So like, woah.

Today Nvidia announced the latest member of the Shield family... and it seems they're going after the set top box crowd which seems to get 50 billion damn devices that do the same damn things every year... except this one will be the first to be capable of 4K video, and it uses Nvidia's new Tegra X1 mobile chip, which apparently twice as fast as last year's Tegra K1 (which was no slouch) and is around 35 times faster than an Apple TV. Goddamn.

Perhaps more interesting than the device itself however is the fact that a bunch of games are being ported over to it. Metal Gear Rising, Borderlands the Presequel, Crysis 3, Resident Evil 5, and all the current DOOM games are apparently coming out for it at some point. Kind of an odd selection of games, but a pretty huge step up from anything currently available for play on other set top boxes.

It's coming out in May for $200.

What do you duders think? I'm not personally interested in it but I do think it's cool seeing how crazy fast these things are evolving. This thing is apparently twice as powerful as a 360... How long before they're as powerful (or perhaps even more powerful) than the PS4 and Xbox One? Shits crazy yo.

Some notable games being ported to Android to be played natively on this device include:

• Borderlands 2 and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!
• Resident Evil 5
• Crysis 3
• Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance
• The Talos Principle
• Doom 3 (BFG Edition + DOOM 1+2)

We all know what happened to the OUYA. $200 is way to much for comsumers tominvest in an android based top box.

A set top box that can play Metal Gear Rising? Fuck yes. Or at least in concept that's awesome. For 200$ I could get a PS3 and play all those games and a lot more, as well as all the media stuff I want (Netflix, Youtube, Crunchyroll)

Nvidia is in a far better position to try and put out a box, also it's bolstered with their streaming service a long with in home shield streaming. Biggest bummer about that box for me though is the lack of optical output for older speakers like I have setup in my bedroom where I might use this kind of thing.

For me personally I just think they're going in the wrong direction on the tech. If anything of this nature will get me, it's that Steam streaming box for example. It's really cheap and if I'm running games I want them running on my powerful PC.

I think I read this device has a similar capability to stream, but the point is I don't need the power in this box that you are paying for. In the end that just drives up the price for me.

@artisanbreads: Exactly, why advertise 4K when not many people have made the switch yet? A Tegra X1 is nice but only if you plan on playing games on it. So you have to be invested in media consumption AND gaming on the side. It's too niche to appeal to anyone. Might as well go for a $99 box or a Vita TV.

The box can stream from your PC as well.

Finally Android for my TV!

How well can it play Crysis 3 though, and other games for that matter? I mean, for 200 dollars, and it playing those games at their highest settings with good frame rates? Okay. If not, then no thanks. Oh, it's a cloud based thing? Hm. No.

@korwin: Yeah I did see that. Just like I say, for me the streaming is the appeal of this kind of device and with that use, this is a much more expensive device than the Steam streaming box that's $50.

Maybe there's an audience for this kind of console that isn't me, but I haven't seen that audience show up yet to support any similar device. We will see.

I found a decent use for it. You have full access to the Google Play Store and thus full access to emulator apps. Windjammers, Tetris Battle Gaiden and all the Street Fighter Alphas you can find!

It's not an failure like the OUYA with its Tegra 3.

Crysis 3 and the other games I listed are running on the hardware. You're thinking of Nvidia's GRID service.

@trafalgarlaw I'm really interested to see how it will handle Dolphin.

The biggest problem I see with this device is the message. They did a poor job on presentation. If you do not care about first party exclusives and currently do not own a PS4, XBO, Wii U, or a gaming PC this is the machine for you. Assuming that the subscription fee is respectable. Its a streaming gaming box that runs AAA titles (on the cloud) at 1080p/60 FPS on Android TV OS, and will have games ported to it (not on the cloud) that are classic games from the last generation and before hand. It seems like a niche product that could do quite well.

The one thing though I do not see anyone talking about is the fact that the Tegra X1 is making its debut in a setup top box and not a tablet/smart phone. It might be a super mobile chip but I am wondering if the thing runs too hot to be placed in a smartphone/tablet. The K1 has only come out in a few tablets so far and there were complaints about the heat when running intensive applications.

@turtlebird95: No, I'm thinking of this. This is also cloud based. That said, I'm looking into it. If they can get the cloud based stuff down well, I may be interested. I'm watching to conference video now.

@ntm: I'm kind of confused on what you're saying, but Crysis 3 does not require streaming to play. It's a straight up port coming to Android via Nvidia's store.

Here's a video showing it in action. Quality isn't great, but you get the idea. It does indeed run.

Edit: Here's a better video. Game is 30 fps.

You can do the exact same thing with a decent Android phone, a Chromecast and a Bluetooth controller (Dualshock 3/4).

I've been playing Persona 3 Portable on my TV in 1080p with that setup.

@corevi: Sounds convoluted but allright. My main problem would be the lack of a Windows OS. Such machines now should dual boot an Android and a Windows OS.

@turtlebird95: "Watch movies and videos in stunning 4K, play amazing Android games and stream the best PC games from the cloud." What's the difference between playing the best PC games from the cloud, and Android games?

@trafalgarlaw: Totally, but that would be way more expensive to license than a single OS would be.

It's not THAT convoluted. Once you have it set up (which is pretty easy but a little time consuming) you just launch the emulator on your phone and hit cast screen in the drag down menu.

They seem to be cool ideas, but I don't really see the target market. Most of the games listed there (if not all) are ports from other consoles. Most of which, conveniently, cost less than $200 now. I don't see much of the "hardcore" crowd going for it since they've probably already played those games on the PC/PS3/360. And I don't see why the regular crowd could go for it if they could spend the same amount of money and pick up a Super Slim PS3 or Xbox 360E for about the same price.

For myself, I would rather spend more money and upgrade my "Steam Machine" (an iBuyPower Revolt), or buy a WiiU for around the same amount. Or if I want a mini-emulator device, pick up a cheap Ouya, Android TV Player or one of the Chinese Android sticks.

@ntm: Streaming "the best" PC games is, well, streaming PC games from their cloud thing. What I was saying is that certain games are getting Android ports of the game that will likely be exclusive to Nvidia store and run natively off the hardware. (So, as weird is this sounds, Crysis 3 goes under the Android games category.)

@turtlebird95: Yeah, I'm seeing that in the video I'm watching now. 50 games at release will be running on it.

You know, the more I look at this device the more I wish they'd made it a handheld device like the original Nvidia Shield. I mean, provided the battery life would be decent, at launch this thing would have pretty much been the device the Vita was promised to be. Would have made the $200 asking price easier to swallow as well.

I saw that with streaming from a PC you can expect a 150ms delay? Mmm... come on.

I believe they were referring to the cloud server with that delay. I could be wrong though, I heard it stated in the presentation.

Yeah, the Grid aspect seems to be the bigger draw here. I wonder how good it is though. I hope it's way better than OnLive. I am interested. 200 is a really good price too to me. I'll have to see within the next couple of months.

If it can stream my PC games (well) it might be worth it. Other than that... not really interested.

@l4wd0g: Except that Valve just announced a $50 box that does exactly that and not much else.

@l4wd0g: I have good news! $150 cheaper good news!

@corevi said:

Yeah, that's exactly what I thought when I saw this. People who like games but not enough to buy a PS4/Xb1/PC would be far better served buying a last gen console. Who is this actually for?

If only they worked harder and made it a Steambox, i'm pretty sure they'll get much more attention. Because the market is already bloated with these devices.