HDTV and Home Theater Podcast

On this week’s show we compare Mini-LED vs OLED and we put a high end listening room based on products that were exhibited at this year’s AXPONA show. We also read your email and look at the week’s news. News: DirecTV and Dish Back Fubo in Its Spulu Antitrust Suit | Next TV Roku Upgrades Viewing Experience with New Features | TV Tech Hub: Smart TVs Now in Nearly 8 of 10 Homes | TV Tech Disney Plus Looking To Integrate Always-On Linear Channels Other: Credit cards abused again in second Roku hack affecting 576,000 - FlatpanelsHD NBCUniversal Launches Personalized, Hyperlocal Services via ATSC 3.0 | TV Tech Mini-LED vs OLED We are asked from time to time to recommend a particular TV or in some cases a technology. Right now, in our opinion, the best TV technology is OLED. But is it really the best overall? Let’s take a look at OLED vs mini-LED in six important criteria. Sharpness and Resolution: Both OLED and Mini-LED TVs typically offer 4K resolution, with some models supporting higher resolutions. Therefore, in terms of sharpness and resolution, it's a tie between OLED and Mini-LED. Black Levels: OLED TVs excel in producing true blacks by individually turning off pixels. Mini-LED displays have not completely achieved this level of per-pixel control. In this aspect, OLED emerges as the winner for its superior black levels. Brightness and Contrast: OLED TVs offer deep blacks for infinite contrast ratio, while Mini-LED TVs can achieve higher brightness levels. Mini-LED takes the lead in brightness, while OLED wins in terms of contrast ratio. Color Quality: OLED TVs typically exhibit excellent color quality, often surpassing 100% of the sRGB color gamut. Although Mini-LED TVs may not reach these levels, this is more due to other factors like color filters rather than the Mini-LED technology itself. The winner in color quality is OLED. Viewing Angles: OLED TVs generally have wider viewing angles compared to LCD TVs, including those using Mini-LED technology. While Mini-LED TVs can vary based on the type of display used, OLED usually outperforms them in terms of viewing angles. Size and Price: In terms of size, both OLED and Mini-LED TVs are available in various sizes to suit different preferences. However, traditionally, OLED TVs have been more expensive compared to Mini-LED TVs, which could be a consideration for some buyers. Price and size considerations may vary based on individual preferences and budgets. So which one wins? It's our opinion that OLED has the absolute best picture but mini-LED is very close and unless you are looking at them side by side you won’t notice. It really comes down to cost and since you can buy some really big mini-LED TVs for a quarter of the price, we give the nod to mini-LED. AXPONA 2024 AXPONA 2024 wrapped up last week. What is AXPONA you might ask? From their website:  AXPONA is a three-day experience featuring multiple hotel floors packed with over 200 listening rooms. The Expo Hall featuring The Record Fair, The Ear Gear Experience, and seminars. Whether you’re a serious audiophile, a newcomer to high-end audio or simply a music lover, you’ll find everything you need to immerse yourself in your favorite sounds.  It's very similar to “The Show” that we have out here in CA every year. This year it will be June 7-9 in Costa Mesa so come out and let’s all go! While AXPONA exhibited products that most of us can buy, there are some that, quite frankly, are priced for people fly on their own jets. They probably don’t even listen to podcasts, so let’s make fun of them!! Kidding of course. Today, our very rich uncle who has $150,000 laying around has asked us to put a system together so he can listen to his extensive vinyl collection! Transrotor Tourbillon FMD The Tourbillon FMD is a premium turntable model with high-end features designed to deliver exceptional performance in the audio playback experience.  The Transrotor Tourbillon FMD stands out as a top-of-the-line turntable with innovative features and premium construction materials aimed at audiophiles seeking unparalleled sound quality and precision in vinyl playback. With its advanced FMD bearing technology, dual tone arm support, and included accessories, it offers a premium and comprehensive audio experience for discerning enthusiasts in the high-end turntable market. $60K with Cartridge Fern and Roby Amp No. 2 Amp No. 2 is our second collaboration with Michael Bettinger who has been designing and building amplifiers for nearly 40 years. Integrated amps make building a great high fidelity audio system easy. Our goal in this project was to produce something that will turn your living room into the best listening room possible. Fewer components, cables, and cost, but delivering world class audio into your home. $8500 (Add $350 if you want Isolation Feet)  Acora SRB Reference Loudspeaker Acora Acoustics loudspeakers are constructed using hand crafted, specially treated granite enclosures. The rigidity of granite far exceeds that of traditional particle board or wood enclosures. One of the benefits of this is as the SRB’s drivers move to push air / create sound, the enclosure isn’t absorbing this energy and dulling or smearing the sound. Another benefit of the Acora enclosure is it does not need internal bracing to “stiffen” the enclosure. This means no additional reflections inside the enclosure that will vibrate the low frequency driver and smear the sound. The SRB also utilizes world class drivers and a hand built crossover network, however the real secret to the Acora Sound is that you only hear these, not the enclosure. Sensitivity 86.5 db  Frequency Response 43Hz - 35KHz  58 lbs each $37,000 pair  

On this week’s show we preview the upcoming WiFi 7 specification and we review the Technics SU-GX70 Network Audio Amplifier Review. We also read your emails and take a look at the week’s news. News: Roku just announced a free NBA channel ESPN’s Stand-Alone Streaming Service Will Be Available Through Disney+ Apple TV+ share grows in the US, but still lags behind its competitors LG TV owners should update their firmware, webOS vulnerability found in a few models Other: Ridiculous 150" AWOL Vision Theater Setup Roku patent invents a way to show ads over anything you plug into your TV | Ars Technica A Giga-Sunset For Gigaset IoT Devices | Hackaday WiFi 7 May be What We Have All Been Waiting For Why WiFi 7 is the future of wireless technology As of now, the finalized specifications for WiFi 7 (also known as 802.11be) have not been officially released, as the standard is still in development. However, based on industry discussions and proposals, some expected features of the proposed WiFi 7 specification include: Increased Speeds: WiFi 7 is anticipated to offer even higher data rates than its predecessors, potentially reaching multi-gigabit speeds  Enhanced Efficiency: Improved spectrum efficiency will allowi for better performance in crowded environments and increased capacity for simultaneous connections. Low Latency: WiFi 7 is likely to target reduced latency to support real-time applications such as online gaming, video streaming, and video conferencing with minimal delay. Advanced Security:  Multi-User MIMO: More advanced Multi-User Multiple Input Multiple Output (MU-MIMO) technology  Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA): The use of OFDMA will enhance spectral efficiency and enable better resource allocation for various types of traffic. Improved Beamforming: Enhanced beamforming techniques will optimize signal transmission and reception, improving network coverage and reliability. Wider Spectrum Utilization: WiFi 7 may explore the use of new frequency bands or spectrum sharing techniques to accommodate more devices and applications and deliver better performance. IoT Optimization: Features tailored for Internet of Things (IoT) devices to support the increasing number of connected devices and diverse IoT applications. Power Efficiency Enhancements: Efforts to improve power efficiency to extend battery life in wireless devices and reduce energy consumption overall. It's important to note that these features are based on expectations and early proposals for WiFi 7. The final specifications may vary as the standard progresses through the development and approval process. Technics SU-GX70  Network Audio Amplifier Review Listening to music takes three elements, the music itself, the speakers, and the amplification. If one of these elements is not up to the task, your entire experience will be less than desired. Great speakers take high quality audio to even higher levels. The converse is also true, poor quality audio files will sound even worse.  There is a middle layer that we don’t talk about as much, and that’s the amplification. Back in the 70’s all we cared about were watts! The more, the better! As a teenager I did not appreciate that not all power is created equal. Smart amplifier design can make your music sound even better and that’s what the engineers at Technics have done with the SU-GX70 Network Audio Amplifier (MSRP $1999.95). The GX70 is a box that has something for everyone. First and foremost it's a digital amplifier that outputs a total of 80 Watts into 8 ohms and supports a ton of physical connections including: Line level x2, phono, HDMI ARC, optical x2, coaxial, USB Type A, USB Type B. Supporting HDMI ARC allows you to connect your own speakers as a soundbar alternative.   As far as wireless connection goes, you have Wi-fi, ethernet, Bluetooth, Google Chromecast and Apple AirPlay 2. DAB (Digital Audio Broadcast) and  FM. You can also get access to Spotify, Tidal, Qobuz through the app.  Hi Res is supported via the USB port with a DAC that can decode 32-bit/384kHz PCM and DSD512 files and it can handle MQA streams from Tidal. This is one versatile integrated amp!! Setup To connect the GX70 to the network you use the Apple Home (or Google Home) app. Which seemed odd to us since there is a remote control and display screen. But once you are connected to your network you can use the Technics Audio Center App to control the system. Actually, the only reason you would need the app is if you want to send MQA streams to the amp. All the radio stations that are available through the app are available on your phone or tablet via apps source apps like iHeart Radio. You can tweak the amp to dial it in for your speakers through a calibration on the amp. But it sounded really good right out of the box.  We’ll give it an 8 out of 10 for setup, knocking off two points because you have to use Apple/Google Home to get it connected to your network. The aforementioned remote is a better way to use and interact with the amp. You pretty much just need to connect your speakers and you are good to go. Sound To test the audio we turned to the HT Guys Listener Playlist (Playlist available on iTunes, Amazon, and Spotify)  and listened via Airplay2, Bluetooth, and USB. All the music was played in the highest fidelity available on the platform. Both Airplay and Bluetooth lowered quality to fit within the limits of the protocol. It should be noted that the GX70 does not support AptX.  We’ll discuss Airplay and Bluetooth together and sum it up by saying the quality was good. The only thing we’ll say is that these formats work well for convenience without sacrificing too much quality. When listening to music while doing something else, this is a nice feature. But for really listening to music we used the USB connection. Once connected to Listened to Steely Dan, Deacon Blues (24 bit 192kHz) across three different speakers and found that the GX70 helped capture nuances in the music that we had never heard before. The sound was clean and precise. In Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Tin Pan Alley his voice was so smooth and raspy but in a good way! It's like the amp gave it more power and weight! But can it make your walls rattle? You would think at 80W total that this was not a possibility and depending on your speakers it's not. If you have power hungry speakers they will push the amp to its limits. However, if you have efficient  speakers, it will fill the room with sound. More than we were expecting. For that we turned to UFO Strangers in the Night Live, which is an excellent album from the 1970’s, but the recording wasn’t the best. We’ll say this, the GX70 attached to Ascend Acoustics Sierra-1s, which are not extremely efficient speakers, got loud enough to where family members asked to turn down the music! Conclusion What we liked A plethora of input sources (both wired and wireless)  Build Quality is first rate LCD and Remote make it easy to use and setup Outstanding detailed sound quality Needs Improvement Two app setup Would like to see Aptx for high quality audio from mobile devices. Needs a tad more power The GX70 offers an elevated listening experience that brings music to life with clarity, depth, and immersive soundstaging making it a top choice for those who are serious about their music.

On this week’s show the HT Guys are on spring break but no worries we still have a brief show for you. Are Sports Fans willing to pay $50 a month to stream their favorite teams? We have a couple of emails and news stories.  News: YouTube TV estimated to have more subscribers than Comcast and Spectrum by 2026 Kaleidescape Introduces 96TB Terra Prime Movie Server Other: Smart devices are turning out to be a poor investment 57% of Sports Fans Willing to Pay $50 Monthly For Live Streaming App More than 57% of TV sports fans said they would pay $50 monthly for a sports-only streaming app service in a February online survey of 2,000 respondents conducted by CasinoReviews.net, an advocate for online wagering. Full article here…

On this week’s show SVS officially launches their Ultra Evolution Speakers, Amazon Echo Dot with LED Display is the best home automation device, and RTINGS.com is not impressed with the Formovie UST Projector. We also read your emails and take a look at the week’s news. News: One-in-ten borrow streaming passwords Warner Sets Rollout Date for Max in Europe Mediacom Launches Xumo Stream Box TCL Adds NFL FAST Channel to TCLtv Plus Streaming Service Other: Apple TV+ Is the New HBO | WIRED SVS Launches Ultra Evolution Speakers We had Nick Brown and Smith Freeman on the live stream last Friday where we talked about the speakers and had a fun time. At that time we could not discuss all the details of their new Ultra Evolution speakers. Well this week SVS announced the availability and pricing. From the Press Release: At first glance, the most striking design feature is the acoustically centered time alignment cabinet architecture. A curve in the front baffle aligns the sound emanation point of the tweeter and each driver on a vertical plane ensuring sound from each driver arrives at a listener’s ear in the exact same instant. This maximizes phase coherence for a more convincing and immersive soundstage with pinpoint accuracy and imaging. For the tower models specifically, midrange drivers and woofers positioned above and below the tweeter allow for seamless crossover blending to create an idealized “point-source” where sound flows from a single point in front of the speaker to optimize dispersion characteristics. The diamond-coated aluminum dome tweeter is also completely new for SVS. Using a modern  technology called vapor deposition, a layer of diamond carbon is grown on the surface of the aluminum dome to improve rigidity and critical acoustic properties. This breakthrough in material science raises the frequency response well beyond the limits of human hearing resulting in effortless, airy, and unveiled highs with no measurable distortion. It also pushes low frequency extension of the tweeter deeper for more seamless blending with the midrange. Details and pricing on the new models are included below.   Ultra Evolution Pinnacle: 3-way floorstanding speaker - $4,999.98/pair Ultra Evolution Titan: 3-way floorstanding speaker - $3,999.98/pair Ultra Evolution Tower: 3-way floorstanding speaker - $2,999.98/pair   Ultra Evolution Bookshelf: 2-way bookshelf speaker - $1,199.98/pair Ultra Evolution Nano: Compact 2-way bookshelf speaker - $899.98/pair Ultra Evolution Center: 3-way center channel speaker - $799.99 Ultra Elevation: Versatile home theater speaker with multi-angle wall/ceiling mounting bracket - $899.98/pair   Ultra Evolution Nano and Ultra Evolution Tower models will ship later in Q2. Finish options will be limited at launch. All models will soon be available in Piano Gloss Black, Piano Gloss White, and Premium Black Oak Wood Veneer finishes. All SVS products are backed by a five-year unconditional warranty, 45-day in-home trial, fast and free shipping, expert lifetime support, SoundPoints loyalty program, and all the guarantees of the SVS Customer Bill of Rights. Amazon Echo Dot with Clock Best Smart Home Device Overall? I was reading an article on Tom’s Guide titled “The best smart home devices in 2024” and saw that they deemed the Amazon Echo Dot with Clock ($50) as the best smart home device overall. I wondered why? Once you dive in, you can see how they got there. From the article: The name says it all: this is an Echo Dot with a clever LED clock built in its face. However, this seemingly simple addition adds a ton of functionality to the Echo Dot, making an even better smart home companion. In fact, we wish more smart home companies took Amazon's cue and make minor — yet effective — enhancements to already excellent devices. I started searching online and found other reviewers saying the same thing. The Dot does everything you’d expect a device of this type to do but it's the LED that sets it apart from its competition. And if you read some of the 65,000 comments you’ll see a lot of others agree! The LED can display a clock, timers, weather, song titles, and more.  So do you think a $50 smart speaker with an LED display is worthy of the title “Best Smart Home Device”? Here is what some owners are saying: Replaced my 20 year old alarm clock I was looking for an "Atomic" alarm clock which automatically sets the current time and found this. I bought this Echo Dot for our bedroom when the old alarm clock finally quit working. This is bright, lights up when you speak and shows the time in the dark. Love it! A great clock for any room RTINGS what are you doing? Over at AVS forum a thread caught our eye titled “RTINGS what are you doing?”. The author of the thread was not happy with a review of the  Formovie UST Projector the site had posted. RTINGS gave the projector a 7.1 out of 10 for movies. Reading through the thread it was clear that owners of the Formovie were upset. One poster thought it was possible that the RTINGS methodology may be suspect.  Question for our listeners. If you own a product and are happy with it do you seek out reviews? If they differ from your opinions does it bother you? If you remember in 2023 Projector Central did a laser projector showdown where the Formovie UST Projector won best Best Ultra Short Throw Projector. So it may have been in the AVS forum posters mind that the Formovie was a really good projector. Projector Central did not say best projector but best ultra short throw projector. Most people agree that UST projectors are not as good as long throw projectors but they do have the ability to be viewed in rooms with plenty of ambient light. RTINGS strictly looks at the measurements it takes objectively. When they did, the Formovie UST projector did not fare well. If you look at the scores from the shootout you see that it didn’t do much  better than what RTINGS said it did. If RTINGS did a UST shootout the F ormovie may have been the best one. It's just not the best projector.

On this week’s show we take a look at some audiophile myths and debunk them. We also read your emails and take a look at the week’s news. News: LG Debuts Wireless Dolby Soundbar For G4 OLED evo TVs Have You Signed Up for a Streamer to Watch a Specific Show? DirecTV Drops Local Stations From Lower-Priced Bundle CSA unveils smart home security standard ESPN Signs Six-Year, $7.8 Billion Extension for the Expanding College Football Playoff Tournament Other: TV Station Launches Multiple 4K Broadcasts OTA on ATSC 1.0 Audiophile Myths Why do some in our hobby spend so much money on their gear? And for this discussion we are not talking about reasonably priced quality products that can cost a few thousand dollars. We’re talking about really expensive stuff like speakers that cost $20,000 each, speaker wire that costs $100 a foot, or any other product that needlessly separates you from your money all in the name of squeezing out the last bit of performance.  On today’s show we will dispel a few Audiophile Myths and hopefully save you money and help you get more out of the equipment you own. Myth: Even though people cannot hear frequencies above 20 KHz, it is important that audio equipment be able to reproduce higher frequencies to maintain clarity. Fact: Producing sounds at a frequency beyond what humans can hear is not sonically useful. However, a good amplifier and speaker generally have a frequency response beyond the limits of hearing.  Conversely, the lack of an extended response can indicate that the amplifier designers cut some corners. Keep in mind you don’t have to pay a lot of money for this. A Fosi amp goes for $100 and produces frequencies from 20Hz to 20kHz.  Myth: Gold-plated connectors sound better than connectors made of standard materials (Copper, Nickel. Or Tin). Fact: Gold does not oxidize, and oxidized connectors can cause problems. With that said, gold on it's own will not make your audio better. As far as oxidation goes, good quality wire and connectors will take years to oxidize under normal circumstances. Don’t waste money on gold plated when copper will do the exact same thing! Myth: Speakers Need Time to Break In   Fact: I used to believe this based on my own listening. But there was no way for me to actually remember what my speakers sounded like from day one to compare them with day five after 30 hours of use. It wasn’t until I saw objective tests performed on speakers when they were new and again when they were used for 30 hours. The wave forms were sonically identical. Conclusive scientific results. End of story!   Now some bigger drivers like woofers and subwoofers use spiders as stiffening agents instead of thicker, more rigid materials in their production. These do lose stiffness in their suspension with use, but it usually happens within minutes — not hours or days.  Myth: All acoustic treatments will improve the sound. Fact: You can’t throw up acoustic treatments just anywhere and expect an improvement in sound. Acoustic treatments are made to address specific problems. With that said, if you have a room with bare walls and wood or tile floors, get soft materials on the walls and rugs on the floor. In this case dampening the echos will help. But to do a full treatment you need to be more exact,  Here is a list of articles from Audioholics that can help you treat your room. “Room Reflections and Human Adaptation for Small Room Acoustics,” “Early Reflections and Bass for Small Room Acoustics,” and “Early Reflections in Home Theater Rooms: Beneficial or Detrimental?”  Myth: Speakers need to be isolated to get the most out of them.  Fact: Well designed loudspeakers don't transmit much mechanical energy through their enclosures. Loudspeakers are transmitting most of their energy into the air which then exerts force on objects in the room. You are likely getting more vibrations from pressure waves hitting other objects in the room as opposed to the cabinet vibrating.   In my room I have played some of my speakers at very loud volumes. I then touched the drivers on the speakers that were adjacent and there was some movement. I’m not sure that they did anything to distort the sound in the room, but they were vibrating more than the cabinets of the speaker that I was using. There may be some aesthetic reasons you may want to isolate your speakers including pads to protect your floor. Myth: All your speaker wire should be the same length. Fact: Speed of electricity is 186,000 miles a second. That means that a 5 meter and 10 meter cable have statistically no difference as to when the signal gets to the drivers. But using similar length speaker wire will increase the resale value of your speakers should you choose to sell them! Myth: You need to break in your speaker wire. Fact: Yes!! Do not drive them past 10 for the first 12,000 miles. After that if your amp goes to 11, have at it!!  Seriously, when it comes to speaker wire buy high quality wire. Just don’t pay exorbitant prices. Solid copper 14 Gauge speaker wire should not cost you more than  $25 for fifty feet. If you are doing short runs (less than ten feet) you can use higher gauge wire and save some copper both figuratively and literally!! Well provided you are paying in coins anyway.

On this week’s show we discuss John Campeas video where he claims streaming is about to get a lot more expensive and irritating. We also take a look at the top ten shows both domestically and globally at Netflix and Vudu is now officially “Fandango at Home”. We also read your emails and take a look at the week’s news.  News: LAPD issues warning about residential burglars using WiFi jammers to disable alarms, cameras LG's $1 billion investment boosts OLED production Roku Has More than 15,000 User Accounts Hacked YouTube TV is Going to Make it Easier to Browse & Still Watch Your Show Other: The Downfall of Streaming TV | The Bubble has Burst Roku's Ransom: Agree to Forced Arbitration or Lose Your TV! First Look 2024: A new era of Samsung AI TV | Samsung Vudu Is Now Called ‘Fandango at Home’ Here is what you need to know: FandangoNow users will need to move their accounts to Vudu Once FandangoNow users move their accounts to Vudu and log in again, they’ll be able to access their libraries and promo codes. Vudu users won’t need to take any action unless they want to link their existing Fandango account. Vudu and FandangoNow subscribers can also use the same username and password to log in on the rebranded service. Users won’t lose any content from their libraries Under Fandango at Home, users can take advantage of new Vudu gift cards, reward loyalty programs, and partner programs coming soon. Clicking on the “Buy Tickets” link goes to the Fandango website. If you don’t have an account you’ll have to create a seperate one to purchase movie tickets. No word on when or if the two sites will be merged.  From the Fandango website you can preorder food and drinks after you buy tickets. Available at select theaters.  The Top Ten TV shows on Netflix Netflix Top Ten TV Globally # Title Weeks in Top 10 Hours Viewed Runtime Views 1 The Gentlemen: S1 1 81,500,000 6:41 12,200,000 2 Avatar The Last Airbender: S1 3 65,700,000 7:15 9,100,000 3 The Program: Cons, Cults and Kidnapping: Limited Series  1 22,700,000 3:12 7,100,000 4 Hot Wheels Let's Race: S1 1 16,300,000 4:02 4,000,000 5 Love Is Blind: S6 4 43,800,000 12:42 3,400,000 6 One Day: Limited Series 5 20,400,000 6:40 3,100,000 7 American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders: Season 1 2 8,900,000 3:44 2,400,000 8 Blood & Water: S4 1 10,500,000 4:40 2,200,000 9 Resident Alien: S1 4 16,200,000 7:33 2,100,000 10 The Tourist: S2 1 11,300,000 5:45 2,000,000 Netflix Top Ten TV in The US The Program: Cons, Cults and Kidnapping: Limited Series 3 Globally The Gentlemen: Season 1 1 Globally Love Is Blind: Season 6 5 Globally Avatar The Last Airbender: Season 1 2 Globally American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders: Season 1 7 Globally Furies: Season 1 N/A Globally The Tourist: Season 2 10 Globally The Signal: Limited Series N/A Globally Hot Wheels Let's Race: Season 1 4 Globally Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Season 1 N/A Globally How Streaming Is About To Get A Lot More Expensive And Irritating We received an email from John pointing us to this video: How Streaming Is About To Get A Lot More Expensive And Irritating  The Host John Campea had some really good thoughts on why Streaming is about to get a lot more expensive.  

On this week’s show we look at using a two channel powered speaker with ARC as a soundbar alternative and we look at the best 85” HDTVs you can purchase today. We also read your email and take a look at the week’s news. News: Dish Network Loses 314,000 Pay TV Subs Fubo Adds 173,000 Subs and Cuts Loss in Q4 Warner to Crack Down on Max Password Sharing Later This Year Fox predicts sports venture will reach 5M in 5 years Other: Best Smart Home Gadgets To Avoid The Cloud Kanto's new active speakers - with HDMI ARC - could be a nifty soundbar alternative The new Kanto Ren are well-connected, featuring an HDMI input for hooking up to a TV as well as a USB-C input for playing files up to 24-bit/96kHz from a source player. An optical Toslink supports up to 24-bit/96kHz transmission, and there's a single RCA input alongside a 3.5mm jack. If you don't want to plug in directly, they're also kitted out with Bluetooth 5.3. Outputs, meanwhile, come courtesy of a single sub-out line and a single USB Charge. The new units are supplied with a remote control and feature a choice of two extra sound modes – vocal boost and night mode. The latter does one of two things. if a subwoofer is connected, the sub-out signal will be switched off and the low-frequencies will only be emitted from the speaker itself. If no subwoofer is connected, the Ren's bass will be reduced, presumably so as not to disturb your lower-floor neighbors when they're trying to get some kip. There's also a quarter-inch hole at the base of the units for mounting. The new units will be on sale from July, priced at $599 per pair, and are available in a choice of six colors: black, cream, white, green, brown and orange. Potential system to rival the Kento Ren for $250 less: Arylic Bluetooth aptX HD Stereo Amplifier $140 paired with RSL CG3M BOOKSHELF SPEAKER $210 for the pair total cost $350 The 5 Best 80-83-85 Inch TVs - Winter 2024 RTINGS.com We talk about large format HDTVs all the time and they range in super expensive to pretty darn cheap. But what are you getting for your money. RTINGS.com has posted their list of the 5 Best 80 - 85 inch TVs. We run them down for you on today’s show.  Best 80-85 Inch TV The best TV you can buy that's available in 80+ inches is the LG OLED83C3PUA ($3596). It's an excellent TV with stunning picture quality, especially in a dark room. It looks amazing in the dark thanks to its near-infinite contrast ratio that results in perfect inky blacks, with no distracting blooming or halos around bright highlights or subtitles. Combined with its high peak brightness and wide color gamut, the latest movies and shows in HDR look amazing. It's no slouch in a bright room either, as it's bright enough to fight glare, and its reflection handling is fantastic.  Mixed Usage 9.0, TV Shows 8.6, Sports 8.8, Video Games 9.4, HDR Movies 9.0, HDR Gaming 9.1, PC Monitor 9.4 See full test results. Best Bright Room 80-85 Inch TV If you're rarely in a completely dark room, check out the Sony XR-85X95L ($4498) instead. It's a slightly larger TV than the LG C3 OLED, making it the best 85-inch TV you can get if you want something slightly bigger. It doesn't have the same perfect black levels as the OLED, but it has a truly incredible contrast ratio and black uniformity, leading to extremely deep blacks. Plus, it gets much brighter than the LG, so it's a better choice if you're in a very bright room, as it can overcome more glare. It also delivers brighter highlights in HDR. This, combined with its excellent color gamut, makes it an impressive choice for watching content in HDR10 or Dolby Vision HDR. Mixed Usage  8.6; TV Shows  8.3, Sports 8.4, Video Games  8.9, HDR Movies  8.8, HDR Gaming 8.9, PC Monitor  8.7 See full test results. Best Mid-Range 80-85 Inch TV If you don't want to spend an arm and a leg but still want good picture quality, then a mid-range TV like the Hisense 85U8K ($2198) is a good alternative. It's significantly cheaper than the Sony X95L or LG C3 OLED but still delivers amazing picture quality. It's just as bright as the Sony, and its contrast is almost as good due to a better overall local dimming solution. The Hisense displays a wide color gamut, has surprisingly good image processing, and supports advanced audio and video formats like our top two picks, so it's an amazing home theater TV for a lower price than the Sony or the LG. Mixed Usage 8.5; TV Shows 8.0, Sports  7.9, Video Games  8.8, HDR Movies  8.8, HDR Gaming  8.9, PC Monitor  8.5 See full test results. Best Lower Mid-Range 80-85 Inch TV If you're on a budget but want better picture quality than the budget option below, the Hisense 85U7K ($1798) is the best lower mid-range TV we've tested available in an 80 to 85-inch size. It's a great TV, with very good picture quality and a wide selection of additional features. It's basically a dimmer Hisense U8/U8K with a nearly identical feature set. It's still bright enough for a pleasant viewing experience in bright rooms. Its contrast, while worse than the picks above, is excellent overall, leading to deep blacks in dark rooms. Like its more expensive sibling, it's a stellar home theater TV with very good image processing and support for HDR10+, Dolby Vision, and advanced DTS audio formats. Mixed Usage  8.2, TV Shows  7.8, Sports  7.8, Video Games  8.7, HDR Movies  8.3, HDR Gaming 8.7, PC Monitor  8.5 See full test results. Best Budget 80-85 Inch TV If you're on a budget and want a large TV, you'll have to spend more than if you were getting a smaller size. However, a few budget-friendly models are available in larger sizes, like the TCL 85Q650G ($998). It's a decent overall TV that doesn't cost nearly as much and still has much to offer. Unlike the models above, this TV doesn't have local dimming to improve its contrast, so it doesn't look as good in a dark room. It also doesn't get as bright or emphasize highlights like the Hisense U7K/U75K does, but it's still good enough to overcome glare in a bright room. Like the Hisense TVs, the TCL supports both HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, but it doesn't have good image processing, so it's not a great choice for a home theater setup. Mixed Usage 7.3; TV Shows 6.9, Sports  6.9, Video Games  7.9, HDR Movies  7.2, HDR Gaming  8.0, PC Monitor  7.7 See full test results.

On this week’s show we run down the top ten streaming shows of 2023 and give you ten cool automations for your home. We also read your email and take a look at the week’s news. News: Amazon Denies Report Saying Freevee Is Shutting Down Sports Big Influence in Viewers’ Platform Choice    Get Ready for Another Netflix Price Hike This Year, Analyst Says Other: What REALLY Happens Backstage in Live Broadcasts - INSANE Adrenaline! 10 most streamed shows of 2023 According to Neilson  Here are the 10 most streamed shows of 2023, according to Neilson, along with how many minutes that it’s been watched last year: 10) “Supernatural”: 22.8 billion minutes 9) “Heartland”: 22.8 billion minutes 8) “Friends”: 25 billion minutes 7) “Gilmore Girls”: 25.2 billion minutes 6) “The Big Bang Theory”: 27.8 billion minutes 5) “Cocomelon”: 36.3 billion minutes  4) “Grey’s Anatomy”: 38.6 billion minutes 3) “NCIS”: 39.4 billion minutes 2) “Bluey”: 43.9 billion minutes 1) “Suits”: 57.7 billion minutes viewed When it comes to original streaming shows, “Ted Lasso” topped the list with an impressive — but notably lesser — 16.9 billion minutes viewed. No other original streaming show cracked 15 billion minutes viewed last year. When it comes to streaming movies, Disney’s 2016 hit “Moana” topped viewership minutes with 11.6 billion minutes viewed. No other streaming movie topped 10 billion minutes viewed. Combining the total viewership minutes of “Ted Lasso” and “Moana” brings you to 28.5 billion. That’s less than half the total minutes viewed of “Suits,” a show that ended nearly four years ago. Ten Cool Home Automations Home automation has come such a long way since the Insteon X10 systems of the 1980s and 1990s. Today there are numerous systems available and just about all of us have some form of automation that we use daily. We pulled together 10 cool automation routines that you may want to try yourself.   Have your lights slowly dim just before bedtime. I was a skeptic when I saw this as an option but when I go to bed I do some reading and having the lights dim as I do is a nice way to doze off. I started out with the dimming taking 10 minutes. I liked it so much I now start it a full 30 minutes before my “official” bedtime.  Set the lights to randomly flash to make it appear as if you’re home when away. We all have lights that turn on automatically. This takes it to the next level. You could define a set of routines that only work when you set a “Vacation Mode” on your system. Set up different ones for each day of the week. Flash your lights when your doorbell rings. This is handy if you are out in the garage, basement, or any other room where you can’t hear the doorbell. Comes in handy if you are blasting music. For bonus points you can have your wireless speakers play Men at Work’s Who Can it Be Now. Create individual access codes for kids, guests, and extended family members. Then, get a phone notification when specific people arrive home. Have a certain song play out your speakers when certain people arrive. Just like walk up music for baseball. It's fun and you know who just walked in or opened the garage. Install a sensor on or inside your mailbox that alerts you when your mail has arrived/been picked up. I also set a virtual light switch that gets set to on when the sensor goes off. That way if I miss the actual notification I can see that the virtual light is on in my automation app. I clear it when I get the mail. One button press turns on all lighting for a given room, floor or entire house. Great for when you are walking into a dark house or to scare away someone who should not be there. At night, when motion is sensed, ramp lights to 15% (just enough light to see, not to be blinded). Set your door to automatically lock after a set amount of time has passed. With most smart locks, you can pick intervals between 30 seconds and one hour long. Dinner Bell. Set an automation tied to a button that plays a dinner bell through your wireless speakers that dinner is ready. Can also just send out a notification if people are outside.

On this week’s show we take a brief look at a $120 wireless HDMI solution and we ask, who Needs to Buy Physical Media? We also read your emails and take a look at the news. News: Pay TV Companies, and the DOJ, Push Back on Big ‘Spulu’ Sports Streaming Joint Venture Roku (ROKU) shares down 16% after FQ4 earnings, Oppenheimer downgrades Comcast and Paramount Talk About Combining U.S. Streaming Services Walmart to acquire Vizio in $2.3 billion deal BMOSTE Wireless HDMI Transmitter and Receiver Small transmitter and receiver. About the size of USB Stick Dual-Band WI-FI. Long range (30m) stable connection Plug and play 1080p $120 Easily to setup but you need to provide power via the USB cable that is included. My Macbook Pro and Projector USB did not have enough power to run the device. I needed to add an external power supply to make it work. Once it was connected I immediately saw my computer screen.  The picture looked good with no breakups while the laptop was in the same room. There  was a lag that was noticeable and made it quirky to use the mouse. I think for gaming this is going to be a big issue. But for watching movies it's not really an issue at all. When I moved the laptop into another room that was about twenty feet away with two walls between the transmitter and receiver, the picture froze . However putting the laptop in the room directly behind the projector with one wall had no impact on the picture. If the TX and RX are in  the same room you will have no issues. One wall will probably work but it will decrease the distance that you can transmit. Two walls will probably not work.  If you need a wireless 1080p solution you can’t beat this device on size and cost. Just keep distance and the number of walls you are going through in mind. We’ll take a look at their 4K solution which is much bigger in size and costs about $50 more.  Who Needs to Buy Physical Media Last week we received an email from a listener named Bob with a link to an article that discussed what “forever” means in the terms of digital content. The article pointed out that a streaming service owned by Sony was dumping libraries after April 2nd. You may not have heard about this because the streaming service is for Anime and is called Funimation. It's not like you’ll be losing movies from Warner Brothers or Sony Pictures. There is a lot of talk about physical media vs digital. Which one would you rather have and use? Do you even need discs anymore? In this episode we will examine why or who would want to buy physical discs.  Let’s take a look at one of the biggest movies of last year and determine if you should buy the disc, buy the digital version, rent, or stream the movie. Oppenheimer - The story of American scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer and his role in the development of the atomic bomb. UHD - $23 includes Blu-Ray and Digital Code Blu-Ray - $18 include DVD and Digital Code Amazon Prime Video/AppleTV $19.99 Amazon Prime Video/AppleTV  Rent $5.99 Peacock included with Service With all these options what makes the most sense? Are you going to watch it over and over in a theater that you spent thousands of dollars on and want every ounce of performance out of your system? Then by all means get the UHD Disc. That will be your best looking and sounding experience. You have a digital code as well, so if you just want to watch Oppenheimer for the tenth time without having to go through your library to find the disc and pop it into your player, you can call it up on whatever STB you use. If you just want to watch it once, even in your theater that cost thousands of dollars, rent it on Apple, Amazon, Vudu, or whatever service you use. If you decide later that you want to watch it once or twice more, you’re still ahead of the game! There may be a slight perceivable degradation in quality but is it worth $12-$18 to barely notice an improvement in picture and sound? If you are sitting in a room with an awesome OLED and a high quality soundbar you may want to sign up for Peacock and stream it through the service for $12 a month. This option allows you to  stream the many other shows available and then cancel if you don’t find more value. Peacock allows you to stream Oppenheimer for $6 if you don’t mind limited commercials. Only do this if there are other shows/movies you want to check out otherwise you can rent it for $6 on the various platforms without commercials. Disc sales have been declining for the last five years as people switch to streaming services to watch movies instead of disc purchase and rentals. There are less and less reasons for studios to manufacture discs. Those who like to have the physical copy of the disc are the vast minority.  Whether you use Vudu, Amazon, or Apple, you have a huge library at your fingertips. Buy the digital copy of the movies you like to watch on repeat, rent the ones you want to watch once. Hell we’ll say it, it's like having a Kaleidescape! If your hangup is quality, the difference in quality is pretty small because the compression and broadband speeds have both improved in the last ten years. And when noticeable, it's still not like comparing Standard Definition to High Definition. It's more like comparing 1080i to 720p ATSC from back in 2006. Both huge improvements over what we had been watching.  Our recommendation going forward is: If you have a large library of physical media, you can rip what you have and put it on a server. Plex is great and easy to use. For future titles, buy/rent on the digital store of your choice. If the title is supported by Movies Everywhere you can watch on multiple platforms across multiple apps!  

On this week’s show we take a look at a new report on the state of TV viewership. We also read your emails and take a look at the week’s news. Finally We congratulate Eric Melton of Riverside CA on winning the  CSS Audio Torii P2  Tower Speakers! News: Walmart in talks to buy Vizio for more than $2 bln TV Giants Team Up for Sports Comeback vs. Streamers Amazon’s Prime Video Gets Exclusive NFL Playoff Game Next Season YouTube TV rolling out shortcut to switch between last-viewed channels on Roku Other: Prime Video cuts Dolby Vision, Atmos support from ad tier—and didn’t tell subs | Ars Technica The State of TV Viewership Samba TV gathers viewership data via its proprietary Automatic Content Recognition (ACR) technology from tens of millions of opted- in Smart TVs. Samba TV’s ACR is integrated at the chipset level across 24 of the top Smart TVs sold in more than 100 countries globally and captures content that crosses the TV screen, regardless of source. This results in unbiased, comprehensive viewership insights from around the world. In this report, Samba TV first-party data is supplemented with data from a nationwide survey conducted within the U.S. from 8/22/23- 8/30/23 among 2,507 adults by HarrisX. Results were weighted for age, gender, region, race/ethnicity, and income where necessary to align them with their actual proportions in the population. Monthly cable or satellite TV subscription Gen Z 39% Millennials 47% Gen X 47% Baby Boomers 57% Total TV hours watched: OTT & linear OTT Linear Q3 ‘22 1.40M 22B Q4 ‘22 1.39M 23B Q1 ‘23 1.45M 23B   Q2 ‘23 1.30M 18.5B Q3 ‘23 1.75M 21.5B Q4 ‘23 1.62M 21.5B  What TV Services viewers are watching less because they are watching FAST? 18% Transactional video-on-demand(TVOD) services (Pay per view or rent through Amazon or Apple ) 22% Virtual pay-TV services (IPTV) 23% Traditional broadcast/pay-TV services 32% Subscription video-on-demand(SVOD) services (Netflix Etc) 34% Not watching less of any service Subscribers to virtual multichannel TV services watch eight TV channels, on average, compared to 10 TV channels for traditional multichannel TV households, according to a recent Kagan US Consumer Insights survey. Video cord cutters and cord nevers who receive over-the-air local broadcast TV programming report watching three to four TV channels. Percentage of Cable and Satellite subscribers said they watch: ABC 62%  CBS 60% NBC 60% Fox 50% ESPN 39% HIST 38% TNT 34% DISC 33% USA 33% TBS 32% Top TV Channels for IPTV subscribers  ABC 45% CBS 43% NBC 40% Fox 37% ESPN 31% HBO 26% DISN 26% FX 26% Top three SVOD Services for Cable and Satellite subscribers Netflix 52% Amazon Prime Video 49% Hulu 32% Top four SVOD Services for IPTV subscribers Netflix 62% Amazon Prime Video 60% Hulu 55% Disney+ 43% Top three FAST Services for Cable and Satellite subscribers Tubi 22% Pluto TV 22% Freevee 17% Top four FAST Services for IPTV subscribers Tubi 34% Pluto TV 33% Roku Channel 32% Freevee 26% Percentage of population that streams content on mobile Gen Z 91% Millennials 88% Gen X 73% Baby Boomers 43% Silent 30% Most popular program amongst single program viewers for the second half of 2023 Netflix Quarterback S1 Disney+ Ahsoka S1 AppleTV+ Hijack S1 Prime Video Jack Ryan S4 Max And Just Like That S2 Paramount+ Special Ops Lioness S1 Hulu The Kardashians S4 45% of households that watched the top bingeable premieres of the second half of  2023 finished the season in five days. 68% of U.S. adults identify themselves as binge-watchers, while 76% of millennials do. 89 out of the 100 most watched linear programs of the second half of 2023 were related to sports. 76% of those 89 programs were NFL football. Top five second half of 2023 linear programs ABC - Monday Night Football - Kansas City Chiefs vs Philadelphia Eagles NBC - Sunday Night Football - New York Jets vs Kansas City Chiefs ABC - Monday Night Football - New York Jets vs Buffalo Bills NBC - Sunday Night Football - San Francisco 49ers vs Dallas Cowboys NBC - Sunday Night Football - Dallas Cowboys vs Philadelphia Eagles Top five second half of 2023 linear programs (excluding sports) NBC - 97th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade CBS - 60 Minutes 11/26 - Rise; Sealand; Ancient Vines CBS - 60 Minutes 12/10 - The Resistance; Red and Green; Novak Djokovic CBS - 60 Minutes 10/29 - Vice President Harris; A Quiet Invasion; The Air We Breathe; The State of the Blues CBS - 60 Minutes 9/17 - President Zelenskyy; Into the Streets; Prime Time in Colorado Despite the resounding success that Barbie vs. Oppenheimer saw, one pre-pandemic behavior has stuck around: strong viewership once these movies hit streaming platforms. While many movies land on paid video-on-demand platforms like Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video first, the data shows that it isn’t until these titles hit popular streaming platforms for free that viewers opt to watch, making rights to these movies a huge win for streamers. Average number of TV ads seen per day by the top 50% of linear TV households was 150 Average number of TV ads seen per day by the bottom 50% of linear TV households was 13 3 in 4 U.S. adults look at a mobile device while watching TV 8 in 10 of those U.S. adults look at a mobile device more than half the time while watching TV 1 in 3 U.S. adults shop online while streaming TV 47% of Gen Z has subscription cycled in the past 6 months 61% of Gen Z is unreachable via traditional TV 76% of Gen Z hears about new TV shows and movies through social media 60% of millennials watch live sports on TV 73% of millennial parents subscribe to a streaming service just for their children 76% of millennials classify themselves as binge watchers  

On this week’s show we discuss how Boutique Blu-ray labels are keeping physical media alive, we give you the pros and cons of streaming vs physical media and we talk a bit about password sharing. Plus we read your emails and take a look at the week’s news. News: Hulu is cracking down on password sharing, just like Disney Plus and Netflix YouTube now has more than 100 million Premium subscribers YouTube plans to create a native app for Apple Vision Pro after all Netflix to Start Billing Florida Subscribers an Additional 5.07% for State Communications Taxes Other: Lovesac - Sactionals with StealthTech Sound + Charge Boutique Blu-ray Labels Keep Physical Media Alive — and Preserve Film History in the Process The supposed demise of physical media has been well covered and long lamented, with each passing year bringing reports of yet another nail in the coffin of the once flourishing DVD and Blu-ray market. Fall 2023 brought a double whammy of bad news: Netflix shipped its final discs to customers before closing up its DVD department for good, and a month later, Best Buy announced that it would be phasing out the sale of physical media. Yet, while DVDs are no longer the massive revenue generator for studios that they were throughout the first decade of the 2000s, it has never been a better time to be a physical media enthusiast. Thanks to independent labels like Criterion, Kino Lorber, Shout! Factory, Arrow, Imprint, Indicator, and many others, every month sees the release of well over a dozen exceptional titles, often lovingly restored and with indispensable scholarly extras. Full article here… Blu-ray vs Streaming 4K Blu-ray discs run at up to 128Mbps. This is the amount of data sent to your screen every second. By contrast, streaming services tend to top out at around 17Mbps. This also means you’ll get better color and blacker blacks via disc since there will be compression artifacts with streaming.  As far as audio goes, Dolby Atmos is available both on disc and via streaming, but streaming services deliver it in the compressed Dolby Digital+ format while discs have the full Dolby TrueHD track. If you want DTS:X, you need to be watching on a disc. Here the difference is not as great. Compressed Dolby Digital+ is almost indistinguishable from True HD.  Some players may add noise, fan noise into your environment. During loud passages this is not an issue. But if there are long periods of low volume some players can actually be distracting. Of course if you have a good setup, you AV gear will be out of sight and out of earshot. If your setup consists of a 60” or less TV with a soundbar, this may all be moot for you.  You can’t beat the convenience of streaming either. Buy once, stream everywhere, including at 30,000 feet! Password Sharing With an increasing number of streaming services following Netflix’s and Disney+'s lead in cracking down on password sharing, one in three U.S. TV content viewers (33%) are still borrowing log-in credentials or sharing the costs of at least one streaming service they can access, according to findings from Horowitz’s "State of Media, Entertainment, and Tech: Disruptions" report. Main Drivers Someone I know already had an account I can’t afford it at this time I am just doing it to access a specific show/type of content for a short period of time.” Concerns 23% very worried access will be blocked 26% somewhat worried access will be blocked Half of those who borrow the log-in or share the cost for Netflix, Max, Disney+, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, and Paramount+ would be willing to pay the full price for those services if they were not able to share anymore. Password Sharing By Age 18-34 54% 35-49 37% 50+ 17%  Think it is unethical 18-34 13%  35-49 24%  50+  41%  Younger viewers are also more likely to believe it is OK to password share even with people who are not family members.

On this week’s show we look at the Box Office Report Card for the major studios and we review the TV Winners and Losers for 2023. We also read your emails and take a look at the week’s news. News: Samsung will Eliminate Standalone SmartThings Hubs In 2024 Abode Announces Ultra Long Range, Battery Powered, AI-Enabled Security Camera FAST Channels Are Capturing Viewer Attention The Nickelodeon App Has Shut Down Along With The Comedy Central, MTV, Showtime, and Paramount Network Other: What Is WiSA? What You Need to Know and How it Works - ecoustics.com What is WiSA? The wireless home theater technology fully explained | Digital Trends TCL 98" Class S5 Series LED 4K UHD Smart Google TV 98S550G - Best Buy Enter to win custom built Torii P2 Tower Speakers Entry Page Box Office Report Card: Grading Disney, Warner Bros. and Other Studios on 2023 Movies Where would the 2023 box office be without the bomb and the bombshell? Full article… TV Winners And Losers Of 2023 It’s been a big year for TVs. Across the board, from OLED and QLED to mini-LED, the best TV technologies have only gotten better – but it’s clear that some display types have fared better than others, and that consumer demand is continuing to shape the market in some interesting ways. Full article here…

On this week’s show we review the Victrola Hi-Res Carbon Turntable that retails for $599. We also read your emails and take a look at the week’s news. News: Apple's Vision Pro Won't Launch With Netflix App Plex is about to launch a store for movies and TV shows Netflix Will Be The New Home of WWE Monday Night Raw in 2025 Is Hollywood Headed for a Massive Crash? Other:  Samsung expands self-repair program to include home entertainment devices CSS-Audio Torii Tower Youtube Shorts Playlist Victrola Hi-Res Carbon Turntable In an era dominated by digital music and streaming, the Victrola Hi-Res Carbon Turntable emerges as a beacon of nostalgia, offering a captivating journey back to the golden age of vinyl - but with a few modern twists. Designed for discerning audio enthusiasts and music aficionados alike, this remarkable record player promises superior performance and effortless setup, making it a highly recommended addition to any audiophile's collection. It retails for $599. Overview Product highlights: semi-automatic belt-driven turntable built-in Bluetooth with high-quality aptX HD and aptX Adaptive streaming to compatible speakers and headphones anti-resonant die-cast aluminum platter straight carbon fiber tonearm Ortofon 2M Red moving magnet cartridge on removable curved headshell included auto-stop feature (user must select "auto-stop" using button on rear of turntable) platter starts spinning when you hover the tonearm over the leading edge of a record platter stops spinning at the end of a side switchable built-in phono preamp adjustable anti-skating and counterweight speeds: 33-1/3 and 45 rpm Connections: gold plated RCA output with ground for making wired connection to an existing hi-fi system detachable power cord Performance specs: wow and flutter: 0.175% signal-to-noise ratio: 45dB   Setup The Victrola Hi-Res Carbon is designed to be user-friendly, ensuring a smooth and hassle-free setup process even for those new to turntables. As soon as you open the box, before you even pull the player out, you’re greeted with a clear diagram and description of the 7 steps required to get the unit to start playing records. The diagram has clear and concise instructions guiding you through each of the fairly typical steps involved in setting up a turntable. If you’ve done it before, you know the steps; if you’ve never done it, the steps are simple. It is the easiest record player we’ve ever set up. Depending on how you opt to install, you can be listening to vinyl in under 5 minutes. The turntable has two output options, there are RCA connectors in the back that you can run to a traditional amplifier and speakers. But it also has Bluetooth - so you can send your music to your bluetooth speakers totally wirelessly. We set it up so we could test both options. For the RCA wired connection we used a Yamaha A-S701 amplifier powering a set of Ara Derderian signature tower speakers. For Bluetooth we got our hands on a couple different pairs of AptX headphones. We didn’t have any AptX wireless speakers to test with, but the headphones gave us a pretty good idea of what to expect. All told, from unboxing to savoring the first notes of your cherished records, the entire experience is streamlined and simple. Performance As simple as it is to install, where the Victrola Hi-Res Carbon truly shines is in its exceptional audio performance. We compared it with Braden’s current record player, a Yamaha MusicCast VINYL 500 turntable that retails for $100 more than the Victrola at $699. The audio performance difference between the two was astonishing. We would play a song from an album on one player, then transfer the record to the other player and listen to it again. The first time we went from Yamana to Victrola, we had to double check that nobody bumped the EQ. The base was cleaner and more pronounced, everything in each song we tested just sounded better, clearer, more dynamic coming from the Vicrtola.  It’s rare for one piece of home audio gear to so wildly change your view of the world. Listening to records is a fun, nostalgic experience. Oftentimes you revel in and enjoy some of the static, the crackling and popping that we remember so fondly from our youth. But with records, we never really stop to ask ourselves if what we’re hearing is the best that record can sound. You pull out a record, you play it, and that’s it. But the Victrola has changed, at least Braden’s approach, to record players - it made every record we played sound better than his Yamaha.    Next step was testing Bluetooth performance. You’d be surprised how rare AptX still is in headphones, so we had to procure a few pairs to make sure we were hearing the best the Victrola could offer, and it did not disappoint. While the listening experience is vastly different between a pair of tower speakers and a pair of wireless headphones, The Victrola performed incredibly well. The music sounded clear, clean and very rich. We can imagine that paired with a set of high quality AptX wireless speakers, the Victrola will blow you away. To be fair, the Yamaha has a few more bells and whistles than the Victrola, which may explain the higher price tag. In addition to Bluetooth (tho not AptX), the Yamaha has MusicCast built-in so you can send the audio around your house if you have a MusicCast compatible system. It also allows you to stream music services with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, AirPlay 2 or Spotify Connect and has voice control with A-Lady and Google Assistant devices or S-Lady via AirPlay 2. With records, you have to flip them or change them every 4-5 songs. The streaming capabilities of the Yamaha allow you to listen to music without as much maintenance, which can come in handy at times. Not to be outdone, Victrola offers an upgraded version of the Hi-Res Carbon called the Stream Carbon that works with Sonos - it retails for $799. If you’re in the Sonos ecosystem, it’s worth a look. Aesthetically the Victrola Hi-Res Carbon is gorgeous. Minimal, clean, very sleek. Its stylish and subtle design not only exudes elegance but also  ensures stability and durability. Crafted from premium materials, this record player is built to last, promising years of sonic bliss and conversations started. While the Yamaha includes a built in dust cover, the Victrola includes a removable dust cover. The built-in cover is very convenient, but there’s no denying how great the Victrola looks with the cover removed while you’re spinning a record. With the Yamaha it always sits under the plastic cover, but in the open air the Victrola looks like a statement piece. Conclusion: For those seeking a record player that harmonizes impeccable performance with ease of setup, the Victrola Hi-Res Carbon is an excellent choice. Its user-centric design, exceptional sound quality, and meticulous craftsmanship make it a strong contender for anyone who loves vinyl or for those who think they might enjoy getting into vinyl. It more than delivers on the pristine and vibrant sound quality that you didn’t know you were missing. Marry the Hi-Res Carbon with a pair of high res Bluetooth AptX speakers and you have a turntable-in-a-box system that will put any of the all-in-one units on the market to shame - and the setup is just as simple! If you’re in the Sonos ecosystem, check out the Stream Carbon. What you lose in Bluetooth you gain in Sonos integration and an app for setup.   

On this week’s show Ara and DJ of Brightside Home Theater Podcast rundown the best of CES 2024. Are also reads your emails and takes a look at the week’s news. News: NBC Claims Streaming Crown, Angers NFL Fans Fire TV’s New Feature Lets You Create AI-Generated Artwork With Help From Alexa Sling TV Freestream Adds A Free DVR Other: SONUS FABER LAUNCHES SUPREMA, ITS MOST ASPIRATIONAL LOUDSPEAKER SYSTEM YET, IN CELEBRATION OF THE BRAND’S 40TH ANNIVERSARY - HomeTheaterHifi.com He spent his life building a $1 million stereo. The real cost was unfathomable QDEL Is Real | Sharp Display Ready To Make Self-Emissive Quantum Dot Displays Xgimi shows off projector that doubles as a ceiling light, also a $3,000 IMAX-certified model | TechSpot CSS-Audio Torii Tower Youtube Shorts Playlist The Best of CES 2024 Samsung’s glare-free OLED TV - Samsung  has developed a Glare-Free technology  that it claims will be great in both low light and brighter rooms, won’t be affected by viewing angles, and won’t mess with contrast or colors either. Look for this in the S95D and S90D. People who have seen this tech say “It's where light goes to die”. The Best TV according to The Verge and Best Audio/Video according to Digital Trends and CNET [Best of CES 2024] TCL QM89 115-inch QLED TV - the world’s largest QD Mini LED TV! With a 115” screen, the new mega-size 115QM89 truly becomes the ultimate home theater. This model includes QD Mini LED ULTIMATE with a massively high 20,000 dimming zones. It also incorporates the TCL AIPQ ULTRA Processor, as even more horsepower is needed for such high zone control to ensure huge, yet pristine images. This new 115” model includes all the features of the other QM8 models, plus a 6.2.2 Channel Speaker system for truly room filling sound. Best Audio/Video according to Digital Trends Samsung The Premiere 8K - The Premiere 8K is the world’s first projector offering wireless connectivity. Removing the need for cables, this solution allows consumers to keep their living spaces neat and tidy. The ultra-short throw projector comes packed with smart features — such as picture-off premium home audio, cloud gaming, always-on voice with far-field mic and four multi-view screen splits — to extend usability and provide almost increased use cases. The projector incorporates Samsung’s patented “Sound-on-Screen” technology, integrating the top speaker module and software algorithms for an immersive sound experience. Best projector according to Tech Radar (best Gadgets) Hisense 110UX TV - The 110UX incorporates over 40,000 backlight zones across a 110-inch screen. That high-output mini-LEDs produce 10,000-nit maximum brightness which is about five times brighter than the typical high end TV. Hisense says the 110UX can achieve 95% of the BT.2020 Spec. No mention on HDR support but why would they build a TV like this and not support Dolby Vision? No pricing of availability has been announced. Best Audio/Video according to Digital Trends Ballie - Introduced in 2020 Ballie is a smart home companion that welcomes users home by taking care of household tasks, displaying the day’s events and sharing weather updates. It got an upgrade thai year and has added a moving projector, in case you want it to display a workout video onto your wall or project a little greeting message on your floor when you come home. Most irrationally loved product according to The Verge and Engadget [Best of CES 2024] Lockly Visage and Philips Palm Recognition Deadbolt- TechRadar (The Best smart Home Tech)  Sennheiser Momentum 4 True Wireless - adding Qualcomm's new chip with Snapdragon Sound for CD-quality audio if you have a compatible phone, but they're also ready for the future of regular Bluetooth with support for Bluetooth 5.4 and LE Audio and Auracast. Best Headphones according to Tech Radar (best Gadgets) and Engadget [Best of CES 2024] LG Signature OLED T - it's only available in 77”. It uses LG’s wireless transmission technology so the only wire running to the television is power. A separate box that can be placed up to 30 feet away from the TV transmits source video. Future versions could go bigger or smaller depending on customer feedback. Pricing has not been set. Best in show according to The Verge and Best TV according to Tech Radar  (best Gadgets) and Best Audio/Video according to Digital Trends and Engadget [Best of CES 2024] and CNET [Best of CES 2024] Samsung HW-Q990D - This soundbar features a 11.1.4-channel configuration, immersive Dolby Atmos sound and supports pass through of content in 4K 120Hz. It analyzes audio and uses AI to optimize sound for the perfect experience across a wide range of content. Best Soundbar according to Tech Radar (best Gadgets) Samsung Music Frame - According to Samsung this customizable speaker seamlessly blends into its environment by camouflaging as a modern picture frame that can display art or photography. It features built-in woofers along with intelligent audio processing for a premium audio experience. Using Q-Symphony technology, it provides surround sound when paired with 2024 Samsung TVs and soundbars or can operate as a standalone wireless speaker. [No pricing or availability announced] TechRadar The Best smart Home Tech and Best Audio product according to The Verge and Engadget [Best of CES 2024] Nanoleaf Essential Matter series - TechRadar (The Best smart Home Tech) EcoFlow Delta Pro Ultra - You can start out with just one battery and inverter ($5,799) that can power your home’s essential devices for a couple of days and then build up to a bigger system with up to three inverters and 15 batteries that could power the entire home for over a month. Best Smart Home Product according to The Verge and Engadget [Best of CES 2024] and CNET [Best of CES 2024] XGIMI Aladdin - Aladdin is a ceiling light that's also secretly a projector and a Bluetooth speaker. There's no price or release date for the Aladdin yet, but the Japanese model it's based on retails for ¥129,800 (which is around $895 / £700 / AU$1,330). TechRadar (The Best smart Home Tech) Not Home Tech related but we briefly mentioned it on the last show. The Withings BeamO won many awards. The $250 product is a “multiscope.” that combines a body temperature sensor, an electrocardiogram, an oximeter and a digital stethoscope into one surprisingly light consumer device that promises to make it easier to collect basic health metrics at home.

It's that time of year where the tech world descends on Las Vegas for CES. On this week’s show we discuss a few announcements that we found interesting. We also read your emails and look at the week’s news. News: Roku Introduces High-End ‘Pro Series’ Lineup of Its Self-Branded Smart TVs Netflix Released 16% Fewer Shows in 2023 Roku To Launch Pro Series TVs Sony’s prototype TV backlight tech and it looks amazing Other: The BEST Streaming! | Wakanda Forever 4K UHD HDR Streaming Review   CES 2024 TCL 115” Mini LED TV - For 2024, TCL introduces the world’s largest QD Mini LED TV! With a 115” screen, the new mega-size 115QM89 truly becomes the ultimate home theater. This model includes QD Mini LED ULTIMATE with a massively high 20,000 dimming zones. It also incorporates the TCL AIPQ ULTRA Processor, as even more horsepower is needed for such high zone control to ensure huge, yet pristine images. This new 115” model includes all the features of the other QM8 models, plus a 6.2.2 Channel Speaker system for truly room filling sound. Full Press Release on all Mini LED TVs can be found here. Estimated Price $20K Also - TCL introduced several new product lines with NextGen TV tuners. This comes after LG said it would not include ATSC 3.0 tuners back in September due to patent concerns. TCL Q75H is a 5.1.2 Channel Dolby Atmos Sound Bar. In addition to the features of the S55H, the Q75H includes the Ray-Danz Acoustic Wave-Guide Reflectors to direct sound across the width of the room. This model also includes a Center Channel Speaker, built-in tweeters, built-in up-firing Dolby Atmos Speakers, and built-in Side Surround Speakers. TCL Q85H is a 7.1.4 Channel Dolby Atmos Sound Bar. Stepping up from the Q75H, it adds rear speakers that are wireless but also include rear up-firing Dolby Atmos Drivers. The Q85H creates a truly enveloping sound, and a sound experience that needs to be auditioned. Press Release Hisense 110UX TV - The 110UX incorporates over 40,000 backlight zones across a 110-inch screen. That high-output mini-LEDs produce 10,000-nit maximum brightness which is about five times brighter than the typical high end TV. Hisense says the 110UX can achieve 95% of the BT.2020 Spec. No mention on HDR support but why would they build a TV like this and not support Dolby Vision? No pricing of availability has been announced. Press Release LG Transparent OLED - Called OLED T, it's only available in 77”. It uses LG’s wireless transmission technology so the only wire running to the television is power. A separate box that can be placed up to 30 feet away from the TV transmits source video. Future versions could go bigger or smaller depending on customer feedback. Pricing has not been set. Also - LG revealed that the company’s new OLED TVs for 2024 will be the first sets to feature a Dolby Vision Filmmaker Mode. Filmmaker Mode, it’s a standardized picture preset for TVs that was developed by the UHD Alliance in response to filmmakers unhappy with the way their films looked on most TVs, with inaccurate color and aggressive motion “smoothing” being two of the main sticking points. Full LG CES info can be found here Philips 5000 Series Wi-Fi Palm Recognition Smart Deadbolt - With this Philips smart lock, the world's first deadbolt with palm recognition, enjoy the most secure and convenient unlocking experience. Or unlock with a key, PIN code, or the Philips Home Access app to make returning home stress-free. The Smart Lock will go on sale in the US early this year and will retail for $360. Lockly - With Visage you can unlock your property by simply approaching it, or with your Apple Home Keys or Apple Watch. Integrate with your smart home devices with Matter™ Arriving this summer. Samsung Anti Glare OLED - Samsung  has developed a Glare-Free technology  that it claims will be great in both low light and brighter rooms, won’t be affected by viewing angles, and won’t mess with contrast or colors either. Look for this in the S95D and S90D. People who have seen this tech say “It's where light goes to die”. Also - Samsung launched a new “map view” for SmartThings. It shows an interactive map of your home complete with the location of any smart home devices within. Maps can be created manually or automatically with the help of a photo of an existing floor plan or with a lidar-enabled Samsung device, like the company’s forthcoming Ballie robot or new JetBot robot vacuum. Maps have to be generated using the SmartThings app on a smartphone or tablet. But once that’s done, they’ll display on supported Samsung TVs, the screen of the Samsung Family Hub smart fridge and Samsung’s M8 monitors. Nanoleaf - Nanoleaf announced the launch of several new Matter-enabled lighting options, including its first outdoor lights. The company is also debuting a new music feature using Orchestrator software for the Nanoleaf Desktop App, which will use real-time music analysis to create light shows that match with the beat. Orchestrator is able to connect directly with the sound source of a computer for a more accurate real-time audio visual experience. They are also taking pre-orders for the Nanoleaf Skylight. The Skylight is a square-shaped modular ceiling light panel setup that is hardwired and supports up to 100 squares. Prices start at $250 for a 3 panel starter pack.  SVS Ultra Evolution Series - The design is not what you typically see in a speaker. It has curves and interesting angles. Being a person who builds speakers I understand that where you place the drivers impacts how they sound. So I can only assume it means that SVS has spent a lot of time designing an enclosure that gives you the most precise sound available.  I am looking forward to getting some of these to evaluate. The speakers are scheduled to begin shipping near the end of Q1 2024. No word on pricing.

Happy New Year! We are excited to be back for another year. On this week’s show we look at five reasons why you need a 4K Blu-ray player. We also have a backlog of emails and news.  News: Warner Bros. Discovery Reportedly in Merger Talks With Paramount An update on Prime Video 2024 Box-Office To Drop A Billion Dollars? Americans are canceling their streaming subscriptions Netflix Viewing Declined By 17% in 2023 Other: I tested Blu-ray vs Netflix and Disney Plus on the same movies, and the biggest difference surprised me | TechRadar Sony won't take away your PlayStation-bought Discovery shows after all 5 reasons why you need a 4K Blu-ray player It’s hard to deny that streaming has overtaken disc-based formats like Blu-ray and DVD as the main method for watching movies at home. The best streaming services like HBO Max (now just Max), Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video offer a wide selection of movies, and smaller services like The Criterion Channel, Shudder, Mubi, and many others are there to fill in any gaps for film fanatics with a wide assortment of classic, genre, and independent fare. Full article here…

We are taking the week off. Happy New Year from the HT Guys!

On this week’s show, Inflation is up but Electronics have never been Cheaper! We also read your emails and the week’s news. There is no show next week. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year from the HT Guys! News: Smart TV Shipments Have Fallen to a Decade Low in 2023 Say goodbye to the Netflix app on these old Sony TVs and Blu-ray players Genius Move? Amazon Reportedly in Talks to Bail Out Bankrupt Bally Sports RSNs YouTube TV adding a button shortcut to switch between last-viewed channels Other: The 100 Greatest Shows of all Time Inflation is up but Electronics have never been Cheaper! On last week’s show I said that a $4600 TV would have cost $26000 in 1975. I even went to a calculator to get my result. But when I entered the amounts I had the years reversed. Instead of getting what $4600 today would be worth in 1975 I got what $4600 in 1975 would be worth today. For the record, $4600 in 1975 was worth $805. I got a couple of emails from listeners and a phone call from DJ of Brightside Home Theater telling me I was wrong. But in speaking with DJ I realized what I was trying to say and had a week to get it straight. The main point I was trying to make was that a TV of the caliber of the 77” Sony OLED ($4600) would cost more than the equivalent of $4600 in 2023. For this analysis we will consider the cost of electronics as a percentage of the median income vs today. Median income  1970 ~$8,500 1975 ~$11,500 1979 ~$16,000 2023 ~$99,000 Here are some TV of the day: Basic Bedroom TV 1970 Admiral Color TV - 12” Admiral Precision crafted K-10 Chassis  $249.95. In today’s dollars $1978.03. As a percentage of income 2.3% in 1970 dollars Generic Family TV 1975 Montgomery Wards Brand TV - 25” Solid State Chassis, bright super vivid picture tube, twin 4” speakers etc $499.99. In today’s dollars $2853.58. As a percentage of income 4.3% in 1975      dollars. Large format Screen 1979 General Electric Widescreen 1000 75” 4:3 TV with an option for a VCR sold for $2800. The VCR Option cost $1000. In today’s dollars $11842.10 and $4229.35. As a percentage of income 17.5%  and 6.25% respectively in 1970 dollars. Now let's look at comparable setups today. Small Bedroom TV - I am going to say that a 43” Vizio V Series would be the equivalent of the 12” admiral. It goes for $250 or 2.5% of the median income. You can say that it's essentially the same percent of the median income. But what you get is 100 times better than the best TV of the day. You can even find something cheaper with minimal effort.  Generic Family TV - I am going to say that the Best Buy Insignia line fits that niche. For this one we will go with the 65" F30 Series LED 4K UHD Smart Fire TV at $330. Which is 3.3% of the median income. It's 1% cheaper in equivalent dollars but again, you get 100 times the performance. Large format Screen For this we will use the TV that started this whole conversation, the 77” Sony OLED for $4600. That is 4.6% of today’s median income which is 13% less than the 75” GE. And throw in an AppleTV instead of the VCR for $200 or less than 1% and you have a system we could only dream about in 1979! So yes things cost way more today than a couple of years ago, but at least our electronics are cheaper than ever! And just for fun, here is an ad for a Sony front projection system from 1983.

On this week’s show we look at the 7 best TVs for your Holiday Shopping. We also read your emails and take a look at the week’s news. News: YouTube TV looks to lessen live latency with broadcast delay feature Sorry, Stranger Things season 5 isn't likely to make its Netflix debut in 2024 Comcast Starts Doling Out Xumo Stream Box to Its Internet Customers Google TV is Getting Updated With 14 New Free Channels & A Speed Boost The 7 Best TVs For your Holiday Shopping If you are looking for an idea for a family gift for the holidays we have you covered. These are the 7 best TVs to make your holidays a little brighter. Plus these TVs will make watching the Rose Parade a spectacle of color and detail. This is comes from RTINGS.com Best Cheap TV TCL S4/S450G (50” $240 - 85” $799) - If you want something cheap that gets the job done, the TCL S4/S450G is the best widely available cheap TV we've tested. It's an okay entry-level TV, delivering   a surprisingly good picture quality for a cheap TV. It's a decent choice for a dark room, with its satisfactory contrast ratio and decent black uniformity. It has good reflection handling, so even though it doesn't get very bright, it's certainly good enough for a moderately lit room. The TV supports Dolby Vision HDR, but it isn't nearly bright enough for it to matter. Full Review here…   Mixed Usage  6.7, TV Shows 6.3, Sports 6.2, Video Games 7.1, HDR Movies 6.9; HDR Gaming 7.3 PC Monitor 6.6 Best Budget TV  Hisense U6/U6K (55” $448 - 75” $798) - If you want to spend less, the best budget TV we've tested is the Hisense U6/U6K. It delivers surprisingly great performance for the price. The Hisense has excellent contrast, so dark scenes look amazing in a dark room, with little  blooming around bright areas of the screen. It also has good peak brightness in SDR and decent reflection handling, so glare isn't an issue in a brighter room. It has an excellent color volume, making this TV very colorful overall. It's bright enough in HDR for a pleasant viewing experience, and just like the Hisense U8/U8K, it supports both HDR10+ and Dolby Vision HDR, although it doesn't support advanced DTS audio formats. Full Review here… Mixed Usage  7.4, TV Shows 6.9, Sports 7.0, Video Games 7.8, HDR Movies  7.5, HDR Gaming  8.0, PC Monitor 7.7 Best Upper Mid-Range TV LG C3 OLED (42” $896 - 83” $3996) - If you want a good home entertainment OLED but don 't want to get the expensive Sony A95L OLED, check out one of the best upper mid-range TVs we've tested, the LG C3 OLED. It's a premium TV that delivers stunning picture quality, especially in dark rooms; thanks to its near-infinite contrast ratio, there's no blooming around bright objects. It gets bright enough to fight glare even in moderately-lit rooms, and the reflection handling is incredible, but it doesn't use quantum dot technology, so colors aren't as bright as some of our other picks. The LG partly makes up for it with its versatility, as it has very good image processing, Dolby Vision HDR support with Dolby Vision gaming at 120Hz, and can passthrough advanced DTS audio formats. Like the Sony TVs, the LG supports Dolby Vision HDR, which is more widely used than Samsung's competing HDR10+.  Full Review here… Mixed Usage 9.0, TV Shows 8.6, Sports 8.8, Video Games 9.4, HDR Movies 9.0, HDR Gaming 9.1, PC Monitor 9.4 Best Bright Room TV (Sony X93L/X93CL (65” $1598 - 85” $3498) - If you mainly watch TV in a bright room, a TV with an LED backlight and higher peak brightness, like the Sony X93L/X93CL, is a better choice than the top two picks on this list. It's an excellent TV with impressive picture quality and an incredible peak brightness that helps it overcome glare in a bright room. It still looks good in a dark room thanks to its high contrast ratio and Mini LED local dimming feature, but there's more distracting blooming around bright highlights and subtitles in darker scenes compared to an OLED TV. Full Review here…   Mixed Usage 8.5, TV Shows 8.2, Sports 8.3, Video Games 8.8, HDR Movies 8.5, HDR Gaming 8.8, PC Monitor 8.6 Best Home Theater TV Sony A95L OLED (55” 2498 - 77” $4598) - If you're looking for the absolute best TV for a home theater setup and don't care as much about the price, check out the Sony A95L OLED. Although it's a very similar TV to the Samsung S90C OLED, it's better for home theaters thanks to its advanced video format support. Compared to Samsung's HDR10+ format, the Sony TV supports the more popular Dolby Vision HDR, so you'll enjoy the most advanced HDR experience possible from almost any source. Sony's processing does a better job following the content creator's intent, so the brightness and colors of HDR content look the way they're supposed to. It also offers better audio   format support than the Samsung, including DTS:X passthrough over eARC, so you can simplify your connection to your audio-video receiver by running everything through your TV without sacrificing audio quality. Full Review here… Mixed Usage 9.2, TV Shows 8.9, Sports 9.1, Video Games 9.3, HDR Movies 9.3, HDR Gaming 9.1, PC Monitor 9.4 Best TV Samsung S90C OLED (55” $1497 - 77” $2497) - The best TV we've tested is the Samsung S90C OLED. It's a fantastic TV with a great selection of extra features and incredible picture quality. It looks fantastic in a dark room thanks to its nearly infinite contrast ratio and perfect black uniformity, with no distracting blooming around bright areas of the screen. HDR content looks fantastic thanks to its high peak brightness, wide color gamut, and incredibly vibrant and realistic colors. Unlike some other TVs, the Samsung model doesn't support Dolby Vision HDR, nor does it support advanced DTS audio formats. It does support Samsung's less widely used HDR10+ format, which looks just as good as Dolby Vision. It's available in four sizes, 55, 65, 77, and 83 inches, although the 83-inch model uses a WOLED panel, so it looks different than the smaller sizes. Full Review here… Mixed Usage 9.0, TV Shows 8.6, Sports 8.9, Video Games 9.4, HDR Movies 9.0, HDR Gaming 9.3, PC Monitor 9.5

On this week’s show, now that the SAG strike is over we take a look at the network TV lineup. We also read your emails and take a look at the week’s news. News: Amazon Prime Video to kick off Premier League matches in HDR Apple TV Plus and Paramount Plus reportedly discussing cheap bundle plan to take on Netflix Roku Adds Food and Home Destinations to Home Screen Disney Has Merged Hulu Into The Disney+ App Today Other: Scentsy Flameless Candles PlayStation deleting users' purchased TV shows without refunds - FlatpanelsHD Zappiti Calls It Quits | Audioholics Network Premiere Schedule Post Strike CBS Sunday, Feb. 11: "Tracker"  - approximately 10 pm EST/7 PST Monday, Feb. 12: "The Neighborhood" Season 6  - 8 pm "Bob Hearts Abishola" Season 5  - 8:30 pm "NCIS" Season 21  - 9 pm   "NCIS: Hawai'i" Season 3  - 10 pm   Tuesday, Feb. 13: "FBI" Season 6  - 8   "FBI: Internation" Season 3  - 9 pm   "FBI: Most Wanted" Season 5  - 10 pm    Thursday, Feb. 15: "Young Sheldon" Season 7  - 8 pm   "Ghosts" Season 3  - 8:30 pm   "So Help Me Todd" Season 2  - 9 pm   "Tracker" (regular time slot)  - 10 pm   Friday, Feb. 16: "S.W.A.T." Season 7  - 8 pm   "Fire Country" Season 2  - 9 pm   "Blue Bloods" Season 14  - 10 pm   Sunday, Feb. 18: "The Equalizer" Season 4  - 8 pm   "CSI: Vegas" Season 3  - 10 pm   Wednesday, Feb. 28: "Survivor" Season 46  - 8 pm   Thursday, Feb. 29: "Elsbeth" Series premiere  - 10 pm   Wednesday, March 13: "The Amazing Race" Season 36  - 9:30 pm   NBC Most NBC series are eyeing 13-episode seasons. Saturday, Dec. 23:  Extended Family (Series premiere) - 8 pm Night Court (Special holiday episode)  - 8:30 pm Monday, Jan. 1  AMERICA’S GOT TALENT: FANTASY LEAGUE (Series premiere) - 8 pm  Tuesday, Jan. 2  Night Court (Time period premiere) - 8 pm   EXTENDED FAMILY (Time period premiere) - 8:30 pm  Tuesday, Jan. 9  La Brea (Final season premiere) - 9 pm   Found (First of final two episodes of season) - 10 pm  Wednesday, Jan. 17  Chicago Med (Season premiere)  - 8 pm Chicago Fire (Season premiere) - 9 pm Chicago P.D. (Season premiere) - 10 pm  Thursday, Jan. 18  Law & Order (Season premiere) - 8 pm  Law & Order: SVU (Season premiere) - 9 pm Law & Order: Organized Crime (Season premiere) - 10 pm  Friday, Jan. 19  Transplant (Time period premiere) - 8 pm  Monday, Jan. 29  The Irrational (First of final four episodes of season) - 10 pm  Monday, FEB. 26  The Voice (Season premiere, part 1) - 8 pm  DEAL OR NO DEAL ISLAND (Season premiere) - 9:30 pm Tuesday, Feb. 27  The Voice (Season premiere, part 2) - 8 pm  Monday, March 4  DEAL OR NO DEAL ISLAND (Time period premiere) - 10 pm  ABC Monday, January 22nd The Bachelor Season 28 - 8pm  20/20 "True Crime Edition" - 10pm  Wednesday, February 7th The Conners Season 6 - 8pm  Not Dead Yet Season 2 - 8:30pm Abbott Elementary Season 3 (one-hour premiere) - 9pm  Judge Steve Harvey - 10pm Wednesday, February 14th Abbott Elementary (single episode) - 9pm  (TBA) - 9:30pm Sunday, February 18th American Idol Season 22 - 8pm  What Would You Do? - 10pm Tuesday, February 20th Will Trent Season 2 - 8pm  The Rookie Season 6 - 9pm The Good Doctor Season 7 - 10pm Thursday, March 14th 9-1-1 Season 7 (ABC premiere, formerly on Fox) - 8pm Grey's Anatomy Season 20 - 9pm  Station 19 Season 7 - 10pm  Fox Tuesday, Jan. 2 Celebrity Name That Tune (winter premiere) - 8 pm THE FLOOR (series premiere) - 9 pm Wednesday, Jan. 3 I Can See Your Voice (season premiere) - 8 pm WE ARE FAMILY (series premiere) - 9 pm Sunday, Jan. 7 GRIMSBURG (special preview) - 8 pm Krapopolis - 8:30 pm Bob’s Burgers - 9 pm The Great North (season premiere) - 9:30 pm Mondays, beginning Jan. 22 TMZ Investigates (season premiere) - 8 pm America’s Most Wanted (season premiere) - 9 pm Sunday, Jan. 28 Next Level Chef (special preview) - 10 pm Thursdays, beginning Feb. 1 Next Level Chef (time slot premiere) - 8 pm Farmer Wants a Wife (season premiere) - 9 pm Sundays, beginning Feb. 18 The Simpsons - 8 pm Krapopolis - 8:30 pm The Great North (time period premiere) - 9 pm GRIMSBURG (time period premiere) - 9:30 pm Tuesdays, beginning Mar. 5 The Cleaning Lady (season premiere) - 8 pm  Alert: Missing Persons Unit (season premiere) - 9 pm Wednesdays, beginning Mar. 6 The Masked Singer (season premiere) - 8 pm  Animal Control (season premiere) - 9 pm Family Guy (spring premiere, new time slot) - 9:30 pm