A certain NVIDIA Mocha was recently sighted in GFXBench bearing somewhat delicious specs. Rumors are now going around that this could very well be a new NVIDIA SHIELD tablet.
The GFXBench information reveals very interesting hardware for the NVIDIA Mocha. This includes a 7.9-inch screen with a resolution of 2048x1536 pixels. Also interesting is the fact that it is noted to be running on an NVIDIA Tegra K1. That's a 2.1 GHz quad-core CPU with an astounding 192-core GPU, definitely a mobile gamer's dream. RAM is marked at 1.3 GB and storage at 13 GB, though it is most likely 2 GB and 16 GB, respectively.
If this Mocha tablet will indeed have a SHIELD branding, then we can expect one more important feature: GameStream. This special NVIDIA technology allows gamers to run PC games and stream to and control them from an NVIDIA SHIELD device. Currently, the only device in existence is the handheld gaming console of that same name. A SHIELD tablet would be an interesting but perplexing choice, given how tablets don't really lend themselves easily to game controls the way a dedicated game controller would. NVIDIA does already have a tablet, or rather a reference tablet, the Tegra Note 7. But that tablet's unique characteristic is the DirectStylus pen. It also isn't capable of supporting GameStream due to the lack of 5 GHz WiFi support.
This NVIDIA Mocha/SHIELD tablet rumor is definitely an intriguing one, though there are some points that might not make a lot of sense. NVIDIA has traditionally gone with lower screen resolutions on both the SHIELD and the Tegra Note 7, partly to keep prices down but mostly to keep screen response times fast. The Mocha's high resolution does make the idea of a high-performance gaming tablet a bit dubious, but it is also possible that the Tegra K1 is more than capable of making up for that increase in load. There is currently no mobile device yet running that SoC, so this rumor is definitely one that gamers and hardware enthusiasts will most likely want to keep an eye on.
VIA: Liliputing