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Nvidia Shield tablet announced as first one "built for gamers"

Stephany Nunneley-Jackson avatar
News by Stephany Nunneley-Jackson Former News Editor
Published on

A new Nvidia Shield has been announced by the PC tech powerhouse as the latest entry in its Shield line built for gamers.

Shield tablet contains a 192-Core Tegra K1, suppots a new wireless controller, sports a 8-inch full HD display front-facing speakers, and there's also an optional protective cover which can be used as a kick-stand to prop up the device.

The device's wireless controller provides "precision, low latency and ergonomics that committed gamers demand."

It offers optional LTE for online gaming anywhere to play over 400 Shield-optimized Android games and the ability to wirelessly home stream PC gaming libraries as well.

Here's a list of capabilities and features:

  • PC Streaming: First to stream games from a PC desktop or notebook, from anywhere in the home – using NVIDIA GameStream technology to stream from systems powered by an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 6xx series or greater GPU.
  • Cloud Streaming: First to stream PC games from the cloud. Gamers can access the NVIDIA GRID cloud gaming beta, available exclusively to SHIELD owners in Northern California, to instantly stream a library of high-quality PC games, and then save them in the cloud.
  • Twitch and NVIDIA ShadowPlay: First to feature Twitch – the leading video platform and community for gamers – which is also integrated with ShadowPlay, an advanced game-capture tool that lets users save and stream their greatest gaming moments. Gamers can stream titles from the SHIELD tablet to friends and foes worldwide. SHIELD Tablet also includes a 5MP front camera to enhance the image of the gamer overlaid on the Twitch gamecast.
  • Console Mode: First to feature NVIDIA Console Mode, which takes your tablet gameplay to your big screen TV. Console Mode transforms the device into a full living-room gaming and entertainment experience. Gamers can set up their SHIELD wireless controller, sit back on their couch and play Android games, browse the web and watch their favorite movies — all in native 1080p HD.
  • A stylus allows tablet experiences that touch-only tablets can’t match, and the NVIDIA DirectStylus 2 technology on the SHIELD tablet is a game-changer. Twice as responsive as its predecessor, DirectStylus 2 technology enables the first GPU-accelerated 3D painting. This enables a new capability where pigment and paint mix and bleed physically, in real time, and the palette is naturally illuminated in 3D as the user adjusts the light source.

Also bundled is the popular Frostbyte game Trine 2: Complete Story.

Sheild tablet comes with either Wi-Fi connectivity, or Wi-Fi and LTE. It’s available in 16and 32GB, with MicroSD (up to 128GB), starting at $299. The SHIELD wireless controller retails for $59. The SHIELD tablet cover retails for $39.

The tablet, wireless controller and tablet cover are now available for pre-order in the United States, Canada and select European countries.

Pre-orders in the United States are available at Amazon, Best Buy, Fry’s Electronics, GameStop, Micro Center, Newegg and Tiger Direct, and in Canada at Canada Computers, Memory Express, NCIX and ThinkGeek. You can also buy it through the official website.

Pre-orders in Europe are available at many "top e-tailers". The full list can be found here.

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