Everything About: SHIELD by NVIDIA

The world’s leading visual computing firm has gone a step further to revolutionize portable gaming. The project SHIELD offers three devices that allow for an ultimate console-like gaming experience right in your hands. The three devices are: SHIELD Tablet & Controller, and SHIELD Portable. With the convenient portability of these three gadgets, anyone can quench their thirst for their daily gaming experiences anywhere and anytime. The SHIELD wielders are granted exclusive accessibility to the Android Games, allowing for a never-before-seen playability of them through console devices. And believe it or not, PC game streams are also possible. All devices are currently available on the markets.

With an 8-inch full 1080p HD display, SHIELD Tablet is the most powerful gaming tablet up-to-date. Not only does the gadget have the futuristically advanced Tegra K1 mobile processor implemented, but it also allows for maximum versatility. The application menu displays all the available games and apps, which are accessible with just a touch. And because the device has front-facing stereo speakers with dual bass reflex port, listening to music, watching movies, and playing games will be thrilling experiences. One unique feature of the SHIELD Tablet is the GPU-accelerated NVIDIA DirectStylus 2, which enables artists and alike to create watercolor or 3D oil paintings on the spot.

Into the specifics of gaming, the tablet offers a variety of playability methods. NVIDIA offers the GameStream technology, which enables the Tablet to stream games directly from your GeForce GTX-powered PC (Note: only GeForce GTX-powered PC). Gamers can use the wireless controller for more flexibility, stream to the TV for console mode gaming, stream PC games to the Tablet, and stream to Twitch to share their gaming experiences (using NVIDIA ShadowPlay).

SHIELD Tablet also offers optional 4G LTE mobile connectivity for omniscient internet access. And did you know that the device also comes with a 5-megapixel camera? It does, and it certainly is a great addition to the other countless features.

Specification (from NVIDIA’s website):

• Processor: NVIDIA Tegra K1 192 core Kepler GPU, 2.2 GHz ARM Cortex A15 CPU with 2GB Ram
• Display: 8-inch 1920x1200 multi-touch Full HD Display
• Audio: Front facing stereo speakers, dual bass reflex port with built-in microphone

Storage: 32 (WiFi+4G LTE) or 16 GB (WiFi-only)

NVIDIA’s precision-focused controller also has a voice recognition system. Therefore, right off the bat, the design of the controller looks certainly one-of-a-kind. Owners can utilize the integrated microphone to search, ask, and access. That isn’t all though; the Controller also has a headset jack which anyone can plug in their favorite headsets to use, as well as built-in touch pads, volume controls, and navigating buttons. Some people might doubt the precision of wireless controllers, but the SHIELD Controller’s responsiveness certainly exceeds their expectations. The SHIELD Controller is operational with the SHIELD Portable and SHIELD Tablet.

Specifications (from NVIDIA’s website):

• Wireless: Wi-Fi Direct wireless connectivity
• Audio: Built-in stereo headphones jack and microphone
• Connectivity: Micro-USB 2.0 for charging or wired gameplay (USB Cable included). 3.5 mm stereo headphone jack with voice chat support

SHIELD Portable

SHIELD Portable was released before SHIELD Tablet, but by no means does that indicate its inferiority to the Tablet. The Portable has its own advantages – such as the integrated controller. Like the name says, the Portable is definitely more portable than the Tablet if you enjoy playing games on the device more than anything else. Just like the tablet, the Portable also offers GameStream technology to stream PC games as well as Android Games. The Portable does however, have a smaller display screen than the Tablet – 5 inches, compared to 7 inches. One unique possible use for the Portable is the ability to even pilot AR Drone and capture footages directly to SHIELD (I believe this functionality is also available for the Tablet). The Portable’s screen is indeed also a touch screen.

Specifications (from NVIDIA’s website):

• Processor: NVIDIA Tegra 4 quad-core mobile processor with 2 GB RAM
• Display: 5-inch 1280x720 multi-touch HD display
• Audio: Front facing tuned port, bass reflex stereo speakers with built-in microphones
• Storage: 16 GB
• Custom Armor Color: Silver

In order to use SHIELD at its maximum potential, you need equally high-tech co-operational components, which might require a good amount of money to buy.

• SHIELD requires a video card of at least GTX 650 in your PC. Because many games are very graphics-heavy, you might need a better video card than the GTX 650 in order to run games at a higher and smoother quality.
• NVIDIA’s connectivity recommendation is a dual-band router capable of at least 5 GHz
• PC games that you want to play on SHIELD must have controller option integrated.
• SHIELD offers a selection of emulators – Game Boy Advanced, NES, SNES, Nintendo 64, Genesis, and more. Some people buy SHIELD exclusively for these emulators.
• SHIELD has a micro-usb port on its back, which can be used to plug in additional controllers for split screen gaming.
• People have figured out a way to stream Xbox 360 and PS3 games to SHIELD.
• It is recommended that additional storage is bought in the form of MicroSD cards because 16 GB is a small amount of storage when quality games are usually many Gigabytes.

Specifics and Information from NVIDIA's website

SHIELD is recommended for people who would love to have console-quality portable gaming gadget to stream your PC games, Emulators, Android Games, and all other stuff. SHIELD devices are certainly all-in-one, having multiplicity of functions comparable to that of current market’s most popular tablets.