Gadgetory

today Google assistant arrives on Nvidia shield giving the streaming gaming TV box many of the same capabilities of the Google home speaker now you can talk into thin air and shield will respond on your TV opening control apps or even operate smart home devices unlike a Google home shield doesn't have a speaker built-in so it relies on the speakers in your TV or home theater system to talk back and how does it listen through the game controller a little microphone on top of the controller is always listening for the okay Google or hey Google wake words just like on a Google home speaker my brief tests that work well when I left on the table or otherwise exposed but don't expect good results if you leave it inside your cabinet or too close to your TV's speaker and of course you can always use assistant by talking into the shields included remote either way numerous voice commands are supported including being able to turn on and off the TV launch apps and simply sang the name of a show to start watching immediately for this to work the app has to be supported HBO and Netflix are for example but Amazon Vudu and Plex are not yet YouTube's integrations excellent and you can also launch music videos and look for clips using voice 2 and Google assistant a shield works with music apps like Google Music and Spotify you can even play songs with the TV turned off but you'll have to leave your soundbar or receiver on shield also integrates Google assistant with smart things for smart home control a separate USB dongle coming soon for 30 bucks attached to the device and adds ZigBee and z-wave radios to command numerous smart things gear including lights blinds and even garage door sensors you can also control plenty of smart home devices that are compatible with Google home directly Nvidia will also come out with a little plug-in device soon called Nvidia spot that works as a speaker and far-field mic so you don't have to rely on the controller the shield is relatively expensive at 200 bucks for the version that includes the game controller but even before Google assistant was one of the most capable livingroom devices on the market now it's even better the free upgrade is available today for all shield devices although to use it hands-free you'll need to have the new controller