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Consumer Reports joined Into Tomorrow this week with advice about sound systems:
If you’ve been putting off upgrading to a 4K TV set, this might be the year you’ll want to make the leap, so says Consumer Reports. Their electronics spokesman James McQueen is here to tell us why.
With prices falling, more 4K content available, and features such as HDR becoming widespread, you may want to purchase your first 4KTV this year.
The LG OLED55E6P is currently the best 4K TV in our ratings- and among the very best TVs we’ve ever tested. The 55 –inch model boasts excellent high definition picture and excellent UHD performance. Like all OLED TVs it has an almost unlimited viewing angle, and the sound from the integrated sound bar speaker on this set is very good. Even better – it supports both HDR10 and Dolby Vision high dynamic range technology.
The Samsung UN55KS8000 LED LCD TV is also a great performer and is a relative bargain at just under $ 1,500. It has great motion-blur reduction and sound. It’s also capable of hitting the Ultra HD Alliance’s specs for brightness and colors; being one on the brightest TVS we’ve tested. Plus this TV supports the HDR10 high-dynamic range standard and has a 10-bit color processing to produce a wider range of colors.
For more info on this story, visit ConsumerReports.org.
Dave and Chris recommended apps they’ve been playing with:
I always complain about pre-installed apps and the crapware on our phones, but I’d really LOVE it if Cinemute could be a default app on every device ever sold. It keeps track of whether you’re inside a movie theater, and if so, it mutes your device so you don’t get a phone call mid-movie. False positives would have the potential to get annoying, but luckily there’s an option to blacklist specific theaters, handy if you live right next door to a multiplex. Unfortunately – at the moment – this one is Android only.
I have not quite found the real use for this app, but MyIdol is probably one of the coolest apps I have found in a while. It allows you to make a 3D animated avatar using your face and interact with friends that have also used the app to create avatars. Basically, you import a picture of your face which it uses to create the general shape of the face, then you select a hairstyle, eye color, facial hair and so forth. Then it creates your avatar. You can also use the app to create animated emojis of yourself that you can send to your friends. One of the coolest things, though is that you can insert your avatar into some of their many pre-built scenes. Ever wanted to see yourself play the piano or pole dance? You can, in this app!
