Develop Bugs

New WM7 Gaming Concept

I was wondering if the technology is available to connect an xbox controller to a WM7 phone. If this could be accomplished, Microsoft wouldn't have to stick to the terrible arcade game intergration, but could expand it to include Actual Xbox 360 games, downloaded as application games for retail prices (or less), or the games might be transferrable from your xbox (with the disk in it) to your phone as a one time download. This would truly make the WM7 phone the ultimate entertainment device, and it would distinguish it from any other phone company out there.
Any thoughts on how to make this happen, or if it's even possible?

In theory it's possible but you'd have to have a computer hooked up to the controller running a web service that the game communicates with. It would be much too slow to be useable.

So a 2 ghz processor (which is potentially entering the market next year) and a 4g connection with Sprint wouldn't make this concept possible?

blaiz123 said:
So a 2 ghz processor (which is potentially entering the market next year) and a 4g connection with Sprint wouldn't make this concept possible?
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no. Too much lag. Even on WiFi it would be too laggy for most games.
If Microsoft did a massive change in their policies or somehow sanctioned this, you would have to have some sort of hardware dongle connected to the phone that would allow the phone to communicate to the controller. Then you wouldn't have the lag. But that's not gonna happen.

Yea, the tech is there, but is it worth it? The addition steps and input latency would just ruin it. A Much easier concept would be using the wii mote or PS3 controller since they both have Bluetooth connectivity. There have already been hacks with android, winmo 6.5, and the Iphone where people have used the Wiimote/PS3 controller for gaming. I see no reason for it unless your running a console emulator.

... or they could just make the controller with the proper port (likely microUSB) and just create a driver for it in WP7

Iridox said:
... or they could just make the controller with the proper port (likely microUSB) and just create a driver for it in WP7
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Click to collapse
Still have the ol host-peripheral problem. Both devices are expecting to be a peripheral. The Xbox controller also expects to get power from the host. Possible? Most likely (depends on the hardware in the phone). Practical? Absolutely not.

As long as the Phones will be able to play some of the more indy 3d games on xbox (the little $10 or less games on there) that should be enough. No reason to try and play Halo 3 on the phone, but a lot of those smaller games on the xbox actually are really dang good.
Could you imagine games like Geometry Wars 2, PvZ, Worms 2 Armageddon, Sam & Max, and countless others? Similar to some of the good iPhone games, but with DirectX 9 capable graphics, we can seriously get some good games ported. I have been dying for a full Worms game port (WM Worms World Party was a bit of a cut down letdown), and many other games that should have been ported but never were. Tyrian, Ultrabots, Red Alert 1, etc. Hopefully this OS will change some of that.

IM0001 said:
As long as the Phones will be able to play some of the more indy 3d games on xbox (the little $10 or less games on there) that should be enough. No reason to try and play Halo 3 on the phone, but a lot of those smaller games on the xbox actually are really dang good.
Could you imagine games like Geometry Wars 2, PvZ, Worms 2 Armageddon, Sam & Max, and countless others? Similar to some of the good iPhone games, but with DirectX 9 capable graphics, we can seriously get some good games ported. I have been dying for a full Worms game port (WM Worms World Party was a bit of a cut down letdown), and many other games that should have been ported but never were. Tyrian, Ultrabots, Red Alert 1, etc. Hopefully this OS will change some of that.
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good news is the games are all written in XNA so a port would be simple, its just up to the developers to do it & figure out touch controls

I can just imagine, the emulator ports you smart guys at xda will be able to come up with. I will have a mobile beast in my hands.

Have you guys searched Youtube for some of the awesome games already in production for WP7? Their are a lot of new guys making simple XNA games that look promising then their are games like http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qp7UHk1k4xY and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLLp6kLe1IA&feature=related and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZksEnvA_hQA&feature=fvwas well as Apps like http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnkWbUxFqNk&feature=related coming out. Seriously sweet stuff.

no link to Harvest?
Fixed for readability.
PaperBall
Next War
Twin Blade
Grand Piano

Harvest looks alright but the rest looks like crap...

Viiwok Deva HMD - Mobile Gaming

Hi,
My name is Dragos and I'm the founder and senior designer of Viiwok, a startup which builds VR adapters and controllers.
More specifically we're currently in the final testing rounds of the first mobile HMD in the world. It's basically a hybrid tablet adapter with integrated, discrete headtracking sensors (as in not using the tablet's gyro/accelerometer sensors).
What it does is letting you slide in any 7" tablet and wirelessly displaying stereographic 3D video feed from the computer. It's basically a mobile Oculus Rift and a future proof product as well, since we're not constrained of resolution and hardware issues - because you can always use the latest and most powerful tablet at your disposal. The headtracking has basically zero latency and the FOV is about 120 degrees, using specially designed aspheric lenses with a 2" diameter for each eye. Besides native 3D support in certain titles (Crytek titles made with Cryengine, DOOM 3 BFG, etc.), we can also use TriDef for realtime side-by-side 3D rendering of currently unsupported games.
While gaming is our main scope, the HMD could be also used for virtual tourism and landscaping, in medicine (disabled or severely handicapped persons) or CAD design. Our next project to be launched is an omnidirectional treadmill which detects your body movements in real time (walking, jumping, crouching), much like a Kinnect, but without the back-facing and latency constraints.
Right now we're using Gamepad THD and Kainy for the video feed, but also Limelight for native Shield streaming ( http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...505510&page=15 ) while also developing our own video streaming solution in house.
REMOVED
Here are a couple of pictures with the 3D printed prototype. Of course, the final design will be much more streamlined and ergonomic.
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"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
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What is this?
Inviato dal mio GT-N7100 utilizzando Tapatalk

marco9797 said:
What is this?
Inviato dal mio GT-N7100 utilizzando Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
It's a head mounted, 3D display. You can stream games to it from the PC and see them in 3D. For virtual reality applications and games.

Attreyu said:
It's a head mounted, 3D display. You can stream games to it from the PC and see them in 3D. For virtual reality applications and games.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do i need a great powered PC for this? Can i find It on Amazon?
Inviato dal mio GT-N7100 utilizzando Tapatalk

marco9797 said:
Do i need a great powered PC for this? Can i find It on Amazon?
Inviato dal mio GT-N7100 utilizzando Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You need a good wifi connection (802.11n) and a medium-to-high computer. An Nvidia Kepler GPU is fine.
Basically, if you can play your games now, you don't need a new computer for the Deva HMD.
The HMD only receives the video-feed from the computer. You need a 7" tablet with 802.11n Wifi and a nice GPU (Tegra 3, Qualcomm 600/800, etc.).

No offense friend but I wouldnt want to put that scary thing on my head.

haha :laugh: fair enough. Would you put an Oculus Rift to your head ?

Attreyu said:
You need a good wifi connection (802.11n) and a medium-to-high computer. An Nvidia Kepler GPU is fine.
Basically, if you can play your games now, you don't need a new computer for the Deva HMD.
The HMD only receives the video-feed from the computer. You need a 7" tablet with 802.11n Wifi and a nice GPU (Tegra 3, Qualcomm 600/800, etc.).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i haven't enough money for an nvidia kepler in my notebook there is a gt 520m ;so can i try also with a tablet or smartphone?
i have a note 2 but it has mali 400 mp and i don't know if is enough great powered for this...
i and my family are going to buy an ipad air for christmas... Can i try with that?Is there any app? For the power i think that the ipad has the best gpu for the mobile,i believe also now is faster than xbox 360 and play 3.

Attreyu said:
haha :laugh: fair enough. Would you put an Oculus Rift to your head ?
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Click to collapse
Hell no ))) I wouldnt want to put anything on my head even Google Glass which is overrated for that price tag I think. I mean if it would look like regular Sun Glasses without some thingy that looks like Universal Soldier ))) Maybe I would put it on. And as for is it Enough to have Decent Tablet? Well depends if you want to play Chilidish Android games, which have bad graphics compared to PS3 or XBOX or PC, due to the Lack of DX and OpenGL then you are all set ) but I think its better to wait till TEGRA5 Devices DX11 support full OpenGL and 6 times faster than PS3 GPU... But you have to wait till Summer 2014 and for some games that will be made for that Architecture ( So I wouldnt rush to any new Tablet right now, unless of course your budget is big enough to afford buying a newest tablet every 6 month )

I can certainly say this won't be "the first" HMD using a mobile device. I know VRase has demoed units at various conventions/conferences and has some (supposed) VR industry connections. It had a successful kickstarter, but now we are waiting on the actual commercial units. They are promising they will look better than their 3D printed prototypes (which weren't that bad).
Still, more competition in this market is good. The problem is getting content to render in SbS format (Side by Side). Especially for pre-existing mobile games, less difficult for streamed desktop stuff (easy to tell GPU how to do special render cases through injection or driver manipulation).
Funding links removed

ryocoon said:
I can certainly say this won't be "the first" HMD using a mobile device. I know VRase has demoed units at various conventions/conferences and has some (supposed) VR industry connections. It had a successful kickstarter, but now we are waiting on the actual commercial units. They are promising they will look better than their 3D printed prototypes (which weren't that bad).
Still, more competition in this market is good. The problem is getting content to render in SbS format (Side by Side). Especially for pre-existing mobile games, less difficult for streamed desktop stuff (easy to tell GPU how to do special render cases through injection or driver manipulation).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't call Vrase a HMD, they're in a totally different ballpark. Vrase is just an adapter for smartphones. They aren't intended for VR and gaming, the smartphones have screens too small for the needed FOV, and they don't have integrated sensors, meaning you must use FreePie or other 3rd party 6DOF solution. You could use Vrase for basic SBS movie watching and AR (to some extent).
I know because they're spanish, like us. They're our colleagues but they aren't aiming in the same direction. They're more orrientated towards the casual user (movies, leisure), we're going for the gaming part.
Which leads me to your second preocupations, SBS mobile gaming. AFAIK there aren't many mobile shooters worth their salt at the moment, because the cappabilities are not here. Mobile GPUs are weak still, and untill this summer when Logan makes its appearance, we're going to stick to PC streaming.
Things will change, and will change fast in this VR/mobile gaming sector, and our belief is that our product is prepared to help you fill the gap.

Attreyu said:
I wouldn't call Vrase a HMD, they're in a totally different ballpark. Vrase is just an adapter for smartphones. They aren't intended for VR and gaming, the smartphones have screens too small for the needed FOV, and they don't have integrated sensors, meaning you must use FreePie or other 3rd party 6DOF solution. You could use Vrase for basic SBS movie watching and AR (to some extent).
I know because they're spanish, like us. They're our colleagues but they aren't aiming in the same direction. They're more orrientated towards the casual user (movies, leisure), we're going for the gaming part.
Which leads me to your second preocupations, SBS mobile gaming. AFAIK there aren't many mobile shooters worth their salt at the moment, because the cappabilities are not here. Mobile GPUs are weak still, and untill this summer when Logan makes its appearance, we're going to stick to PC streaming.
Things will change, and will change fast in this VR/mobile gaming sector, and our belief is that our product is prepared to help you fill the gap.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay... wait. You say that this is an HMD, but VRase isn't due to the fact you need to use a phone screen. When clearly the difference for yours appears to be (at first glance) that you use a 7" tablet. I get that you have some integrated high-precision sensors, which obviously you wouldn't have if you were using VRase. Even using a simple solution like VRase you can do similar things with that. Yes, you can watch SBS formatted movies. You could also use software to request a GPU to render 3D in SBS and then connect using Splashtop, Kainy, LimeLight, etc. You would be correct in that it wouldn't have head-tracking though (at least not without extra 3rd party sensors or using some software to forward the laggy/innaccurate sensors from the phone/tablet gyros or accelerometers). Still, both end up being Head Mounted Displays, whether they have frills or not.
I truly do wish for you to prove me wrong. If information is available for public consumption, what differentiates your product from others existing in the market? Is it basically just similar to Occulus Rift, but with a wirelessly connected screen powered by a 7 inch tablet (and thereby... upgradeable)? Do you plan to push for public availability prior to commercial release of the Rift?
I get you and agree that mobile gaming horsepower really isn't quite there yet, and the content _REALLY_ isn't there. There are maybe six or so competent shooters out there that were originally programmed for mobile (IE: not counting Quake recodes). As an aside, I do wonder if there a way to runtime modify OpenGL ES calls to force SBS rendering in such apps. I know ChainFire managed to have a Root-required piece of software that allowed for platform specific (Tegra-only, Adreno-only, etc) optimized games to run pretty well on other chipsets. However, that is neither here nor there.

ryocoon said:
Okay... wait. You say that this is an HMD, but VRase isn't due to the fact you need to use a phone screen. When clearly the difference for yours appears to be (at first glance) that you use a 7" tablet. I get that you have some integrated high-precision sensors, which obviously you wouldn't have if you were using VRase. Even using a simple solution like VRase you can do similar things with that. Yes, you can watch SBS formatted movies. You could also use software to request a GPU to render 3D in SBS and then connect using Splashtop, Kainy, LimeLight, etc. You would be correct in that it wouldn't have head-tracking though (at least not without extra 3rd party sensors or using some software to forward the laggy/innaccurate sensors from the phone/tablet gyros or accelerometers). Still, both end up being Head Mounted Displays, whether they have frills or not.
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Click to collapse
Hey, I'm not trying to enter an argumente here with you man If you consider the two similar enough, fair play. They are, in more ways than one. The differences are subtle enough for the average user - size, scope, sensors, etc. As I said before, Vrase is for the casual user, our product would be more towards gaiming.
ryocoon said:
I truly do wish for you to prove me wrong. If information is available for public consumption, what differentiates your product from others existing in the market? Is it basically just similar to Occulus Rift, but with a wirelessly connected screen powered by a 7 inch tablet (and thereby... upgradeable)? Do you plan to push for public availability prior to commercial release of the Rift?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have to take into consideration that the "market" for these products is very much in its infancy. You have the Oculus Rift and then you have the others (Vrase, Durovis Dive, InfiniteEye, Viiwok Deva) which are adapters by all means. Our goal is to achieve full mobility, without that tangled mess. So there are about 4-5 products, out of which only the Rift is out (even though there isn't a commercial version yet) and the Vrase just finished its Kickstarter a couple of months ago. So there isn't much of a competetion between ourselfes. We're all just trying to push VR out in the open.
Yes, we are going to start a crowdfunding campaign this weekend, with delivery starting in April.
ryocoon said:
I get you and agree that mobile gaming horsepower really isn't quite there yet, and the content _REALLY_ isn't there. There are maybe six or so competent shooters out there that were originally programmed for mobile (IE: not counting Quake recodes). As an aside, I do wonder if there a way to runtime modify OpenGL ES calls to force SBS rendering in such apps. I know ChainFire managed to have a Root-required piece of software that allowed for platform specific (Tegra-only, Adreno-only, etc) optimized games to run pretty well on other chipsets. However, that is neither here nor there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I totally agree. Mobile SBS gaming isn't here now, and one can only hope for things to change this year. Maybe products like ours will help push things in that direction. Android exclusive content is made of movies and a number of tech-demos here and there (most from Durovis, using Unity engine). So we're focusing to PC titles for the moment, going the streaming way.

If you want to discuss your project, that is fine. But links to funding projects are not allowed.
Thank you for your cooperation
Friendly Neighborhood Senior Moderator
And as this section is for the Nvidia shield it does not belong here.
Best fit will probably be Accessories
Thread moved

Advanced Gaming on The M9

So with the raw power that the M9 has, would it be possible to play console games on it or even PC games? Im talking like dying light, FC4, BF4, etc. maybe through an emulator or something? I would love to play my PC games on my phone

i tried god of war the psp game using psp emulator
its run like 8-10 FPS without any enhancement

aos10 said:
i tried god of war the psp game using psp emulator
its run like 8-10 FPS without any enhancement
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And thats PSP? huh...
So i guess bf4, if it were possible, would get terrible frame rates. bummer.

Quadrider10 said:
And thats PSP? huh...
So i guess bf4, if it were possible, would get terrible frame rates. bummer.
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beside , there is no BF4 on android

Quadrider10 said:
So with the raw power that the M9 has, would it be possible to play console games on it or even PC games? Im talking like dying light, FC4, BF4, etc. maybe through an emulator or something? I would love to play my PC games on my phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All due respect mate, if you're talking about emulation, even the ps2 is problematic and that's on a high end gaming rig, the problem is the complex processing it uses whilst not the most powerful processor in the world it is difficult to emulate, as for anything like the the ps3 or ps4, I'm afraid at the moment its not possible and if it were it would be utterly awful and that is on a high end gaming rig.
On a phone it really is impossible, high end games like battlefield 4 would have to be created with arm architecture in mind, and even if they did decide to do that, the phone would die quickly and the game would run like a dying dog.
Sorry mate, for now and the foreseeable future the best you can expect is psx, PSP, n64 and maybe ( and this is a big maybe) emulation for the GameCube and Wii, which has been done to a degree but again, runs like a dog.
The only games which are console like which you may be able to get to run are the ones which have been created for the nvidia shield, like portal and half life 2, hardly mind blowing graphics but a really big deal for mobile gaming, I'm not too sure on the nvidia shields processor or GPU but I do know its superior to the adreno in our m9's with that in mind, even if it is possible to get it to run, you have to expect issues.
The only option you have to play games on your phone is to grab a decent pad like the Moga pro and splash top to stream the game to your device. An nvidia graphics card for your pc is preferable for this and a rock solid internet connection for your phone, even then you should expect a fair bit of input lag on those games, this technique has been around for a few years now.
Sorry its not better news mate I'd love to play black ops 2 or even cod 2 on my phone, LAN parties in work when its quiet would be epic.. I think with games like call of duty 2 its quite possible as the hardware in our phones could probably handle most of the graphics but again it'd have to be created instead of ported.
Apparently doom 3 has been ported, that's quite cool.

What features make the shield better than $50 android boxes?

Before anyone says game streaming I wanted to know if there was any other features that I should consider when deciding over a cheap android box and the shield. I owned a cheap android box for 2 years and it was really good but it was slow and never got updates but kodi worked perfectly until 17 update, but it's hard justifying a $300 price tag for the 16gb over $50 for the cheap one.

1. CPU performance, much faster then any s912, especially it have active cooling make it can keep in full speed, if you use any old amlogic box you will know you just can't decode any 1080 hi10p due to either the HW decoder not support or CPU not fast enough for SW decode. The shield can do it by CPU with 50-70%cpu usage max. Also although newer amlogic such as S912 support h265 but it is very buggy, the shield TV on the other hand is very stable.
2. For Android gaming I don't think you can find any android box in this size/price can better then it. Sure you can get a x86 box but that will much more expensive and larger.
3. Support 1080 ycbcr 422 12bit , I don't have 4K so dunno what is support, but as I remember there are no other cheap android box will support this output. (Sure you will need to take care the HDMI version mismatch problem if you got AVR)
If you will not use Plex and don't need IR then I suggest you just get the 16GB version, by the way I attach a 128GB USB stick to store my mame rom, much faster then hdd version.
Previous I use mi box and some other android box, but I can say shield TV is the most problem free and the fastest one for me.

$50 android boxes are junk, period. These things should be illegal to sell in USA. The manufactures are horrible at support & you never get updates. The only time a cheap android box is worth buying is if there are active private developers. Here's where the price difference matters, your $50 box lasted you 2 years. I've had my shield tv for almost 2 years & my guess is it'll still be alive & kicking in 10 years & still be my main media center. The shield tv was released as a future proof device, meaning it has a long life span while the $50 junk boxes have a very short limited life span hardware & software wise, you'll be replacing these types of boxes every 2 years.

Since when was the 16GB version $300?!

What feature(s)?!
In One Word... Widevine L(evel)1 support. (Ok tht was Two Words, whatever...)
Why is this a big deal? In Two Words this time. Amazon, and Netflix. In full UHD, let alone FHD. Your ~50$ 'Droid Box most likely will never have it. The only exception to that rule would be the Xaiomi Mi Box. Which like the Shield TV is a licenced AndroidTV Box. Which is based on the well known AmLogic S905 SoC. I have no ideas on how, or if Amazon will ever be ported to it. For now I gather it's a bit of a Shield exclusive. But, Netflix should be fine, along with the other usual suspects.
There is also the Gaming, and Emulation side of the Device, that puts it well ahead of the competition. With its small but exclusive Titles under the nVIDIA Lightspeed Studios. But, that may not be enough to convince a mass take up of it considering the initial cost.
If all you need is a cheap Kodi Box than by all means. You could pick one up, and gamble that you get a working one. Note I got burnt TWICE with an AmLogic S912 SoC Device. The first One cooked itself, while using Chrome, and the Second came with a defective WiFi Chip. So you take your chances with an unknown when buying One of these Devices.
When it comes to Updates, you'd be lucky to see a few Bug fixes before whoever's in charge gets bored, and moves on. nVIDIA have been supporting the Shield TV since it came out in 2015, and they will probably still be supporting it for a while yet with the 2017 version.
One last thing you might like to know about Kodi, and these Cheapo Boxes. Unless those Manufactures get off their​ butts, and code their CODECs to Android spec. Kodi will only ever function in Software mode only. Which will have a major impact on Video performance. Alas I don't know if the Mi Box also has that problem. Given its a specialized AmLogic build, perhaps not? But, a native Netflix App does not a Kodi make.
Of course there is One other thing that separates both the Shield TV, and the Mi Box. (Which I hinted at earlier.)
They are both Licenced AndroidTV units. And, in case that isn't quite clear to you. Then a word of caution to you. AndroidTV​ ≠ Android (e.g. Some generic 'Droid Box.), You should expect to see virtually nothing in the (AndroidTV), PlayStore. Certainly nothing like what most People probably imagine, after getting off the PlayStore on their Samsung Phablet. And, you can thank Google for that!
se1000 said:
Since when was the 16GB version $300?!
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Probably since nVIDIA weren't able to meet the demand for the Device which drove Scalpers to scalp it along with the Pro for Upwards of 600€'s, and no I wish I was making that up. The only time the Shield came down to reasonable levels, was just before they announced the Shield 2 (a.k.a. The Shield TV Slim), which was rightly rejected by those who already had a Shield. Seeing that I was able to get a used '15 Pro for 'round 200€ back in January. Good luck finding one now, for that price. If I wanted to spend nearly 300€ on a used One. I would rather just buy the new '17 Model for a fraction more. (i.e. 329€).

Ichijoe said:
What feature(s)?!
One last thing you might like to know about Kodi, and these Cheapo Boxes. Unless those Manufactures get off their​ butts, and code their CODECs to Android spec. Kodi will only ever function in Software mode only. Which will have a major impact on Video performance. Alas I don't know if the Mi Box also has that problem. Given its a specialized AmLogic build, perhaps not? But, a native Netflix App does not a Kodi make.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are correct on this, most cheap android box had broken mediacodec support, as KODI remove the amcodec support so either 1. switch to old version/spmc which have amcode, 2. SW decode, but the cpu not fast enough most of the time.
the google version of mi box's mediacodec are ok, but it still cannot hw decode hi10p (main reason I switch from mi box to shield tv)

DummyPLUG said:
You are correct on this, most cheap android box had broken mediacodec support, as KODI remove the amcodec support so either 1. switch to old version/spmc which have amcode, 2. SW decode, but the cpu not fast enough most of the time.
the google version of mi box's mediacodec are ok, but it still cannot hw decode hi10p (main reason I switch from mi box to shield tv)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Outside of actively getting off my [REDACTED] to search for some hi10p Materials, back when I was still knee deep in Linux VDR (i.e. HTPC). The chances of actually encountering anything actually encoded at 10bits is extremely rare. And I do likes me some KissAnime. So I would chalk it down as a nice to have feature, and not the Killer One, that Widevine Level 1 is. As only the Select TVs running ATV, or the MiBox, and Shield TV are capable of such high end DRMs, for legaly being able to watch Netflix in either FHD, or UHD.
Since those other Boxes only have Widevine Level 3. You'd be lucky to watch Netflix in 480p MAX!
So for me that's a bigger deal going forward. Mores the pitty that the MiBox is virtually useless outside of North America though.

Not going into hard core comparison as far as audio support and video support but just general laymen comparison.
As reference current devices I own a A95x cheap android box, Fire TV Sticks, Nexus Players and 2nd Gen Fire TV, Roku2, Shield TV Gen 1
1. Performance - I didn't think the difference would be that huge since I mainly just use streaming services and apps like Netflix and Kodi to name a few but it's noticeable even in just those two areas. My FTV2 was snappy I thought compared to my other devices but the Shield just Launches apps quicker and goes through local and internet streams a lot smoother. Not a gamer but I have used them and let kids use them to try games and again just performance is amazing.
2. Ease of use my gripe with the a95x cheapo is It was IR remote and the interface just sucked. FTV2 and FTV sticks had their own interface over Lollipop and this too I am not a big fan of. Nexus Player and Shield TV are very straightforward and use the Leanback Launcher IMO easier to use and get google play store unlike Amazons offerings.
3. You get what you pay for. It's an investment that hopefully it will last. Performance wise I'm not worried about having to get a new box for a while now. Also the build and the remotes just are more appealing with the metal finish and all and they are rechargeable (yes the drawback is it's not replaceable batteries). It's running official Android TV yes the Playstore is limited for TV devices but for average user that doesn't want to side load and just works great out of the box it's perfect.
If cost is an issue like it was for me just wait for a deal or find one used if you're willing to take the chance. I just got my 1st gen Shield 2 weeks ago because I bought it used for $120 and had I tested it beforehand I never would have bought my a95x, fire tv sticks. I am happy with the Nexus Players I scored those for $40 but it's discontinued and my FTV2 but the Shield TV kicked those devices out of the family room and now those are in mine and kids bedrooms.
If performance isn't a huge deal then I wouldn't upgrade. If it is but cost still too high there are alternatives Fire TV (Just ew Amazon interface) and Nexus Player (Discontinued) or Mi box (Owned for a month and returned it performance wasn't as good as Nexus Player).

I have 2 fire sticks, a firetv box, and the new version of the shield TV. The shield is fast and responsive, but I don't think its performance justifies the price. If you not going for game steaming... I would just use a firetv box. Kodi performance is on par.
Here is my problem with the shield TV. Ram. For its price point I would expect 4gb of ram. This was a huge mistake I feel when they released the new version.
Don't get me wrong, I love my shield but if I didn't get mine for 175 with a deal, I would have not got it.

I couldn't disagree more with the majority of what's been said. It is true that the shield is an investment. It's worth it in the long run to get a shield. Talks of "4gb of ram" are comical at best. You want 4gb of ram buy a jetson tx1 for $500+ The point is, 4gb of ram isn't required when you have a constant power source. Take the Nintendo switch for example, yea sure it's basically a jetson tx1 (4gb ram) but clocked at a much lower speed to run on battery.

I would say it depends greatly upon how you want to come to the Shield TV. If your looking at it as just another in a long line of 'Droid Boxen, then that is how you will see it. If your like me, and your coming in from the huge running costs of an HTPC, with VDR Recording capabilities. Then the Shield becomes self-evident. As it can do those same jobs in a much tighter Footprint, and use just a microfraction of the Electricity to do it. Everything else is just a nice bonus. e.g. The Games, Emulations, Android itself.
So no Op is correct the Shield TV isn't the right answer for everyone. If for example Op wanted just the cheapest Box to do the most basic streaming (Amazon, Hulu, Netflix HBO Go, etc....), Then the Amazon Fire TV, would be right up his street. But IIRC, that only had 2GB of RAM, not that you would need it.

Also, if you want extra storage, you're better off getting the 16GB model and adding an external HDD. The way Nvidia set up the Pro model is kinda dumb - everything (including the system ROM) runs on the HDD, not flash, so it's really slow. It's also not user-replaceable without voiding the warranty and a lot of hassle. 4 TB portable drives are a bit over $100, so you can get a lot more storage for almost the same price.

Mogster2K said:
Also, if you want extra storage, you're better off getting the 16GB model and adding an external HDD. The way Nvidia set up the Pro model is kinda dumb - everything (including the system ROM) runs on the HDD, not flash, so it's really slow. It's also not user-replaceable without voiding the warranty and a lot of hassle. 4 TB portable drives are a bit over $100, so you can get a lot more storage for almost the same price.
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That might be true... But it's not like you couldn't just clone the contents of the Original SSHD, and then write that to the heavier, faster SSD. There are at least Two Threads on that subject, that I'm personally aware of. As to it being slower? That only applies when doing things like unlocking the Bootloader (a precursor to rooting), or factory resetting​ it where in both cases it'll take the best part of 2h to complete. Under day to day use However, I greatly doubt there is any major difference in the overall speed.
Also the newer Slim (and, light) Shield TV, also lack a few things, like the IR Port (for Harmony Remotes), and the OTG MicroUSB Port, and worse of all the MicroSD Slot.
Also one thing about Adopted Storage, e.g. adding external Storage. Just because you could add a 4TB SS/H/DD, doesn't give you licence to go 'round installing everything to your heart's content as not everything will be installed to External (Adopted), Storage and you will most likely be scratching your head about not having enough Space to install some Game even if you have the best part of 4+ GBs left inside in your External Storage. Just the way it is on my Phablet alas Adopted Storage is kind of a lie. As I see it.

If you replace the Pro HDD with an SSD, you're paying $100 just for the hard drive bay. (Edit: I did not realize the Pro hardware was basically unchanged.) Also, I would not recommend using an HDD as adopted storage anyway. Better to leave it as NTFS since Android network transfers are so slow.
Finally, it is possible to boot the Shield TV from an external SSD. You need a special boot image (MM only unfortunately) and an SSD in a USB enclosure. It's a bit tricky to set up but works pretty well. A Nougat version is in the works.

Ichijoe said:
That might be true... But it's not like you couldn't just clone the contents of the Original SSHD, and then write that to the heavier, faster SSD. There are at least Two Threads on that subject, that I'm personally aware of. As to it being slower? That only applies when doing things like unlocking the Bootloader (a precursor to rooting), or factory resetting​ it where in both cases it'll take the best part of 2h to complete. Under day to day use However, I greatly doubt there is any major difference in the overall speed.
Also the newer Slim (and, light) Shield TV, also lack a few things, like the IR Port (for Harmony Remotes), and the OTG MicroUSB Port, and worse of all the MicroSD Slot.
Also one thing about Adopted Storage, e.g. adding external Storage. Just because you could add a 4TB SS/H/DD, doesn't give you licence to go 'round installing everything to your heart's content as not everything will be installed to External (Adopted), Storage and you will most likely be scratching your head about not having enough Space to install some Game even if you have the best part of 4+ GBs left inside in your External Storage. Just the way it is on my Phablet alas Adopted Storage is kind of a lie. As I see it.
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Try enable force app install on external in developer options, I had no problem to save everything to my USB.

Nintendo Wii Games Officially Coming To Shield Tv (China Only for Now)

I'm surprised nobody is talking about this here. This is pretty big.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.en...05/nintendo-wii-gamecube-nvidia-shield-china/

none24 said:
I'm surprised nobody is talking about this here. This is pretty big.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.en...05/nintendo-wii-gamecube-nvidia-shield-china/
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Yeah I've been checking on here to see if anyone had mentioned anything about it. I'm curious to see what the difference is between the Chinese version of the Shield and the current one.
I'm presuming there will be a TV version of the JD.com app but I'm wondering if there will be any different framework in the ROM so that this app and the Wii/GC games only work on that variant.

Andy4Shurr said:
Yeah I've been checking on here to see if anyone had mentioned anything about it. I'm curious to see what the difference is between the Chinese version of the Shield and the current one.
I'm presuming there will be a TV version of the JD.com app but I'm wondering if there will be any different framework in the ROM so that this app and the Wii/GC games only work on that variant.
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according to sources, its gonna be HD remakes of the games and all upscaled to 1080p, and people are speculating that they'll be downloads so ppl might make APK mods and end up being free.

none24 said:
according to sources, its gonna be HD remakes of the games and all upscaled to 1080p, and people are speculating that they'll be downloads so ppl might make APK mods and end up being free.
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When I say ROM I specifically mean the Nvidia firmware. When Nvidia released shield exclusive games in the past they put certain checks in them and referenced Nvidia graphics libraries to play the games.
Hopefully we will have the same graphics libraries in the firmware but if we have different framework information then I'm guessing that would have to be bypassed in the APK or spoofed/installed on our Shield TV version.
It's too early to say if all this is possible I guess.

has not been talked about here because this is old news. Before the second gen shield tv was released, before the nintendo switch was released, it was stated that nintendo would be porting over a couple of games to the shield and they would not receive a North American release. Most likely part of the nvidia nintendo switch deal. Doubt nintendo does the actual porting though. Also shows how easily wii games could be ported to the switch. Goes to show, the shield tv isn't really meant to be much of a gaming system though, not in nvidias eyes. I say this because nvidia could have partnered with game developers to bring AAA ports and AAA exclusives. Look at all the game developer love the switch has gotten and continues to get, in theory all of those games should run on the shield. Afterall, the switch is a shield tv with an extra gb of ram, but the switch cpu gpu and ram are under clocked and under voltage to allow longer battery life.

techjunky90 said:
has not been talked about here because this is old news. Before the second gen shield tv was released, before the nintendo switch was released, it was stated that nintendo would be porting over a couple of games to the shield and they would not receive a North American release. Most likely part of the nvidia nintendo switch deal. Doubt nintendo does the actual porting though. Also shows how easily wii games could be ported to the switch. Goes to show, the shield tv isn't really meant to be much of a gaming system though, not in nvidias eyes. I say this because nvidia could have partnered with game developers to bring AAA ports and AAA exclusives. Look at all the game developer love the switch has gotten and continues to get, in theory all of those games should run on the shield. Afterall, the switch is a shield tv with an extra gb of ram, but the switch cpu gpu and ram are under clocked and under voltage to allow longer battery life.
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its old news that it was supposed to happen. now its actually happening tho id think ppl would at least discuss it was my point in my question. its still big news im sure someone will find a way to spoof the games to run on USA versions of the shield like the guy above mentioned, i agree with everything you said except the part about the AAA games, they already did that and have some thats what geforce now is for.

Andy4Shurr said:
When I say ROM I specifically mean the Nvidia firmware. When Nvidia released shield exclusive games in the past they put certain checks in them and referenced Nvidia graphics libraries to play the games.
Hopefully we will have the same graphics libraries in the firmware but if we have different framework information then I'm guessing that would have to be bypassed in the APK or spoofed/installed on our Shield TV version.
It's too early to say if all this is possible I guess.
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yeah ik what u meant, i was just making the point about modded apks and such since the games do seem to be something that can be downloaded.
but i agree its too early to say, lets keep hope alive tho

Except they haven't done that. How many AAA games run on the shield? Hardly any, couple out dated games got ported. GeForce now is a joke & doesn't count as AAA titles for the shield since they aren't running on the shield. Any android device can stream games.

It's probably all down to money. I'm guessing they make a lot more from their Geforce Now service than they would porting games.
Shield TV also isn't portable like the Nintendo Switch so doesn't have that niche selling point (it's up against Sony and Microsoft if it pitches itself as a gaming device and it's always going to lose that one) and Nintendo has a fairly big die hard following so game developers are more inclined to make games for the Switch... they will sell.
It's a shame that we probably won't see the Shield reach its potential as a gaming device but to be honest I use it more as an all round media device that can do a lot of things so I'm fairly happy.

Did anybody have any luck with finding the APK files for the Nintendo games? I want to see if the games work with GLTools like Half Life and Portal does.

Farfala said:
Did anybody have any luck with finding the APK files for the Nintendo games? I want to see if the games work with GLTools like Half Life and Portal does.
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Isn't it only the Tegra 4 (shield portable) compatible games that work with GL Tools?