The difference between the Shield and any other ATV device is:

- Its CPU and GPU are the most powerful.

- Nvidia ranks number one when it comes to updates, bug fixes and enhancements to the Android OS not found in other ATV devices.

That's it.

I'll probably get downvoted to all hell but i bought a shield tube about 2 months ago and it hasn't performed any better than my 3 year old xiaomi mi box...

Yep

Shields are great. I have two of them. But there are a lot of other cheaper streaming devices that are adequate for most people.

Mi Box and Google Cast for streaming 4K 60p HDR are very good. Also they perform very good with game streaming services.

Shield is for the extra mile if you are interested for game emulation, have a media library with exotic codecs and very heavy videos with bitrate above 60mbps and you interested in Android gaming. Also the upscaling at 2019 models is useful if you have a cheap 4K TV it helps.

Android TV is very optimized and builted to run on low specs with less RAM such as 2GB. A user watching Netflix & YouTube shouldn't notice much difference when he uses Mi Box.

Speed, Firmware and OS support, nothing beats the Nvidia Shield when you are talking Android TV devices.

Just be aware early USA - 2017 Shield‘s were notorious for having Bluetooth remote connectivity issues due to 2.4GHz USB3 Radio Freq interferance.

It was such a problem that Nvidia themselves quietly redesigned the Bluetooth hardware module in latter 2017 Shields.

If problems arise you can always buy a 2019 Shield TV remote separately.

Absolutely, imagine buying a sports car for the internet.

One of my favorite features is the plex server. It’s very nice when paired with a plex membership to have all your media with you always.

Better

It’s like the mibox, but it works. It’s the bomb. Apple TV is my garage box now, has been for 3 years.

If it helps at all, the cpu running that model Shield (Tegra X1) is the same one in the Nintendo Switch.

It's great. It's way more powerful than it needs to be for a media streamer which means it has plenty of headroom and never feels sluggish. With serious hardware inside you can play decent games or in my case, it's taken over the role of Plex server. Better to have the shield always on than my PC. That said, on my main tv I'm actually using the new Chromecast/Google TV. It's a better all round streamer, albeit with lesser hardware.

I thought it was alright until I used mi box. Shield is SO MUCH faster. I didn't realize how fast apps were loading.

Is it worth it ? Yes. Open the wallet and hand over the cash, and don't look back

Pull the trigger buddy. I have a 2017 and have absolutely NO PROBLEMS with it whatsoever. The only thing missing from it is the new remote which you can buy separately.

The main attractive selling point for the new shield is the DLSS style upconversion. It turns your 480, 720 and 1080 content into almost 4k detail with accuracy that can't really be matched by anything else.

I have two. Nuf said.

Hands down the best android tv box out there.

My 2017 works great with streaming services and Gamestream.

Just got a minor update last night from NVIDIA. They support their products.

Yes absolutely if the mibox is worth its price to you then the shield is too.

Yes.

Yes

Demanding Emulation Gaming, Kodi, Plex & HD audio support = Shield wins

However these days a snappy and quite powerful Sony X900H has better HDR and Apps support, such as the new Apple HomeKit, Airplay2 and Apple TV App support and 4K HDR YouTube & 4K HDR Play Movies/TV as well.

It's actually a better online video streaming platform vs any Android TV device, inc. the Shield.

It would want to be to considering the pricing difference.

I have two and I'm debating on a third when my son gets older.

I had a Mi and the 2017 Shield blows it away. The Mi actually seems a little worse then the built in Android TV my budget TCL tv runs. To be fair I only used the Mi when it first came out, so I dont know if it got better with firmware or they have a better box now.

Glad I'm not the only one around here with 2... My first one was at launch in 2015, then I refreshed last year for the Dolby Vision support. It is hands down the best streaming device I have ever used.

I've been trying to talk myself into buying a newer one to replace my 2015 version, but I just can't justify it. Just got an update the other day too.

I have not the new one that came out recently but the one before that and it has simply been excellent. No issues at all and it just always cruises through whatever I’m playing on it.

I have the 2017 shield, TiVo stream 4K and a GoogleTV on a 2019 Bravia 950g, besides the differences in UI you're not going to see much of a difference for the casual user. What buffers on one will likely buffer on the other, having little to do with your device.

I havevthe total Shields for the kids tv main tv and bedroom tv. Excellent device. A word of caution. Stuttering aka buffering is always just device related. ISP. provider, free servers vs debridcservers all play into the issue.

How is it "showing its age"? They don't exactly wear out.

It is great if you have older Android TV or no Android at all. But let's say you bought newest and best Bravia Lcd with A73 cores and 3 GB of Ram. In that case Shield is inferior. Faster in some way but inferior in other. ATV is better when integrated in TV than as standalone.

Not anymore. If you watch 1080p in 5.1 fire stick 4k works.