Not Fire TV Stick Or Roku: This 4K Streaming Device Is Consumer Reports' Top Choice

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If you were to ask us for help buying a flagship streaming device from one of the big brands for your fancy new TV, we would probably steer you toward a Roku, which handles many tasks better than a smart TV, or the Apple TV 4K, especially if you use Apple devices and apps. We would not, under normal circumstances, direct your attention to a device released in 2019.

But these are not normal circumstances, and the Nvidia Shield TV Pro, which is Consumer Reports' best-rated streaming device, is still a great piece of tech. It comes with 3 GB of RAM and 16GB of storage, two USB-A 3.0 ports and an HDMI 2.0 port, plus a gigabit Ethernet connection. In its analysis of the device, CR gives it high marks for ease of use, picture quality, and features; other professional reviews agree.

This model has been available for quite a few years now, so it's surprising to see it rank so well in CR's reporting. It's also surprising because, as you'd expect from a streaming device manufactured by a brand that mostly makes graphics cards, this isn't exactly the best recommendation for the average user. It's a lot bigger than most streaming sticks, and it's also expensive, coming in at a whopping $200. Do you know how many tech gadgets you could get for under $200? Having said that, there are a lot of things to like about the Shield TV Pro.

Nvidia's top-of-the-line streaming device supports a lot of streaming services. Pretty much every big streaming app is available on Shield TV. CR's own reporting seems to have missed support for Apple TV+, which is currently advertised on Nvidia's website, and still came away impressed by the amount of services supported. The built-in Google Play Store must have been a huge help in that regard, and by itself is an important upside for potential buyers.

The Shield also has built-in support for one of the best cloud gaming systems, GeForce Now, for an extra fee. You will need to put in a little work to get the best out of your GeForce Now subscription, but it can work really well as long as you have a stable internet connection. This device also features pretty good 4K upscaling for low-res and regular HD content, if that's something you're interested in.

All these features and more are highlighted by numerous professional reviewers, even if most are as old as the device itself. Thankfully, plenty of user reviews and editorials through the years confirm that the Shield TV Pro is still a good choice as a high-end streaming device, years after its release.