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ReviewsHome Entertainment & Smart HomePhilips Hue’s Play Gradient Ain’t Cheap, But It’s the Lightstrip Your TV Deserves
With the idea of going to a good ‘ole movie theater seeming like a bigger and bigger pipe dream every day, I’ve spent a lot of time this year thinking about how to upgrade my TV and movie-watching experience. Right now, watching TV is one of the few reliable methods of stress relief a lot … Continued
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ReviewsThe Best Gadgets for Creating the Perfect Home Theater
Right now, we’re spending more time at home than ever before, and many of us may be investing more in our home entertainment systems than we have in the past. If you’ve been considering upgrading to a better TV setup or snapping up a new smart speaker to help you control your connected home, now … Continued
By Catie Keck -
Tech NewsGadgetsEpson Debuts New Ultra Short-Throw, Android-Powered 4K Projector
For film enthusiasts, the pandemic has presented an ongoing question: Should we invest in better at-home entertainment, or does it make sense to hold out for the (presumed) reopening of cinemas? Gadget makers would very much prefer the former, with companies like Samsung and Epson framing the pandemic as good a time as any to … Continued
By Catie Keck -
Tech NewsGadgetsTCL’s New Soundbar Uses Acoustic Tricks to Bring You Cheap Dolby Atmos
There’s a common problem with soundbars. They only sound as big as they are, and soundbars, by design, are compact systems. TCL wants to solve this problem with a new acoustic solution that can blast sound all around your living room thanks to some slick curves and Dolby Atmos technology. It’s a wacky idea, and … Continued
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ReviewsHome Entertainment & Smart HomeVizio’s Quantum Dot TV Feels Like All the Quality for Half the Price
Not so long ago, the idea of a cheap 4K TV felt like a dream. Now that the market is flooded with them, there’s a new aspiration for a cheap 4K TV that performs like a much more expensive flagship. That’s the value proposition that Vizio has offered for years, although the approach has seemed … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgetsBowers & Wilkins’ New Wireless Speakers Aim to Take on Sonos With High-Resolution Ambitions
Bowers & Wilkins got a new Silicon Valley-based parent company three years ago, and now, the classic British audio brand has a new line of premium wireless speakers. The new Formation Suite starts at $900 for a very alien-looking thing called the Wedge and tops out at $4,000 with the even more alien-looking Duo. Based … Continued
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Tech NewsVizio Has a Wacky Idea for Futuristic Dolby Atmos Soundbars
One of the most exciting innovations for home entertainment is Dolby Atmos. The technology adds an element of height to the audio coming out of your sound system, and the effect is honestly game-changing. Vizio has a wacky idea about how to make Atmos even better. What if your soundbar could do Atmos at will? … Continued
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Tech NewsSennheiser’s Bonkers 3D Soundbar Goes on Sale This Year for a Bonkers Amount of Money
Sennheiser turned some heads at last year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) by announcing its first ever home audio product: a soundbar with 3D audio. The company will turn some more heads at this year’s CES with the soundbar’s price tag: $2,500. The new soundbar is part of Sennheiser’s AMBEO lineup for 3D audio products. Using … Continued
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ReviewsHome Entertainment & Smart HomeAmazon’s DVR for Over-the-Air TV Is Surprisingly Great
The Amazon Fire TV Recast is a wacky gadget. It’s not wacky in that it looks weird. (It’s just a simple black box.) It’s also not wacky because it does wacky stuff. (It’s a DVR for over-the-air TV.) The Recast is wacky because it does this one hyper-specific thing really well. I’m not sure why … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgets
Samsung’s First 8K TV, Which You Probably Can’t Afford, Is Coming in September
Samsung will be announcing its first-ever 8K television for commercial release, the Q900R, at IFA 2018 this week, according to a press release. It’s a QLED device that comes in four big screen sizes (65”, 75”, 82” and 85”). Samsung wrote that the Q900R has a very impressive 4,000 nit peak brightness and supports a … Continued
By Tom McKay -
ReviewsHome Entertainment & Smart HomeThis Smart Soundbar Is an Ugly Attempt at an Interesting Idea
Smart soundbars are an interesting idea. They’re like smart speakers, except they work with your TV, so you can use your voice like a remote control. Neat! In January, Polk wowed CES attendees with its new Command Bar. Put bluntly, this smart device is a big honking soundbar with an Amazon Echo Dot stuffed inside … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgets
Roku Made Speakers?
If you’ve ever sat down to watch your Roku-powered TV and thought, “Boy I wish I had some Roku-powered speakers to enhance this experience,” you are in luck. The set-top box maker just announced a new set of speakers that work exclusively with Roku TV televisions. It’s kind of a curious move for the company, … Continued
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ReviewsHome Entertainment & Smart HomeSonos Beam Is a Great Smart Soundbar for Not Too Much Money
People who own Sonos speakers love their Sonos speakers. I’m one of them. In the three to four years that I’ve been living in the Sonos ecosystem, however, one big complaint was that I couldn’t use Sonos for my TV unless I barfed up $700 for the Sonos Playbase or Playbar. Now, with the $400 … Continued
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ReviewsHome Entertainment & Smart HomeDon’t Expect Miracles From a Cheap Soundbar
Cheap soundbars are a lot like cheap headphones. Many of them will do the job. Few of them will do it well. The new TV Mate by Samsung fits firmly in the first category. It will indeed make the audio on your TV louder and better. It will not, however, trick your friends into think … Continued
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ReviewsHome Entertainment & Smart Home
There Are Maybe 4 People on Earth Who Would Use This Overpriced Universal Remote
In a lot of ways, I love the Caavo universal remote. I have five different devices plugged into it at the moment, and it moves between them with utter ease. It’s informative, beautiful, and far easier to set up than any Logitech Harmony remote I’ve used. Yet for the life of me, I don’t know … Continued
By Alex Cranz -
io9Television
Listen to Audio All Over Your House With Philips’ New Modular Surround Sound System
If you’re looking for sweet new speakers to scatter around your patio, rumpus room, or Netflix binge dungeon, Philips’ has new Fidelio E6 wireless cinema speakers and a 90W subwoofer that can do just that. The 5.1-multichannel, HDMI 4K2K detachable units let you go from stereo to surround sound in a jiffy, and they can … Continued
By Bryan Lufkin -
Tech NewsSamsung
Samsung’s New TV Remotes Will Control Your Whole Set-Up
It’s very easy indeed to end up with a sofa arm littered with button-clad boxes. But while after-market multi-device controllers exist, Samsung plans to solve the problem straight out of the box with its new smart TV remotes. Its 2016 smart TVs will arrive with a new Smart Control remote, which will serve “as a … Continued
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Tech News
You Know You Want This 60-Inch HD Arcade Machine with Built-In Kegerator
What if you combined your three favorite things into one big toy? What’s that? You would combine beer, video games, and high definition TV? No need to imagine, folks. Such a machine exists, and it only costs $5,000. Okay, $5,000 is a lot of money, but big price tags often mean big fun. The Kegerator … Continued
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Tech NewsApple
Belkin’s Got a Crazy Half-Off-Everything Sale Today (Updated)
Networking and accessories vendor Belkin is about to make your Friday spendtastic. Today only, Through September 30, you can get 50% off everything at Belkin.com with no minimum purchase. Just use coupon code “FB50” when you check out and you’re set. Belkin offers a full line up of accessories for laptops, iOS devices, and Android … Continued