NVIDIA today introduced NVIDIA SHIELD, an Android TV console, which delivers video, music, apps and games to the home. Launching in May at $199, the SHIELD Console is offering Android TV functionality along with two forms of gaming. The first form being Android gaming backed by the console’s Tegra X1 SoC, and the second form via access to NVIDIA’s GRID game streaming service.

"SHIELD will change the way we enjoy digital entertainment at home," said Jen-Hsun Huang, president and CEO of NVIDIA. "It's an incredibly powerful, efficient and advanced living room entertainment device. It's the best Android TV experience. And it can transform into a serious gaming machine. It's made to game."

SHIELD -- sold with the SHIELD controller -- is a single platform with access to games.

First, 50+ Android titles optimized for SHIELD will be available for download, including AAA titles like Crysis 3, Doom 3: BFG EditionT and Borderlands: TPS. These can be played fast speed, thanks to SHIELD's Tegra X1 processor, with its 256-core Maxwell architecture GPU and 64-bit CPU.

Second, AAA titles, including console games, can be streamed using the GRID on-demand game-streaming service. GRID will include with its subscription price access to 50 titles, such as Batman: Arkham Origins, GRID 2 and Metro: Last Light Redux, with additional titles added each week.

Third, the GRID service can be used to purchase and stream new release AAA titles -- including Batman: Arkham Knight and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt coming later this year.

The SHIELD Console iis powered by the Tegra X1 SoC, it packs in 3GB of RAM, 16GB of NAND, 2x2 802.11ac wireless, and a large I/O collection, including USB 3.0, Gigabit Ethernet, and an HDMI 2.0 port.

On the software side, the SHIELD Console is running Android TV, Google’s TV-centric branch of the Android operating system. The use of Android TV gives the device the OS’s accompanying 10ft UI along with access to media through the Google Play Store. Local media playback will also be supported through the included PLEX application. Meanwhile because of its Tegra X1 backing, the console will be the first Android TV device to support 4K playback, capable of decoding and displaying 4Kp60 content, including HEVC content.

The SHIELD Console will also support the company’s GameStream technology, which allows for games to be streamed from a suitably equipped GeForce PC. Also present in the specification sheets is “NVIDIA Share”, which is NVIDIA’s name for their ability to broadcast gameplay via Twitch.

Nvidia GRID

Nvidia also announced that its GRID game streaming service is getting a promotion from beta to a commercial service.The commercial version of the service will launch in May alongside the SHIELD Console.

Nvidia will be offering a basic and a premium subscription service. Both tiers come with free games, similar to the current GRID beta, with the premium tier getting additional games. NVIDIA has not yet announced a price.

As for the newest games, NVIDIA will also offer a game purchasing service to allow users to buy individual games.

From a technical perspective, the GRID service has not substantially changed since beta. The actual server locations are being backed via Amazon’s AWS. NVIDIA’s target to beat on lag is 150ms, a number the company believes is fast enough to be reasonably playable, but also because that’s the number the company has previously stated they believe they need to be at to be competitive with consoles – especially games that only update at 30Hz.