Audio Video News

If you work in an open space—and hate it—rest assured a Ukrainian company is working on a solution they say will isolate you from inevitable distraction and help you get a little peace and quiet.

Samsung has stepped up its soundbar game with a new flagship model that uses patented distortion-cancelling technology to “provide a sweet spot no matter where you sit.”

Walmart-owned Vudu will convert your Blu-ray or DVD titles via smartphone. Using the Mobile Disc-to-Digital feature on the Vudu mobile app, scan the barcode on the packaging. It’s not free—you’ll pay $2 per title for standard-def or $5 for high-def.

Roku’s new operating system brings new features. The search platform ties into 300 streaming channels. More Ways to Watch uses content recognition to recommend programs or streams, including those delivered by antenna. If you’d rather not have Roku monitoring your viewing, it can be turned off.

MQA is coming to CDs, with the first releases arriving from Ottava and Chesky. Master Quality Authenticated is a form of “audio origami” that folds down hi-res audio into more manageable file sizes and streams. It can travel in a “CD quality” stream, so why not release it on CD?

As we kick back to celebrate and reflect on the birth of our great nation, we’ve pulled together a quick-reference guide to our Top Picks for the month of June. It was a generous period, netting nine outstanding products, ranging from a bullet-proof outdoor speaker to $50 earbuds that sound shockingly good to a lower cost alternative to LG’s flagship W7 series 4K OLED TVs. There’s plenty to ponder here for your summer short list.

The striking 77-inch flagship version of LG’s Top Pick-designated 65-inch “wallpaper” OLED has arrived in stores.