NVIDIA Shield TV vs. Shield TV Pro: What’s the difference and which should I buy?

NVIDIA has up to date its Shield TV lineup in the end, giving us an absolutely redesigned usual type whilst maintaining the graceful console design for the Professional type. Each send with a redesigned controller that is each more uncomplicated to make use of and more difficult to lose, and

Opting for between the two is determined by your front room setup, whether or not the Shield TV Professional’s enhanced gaming and Plex products and services are value the more money, and arguably most significantly, whether or not you already personal a Shield TV.

NVIDIA Shield vs. Professional: What’s the difference?

Supply: Android Central

It was a beautiful simple selection whether or not you sought after to head with the NVIDIA Shield vs. Professional. When you needed to glance to the interior specifications to identify the variations between the two, the Professional type introduced a considerable garage improve that justified the further price.

This time round, NVIDIA has made issues a lot more easy with a radically redesigned Shield TV that gives a spec bump over the older fashions in a svelte and streamlined tube that is designed to soak up slightly any area in the back of your TV. It isn’t a stick or dongle, both, so it should very easily have compatibility between any TV shelf and wall. We expect the Shield TV is the extra attention-grabbing instrument that can attraction to extra informal customers who simply wish to plug one thing into their TV and get to streaming.

The usual Shield TV has been scaled down to cover anyplace in the back of your front room TV simply.

In the meantime, the Professional type has maintained the identical edgy glance as earlier Shield TV fashions. You’ll configure it as a SmartThings hub for controlling sensible house units, and there are two USB ports for connecting exterior garage, keyboards, or an OTA antenna. It additionally provides NVIDIA’s complete suite of gaming products and services and options at the side of 16GB of interior garage and spec bump as much as 3GB of RAM. This selection is designed for the extra hardcore tech lovers who like to tinker and decorate their devices.

It is value reiterating that each fashions are nonetheless nice for players and fortify the complete library of video games from NVIDIA’s GeForce NOW provider and GameStream. On the other hand, you’ll have problems on the tube Shield TV making an attempt to play Complex Android Gaming titles that require 3GB of RAM. That implies if you wish to obtain and play video games like Doom 3 or Portal correct onto your Shield TV, you are absolute best off going with the Professional type. However either one of those will nonetheless paintings with the absolute best gaming controllers, so you’ll fan the flames of your favourite video games and use your favourite controller.

Talking of GeForce NOW, a up to date replace from NVIDIA enabled 4K HDR streaming, bringing the streaming sport provider on par with Google Stadia. That is conceivable via the “RTX 3080 tier” of the sport streaming provider, which additionally brings fortify for 120fps gameplay. Plus, NVIDIA has showed that that is restricted to the Shield TV till someday in the long term.

Class	Shield TV	Shield TV Professional
Value	$150	$200
Processor	Tegra X1+	Tegra X1+
Garage	8 GB	16 GB
RAM	2GB	3GB
MicroSD	Sure	Sure
Ethernet	Sure	Sure
USB	No	2
Dolby Imaginative and prescient	Sure	Sure
Dolby Atmos	Sure	Sure
AI upscaling	Sure	Sure
Plex server	No	Sure
SmartThings	No	Sure
GeForce gaming	Sure	Sure
AAA gaming	Sure	Sure

Past the packaging for the internals, the different main improve got here in the far off division and is constant throughout each fashions. The former far off taste used to be too skinny and simple to lose, and the contact sensor for controlling the quantity used to be extra flash than substance.

Supply: Phil Nickinson / Cordcutters

The redesigned NVIDIA Shield far off is a lot more really extensive to carry with a extra conventional button structure that includes devoted media controls, a large Netflix button, and a customizable button in the top-right nook that may be programmed to open settings, toggle the AI-enhanced upscaling, mute quantity, and a lot more. Plus, the far off is designed to paintings with older Shield fashions and can also be bought on its own for individuals who have a type of older fashions.

NVIDIA Shield vs. Professional: A really perfect access level for someone new to Shield TV

Supply: Phil Nickinson / Cordcutters

The NVIDIA Shield TV is hands-down certainly one of the absolute best Android TV field you’ll purchase, which nonetheless rings true with the earlier technology. The usual Shield TV is a simple advice for someone searching for a easy option to circulate out of your favourite Android streaming apps. Against this, the ones searching for extra connectivity choices will gravitate towards the Shield TV Professional.

However issues get a little bit extra difficult for those who already personal an older model of the NVIDIA Shield TV — particularly the 2017 NVIDIA Shield TV Professional. Odds are excellent that your Shield TV remains to be working nice, because of NVIDIA doing a persistently nice process with well timed device updates. The 2017 type additionally got here with 500GB of interior garage, which used to be most certainly a large explanation why you opted for the Professional type.

After all, the 2019 lineup does be offering some technical upgrades that can be value upgrading for. Each fashions fortify Dolby Imaginative and prescient and Dolby Atmos, and the AI-enhanced upscaling is probably not coming to older Shields, so if that function entices you, it’s value taking into consideration an improve.