Using the Nvidia Shield K-1 Tablet as a Console
I noted in my previous post about my Nvidia Shield K-1 tablet that I was waiting on a mini-HDMI cable to come in before I tested it with my TV. Well, the cable arrived yesterday and I had no problem at all hooking it all up to my TV.
I was surprised that the sound control on the tablet did directly effect the output to the TV. It’s not a bad thing, though as the tablet falls silent and the TV takes control of all sound once connected.
The tablet did keep prompting me to go into some sort of console mode whenever I connected. This seemed like an idea thing, given that means the tablet screen shut off and the display would only show on the TV. You could still choose mirror mode if you like.
However, every time I attempted this, the tablet would force me into the Shield gaming center (or whatever it was) and I couldn’t find a way back to my normal gaming apps. So, console mode was pretty useless to me. Mirror mode worked just fine.
Overall performance was pretty good. The display was awesome considering I was pushing an Android app through a tablet to power a 40 inch HD TV. Every now and then I’d get a little input lag – I couldn’t tell if this was the connection between the tablet and the TV or if it had something to do with the wireless controller. Or maybe with the app itself. It only happened during battles, but I did have battle speed jacked up to high on it (like a boss), so maybe turning that down would improve things a bit. I don’t need battles on super speed to enjoy the game.
Overall, I’m very pleased with the Shield’s performance. I just hope I can find more Android apps I want to play that have controller support. I certainly never thought I’d be using a tablet as a home game console!
Last note: I haven’t tried streaming from my PC to the Shield to the TV yet. Once I figure that out, I’ll give it a try.