Why are (or aren't) you getting a Project Shield?

[dcchambers]

Nvidia's first in-house android device is due out Q2 of this year (it seems they are aiming for a June release date) - and I am a bit surprised by the lack of conversation going on here at XDA about this device!

Why are (or aren't) you getting a Project Shield? Right now everyone is only able to speculate on price and exact availability, but as it draws closer to June we are sure to get loads of more information.


I'll go first!

I will be ordering one as soon as they become available. This is exactly the device I have been waiting for, for several reasons.

• First, I have always never enjoyed on-screen joysticks/buttons as a control for touch-based games. It seems like a backwards way to do it. This eliminates that issue and will make me actually purchase some of these neat Android games.
• Secondly, I am a PC gamer at heart, and the one thing I have always been jealous of the XBOX/PS3 guys is that they can lay back on the couch when they get home from work and relax while playing their favorite games. I already use a controller with a bunch of games on my PC (exclusing FPS and Strategy), so this seems like a natural fit for me! As well, once Nvidia gets the streaming to TV working, I can leave my big PC rig in my office while still being able to play my games on the nice HDTV in the living room, using this as the controller. I could not ask for it to be easier, especially with Steam's lovely new Big Picture mode.
• Lastly...emulators. Lots and lots of emulators. Nvidia's Tegra 4 seems to be one powerful chip, certainly powerful enough to run all of the emulators on the play store. This will be perfect for SNES/NES/PSX/N64 emulation on my tv..

I'm interested to hear your guy's opinions! Hopefully we can bring some life to this board over the coming months.

 

[zylor]

Basically you gave every reason i will also purchase one

Can't wait ehehe

 

[wnp_79]

I think the Nvidia Shield is a very good idea, as long as you fit within it’s very, very narrow niche targets. Most people won’t, which is why I think it will sell in low numbers despite being some decent hardware. I think I will be buying one though. I’ll explain.

I fit into one of the very few practical uses for this device. I have a high-end (for now) gaming PC with a GTX670 installed. This gaming PC is in my front room, behind my TV. It is there because my PC room became a nursery when I became a dad in 2011. There is no other room in my stupid tiny house for a PC desk. It has to be behind the TV.

To compound matters, I foolishly went and signed up for TiVo. (Freeview reception is woeful in my area). Now my wife has a hard drive chock full of hour after hour of mindless tat (I hate TV. 99% of it bores me silly) which I end up having to watch most nights. It’s driving me mad. I’m frequently sat there just waiting for her to p*ss off to bed so I can start my evening and bleed off the frustration built up from watching 4 hours of sh*te. This is typically around 11pm, by which time, any of my friends on Steam have also gone to bed.

(Apparently this TV consists of “quality time together” in her mind. When I asked her if she would like watching 4 hours of gaming each night and have to wait until 11pm so she could watch her recordings, she thinks this would be unfair and selfish. But I never have to raise a finger around the house and she brings me cold beer so it’s swings and roundabouts I suppose.)

When I read about Shield it seemed to answer the problem. I would be able to sit on the sofa, next to my wife, (quality time) and play on my PC titles whilst she absorbs hours of Celebrity Pets On Ice Makeover Factor. Whilst I am a little unconvinced that I’ll be able to play games like Planetside 2 on a 5” screen, at least I will have the option to play smaller scale stuff like Skyrim or Sim City. Games I can easily pause when she has something to say!

As I already have a nice setup for my keyboard and mouse and headset already able to reach my sofa, all I really needed was the small, portable screen. I thought I could make my own solution for a lot less than the Shield is likely to cost, and get a slightly larger screen. I was wrong. All small 7” to 10” screens were unsuitable for one or all of the following reasons;

1. USB input only, meaning my CPU would be driving the display, not my GPU. Also possible latency issues depending on drivers.

2. Awful resolution. They can all support up to 1080p inputs, but natively they are rarely above 480.

3. Terrible response times. They seem to be ok for desktop computing or widget monitors, but high speed gaming would be motion-blur city.

4. Cost. The only small, portable, high resolution LCD/LED displays with HDMI input and decent response times were for high-end professional photography DSLR camera rigs, costing around £1200.


Anyone with their own computer desk won’t need an Nvidia Shield. Anyone who wants an Android gaming experience can already do so for £30 with an Android device they already own and a PS3 or Xbox360 controller (http://buy.thegameklip.com/) and won’t need an Nvidia Shield. Anyone who wants the hand-held PC gaming experience and doesn't already have at least GTX650, is looking at a starting cost of an additional £200 on top of the eventual cost of the Shield. How many people are going to go for that?

If I could have found a separate small screen that would have been up to spec, I wouldn’t be looking at a Shield either. I’ll be amazed if Nvidia shift many of these upon release. If they cost it much above £250 I’m going to have a hard time justifying it myself.

I am looking forward to being able to lie in bed and play Sim City before going to sleep. There are plenty of Android apps (I use Unified Remote) that can remotely shut down/hibernate your PC over network. I suspect the Nvidia Shield (if they’ve though this through) will also have this though.

 

[rp3]

I am not getting one but I hope it does well... here's why:

I bought a Moga Pro (which has not arrived yet as their free shipping is the slowest domestic service I've ever experienced). With the controller combined with the LGOG (and it's Tegra 4/Snapdragon 800 based replacement this fall), I expect it to match most of the Project Shield functionality.

I own a high end phone (LG OG + 64gb card) and a high end tablet (Nexus 10 32). To the extent I want a 3rd piece of portable electronics, It would need to do something that the LGOG/Nexus 10 can not do or play a game my devices cannot play. I'd sooner get a 3DS XL for the exposure to a unique gaming library.

The PC gaming has zero value to me (I have a modern laptop (Vaio i7 14" touch screen) but it's graphics are by ATI. There's no way I would get a bulkier laptop (for the 660 graphics) to stream to a more portable.

On the other hand, I hope it succeeds. The better shield does, the better the games android will recieve. I don't particularly like tegra exclusives (expecially since Chainfire's mod doesn't support JB) but most likely my next phone or tablet will have the Tegra 4

 

[kudoboi]

one simple reason why not.. thats because i don't own a nvidia GPU. im currently using AMD and don't plan on changing to nvidia anytime soon. from what i understand you can't use the project shield to stream games from PC without having a decent nvidia GPU

 

[mj23kb24]

I will not be getting it either for the simple reason like stated above have an AMD card. This card is very capable of running games like this to a little device such as the Shield but they will never do it. Given I just bought my rig with some killer specs I am not willing to pay another 300 dollars for a nvidia card ton a system I already spent over 1000 on just to see the same performance out of the card. Its pretty pointless to me plus the precision you have with a mouse is far better then joysticks.

 

[raptir]

I'm still on the fence. If it's under $200 I'll definitely consider it. I'm basically looking at it as a higher quality alternative to something like the JXD S5300. I want it primarily for emulators, but also some Android games that I think would work well with a controller. If the JXD S5800 actually comes out and doesn't have any major issues I'll probably go with that, as I think that the layout (PS Vita like) would work better for games that still need some help from the touch screen.

 

[Aman27deep]

I won't get it as it's the first time a device like this is being made, and there'll be unpredictable problems with the device. Sitting on the fence, and I'll be waiting for shield 2. Also, because I'm in no hurry.

One more reason is that I have gtx 560 ti and not 660.

Sent from my C6602 using Tapatalk 2

 

[blaxer]

Def getting one here, I think it's a novel concept and I applaud Nvidia (and any other company) for trying to make a product that is unique. I do have a drawer full of "unique devices" though so it will really be up to Nvidia to stick by the device to make it successful. It is for sure priced at a premium and I believe that will be a barrier for many but, if you are a real hard core PC gamer you are used to spending pretty big bucks for a fast setup so from that perspective the price might be ok.

 

[PR0XIDIAN]

I pre-ordered one because it has physical buttons. I've been using an Asus Transformer Infinity tablet with a PS3 controller to play emulators when I'm bored at work. Not very Ideal. This morning I sold the infinity on craigslist, took the cash over to gamestop and pre-ordered a shield.

1. Android Emulators
2. PC Streaming
3. Opening new worlds with Root access

These are my reasons OP. I'm hoping that with root access we will find a way to stream the PC games without being on the same wifi network. I have amazing internet at work and at home. My gaming desktop is HUGE.

This is my steam library I have an extremely beefy desktop with an Nvidia card I built.

 

[Svardskampe]

Well, I saw this section on XDA, and thought it was quite interesting, but I'm definately not going to buy the shield.

- It's marketed by Nvidia, I expect huge prices.
- I'm an eyefinity gamer (this means I play on a resolution of 5760x1080), scaling down to a -7- 5 inch device, while I'm even on the same network? My chair is as comfortable as the couch :/ so I see no reason to stream. (Also, I use ATI cards as Nvidia ones are overpriced over performance. "But ye, I don't have to bull**** about drivers and it just works" - You know what kind of people have that argument as well? People that buy apple)
- It's not even out yet, and pre-ordering is just insanely stupid. You're laying down money for a product that is not even tested, and you're purchasing it for the highest price possible, as products only get cheaper over time. I will even go as far as simply declaring people that pre-order products, may it be games or actual products are extremely retarded.

 

[agrabren]

Well, I saw this section on XDA, and thought it was quite interesting, but I'm definately not going to buy the shield.

- It's marketed by Nvidia, I expect huge prices.
- I'm an eyefinity gamer (this means I play on a resolution of 5760x1080), scaling down to a 7 inch device, while I'm even on the same network? My chair is as comfortable as the couch :/ so I see no reason to stream. (Also, I use ATI cards as Nvidia ones are overpriced over performance. "But ye, I don't have to bull**** about drivers and it just works" - You know what kind of people have that argument as well? People that buy apple)
- It's not even out yet, and pre-ordering is just insanely stupid. You're laying down money for a product that is not even tested, and you're purchasing it for the highest price possible, as products only get cheaper over time. I will even go as far as simply declaring people that pre-order products, may it be games or actual products are extremely retarded.

Wow, that's a pretty large set of arrogant statements with no good backing. Why do you have an ATI card? If you stuck with a Trident card for longer, the price on that ATI card would come down even more! Calling people who preorder "extremely retarded" only means you're completely removed from rational discussion. I pre-order games if I don't want to have to worry about them on launch day. I pre-order hardware that may be hard to get on launch day (or shortly after). Maybe the real problem is that you can't afford to pre-order products, and you're jealous of people who can? Maybe you're happy with older technology until the dust has settled? Those are good reasons to claim you're not going to pre-order a product. But to announce that everyone online is "extremely retarded" is really just showing your own ignorance and cry-baby mentality.

 

[SixSixSevenSeven]

- It's marketed by Nvidia, I expect huge prices.
- I'm an eyefinity gamer (this means I play on a resolution of 5760x1080), scaling down to a 7 inch device.

you call us retarded but can't get any facts for yourself before commenting.

A) price is already up. There is no price to expect when it has already been announced.

B) its 5 inches not 7.

C) It doesn't just dream, its a fully fledged android device and very capable of playing games offline, there are quite a few good games coming out on android now.







I want go get shield but its not up for pre order in the UK yet, looks to be around the £230 mark if you do a straight price conversion although if you follow existing trends they will charge £300 or more in the UK because everyone hates us and charges us more for no reason. I can't afford the £230 price tag right now, let alone if it does get a price bump.

If I get one it will likely get loaded with emulators and then it might make an interesting device to make apps for. I couldn't care less about streaming. I just see it as what the PS Vita should have been, a high end android device with a gamepad (yes it is my opinion that the vita would have been much better if it was an android device).

 

[Svardskampe]

Oh I'm sorry, this is the internet, I need to back up the fact that a cigar is a cigar on every post I make?
The US prices are released, not any international ones. With the current rate, it should come down at €270. Hell no, it will get that tag in Europe. It could go as far as €300 to €400. That's still a huge difference.

And yes, I would go as far as claiming that pre-ordering products is an extremely retarded action. Why would you pay the royal jackpot for a product, that has no one ever reviewed yet, that no one ever put to day-to-day use and could report how it functions. You pay that royal jackpot for a mere idea or concept, led by marketing and manufacturers claims. I cannot see how this could be a good decision in any daylight.

"But to announce that everyone online is "extremely retarded" is really just showing your own ignorance and cry-baby mentality."

Why would that claim be untrue? I see no valid reason why you would not be retarded if you just believe a manufacturer by the nice blue colour of their eyes. I see no ignorance from my side, only those of who pre-order stuff. I see no cry-baby mentality in that statement, only from you who are quite tense in defending your purchase.

It's alright though, it's your purchase, your good decision to do so, and I do not say you can't do that. You're just not that sane in my opinion, just as you think negatively about me. I see you are quite tense. Don't get pushed that much by someone on the internet.

 

[agrabren]

See, I know a lot more about the product than you. I've been playing with it for months. My decision to pre-order has nothing to do with marketing or hype. I choose to pre-order the product based on solid facts, hands on testing, specific knowledge of the features, and specific plans of what I intend to do with it. When I pre-order software, it is generally after either beta testing it or careful homework on the software in question with the knowledge that my friends and I will be playing it on release day together. Since I live in the US, I know the price, and I know whether it will be coming down any time soon. And they aren't allowed to charge me until they ship, so it's not profit to them yet either, I can cancel at any time.

I pay a premium to remain on cutting edge technology, and because of it, I have done well in my career. I owe my current position on getting involved with Android earlier than most people, and diving into the technical aspects of it. That's what I do.

So you can think of me as retarded all you want. I'm thinking you're just too lazy to be an informed buyer until after everyone else already has it.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Premium HD app

 

[Jsusgarcia179]

I have an extremely beefy desktop with an Nvidia card I built.

Dat misplaced modifier

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

 

[PR0XIDIAN]

Dat misplaced modifier

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

LOL! you are right. I was tired when I wrote that. I built the desktop not the Nvidia card

 

[J.Guido85]

I will definitely be buying one as well. I have already pre ordered the shield. Some of the features that I like are obviously streaming PC games to the device so I can play them while sitting on my couch or in another room. I also like the shield for the controls so I can play games like Shadowgun, modern combat and other games like those. I also like that I can also use it just like any other Android device.

The speakers are here are incredible and it was shown that you can actually play music and use as a speaker alone which I think is a neat idea as well. Lastly I think a lot of developers are going to be making some pretty awesome games for this device and this device especially has endless possibilities.

I already have a set up that will provide a great experience for streaming PC games so don't need to buy anything extra for it to work right out of the box. I currently use Moga pro to play games on my Nexus 10, but it is a pain to carry around both devices for this to happen.


Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Ixz]

I`ve pre-ordered mine on May 16, 2013 for a fun reasons like to help developers in test with custom recoveries, kernels, systems or such things. I hope there is going to be guys who willing to develope for this thing something because it got some good potential.

 

[agrabren]

I`ve pre-ordered mine on May 16, 2013 for a fun reasons like to help developers in test with custom recoveries, kernels, systems or such things. I hope there is going to be guys who willing to develope for this thing something because it got some good potential.

Recovery looks like it will lack touch for a while, but developing ROMs for it shouldn't be overly difficult.

Sent from my HTC One using XDA Premium HD app