Sony UBP-X700K is a stripped back version of the UBP-X700 No Wi-Fi and no streaming features Japanese pricing suggests a price hike We think that the Sony UBP-X700 is the best cheap 4K Blu-Ray player. And now there’s a new version – the first new Sony Blu-Ray player since 2019 – with some changes that make total sense to me, and potentially some that don’t. Based on its product listings (via FlatpanelsHD.com), the new UBP-X700K drops some of the features from the current model – but the price, in Japan at least, is 25% higher than the street price of the current one. More money, fewer features? That seems strange, so we’ve put in a request to Sony asking for pricing and availability details. We’ll let you know if we get confirmation. You may like (Image credit: Sony) Sony UBP-X700K: what’s different to the UBP-X700 According to the Japanese publication Monohika, the new player is effectively a scaled-down eversion of the UBP-X700 and there are a few key differences. The big difference is that there are no wireless networking features, and that in turn means no video streaming apps, no Spotify Connect and no screen mirroring. The Video & TV SideView app is also gone, Monohika reports. Removing streaming features to make a more streamlined budget Blu-ray player sounds like a smart move to me in the age of smart TVs – it’s just not something that too many buyers today will want from their disc player. But you’d expect it to come with a lower price made to attract people to the world of physical media, and 4K Blu-ray’s benefits over streaming. The player is a typically black Sony block, and round the back there’s an Ethernet port, two HDMI ports (one audio-only) and a coaxial digital out. There’s support for HDR10 and Dolby Vision (no HDR10+, as with the regular model), Dolby Atmos and DTS:X audio, and it works with UHD Blu-Ray, standard Blu-Ray and DVDs. Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. The new Blu-Ray player will be available from April or May 2025, hopefully for an attractive price. The current model can be found for under $199 / £199 / AU$369. You might also like
Sony has announced a new “next-generation display system” based upon a “high density LED backlight” with individual control over the red, green and blue primary colors. The new display tech is being developed for both consumer TVs and professional displays, and will “begin mass production in 2025,” according to the company. While Sony’s official announcement cites 2025 as the launch date for its new RGB LED tech, the company confirmed it as a “2026 technology” at a recent demonstration I attended at its Tokyo headquarters. That confirmation means we will more realistically see it arrive in new TVs next year, or possibly in 2027. LCD TVs with RGB backlights aren’t exactly new – Sony developed RGB LED models as far back as 2004, and at the recent CES 2025, Samsung and TCL both had prototype mini-LED TVs with RGB backlights on display, while Hisense showed off a real RGB model it plans to release later this year. You may like But Sony’s new version promises to take things to the next level by combining an RGB backlight with the XR Backlight Master Drive tech it developed for the Sony Bravia 9 mini-LED TV, the company’s flagship model and one of the best TVs of 2024. How it differs from regular LED TVs The panel structure of a conventional QLED TV with a mini-LED backlight (see below for RGB backlight structure). (Image credit: Sony) The LED light modules in conventional LED and mini-LED TVs emit blue light that passes through filters to create full-color images. RGB LED tech, in contrast, uses LED modules with individual red, green, and blue elements, with the light funneled directly to the pixels in the LCD panel without passing through additional color filter layers. This method allows for more granular brightness and color modulation: Sony’s specifications cite 4,000 nits peak brightness – around twice what most mini-LED TVs deliver – along with 99% DCI-P3 color space coverage and 90% BT.2020 coverage. The XR Backlight Master Drive tech in Sony’s Bravia 9 TV uses a highly miniaturized 22-bit LED driver that increases the granular level of its dimming control (conventional mini-LED TVs use 10- or 12-bit drivers). For Sony’s new RGB LED tech, the backlight control has been increased to 66 bits (22 each for red, green, and blue). Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. This also enables a boost in color volume (up to four times over a standard QLED, according to Sony) – a benefit that can be seen not just in bright colors but in darker hues. Other RGB LED benefits The structure of Sony’s RGB backlit TV. (Image credit: Sony) Along with the increase in brightness, color space coverage, and color volume, Sony’s new RGB LED tech promises to expand the viewing angle of the display – a traditional limitation with LCD TVs. When viewing from off-center seats, the color filtering process used by typical LED and mini-LED TVs is prone to blooming and color shift, which reduces picture contrast and color saturation. With Sony’s new RGB LED tech, the red, green, and blue components in the backlight are routed to corresponding pixels in the LCD panel with a high-precision level of light control. There is still potential for blooming, but color shift is minimized, enabling colors to retain their purity at both on- and off-axis viewing angles. Screen size is another benefit to Sony’s tech. OLED TVs are available in sizes up to 97 inches, but it currently isn’t cost-effective to produce them in sizes above 83 inches – hence, the steep price jump from around $5,000 for an 83-inch OLED like the LG G4 to around $20,000 for the 97-inch version. Sony claims that LCD TVs using its new RGB LED tech can be scaled up to ultra-large screen sizes more cost-effectively than OLED TVs, which will allow for the development of 100-inch-plus displays that, unlike OLED, can compete price-wise with conventional mini-LED models. RGB LED in action My recent visit to Sony’s Tokyo headquarters included an extensive demonstration session with the new RGB LED tech. A prototype TV was set up on its own, and a second one was displayed next to the company’s flagship Bravia 9 – however, I wasn’t able to take any photos or videos of it, sadly. Sony’s demo largely verified its claims for its new technology. Images had striking color saturation and detail, and there was virtually no visible backlight blooming – the prototype TV was better than the Bravia 9 in this respect. Colors in darker images also maintained good saturation, and the picture contrast had the same “infinite” quality you typically see on the best OLED TVs. Equally impressive was the prototype TV’s off-axis picture quality. Colors looked equally uniform and bright when viewed at extreme angles, and contrast levels were retained. That level of performance is something you normally only see with OLED TVs, and QD-OLED models in particular, so seeing it on a mini-LED TV was an entirely new experience for me. Another aspect of the demo I found impressive was the anti-reflective screen used for Sony’s prototype TV. The Bravia 9’s X-Anti Reflection screen proved to be very effective at reducing glare from overhead lights when I tested it, but the prototype TV sitting next to the Bravia 9 in Sony’s brightly lit demo room even more effectively eliminated it. Checkmate OLED? A Sony visualization showing the color volume benefits of its new RGB LED backlight tech. (Image credit: Sony) While it’s true that the demo I saw of Sony’s new RGB LED TV prototype was the closest I’ve seen LCD tech come to rivalling OLED – something I previously stated about the Bravia 9 – I’m sure OLED still has plenty of life in it yet. The opportunity here for Sony and other companies working on TVs with RGB backlights is to boost mini-LED performance factors – specifically, color space coverage, black uniformity, contrast, and off-axis uniformity – to a level that rivals OLED TVs. If they can do that while maintaining competitive pricing, OLED will have good reason to sweat. You might also like…
LG has announced pricing for LG C5 OLED models Launch prices are exactly the same as last year’s LG C4 Pre-orders are available through LG LG has revealed pricing for select models of the LG C5, the mid-range OLED in its 2025 TV lineup, and prices are stable compared to last year. The successor to the LG C4, one of the best TVs released in 2024, select LG C5 models are available to pre-order directly from LG. The models available for pre-order are the 42, 55, 65 and 77-inch and pricing for each is as follows: LG 42-inch C5 OLED: £1,399.99 LG 55-inch C5 OLED: £1,900 LG 65-inch C5 OLED: £2,699.99 LG 77-inch C5 OLED: £3,799.99 LG seems to have prioritised the most popular sizes in the range, with pre-orders and pricing for the 48 and 83-inch still yet to appear. You may like We’ve also now seen a confirmed release date, with delivery dates on LG’s website labelled as 31st March. You can pre-order the LG C5 in the links below, where there’s a promotion on each available size coming with a free soundbar (models of soundbar vary depending on TV size): The LG C5’s latest features include a new Alpha 9 Gen 8 Processor, which features Brightness Booster tech, and webOS 25, the latest iteration of LG’s smart TV platform. With webOS 25 comes a plethora of new AI features, including AI Concierge (tailored content recommendations), Voice ID and an improved AI Chatbot. There’s also the new AI Sound Wizard, which lets users create their own personal sound mode, and from what we’ve seen of it in action, it’s a fascinating tool that could really be useful for some viewers. The right price (Image credit: Future) Every year when new TVs are announced, we anticipate that the latest models will reflect a £1-200 price rise compared to their predecessors, mainly due to inflation or the addition of some new tech. But after European LG OLED pricing and US LG OLED pricing, both of which showed stable or dropping prices for the C5, were revealed recently, we remained hopeful the same would be true for the UK. For the announced models, that is pretty much the case, and this was a good call by LG. Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. LG’s C-series OLEDs are often among the most popular TVs every year, with their jack-of-all-trades versatility making them excellent for movies. They’re also among the best gaming TVs and come in a wide range of sizes, often for the most competitive price compared to rival sets. Looking at the LG C5 on paper, its specs are not all that different from the C4, other than the features we mentioned above. Sadly, there’s no new OLED four-stack panel, which can be found on the LG G5, or even the micro lens array (MLA) panel used on last year’s G4 this time around. So, naturally, we’d expect there to be no compromise on price, and thankfully, that’s what’s happened. We’re currently testing the LG C5, so expect a full review soon. You might also like
Some Warner Bros DVDs won’t play due to material problems Affected discs were made between 2006 and 2008 Warner Bros is replacing discs, but not all movies are still available Of all the advantages of physical media – picture and sound quality, extra features, impressing visitors to your home with your excellent and eclectic taste – one of the most important ones is permanence. Unlike movies on the best streaming services, movies won’t suddenly disappear from your shelves overnight because of licensing issues or cost-cutting. Unless… they rot. A new plague of disc rot has been discovered, and it’s affecting Warner Bros Home Entertainment movies manufactured between 2006 and 2008. The rot renders the discs unplayable, and while Warner Bros is offering replacements, it can’t replace them all. You may like Why isn’t Warner Bros replacing every rotted disc? The short answer is that it can’t. As the firm explained in a statement, “Where possible, the defective discs have been replaced with the same title. However, as some of the affected titles are no longer in print or the rights have expired, consumers have been offered an exchange for a title of like-value.” Disc rot isn’t new – it affected laserdiscs, and CDs, and every other shiny disc format since. But this particular outbreak is happening very early in the discs’ lifespan. Disc rot is oxidization, and it’s very unusual to have that happen on discs that are still relatively young. In ideal conditions and with careful storage and handling a DVD could last as long as 100 years, and even the lowest lifespan expectation is around 30 years. However, if the manufacturing isn’t perfect, then the lifespan can be much shorter: for example, the phenomenon of disc bronzing, a form of disc rot affecting compact discs in the early 1990s, was largely found in discs made at a specific UK factory between 1988 and 1993. Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. There’s no cure for disc rot, so if you think you might have some of the affected titles it’s a good idea to check them now: disc rot is often visible on the disc itself, usually as a cloudy area, but it’s most apparent when you actually play the disc: rot means it doesn’t work properly. As for prevention, other than careful handling and storage there’s not a great deal you can do to prevent something that’s mostly the result of manufacturing issues. And it’s all especially frustrating in this case, where collectors of physical media may be keeping these discs because a particular movie – or feature, or commentary – is hard to find or not available now. That’s not a problem if Warner Bros can really replace the disc, but when it can’t we’re facing the question of how can we secure access to art for the future? People who rip discs to make a backup aren’t necessarily immune either: rewritable Blu-Rays and DVD discs may only have a lifespan of five to 10 years. But it’s more understandable than ever that people want a backup of the things they want to keep most – even the physical object isn’t safe from change. You might also like
Are you growing tired of your TV’s sub-par audio? Well I promise you this, you’re not alone. A lot of TVs – yes, even some more expensive models – are guilty of plating up unclear dialogue, tinny treble and thin bass. But since I added a soundbar to my setup, I’ve freed myself of such issues and watching my favorite movies or TV shows never felt better. But a lot of you may be thinking that a good soundbar will set you back quite some way. And OK, if you want the crème de la crème, you’re right; some of the best Dolby Atmos soundbars, for instance, won’t come cheap. Having said that, I’ve tested some of the absolute best cheap soundbars on the market and now I’m convinced – there’s an option for everyone, whether your budget is around $300 or under $100. So, I’ve collected a list of five budget bars that will take your viewing experiences to the next level. Let’s take a look… Sony HT-SF150 (Image credit: Future) I’d like to begin with a real favorite of mine, the Sony HT-SF150, or HT-S100F for those of you in the States. This isn’t the newest soundbar on the market – there’s nothing flashy like Dolby Atmos or DTS:X support, but it just nails the basics. You may like Firstly, it’s ultra-cheap, often appearing on sale for less than $100 / £90 / AU$180 – that’s a phenomenally low price. But don’t be deceived: that low price is not indicative of the bar’s quality. The HT-SF150 also offers up clear dialogue, meaning you can keep those pesky subtitles turned off. And you can adjust audio to suit whatever content you’re viewing by switching between the soundbar’s Standard, Cinema, Music, Night, and crisp-sounding Voice modes. On top of all of that, the HT-SF150 harnesses the power of Sony’s S-Force Front Surround virtual processing, which aims to emulate “cinema-style surround sound”. Now that might be a bit out of reach for this bar, but still, I was impressed by the width of audio and felt on-screen action was mapped pretty effectively to boot. Pair that with the soundbar’s surprisingly sleek looks and you’re staring at a value champion. Read our full Sony HT-SF150 review. Hisense HS214 (Image credit: Future) But hold on: let’s say you’re working with a bit less space. Well, the Hisense HS214 could be the perfect option for you. This is another sub-$100 option, coming in at $99 / £79, but unlike the Sony HT-SF150, this is a mini soundbar. The HS214’s diminutive build makes it is ideal if you live in a dorm room or small-sized apartment and want a soundbar that seamlessly slots into your TV setup. But despite its truncated size, this thing is able to pack quite the punch. It boasts a maximum power output of 108W and has a built-in subwoofer for some added weight in the low-end. Does it dish out truly booming bass? Not quite. But if will be a significant step-up on a lot of TVs – especially smaller models that often serve up disappointing sound. Yep, that even includes some of the best small TVs. What’s more, this soundbar comes with EQ options of its own, is simple to setup and has every connection type under the sun – including HDMI ARC. It can’t create quite as broad a spatial impression as the HT-SF150, though. That’s partially inherent to its more restricted width, but its included Surround Mode also sounds a bit tinny – so if you want truly expansive audio, the Sony alternative may be a better fit. But all in all, this surprisingly powerful soundbar is a super solid option if you’re looking for a quick and cheap upgrade on plain TV audio. Read our full Hisense HS214 review. Panasonic SC-HTB100 (Image credit: Future) And for my next trick: a UK exclusive. Sorry, US folk. I’d like to shed some light on the Panasonic SC-HTB100, which sees us return to full-sized soundbars once again. This model is ultra-cheap, often retailing for less than £80, but I was surprised to find that out myself. Why? Well, above all, I was impressed by how clear and well-positioned vocals sounded with this soundbar. Both higher and lower-pitched voices are pretty neatly separated, rarely sounding muffled or disrupted in the overall mix. Sure, this isn’t the most powerful bar and bass isn’t going to blow you away – but if you listen to a lot of radio or documentaries, for instance, the crisp reproduction of vocals makes this bar worth it alone. Another reason to choose the Panasonic SC-HTB100 is its Bluetooth connectivity. This bar uses Bluetooth 5.0 – more up-to-date than the previous two’s Bluetooth 4.2. And of course the big win there is you can seamlessly connect your phone up to the soundbar and play your favorite tunes from Spotify, Apple Music and the like. I found music quality to be pretty decent on the SC-HTB100 – not as good as the best Bluetooth speakers or anything – but still clear and tonally accurate, especially in Music mode. Read our full Panasonic SC-HTB100 review. Bose Solo Soundbar 2 (Image credit: Future) Another small-sized option I enjoyed using was the Bose Solo Soundbar 2. I’ll come clean from the get-go… there’s no HDMI connectivity option here, so you’ll have to use the included-remote to adjust volume output. But picture this: you have a Playstation 5, a Nintendo Switch and a Blu-ray player. Oh no! You have no more HDMI ports remaining. But the optical connection will render that insignificant. So, if you don’t want to keep swapping out one of your consoles or accessories, the optical route may be a better fit for you anyway. Regardless, let’s talk about the soundbar itself. Again, it’s surprisingly powerful for such a tiny model, with a maximum power output of 100W. It also has adjustable bass levels, so you can get fairly meaty low-end audio – a big plus when watching movies with dark, imposing soundtracks. On top of that, there’s Dialogue Mode, which is effective at lifting speech out in busier scenes, or just giving crisp clarity when streaming podcasts, for example. Like the Hisense HS214, you can’t expect particularly striking expansiveness from this soundbar, in part down to its small size. But a more positive similarity is that this is again, a pretty attractive-looking model, with a responsive remote and straightforward setup process. It’s not too expensive for a Bose product either, carrying a list price of $199 / £179.95 / AU$359.95 – and it’s sometimes available at a cut-price too. Read our full Bose Solo Soundbar 2 review. Sony HT-S2000 (Image credit: Future) Maybe I’m being a bit cheeky here, but I just have to circle back to Sony and shout out the HT-S2000 model. In honesty, this bar isn’t quite as cheap as the previously mentioned soundbars, but still, it’s by no means super-expensive. We’ve even seen it drop to less than $300 in the US and that’s unbeatable value as far as I’m concerned. That’s because this soundbar packs almost everything you need into one comprehensive package. And I mean that literally: this is a standalone 3.1 soundbar that can play Dolby Atmos and DTS:X soundtracks to a high standard and deeply immerse you in the action, courtesy of Sony’s proprietary processing tech. It’s quite rare, in my experience, to find a more budget-friendly soundbar that can do Atmos justice. But when I tested this bar myself, I was really impressed by the verticality on offer – sounds can easily exceed the height of your TV screen, making for significantly more engaging viewing. Again, you can expect the HT-S200 to handle the fundamentals – be it crisp dialogue, neat aesthetics and a straightforward setup. But it even gets trickier things right too, be that deep bass output, adept music replication or accurate mapping of on-screen activity. It’s worth noting that this is a chunkier bar than some of the alternatives I’ve listed above, so make sure you have plenty of space on your TV unit – that is if you don’t fancy setting it up on a rack. Read our full Sony HT-S2000 review. So, there you have it. My picks for the best soundbars if you’re on a budget. As you may have noticed, a lot of these models sit closer to the $100 side of the spectrum, which really goes to prove that stepping up from TV audio doesn’t have to be a crazy expensive endeavour. Of course, some of these options won’t rock your world with booming bass or the delights of Dolby Atmos – but I can still vouch for their impressive sound quality. If you’re looking for a real top-tier performer, check out our guide to the best soundbars, where we’ve curated a list of the most elite options available today. You might also like
Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test. Philips OLED+959 review: Two minute review The Philips OLED+959 is a superb, premium OLED TV. It goes toe-to-toe with the best TVs, especially when it comes to built-in sound, but several things hold it back from immortality. The Philips OLED+959’s strong contrast and black levels, realistic detail and vibrant color all rival the best OLED TVs. Combined with Philips’ Ambilight feature, the OLED+959 really does provide a unique home-viewing experience. Motion processing can require some setup and upscaling of lower-resolution SDR sources could be better (it could take a page here from other flagship OLEDs such as the Samsung S95D and LG G4), but the OLED+959’s overall picture quality is excellent. Sound is what sets the OLED+959 apart. Its built-in 5.1.2-channel speaker system is powerful, immersive, and dynamic and can easily substitute for most of the best soundbars. Even Dolby Atmos height effects are audible! The OLED+959 easily joins the other best TVs for sound, with the Panasonic Z95A only really offering similar quality. You may like The OLED+959 looks like a premium TV, and while I’m always happy to see Ambilight on a TV, the new Ambilight Plus system introduces movement into the mix and may be too cluttered for some. Using it, I found myself longing for the standard Ambilight system. It’s also a hefty TV with a divisive stand design, but Philips’ use of fabric material gives it a good look. The OLED+959 carries most features found on the best gaming TVs and has the performance to match, with 4K 144Hz, VRR, ALLM, Dolby Vision gaming support, plus a 12.6ms input lag time. While its performance won’t beat the best LG and Samsung TVs, it’s undoubtedly a great OLED for gaming. Google TV is a serviceable smart TV platform that rounds out the whole package. The OLED+959’s software is responsive, but the home screen feels very cluttered with a large banner ad. Given what it offers, the OLED+959 carries a premium price tag, but when its closest rivals are roughly £1,000 cheaper, it’s tough to ignore the price gap. Still, if you have the budget, the OLED+959 is a fantastic TV. Philips OLED+959 review: Prices & release dates The Philips OLED+959 demonstrates realistic textures and detail (Image credit: Future) First released: October 2024 65-inch price: £3,999 The Philips OLED+959 is the flagship OLED TV in Philips’ 2024 TV range, sitting above the Philips OLED759, Philips OLED809 and Philips OLED909. On its release in November 2024, the OLED+959 cost £3,999 for the 65-inch model (the only size available), placing it at the very premium end of the market. Since its release, prices have dropped, with the OLED+959 now retailing for around £2,999. While this is a significant price cut, it still puts the OLED+959 above other premium OLEDs such as the LG G4 and Samsung S95D, both of which cost roughly £1,999. Philips OLED+959 review: Specs Swipe to scroll horizontally Screen type: OLED Refresh rate: 144Hz HDR support: Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HDR10, HLG Audio support: Dolby Atmos Smart TV: Google TV HDMI ports: 4 (2x HDMI 2.1) Philips OLED+959 review: Benchmark results Philips OLED+959 review: Features Ambilight is a unique feature that sets Philips TVs apart from others, but the new Ambilight Plus may be a little busy for some (Image credit: Future) New Ambilight Plus 5.1.2-channel Dolby Atmos speaker system Philips P5 AI Dual Action Engine The Philips OLED+959 features the company’s P5 AI Dual Engine Processor and META 2.0 OLED panel with micro lens array (MLA), the same tech found in the LG G4 and Panasonic Z95A OLEDs. It supports all HDR formats, including Dolby Vision and HDR10+, and both the Dolby Atmos and DTS:X audio formats. The OLED+959’s most unique feature is Ambilight Plus technology, an upgraded version of Ambilight that can be found on most Philips TVs, including its step-down OLED809 and OLED909 models. Ambilight Plus not only projects colours onto the wall behind and around the TV but also generates movement and shadows that extend the on-screen action. The OLED+959’s built-in 5.1.2 channel Bowers & Wilkins sound system contains 18 drivers powered by a robust 102W. The system has a front speaker array for left, right and centre channels, two side-firing and two up-firing channels, and a rear-mounted subwoofer. For gaming, the OLED+959 supports 4K 120Hz, VRR including AMD FreeSync Premium and Nvidia GSync, HGiG, Dolby Vision gaming and ALLM, and it has a Game Bar menu that allows for settings customization during gaming. Only two HDMI 2.1 ports are provided. One of the OLED+959’s more eye-catching features is its supplied stand, which sits approximately 473mm off the ground. The OLED+959 uses Google TV as its smart TV platform, but it’s worth noting that it does not support Freeview Play with its UK-based streaming apps, such as BBC iPlayer and ITVX. Features score: 4.5/5 Philips OLED+959 review: Picture quality Ambilight gives the OLED+959’s bold, vibrant, and accurate colours an extra layer, as shown here on Elemental (Image credit: Future) Stunning, vibrant colours Great detail and contrast Picture upscaling could be better Starting off with brightness measurements, the Philips OLED+959 achieved 2,050 nits peak brightness (measured on a 10% white window HDR pattern) in Personal mode (used as Standard) and 1,296 nits in Filmmaker Mode. On a fullscreen HDR window pattern, the OLED+959 measured 277 nits and 271 nits in Personal mode and Filmmaker Mode, respectively. (Philips claims the OLED panel in the OLED+959 is capable of 3,000 nits max brightness, but the maximum I measured was 2,502 nits on a 2% HDR window pattern in Vivid mode.) Moving on to reference viewing, I began by watching an HD-quality Disney Plus stream of Fight Club. While the picture was mostly fine, I have seen better upscaling on other premium OLED sets, particularly the Samsung S95D. This was also the case with low-resolution broadcast TV, where textures were on the fuzzy side. Watching a 4K Dolby Vision stream of Elemental on Disney Plus, the OLED+959 showcased bold, dynamic and vibrant colours throughout, with the orange of fire and blue of water popping on the screen with a shimmery glow. A 4K Dolby Vision stream of Star Wars: The Last Jedi also showed off the OLED+959’s accurate colour reproduction, with reds in the throne room fight scene displayed with real authenticity and punch. In both instances, Ambilight gave colours an even brighter quality. When measuring the BT.2020 and UHDA-P3 HDR color gamut coverage of the OLED+959, it yielded 75.1% and 98.5%, respectively – both fantastic results and ones that validate its superb color when I watched movies. It also achieved an average of 1.7 for color accuracy (we look for an average below 3), another great result. The OLED+959 has superb contrast, with excellent balance between light and dark tones, as shown here in The Batman. (Image credit: Future) The contrast and black levels on the OLED+959 were refined and deep. In the opening crime scene of The Batman, the balance between light and dark tones was superb, with excellent shadow detail on display in clothing and objects. Even the darkest scenes accurately captured the movie’s gritty tone and look. Watching Oppenheimer, the black and white scenes also showed a wide range of subtle grey tones. The OLED+959 demonstrated accurate, refined textures and detail across all the movies and TV shows I watched. In the close-up shots in Top Gun: Maverick and The Batman, facial features such as hair and skin looked clear and authentic. I found I didn’t need to make any changes to most picture settings throughout my viewing. When watching HD streams of sport, including soccer, however, I had to make adjustments to motion, setting blur and judder reduction to 3 or 4. For movies, motion was generally handled well. In Top Gun: Maverick, for example, training missions and flight sequences looked smooth, but I felt I’d seen them look smoother on rival OLEDs such as the Samsung S95D and LG G4. Picture quality score: 4.5/5 Philips OLED+959 review: Sound quality The OLED+959 features a robust-sounding 5.1.2 Bowers & Wilkins speaker system (front speaker array shown here) (Image credit: Future) Powerful built-in sound Accurate and immersive Possibly the best built-in TV sound I’ve heard The OLED+959 has a built-in Bowers & Wilkins 5.1.2 channel, 102W sound system and supports Dolby Atmos and DTS:X soundtracks. It also has AI sound and bass enhancement as well as EQ and Room Calibration features. The OLED+959’s speaker array is one of the most impressive built-in sound systems I’ve ever experienced on a TV, and it eliminates any need to connect a soundbar. Watching the Penguin/Batmobile chase scene from The Batman, the rumbling bass of the Batmobile’s engine was powerful and hefty but well controlled. As car tyres screeched and vehicles weaved in and out of traffic, the placement of sound was pinpoint accurate in the front speaker array and well-connected to the action on screen. Dolby Atmos overhead effects like rain were audible and well-balanced with other elements in the mix, and the soundstage was wide and immersive. It was a similar story with Top Gun: Maverick, with the Mach 10 scene in the movie’s opening showing off the expressive, dynamic capabilities of the OLED+959’s speakers. Subtle surround effects such as wind and the Darkstar jet’s creaking panels could be heard clearly amidst the boom of engines, and dialogue throughout the movies and TV shows I watched was crystal clear. Philips OLED+959 review: Design Ambilight Plus version might be too busy for some Included stand Premium backlit remote control While the OLED+959’s stand design is unique in the TV world, some may find it cumbersome (Image credit: Future) The OLED+959 carries some unique features that set it apart from other TVs. First, it comes with Ambilight, which projects coloured lights around and behind the TV. I’m a fan of Ambilight, which adds another dimension to the viewing experience, making the picture feel bigger and more immersive. The OLED+959 comes with the latest Ambilight Plus system, which further extends the movement of images on screen to the coloured lights on show. While this adds an extra twist to traditional Ambilight, I felt it occasionally looked too busy and distracting and found myself longing for the standard Ambilight system. The OLED+95’s meaty sound system necessarily makes it a thick TV by modern standards. On the positive side, the fabric around the frame and front speakers gives it a premium look and helps negate this added depth. The OLED+959 also has a trim bezel, allowing the picture to be the main feature. The OLED+959 is supplied with a heavy-duty stand that positions the TV roughly 473mm from the floor. It’s worth noting that when connected to its stand, the OLED+959 is a weighty TV, clocking in at 44.5kg. The OLED+959 comes with Philips’ premium TV remote, which is USB-C rechargeable and lights up when moved – useful for viewing in darker conditions. It’s made of a matte, metal material and feels reassuringly solid. Design score: 4.5/5 Philips OLED+959 review: Smart TV & menus The OLED+959 uses Google TV as its smart TV platform, complete with large banner ads. (Image credit: Future) Google TV smart TV platform Big home screen banner ads Good number of picture and sound settings The OLED+959 uses Google TV as its smart TV platform, which supports apps such as Netflix, Disney Plus and Prime Video. However, it’s worth noting that it does not support Freeview, UK-based apps such as BBC iPlayer and ITVX. If you want access to these, you will need to add one of the best streaming devices such as an Amazon Fire TV Stick. Google TV is a solid enough smart TV platform. The home screen provides easy access to apps, with the main ones laid out in a horizontal row. There are content recommendations from apps based on your viewing history, but this requires a sign-in to a Google account. There is no ignoring the large banner ad at the top of the home screen, which not only takes up a large portion of the screen but can also be a video, which I found annoying There are a good number of picture and sound settings provided for those who like to adjust the picture and sound to suit their tastes. There are also advanced controls for calibration for those who really like to fine-tune things. Navigating menus is smooth enough and the TV software feels responsive. Smart TV & menus score: 4/5 Philips OLED+959 review: Gaming The OLED+959 is packed with gaming features, including a Game Bar shown here with Battlefield V (Image credit: Future) 4K 144Hz, VRR, Dolby Vision gaming and ALLM 12.6ms input lag time Only two HDMI 2.1 ports The OLED+959 is well equipped for gaming, with 4K 144Hz, VRR including AMD FreeSync Premium and Nvidia G-Sync, HGiG, Dolby Vision gaming and ALLM all supported. There is also a Game Mode with optimized settings and a Game Bar menu where settings can be further adjusted. Performance is responsive and smooth, with graphically intense action sequences and fast-paced gaming all well-handled. When playing Battlefield V at 120fps on Xbox Series X, scanning the environment in chaotic battle sequences was an easy and judder-free experience. The OLED+959’s input lag measured at 12.6ms, which doesn’t beat the very best 120Hz TVs from LG and Samsung, but is still below the 15ms most gamers look for. Picture quality while gaming is also very strong, especially with games in Dolby Vision (a limited category). The textures are accurate, colours are vibrant, contrast is balanced, and the details of the environments and weapons look intricate and true-to-life. Those looking for an OLED TV for gaming will be pleased. Gaming score: 4.5/5 Philips OLED+959 review: Value The OLED+959’s supplied remote met our expectations for a premium TV remote (Image credit: Future) Pricier than rival flagship OLEDs Premium design and performance Step-down Philips OLED909 has similar picture quality Overall, the OLED+959 is a fantastic but expensive TV that’s noticeably pricier than rival flagship OLEDs. It’s currently priced at £2,999 for a 65-inch screen(a £1,000 discount since its launch in October 2024), while the Samsung S95D and LG G4 65-inch models are available for roughly £1,999. While the OLED+959 has the bonus of a significantly better built-in sound system than its rivals, it’s tough to ignore that £1,000 price difference, which can easily net you one of the best Dolby Atmos soundbars, such as the Samsung HW-Q990D. The OLED+959 is a premium TV with premium performance and features, so a premium price tag is expected. While it does tick all the boxes, Philips fans could also look to the step-down Philips OLED909, which delivers the same gaming features and performance and similar overall picture quality to the OLED+959 (and arguably better Ambilight) for £2,199 – an £800 saving. Value score: 3.5/5 Should I buy the Philips OLED+959? (Image credit: Future) Swipe to scroll horizontally Philips OLED+959 Attributes Notes Rating Features META 2.0,MLA OLED panel, 5.1.2-channel sound system, good stock of gaming features and Ambilight Plus 4.5/5 Picture quality Superb color, contrast, black levels and details, but upscaling could be better 4.5/5 Sound quality Powerful, immersive and dynamic system that rivals soundbars 5/5 Design Premium appearance with unique stand, but some may find it cumbersome. New Ambilight Plus a divisive feature 4/5 Smart TV and menus Google TV is serviceable with plenty of settings, but home screen is obscured by large banner ad 4/5 Gaming Fantastic suite of gaming features, but only two HDMI 2.1 ports 4/5 Value Premium price expected for performance and features, but significantly pricier than rivals 3.5/5 Buy it if… Don’t buy it if… Also Consider Swipe to scroll horizontally Header Cell – Column 0 Philips OLED+959 Samsung S95D LG G4 Panasonic Z95A Price (65-inch) £3,999 $3,399 / £3,399 $3,399 / £3,299 $3,100 / £3,899 Screen type OLED (MLA) OLED OLED OLED Refresh rate 144Hz 144Hz 144Hz 144Hz HDR support Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HDR10, HLG HDR10+/HDR10/HLG Dolby Vision/HDR10+/HDR10/HLG Dolby Vision/HDR10+/HDR10/HLG Smart TV Google TV Tizen webOS 24 Fire TV HDMI ports 4 (2x HDMI 2.1) 4 x HDMI 2.1 4 x HDMI 2.1 4 (2x HDMI 2.1) How I tested the Philips OLED+959 Image 1 of 2 (Image credit: Future) These photos were taken in brighter conditions for photographic purposes – measurements are normally taken in pitch black conditions. (Image credit: Future) Tested in lab in various lighting conditions Tested using both SDR and HDR sources Measurements were taken using specialized equipment and Portrait Displays’ Calman Color calibration software After some casual viewing to determine the most accurate picture mode (Filmmaker Mode in this case), I began critical testing of the Philips OLED+959 using SDR (broadcast TV and HD streaming) and HDR (4K streaming and 4K Blu-ray) sources. I used reference scenes to test the picture quality, analysing colour, contrast, detail, upscaling, motion and black levels. I also used these scenes to test the OLED+959’s built-in speakers and sound quality. For 4K Blu-ray testing, I used the Panasonic DP-UB820 4K Blu-ray player, and to test gaming features and performance, I used an Xbox Series X. I next took measurements using a colourimeter, test pattern generator and Portrait Displays Calman color calibration software to record the measurements. I tested the OLED+959’s brightness using both SDR and HDR white window patterns ranging in size from 1-100% screen coverage. I tested these in both Standard (in this case Personal) and Filmmaker Mode picture modes. I also tested the OLED+959’s colour and greyscale accuracy, looking for an average Delta E value (the margin for error between the test pattern and what’s shown on screen) lower than 3 for both tests. I also tested the OLED+959’s HDR colour gamut coverage, measuring the BT.2020 and UHDA-P3 colour spaces. Input lag was tested using a Leo Bodnar 4K HDMI input lag tester.
I. Loathe. The. Sonos. App. Sorry for that appalling punctuation, but since the firm retooled and relaunched its application last year, thousands of Sonos fans have been forced to endure audio anguish. Up until recently, it was about as dependable as a starving fox guarding a hen house. Not long ago, we labelled 2024 as the year Sonos slipped. Why? Largely because of the redesigned Sonos app’s refusal to play ball with many of the company’s soundbars and smart speakers, like the wonderful Sonos Era 300. I was first introduced to how annoying the app was a few months ago when I installed the updated software on my iPad Pro 13-inch (2024). All of a sudden, I could no longer tweak my EQ settings due to a maddening failed login loop that kept telling me to “Sign in as the System Owner to see this content” on both my tablet and iPhone 14 Pro. You may like It was only recently when I bought the Sonos Arc Ultra that I dared go near the app again. For the first two weeks of owning what we consider to be “the best one-box Dolby Atmos soundbar”, the System Owner loop was still stuck in full Groundhog Day mode for me… minus the Bill Murray-provided chuckles. I would also say that this, perhaps, is not the most efficient use of space… (Image credit: Future) The sweet sound of success Finally, I was presented with a glimmer of hope when I installed the app on my Asus Zephyrus G14 laptop. As soon as it allowed me to sign in as the owner of my system – a gobsmacking privilege, I know – the app suddenly started playing nice on my Apple devices. This meant I could at long last tweak the EQ of the best soundbar Sonos has ever made. Sadly though, more software sadness soon presented itself. The app forced me to resync every one of my Sonos devices – a setup that spans the Arc Ultra, two Sonos Subs and a pair of Sonos Era 300 speakers. Cue an hour-long experiment in twisted torture that involved scanning the pairing buttons of all my Sonos kit with my iPhone’s camera. The process proved to be incredibly finicky, and it took me around seven attempts on both of my Sonos Subs before the app finally recognized them. My poor, utterly ruined knees. After obliterating all of my cartilage, my Sonos surround sound setup mercifully at least sounds glorious. And during that fortnight when I couldn’t sync my Era 300 speakers and subwoofers, it made me appreciate how much of an audio upgrade the Arc Ultra provides over the OG Sonos Arc. Kai hard With my subs out of action during the App Incident, I could instantly appreciate just how much weightier the bass of the Ultra was compared to the original Arc. Another significant improvement? The way the Arc Ultra handles Dolby Atmos effects. While watching the exhilarating final few episodes of Cobra Kai season 6, it was easy to hear the added height the Ultra pumped out sound during all that kickass karate action. Patience was necessary to achieve (sound) balance. (Image credit: Future) I also really appreciate how much clearer dialogue sounds on the Arc Ultra. While I never had many problems while watching the best Disney+ movies on my old soundbar, it was definitely an issue when playing some of the best PS5 games. On the Arc Ultra, though, playing through Cyberpunk 2077 again is proving to be a delight. That’s in part because the voices of V, Johnny Silverhand and friends feel so much more enhanced; no longer being drowned out by the background buzz of Night City’s streets that blare from my Sonos Era 300 rear speakers. Though I’ve only owned it for less than a month, I already consider the Arc Ultra the best piece of audio equipment Sonos has ever released. There’s no question that it’s one of the best soundbars you can buy today. I just wish I hadn’t gone through all that app agony to appreciate its full glory. You might also like…
LG’s OLED TVs have been some of the best OLED TVs in the business, and the LG G4 was no exception. As one of the most popular high-end models of 2024, it impressed with its bright OLED panel, powerful processing, and sleek design. At CES 2025 LG introduced the LG G5 (shown above at right, alongside the LG G4), promising even better brightness, smarter processing, and improved connectivity. But how much of a step up is it, and is it worth upgrading, both for LG G4 owners and others? The LG G4 already delivers fantastic picture quality with its Micro Lens Array (MLA) panel and Alpha 11 processor, and the LG G5 takes things further with a brighter OLED panel, a new Alpha 11 AI Gen2 processor, and a smarter, AI-powered experience. You may like Anyone looking to get the best OLED TV is likely to have some cash to spend, and neither of these models is cheap. Fortunately, based on the announced European pricing for the G5 and other LG OLED models, pricing for the G5 looks to be in line with last year’s G4. LG’s new G5 OLED carries the same thin, wall-hugging design as the LG G4 (Image credit: LG) LG G5 vs LG G4 OLED: design and build LG’s G-series OLED TVs have always had a premium, minimalist design, and that hasn’t changed with the LG G5. Like the LG G4, it’s built to sit flush against the wall with its sleek “Gallery” style, making it look more like a high-end piece of decor than a traditional TV. The LG G4 was already impressively slim, with an almost bezel-free screen and a solid, high-quality finish. The LG G5 follows the same design philosophy, but LG has seemingly made some refinements to improve durability and heat management. While these changes aren’t as flashy as a complete redesign, they should help with long-term performance and possibly increase longevity. Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. One thing to note is that LG only included a stand in the box for the 65- and 55-inch G4 models, and we expect the same for the G5. These TVs are designed primarily for wall mounting, and 77-inch and larger models come with a wall mount. The earlier G4 (shown above) was already a sufficiently bright TV thanks to its MLA display tech, now superseded in the G5 by a new ‘four-stack’ OLED panel (Image credit: Future) LG G5 vs LG G4 OLED: display, brightness, and picture quality When the LG G4 launched, it set a new standard for OLED brightness thanks to its Micro Lens Array (MLA) panel, which helped improve light efficiency and peak brightness. Combined with LG’s Alpha 11 processor, it delivers vibrant colours, deep blacks, and excellent HDR performance. The LG G4 was also praised for its dynamic tone mapping, which helped adjust brightness levels on a scene-by-scene basis to maintain realistic contrast. With the LG G5, LG has taken a completely different approach. Instead of refining MLA tech, the G5 introduces a brand-new four-stack OLED panel design. This new structure allows for higher peak brightness (potentially up to 4,000 nits in future OLED models) without relying on MLA. The shift to a four-stack design improves both efficiency and durability while maintaining OLED’s signature deep blacks and colour accuracy, meaning that while MLA improved brightness through optical layering, the G5’s new panel fundamentally changes how light is produced, leading to brighter highlights and better fullscreen brightness (a 40% improvement over the G4, according to LG). Another change is the introduction of the Alpha 11 AI Gen2 processor. To be sure, the LG G4’s Alpha 11 chip already did a great job with AI upscaling and motion processing, but the Alpha 10 takes things a step further with better real-time adjustments for brightness, contrast, and detail enhancement. Motion handling is another area where the LG G5 should make improvements. The G4 was already strong in this regard, especially for fast-moving sports and action scenes, but the G5 is expected to offer even smoother frame transitions and reduced motion blur. For HDR formats, both the G4 and G5 support Dolby Vision, HDR10, and HLG (but not HDR10+), so there’s no difference in compatibility. However, with the improved panel brightness and processing, Dolby Vision content on the G5 should look slightly better, and there’s also a new Filmmaker Mode with Ambient Light Compensation that dynamically boosts gamma (the range between brightest white and darkest black) based on room lighting conditions. LG’s webOS smart TV interface (Image credit: Future) LG G5 vs LG G4 OLED: smart features LG’s webOS has been a major selling point for its OLED TVs, and the LG G4 shipped with webOS 24, which introduced a more personalised home screen, faster navigation, and better recommendations based on viewing habits. It also features AI-driven picture and sound enhancements, a dedicated gaming dashboard, and seamless integration with smart assistants like Google Assistant and Alexa, all of which are nice to have. The LG G5 builds on this with webOS 25, which is set to include more refined AI personalisation. LG has hinted at an improved user experience with faster load times, a cleaner interface, and multi-user profiles enabled by AI Voice ID, so different household members can have their own tailored recommendations. Another big focus for the G5 is AI-powered content curation. While the G4 already suggested content based on watch history, the G5 takes this further by dynamically adjusting recommendations in real-time, taking into account trends, genres, and even the time of day. For smart home integration, both TVs support Apple HomeKit, Google Home, and Matter, so users can control smart devices directly from the TV. The G5 may improve responsiveness, but overall, both models offer a strong connected experience. One potential advantage of the G5 is longer-term software support. LG has committed to up to four years of updates for its latest webOS versions, so buyers of the G5 will likely receive new features and optimisations for longer than those with the G4. LG’s Game Bar gaming menu (Image credit: Future) LG G5 vs LG G4 OLED: audio, gaming, and connectivity Audio has always been something of a weak spot for ultra-thin OLED TVs, and the LG G4 was no exception, featuring virtual 11.1.2 surround sound, powered by AI Sound Pro, which attempted to simulate an immersive audio experience. While it worked reasonably well for casual viewing, most users still preferred pairing it with a soundbar for deeper bass and better spatial effects. The LG G5 doesn’t drastically overhaul the audio hardware, but LG has hinted at improved speaker tuning and better virtual surround processing. The G5 still supports Dolby Atmos, but with a more refined approach to sound placement, making dialogue clearer and action sequences feel more immersive. However, like the G4, it will likely still benefit from an external sound system for those who want truly cinematic audio. On the gaming front, both the G4 and G5 are packed with features that make them ideal for PS5, Xbox Series X, and high-end PC gaming. The G4 offers four HDMI 2.1 ports capable of 4K at 144Hz VRR with AMD FreeSync and NVIDIA G-Sync and Dolby Vision gaming support. These features ensure smooth gameplay with minimal input lag, which was already impressive on the G4, and the new G5 bumps VRR support up to a 165Hz refresh rate. One of the most significant new features of the G5 is wireless 4K video transmission. LG has introduced Zero Connect tech, allowing the TV to receive a wireless 4K signal from a separate hub, which means you can keep consoles and media players out of sight while still enjoying full-resolution and low-latency. In terms of connectivity, both TVs support Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.0. The new LG G5 OLED TV at CES 2025 (Image credit: Future) LG G5 vs LG G4 OLED: Is it good value? The LG G4 launched at a premium price, reflecting its status as one of the best OLED TVs of 2024. Over time, however, its price dropped, making it a great value for those looking for high-end picture quality without the latest features. As of early 2025, it’s still one of the best OLED TVs available, especially when discounted (or even spread across multiple payments). The LG G5, is expected to launch at a similar price as the G4 did originally. Our guestimation of the LG G5’s pricing is as follows: OLED48G4: $2,299 / £1,799 / AU$3,599 OLED55G4: $2,599 / £2,399 / AU$4,199 OLED65G4: $3,399 / £3,299 / AU$5,299 OLED77G4: $4,599 / £4,490 / AU$7,999 OLED83G4: $6,499 / £7,000 / AU$9,999 OLED97G4: $24,999 / £24,999 If you already own an LG G4, the differences may not be significant enough to warrant an upgrade. But for first-time buyers looking for the best OLED experience, the G5 offers subtle but meaningful improvements that enhance both picture and usability. Ultimately, if getting the absolute best OLED TV matters, the LG G5 is the smarter choice. But if you can find an LG G4 at a significant discount, it remains an outstanding option, delivering nearly the same level of performance at a lower price.
A Complete Unknown is an Academy Award-nominated biopic that details Bob Dylan’s meteoric rise as an artist in the early 1960s. To be honest, until I saw the film at a private screening in the McIntosh House of Sound’s jaw-dropping statement theater, he was never among my favorite musicians. Surprisingly – or maybe not so surprising – I left the House of Sound theater that night a huge Dylan fan. McIntosh had granted me a private pre-movie interview with five-time Oscar-nominated production sound mixer Tod Maitland, who was responsible for recording all of A Complete Unknown’s soundtrack, including dialogue, singing, instruments, and environmental sounds. Maitland, who is highly accomplished in his field, has worked on over 100 movies, including I Am Legend, The Greatest Showman, JFK, Joker, Seabiscuit, Tootsie, and West Side Story. I had previously visited the 11,000-square-foot, luxuriously appointed House of Sound to experience the movie Top Gun: Maverick. With its massive banks of McIntosh amps and Sonus faber speakers, the theater is a 29-channel, 16-subwoofer audiophile oasis. A McIntosh home theater processor feeds nine monoblock and ten stereo amplifiers that output a total of 14,500 watts. There are 21 Sonus faber Arena speakers spread throughout, ten of which are ceiling-mounted. Sonus also makes the theater’s 16 Arena S15 subwoofers, with four used for LFE (low frequency effects) and twelve timed to work with the Arena speakers. You may like For video, the theater features a Sony 4K projector, a 204-inch Screen Research screen, and a Kaleidescape movie player. The author (left) with A Complete Unknown’s sound mixer Tod Maitland (right) (Image credit: Future / Howard Kneller) Recording A Complete Unknown A Complete Unknown was released in December 2024 and stars Timothée Chalamet as Dylan. The movie garnered a total of eight Oscar nominations for best picture, actor, director, supporting actor and actress, adapted screenplay, costume design, and yes, sound. With its beginning set in the early 1960s, the movie details Dylan’s path to superstardom, including the transition of his music away from its acoustic folk roots to electric rock and roll, which at the time was considered by many to be subversive. The film also explores Dylan’s often strained romantic relationships, including with Joan Baez, and generally reveals him to be a bad-ass. My first question for Tod Maitland was what, if anything, did he do to get Chalamet to sound like Dylan, to which he replied, “Nothing.” According to Maitland, Chalamet “did it all by himself” and without rehearsal. Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Next, I asked Maitland what he did to give the movie’s sound such a 1960s feel. He explained that for the film’s numerous concert scenes, he located and used 42 different vintage microphones, each one appropriate for a specific period in time. According to Maitland, the earliest period mics that were used sounded very “midrangy” but grew sonically more full as the years progressed. When I asked Maitland what his biggest challenge was in working on the film, he replied that of the roughly 40 songs Chalamet performed, in about a dozen of them, the scene dictated that he not be in front of a microphone. Chalamet also held his guitar high up on his body, just as Bob Dylan did, and this meant the spot where Maitland would normally locate a lavalier microphone was now unavailable. To get around this problem, Maitland ended up placing a tiny lavalier microphone in Chalamet’s bushy hair, which required some negotiations with A Complete Unknown’s hair technicians. David Mascioni, McIntosh Group Director of Brand Marketing, with Maitland (Image credit: Future / Howard Kneller) Following my interview, I joined other members of the press in the theater to attend a discussion between Maitland and David Mascioni, the McIntosh Group’s Director of Brand Marketing. To keep things relatively brief here, the discussion focused on the complex way a music-based movie’s audio gets captured. According to Maitland, the process typically involves recording all of the instrumentals first and then having professional singers add vocals. The actors are then trained to sing those vocals and perform on instruments based on the musicians’ work. Eventually, it’s back to the studio to record the cast singing the tracks, where the sound production manager can feed the prerecorded vocals and instrumentals to an actor’s earpiece. Subsequently, in post-production, the production engineer can use either the prerecorded or “live” recordings, jumping between them as needed. On A Complete Unknown, Chalamet decided just ten minutes before the film’s first big scene to go live with everything. They discarded all of the prior pre-recorded work and ended up going live throughout production. According to Maitland, Chalamet’s talent and commitment (he spent five and a half years preparing for the film) were the reason they were able to take this highly unusual path. Maitland assumed he would be replacing “a whole lot of” the live guitar sounds and vocals, but he mostly replaced only a small part of Chalamet’s live harmonica work. Even when Chalamet was off camera and other actors were being filmed, Maitland stated, Chalamet was still playing “to keep the energy going on the set.” The theater’s vertical stacks of McIntosh amps alongside Sonus faber in-wall speakers (Image credit: Future / Howard Kneller) Screening time When it came time for the movie, I could not believe the theater’s sound quality, even with my prior eye-opening experience there watching Top Gun: Maverick. Chalamet’s performance and musical chops in A Complete Unknown were spellbinding and, in a testament to the theater’s McIntosh and Sonus faber gear, the timbre of his voice was spot on. This made it easy to suspend disbelief and accept that he was, in fact, Bob Dylan. One constant in the movie is that Dylan gets around mostly by motorcycle. In the theater, the sounds of these bikes, which grow increasingly expensive as Dylan becomes more successful, were mesmerizing both in their volume and level of sonic detail. During the many concerts reenacted in the movie in venues both large and small, I was able to locate the expansive horizontal and vertical placement of clapping and other crowd noises. The sound of Dylan’s, um, Chalamet’s, guitar notes were warm and vibrant. Indeed, virtually all of the sonic images were reproduced at an impressively large scale. The iconic McIntosh MC275 stereo amplifier on display at the House of Sound (Image credit: Future / Howard Kneller) The film’s environmental sounds were also exceptional. Whether it was someone talking across the street from where Dylan was standing, a car horn honking, or fans screaming as they chased him, each small detail was audible. During the concert scenes, I repeatedly had to resist the urge to clap and several times lifted my hands to do so. That’s something I have never done before when watching a movie! Watching A Complete Unknown at McIntosh’s House of Sound opened my eyes to Bob Dylan’s unique and great talent, which is something I knew of but never before paid sufficient attention to. The experience also reminded me that a movie with great sound can be a moving experience that stays with you for a long time. That’s a lesson that never gets old, even for this lifelong audiophile and film lover. You might also like…
The release of the latest batch of TVs from LG and Samsung is imminent, and although we don’t have official release dates yet, I did get the opportunity to see some of LG’s latest sets in person – including its flagship OLED, the LG G5. After the LG G5’s reveal at CES 2025, one of the headline announcements – and what I described as its most anticipated upgrade – was a big claimed boost in its fullscreen brightness, an area that all of the best OLED TVs find challenging. The LG G4 was one of the best OLED TVs of 2024, earning a five star rating from us in our LG G4 review. It demonstrated spectacular color, stunning contrast and realistic textures and details, as well as pleasing levels of brightness. But, it’s unsurprising that the G4’s brightness, especially its fullscreen levels, still paled in comparison to the best mini-LED TVs, meaning the TVs are more prone to being overwhelmed by reflections. You may like So, when it was suggested by LG itself that there would be a 40% increase in fullscreen brightness between the G4 and G5, that caught my attention – this would mean the G5’s fullscreen brightness would be over 350 nits. Although still not in the same league as mini-LED TVs such as the Hisense U8N or Samsung QN90D, which both averaged around 600 nits of fullscreen brightness, it was still a significant boost over the average OLED, which have hovered closer to 200 nits for years. This would make the G5 a very viable OLED TV for daytime viewing in bright rooms, especially for sports and even gaming. Naturally then, I was excited to see just how the LG G5 looked in person and thankfully, I got to see it next to its predecessor to see just how bright it was. The tech that makes it possible The LG G5 (pictured second from left) is brighter than its predecessor the LG G4 (first on the left), with higher peak and fullscreen brightness. Second from right is the Samsung S95D, and far right is the Sony A95L. (Image credit: Al Griffin) Before I get into just how noticeable the difference between the G5 and G4 was, what is it that makes this brightness boost possible? Interestingly, it’s not micro lens array (MLA) (a layer comprising microscopic lenses that allowed for higher brightness) which was used in last year’s G4, but rather a new type of OLED panel that LG Display calls the META 3 ‘four-stack’ OLED. LG says this is what makes the brightness boost happen, in combination with processing from the G5’s Alpha A11 processor. Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. While I didn’t get a chance to see the LG G5 and LG G4 in every possible condition, I was able to see several video clips, and these alone were enough to show off the G5’s brightness increase over the G4. Looking at the LG G5 and LG G4 side-by-side, with both TVs set to Filmmaker Mode, the brightness difference was obvious, with the G5 showcasing a significant boost in brightness, not only in peak sections (small areas of the screen), but the overall fullscreen brightness. Watching a clip of a daytime chat show, the vividness of the studio backdrop showed just how much brighter the G5 was overall, and even the two people on screen had brighter skin tones and clothing that crucially were still accurate and never looked overblown or oversaturated. Even in darker scenes, the LG G5 (pictured) showed higher peak brightness on brighter objects such as lamps, shown here in a scene from Disney+’s A Thousand Blows, compared to the LG G4. (Image credit: Future) At one stage, a loop of a trailer from Disney+ show A Thousand Blows played and while the gritty, Victorian-London set series showcased the G5’s colors and contrast more, brighter tones within the scene from lamplight or fire were given a more lifelike look thanks to the boosted brightness from the four-stack OLED panel. Colors also had a brighter, more vibrant punch to them. One interesting scene was of a Japanese harbor at night, which again demonstrated the G5’s deep black levels. But throughout the scene were glossy neon signs that once again had more shine and vibrancy on the G5 compared to the G4, with the colors seeming to ‘pop’ more on the screen. This again showcased the G5’s contrast, with an excellent balance between the jet blacks of the background with the sheen of the neon signs. Even viewing standard test patterns, in black and white or grayscale, showed elevated whites on the G5 compared to the G4, while also showing a better balance between black and white tones, with a broad range of gray tones in between. While I wasn’t able to take any objective brightness measurements, I’m eager to see just what the brightness difference between the G4 and the G5 actually is when I can get my hands on the G5. When we measured the G4, it yielded brightness results in Filmmaker Mode of 1,489 nits and 257 nits in 10% (peak) and 100% (fullscreen) white window patterns. It’s clear the G5 has beaten this handily, but will it top a projected fullscreen brightness of 400 nits? I can’t wait to find out. You might also like
Price Drops
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