HDTVs, projectors, and surround sound systems.
Home Theater
Why won't my Apple TV wake up?
Episode 1412
Dan from
Dan can't get her Apple TV to wake up. Leo says she'll have to use the remote to wake up. If that doesn't work, there is a reset button that she can enable in the settings that will wipe the memory and then reboot it. That could help.
Scott Wilkinson on Home Theater
Episode 1412
Is it worth waiting for a Dolby Vision TV? Scott says that some support HDR10 and some are starting to support Dolby Vision. HDR10 is open source, while Dolby Vision is licensed. But Dolby is much better in its high dynamic range because it uses more data. How do you get it? Scott says that only one external streaming device supports Dolby Vision at the moment and that's the Chromecast Ultra. The LG B6 OLED is also Dolby Vision capable.
What's a good universal remote control?
Episode 1410
Hank from
Hank uses a universal remote for his home theater system, but it's dying. He's looking for a high end and simple to program remote. Leo says that since Hank's gear is hidden, it makes it difficult to use an infrared remote. He'll have to use an RF remote instead. Leo recommends a Logitech Harmony Hub. it's $99 and it uses infrared to control everything, but he can connect to it via Bluetooth to make changes. It doesn't require line of site to him, just his gear.
Scott Wilkinson on Home Theater
Episode 1410
Today, Scott joins Leo to talk about Dynamic Range, which is known as the difference in the deepest blacks and the brightest whites. It's all about brightness. OLED, for instance, can achieve zero nits on their blacks, and then the highest nits in brightness for its brights (called Candellas).
Why can't I cast to my TV?
Episode 1409
Seth from
Seth used to work in the film industry and the backup storage that they have is up to 10 petabytes of storage and growing. A single film digitized can generate 4TB of space at 5-6K resolution. Leo says that's really not bad because storage is pretty cheap these days for maintaining archives.
Scott Wilkinson on Home Theater
Episode 1408
This week was the Flat Panel Shoot Out for HDTVs, and Scott has the results. This year, the shootout took place in association with CE week and featured mostly flagship TVs in a head to head evaluation. All TVs were professionally calibrated and fed the same TV feed. Then professional colorists made the determination of what TVs were best. There was also a Sony 30" OLED Broadcast video monitor which was used as the standard to compare to.
What's a good mobile projector?
Episode 1407
Jason from
Jason wants to know if there's a projector that's Bluetooth compatible with his smartphone and if they're good quality. Leo says that they've gotten pretty good. The real issue is going to be the brightness. He'll also want a flat screen or a good white wall. There's even paint he can get to paint his wall with that is reflective for a brighter image.
Can I repair my TV?
Episode 1407
Sheila from
Sheila's TV died right after her warranty went out. They wanted several hundred dollars just to diagnose it. She can't even have a local place do it because they've gone out of business due to not getting any parts. Leo says the trend is now to make it albeit impossible to repair products, and there's a Right to Repair movement in many states to make repairability the law. But the sad fact is, in most cases a TV just isn't repairable or worth the money to fix. She'll be better off just getting a new one. However, Sheila's Samsung may be subject to recall.
How can I connect multiple devices to my sound bar?
Episode 1406
Matt from
Matt has a newer sound bar, and he wants to connect multiple devices to it. Leo says that the best option here is to connect it to an AV receiver, but because his sound bar is powered, it was fighting with it. He also doesn't have an optical port on his TV, so he needs to have a way to connect that to the sound bar also.
Scott Wilkinson says that he'll need to be looking for an HDMI switch as his solution. Matt should check MonoPrice.com or Amazon Basics.
Scott Wilkinson on Home Theater
Episode 1406
Scott went to see Dunkirk in both 70mm IMAX and Dolby Cinema. He preferred 70mm though. Not a lot of deep blacks, but ultimately IMAX is best because that's how director Christopher Nolan shot it. And he shot it on the same beach in Dunkirk, Belgium with original aircraft and boats. The important point is that all the shots are framed within IMAX's square aspect ratio of 8x6. It makes it very immersive. Leo says it's a great movie, beautifully done. Scott agrees. And quite historic in its depiction.
