I am very specific about what I want in a TV interface. I detest suggestions usually and simply need a minimal interface that gives quick access to the streaming providers I take advantage of. It is no shock, then, that I went all-in on Android TV. At first, I simply used the default Android TV implementation that got here as commonplace on most TVs and projectors, and though the UI was light-weight, it was liable to lag.
Hardwired
In Hardwired, AC Senior Editor Harish Jonnalagadda delves into all issues {hardware}, together with telephones, storage servers, and routers.
I noticed a streaming gadget would clear up the problem, and coincidentally, Xiaomi got here out with an Android TV streaming field on the time, so I picked that up. Whereas it was positively a greater expertise than what most TVs provided, there was nonetheless an occasional lag, and the Mi Field would crash when taking part in excessive bitrate content material.
So when NVIDIA launched the Protect TV Professional again in 2019, I purchased a unit just a few weeks after it went on sale. NVIDIA already had an important observe report on this section due to the 2015 and 2017 fashions of the Protect TV, and NVIDIA’s insistence on rolling out well timed updates was the deciding issue.
It took just some days of use to comprehend that the Protect TV Professional was in a league of its personal; the highly effective {hardware} mixed with the minimal Android TV interface made for an important pairing. NVIDIA additionally had a set of unique options on the Protect TV Professional, together with GameStream — which allowed native sport streaming on the gadget — and AI upscaling, lengthy earlier than AI was a buzzword.
The AI-backed characteristic did a standout job upscaling SDR content material, and it was a particular bonus. However the place the Protect TV Professional really got here into its personal was at Plex; it did a greater job taking part in Plex content material than another gadget I might used as much as that time. I appreciated the Protect TV Professional a lot that I purchased two extra items, and I take advantage of it all through the home to this present day.Â
5 years later, the Android TV ecosystem has essentially modified, however the Protect TV Professional continues to be the most effective streaming gadget. As is its wont, Google determined to mess with Android TV, switching out the clear UI and introducing an ad-laden abomination in its stead that’s Google TV. Fortunately, none of my Protect TV Professional items have been up to date to Google TV, and so they’re nonetheless working the older Android TV interface.
However the place the Protect TV Professional really stands out is its efficiency; after practically 5 years of use, it’s nonetheless simply as fluid because the day I set it up. A giant a part of that is NVIDIA’s continuous replace cadence that brings bug fixes and stability tweaks, and this can be a rarity within the business — I can not consider another Android gadget that has gotten as many updates.
That stated, there have been just a few points through the years. One of many items is liable to freezing as soon as every week, and Bluetooth pairing is wonky on one other unit. NVIDIA moved away from GameStream, and whereas that is annoying, Moonlight is an alternate that works simply as reliably, so it wasn’t a giant challenge.
On the finish of the day, the underlying Tegra X1 {hardware} continues to be respectable sufficient though it’s 9 years outdated at this level, and actually, there is not one other streaming gadget that’s nearly as good because the Protect TV Professional. Sure, there are issues I’d need to see in a 2024 variant of the gadget — AV1 decode, DLSS tech that is just like what’s on the newest NVIDIA video playing cards, and HDMI 2.1 connectivity.
A more recent Protect TV Professional can be a killer gadget, however it would not appear to be that is a precedence for NVIDIA in the meanwhile. The chip vendor is making a lot cash through its AI enterprise that it would not have to deal with another product line, together with the GeForce portfolio. The Protect TV is in the identical boat, but when NVIDIA have been to supply the {hardware} for Nintendo’s Change 2 (as leaks counsel), it is not outlandish to imagine the model will introduce a next-gen Protect TV that makes use of the identical platform.
We’ll have to attend and see if that pans out, however for those who’re dissatisfied along with your present streaming gadget and wish one thing higher, the Protect TV Professional continues to be the one I might advocate.
The Protect TV Professional nonetheless has the most effective {hardware} of any streaming gadget, and due to continuous updates, it’s going sturdy in 2024.Â
