Nvidia has hit back at Razer’s Forge TV (Razer Strikes Nvidia’s Shield) with its own Android-based game-streaming set-top box: the Shield Android TV Console (doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue – TA). It is part of a move by Nvidia to supply actual gaming products; not just chips.
Revealed at the Game Developers’ Conference, Nvidia’s box uses the new Tegra X1 chip, runs Android apps and is able to stream games from a PC, at 1920 x 1080 resolution, using the Grid system. Video can also be streamed, up to UltraHD resolution.
Nvidia will launch the new Shield Console in May, for $200. A subscription will be charged to use Grid.
Despite getting excited by the new TV platform, Nvidia didn’t forget its roots. CEO Jen-Hsen Huang came onstage during a presentation by Epic Games to talk about a new upcoming GPU called the Titan X.
Introduced as a powerful device that will be able to run a new VR experience (developed by Weta Digital, Epic Games, Nvidia and Oculus VR) called ‘Thief in the Shadows’, the Titan X is built on the Maxwell architecture. It has 8 billion transistors and a massive 12GB of VRAM (like last year’s Titan Z). It will be able to run the Hobbit-themed demonstration at 90fps.
There was no more information shared at GDC, but Huang said that details would be revealed at Nvidia’s own GPU Technology Conference later this month.
