Nvidia has pushed out a new OTA update, that being update 1.2, for their Tegra K1 Shield tablet this afternoon. This update, which is mainly bug fixes and optimizations, bumps the Android version up to 6.0.1 for this particular Shield device. Before anyone asks however, the LTE version’s update is still being worked on, so you’ll be sticking with Android 5.1.1 for a bit longer.
With that little tidbit of bad news out of the way, the Tegra K1 Shield tablet’s update does bring one new feature to the device in the form of official Vulkan API support. For those of you not familiar with what this is, here’s the short and dirty explanation of what the Vulkan API is. Essentially the Vulkan API allows developers to use low-overhead graphical APIs when developing games, which in turn improves performance while lowering the overall requirements without effecting the quality of said visuals. You can read all about the Vulkan API release for Android in our previous coverage.
Outside of Vulkan API support, this update is almost entirely bug fixes and optimizations. Here is what you can expect to find with the OTA 1.2 update:
– Supports the new Vulkan™ API for high-efficiency access to SHIELD’s graphics hardware
– Adds Android 6.0.1 changes
*Repositioned Navigation Buttons in Landscape mode & Updated Emojis
*Double Tap Power Button to launch SHIELD Camera app
*Do Not Disturb Until Next Alarm
– Support for Android Doze mode & additional power optimizations
– Adds USB MIDI support
– Adds memory compression enhancement
– Improved Wi-Fi connectivity when waking from sleep
– Fixed Compass functionality
– Fixed Gamepad Mapper issues
– Fixed issues with moving apps to SD card
– Fixed Doom 3 HDMI output issue
– Repositioned Lasso Capture icons in landscape mode
– Update to Android 6.0 Security Patch Level March 1, 2016
– Overall stability and security enhancements
If you own the newer Tegra K1 Shield tablet, but don’t see this OTA update notification just yet, you can always head over into your settings, then to About Device, and tap on System Updates to get this new OTA download started.
Website Referenced: Nvidia
