This Handheld Was A Powerhouse NVDIA SHIELD Portable Still Usable In 2021?
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- Опубликовано: 10 фев 2025
- Is the Nvidia Shield Portable usable for gaming and emulation in 2021?
In this video, we take a look at the Nvidia Shield portable, Released in 2013 and power by the ten powerful Tega 4 CPU can we still use this for emulation in 2021? let's find out
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Always surprised they didn't continue this line. The design factor is great albeit chunky.
Maybe razor or asus or Alienware can come up with something crafty.
the reason why it did not continue was because Greedtendo had a contract with Nvidia for those Tegra chips making them exclusively for Switch
There were several rumors over the years and even design specs done that looked similar to the Shield controller, but they went with the K1 Tablet instead.
Maybe get a Chinese knockoff, the are churning them out now.
@@mondealenvers8657 they even went as far as to brick some consoles and tablets. I have a tablet that is in perfect condition, that was bricked the last time I downloaded a firmware update. Greedy pieces of shit
I like and appreciate the fact that in your videos you are not begging for like and subscribe, but you only say "Thanks for watching". Be well! Your videos are awesome!
I think it would be really cool if they made a 2021 version
I wouldn't hold my breath
@@MrDrakko3 True, but it would be awesome. There was one slated but... well... Switch. Curse ya Nintendo !
They did. It was shelved when they became supplier for nintendo switch.
as long as they're still supplying the switch, not gonna happen.
nope, the chip is exclusive for Switch.
The design concept is basically everything I wanted for an Android handheld ❤️ companies nowadays should really reconsider this kind of design. This thing doesn't even need a case, awesome. I am always kinda worried about breaking the screen of my rp2
Sweet, I still have my Shield Portable and use it most days, so any tips and tricks provided here will be greatly appreciated!
Hey ETA, I would love to see you add LineageOS to this device, and if your feelings about Shield Portable being not worth it possibly changes? Thanks again for all the killer tech vids, as this is my favorite channel of the bunch.
I still use mine as well it's a nice unit
Mine's got dust on it but it's in perfect condition 👌. Booted it up after watching this and I forgot how awesome the sound is. Those speakers really punch out the sound.
Be careful with screen cable. It cannot be replaced due to stupid engeneering decisions. I used mine heavily in 2015 and it died after couple of years.
I loved this form factor. It felt like a solid controller and the clamshell design protected everything.
I’ve always wanted one of these to play dead trigger
Me too, I got one last year and I was disappointed because it does not run modern games.
i got a better device for you, Xperia Play, not only dead trigger is optimized for it, it even runs some emulation better than this one in the video
@@softwarearena7592 isn't they older than this one?
@@AkaHoodie Yes, they came out in 2011, but still running decent emulations
You can Android gamepad. Is cheapest and more comfortable.
2:56 reason this uses DDR3 is because it came out in 2013 two years before DDR4 came out and was adopted. For a lot of people that don't know in the Anandtech review for this from back in 2013 they explain why Nvidia made this product. By the time the Tegra 4 came out a lot of companies abandoned the Nvidia arm hardware. Nvidia had to do something so they started to make hardware with their arm Tegra 4 chips so we got the Nvidia Shield and Tablet. Of course the sales were horrible and Nvidia abandoned the Tegra mobile market but they kept making chips and a few years later the Nintendo Switch came out with a new Tegra chip. Nvida uses them for car hardware and they don't try to sell them for the smartphone market anymore
Its crazy how far we have gotten with tech in just a decade
I was blasting my galaxy s1 playing mario 64 through emulation, was blown away how far we come in little time
My 2011 Dell streak 7 ran mario 64 and most N64 games pretty well.
@@MsMRkv i remeber those in my local o2 shop, looked real nice the dell range.
You can play Playstation 2 games on android phone as well
@@blincikkosik7042 ye, prob is PS2 emulation for androids isnt optimized, and wont run very well
@@Cat780j it runs great actually on any newer phone
Waiting for the LineageOS review video on this thing!
LineageOS makes it run so much better and it fixes the terrible sleep issues with the stock firmware.
I second this!
Ayyye
I haven't had the sleep issues yet, just that certain games that can and would run won't show up, like GTA San Andreas won't show up, but GTA liberty city stories does
@@Steven-ph6pp isn’t San Andreas one of the ones that is nvidia exclusive? But liberty city is just on the App Store so installing lineage would remove the nvidia flags or whatever
could you imagine if they made an updated one now, itd be awesome. i feel like this was on realised a couple of years ago, how time has flown
nVidia made an updated Shield. It's called Nintendo Switch.
Still got mine and use it, and the shield tablet is still working!!!
Still have this. This was a beast when it came out. Don't use it much anymore, but it opened the doors for my love of emulation.
Funny... i'm using mine now with my Tiivo Max lol. I use it just about every day. I had it all setup with emulators back in the day, complete with GTA San Andreas. Lovely little device. Served me well over the years and it's why i knew the Switch would be a success. I used to stream to it as well. Mostly Dying Light.
Fun fact about those Tegra specific games: back in 2015, Crysis 3 was going to be ported and they have an tech demo you can find on RUclips, proving it running natively on the Shield. But it got postponed indefinably........... until we got the first Crysis ported to the Switch.
Talk about throwback, I remember wanting one if these
I picked up one of these at the end of 2013 and loved it. Two years later I sold it on eBay and bought an Nvidia Shield Tablet K1. Loved that too. Sold the tablet on eBay in 2016 and got the first iteration of the Nvidia Shield TV (the 500 GB model with the chunky game controller and tv remote). I still have my Shield TV from 2016 and it continues to work great for Streaming media. It plays TV, movies, Android games, PC games through streaming and all modern apps flawlessly. The remote died years ago but the controller still works.
Still have my shield!
Still love it!
Man I have good memories with this...... If I am still able to find it I will buy it just to relieve the experience!
I know there’s gaming phones such as rog phone, black shark, redmagic and lenovo legion, but this form factor still got his “impressive” factor too.
Great video! Looking forward to a Shield K1 video since it was a beast when it released and is still pretty good at emulation right now. And I can confirm for the K1 that lineage 0S 7.2 (If I remember correctly) makes it very snappy (way more than the laggy fest that the stock is) and usable for a lot of apps.
I had one back in the day, until it disappeared one day. Still miss it!
I used to have this thing. It's a shame it didn't get the attention it truly deserved. Half life and portal ran fantastic on it
It was too expensive at the time, did have resident evil 5 which was super crazy to me at the time
5:45 Another one was Mount and Blade on Android in 2014 which was sort of interesting.
Still one of my favourite form factors of any mobile device ever.
I agree. This is quite specific, but I want somebody to release a powerful clam shell android device, square like a gameboy advance SP with a 4:3 aspect ratio and dual analogs/triggers. That's all I want for christmas.
@@Shoeboxcat7 GPD makes such devices. Using their GPD Win 2 as my main handheld for three years. But they have cheaper Android-based alternatives.
Man brings back some good memories casting GTA5 Online to my Shield Portable almost 6 years ago. Never had any big issues doing so and now they both sit in my drawer. Gonna dust them off, recharge them, and give them a go again. One of my favorite hand help portables. If I recall one could get custom top covers for them also. Heck, I even have the EVGA Tegra Note 7 as well. I used to play Dirt Rally on that thing too LOL.
Nvidia really should continue this series. It's the best device for cloud gaming now: stadia, Xbox game pass, let alone Nvidia Now. It's also the ideal device for streaming gaming, like moonlight, etc. I wouldn't hesitate to buy one if there is a 2021 or 2022 version.
It's perfect if you want retro and are willing to both jailbreak it, and then work within the older version of android (lollypop in my case). The fact it can output to HDMI, and thus composite through a converter is perfect. I've got one and use it for just that, to outstanding effect!
I had this and the shield tablet. Loved them. A little history on this. Nvidia made the tegra as a portable gaming chip for phones and gaming devices. No one was buying except car manufacturers for GPS. Nvidia didn’t want to get into portable gaming devices and stated as much. Nvidia only created the shield line to promote the chip as a portable gaming chip and show it off as much. They produced the Nvidia shield portable and then the shield tablet. The tablet showed the chip off as being able to play portable or connect to a tv and play as a TV gaming console. You could snap the tablet into a portable controller and play mobile or connect to a tv and play in console mode via the mini HDMI. Guess who saw this and liked it? Nintendo was inspired by the shield tablet to make Nintendo switch and purchased the tegra chip from Nvidia. Nvidia canceled the Nvidia shield portable 2 and manufactured the chip for Nintendo. Which was what Nvidia wanted all along. To produce the chip and sell it to a gaming company.
Cool story, thanks!
Im still trying to find one to buy
This is the most realistic scenario. Nvidia could have easily made another Shied Portable with all the money they have. Like you stated the Shield Portable and Shield Tablet were just PR marketing tools for the Tegra chips.
A shame companies like Nintendo turn them into proprietary devices
I have one of these myself. It's a beta test unit. There are a few differences between the officially released one and the beta unit I have. Two of the main differences is I have no micro SD card slot on mine and the d-pad is different. It definitely was a beast back in the day.
So cool
I remember wanting one of these when it was new but thinking better of it, with price being a factor at the time.
Love to see what LineageOS could do with it.
I had one back when it came out with the carbon fiber plate. I really loved it, but let it go in late 2017. But now I have a Razer Phone 2 with the Razer Kishi, so I still have it in my heart.
This just like the PSVITA were ahead of their time.
Problem with both was the software side, where streaming was left to make up the native gap.
The PSP basically got both right: a little beast that was a gen ahead of the competition, with a sizeable native soffware lineup.
Sad that both this and the Vita had so much software trouble.
Though, portable Half-Life 2 on Shield and stuff like MGS 2, Ninja Gaiden Sigma and Killzone Mercenary on Vita were certainly big reasons to own those devices.
yeah but the price was bad IIRC which explains the poor adoption and lack of games made for it
@@sinephase it wasn't even the price, it was the proprietary card situation , the price was actually good
@@mauryj.3415 wasn't it a few hundred bucks?
@@sinephase then it would've sold like hotcakes
I love my shield, had tons of fun playing retro games on it.
Ow men seeing this I realize i totally forgot to get one of these 😅
It'll be fine, you're just late ;)
But hell, sold mine along other stuff like the archos gamepad 5 years ago... still have a tegra4 tablet somewhere 🤔
i had this when it was released. This thing was a absolute legend. even owned the shield tablet. back in the nvidia grid pc game streaming days before it was renamed to geforce now
Lineage seems like the perfect combo with this thing.
Got my Nintendo Switch running android 10 lineage. It's basically an upgraded version of this with good software support and a different (arguably less) ergonomic form factor.
Interested to see what that puppy can do with a custom rom. Good luck!
I got one when it came out, mainly to use to plot an Parrot AR Drone. Worked great for that. They had a special version of the piloting app for the shield that gave you bonus features when flying the drone.
I also used it for piloting my Parrot AR 2 it was the perfect controller with video feed monitoring!!
I bought mine used a long time ago its pretty great i will say it does take a while to turn on lol. The speakers are great and controller is still one of my favorites i mostly use mine for ps1 emulation and watching some netflix
Gosh I saved up for months for this thing when it was anounced, what a blast from the past.
"this thing's definitely a chunky boy"
I feel attacked 🤪.
I had one these the first day they came out. It was one of the best handhelds I ever owned. Thanks for making this video, I was curious how it would run in 2021.
Had one of these since they came out. It definitely used to run Reicast emu. It was super fast. Still use it for emus and Geforce Now. Would love you to do an explanation on how you get Lineage on it. I can't find a good guide anywhere.
Do you know if it runs third strike well?
I've had two of these, one as recent as December 2020. Absolutely amazing device, even now! Did some unity development and it works a treat when it comes to building straight to the device via ADB.
i was thinking about this thing just like 2 days ago
I've used Reicast very successfully on mine. In fact, it's still installed on there. Runs perfectly.
Lol begged my parent for this so long ago. Such an ancient device now.
Still got my Shield Portable from 2013. The gamepad control mapper is superb for touchscreen games. I don't know why no one else has done the same.
watching this after the steam deck was annoounced
Never knew this existed. Thoroughly enjoyed looking at this rundown
Would love to see the process of how to do the lineage os.
that os is not good for gaming
@@softwarearena7592 didnt ask but ok
@@visual7804 uhh !?
tl;dr: unlock bootloader, install adb and fastboot on your pc, download TWRP and install to your device, download LineageOS ROM for your device. Turn on Developer Mode, reboot into fastboot (usually, hold volume down), use fastboot on your pc to complete bootloader unlocking (warning - wipes your data), reboot. Then, boot into fastboot again, follow the instructions to install TWRP, reboot. Boot again into fastboot, follow the lineageos installation instructions to copy the ROM from PC to device. Reboot.
Done. :)
@@IngwiePhoenix_nb thanks for the information mate, appreciated 👍
Would still like to see a video of it though.
I had one in 2014, this brings back a lot of memories in me
Imagine Nvidia recover the Nvidia shield with more modern specs
so like the gpd xd plus?
I would definitely buy it.
Eta First Rc Cars Now This Awesome bro !!!!
I wish an updated version would be released with the most current specs.
It was released as Nintendo Switch.
Buy a GPD.
I'm 19 years old as of typing this! I remember getting this thing back in the day when I was like 13 years old! hands down my favorite handle I've ever own. I played so many games. stuff like Nova 3, modern combat, Ds Emulators,Gameboy advance emulators, Growtopia, minecraft ! I still have this device but it's screen stop working and it's like infected with viruses making it run super slow
It's time for a brand new Nvidia Shield handheld, we've waited long enough.
Nintendo is making sure Nvidia won't ever do it. But why Razor or Alienware doesn't make one is beyond me.
@@CaptainCaveman1170 Nvidia can get around it if they wanted too, they'd just have to develop around it.
@@morrius0757 As long as the switch has an Nvidia chip they will honor their agreement not to compete with Nintendo. Trust me.
@@CaptainCaveman1170 They couldn't compete with Nintendo unless Nintendo dropped the ball big time. Nvidia is a big name amongst us geeks, but for the average Joe, Nintendo is the name that they know and trust. To be honest a dedicated gaming device built in Android doesn't make sense in the day and age of 2 yearly upgrades, I've recently upgraded to a One Plus Pro 8 from a Razer Phone 2, all I've got to do is connect a controller and I've got a powerful gaming device.
@@WolfsGimpyWrath I know what you're saying but disagree completely. All Nintendo had to say at the negotiation table was "you want to partner with us on the switch? Ok but among all these other stipulations you need to discontinue that handheld you've been making". Even though Nintendo knew it the portable 2 wasn't going to really eat into switch sales, the Nvidia portable does have a unique form factor that makes the switch look like an amateur device by comparison (bad for Nintendo) and it was certainly going to be used by most people to play pirated retro games (also bad for Nintendo). It was a no brainier for Nvidia to ditch their pet project for the chance to power the switch, even though I continue to believe that the portable 2 would have been a profitable product for Nvidia, just miniscule profits compared to what Nintendo was offering.
I remember always wanting one of these back in the day, and now I can get better performance out of the phone that came free with my plan.
I still have my Nvidia Shield and would love to know how to install Lineage OS if you could possibly do a video how to for that, I would greatly appreciate it!
I absolutely love you. I have one and have a retro pocket 2. I wanted to see if someone reviewed and my favorite reviewer did it!
The enclosure would actually be nice to fit a raspberry pi or something in it.
I have had mine since launch! It was amazing, and still is a great handheld.
Would definely love to see Lineage OS installed and tested with the new GeForce Now, Stadia and Xcloud streaming apps.
It's applaudable watching a review on Nvidia's android based handheld device.
Imagine a modern version of this running the latest Tegra chip and a 120Hz screen. I doubt it'd happen since NVIDIA is already providing the SoC for the Nintendo Switch but it'd still be cool to see another Android-based Tegra handheld at some point.
steam deck?
@@TylerCubeRBLX Even better!
Yes thanks for re reviewing it. This is basically the only way to properly do handheld AAA gaming form factor. Aya neo endgame design. I remember wanting one so bad.
This thing was my dream but never got it :( now i have a switch so i'm happy
2 uploads in one day. God job
Still more power, ram, and battery life than most of the 2021 handhelds on the market....
I have a Hyperspin with a 100 systems on my portable Nvidia Shield...
Is a amazing system....
With hyperspin....
The grandfather of the Steam Deck
I was charging mine last night. Nice to see this video.
*Steam Deck has entered chat*
I had a first-generation Nexus 7 back then and I was amazed by how Nvidia Shield could handle itself.
friendly reminder, you forgot an I in the title
Still have mine. It is such an interesting piece of tech
A second video if LineagOS or siumiliar is needed, i think there is performance being left on the table here - Great video as always!
I think most people who has this device (like myself) wont make use of the lineageos rom.
The integrated touch app to make use with the games ain't compatible and there are no others that are as good and doesn't seem to gain any performance from this change of OS.
Also, many games does recognize the shield buttons to play (nova 3 as example)
I pulled mine out during the deep freeze/black out here in Texas. I hadn't used it like 2 years but it still had enough battery charge for me to play PS1 for 45min.
Thanks for this! I just pulled my ol' Shield portable out of the closet and started charging it up. Maybe I can use it as a Gameboy emulator for a while. I can't believe I bought this thing back in the day. Even got the fancy carrying case too. So cheesy!
This and the xperia play were my dream devices as a kid
Also the reason a lot of apps dont show up for you is because the shield's cpu is 32-bit and a lot of apps are 64-bit only nowadays
I'm waiting on the RG351V to arrive and forgot I had this sitting in my closet still... Completely forgot it has HDMI out because I never used it that way in the past. I'll probably just end up using the shield, I completely forgot how good it was at emulating the eras I was going for, even if it is a bit heavy to carry in your pocket.
This bad boy went to Afghanistan when I got deployed and took a beating in travel. I played my favorite SNES and PSX games at the time. Thanks for reminding me ETA Prime :)
Tip: You can actually use Moonlight Game Streaming to essentially enable the main functionality of this device on any device, which is to stream games from your Nvidia Windows powered gaming PC to basically anything. Yes, even to the Wii-U. Latest landmark in development is a port to LG's WebOS
(It's a FOSS alternative to the client used on the Shield, and it started as a reverse engineering attempt)
mine was lagging like hell from age and the updates on it were just slowing it down like crazy. all i ever did on it was emulation. i ended up selling it to a buddy of mine for like $40 because he wanted it. This started out very well and was AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!
I still have mine. Mainly bought it for emulation purposes and I like the clam shell form factor. Sadly, most phones today out performs this device. Back when this was released, it was a beast. Still is but for retro gaming only.
I miss mine. Use to play bullet force with it and it was able to map buttons for most play store games and emulators.
Still have mine. Sitting on the shelf.
Me too. I take it out when I go on plane trips though. Playing Gauntlet 4 on a transatlantic flight helps to pass the time a lot!
Hope they make a 2021 version since steam deck is coming out.. because GeForce now would be amazing on a dedicated device
I always wanted one of these but never got one sadly. I can’t seem to find one these days, but I still really want one. Sonic 4 Episode 2 was heavily marketed with this device in mind and I really enjoy that game, and desperately wanted the Shield to play it on.
So happy that the shield portable finally got a quality review. I bought this thing in 2014 and I still enjoy playing so many retro stuff on it. If not for the Shield Portable, I would've never had time to finish Gran Turismo 2 and Resident Evil: Code Veronica X from my backlog.
Also Reicast does work, but you need to sideload the APK from developer build. I think I am running a special nightly build that was released probably 5 or 6 years ago.
That's how I play RECVX, Alone in the dark and some other DC games.
Really hope you do the LineageOS video for this as I would love to play Stadia if it works on this.
The thumbnail got me super excited, thinking the Portable 2 was finally gonna see the light of day. Sadly, I sold mine a few years back but I got the GPD XD instead, which has a better form factor.
I remember wanting one of these, then I got a " gaming" laptop for uni and immediately forgot.
Until now that phones are becoming so powerful I can run my 3DS and PS2 games on my phone, I kinda want that chunky controller again and that sexy IO .
Use to play this all the time back when it released wish they would of continued the shield portable line. I still play half life 2 and portal on my shield portable 2 every now and then.
Hell yeah it is, mine is still going strong. I love it. NES/SNES/GENESIS/NEOGEO/PSP/DS all run great.
I bought one of these at PAX Prime back in 2014. I’ve not used it much over the years. I should really do something with it.
Sir, Sir,!!
give me that nostalgic gaming device right there!!!
After the Tegra 4 came the K1. That chip blew me away. I miss Tegra in mobile devices. My HTC One X+ (Tegra 3) was one of my favorite phones of all time.
I bought two of these, used, back in 2016. They were selling cheap in 2016. I paid $80 for one, and $65 for the other, both in excellent condition. I parted one out, since I needed a part from my second purchase to fix something I broke on my original purchase. I made more from parting the second one out than I originally paid. Then, in 2017, the demand for this device exploded, and I resold my original one for $200, more than double of what I paid. I absolutely loved that device, but I grew tired of the games I played on it and figured I'd re-sell it when I saw how much the price exploded.
Looking forward to see more pi CM4 module handhelds enter the market.