New hardware announcements came fast furious at ’s big hardware event on Tuesday, with fresh phones, routers, VR headsets, more each receiving moments in the spotlight. But behind the scenes, a quiet massacre was taking place, as eradicated all traces of several older devices from its online hardware store.
Some of the dead links discovered by Android lice come as no surprise. th the release of the xel xel X/a>, the Nexus 5X 6flagships were understably sidelined, albeit with no word whether or not the Nexus line is officially dead. (Update: ‘s Nexus is dead, sadly.) also ditched the el View-Master VR Starter ck Goggle Tech C1-Glass VR Viewer, another understable move now that the company’s focused on Daydream for virtual reality endeavors—though it still lists the stock Cardboard viewer in the Store alongside the new Daydream View.
More startling is the removal of Nvidia’s Shield Android TV console. Nvidia’s box represented the high-water mark for Android TV devices, oozing premium features (like 4K video support, a robust game marketplace, game-streaming) at a premium price. It was a taste of the future for those willing to pay for it.
In its place you’ll find the new 4K-capable Chromecast Ultra, but Chromecast Android TV fill two very different niches, Android TV definitely isn’t dead despite the lack of a new Nexus ayer at ’s event. Xiaomi launched the Android TV-based Mi Box this very morning. The Store was rebred with a “Made by ” banner, but still offers Chromebooks Android ar devices from a variety of manufacturers. The Shield TV’s more affordable variants have been out of stock at Amazon for a while now, but the 500GB model still appears to be going strong.
Curious indeed. Is the end nigh for this particular Shield TV? ’ve reached out to Nvidia in hopes of receiving an explanation for the purge.
The Dell Chromebook 13, which we reviewed earlier this year, also got the ax despite still being available on Dell’s website.
Don’t despair if any of these gadgets tickle your fancy, however. Most of them can still be purchased at Amazon, as Android lice points out, ’s even offering the Nexus 5X Nexus 6via its Fi service— for a whole lot less than those princely xels.
