Nvidia Shield Update Adds Android 4.3, Button Mapping, and HDTV Streaming

[froggyboy604]

Nvidia says the former will be achieved through its new ‘Gamepad Mapper’ tool, which effectively allows you to map the controls of touch-based games to the Shield’s console-like buttons. The company notes that it’s already used the software to create button-based controls for more than 300 touch games already, though you’ll be able to customize how you’d like them mapped as well.

The update also adds a new ‘Console Mode,’ which allows the Shield to turn into a set-top game streaming box. You could previously plug an HDMI cable into the Shield and output its display to an HDTV, but the new mode is optimized for 1080p screens and turns off the Shield’s display when activated.

Finally, the Shield has now been brought up to Android 4.3, giving it restricted profiles functionality and all the other under-the-hood upgrades of that update.

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Good to know that the Nvidia Shield now has a button mapper, so it can run all Android games with on-screen touch controls. The HDTV streaming, and Android 4.3 updates also sounds nice.

 

[GSquadron]

I don't see this as a great upgrade. Since technology is moving really fast, just adding these additions won't make it look better than others.

 

[froggyboy604]

It is not a huge update, but it is a nice to be able to map on-screen buttons to physical buttons and joysticks on the shield's controller.

Android 4.3 is also the most recent version of Android which is released to most phones and tablets, and Nvidia upgrading to 4.3 is great because the 4.3 update for Android adds some performance improvement to the OS. I think the Shield is the only Android console with Android 4.3

The HDTV console mode is also pretty cool since the Shield can hook up to a HDTV, and a bluetooth controller to use it like a TV  consoles to play Streamed games from Steam/PC, or on the Shield like Emulators, and Android games.

I think the Shield is better than the Vita, 3DS, and most other handhelds because it has the Tegra 4 chip by Nvidia, 2GB of RAM, a bigger screen, HDMI, and louder speakers.