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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Vizio Announces 2018 Performance Series Smart TVs
SV Staff  |  Apr 12, 2018
Vizio has announced three new models for its top performing P-Series line of smart TVs.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Onkyo’s New $649 AV Receiver Is THX-Certified
SV Staff  |  Apr 12, 2018
Onkyo has introduced two 7.2-channel AV receivers, one of which brings THX Select certification into the fold for $649.
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SmartStream
Spotify and Hulu Offer Discounted Bundle
Barb Gonzalez  |  Apr 12, 2018
Spotify has partnered with Hulu to offer a discounted subscription bundle.
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Smart Speaker ReviewsWireless Multiroom Speaker Reviews
Apple HomePod Wireless Smart Speaker Review
Rob Sabin  |  Apr 11, 2018

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $349

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Superb sonics with extraordinary bass
Great build quality
AirPlay capable
Easy setup
Minus
Integrated music streaming restricted to Apple Music
No bluetooth
More limited smarts versus competition
No wired input for TV viewing

THE VERDICT
Apple has created the best-sounding small speaker we’ve heard to date, but its Apple-centricity and immaturity as a smart device may deter some buyers.

From conception through launch, the Apple HomePod speaker was six years in development. That’s a long time to bring to fruition something as ubiquitous and seemingly simplistic as a wireless tabletop speaker. If we account for the many poor examples of the breed, we can acknowledge that a truly excellent wireless speaker might require some extra time to create...but six years? The HomePod was so long in coming that the “smart speaker” with builtin voice assistant that it eventually became hadn’t yet been invented (by rival Amazon) when the project was begun. Which, I’m certain, delayed it even further.

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The S&V InterviewAudio Video News
Bringing Back Victor Records
Bob Ankosko  |  Apr 11, 2018
15 Minutes with Graham Alexander, President, Victor Corporation of America

Graham Alexander is a talented musician but he’s also an entrepreneur, historian, and music-label exec who has undertaken the enormous (and laudable) task of resurrecting Victor Records, the iconic brand that dates back to the earliest days of recorded music. We’re talking the label that recorded the likes of Sergei Rachaninoff and forged an exclusive recording deal with the legendary opera singer Enrico Caruso. More than that, Alexander has created a delightful live-performance space called The Vault in the small town of Berlin, NJ, about 20 miles from Center City Philadelphia and even closer to the site of the original Victor Talking Machine Co. in Camden. The venue is unique in that it’s home to the official Victor Records archive as well as an assortment of historical artifacts and memorabilia dating back to the earliest days of recorded music. We sat down with Alexander to learn more about his multi-faceted operation.

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Audio Video News
MartinLogan Co-Founder Launches New Speaker Company
SV Staff  |  Apr 10, 2018
Gayle Sanders, renowned speaker designer and cofounder of MartinLogan, today announced the launch of a new speaker company, Gayle Sanders Eikon.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Vizio Adds 4K/HDR TVs to Midline M-Series, Boosts Picture Quality
SV Staff  |  Apr 10, 2018
Vizio today added three HDR-capable 4K models featuring upgraded picture quality to its mid-priced M-Series line of smart TVs.
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A/V Veteran
Does Oppo's Departure Signal the End of Packaged Media?
Thomas J. Norton  |  Apr 10, 2018
The recent departure of Oppo from the new disc player landscape* has produced a flurry of “packaged media is dead” vs. “I want my video discs” chatter on the Web. It has also prompted me to ponder once again both sides of the question.

I don’t believe that Oppo’s decision has much to do with any sign that packaged media is likely to imminently disappear. Check the release schedules shown on a number of disc review sites (such as thedigitalbits.com) and you’ll see that dozens of titles are released each week. Some are new, some are re-releases, and many are unreleased movie titles dumped directly to video...

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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Yamaha's Announces $300 Entry-Level AV Receiver
SV Staff  |  Apr 10, 2018
Yamaha is targeting budding home theater buyers with a $300 AV receiver that hits stores at the end of the month.
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Audio Video News
Survey: No. of Households that Stream Video through Pay-TV Providers Doubles
SV Staff  |  Apr 09, 2018
New research from Dallas-based Parks Associates reveals that the number of U.S. pay-TV households that subscribe to online video services through their pay-TV provider has more than doubled over the past year, going from 10 percent to 21 percent.
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