Nvidia Shield TV update broke 4K streaming w/ some apps, Vudu disabled for now

Ben Schoon | Sep 9 2019 - 7:48 am PT

The Nvidia Shield TV is one of the best ways to put content on your TV, but a recent update is causing headaches. Apparently, the recent Android Pie update for the Nvidia Shield TV has broken 4K streaming with some applications.

Nvidia acknowledged a growing issue on its forums with the recent Pie update. Apparently, that update broke 4K streaming to some extent with certain applications on the Shield TV. The company hasn’t shared many details on what exactly is going on, and Nvidia’s PR confirmed there aren’t many answers available at the moment.

Only some apps seem to be affected by this broken 4K playback issue on Nvidia Shield. Major content providers such as Netflix, YouTube, and Prime Video are not affected – or at least they shouldn’t – but users report Movies Anywhere, DC Universe, Kodi, and even Google Play Movies as having issues. Nvidia explains:

We’re aware of a 4K playback issue impacting a small number of apps on SHIELD TV devices and are working on a solution.. In most of these cases, users can cast these movies to SHIELD in 4K using built-in Chromecast. The top 4K providers, including Netflix, YouTube and Prime Video, are not affected.

Vudu is another major service impacted by this issue. As a result, Vudu has decided to pull support for 4K on the Nvidia Shield as a temporary measure. As of September 6th, playback was limited to HDX quality even on films that were purchased in 4K HDR quality. Once Nvidia has fixed the issue with UHD, Vudu says it will reinstate 4K playback on the Shield.

Nvidia has made us aware of an UHD issue that will affect Vudu Nvidia Shield users and prevent playback in UHD quality. Due to this, UHD playback on Nvidia Shield devices will be limited to HDX quality starting at 3pm PT today. Playback on other Vudu-enabled devices will not be affected, and you will be able to watch your collection in 4K UHD on non-Nvidia Shield devices.

We understand this is frustrating and inconvenient but rest assured that you will still have the UHD quality you purchased and will be able to watch in UHD when the issue is resolved. You can find additional information and updates on the Nvidia forums, here. In the meantime, you can always cast to the Shield in UHD quality, though you’ll be missing HDR.