Nvidia announced a new version of the Shield Android TV media streamer. The updated version has Google Assistant and a small plug-in microphone called Nvidia Spot which be placed anywhere in the home to receive voice commands.
According to The Verge, the device is very similar to Amazon's Echo Dot, but it does not work as a standalone product and would need the main Shield TV for it to work. The Spot taps into the Shield over your home network and lets you control your SmartThings, Zigbee and other home automation devices.
No microphone exists within the Shield TV console itself. Users can install multiple Spots for home-wide coverage. The AI microphone accessories will be launched later this year after the update goes live and it is going to be sold for $49.99, TechCrunch reported.
Aside from Nvidia's Spot, the company also added exciting new features to Shield Android TV. The updated design supports 4K HDR streaming. The box has also been updated to Android 7.0 and it also now has Amazon video added.
Shield will be the first Android TV device to 4K HDR movies from Netflix and Amazon, Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang, said. It can also stream 4K movies from Google Play, Vudu, and YouTube. The company also said that the new Shield has three times performance of any other streaming box on the market.
The Shield also comes with a separate remote control for using the device as a media streamer, which is priced at $50. Compared to the previous model, the new one is slightly smaller. The old one also only came with a gamepad.
The new Nvidia Shield is available for preorder for $199 for 16GB of onboard storage, while Shield Pro version with 500GB of storage is for $299.99. The company said it will begin shipping later this month. Both models will come bundled with controller and a remote.
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