The just announced Yamaha RX-V485, RX-V585, and RX-V685 4K AVR have one really slick feature that most other audio video receivers do not. They can use one, or two, of Yamaha’s MusicCast wireless speakers as the rear surround channels. This isn’t the first product to offer this, but it is the first that I recall that wasn’t a home theater […]
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I always wondered about posts and videos reporting laptop and cell phone battery fires. I do not have to any longer. My husband has a Dell Inspiron 15 7000. He closed the lid on it Thursday night and left it on the couch. The laptop goes to sleep and everything is good. Friday morning the laptop started smoking. This is what […]
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My husband has wanted a smart deadbolt since he saw one on This Old House a few years ago. I resisted that request till now. With other Nest devices in the house, I thought I try out the long-promised Nest x Yale Lock. Pricing for the smart deadbolt starts at $249, but it needs a Nest Connect or Nest Secure […]
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I haven’t heard much from Dune HD lately. So I was pleased, and a little surprised, to see this review of their 4K “Dune HD PRO 4K” player popup this morning. It looks like they’ve given up on Sigma Designs and started using Realtek SoC, as well as moving to an Android TV platform. Which nets some very slick enhancements, […]
Read moreZatz Not Funny! is reporting that there are two new $15 over-the-top (OTT) streaming options coming. But, to do hit that price point… No sports. Which for many people is completely OK, but for others (like me) it is a blocking issue… To hit the $15 price point, these two over-the-top streaming services provide fewer channels and do away with […]
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I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising that 3rd party m.2 heat sinks exist. Device designers have been using heat absorbers in cases like the NUC chassis for ages. It’s just never occurred to me that in a less constrained thermal environment that there would be any use for one, and if it were the m.2 would come with one… […]
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After installing the Middle Atlantic DWR-12-32 wall cabinet, it was time to spend some time thinking about temperature control. Most of the time, our utility room is cool enough that there is no need for active cooling in the rack. But, with the furnace and water heater also located in the room it does get warm enough to worry about […]
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An update for the Channels App for iOS and Apple TV has just been released which alongside a better remote streaming experience also sorts some stale guide data. New versions for iOS and Apple TV are out! Along with smoother remote playback, guide data should refresh now if the app is left open in the background for long periods of […]
Read moreI wasn’t impressed the last time I had a chance to play with Amazon’s Fire TV. Some of that was probably the hardware itself, but some of it was also the Amazon first nature of the UI. That said, I haven’t had a chance to play with it lately, and who knows – maybe it’s AWESOME now. Even if it […]
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I have mixed feelings about UltraHD Blu-ray on the PC. On one hand, it is fantastic that the PC, and therefore the home theater PC (HTPC), continues to evolve to support the latest and greatest formats (ignoring Dolby Vision of course). I love the flexibility that having a HTPC in my A/V stack provides, so this is awesome. But, on […]
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