So in looking at the Shield TV (2019 or 2020 edition, not the gaming one) are the new ones with the GIGABIT connection worth it? i'm running Firestick 4k's, but the connection isn't fast enough to stream 4K movies from plex, so i'm examining my alternatives. This seemed to popup. Any thoughts?
All the Shields have GIGABIT connection.
Is the processor and gigabit worth the money?
I would go for the Pro instead of the cylinder version. The cyclinder runs 32 Bit Android. The pro also has USB connections and can run the Channels DVR with attached storage.
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Hmmm. I'm looking primarily at the streaming aspect. I run a separate PC as my DVR.
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The Apple TV 4K also has a gigabit connection. I own both and have issues with both.
My issue with the Apple TV is mostly that it won’t output direct bitstream for the audio. Everything is decoded to PCM and is sent out as “uncompressed.”
My issues with the Shield are with the hardware itself. In Channels DVR it doesn’t like the hardware encoded stream coming from my remote server using a GTX 1650 for transcoding. If I disable hardware decoding in the Shield all issues go away. The Shield is based on the Nvidia Tegra X1 (X1+ on the 2019 model) which has a old Maxwell GPU. I don’t think the Turing encoder of the 1650 creates a stream the old Maxwell is compatible with.
Another thing that’s started happening in the Plex client app for the Shield is playback will just halt on it own. The only way to get it playing again is to back out and hit play again... So to say I’m looking to ditch my Shield is an understatement. The box is only 10 months old and it’s giving me all this grief.
I wish these guys would just stop fighting finishing the Roku app so I can get rid of the Shield! Everyone else has great functioning Roku apps... These guys claim they can’t do it.
Channels DVR runs excellent on my 2x 2019 Shields, the tube and pro model.
Only quirk of late, is that some OTA 480i tv stations, have a stammering, freeze frame like playback issue that happens, then stops, then happens again. Changing the "Decoder" setting in the Channels app to Hybrid, resolves that. Also, having the "surround sound" option enabled in Channels may also cause some playback issues. I don't have surround system, and prefer 2.0 Stereo anyways.
I had tried a Roku Ultra before getting the Shield, when i was still using Emby, and I had some deal breaker issue with that setup.
I didn't discover Channels DVR until a week after i bought the 2017 Shield(then exchanged it a week later when the 2019 came out 
, )so I don't know how Channels would work on a Roku, if there is even a app for Roku.
Thanks to everyone who responded. I have an apple 4k. No problems with it other than the wife hated the remote which is what caused me to switch to firestick. The only other drawback is no KODI on Apple. That works great on firestick but is way to advanced for the wife, so i have to keep it point and shoot. I took the plunge and bought the shield. It arrives tonight so i'll play with it. I do like KODI and am working on all the ins and outs. Channels is without a doubt been the best investment. i guess i'm getting picky now on picture quality (4k and HDR 10+). I have no experience with ROKU. I do love channels though and i hope they begin working on a whole entertainment experience like plex.