State Of Play
Home-entertainment equipment has changed out of sight in recent years. From super-crisp images to voice-controlled audio, here’s what’s new and exciting today, writes Sarah Pickette.
What’s hot in home-entertainment equipment.
Technology has reached a tipping point in our living rooms: digital streaming has opened the flood gates so there are virtually limitless options for what we can watch and listen to, as well as how and when. “Just as our viewing options are broader than ever, our televisions are bigger, better and smarter,” says Sean Dixon, director of Harvey Norman in Preston, Victoria. “Not so long ago, the 55-inch was considered a big TV, but we’ve seen a spike in sales of 75-inch models recently and that’s because of the buzz around 4K viewing.”
Ultra High Definition or 4K (a reference to the horizontal display resolution of approximately 4000 pixels) screens play digital images of such clarity that you no longer need to sit a certain distance back from them to take in the picture. They’ve also driven an overwhelming improvement in colour richness, black purity, brightness, contrast and how much detail you can see in any given shot. And as more manufacturers roll out this technology, 4K screens are coming down in price (from about $600 for an entry model to $4000$6000 for a leading brand).
Technology forges the way for content and there’s no shortage of exciting 4K news, with Foxtel just launching its own 4K channel, allowing sports lovers to see their games in crystal-clear definition. Apple, Netflix, Stan and Amazon Prime all have 4K offerings, and you can also use a 4K screen to its potential via a Blu-ray player and compatible games consoles.
“There are two main categories of 4K TVs to consider today,” says John Milonas, televisions buyer for The Good Guys .“O LED TVs give you the best blacks and arguably the best picture, while QLED TVs have become the best LED LCD TV you can buy .”
If you think 4K is impressive, wait until you lay your eyes on an 8K screen, says Hass Mahdi, head of Samsung Electronics Australia’s audio-visual division. “Earlier this year, Samsung unveiled the world’s first QLED TV with 8K technology. TV sizes are growing, so we’re dedicated to
developing ways to dramatically improve the viewing experience and 8K results in an incredible picture quality.” Dixon likens 8K viewing to “watching 3D TV without the glasses”, but says it will be a few years before this prototype technology hits the market in Australia.
What’s already here is artificial intelligence and voice activation, says Tony Brown, marketing manager for home entertainment at LG Electronics Australia. “Our new OLED AI Thin QTVs listen when you press a button on the remote, allowing you to activate all sorts of functions with your voice. This kind of technology is all about making things easier for people.” As well as accessing your usual smart TV functionality, you can ask it what the weather will be like in Perth, to show photos from your family holiday, pull up a map or display events synced from your phone’s calendar.
Now we’re consuming more content on personalised screens, the TV has assumed the role of ‘social screen’, says Brown. “It’s where we gather to watch a game or The Bachelor, but you also have your phone or tablet, where you can personalise what you watch and where.”
Bigger screens have kept product designers busy developing new ways to make them a good aesthetic fit for our homes. Samsung’ s Clear Connection Cable ensures your TV’s cabling virtually disappears into the wall; set the screen to Ambient Mode and it has the potential to do the same. Also from Samsung comes The Frame, a TV designed to look like a piece of art when not in use, while the LG Signature Wallpaper, at a mere 4 mm thick, is so thin it sits almost flush to the wall.
Thin TVs perform at their best when accompanied by soundbars – and they’ve become neat and slimline themselves, says Dixon. Soundbars, and home-audio gear in general, are now blessedly simple to install. “Audio set-up used to be daunting and you’d have to get someone in to cable your home; now, with wireless technology, all you need is connectivity and a powerpoint.”
Smart speakers such as Google Home, Amazon Echo, LG’s ThinQ and Apple’s HomePod will play your music via voice command. Meanwhile, products such as the Bose Sound Speaker 500 and Sonos One are being marketed as smart speakers for music lovers, for their rich sound and voice-control functionality.
Bang & Olufsen recently launched the innovative Beosound Edge; its circular shape allows it to be placed on the floor as a centrepiece of a room, against a piece of furniture or on the wall. Proximity sensors detect when people are near the speaker, discreetly illuminating the touch interface. To adjust the sound, you roll the Beosound Edge forwards and backwards to increase and decrease the volume. It’s a clever, great-looking speaker – so long as you’re good for the $5000 outlay.
“Televisions or audio, the future is fast approaching,” says Dixon, “and while voice control is all very well, it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Smart home-entertainment equipment will really come into its own when it’s intuitive enough to know that you like to listen to a particular podcast while you’re cooking or to watch a certain news program at the same time each night and switches it on for you. Then it will truly be smart.”