英伟达的新电视型号增加了杜比视觉

Nvidia周一推出了两款基于Android电视的Shield流媒体产品的新版本。Shield TV（149美元）和Shield TV Pro（199美元）是上一代Shield视频流的替代品，Nvidia于2017年推出了这两款产品。

Shield TV Pro保留了前代产品的外形——业界普遍青睐的盒状外形——而价格较低的Shield TV则是圆柱形。

研究、分析和咨询公司IHS Markit的高级分析师保罗埃里克森（Paul Erickson）说：“盾牌电视本来是更主流的产品，对市场来说有着独特的外形因素。”。

这两款新机型都配备了Tegra X1+处理器，其性能比以前的机型提高了25%，并带来了Dolby Vision、Dolby Atmos以及将高清视频升级为4K视频等功能。

Erickson告诉TechNewsWorld：“处理器的速度是一个渐进的速度提升，而不是一个巨大的速度提升，但考虑到Android游戏的现状，这不是一个问题。”。

他解释说，Android游戏开发商的产品通常是为生态系统中公分母最低的处理器设计的，因此市场上还没有什么东西可以对Shield产品中的新处理器征税。

突破界限

据Nvidia介绍，Shield电视采用了一种新的超薄外形，可以与家庭娱乐中心混合使用，也可以隐藏在家庭娱乐中心后面，它支持千兆以太网和双频WiFi。

外形更为传统的Shield TV Pro比它的同级产品有更多的内存，内存为3 GB，而不是2 GB。它还有更多的存储空间，16GB比8GB，还有两个USB3.0端口，可以用来运行Plex媒体服务器或任何其他USB设备。

这两款产品都重新设计了使用两块AAA电池的遥控装置，都有运动激活的背光按钮、内置的丢失遥控器和通过语音搜索内容的麦克风。

由于Nvidia设备支持Android电视，它们为googleplay商店打开了大门，用户可以在那里访问超过500000部电影和节目，以及超过5000个应用程序和游戏。

谷歌Android电视产品管理高级主管shalinigovil Pai说：“Nvidia突破了媒体和娱乐在家庭中消费的界限。

他补充说：“通过将杜比视觉和杜比大气与Android TV结合在一起，新Shield TV媒体播放器的用户将获得无与伦比的体验，很好地体现了我们平台丰富的内容和功能。”。

4K桌桩

俄勒冈州本德咨询服务公司Enderle Group的首席分析师Rob Enderle指出，对杜比音响的支持对4K电视的拥有者来说非常重要。

他对TechNewsWorld说：“杜比基本上是一台好的4K电视的赌注，所以如果你想把4K做得很好，你就必须有杜比作为音响。”电视内置的上变频器不是很好，这让4K电视用户获得了比他们本机可能获得的更好的体验。”

不过，这可能无助于Nvidia扩大其Shield TV产品的覆盖范围。对于大多数消费者来说，杜比支持可能只是“很好拥有”

“杜比音响无疑是音响发烧友的卖点，”帕克斯协会（Parks Associates）的高级分析师克里斯滕•哈尼奇（Kristen Hanich）承认，该公司位于得克萨斯州达拉斯，是一家专门从事消费技术产品的市场研究和咨询公司。

“然而，如今拥有家庭影院系统的消费者并不多，Parks Associates的消费者调查数据发现，虽然soundbar的普及率约占美国宽带家庭的24%，但只有一小部分用户声称拥有Dolby Atmos支持的soundbar，”她告诉TechNewsWorld。

游戏的未来

新的Shield电视还支持GoogleAssistant和AmazonEcho连接，并使用人工智能驱动的扩频器，使它们能够将720p和1080p实时转换成4K视频。

Enderle说，直播内容往往具有足够的分辨率，不需要放大。

他指出：“这很好，因为它会带来滞后，但对于我们这些喜欢在4K电视机上看老电视节目的人来说，Shield TV应该能提供更好的视觉体验。”。

Hanich说：“升级可以处理所有视频源每秒30帧或更低的视频内容。”到目前为止，由于帧速率较高，它在游戏上还不能正常工作，但Nvidia很可能正在努力在未来增加这一功能。”

Enderle认为，Shield TV可以说是这一领域中性能最高的机顶盒，而这些机顶盒并不是完整的游戏机。

他说：“对于那些想在电视上玩游戏而不必移动电脑的人，或者想使用价格最好的云游戏服务的人来说，Nvidia的盾线是最好的选择。”。

“我相信未来的游戏是在云端，这提供了一个最好的云端游戏体验的良好迹象，为钱，目前在市场上，”恩德勒观察。

IHS Markit的Erickson指出：“Nvidia正在真正的游戏机和低端流媒体选择之间寻找一个中间地带。”。

激烈的竞争

汉尼奇称，Shield TV的产品与苹果的电视产品相比表现良好，但与亚马逊和Roku相比则不太好。

Shield Pro售价200美元，可与Apple TV 4K媲美，后者的存储容量比Nvidia提供的多，但无法与游戏媒体服务器的功能相媲美。

Shield TV售价为150美元，与Apple TV HD相当，后者的存储容量也比Nvidia设备多，但没有4K功能。

不过，Roku和亚马逊一直在采用高端功能，并将其向南迁移。只要40美元，Roku首映式就支持4K视频。亚马逊Fire TV Cube售价120美元，支持4K视频、杜比视觉和杜比大气。下面是收费180美元的智能声卡，也可以播放视频。

不过，新的盾牌电视产品应该会对英伟达的业务产生积极影响。”它们应该有利于需求。它应该扩大他们的潜在受众，”埃里克森说。

“这将使他们能够留住现有的客户，”他补充道他们很容易就喜欢上这些新产品。但我看不到他们从核心受众中扩张出来，对亚马逊和Roku市场造成冲击。”

原文题： Nvidia's New Shield TV Models Add Dolby Vision, Atmos

原文：Nvidia on Monday introduced two new versions of its Android TV-based Shield streaming product. Shield TV (US$149) and Shield TV Pro ($199) are replacements for the last generation of Shield video streamers, which Nvidia introduced in 2017.

The Shield TV Pro retains the form factor of its predecessors -- the box-like form favored by the industry generally -- while the lower priced Shield TV is cylinder-shaped.

"The Shield TV is meant to be the more mainstream product and has a unique form factor for the market," said Austin, Texas-based Paul Erickson, senior analyst at IHS Markit, a research, analysis and advisory firm.

Both new models have Tegra X1+ processors, which deliver 25 percent faster performance than previous models, and bring to life features like Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, and upscaling HD video to 4K video.

"The processor speed is an incremental speed bump, not a giant speed bump, but that's not a problem given the state of Android-based gaming," Erickson told TechNewsWorld.

Android gaming developers typically design their wares for the lowest common denominator processor in the ecosystem, he explained, so there's nothing in the market yet to tax the new processors in the Shield products.

Pushing Boundaries

Shield TV has a new slim shape -- designed to blend with or hide behind home entertainment centers, according to Nvidia -- and it supports Gigabit Ethernet and dual-band WiFi.

The more conventionally shaped Shield TV Pro has more memory than its sibling, 3 GB compared to 2 GB. It also has more storage, 16 GB versus 8 GB, as well as two USB 3.0 ports that can be used for running a Plex Media Server or any other USB device.

Both gadgets have redesigned remote control units that run on two AAA batteries, and both have motion-activated, backlit buttons, a built-in lost remote locator, and a mic for searching for content via voice.

Because they support Android TV, the Nvidia devices open the door to the Google Play store, where users can access more than 500,000 movies and shows, and more than 5,000 apps and games.

"Nvidia pushes the boundaries of how media and entertainment are consumed in the home, said Shalini Govil-Pai, senior director of product management for Android TV at Google.

"By bringing together Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos with Android TV, users of the new Shield TV media players receive an unmatched experience that well represents our platform's rich content and capabilities," he added.

4K Table Stakes

Support for Dolby sound can be very important to owners of 4K TVs, noted Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group, an advisory services firm in Bend, Oregon.

"Dolby is basically table stakes for a good 4K TV, so if you want to do 4K well you have to have Dolby for sound," he told TechNewsWorld. "The up-converters built into TVs just aren't very good, and this allows 4K TV owners to get a better experience than they would likely get natively."

Nevertheless, it might not help Nvidia expand the reach of its Shield TV products. For most consumers, Dolby support may be just "nice to have."

"Dolby sound is certainly a selling point to audiophiles," acknowledged Kristen Hanich, senior analyst at Parks Assocates, a Dallas, Texas-based market research and consulting company specializing in consumer technology products.

"However, not a lot of consumers own home theater systems nowadays, and Parks Associates consumer survey data finds that while soundbar penetration is at roughly 24 percent of U.S. broadband households, only a small percentage of these owners claim to have a soundbar with Dolby Atmos support," she told TechNewsWorld.

Future of Gaming

The new Shield TVs also support Google Assistant and Amazon Echo connectivity, and use an artificial intelligence-powered upscaler that enables them to turn 720p and 1080p into 4K video in real time.

Live content tends to come with enough resolution not to need upscaling, said Enderle.

"That's good because it can introduce lag, but for those of us that like to watch old TV shows on our 4K sets, Shield TV should provide a better visual experience," he pointed out.

"Upscaling works on video content 30 fps or below from all video sources," Hanich said. "As of right now it doesn't work on games due to their higher frame rates, but it's likely that Nvidia is working on adding this in the future."

The Shield TVs are arguably the highest-performing set-top boxes in the segment that aren't full game consoles, Enderle maintained.

"For those who want to play games on their TVs from their PCs without having to move that PC, or who want to use one of the best-priced cloud gaming services, Nvidia's Shield line is the best choice," he said.

"I believe the future of gaming is in the cloud and this provides a good indication of the best cloud gaming experience, for the money, currently in market," Enderle observed.

"Nvidia is staking out a middle ground between real consoles and low-end streaming options," IHS Markit's Erickson noted.

Tough Competition

The Shield TV offerings stack up well against Apple's TV product, but not so well against Amazon and Roku, according to Hanich.

At $200, the Shield Pro is comparable to the Apple TV 4K, which has more storage than Nvidia's offering but can't match its gaming media server capabilities.

Shield TV, at $150, is comparable to the Apple TV HD, which also has more storage than the Nvidia device, but no 4K capabilities.

However, Roku and Amazon have been taking high-end features and migrating them south. For $40, the Roku Premiere supports 4K video. For $120, Amazon's Fire TV Cube supports 4K video, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. Coming down the pike are smart soundbars for $180 that also can stream video.

Nevertheless, the new Shield TV products should have a positive impact on Nvidia's business. "They should be good for demand. It should broaden their potential audience," Erickson said.

"It will enable them to hold on to their existing customers," he added. "They will jump easily to these new products. But I don't see them expanding out of that core audience and putting a dent into the Amazon and Roku market."