NVIDIA Shield Android TV Pro | 4K HDR Streaming Media Player High Performance, Dolby Vision, 3GB RAM, 2X USB, Works with Alexa, Model:945-12897-2500-101

I bought this November 2019. It's now March 2025 and this thing still is one of the best items I've ever used. Nvidia still updates to patch security, fix bugs, and update features. Content plays super smooth and you have so many apps available to stream or play pretty much anything you would want. I've had minimal issues over the time I had it. Occasionally the remote will disconnect and I need to re-pair it, but that takes like 2 mins. It's super easy to set up and works great with my Samsung Smart TV. The Pro version has a decent amount of storage and I linked a network drive with all my media.

5/5 Rating This is my go to Android Box. The first 4K streaming device. This thing is a beast, very well made, eawsy to use, great for streaming and watching content. I have zero hesitations on buying this. Super easy to hook up and start. Connects to your Google account with no problems. Great functionality. Pros Easy to use Great 4k quality Upscaling The best for streaming Sizeable memory to download apps from Play Store Cons None

The NVIDIA Shield TV is hands down the best streaming device I’ve owned. Performance is incredibly smooth thanks to the powerful processor—apps open instantly, menus are fast, and there’s no lag at all, even with heavy use. Streaming quality is excellent. It handles 4K HDR, Dolby Vision, and Dolby Atmos without any issues. Whether I’m watching Netflix, YouTube, or Plex, everything looks sharp and runs flawlessly. It’s also great for game streaming and emulation. I really like the Android TV interface—it’s clean, easy to use, and constantly updated. NVIDIA does an amazing job with long-term software support, which is rare for TV boxes. The build quality is solid, the remote works great, and voice control is very responsive. It also integrates perfectly with Google Assistant and smart home devices. Yes, it’s more expensive than other TV boxes, but you truly get what you pay for. If you want speed, reliability, and top-tier performance, this is absolutely worth it.

There are cheaper/newer/faster/better 4k streaming boxes, I am sure. But this one works flawlessly with GeForce Now and Steam Streaming so I can have a one-remote experience to access 4k streaming and low-latency cloud-gaming from my couch. No Man's Sky on a 4k OLED? Yes, please! - But oh no! The wife came home and wants to watch a true-crime documentary in 4k on HBO? No problem. For certain use-cases, this is still the best streaming box. Super easy to set up with my surround sound system, also. Tight, intuitive, reliable, and pretty much perfect. The remote is fine. Not great.

The mass appeal for this product for me was the fact it had a built in Plex Server, certified streamer (except Xfinity, attempt to side load did not work), and best in class graphics and Dolby Atmos support. I sat on purchasing this for ages because a promised update in May (2025) was to fix the Plex Server issues of crashing and the Shield's power issues with the remote etc. I cannot tell you the amount of research, inquiring, and effort I put in to find me such a device that was simple and affordable. While I was warned via various platforms such as reddit, I hoped with the age of the posts coupled with the recent updates that enough time had passed for Nvidia to sort the bugs. However, even outside the box with these updates I experienced a very sensitive remote and power issues. In terms of the power issues, after hitting the power button to turn on my tv/device it would immediately turnoff (this was a bug fix explicitly outlined in the May update that apparently did not take). This then progressed to delayed page navigation to just the Plex app (separate from the buried server app) crashing or not loading to then other apps not loading or crashing to then the device working just fine but if left untouched would crash out and act as if it was shutoff. To awaken it again and to fix any of these issues I would have to power cycle the device. It got to the point that I had to power cycle at least once during any usage period, however brief. I checked as often as I could for updates even though I set it up as automatic. I factory reset at least 3 times and reset up my server just as many. Thankfully I used an external drive to house everything so didn't lose that, but was a PITA to have to redo my collections and detections each time and if anything as my library grew the strain only increased on the device. Nvidia was not helpful in the slightest and the replacement didn't last much longer either. Five months of troubleshooting and trying to optimize and nothing ever got better, the issues persisted and grew and in frequency. I travel frequently so I wanted to be able to feel comfortable leaving my server plugged in and unattended without fear of battery issues/overheating/glitching. I almost settled with purchasing an amazon power plug to remotely power cycle the device since truly that was the only solution that temporarily unstuck it, but then I realized for how much I paid for this and yet the amount of effort it is taking to simply keep it operating I should not be complacent just to have those few moments of graphics and audio appeal. Save yourself the headache, invest in NAS (thinking the latest ASUS NUC) and there'd be no issue with keeping it running all the time unattended, just as much of a small footprint and probably a bit more versatility in that the whole automation process is on one device rather than me having to transfer files.

I've been a shield owner since the original release back in 2015. The NVidia shield TV is the best in class when comes to media streaming devices that is the most important point that needs to be made at the start of this review. I base that statement not on opinion but fact. I could write five pages of features and abilities this device is capable of that the nearest competitor can't touch. I would make the comparison the Nvidia Shield TV reminds me of time when you saw people with large satellite dishes in their back yard bragging about how they could watch TV stations from all over the world for free compared to their neighbors who were force fed whatever their cable provider would sell them. Even though I have mixed feelings about this release I need to make that clear. Now with that in mind I'll list the most important issues in this review you should know before buying. First - This is an important long term issue that can't be fixed with any software update the Shield TV Pro 2019 is HDMI 2.0B not the new HDMI 2.1 standard rolling out. HDMI 2.0B is at the end of its life cycle and when I saw this it did make me cringe because I know this device is not future proof. Recently Vizio has announced their entire lineup of TVs for 2020 will have HDMI 2.1 and many in the industry consider Vizio a budget brand. I'm a home theater enthusiast and I understand the importance of having HDMI 2.1 and at $199 this is a mind numbing let down. I'm expecting NVidia to release a hardware refresh of this device within 18-24 months at the latest with HDMI 2.1 and most likely add back the extras now missing (more on that below.) Second - This might be a deal breaker for some is the lack of YouTube HDR 60 FPS VP9 codec support per NVIDIA'S own website. NVidia has come out refusing to support VP9 for some unknown reason and shield owners have been waiting over a year for an update supporting YouTube HDR but to no avail have users received it. It's confusing that Andriod's TV flagship device is lacking such an important feature. Third - Missing items, in the box there no longer a gaming controller, the shield TV remote is now missing a head phone jack (sigh) but this does seem to be trend so not much of a surprise and in box there is no 4k HDR HDMI cable. Yes you read that right, for a $199 how much more skimpy can you get, seriously NVidia? Make sure you order a 4K HDR HDMI cable. Not all cables are equal and that has been the cause of many of the complaints in other reviews I've read here. I recommend an HDMI cable that can support 22.28 Gbps of bandwidth to avoid any issues and Zeskit makes an excellent cable sold on Amazon. NVidias website currently lists the gaming controller for $59.99 which I don't recommend you buy (its not that great) but on the plus side Playstation 4 and XBOX controllers will work via Bluetooth and if you own the older NVidia shield gaming controller or TV remote those are compatible too. I tested the headphone jack from the original Nvidia shield TV remote on the new shield and luckily it worked but it doesn't currently work for the PlayStation 4 controller. There are after market shield remotes if you do need a headphone jack. Since owning my first shield since 2015 there have been some ups and downs. Even though NVidia has been good with constant updates for the device over the years NVidia has not been good at listening to the community when it comes to features that are actually need like YouTube HDR. Nvida can be extremely hard nosed and that last reason is why I left my king of streaming boxes years ago on my older TV when I upgraded. NVidia refused to support Dolby Vision at the time. Now you can have it. Why did I buy this device? I ordered the 2019 Shield TV Pro because the AI-enhanced upscaling that experts are calling the "best they've ever seen." Upscaling is usually a gimmick and current TVs and receivers do a poor job at it nearly all of the time. The norm when reading expert TV reviews is a recommendation to disable the onboard video upscaling for the best picture quality. I can attest the Shields A.I upscaling does make a big difference and newer TV's will see the biggest difference especially in animations. Some examples I'll note when looking at a video frame paused with upscaling turned off all the roof shingles on top of a home blurred together/turned on I could make out each shingle with lines between them. On Neflix HD source material the natural light reflection off an actors eyes was missing but once the A.I was enabled the video looked like true 4k there was natural light reflection off the actor's pupils. One of the most dramatic changes was an HD video scene of the ocean the source material was Netflix HD with the option off the waves all blurred together but turned on you could see each ripple between the waves and sun light shimmered off each individual wave as they moved. HBO's streaming service while watching Game of Thrones I can now see the wrinkles on the actors faces and snow never looked so white and detailed! The amount of blur this device removes from standard HD is impressive and the detail it adds is just as good! I have no doubt Nvidia will keep improving this feature over time. To take advantages added to the 2019 shield you need a newer TV otherwise I find no reasons to upgrade from even the 2015 model. The Price: - Thumbs Down - Minus 1 star This device is not priced fairly, nearly 3 years ago the same device released lacking Dolby Vision and A.I upscaling which can now be had for feels like a $199 upgrade fee! I have no doubt at least one of the previous mentioned features could be enabled for the 2017 shield if not both. I'm disappointed in Nvidia because this is not a next gen device but only a minor refresh before what will most likely be another release. I've read multiple benchmark comparisons that all came to the same conclusion, if you take a 2017 shield and 2019 shield there is no processing power increase worth mentioning not even the slight 25% NVidia is claiming. Think about that for a second, if you bought a computer 3 years ago wouldn't you expect at least a 50% speed increase for the same money? All in all this is the King of streaming devices and I found it nice to be able to switch from a small streaming stick with little freedom back to the shield that has once again taken the top spot as the King. One last note. I see something concerning the claims the older Shield models are somehow better than the 2019 Shield TV Pro. I own the oldest and the newest Shields and side by side you can't compare the picture quality or the sound. I put away my older Shield because of the lack Dolby Vision and better audio formats Amazon Prime and Netflix both support the previous Shield models lack. Another issue with older Shields is the poor quality remote prone to random disconnects or flat out dying and I replaced 3 last generation remotes myself. The 2019 Shield has a far superior remote that lights up when touched and if misplaced can be found by basically calling out for it to beep.

I’ve been using these streaming devices for years. They’re simply the best, easiest way to connect to YouTube, Amazon Prime, and other streaming services that are available today. And they’re 100 times better than any of the smart streaming services that are built into any of today’s modern televisions. Shield TV makes streaming anything you can possibly want a breeze. They’re simply remote that comes with the system operates nearly flawlessly. And best of all, the quality of both the picture and the sound exceeds that which is typically expected from other streaming systems. The quality is top notch. Every three years or so I come back in here to see if there’s a new hardware update to the Shield streaming systems.

Takes the load off the TV's small processor and allows for better control when using a full surround system. I can now see the volume level of my A/V system on the TV screen. The processing seems a lot faster then the TV's ability and I was able to simplify the volume of connected cables as the Shield is next to my receiver and that's about 8 feet from the TV.