I just got a new video card for my pc and they sent me all sorts of ads for the Shield. It really does look awesome. Soooo tempting but I just can't afford it. Le Sigh. Hopefully they continue making them and I can get one in the future.
I think you can get one for $199 now if you purchase a new video card. Which honestly is a pretty terrific value for what you're getting with this thing. Just my $0.02, though I'm obviously a bit biased.
I'm really impressed with the most recent update they pushed out. Streaming is smooth as butter for me now playing PC games on the Shield, with no lag or stutter to speak of. I might record a video or something tonight just to show how responsive it actually is, because it is very impressive in action.
It's a great price, I'm just bending under student debt so really anything above $50 is over my price range for about a year! which is why I hope they do well enough to continue making these things for that long.
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
I feel you, definitely been there. From indications at CES recently though, it seems like Nvidia is still solidly behind the Shield and plan on supporting it for a while to come.
So wait you get full 1080p when you hook up to a TV and stream from your main pc? If so..... I may have to do a full rebuild sometime.
0
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
In console mode, if you stream wirelessly the best you can do right now is 720p. You can get 1080p in console mode though if you run an Ethernet-to-USB cable directly from the router to the Shield. This is still in beta though... I would guess that the full release will likely allow wireless 1080p streaming.
mojojoeoA block off the park, living the dream.Registered Userregular
If its a 720p stream do i have to ajust crap on the pc or does the software know and adjust it there?
IE will it leave my game in 1080 settings on the oc and try and down sample or futz with it- or will it render 720 and send it?
Chief Wiggum: "Ladies, please. All our founding fathers, astronauts, and World Series heroes have been either drunk or on cocaine."
0
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
The Geforce Experience software handles it. Streaming to the Shield automatically changes the resolution to 720p, but then resets it back to your original resolution when you're done.
mojojoeoA block off the park, living the dream.Registered Userregular
mine gets here today. woot.
Chief Wiggum: "Ladies, please. All our founding fathers, astronauts, and World Series heroes have been either drunk or on cocaine."
0
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
Yaaaay, ONE OF US ME.
If you have any questions about anything let me know. There have been some issues with drivers lately, so if you run into any hitches with game streaming I can probably help with that.
I actually really love the idea of the Nvidia Shield but I don't have an actual gaming PC and don't care enough for it as an Android platform. That being said, I dream of having a gaming PC that could play nice with this. Can I hear firsthand accounts of streaming from you guys? I could see using it handheld or connected to a TV.
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
I'll tell you what, videos speak louder than words, so at some point this weekend I will do my best to capture some video of me playing various streaming games from the PC, both in handheld and console modes. I will say this though, both work quite well. I recently played through Remember Me in it's entirely on the Shield, and it was a great experience. I've also been playing a fair bit of Titanfall on it lately, and it works better than you would expect.
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
Yeah, I have the ASUS RT-N66U, which I bought specifically for the Shield. To be fair, our old router was pretty crappy and we needed a new one anyway, but this was probably what pushed me over the line into finally ponying up for one. Note, my router is downstairs and my PC is upstairs in another room, so even though they recommend a hard connection from your PC to the router, it's not necessary as long as you use a 5GHZ Gigabit adapter. I've been running mine wirelessly since upgrading without a single issue, and game streaming is completely smooth.
There's a spreadsheet of routers that people have compiled listing their experience with the Shield too. I think I posted it earlier in the thread maybe, but if not you can do a google search for it. It shoes a bunch of non-officially-supported routers and how well they work with the Shield. Many of them do just fine it seems. Overall, the trend seems to be that just about any 5ghz router will do fine. For 2.4ghz, some will work okay, but it can be a crapshoot depending on your specific configuration and how much interference from other wireless signals may be in your home.
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
edited April 2014
Sorry I'm so late with this @Ed Gruberman, but here's the video I promised, playing a bit of Titanfall. I just did it on my cell phone, so the quality isn't great and I really sucked this round. However, hopefully it gives you an idea of what to expect in a normal streaming environment. Still need to get one for playing in console mode, I'll get that one next. Let me know if you have other questions.
By the way, it just dropped in price to $199, and is getting a pretty major update tomorrow that includes Kit Kat and streamed from outside your home network. So they're still throwing some resources behind this thing and constantly improving it, which is good to see.
That actually looks really good. Definitely making me want to go nvidia over amd if I ever manage to build a new pc. Thanks a lot for doing that. $200 is definitely getting tempting
I figured the Shield was just another shitty gimmick, but that video is actually really fucking impressive. I'm not considering buying one, but I'm still impressed by it.
0
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
Still sorely tempted by this, though the weight puts me off a bit. How does it handle in practice?
It's heavy, but I wouldn't say uncomfortably so. It weighs just over 20 oz. for reference, the newest iPad Air, which is their lightest one to date, weighs almost 17 oz, so this is not that much heavier. However, I'd say it doesn't feel as heavy because of how you hold it. With a tablet, you're usually holding it with one hand while operating it with the other, and the grip is essentially just squeezing the bezel which can become fatiguing after a while. With the Shield, you're holding onto it solidly with both hands basically at all times, and it's contoured like a controller to fit your hands, so it feels a lot more comfortable. It feels quite balanced even with the screen open, and I've had play sessions that were hours long on it without any more fatigue than you'd get on a normal 360 controller.
All that to say, yes, it's slightly heavy, but that has never once come up as an issue in the extended time I've had with it. I'd say it feels solid more than it feels heavy.
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
The update has resulted in a huge improvement in gamestreaming for me. It worked pretty well before, but you could always detect some hitches and the framerate was never totally smooth. Now though. I'm playing Titanfall at a perfectly smooth 60 FPS. The difference was almost jarring the first time I tried it after the update with how smooth it was. Still need to try console mode to see if the improvements carry over there too, but if the Shield streaming is any indication, Nvidia really nailed it with this update.
Can you use a Shield to cast whatever's on your PC screen to your TV or anything? I've been searching for a way to watch Giant Bomb livestreams on my TV but I haven't found anything reasonable.
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
You can't just stream anything on your PC to a TV with the Shield in console mode. It has to either be an officially supported game, or it has to be launched through Steam. I'm not totally familiar with the GB live stream though. Is PC the only way to stream it? If it's something you could do natively on Android, you could certainly put that on your TV in console mode.
The only way I know how to get to it is through a web browser. Can I web browse on a Shield, and cast that to a TV? Hopefully it's got the processor to handle that.
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
Sure, if you can stream it from Chrome inside of Android, then you can plug it up to your TV and stream it with no problem. PC streaming only supports games, but you can display the Android OS on your TV in its entirety. It also has bluetooth mouse/keyboard support for console mode if you want to use that.
I'm actually just about in the market for a replacement tablet so this is pretty exciting. Sounds like a pretty awesome tablet. Now I just need to get around to building that gaming rig.
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
It looks pretty solid, especially if you don't already have a relatively recent-gen tablet already. The K1 processor looks like it's going to be a beast for gaming, if they can manage to keep pumping the games out. It's especially attractive if you have a GTX gaming PC and can do gamestreaming. 90% of the usage on my Shield has been streaming games from my PC. I'm playing through Far Cry 3 on it right now!
I do have to say though, it kind of sucks for those of us who hopped on the first-gen bandwagon. You get significantly more value for this new one at basically the same price as the original (minus the new external controller). I'll have to consider my options and start looking at what I could get for it online.
Although at the same time, there is something to be said still for the current form factor. The clamshell design makes it more portable and easier to use with the controller. With the tablet, am I going to have to find something to prop it up on while I stream games to it? This is not going to be fun sitting in my recliner, especially compared to the ease now of just flipping it open and being ready to go.
Yeah. I was just thinking that the tablet form factor is limiting in some respects for my bus commute (of course since I only have a tablet and phone right now, it's no more limiting than what I have). It might be cool if there was some way to attach the tablet to the Shield controller.
The Nvidia website is still pushing the original as Shield Portable, though, which makes sense.
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
Yeah, the tablet form factor kind if ties their hands in some ways. You could make a controller that somehow attaches to the sides is the tablet, but that probably wouldn't work so well as a standalone controller. But with the new design, now you have to manage both of them.
There's a new Shield a-comin'. Beefier specs, decent selection of (older) games coming. Check it out.
Switch: 3947-4890-9293
0
Big DookieSmells great!Houston, TXRegistered Userregular
Fascinating! I have many questions though that the article doesn't address. Are the ports native android ports, or are they just making them available on GRID? Can you still stream games from your PC? And where is my new X1 based Shield Portable??
I had the portable, and have the shield tablet. What concerns me is that as the new Tegra platforms get more powerful they don't necessarily drop support for the older ones, but they stop incentivising them. And I'm kind of concerneed that they call the X1 a mobile part but yet the device is an always plugged in console.
The Shield Tablet is a great device but as soon as it came out with the K1 they stopped making some of the newer games for the Tegra 4 based Portable. i.e. HL2E1 is available for tablet only, and it looks like they are accerating that approach with X1.
And again, not like they're totally dropping support for Tegra 4 or K1, it's just a bit concerning to see them not working to keep them closer to parity with the shiny new thing.
Posts
I think you can get one for $199 now if you purchase a new video card. Which honestly is a pretty terrific value for what you're getting with this thing. Just my $0.02, though I'm obviously a bit biased.
I'm really impressed with the most recent update they pushed out. Streaming is smooth as butter for me now playing PC games on the Shield, with no lag or stutter to speak of. I might record a video or something tonight just to show how responsive it actually is, because it is very impressive in action.
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
IE will it leave my game in 1080 settings on the oc and try and down sample or futz with it- or will it render 720 and send it?
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
If you have any questions about anything let me know. There have been some issues with drivers lately, so if you run into any hitches with game streaming I can probably help with that.
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
SteamID: edgruberman GOG Galaxy: EdGruberman
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
EDIT: And that would be awesome! Thanks for offering.
SteamID: edgruberman GOG Galaxy: EdGruberman
There's a spreadsheet of routers that people have compiled listing their experience with the Shield too. I think I posted it earlier in the thread maybe, but if not you can do a google search for it. It shoes a bunch of non-officially-supported routers and how well they work with the Shield. Many of them do just fine it seems. Overall, the trend seems to be that just about any 5ghz router will do fine. For 2.4ghz, some will work okay, but it can be a crapshoot depending on your specific configuration and how much interference from other wireless signals may be in your home.
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
http://youtu.be/1GoR5W3aDy0
By the way, it just dropped in price to $199, and is getting a pretty major update tomorrow that includes Kit Kat and streamed from outside your home network. So they're still throwing some resources behind this thing and constantly improving it, which is good to see.
Edit - Whoops, sorry, screwed up that link.
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
SteamID: edgruberman GOG Galaxy: EdGruberman
It's heavy, but I wouldn't say uncomfortably so. It weighs just over 20 oz. for reference, the newest iPad Air, which is their lightest one to date, weighs almost 17 oz, so this is not that much heavier. However, I'd say it doesn't feel as heavy because of how you hold it. With a tablet, you're usually holding it with one hand while operating it with the other, and the grip is essentially just squeezing the bezel which can become fatiguing after a while. With the Shield, you're holding onto it solidly with both hands basically at all times, and it's contoured like a controller to fit your hands, so it feels a lot more comfortable. It feels quite balanced even with the screen open, and I've had play sessions that were hours long on it without any more fatigue than you'd get on a normal 360 controller.
All that to say, yes, it's slightly heavy, but that has never once come up as an issue in the extended time I've had with it. I'd say it feels solid more than it feels heavy.
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
SteamID: edgruberman GOG Galaxy: EdGruberman
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
I'm actually just about in the market for a replacement tablet so this is pretty exciting. Sounds like a pretty awesome tablet. Now I just need to get around to building that gaming rig.
SteamID: edgruberman GOG Galaxy: EdGruberman
I do have to say though, it kind of sucks for those of us who hopped on the first-gen bandwagon. You get significantly more value for this new one at basically the same price as the original (minus the new external controller). I'll have to consider my options and start looking at what I could get for it online.
Although at the same time, there is something to be said still for the current form factor. The clamshell design makes it more portable and easier to use with the controller. With the tablet, am I going to have to find something to prop it up on while I stream games to it? This is not going to be fun sitting in my recliner, especially compared to the ease now of just flipping it open and being ready to go.
Maybe I'll hold onto mine after all.
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
The Nvidia website is still pushing the original as Shield Portable, though, which makes sense.
SteamID: edgruberman GOG Galaxy: EdGruberman
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
There's a new Shield a-comin'. Beefier specs, decent selection of (older) games coming. Check it out.
Time to do some research...
Oculus: TheBigDookie | XBL: Dook | NNID: BigDookie
The Shield Tablet is a great device but as soon as it came out with the K1 they stopped making some of the newer games for the Tegra 4 based Portable. i.e. HL2E1 is available for tablet only, and it looks like they are accerating that approach with X1.
And again, not like they're totally dropping support for Tegra 4 or K1, it's just a bit concerning to see them not working to keep them closer to parity with the shiny new thing.