Home Theater

HDTVs, projectors, and surround sound systems.

New Direct Deposit Scam strikes

Episode 1526

Online scam artists are targeting users of the direct deposit payroll system, using social engineering to gain access to bank accounts and steal your paycheck. The primary targets are in education, healthcare, and airline employees. So be watchful over emails saying you need to log into your account to verify your direct deposit information. That's where they get you. As usual, do NOT click on any links in emails. Contact your HR department immediately to verify.

Scott Wilkinson - CEDIA Part II

Episode 1525

Scott says that at this year's CEDIA show, Amazon Alexa integration was everywhere, meaning that IOT (Internet of things) is becoming huge in home theater. Scott also said that LED video walls are making a move in home theater. Companies are making LEDs smaller, so that these LED video walls will become more natural to watch. The smaller ones with a tiny pixel distance (called pixel pitch) is called MicroLEDs. And its going to be huge in home theater video walls. The LED Wall screens are also going to be brighter, as high as 500 nits, but that can be dangerous for home viewing.

What OLED 4K TV should I buy?

LG OLED B8

Episode 1523

Vincent from Louisiana

Vincent has an Nvidia Shield and the Channel Master over-the-air DVR and he's loving it. He's glad he cut the cable. But he wants to upgrade from his old Samsung 1080i TV. What should he get? Rich says that all he really needs on a TV these days is an HDMI and Coax input for his antenna. He doesn't even need a smart TV because they rarely get updated. It's better to get a TV without smart features and a Roku or Apple TV. There is one exception, though. Roku enabled smartTVs are worth it because they do get updated. Amazon also offers TVs with Fire TV built in.

Scott Wilkinson on Home Theater

Scott Wilkinson

Episode 1523

Scott Wilkinson just got back from the CEDIA show, and the theme this year was 8K in the home! But will we see 8K content with it? Scott says no, not for quite awhile. The 8K TVs that are coming out will be upscaling 4K to 8K. And in reality, the cost of an 8K TV is still in the 5-6 figure range for 8K projectors, and most are being sold for simulators. Sony is working on a technology that will make up to 4 4K projectors work in concert to project an 8K image. But it's still very expensive.

Can I split an optical connection on my home theater devices?

Optical Splitter

Episode 1521

Ron from Downey, CA

Ron has a sound bar and a surround sound A/V receiver. Both require optical connections, but his A/V receiver doesn't have HDMI for his Blu-ray player. He only has one. What can he do? Is there an optical switcher or splitter? Leo says it should work that way. He may be able to just rewire everything, but buying a new A/V receiver that supports HDMI is the best solution long term. So an optical splitter may be his best choice short term. He shouldn't go too cheap on it, though.

Scott Wilkinson on Home Theater

Scott Wilkinson

Episode 1521

Scott is a certified home theater calibrator, having received his cert from THX, but ISF is also a good cert. He recently got a question about calibrating a BenQ projector for his home theater system. Where can he find one other than from Best Buy? Scott says that ISF has the contract to train Best Buy calibrators, but Scott wouldn't really worry about Best Buy. He would just get recommendations on who is the best in his area.

Is Samsung as good as Panasonic with 4K TVs?

Episode 1520

Jason from Fontana, CA

Jason bought a Panasonic Viera 4K TV two years ago. What he wants to know if he buys a newer Samsung 4K TV, will it be as good? Leo says in fact, it'll be better. Todays' 4K TVs have HDR, which is great for color and dynamic range. Leo says they're all pretty good now and you can't even notice upscaling on lower resolution content. So buy all means, pick up a Samsung.