Not the cheapest but an ok price. It was once closer to $200. Some say the Apple TV is better and others think the Fire TV 4k max stick rocket ship is better value. Most would rather not give their money to Gerry. I'm trying to work out if I should keep mine or return it and give my money to another bald dude. I do like the AI upscaling. I expected it to be ugly but it looks good. It makes sense for Skynet Nvidia to have clever nice picture-making robots. IDK if they'll make a new Shield (knowing my luck they will in 2 weeks) but it's unlikely as it didn't do much to get them into the $1T club.
NVIDIA Shield Pro 4K HDR Android TV Media Player $298 + Delivery ($0 C&C/ in-Store) @ Harvey Norman
Last edited 20/02/2024 - 23:11 by 2 other users
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Dog cat house
thank you
FU GERRY
Gerry and his wife own less than 40% of the company.
thats 40% too much even…
It's toooooooo old ….
I know… I feel like one day they will be $150. There isn't really anything else that compares though. I don't count those dodgy eBay Android TV devices.
Before NVIDIA release a new product, AppleTV is the best choice..
Why? what does the apple tv do that Shield does not?
@Aus Falcon: Better performance.
@PeppaCat: I have both. NVidia Shield >>>> daylight >>> AppleTV
it handles everything in terms of audio and video. How is your atmos going on apple TV?@jasonc: AppleTV does Atmos. It just doesn’t do TrueHD, which is definitely annoying, but only relevant for those of us that pirate content.
@casualusercts: my mistake. i meant trueHD
imagine spending thousands on a TV a the best quality you display is a streaming service
Yes, I have a proper surround sound system, with dolby atmos (and a pioneer 4K blu ray player)@jasonc: Yeah anyone with a sound system has to get the Shield for DTS-X and full Atmos, which is a day and night difference from the low quality audio on streaming. Plus it does Dolby Vision for mkv files. AI upscaling can be great other times its just ok. Its so fast and responsive plus it has light up buttons. Has a ridiculous amount of apps compared to Apple, with many more settings for players and your video preference. Apple doesn't even have a usb port for hard drives. I just dont see why anyone would choose Apple over the Shield. I guess marketing is telling them Apple is the best? Lol.
This also a bad price. I bought this almost 4 years ago for $290
@jasonc: You mean the Atmos available from every single streaming service that offers it? That Atmos? The Atmos on thousands of films in the platform's movie store (that also stream with HDR unlike the Shield due to it lacking VP9v2 compatibility used by GPM).
I remember when Disney+ first launched the Apple TV was the only device that supported Atmos with the service. The Apple TV is a flagship device and is treated as such by devs.
@tp0: streaming services = compromise in quality. if you only use streaming services then yea sure, Apple TV works well.
For people with a good video/audio setup and who pirate content to get the best experience, nothing can beat the Shield Pro at this point of time.
@kazer: Ok maybe I won't return it. The upscaling is amazing. I'm really fussy about over sharpening and distracting post processing (hello Samsung TVs with default settings). The first movie I'm watching on the shield looks great.
@GenerallyClumsy: yea if you've already bought it then dont look back. its money well spent with obvious advantages over other current devices.
@GenerallyClumsy: It's a very nice remote.
@Ham Dragon: yes. I wasnt making a post level comment recommending this to the majority of the users. I was responding to a comment about atmos/hdr/truehd which isnt something the 95% of the people would be concerned about.
@tp0: Tell me you don't know Atmos without telling me you don't know Atmos.
I own both, the shield is a lot better.
If you want to watch streaming services the Apple TV is better. If you want to watch 4K HDR rips a SBC running CoreELEC is better.
If you want to do both with the same device then yeah I guess you have to buy a Shield and accept certain compromises to both use cases.
Yeah I'd like both. 😊
@GenerallyClumsy: I just have two devices personally. Costs about the same as the RRP for a Shield too.
@RonaldPlump: Better apps. Better performance. Better UI.
There is also an extensive integration with the wider Apple ecosystem which is beneficial for about half the population.
I'd rather see if the good guys can price match than give my $$$ to Gerry.
These seem expensive for what they do, is there any benefit other than easy setup to use this rather than setting up a cheap mini PC to do the same thing?
Low idle power usage. Less likely to have other issues like e.g. screen tearing,
Power consumption and ease of setup/use probably
The AI upscaler works surprisingly well. You'd be sucking down a lot more energy to do the same on a Mini PC.
Also shit just works, rather than services like Netflix actively giving you lower quality streams than you've paid for on PC.
That's a good point, still seems pricey but also seems like the best solution on the market so I guess it makes sense.
99% of the population would be better off with a $50 firestick/chromecast. Just not 99% of those on this forum
I'm not convinced these are worth it anymore. No AV1 support, as a gaming focused devices you can't install Xbox game pass out of the box, I'm not even sure it has steam remote play out of the box (ie not available on the Play store). $300 seems a lot more expensive than deal over one, maybe two years ago…
Get a Firestick for $50
Ouch… Firestick happy with h265 4k Plex?
Firestick 4k Max (first gen) works fine for me, plays anything I throw at it via Plex. Only issue might be if you have crappy wifi and want to play 4K Bluray remux.
Do you think a firestick can play everything a shield can play? Seriously considering returning it and getting a FS 4k max.
@GenerallyClumsy: i have a firestick 4k max latest gen.it pretty much plays everything i've thrown at it except for a couple of dolby vision profiles (i think 7 and 8. not sure)
also it cant pass through dts I believe.
@kazer: and TrueHD
@nokia3660: it can pass through TrueHD.
@kazer: huh.. is this from personal experience or reading the spec online? There seem to be conflicting versions around the spec on the 2nd gen. The 1st gen I had definitely didn't support it. Will have to verify this on my 2nd gen now.
@nokia3660: personal experience using plex. my 2nd gen can passthrough truehd to my q990c
@kazer: great. Finally I can experience true atmos on my HT-A9s. Thanks mate.
@GenerallyClumsy: Yeah, I'd stand by that statement. There are drawbacks, Amazon Appstore even more limited than the Play store on Shield but if all you want is Plex, it works great.
I think Kazer is correct regarding no DTS.
@jonathonsunshine: also I've have had no problem sideloading apps on the firestick. so the amazon appstore really isnt a concern.
I am using the latest cube, works like a charm with 265
Do you really think these are gaming focused devices?
It's made by NVidia and they definitely promoted it that way. It's 5 years old now though, it's out gunned but last year's smart phones, maybe older. And it's been on OzBargain for $220 before.
Found this on their official youtube, "NVidia Shield, the Streamer for Gamers"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgLoq-3kYP8So? The title of the main site for it is "NVIDIA SHIELD - The Best Streaming Media Device".
@Tacooo: That's now, when they first bought em out, and the shield tablet, it was gaming focused is all I'm saying.
It does have Steam Link available on the Play Store. It works well for me, though haven't used it much.
Had one since November 22. $249 amazon. Not a bad device. As above had to use downloader to get gamepass. Didn't know it had Steamlink.
Play store is quite small on them. Perfect for Plex though.
Firesticks are budget devices, got a 4K for my son’s monitor to stream the interface and app selection is terrible. Should have bought a budget android device over it.
I’m a die hard Apple fan and have an Apple TV but I prefer using my shield. It’s far from expensive, well built machine. Everybody saying it’s old, who cares? The software is up to date.
The software could do with some updates (Android 11 isn't really 'up to date'), but generally speaking everything works pretty well.
Yeah true, I guess I mean more from a UI sense. I tried a latest version Google TV the other day and it seemed to be exactly the same UI.
All the apps seem to be their latest versions.
Had shield for two year. Just ordered an Apple TV 4K yesterday, still waiting for it to arrive. May I ask why do you prefer shield?
End of life (EOL) status: Some sources suggest the Shield is considered EOL (End of Life) by Nvidia, meaning no new models are planned and future updates might be limited.
Current situation:
The latest major update, Experience 9.1, was released in July 2020.
The Shield currently receives security patches periodically.
There's no official announcement about any upcoming major updates.Do you think they won't be making a new one? All indicators seem to be pointing in that direction.
If there is no more stock then that would explain why they aren't on their all time lowest price.
I hope if they are announcing a replacement they do it soon so I can return this one. otherwise, I think I'm happy.
No information of the replacement as far as I am aware. Also, their models are a bit weird. They made the Tegra x1 chip in 2015 and for the time it was so powerful that they were able to make it last all the way until now, almost 10 years after the initial release! Yes, they also made x1+ in 2019 but it was a minor improvement.
Older generations were just Shield, but in terms of functionality very close to the current Pro version, but to increase the revenue they realeased the non pro version with reduced functionality, that was a bit of a customer rip off.
As to the software it is not full android but Android TV with its limitations, it certainly lacks the felxibility needed for the hardcore enthusiasts (as well as the full Android, I may add).The X1+ is a die shrink. Identical, just smaller.
They used the benefits of the smaller process to overclock the GPU slightly but CPU performance remained the same.
I dunno where you got that data from but the Shield got 9.1.1 in November '22.
It was not a major update.
Touché.
Are their prices increasing?
Got this same model for $218 almost a year ago.
Not sure if it was on special though.yeah same bought mine around that price as well.. hoping to grab a 2nd but never seen it get back to that price.. assuming it never will?
"inflation"
For a 5 year old device, they still want to sell for $298. What world are they living in?🤦♂️
time for a reboot with 8K ability!!
Haha, I'm glad I posted the deal. I'm thinking of returning mine lol
9 years old. It's still fundamentally the same device it was in 2015.
This device came out at the end of 2019 I believe. Had some significant upgrades from the previous model, which for audio and videophiles is a must and the only box on the market with those specs. Yes it definitely should be under $200 now. I bought it for fractionally cheaper almost 4 years ago. Problem is no other device matches it, so theres no incentive for them to drop the price or come up with a better model. Not much they can improve that would make it worth upgrading anyway lol. Technology for media is almost at a standstill right now.
The 2019 upgrades were what? A broken Dolby Vision implementation and edge enhancement?
@tp0: Broken Dolby Vision lol. Its the only one that can play all the new DV profiles with no issue. You have no idea what you're talking about. What are you a secret Apple bot hidden in the forums. The AI is much more than edge enhancement. It rivals Sony TVs with their upscaling. Spoken like someone who has never had the Shield. Of course you'll probably reply that you had it and nothing worked lol.
@Whisper Quiet: The colours are wrong across the board. There’s a red push. So no it can’t do any Dolby Vision properly.
It also can’t do Profile 7 despite what many people believe since it ignores the EL in playback.
I’ve only ever seen one expert assessment of “AI Upscaling” which was from FlatpanelsHD. They concluded it was just edge enhancement and sharpening and made the image worse.
Apparently it still has the best upscaling engine of all of these types of devices.
Yeah, that is a good point. But, $298 is still a bit too much. Personally I wouldn’t mind paying $200 for this device.
300 bucks for old tech is nuts.
Don't see the value prop for this over the Fire Cube or even the newest Fire Stick. Kodi is pretty heavy but still works great on the Fire Stick. Can't say I'm a fan of the "AI" upscaling either, looks absolutely dogshit for anime. Maybe it's better for real people shows.
It’s just edge enhancement and other usual sharpening tricks. It looks like crap for everything.
I use one in conjunction with last years Samsung TV which unfortunately went backward with codec compatibility compared to their older TVs.
I used to own a WD Media Player which also failed after several years of use and finally failed but had awesome compatibility at the time with 1080p media.
The Nvidia Shield I would rate 9/10, maybe 8/10 as I feel the price is a bit high considering age. As a media player it is not perfect - there are some formats that it will play but struggle slightly with drop in frames despite testing every setting. It is easier than setting up a separate plex server.
Well that depends on what media player you're using in the Shield. You can also set the type you want to play 24fps Dolby Vision, 60fps Dolby Vision, 30fpsHDR, etc. In the settings.
Just Player seems to be the best for Dolby Vision and supports all the newer profiles. Kodi is fine for most other files.Thanks for the tips! :) I will try Just Player as MX and VLC struggle on some videos.
i wouldn't mind a few more words