Nvidia is claiming that it has “the only streamer you can control with both Amazon Echo and Google Home devices” after it added Amazon’s Alexa to the Shield TV mix.
The Nvidia Shield TV is a popular Android TV set to box that, obviously (it being Android), already packed on the Google Assistant – but is now open for commands from Alexa as well.
Unlike Google’s digital servant, Amazon’s Alexa isn’t baked directly into the Nvidia Shield TV hardware – you’ll need an Echo smart speaker to get the additional voice controls up and running. You’ll then need to enable the Nvidia Shield skill in your Alexa smartphone app to pair up your accounts and, as such, your streaming device.
You’re then ready to start barking orders through your Echo speaker to your Nvidia streamer – in the first command you’ll have to add “on Shield” to the end of your command, but follow up requests will be a lot more natural.
For example, you could say: “Alexa, open Prime Video on Shield,” and then follow that up with “Alexa, turn the volume up to 65%,” or “Alexa, skip forward 15 minutes”. It’s not as in-depth as using Echo with a Fire TV, however, with commands restricted to powering the Shield TV on/off, moving between menus, pausing/playing, skipping forward and backwards, opening up apps and adjusting the volume.
As well as the new Shield TV Alexa skills, Nvidia has also announced Dolby Atmos passthrough support for Amazon’s Prime Video, adding a premium sound experience to those 4K HDR visuals.
The Nvidia / Amazon love in doesn’t stop there either – from 10th November, if you buy a Shield TV from Amazon or Best Buy, you’ll get the all-new Echo Dot ($49.99) for free. The Shield TV sells from $179.99, so it’s a pretty decent deal. If you’ve already got a Shield TV then be sure to check your inbox for details on an discount for the new Dot.
