The perfect movie night

THIS YEAR has seen an increase in popularity for many online movie sites and apps. This has led many to abandon the previously soughtafter movie theatre in favour of the comforts of a movie night at home. For others, they may just want to maximise the experience of watching a nailbiting NBA final or their favourite TV series in style at home.

The first step is to attain the actual movie or TV show to be watched. There is always the traditional route of buying a DVD but other quicker options exist, such as Netflix. It gives you the ability to access thousands of movies and series for an approximate monthly fee of :

Basic – J$1,100 (US$7.99)

Standard – J$1,300 (US$9.99)

Premium – J$1,600 (US$11.99).

After purchasing Netflix or finding the video online, Chromecast (flat fee of US$35) can be used to send what is being viewed in a Chrome browser. This means that content from sites such as Netflix, Hulu or YouTube can be stream to your TV via Chromecast.

Alternatively, if you don’t want a Chromecast, there are Android Sticks, which vary in price but can be bought for under J$5000, providing similar content.

Display

Now that the video content has been obtained, the display needs to be set up. The movie can be displayed on a television or laptop, but if you want the full movie experience then a projector is ideal. A projector provides a simple way to produce a large screen. One recommended projector is the BenQ 480P, which you can buy for $135,000.

The BenQ 480P is recommended as it has 850 x 480 resolution which is good for most DVD displays. It is also lightweight for a projector at 6.3 lbs. The brightness is 1100 ANSI which is great for wall-sized images. It also produces images from 31 inches to 300 inches (diagonally). The only downside to this projector is that it uses the somewhat outdated modes of connectivity. That means it does not connect using USB but, rather, the RCA jack (the red, yellow and white connectors from old time TVs); however you could always purchase an adapter.

For the best use of a projector, you will need to find a flat surface, like a wall, to display the image. You could also purchase a projector screen for $19,500 or hang a thick white sheet on the wall.

The projector should then be plugged into the computer, which has the video content, and positioned to project on to the selected flat surface. Positioning the projector may sometimes include stacking books underneath it until a suitable height is attained. Most projectors also have a manual focus setting that can be finetuned to your liking.

Sound

Even the best display in the world can be hindered without quality audio. Speakers with rich bass, clarity and have the capability to fill a room with a rich sound, are recommended. The speakers should be set up across the room from each other. They should also be slightly facing each other but mainly directed at the audience.

One suggested speaker is the Argom Tech Bazooka Beats, which you can pick up for J$5,850. It has Bluetooth capabilities as well as USB connectivity. The Bazooka Beats is able to emit rich bass up to 30 feet around it, maintaining quality audio even at loud volumes.

Food

With everything else done, the final element to make the perfect movie night is food. The typical food picks are hot dogs and popcorn. You could always purchase a popcorn maker for around J$6,000 or a hotdog maker for approximately J$4,000 on Amazon.

Additional Recommendations

Ensure there is not much lighting between the audience and the display, as it can be distracting. The less light, the better.

The products mentioned in this article were provided courtesy of Royale Computers and Accessories telephone 906-1067, 906-1068, and 754-5048.