Omarchy Central reports a new community project, omarchy-shield, published October 24 by marcho78. It turns the 2017 Shield TV (Tegra X1) into an Omarchy box, with every step scripted and every version pinned. Android stays installed so you can go back.
How it works
- NVIDIA’s bootloader starts U-Boot, which boots a mainline Linux 7.2.11 kernel, which boots Arch Linux ARM from a USB SSD. Omarchy goes on top through the community omarchy-arm port.
- The GPU draws the desktop: OpenGL ES 3.2 through nouveau, with three kernel fixes and seven Mesa patches. No Vulkan.
- HDMI 1080p, USB, Wi-Fi and the CPU at stock 2.0 GHz work. Hyprland, the login screen, bar and lock screen work.
The numbers
- Geekbench 6: 317 single-core, 854 multi-core, versus a reported 302 / 789 on stock Android 11.
- SuperTuxKart at 31.3 FPS at 1080p, 20.9 seconds to login, 6.7 W at idle.
Still missing
It’s marked work in progress. Audio and video playback aren’t started, Ethernet isn’t tested, Bluetooth pairing isn’t tried, and full memory speed takes a manual step. Unlocking the bootloader wipes Android user data, and only the 2017 model is supported.
Review before you install: this is third-party, community software. Read the scripts and README yourself before running anything, and only try it on hardware you can afford to wipe.
My take
A streaming box from 2017 beating its own stock Android on mainline Linux is just fun. This is the kind of tinkering that keeps old hardware out of the landfill.
Have a blessed day! And Happy Hacking!
