Should I putchase a 4-year-old nVidia TV Pro, another technology, or wait for next Gen?
Should I putchase a 4-year-old nVidia TV Pro, another technology, or wait for next Gen?
It's my birthday, and I want the upscaling, the single platform, the flexibility (sailing the high seas), but it's soooo old. $200? IDK
Honestly, for running jellyfin/emby/plex, there's nothing better. The only thing an update might get you would be higher refresh rates or maybe 8k support, but for watching video, who cares?
Once I disabled the built-in "leanback" launcher with its fucking toxic ads and replaced it with flauncher, it's been essentially perfect for watching media. flauncher is fugly as hell but it stays out of my face, unlike google's ad-focused launcher.
HLG, AV1, QMS, VP9 Profile 2 (YouTube HDR) and faster menus would make me want to upgrade from my 2017 Shield as that'd improve watching videos.
Ikr..I wish shield had an app only mode like the new Chromecast has.
Thank you so much for the FLauncher tip! I like it much more than the default Home Screen
I run Moonlight, SmartTube, Jellyfin, and Stremio on mine and it's a beast.
Honestly, for running jellyfin/emby/plex, there's nothing better.
I'm currently running Kodi on my Xbox with Jellycon to stream from a Jellyfin server.
I'd be genuinely curious how this is better.
Nvidia has all but backed out of the mobile chip market, and those chips are what this line used. So that's why we haven't seen any updates in years. But the good news is they have made a new chip for Nintendo's next-gen switch coming out sometime next year. So within a year of that coming out, I would expect to finally see a new Shield or Nvidia TV or whatever they call it, using a similar chip to what goes in the Switch 2
Switch 2 launch: we heard you all say you wanted better battery life, so we delivered, 3x the battery life for the same performance! Get your switch 2 today, all switch games will work on switch 1 or 2!
Had this question like 2 years ago, thinking it was due for an upgrade... At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if they never release another.
I think it supports pretty much everything you might want in a device already.
Happy birthday :)
Thank you!
I bought the Nokia 8010 TV box instead of the shield. I do not know if it's available in your country. Why? Cheaper and same ish enough.
I like it but "like" is all there is. I do not love it. As most android boxes it is not 100% stable and needs a reboot after a week or so.
I red in several forums the nvidia shield has the same problem.
Tbh the appletv is the wise choice. Stable, more apps, better ecosystem, better soc, more storage. Plex also works on it.
I couldn't use it unfortunately because my Atmos setup is not arc 2.0 and the appletv only does uncompressed atmos. With arc 1.x it's only possible to send atmos compressed over dolby digital plus.
I second this, I love my Apple TV. Blazingly fast and stable and the extra features are amazing. Bought a new sound bar the other day, held my iPhone up and it perfectly configured audio latency. The TV itself had trouble communicating with the sound bar over CEC so I told the Apple TV to learn the volume controls from the sound bar remote, took 10 seconds. When I got my TV, the AppleTV used the camera on my phone to configure the picture settings for most accurate colour reproduction. Added a couple notches of saturation because it’s my personal preference, done.
It plays everything I’ve thrown at it via Plex and Jellyfin, no issues. I also have Moonlight for streaming games from my PC via NVidia game stream and Steam Link for whenever Gamestream shits the bed. Just paired up an Xbox controller to the Apple TV, job done.
Oh, and TV OS 17 just came out and added third party VPN support, so if you do have Netflix or whatever, you can change region using a VPN.
I’m not an Apple fan boy but the Apple TV just works and if you already have a modern-ish iPhone (mine’s a 12), it makes it so much better.
Do you have a solution for running movies of off USB or similar with the Apple TV? I sometimes download movies or shows and I don’t want to deal with streaming them from the pc using plex as I always worry that I’m not getting the best quality. I usually plug a usb stick to my smart tv but sometimes it doesn’t pick up on the subtitles.
It’s literally all that is missing from Apple TV for me (plus the VPN thing that was missing). To be able to run media from an external storage.
What Gen. Apple TV? Are you using it stock ?
I ended up buying the Vertex2 device from HDFury. It solved all my audio issues by extracting audio from HDMI and sending it separately to my sound bar. Meanwhile, the video signal adds fake Dolby Vision support for my Samsung TV so that I get HDR whenever it’s available.
I do need to use Infuse as the media player on the Apple TV to get Dolby Atmos / Vision to work on most movies. I used to have to switch to the NVIDIA Shield to get that to work, but can’t remember a movie that has not worked lately.
I don't think you can paint all Android TV boxes with the same brush. I have the 2017 Shield and it has been very stable and rarely needs to be rebooted.
AI upscale is not worth it in my opinion unless you watch old blueray rips since compression algorithms would make upscaling worse in some cases.
I have Apple tv and linux pc for my 2 tvs.
If Apple tv cover your needs then go for it. I got it used in 2017 (I believe gen 3) and still butter smooth to this day.
I strongly disagree. The AI upscaling is incredibly practical. I have a 4k TV, and most 1080p shows and movies look insanely sharp. It's not a gimmick.
This said, I don't think anyone should buy these new right now. They need to release an update.
Don't go with Apple TV, just buy a fire stick for next to nothing and wait for the next shield. That, or buy used.
It’s not a gimmick, however, not all videos would be better after the upscaling.
720p blueray rips yes. 720p YouTube compressed to hell no.
And regarding firestick, and on top of the performance gap, I don’t trust Amazon.
What distro/software are you using?
I’m currently running debian 12. The tv is mainly used for YouTube so ublock origin + dearrow + sponsorblock + thumbdown back.
Unfortunately the only downside is HDR support. I had to use clunky smart tv software to run Jellyfin for HDR content.
I’ve tried KODE. It’s still not mature for my taste.
Despite being 4 years old it's still one of the better options, though with caveats. The one thing that it has that nothing else really has is real time AI upscaling. I've stopped using my Shield, and went back to using Roku boxes and Raspberry Pi 4B's... so it's hard for me to really recommend the Shield.
Nvidia has pretty much abandoned GeForce Experience, so despite this being a selling point for the device, you'd be happier using Moonlight + Sunshine even if you did buy a Shield. The Nvidia Shield also has terrible input lag for bluetooth controllers. I think this because of how Android blocks direct access to hardware, and so it introduces input lag. So if you actually want to use GeForce Experience, it means you'd have to buy and 8bitdo USB stick, or pay for VirtualHere to fix the controller problem. I personally setup a Raspberry Pi 4B with Moonlight and I'm much happier with that.
For Plex, I'd be hesitant. Over on Reddit I keep reading about how people have attempted using the Shield to run their home media, and it's usually followed with regret. I didn't get into streaming locally until after I stopped using my Shield, though so I can't personally attest to that. Instead, I'm using a second Pi to run a NAS and Jellyfin... and again, the Shield might be preferable if you want everything in one unit.
So, I can't exactly recommend the Nvidia Shield... but at the same time I don't think most people would have the time to build their own Raspberry Pi based solutions either.
I've had an overall good experience with Plex and my Shield, though in my case I only use Shield as a client and my NAS hosts my server. Of the commercial streamers you can buy, it has some of the broadest video/audio format support. A lot of other options don't support lossless audio like TrueHD or DTS-MA.
But can you completely copy the UX of a shield pro with raspberry pi?
I mean, I can grab the TV's remote, or the shields remote, and whichever I turn on, both of them turn on. It also wakes up from sleep faster than the TV turns on. I can use the TV's remote to control the shield. Basically it works completely transparently.
It also makes it work really nice with android phones. I can cast spotify, youtube, google photos, or the screen onto the TV, and it works better than the TV's cast with the apps.
I used Plex and while it worked nice for most of the time, I got fed up with it trying to steer me away from local streaming, and having a hard time finding my way back to it in the therrible UI. I set up Jellyfin and couldn't be happier, HDR, Dolby Vision, 4K streaming just works perfectly.
The UI is much faster than a flagship LG TV too...
What I'm asking is... is it possible to set up an RPi to work this seamlessly and user friendly? With apps like netflix, hbo max, jellyfin, etc, with a remote and nice and easy UI so anyone can use it on their first try?
There are IrDA adapters which can let it react to your remote, so yes
The UX wouldn't be a problem. Transcoding may be, though.
I use the original shield controller and it's great with no input lag. I never got the headphone jack on it working though.
The Nvidia Shield also has terrible input lag
I am usually not very exigent with input lag, but I noticed this when I tried it with my Shield, I won't deny what you just say, but to me it did great help to turn the gaming mode in my TV, after all the input lag is almost imperceptible for me.
I have the OG Shield Pro, with an additional remote, the most recebt one.
Besides changing the inner HDD for a SSD, it does all I need.
Sure, it doesn't support the HDMI 2.1 that my TV does, but I don't need that for what the Shield does for me (YouTube, Netflix and Plex playback).
I had issues with that lack of HDMI 2.1 support.
Tried to pair mine with an LG CX OLED and could not for the life of me get it to reliably run at 4K.
It chooses its own dogshit res and it looks bad even though it scales well. Not about to watch a bad picture on such an expensive display.
I have one and it is pretty amazing, but it sucks for Kodi from time to time, usually a reboot fixes all the annoyances... But I don't like that workaround.
My unit was downgraded to 8.2.3 and debloated for the sake of a better performance.
on the flip side, i also dowgraded to 8.2.3 and debloated. i have zero issues with Kodi using PKC with direct play over a wired connection.
Wait a few weeks without reboot and check again, although usually it does pretty well with PKC, especially if you have light local media.
It's probably worth saying that I think the issues with Kodi are down to Kodi itself and not the shield. That is to say you'll have similar issues on a fire stick or Chromecast 4k or whatever.
I have up on Kodi after having used it successfully for years on a raspberry pi. I switched to Emby and it has been much more stable.
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I am using a Chromecast 4k and I am quite happy with it .. what would the shield accomplish better ?
Better app performance, better upscaling, game streaming (though you'll need to use something like Moonlight for local streaming now), better audio format support for local Plex/Jellyfin servers.
Oh man, I HATE to say it, but the old 4k fire stick is a lot better than the latest 4k chromecast.
The shield tube is better than both of these, though. But yeah... Such old hardware. They need to release something new. Still, it works with very few issues.
Plex server
Better performance for Android TV apps
Imo, it'll take 1-3 more birthdays until a new one comes out. Is there anything specific you'd want them to upgrade? The only clear thing they're missing right now is av1 support. Given that it's still the best player on the market, I'd say go ahead and get it. Maybe try to find one second hand to save a buck, that's what I did earlier this year 🙂.
IMO nothing beats the Nvidia TV and I've tried just about everything. Heck, I'm still rocking a 2017 on my main TV (lacks Dolby Vision/Atmos and AI Upscaling but is otherwise fine).
The non-Pro seems to have issues that affect 4k decoding in plex but never seen similar issues on a Pro (I think packing the internals into that small tube was a mistake, and it's overheating, but that's just a guess).
There's some hope Nvidia will come out with a next gen but people have been hoping (and spreading rumours about) that for years.. until there's an official announcement I wouldn't expect it. They continue to support software upgrades though.
The only reason I think they might soon if at all is because the Nintendo Switch and the shield have similar SoCs. Tegra X1 with a Maxwell GPU. Well Switch 2 is close enough to release that people are seeing it and the SoC is showing up in benchmarks. Another ARM chip, but with an Ampere GPU this time.
So if NVidia is already building the SoC for Nintendo, it may be reasonably easy to make an upgrade to the Shield.
Nvidia has pretty much dropped this. I don't forsee another version in the next three years. I don't see anything you listed that wouldn't be a good reason to go for the regular shield though and save some money. It's still a good product. I would buy now.
I love my shield, so while ot is rather expensive and it seems like there won't be future models, I still would have bought it.
Pi4 and Kodi in the form of OSMC or Libreelec is cheaper and IMO better
As far as I know, the pi4 cannot output 10-bit 4k hdr or Dolby vision, which makes it basically a non-starter as a media box.
I also think it struggles with h.264 high bitrate content.
Mine outputs 10bit HDRjust fine even with DV. Takes changing some settings but it's not rocket surgery.
The biggest issue with Pi and Kodi setups is the lack of good remotes and sleep/standby. Get a Shield if you want stuff to "just work".
How come? Does it support anything higher than 1080p?
Will this work fluently with multiple streaming platforms?
I sold mine due to video stuttering that I couldn’t fix, I bought fire cube instead.
They fixed that on the latest models. They actually got a LOT better over time after multiple updates.
I have the tube, so it's not even the pro, and it plays everything... Even crazy huge 4k streams.
Did they fix it though? I can see a post from 6 months ago complaining about stuttering…
Aren’t they releasing a new shield anyway?
Bleh, good luck with all the advertisers and shitty interface.
Look for one used. They tend to pop up fairly regularly around here
Raspberry pi and kodi
I couldn't find one for the longest time because of high demand and low production output during the pandemic. I was able to find a refurbished one in a small local computer shop.
I'm really glad I bought it. It's a great multimedia station for my tv and you can even stream your games from your PC to your tv using Steam.
The only caveat is that you are limited in what applications you can install and it's difficult to install app from the drive.
Have a look at the Nokia TV Box. Great bit of kit. Sturdy and well built remote. I wouldn't buy a used shield for sure. And the old Nvidia shield is pretty much the same spec as the latest one IIRC. There's not much between them. The shield often drops in price on Amazon too (Europe).
I haven't heard of anything newer coming out soon from Nvidia and for the price difference I would definitely go for the Nokia, allowing you to also save your cash if Nvidia do bring out a new version.
The Shield TV should still dramatically outperform the chipset in the Nokia box. Shield will do everything it does and more, and runs a higher Android version.
https://gadgetversus.com/processor/amlogic-s905x3-vs-nvidia-tegra-x1-plus-t210b01/
In the context of a TV Streaming Box, the decoder itself is basically the only large factor.. and as the site you provided shows, the nokia box supports h.265 4k@75hz, and 4k@30hz h.264. VP6/7 seem to be unlisted, so I can't tell if that's a mistake, or would be deferred to the CPU for decode. This ends up leaving the question which services are you wanting to stream, and which encoder are they using?
The CPU/GPU only need to be fast enough to smoothly run the UI, and other possible decompression tasks that aren't h.264/h.265.
I'm not doubting that the shield TV would be a superior box. But just that I wouldn't buy a used one, and for the money the Nokia box is a great box, well built until OP can decide to buy a new shield or at least wait until new shield is mentioned or released.