Nvidia has announced that its mobile console the Shield has been delayed to July. The console, which was previously announced to be released today, has been delayed to an undetermined point in July. The reason for this delay has been identified as a mechanical issue from a third party part. Details on the faulty part and the new release date haven’t been revealed to the public, save for the announcement of July as the new release month.
The Shield is one of the slew of new Android based gaming systems coming to the market this year. The Ouya console was just released this week, and other consoles such as the Game Stick are releasing later this month. The portability of the Shield, in conjunction with its ability to play PC games when connected to certain Nvidia graphics cards give the Shield an edge with gamers. At a time when so many Android consoles are entering the market, the delay on the Shield may have a long-term effect on the sales.
This has not been a good launch for Nvidia, with limited press and little if any marketing for the product, and now a last-minute delay in the release. Nvidia may be merely testing the waters to determine the interest level before committing to a larger marketing spend. Whatever the case, without a strong marketing effort this fall Nvidia’s shield may be lost amongst many other new gaming hardware launches.
Source: Engadget