nvidia Shield - Tips & tricks [Read post #1]

One of the downsides of the Android Tv OS is that most of the apps that you might sideload will not show up on the main page you have to dig down through settings apps to launch but there is an app on the Google play store called TV APP Repo that allows you to create shortcuts on the home screen to these unofficial apps. Try it, it works great.

Rick Shaw wrote: »

I'm a subscriber to plex (if that makes sense) ie I'm availing of an iptv server.

So not sure how that affects space on the shield or not?

Check the thumbnail folder in kodi.Not that it always happens,but cached images in the thumbnail folder( in Android>Data>.Kodi>Userdata>Thumbnails ) can grow to huge sizes GB's.
Depending on the content you are using.So if it's large you can delete it and restart Kodi.It'll populate again over time.
Regarding other space usage,you'll have to comb through your setup and see what's eating all the space.....i.e. check retro roms,download folders etc,etc.

Can anyone who's got a really good Shield setup please PM me. Would like to ask a few questions directly if possible. Thank you.

VonZan wrote: »

Is there anyway to get the iPlayer without a VPN?

Not without VPN, but for free and less hassle yep.
But a static VPN is worth paying for. I had written more. Not sure what I wrote is allowed.

I have the 2017 Shield since launch. Love it. We watch all of our content on it.

I got a 256SSD and mounted it as internal storage. I have plex running on it and it is great. I am not a fan of KODI but by all accounts it run great on the Shield as well.

Gaming, I subscribed to the GeForce streaming thing for a while and bought The Witcher through that service. PLayed very well, there were some pixelating issue when the game got busy. I put in over 80 hours of game play so it is definitely playable. After that I just bought a PS4 so haven’t really been playing games on the Shield since.

I tried a couple of different emulators and could never find a really good experience, although I didn’t put much time into it.

Overall the shield is great, well worth what I payed for it for how much it is being used. And compared to other Android Boxes there is no comparison. The speed, support and updates are great.

If anyone has an idiots guide to emulators I'd appreciate a pm. I've tried retroarch but can't get anything to really run properly.

nedd wrote: »

I’m in the same boat.

Happy chick app would be a good start

fish fingers wrote: »

Happy chick app would be a good start

Thanks, I'll have a look!

Hi folks. I’ve been getting some buffering while streaming HD on the shield so I did a Speedtest and it’s showing 19 ping, 8mb download and 12mb upload. If I do the same test on my phone right next to the shield I get 35mb download and over 20mb upload.

Is there any way to increase this number on the shield. It’s placed about 15 feet from the source with a direct line of sight. Should it not be getting the same results as the phone?

mickeyk wrote: »

Hi folks. I’ve been getting some buffering while streaming HD on the shield so I did a Speedtest and it’s showing 19 ping, 8mb download and 12mb upload. If I do the same test on my phone right next to the shield I get 35mb download and over 20mb upload.

Is there any way to increase this number on the shield. It’s placed about 15 feet from the source with a direct line of sight. Should it not be getting the same results as the phone?

These devices do not have the same wifi capabilites as your phone or laptop. As The High Horse Brigade has mentioned, either use an Ethernet cable or get homeplugs. Running any sort of streaming device via wifi is not going to give you the same performance as you would get over wired.

Thanks lads, Ethernet cable is not a runner unfortunately so will try a set of home plugs.

Suckit wrote: »

Are you using a free app or paid?

World of difference. Especially on a popular free app on a busy day.

Regarding emulators:
I do not think that emulators are banned, as there are a ton of freely available games/roms for older systems, so it may be possible to talk about them here as long as you have no intention of using them the same way to play the licenced games that are not freely available..
I am unsure on Boards policies, but pretty sure Emulators themselves are not banned anywhere.

Both free and paid, I think getting a better connection with a homeplug will probably solve my problem. There is good headroom there with a 35mb connection

Taltos wrote: »

OK, seeing Gods now I’m convinced. Time to get the 16GB and a decent sized USB 3.0
Figure I’ll be back in a few weeks asking for the main apps to apply. Old android box has done its time so getting an upgrade like this for the US TV shows and now retro gaming I’m swung - cheers

Edit
Before I hit the checkout, amazon recommends the 128gb from Sandisk. Any better recommendations here without costing the earth?
SSDs seem great but pricey.

Only a fiver more - would this work for you? - https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00KWHJY7Q/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

So my Nvidia Shield was delivered today and I'm looking forward to opening the package tonight. I'm following this thread with avid interest as to what to load/not load onto it; and would welcome any links (by PM if need be) that anybody could share that might make our (Nvida and me) future interesting. Thanks

Hi all

I just posted this on a plex discussion elsewhere but thought it may be handy here too.

I just got and set up the Nvidia shield over the weekend(16 GB Version)
Installed/updated Plex and Plex server on it,connected a 500GB HDD and mapped it as an internal drive on the unit and then also connected up a 1TB HDD which has my movies etc.as an External Hard Drive
I have the Shield and both HDD's mapped on my laptop and can access both HDD's via laptop in terms of reading files,see below for writing to HDD.

I can download directly(using utorrent) into the 1TB HDD from my laptop but you can only write to 1 specific folder which is called "Nvidia Shield" in this folder I have now set up TV/MOVIE/MUSIC sub folders and have pointed plex to this location and also the location of the stuff on the 1TB prior to hooking it up

So far all is working perfectly,the one thing to bear in mind with the 16GB version is if your'e using plex etc. it needs to write the metadata to the internal drive which is why i mapped the 500GB as an internal drive,as if you had a lot of media as i do, you will be taking the space from the 16GB capacity drive.
I am also using this "Nvidia Shield" folder to drop APKs into and then using ES File Manager to install the APK

Also,The Plex Media Server app does not auto update,you have to go to the Play Store and push the update via a browser as it contains an SMB share setting that allows you to share you HDD over a local network within the Shield Storage and Reset settings,this option will not appear unless the Plex Server app is updated(it was the case for me anyway for a shield only 2 weeks old)

The above set up allows me to stream to any device with the Plex app installed, although i have the streams limited to 3 at the same time.

As for what I have installed so far
Kodi
ES File Manager
Aptoide-To sideload apps from within the Aptoide App(dont forget to allow unknown sources in settings)
Chrome

One other point- some apps that you install wont show up on the main screen,you have to navigate to the setting areas and go to the apps section to see them,there are a few launchers to sort them but i have tried one or two and didn't like the look of them (HAL Launcher & Tv Launcher) Anyone got any good launcher suggestions ?

Hope the above helps some people