Is Nvidia Shield any good?

I've owned and used the 2015 Shield for about 8 years and had a positive experience overall. My primary use is media streaming through online streaming services and via Plex (local on a NAS and remote from some friends across the country). For this, it's been a smooth and snappy experience.

My 2015 Shield is definitely showing its age (no Dolby Vision support, which the 2019 version does have), but it's codec support otherwise is excellent, especially for lossless audio like DTS-HD or Dolby TrueHD.

I've streamed games from my computer a bit, but you should be aware that official GameStream support was ended about a month ago. There's alternatives (such as Moonlight) but I haven't tested them out yet.

That said, I'm of the opinion the Shield could use a refresh. The most recent 2019 version is still fine, but the processor isn't significantly more powerful that other high-end streaming devices. And it could really use AV1 codec decoding (which admittedly very few other devices support yet).

Moonlight + sunshine are the replacements for gamestream. They work well.

Not sure what you mean by lag in streaming services, but the interface for everything is generally snappier than any other set top device or tv-built-in ui (including mid-high range Sony TV that are years newer).

Since you mentioned replacing a media pc, you might be interested in the fact that shield can run plex (server and client).

I have both the older shield and the newer one. If you care about Dolby vision, you have to get the newer one.

I don't find it to be a time/ money sink honestly. Certainly less than building a new pc or trying to get something like a NUC working.

My only gripe is that occasionally the hdmi handshake to my overall AV system can be janky. Not convinced that's the fault of the shield though.

I've got a 2019 Pro model. It's hardwired over Ethernet, and so is my desktop, so I stream all the time with no issues. I use Steam Link (I have an AMD GPU and have never gotten Sunshine to work).

I keep a flash drive plugged in and use that to transfer files. It's a perfectly fine little server that my wife and I use to exchange memes and wallpapers. I also set up SyncThing to keep all my non-steam saved synchronized across my desktop and Steam Deck.

The video streaming is... Fine. I have a 65" 4K TCL 6 Series TV. Unfortunately my house is old, so it's over a fireplace in an awkwardly shaped living room, with the center of the screen being about 12' away from the viewer's head. I can't fit anything bigger than 65" between the mantle and ceiling. I tried turning messing with the AI upscaling and can't notice any difference other than some weird artifacts when it's turned up, and no real difference compared to the built-in Roku. The main advantage is navigating menus and using the Shield remote is way better than the Roku one.

I think it's worth maybe $70-$90, not $200 or whatever they are selling for now. I wish there was an SD card slot or some sort of storage upgrade path other than USB. But it's good enough I didn't return it.

I have a shield and shield pro (both 2019). It's a bummer that they don't really seem supported by nvidia anymore. It's forgotten tech with no real updates and things seem to be deteriorating a bit (Google search function has really fallen apart). It would be hard for me to be excited about buying a new one now, but that being said, I'm not sure I've seen a better modern alternative. Their 1080 to 4k conversion algorithm has not been updated since 2019, which is sad but it's still better than anything else I've seen. The remote is excellent. I don't use it for gaming, but I've heard the pro is the way to go for that. As someone that has both I would actually not recommend the extra price of the pro for someone not going to use it for gaming. I have custom launchers loaded which is nice, but besides the ads, the stock launcher isn't that terrible.

If you are getting it for local playback (i.e. Plex), get a Zidoo Z9x or something along those lines. You'll have way less headaches, I promise you.

Plex is becoming more and more of a pain in the ass. The company is trying to push everyone to get a plex pass and I suspect it probably won't even be free for too much longer. This is just based on recent changes and where I see the software going. To top it all off, Plex on Android is by far the worst thing on the fucking planet. Every other update breaks basic functionailty.

So yea, do yourself a favor and just get something like a Zidoo. It's the same price as a 2019 shield pro anyway. Just note that a Zidoo isn't for streaming. It's for local playback only.

EDIT: Forgot to mention, the Shield has incorrect colors for Dolby Vision Profile 7 (blu ray format). So if you are playing those, then definitely DO NOT get the Shield.

I'd go with something like Plex on something like a mini pc from Minisforum personally.
I get that Nvidia is popular, but I wouldn't touch their proprietary hardware with a 40 meter stick.

Obligatory "Nvidia, fuck you."