NVIDIA SHIELD Tablet - Created to play

The masterful NVIDIA SHIELD is the fastest device available from our wide range of tablets. Its high performance is ensured by four powerful Tegra K1 processor cores, which are also produced by NVIDEA. Moreover, it is equipped with one saving core, which increases battery life. Like the Tegra Note 7 models, SHIELD tablets are equipped with a stylus and front stereo speakers.

• Processing & Display
• Driver & Housing
• Hardware & Performance
• Software & Games
• Verdict

Processing & Display

At first glance, the SHIELD tablet look very similar to the Tegra Note 7. The only obvious differences are a slightly larger size and a revised back panel. The device is covered with a plastic-coated soft-touch material for improved usability and comfortable feel. The back panel features a camera, stylus fitting and SHIELD logo.

All the connectors are located on the upper side of the tablet, including a micro USB, mini HDMI and 3.5 mm jack. On the right side there are hardware buttons for volume control and On/Off screen. Stylus and micro SDXC card openings are also located on the right side. The left side features a hole for case attachment.

The tablet has an 8" IPS display with a resolution of 1920×1200 pixels, with an overall softness of 283 dpi. On close inspection you may be able to distinguish individual pixels, but the window display is great and flawless for normal use. The stereo speakers embeded along the display produce a clear and impressive sound.

Driver & Housing

The tablet has a Wireless Controller, which is a sort of compromise between the control properties of PlayStation and Xbox. The right buttons are the same as the Xbox (A, B, X and Y), while the left analog stick is placed under the direction buttons, like PlayStation. The controller connects to the tablet via WiFi Direct, which makes the delay completely negligible compared to Bluetooth.

The driver is a small touch pad, which can be controlled by the cursor on the tablet. Due to its size and shape, however, its use is limited. There is an NVIDIA logo on the top of the driver, which when pressed starts the SHIELD Hub application that serves as a multimedia and gaming center.

A very practical magnetic cover is available for the SHEILD tablet. This protective cover simply and securely attaches to the device, and when it is opened, the screen automatically turns on. It can also be used as an adjustable stand, offering three different positions, so you can easily find a suitable angle for use.

Hardware & Performance

With the latest Tegra K1 processors from NVIDIA, the SHIELD tablet is the most powerful tablet we offer. The processor has four powerful cores clocked at 2.2 GHz, plus one saving core. The graphic chip is composed of 192 core Kepler architecture, which is also used for desktop graphics cards.

The tablet is a top performer, achieving great results in the AnTuTu benchmark, scoring around 43000 points, approx. 8000 more than any other tablet on the market. So there is no doubt that the tablet has power to spare and will not let you down.

Due to the Kepler architecture, the tablet supports standards such as OpenGL and DirectX, which greatly simplifies developers work with porting games. For example, developers from the company Frozenbyte managed Port the game Trine 2 for one week.

Software & Games

NVIDIA tablets traditionally use pure Android systems, with a few extra applications. The SHIELD system is practically the same as the Tegra Note 7. A subtle difference is the replacement of the Tegra Zone application with the SHIELD Hub application, which acts as a multimedia and gaming center. The Tegra Zone app is available to use on the SHIELD by installing it from Google Play.

Thanks to a system without graphical upgrades, the environment superstructure is completely smooth, which is of course helped by very powerful hardware. The device also features 2 GB of memory for running applications and games.

For the best gaming experience NVIDIA equipped the tablet with a unique GameStream. If you have a newer GeForce graphics card on your PC, you can stream games directly to your tablet. The game actually runs on the PC, but you see the picture on the tablet and you can control it using the wireless controller.

This is a feature that no other tablet on the market can offer. You can play your favorite PC games even without access to your PC. In addition, NVIDIA are gradually introducing the GRID project, which allows you to stream PC games from NVIDIA servers. These servers are currently located in California, but in the future they will gradually spread to other parts of the world.

Below you can view a video featuring GameStream games GTA IV, Portal 2 and GRID 2 to illustrate the fluidity and playing some games on Android, and due to the power, it doesn't matter what game you run on the tablet - all current games run seamlessly.

Verdict

The tablet is very impressive, especially in its performance and what it offers to gamers. Considering the price, the tablet is a great choice for users who want to be sure of top quality at an affordable price. The drivers miss the presence of vibration, but that doesn't take much away from the experience on offer.

Overall, the tablet is very well developed and you can see that the engineers at NVIDIA equipped the tablet well where it matters. SHIELD tablets are sure to become synonymous for setting the standards for quality tablet gaming.