THE CRUNCH
The Nvidia Shield TV Pro, a streaming box that first appeared in 2019, now costs $299.99, a $100 increase effective immediately. Nvidia confirmed the rise to Ars Technica, pointing to component costs, including memory, that have climbed substantially across the industry. It is a striking increase for hardware whose core chip dates back the better part of a decade.
The Shield TV Pro first arrived in 2019, running Android TV with AI upscaling and hardware decoding for a wide range of media formats. It launched at $199.99, alongside a non-Pro variant at $149.99. That cheaper model has since been discontinued, but the Pro has stayed on sale, still running the ageing Tegra X1+ processor that Nvidia says remains fast for a TV streamer.
Nvidia did not dress up the reason. "Starting October 2, SHIELD Pro will be priced at $299. The cost of components, including memory, has increased substantially across the industry," a spokesperson told Ars Technica. The move fits a broader pattern the report describes: in 2026, devices with memory or storage inside are getting more expensive as generative AI demand reshapes component supply, even when the hardware itself is years old.