Apple TV was launched on NVIDIA SHIELD this week. The Apple TV app is generally only available to Google TV, the next generation in Android TV software. If you have a TV at home with Android TV and not Google TV, you almost certainly did not have the ability to use the Apple TV app and service. Now, NVIDIA announced that their Android TV device NVIDIA SHIELD will have access to said app.
A smart home hub is only as useful as the number of languages it can speak. Given the number of disparate smart home platforms available today, it pays to either understand all those or at least have the ability to learn to communicate with other smart home products. That was practically what the SmartThings Link USB dongle did for the NVIDIA SHIELD TV but that dongle itself will lose its ability to speak the SmartThings language when Samsung upgrades its ecosystem in June.
The next Nintendo Switch device may be the NVIDIA SHIELD Tablet we've been dreaming of for years. The first NVIDIA SHIELD (handheld device) proved to us that there was a market (however small at the time) for a handheld gaming machine with processing power ready for the mobile games generation. The NVIDIA SHIELD Tablet* made clear that NVIDIA was thinking about expanding to a realm that spanned the at-home gaming console, PC streaming, mobile gaming, and everything between. Then they started to work with Nintendo.
An update to all NVIDIA SHIELD TV devices this week made available a connection to next-gen gaming console controllers. This is not the ONLY feature the update adds, but it is by far the most significant. With this update, users will be able to connect an Xbox Series X/S wireless controller and/or PlayStation 5 Dual Sense controller to NVIDIA SHIELD Android TV for top-notch gaming hardware control in full effect.
This week NVIDIA released a significant update to the NVIDIA SHIELD Android TV device collection. This update is called SHIELD Experience Upgrade 8.2.1 (32.8.435.31) and it's made to address "many quality of life issues reported in the field," and improves stability and compatibility with "other devices in your home entertainment center." This is not a beta update, it's a standard update for all NVIDIA SHIELD TV devices. You'll find the update appear on your main home screen immediately, if not soon.
NVIDIA doesn't get much attention in mobile news mostly because it doesn't have a phone or even a tablet to sell. It does have a couple of Android TV devices, and, to its credit, it may be one of the best-supported Android products next to Google's own Pixel phones. It has been more low-key on updates lately but that doesn't mean it has stopped its practice. Unfortunately, the latest update, while much needed, is missing the one piece of good news owners have been dying to hear.
Today we're taking a peek at the smart TV, Android TV device called NVIDIA SHIELD TV and its latest update. This update is the 25th update to the device since its launch in May of 2015. This is a device that's been praised for updates long after competitors have abandoned their devices - it's one of the longest-lasting Android devices ever made.
Game streaming news continues to flow especially during these days when the console hardware market seems to be waiting with bated breath for the next big thing. The promise of universal gaming is strong but its current implementations are not that convincing since you're limited by what devices or specific models are officially supported. NVIDIA might be preparing to expand the coverage of GeForce NOW that could give it an ironic advantage over Stadia on Google's own turf.
There has been a surge in purchases of entertainment consumer electronics these past months because of the prospect of being bored at home. Many of these involve the likes of smart TV and consoles like the Nintendo Switch but some have also opted to finally get their hands on NVIDIA's latest Android TV device. Much to their surprise and dismay, some outlets have listed the SHIELD TV Pro as "discontinued" but NVIDIA is quick to assure them that it isn't the case at all.
A rumor today suggests that Google may finally have an answer for the Amazon Fire TV Stick and other dongle-like smart TV platforms. This device would be a follow-up to the Google Chromecast Ultra, a relatively small device that plugs into an HDMI port at the back of a television and requires its own power source - generally provided by a power cord also included in the box. That device does not run Android TV - this new device might.
Cyberpunk 2077 will be playable on an Apple computer on launch day - despite its complete lack of compatibility with macOS (or Mac OS, if you prefer). This release works with GeForce NOW, the NVIDIA game streaming system that allows users to take advantage of NVIDIA's game servers to play anywhere you've got a good internet connection. Cyberpunk 2077 is also supposed to be released with Google Stadia, but no release date has yet been revealed.
It isn't uncommon for companies, especially those with fewer resources to devote to multiple generations of products, to discontinue an old model once a new one becomes available. The common practice, however, is to make sure that the new one is really available to consumers before yanking the old one out of the picture. Whether by mistake or by design, that isn't the case of NVIDIA's new SHIELD Remote and anyone who needs to buy one will have to wait for the new Remote to start shipping in about two months' time.