Requirements

I decided on the nVidia Shield TV Gaming Edition as our media entertainment system with our key requirements beings,

1. Streaming Options (to Kodi, my Plex server...)
2. Headset Capability for Private Listening
3. Games and Controllers for Kids
4. Casting

Purchase

Almost went for the bigger 500GB hard drive, but 

Purchased from amazon.ca on sale Nov 2017 for CDN$ 239.99 which included,

• 16GB ( r/w speed?) nVidia Shield TV with,
  • 4K HDR at 60 FPR Capable Playback
  • Chromecast
  • 2x USB 3.0 Ports ( is there a max speed?)
• Shield Controller,
  • Voice Controll
  • Private Listening
• Remote
• HDMI 2.0

Setup

For some reason the remote did not work out of the box, but the controller did. Used the A button on controller with joystick to make selections.

Be careful on the first screen, my son accidentally hit the button and we ended up in a different language. I had no idea how to go back and had to reboot the device to restart.

I could not use the controller to enter the wifi password (with no google searches showing results on how to). I ended up having to dig out a old usb keyboard.

You'll need a google id, so I used mine (look into how to change profiles if supported).

Update devices and then setup my favourite apps,

• Netflix
• Youtube (uses your google id)
• ...

Fixed Remote - Popped open batteries, took out and put back in. After that the remote was picked up and rant updates.

Installed Kodi and then Addons,

• HGTV Official - Not Good.
• Exodus - Defunct
• Convenant - Installed but lack of actual sources.
• Elysium - Maybe alternative that works
• Sling - Official and price may be worth it for HGTV

Google Home,

• Sitting in same room.
• Automatically discovered the shield and I can use to turn off tv and adjust volume. 
• Playing music with shield on results in music being played on tv.

Sound - Tried having shield complexly control the sound but it did not seem to work. Come back to this later.

File Share on Network - Enabled file sharing and then went to Mac. It was listed in Shared and just had to "Connect As..." and type the password. After reboot of Shield, it stopped showing up. on my Mac To fix, had go to Shield, turn off and on the network share. Then load a new finder window and it's there. Had to once again Connect As... though it may be due to me not have checked remember password.

Adding Additional Space

Key consideration is get fast and reliable storage... some notes,

• ...

Games

...

For the Kids

Crossy Road (Free) - Fun but you have to watch adds.

Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara - Golden Axe Updated and multiplayer which re-releases D&D beat-’em-ups, 1993’s Tower of Doom and 1996’s Shadow Over Mystara.

Wonder Boy the Dragon's Trap - http://www.thedragonstrap.com/ PS4 and Xbox One

JuJu - 2 player, exclusive to Shield with Tegra technology for stunning graphics... is the tagline.

Emulators

First tried Google Store

• RetroArch - did not work with controller out of the box.
• MAME4Android - Emulates MAM 0.139u1

Investigating,

• http://www.happychick.hk/index.html - paid which is ok, but might need to be sideloaded.

Download ROMS

Now pick your games and download the ROMs noting the platform (SNES, Arcade, etc...)

Online Updater, Core Updater, Arcade (MAME)

MAME4droid Setup

• Install from Google Store.
• Select default folder for ROMs which which will translate over your network share to "internal/MAME4droid/roms"
• Drop ROM file named as is which should look something like this (notice all lower case and zipped) - "wbmlb.zip"
• You will now see WonderBoy show up as a listed game upon hitting the A key.
• Fix Coin and Start Buttons on your Shield Controllers,
  • ... screen shots to come
  • set the player one coin and start buttons by scrolling ot the line, push down A and then hold down your desired mapped button - recommend top left corner toggle button for coin...
  • tricky part is to set for the second controller,
    • move joystick of second controller and you will see a quick flash letting you know it's been picked up by MAME4droid
    • go back to primary controller and select the line to change and hit A
    • go to controller 2 and push the desiered button
• ...

...

Details

• NVIDIA SHIELD TV | Streaming Media Player with Remote & Game Controller - 945-12897-2500-002

• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 21.08 x 20.07 x 10.41 cm; 249.48 Grams

• Release date ‏ : ‎ Jan. 16 2017

• Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ NVIDIA Video Games

• Place of Business ‏ : ‎ SANTA CLARA, CA, 95050 US

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01N1NT9Y6

• Item model number ‏ : ‎ 945128972500002

• Wireless : 802.11ac 2x2 MIMO 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz Wi-Fi

NVIDIA SHIELD TV, the essential streaming media player for the modern living room. SHIELD is incredibly fast and has the most 4K entertainment, period. Enjoy visually stunning 4K HDR on Netflix and Prime Video, with Dolby Atmos and DTS-X surround sound pass-through to complete your home theatre. All the entertainment you want with apps for movies, TV shows, games, and music. Control media playback and search for entertainment hands-free with the built in Google Assistant. Cut the cord for good with live TV and sports from Tablo and Plex. Stream video from thousands of Chromecast apps or share your Google photo collection on the big screen.

Reference

Timeline of gaming platforms - http://content.time.com/time/interactive/0,31813,2029221,00.html