After 3 years with a Chromecast, all I want is a new NVIDIA Shield TV

Each time I sit down in entrance of my TV and decide up the distant, I’m reminded of the error that I made a few years in the past once I determined that Google’s then-new Chromecast was adequate for my use. On the time, I used to be transferring from Lebanon to France and I used to be confronted with a choice: carry my 2017 NVIDIA Protect TV or my 2020 Chromecast with Google TV (4K)? I picked the latter and I’ve since regretted that alternative many instances. The Protect TV was close to good and now all I actually need is for NVIDIA to make a more recent one.

Three causes made me go along with the Chromecast with Google TV as my Android TV field of alternative: it was newer, it was working the extra fashionable Google TV expertise, and it was assured to be the primary one to get Google’s new options and experiments. Since I write about Android for a dwelling, the final argument made every little thing else moot.

Little did I do know that, as time handed, most of Google’s updates for Google TV could be borderline uninteresting to me — and principally revolve round suggestions as a substitute of including new options. Or that the Chromecast would change into a bit extra annoying to make use of with every passing day. The paltry 2GB of RAM and 8GB of storage make for a randomly sluggish expertise. Generally, every little thing flies and I see no skips or hiccups, then it slows right down to a crawl impulsively. Normally when I attempt to use Google Assistant or any type of voice enter. Sigh.

And even now, after Google has rolled out pace, efficiency, and storage enhancements, I nonetheless have bother preserving all of the streaming apps put in with out working into storage issues. Again in Lebanon, I used Plex, YouTube, and Spotify. Right here in France, if I solely need to watch some soccer (the ⚽️ form) and tennis, I would like at the very least 4 additional streaming companies and apps put in. So once I hit the storage restrict on my Chromecast, I gravitated in direction of my Xiaomi Android TV and practically stopped utilizing the Chromecast altogether. It’s not a super expertise, however it gives me with extra storage for the apps I would like.

Storage was by no means a problem on my 2017 Protect TV. Hiccups used to occur, however they weren’t as frequent. (At the least till I finished utilizing it.) I may obtain and play highly effective and demanding video games on it too, with out a problem. Since I’m not a heavy gamer, the Protect TV performed the position of a make-shift console for me, offering me with a enjoyable gaming expertise at a fraction of the value.

And NVIDIA has impressively saved its Protect TV items updated all the best way again to the primary 2015 mannequin, negating most of my worries about being left with older software program. That stage of help on prime of fantastic {hardware} is the explanation why I’m at present craving for a brand new Protect TV.

I’ve not often seen corporations deal with their merchandise in addition to NVIDIA did for its Protect line-up so it’s a little bit of a disgrace that we haven’t seen something new because the Protect TV 2019 which, let’s face it, wasn’t a winner on all fronts.

In a super world, there’s a lab in a again alley inside NVIDIA’s headquarters the place somebody has been cooking up a follow-up Protect TV with extra storage and RAM, a sooner processor, HDMI 2.1, and help for all the brand new streaming codecs, codecs, and applied sciences. And possibly, with its new trillion-dollar valuation and inventory surge, there are sufficient inexperienced payments mendacity round to justify pursuing a aspect mission that’ll maintain us, Android customers, comfortable.

The present streaming field market is gravitating towards low cost, disposable, sub-$50 streaming sticks and containers that are positive for a 12 months, possibly two, after which change into lifeless weight. Even Google has determined that the Chromecast was too highly effective and went for a extra inexpensive and lower-specced Chromecast with Google TV (HD). If we would like a extra highly effective Android TV field, it’s unlikely that Google or Xiaomi will present it. NVIDIA was the one one which did this proper previously decade. I’d love if it did it once more this 12 months.