Welcome to the Audio/Visual Tech category on our blog, where the sights and sounds of cutting-edge technology come to life. In a landscape where the line between reality and digital representation continually blurs, it’s never been more essential to make informed choices about your AV gear. This category serves as a comprehensive guide to the components that make up your home theatre system, high-definition viewing experiences, and auditory sensations.
AV Receivers
Relevant Brands: Sony, Yamaha, Denon, Marantz, Onkyo
The epicentre of any home audio setup, AV receivers function as the hub that brings your audio and visual components together. Brands like Sony and Yamaha excel in delivering feature-rich models, while Denon and Marantz are known for their audiophile-grade sound quality.
Surround Sound Speakers
Relevant Brands: Klipsch, Bose, Bang & Olufsen, KEF
Nothing immerses you in an experience quite like a set of surround sound speakers. Whether it’s the high-fidelity sound from Klipsch or the design elegance of Bang & Olufsen, this subcategory explores the nuances that each brand brings to the audio landscape.
Soundbars
Relevant Brands: Sonos, Samsung, LG, Bose
In spaces where a full surround sound setup isn’t practical, soundbars come to the rescue. From the versatile and intelligent offerings from Sonos to the feature-packed models from Sennheiser, discover how these sleek bars can pack a powerful auditory punch.
Subwoofers
Relevant Brands: SVS, JBL, Bowers & Wilkins, Polk Audio
The foundation of any audio experience is the bass, and a quality subwoofer makes all the difference. Brands like SVS and Bowers & Wilkins deliver earth-shattering low frequencies that add depth and dimension to your audio setup.
TVs, including OLED / LCD / Micro LCD
Relevant Brands: LG, Sony, Samsung, Panasonic
The choice of TV technology can dramatically affect your viewing experience. This section breaks down the pros and cons of OLED, LCD, and the emerging Micro LCD technologies. Whether it’s LG’s expertise in OLED or Samsung’s mastery of LCD, we’ve got the lowdown on what to consider.
Home Theatre Projectors
Relevant Brands: Epson, BenQ, Sony, Optoma
Turn your living room into a cinema with a high-quality home theatre projector. With brands like Epson and BenQ offering crystal-clear images and features like 4K resolution and HDR support, the big-screen experience is more accessible than ever.
Portable Projectors
Relevant Brands: Anker Nebula, LG, Epson
For the nomads and the adventurers, portable projectors offer the luxury of big-screen viewing without the constraints of location. Anker Nebula leads the charge with its compact and versatile projectors, while LG and Epson provide robust options with brighter outputs.
So whether you’re building a state-of-the-art home theatre or simply enhancing your TV’s audio with a chic soundbar, this category is designed to guide you through the complex world of Audio/Visual technology. Our goal is to provide you with unbiased, data-driven insights so you can make the perfect choice for your sensory satisfaction. Dive in and tune up your AV experience!
The original Nvidia Shield TV launched in 2015, with a revision in 2017 using the same system on chip but in a sleeker design and some other minor improvements. In the world of technology, it is positively ancient, yet it is still regarded as one of the best set-top media devices on the market for…
The Sharp GX-BT180 is the smallest of three Bluetooth speakers from Sharp and adopts a design very familiar to the superb Ultimate Ears speakers but with a better USB location. Pricing is keen at just £38 on Amazon for this model or £56.60 for the larger GX-BT280 and finally £99 for the GX-BT480 which ditches…
I am a big fan of Plex and I bought the lifetime PlexPass years back, so it is always great to see the company pushing out regular updates for users. I still use Kodi a lot, but with the remote playback and live TV that Plex offers I am slowly migrating away, and it is…
The Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Ultra HD is the cheapest device on the market that can do 4K Ultra HD with HDR in Dolby Vision, HDR, and HDR10+. While the official Kodi forums often recommend devices such as the ODROID N2 with CoreELEC Kodi Leia, I’d argue the Fire Stick is a better choice…
Ever on the quest to find the perfect media player, that is also affordable; the Raspberry Pi 4 looks like an appealing prospect. I mainly use Kodi for my local media, and currently, use the new Amazon Fire TV 4K as it supports Dolby Vision. Relying on Wi-Fi when playing 4K movies irks me, so…
BlitzWolf is a brand I have covered a few times now, and seem to be growing in popularity. They specialise in affordable audio products and accesses. They are a bit like a cheaper alternative to Anker, with the quality reflected in the price, that’s not to say they are bad, for the money they have…
Recently I have had intermittent issues with my Fire TV remote, the HDMI CEC controls will work for power and volume, but the buttons won’t work on the remote itself. Currently, and for the second time since I got the device, the play button and home button have decided not to work. It’s not the…
If you want a portable Bluetooth speaker, then Anker almost certainly has a perfect choice for you. I have reviewed several speakers from them now. All of them have been fantastic and the Anker Soundcore Flare+ has been my favourite so far, just for the overall volume, bass and quality of sound it can produce….
The Raspberry Pi series of single board computers have been nothing short of a phenomenon, being far more popular than initially anticipated and has become the third best-selling general purpose computer of all time, with over 19-million units sold (based on 2018 figures). Pricing and compatibility have been the driving force behind the RPi success…
[Update 23/01/2020] These were originally reviewed at £59.99. They are now available on Amazon for just £44.99 which puts them up there with some of the best affordable true wireless earbuds I have used. Furthermore, I have continued to use these, mainly for gym use, and they are still going strong. While Groov-e may not…
Announced last year in the form of Bose AR, the Bose Frames were a pair of sunglasses that were supposed to offer augmented reality functionality via audio. Between then and the release date they were released as Bose Frames and no AR functionality has been launched. This, therefore, leaves these as a pair of sunglasses…
I have reviewed some fantastic and expensive headphones over the past couple of years, but if your budget is constrained then, the Mixcder HD901 could be worth considering. At around £15 these over the head Bluetooth wireless earphones are surprisingly good. One unusual feature you don’t see on most other headphones is the microSD card…