking the Shield is somehow "dated". If anything, you're late to the party.

WazWaz

Dated? The shield has release dates much the same as Apple TV, and had 4K before it. What does the term mean to you?

kayshaw86

I was waiting to start getting negative comments like those that have started showing up.

I've acknowledged the Shield is solid and was ahead of it's time. In my opinion the product is dated. I actually don't have to explain my opinion.

This thread is not about the Shield. It's about a flagship product opportunity that Google missed.

push2flush

It just got delayed, but this soundbar might have everything you are looking for...

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https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/8/20/17762134/jbl-link-bar-android-tv-google-assistant-price-release-date

Solarux

Yes, with as much denialism that's happening in this thread, you're correct to say the platform is lackluster. Absolutely.

Speaking as someone that has been a huge proponent of Android TV and its hardware partners since the ADT-1, I'll be the first to say the Shield TV kinda sucks now and does feels dated.

It has a horrible remote, the UI isn't always consistently smooth/responsive/inviting, updates can be a mystery, and it physically looks like a gaming rig accessory from 2013.

...but it's the best that Android TV has to offer so this subreddit touts it as perfection.

And you're right - a refined 'Made by Google' product might have injected a little life into an otherwise drab, stuck-in-limbo platform. The unfortunate part is it was needed a year ago.

Hell, just look at the official Android TV remote app as a measure of Google's effort. It hasn't been updated in over a year and a half. On top of that, it still implements design elements from Android KitKat (2013)!

I could go on and on but in short, stick with AppleTV / tvOS. It is a better overall experience that offers more features.

yourm0m1

Google makes reference devices early on, they aren't going to make another TV device after the failure of the Q and then Nexus Player that got AndroidTV moving forward. Get a Shield or GTFO, Nvidia continues to support the device through software updates once that ends then you can look for the next thing on the horizon.

DNEAVES

I still have the older model Shield, sure I can't play 4k stuff but I don't have a 4k TV so that's okay.

Sure, it may be "dated" year wise, but the hardware hold up and the software is mostly good. The actual remote is nice, and since you like the apple one you'll find this is just as good.

Google making a good android box would be good. And although they're really going in on pixel branding on, with the pixel phone, tablet, laptop, maybe don't extend it to android tv not too much more cause extending a brand too far can be a little confusing, especially when it crosses types of goods (pixel seems to be their mobile computing brand: phone/tablet/laptop, so leave it at that). So maybe not a "pixel" box, but if they called it a chromebox or something (but obviously not exactly that cause I'm pretty sure chromebox is a chromeOS desktop thing, maybe called ChromeTV)