Latest Nvidia Shield TV update delivers IR enhancements, other tweaks

Ben Schoon | Nov 16 2020 - 10:22 am PT

The Nvidia Shield TV is perhaps the best-supported Android device of all time, and now the lineup is getting another upgrade. Rolling out today, Nvidia Shield TV is getting upgrade 8.2.1 with IR enhancements and tons of bug fixes.

Shield Experience Upgrade 8.2.1 is rolling out starting today with a plethora of bug fixes and tweaks to the software on all Shield TVs, but it’s not a major update. There are no new big features or changes, just a lot of welcome tweaks.

The change that will perhaps affect the most people is a handful of upgrades to the IR capabilities of the Shield TV Remote. The remote can now control projectors and can be controlled using an Alexa skill, which is pretty slick. The power and volume IR features of the Shield now also work with several new brands including Monoprice, ONN, Arris, and more. The full list is below.

Some notable bug fixes include fixing audio issues when using a USB DAC, resolving a problem where AI upscaling wouldn’t work on some content, and should fix a problem that caused Shield devices not to show up on a Google Chromecast list.

Here’s the (hefty) changelog of tweaks and bug fixes:

SHIELD Experience Upgrade 8.2.1

Enhancements

Adds notification to enable AI-upscaling when upscaling GeForce NOW

Adds IR power control for projector displays

Adds IR power/volume control for the following brands: Arris, Atyme, BC Acoustique, Dayton, Kora, Monoprice, ONN, Point Source Acoustics, Savant, Sennheiser, SMSL, Tascam

Improves system volume levels when audio is routed to USB DAC or Bluetooth headset

Adds developer option to force HDCP 1.4 compatibility mode (4K protected content will not be available)

Allows IR power commands sent from SHIELD Remote 2019 when using Alexa skill

Includes security patches up to Android security bulletin (August 2020)

Bug Fixes

AI Scaling:

Resolves issue where AI upscaling would incorrectly detect content as unsupported, requiring a reboot

Resolves issue where AI upscaling would randomly detect content as unsupported

[SHIELD TV Pro 2019] Resolves dropped frames when AI upscaling 60fps video when overscan is adjusted

Display:

Fixes issue where line is visible when using AI upscaling on Prime Video

Resolves issue where Screen Saver timers were not set properly

Resolves black screen issue when playing Dolby Vision content and overscan adjusted

Network/Storage:

Allows special characters in username when accessing SHIELD over network

Fixes issue when copying >2GB files from Mac to SHIELD 2019

Fixes issue when connecting to SHIELD over local network when username has a space

Fixes rare crash bug when mounting network storage to SHIELD

Fixes bug where connected storage would become inaccessible, requiring reboot to recover

Accessories:

Fixes bug where IR volume control would stop working when Talkback is enabled

Fixes “Long Press Menu” functionality for customized menu button

Resolves issue where configuring IR control might fail when older SHIELD remotes and controllers are paired

Fixes bug where IR control was still active after factory reset

Fixes bug where IR control would not be available after changing language to traditional Chinese

[SHIELD TV 2019] Resolves issue where IR control would stop working, requiring reboot to recover

[BFGD] Resolves volume and play/pause button press issues on new SHIELD Remote 2019

Audio:

Improves system volume levels when using USB DAC or bluetooth speakers

Fixes bug where audio would randomly drop, requiring a reboot to recover

Resolves issue where manually enabling AC3 in “Available formats” was not working as advertised

Fixes NETFLIX issue where 5.1 audio would not be available after disconnecting bluetooth speaker

Fixes bug where volume control notification would show up incorrectly on KODI

Other:

Fixes bug where SHIELD Experience upgrade would be blocked if accessory battery is low

Resolves background display issue when exiting settings menu

[BFGD] Fixes YouTube crash issue

Fixes alignment issues on “Ok Google” configuration page

Resolves issue where SHIELD would not show up available as a cast device