Nvidia SHIELD pre-orders start 20 May at $349

Nvidia’s portable screen/controller/sreaming device the SHIELD has been given a pre-order date of 20 May and a price has been set at $349.

The SHIELD allows PC gamers to stream their games from their PC on to the SHIELD’s 720p HD retinal display which is attached to a console controller. It’s worth noting that the game streaming is being touted as a “beta feature” when it launches so it sounds like it’s something that’s going to take some tweaking over time. The plan is to allow you to sit away from the PC and stream titles from Steam right to the device.

Anyone wanting to use it for Android gaming is likely to have more luck as it’s said to work right out the box.

We have our doubts about how popular the device will be with PC gamers, PC games in general require a more than a console controller to work effectively. We’ll just have to wait and see how popular the SHIELD is going to be.