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Projector Reviews
Vava VA-LT002 4K Laser DLP Projector Review
Al Griffin  |  Aug 05, 2020
Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $2,800

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Easy installation and setup
Built-in soundbar
Plentiful connectivity
Minus
Limited picture setup options
Limited brightness and contrast
App store lacks popular apps

THE VERDICT
Vava's 4K ultra short throw laser projector provides a simple solution for getting a large image plus sound in your living room, but requires a specific screen for best performance.

Vava's VA-LT002 4K Laser DLP projector is the first product of its kind to arrive from a company that offers a range of lifestyle-type electronics such as camera/DVRs for your car's dashboard and baby monitors to check on junior. At the 2020 CES, the VA-LT002, an ultra short throw model with built-in streaming apps and a 60-watt Harman Kardon stereo audio system, was the centerpiece of the company's suite. Paired with a 100-inch projection screen and playing 4K nature footage, I found the image it beamed absorbing—enough so that I was able to focus and block out an overexcited YouTube tech personality in the room recording a segment.

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A/V Veteran
Movie Theaters: The Way They Were
Thomas J. Norton  |  Aug 04, 2020
We all have our own early experiences with moviegoing. My mother once told me that when I was two or three she took me to a movie about a dog. I apparently sobbed uncontrollably when the dog got lost and couldn’t find his way home. This probably left a lifelong scar; as the old saying goes, never follow a dog act. I’m not a cat person, perhaps because few movies have ever been made about a cat (well, there was at least one recently about a bunch of them, but let’s not go there!). There was never a Fluffy Come Home.

Once upon a time the movie on the screen was only part of a theater experience; the theater itself was often part of the show.

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Audio Video News
Sony Designates TVs as ‘Ready for PlayStation Five’
Al Griffin  |  Aug 03, 2020
With Sony readying its long-awaited PlayStation 5, the company’s TV and Interactive Entertainment divisions have teamed up to create a ‘Ready for PlayStation Five’ designation for specific 2020 TV models. According to the company’s press release, the tagline will “make it easier for consumers to select the optimum TV in preparation for the highly anticipated launch of the PlayStation 5 (PS5), the next-generation game console releasing this holiday season.”
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Blu-ray Movie ReviewsUltra HD Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
Chris Chiarella  |  Jul 31, 2020
There is nothing like Star Wars. Across its three trilogies of Roman-numeraled Episodes, creator George Lucas and the inheritors of his galaxy far, far away opened the minds of audiences across the globe as well as across generations of fiercely devoted fans, thanks to their unique spin on epic fantasy. Love it, hate it, or anywhere in the middle: Star Wars has left an undeniable mark on the world of entertainment.
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Audio Video News
Best Gear of July 2020
Bob Ankosko  |  Jul 30, 2020
At Sound & Vision we celebrated our own special brand of fireworks in July with a handful of Top Picks that command the attention A/V enthusiasts. From a super well-executed soundbar and crème de la crème suite of home theater speakers to one of the best (and most affordable) OLED TVs on the planet, we present five Stars of the Summer of 2020 — a time we will remember for years to come. Kick back, grab a beer or glass of wine, and see which of these gems inspire you. We’re confident that at least one of them will. Here’s to an enjoyable summer, whether you’re staying home or embarking on a much-needed vacation getaway.
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Stream On
5 Podcasts to Enhance Your Appreciation of Music
Mike Mettler  |  Jul 30, 2020
If there’s one thing the ongoing pandemic has taught us, it’s that the “too much time on my hands” concept no longer applies. Here are five music-centric podcasts and a sixth smorgasbord selection to enhance your appreciation of music and the ways it’s made.
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4K TV ReviewsOLED TV ReviewsTV Reviews
Sony XBR-65A8H OLED Ultra HDTV Review
Thomas J. Norton  |  Jul 29, 2020

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $2,800

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Unsurpassed contrast
Superior color and resolution
Wide viewing angle
Minus
Complicated menu system
No HDMI 2.1

THE VERDICT
Sony's latest OLED measures up to the best, including the company's 2019 Top Pick of the Year-winning Master Series model, and comes in at notably lower price.

We previously reviewed Sony's XBR-65A9G OLED, a member of the company's Master Series Ultra HDTV family. While that set is still available and remains a first-class option, the only advantages it appears to offer over the new XBR-65A8H OLED reviewed here are slightly more sophisticated sound features plus an ability to serve as a center channel in an outboard multichannel audio setup. The XBR-65A8H, meanwhile, is priced considerably lower than its Master Series predecessor at $2,800.

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Audio Video News
CES Goes All-Digital for 2021
Al Griffin  |  Jul 28, 2020
When Emerald recently announced that the annual September CEDIA Expo would be canceled due to Covid-19 concerns, our next thought after taking that news in was, “What about CES?” Well, the answer to that question came today with the Consumer Technology Association’s announcement that its 2021 tech-fest, scheduled for January 6-9, will be an “all-digital experience.”
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Audio Video News
Qobuz Is Giving Away High-Res Music
Al Griffin  |  Jul 27, 2020
Back in the Napster and LimeWire glory days when I first started listening to music using a computer, “download” and “free” were basically synonymous. With the arrival of iTunes, the paradigm shifted to having to pay actual money for compressed downloads of albums and individual tracks, and HDtracks later upped the ante with uncompressed, high-res music downloads.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
5 More Top Concert Blu-ray Discs
Mike Mettler  |  Jul 24, 2020
"I miss going to concerts."

It's a common refrain these days. Perhaps you've even said it yourself out loud on occasion to no one in particular but yourself, and/or to whomever you're jointly commiserating and quarantining with, and/or have typed it out as a comment-cum-lament underneath one of those incessant social media "memories" reminders that really only serve to bum you out about what you're missing—not to mention what you most decidedly won't be able to replicate in a comparable fashion in the near future.

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