I have a collection of 4K UHD movies that I ripped from rentals, my collection of 4K disc and downloads. Originally I had them in a folder on my NAS and restricted access to them via Plex to everyone except me – just to avoid the overhead i.e. CPU and network hit.
But then I realized, these high quality file with their Atmos or DTX-MA soundtracks are only going to be viewed in the home theater room and that my Shield streamer has two USB ports for external hard drives.
How to set it up
- Connect the hard drive: Plug the external hard drive into one of the Shield’s USB ports (USB 3.0 is recommended for speed).
- Configure storage: The Shield will likely detect the drive as “removable storage”. You can then use this storage to hold media files. For some apps, you may need to organize files into specific folders, such as a
NVIDIA Shieldfolder, as recommended for Plex. - Use a media player app: Install a media player app like Plex, Kodi, or VLC on your Shield.
- Add media to your library: Open the app and add the hard drive or the folder containing your media as a library. The app will scan your files and create a library of your 4K content.
- Stream: You can now select and play your 4K movies and shows directly from the hard drive.