Anyone can put together an expensive surround sound system. Buy five great speakers, add a capable subwoofer and a suitably muscular AV amplifier, and you're well on your way.

Building a genuinely cohesive home cinema system, though, is much harder.

The best packages don't constantly remind you which speaker is producing which effect or draw attention to individual sonic fireworks. Instead, they disappear entirely, transporting you into the world of the movie with such convincing scale and cohesion that you stop thinking about the equipment and simply enjoy what you're watching.

On paper, KEF's R Meta 5.1 speaker system certainly has all the ingredients required to achieve that lofty goal. The question is whether, together, they amount to something even greater than the sum of their already rather impressive parts.

Price

Those ‘ingredients’ are a pair of R7 Meta floorstanders on front left and right duties, two (five-star) R3 Meta standmounters as surrounds, an R6 centre speaker, and the unusually compact KC92 subwoofer.

At the time of writing, these speakers aren’t available as a pre-packaged system, though that may soon change. In the meantime, the cost of building the system with the separate speakers is £10,499 / $13,200 / AU$19,400.

That’s a hefty chunk of change, no doubt, and you can take things further by adding R8 Meta Dolby Atmos ‘toppers’, should you so wish, at £1500 / $1800 / AU$2800 per pair.

Design

This is an unapologetically substantial package. Even before you've wrestled the hefty R7 Meta floorstanders into position, it's clear that this isn't a surround system designed to disappear into your living room.

The R3 Meta are generously proportioned by standmounter standards, too, while the R6 Meta is a particularly large centre speaker – one clearly designed to prioritise acoustic performance over blending discreetly beneath your TV.

Despite the varying sizes, there's an aesthetically pleasing sense of consistency across the range. The speakers all share the same understated, clean-lined design language, with KEF's distinctive Uni-Q driver array taking pride of place on each model.

Rather than feeling like a collection of separate products assembled into a surround package, the R Meta speakers immediately look like members of the same family, giving the impression of a system that has been designed as a whole rather than assembled from individual parts.

The KC92 subwoofer, though, initially looks like the odd one out. It's a surprisingly compact cube sitting alongside such substantial floorstanders, and its neatly integrated side-firing drivers make it appear smaller than a high-end subwoofer has any right to.

That compactness is entirely deliberate, however. The force-cancelling driver arrangement allows KEF to keep the cabinet remarkably small while apparently reducing unwanted vibrations, and those wanting even greater low-frequency output can simply add more KC92s. KEF will even sell you a bracket that lets you stack them into a rather awesome-looking tower of bass.

Our review package arrived in a high-gloss black finish that looks suitably Darth Vader-like but quickly attracts fingerprints. The speakers are also available in white and walnut, but the KC92 doesn’t get the walnut finish. Slightly disappointingly, the gorgeous indigo gloss in which you can buy the R3 Meta standmounters isn’t available for the rest of the system.

Whichever finish you choose, though, build quality throughout is excellent. From the reassuring solidity of the cabinets to the immaculate fit and finish, every component feels worthy of a package costing comfortably north of £10,000.

Features

Much of the technology underpinning the R Meta series has trickled down from KEF's flagship Reference range, but perhaps the cleverest aspect of KEF's R Meta package is that, despite the differing sizes and roles of the individual speakers, the R7 Meta floorstanders, R3 Meta surrounds and R6 Meta centre all share exactly the same drive units.

Each speaker features KEF's 12th-generation Uni-Q array, combining a 25mm aluminium dome tweeter and 125mm midrange driver into a single point-source unit, alongside identical 165mm hybrid aluminium bass drivers. The only real difference is how many bass drivers each speaker employs – two in the centre and each of the floorstanders, and one in each of the standmounters.

The Uni-Q array has long been one of KEF's defining technologies. By placing the tweeter at the acoustic centre of the midrange driver, the company aims to create more even sound dispersion and improve the integration between frequencies.

It's also impossible to ignore the distinctive Tangerine waveguide sitting proudly in front of the tweeter. While it gives KEF’s speakers their instantly recognisable appearance, it's there for more than cosmetic reasons, helping to control the tweeter's dispersion for a more consistent high-frequency response across a wider listening area.

Backing up the Uni-Q array is KEF's Metamaterial Absorption Technology (MAT). Mounted behind the tweeter, this maze-like absorber is designed to eliminate almost all of the unwanted sound radiating from the rear of the driver before it has a chance to colour the performance, helping to produce cleaner, more natural treble.

The KC92 subwoofer, meanwhile, takes a similarly clever approach to solving a different problem.

Rather than relying on a large cabinet to produce serious low-frequency output, it packs two opposing 9-inch drivers into a remarkably compact enclosure, with each driven by its own 500W Class D amplifier. The force-cancelling arrangement is designed to reduce unwanted cabinet vibrations while allowing the subwoofer to remain unusually discreet.

Practicality has clearly been a consideration, too. All three main speakers feature twin sets of binding posts for those wanting to bi-wire or bi-amp, but KEF has dispensed with the fiddly metal bridging plates traditionally used to connect terminals for single-wire use. Instead, a pair of rotary links simply twists to join the terminals inside the speakers. Neat.

The R7 Meta and R3 Meta also feature rear-firing bass reflex ports, with KEF supplying foam bungs should you need to position them close to a rear wall. It’s still worth avoiding the bungs and giving the speakers a bit of breathing space away from walls if you can, but they’re otherwise very forgiving over placement, not least thanks to the Uni-Q driver array’s dispersion characteristics.

Sound

We already know what accomplished musical performers the R3 Meta standmounters are, but how do the fronts of this system, the R7 Meta floorstanders, handle hi-fi duties? With effortless sophistication, that’s how.

Fed track after track, they sound clean, composed and wonderfully controlled, with an expansive soundstage and an ability to unpick complex recordings without ever becoming analytical. Tori Amos' Cornflake Girl for example, is reproduced with impressive subtlety, her voice locked firmly between the speakers while the piano, percussion and bass each occupy their own clearly defined space.

It is possible for that polished presentation to become almost too civilised, though. During our initial listening with our Marantz Cinema 30, Tool's The Pot lacks a little of the visceral snap and attack we'd hoped for, while John Williams' Jurassic Park theme feels fractionally more restrained than it should.

However, swapping to the Denon AVC-A1H transforms matters, bringing greater drive and energy without sacrificing the refinement that makes these speakers so easy to listen to. Prospective buyers would do well to partner them with an amplifier that shares their considerable talents without doubling down on their composure.

Once we turn our attention to movies, it quickly becomes apparent that this isn't merely an excellent collection of speakers; it's a genuinely cohesive surround package. As effects move around the room, you're rarely conscious of which individual speaker is producing them. Instead, sounds travel with remarkable continuity, each cabinet handing seamlessly to the next until the speakers themselves almost disappear from the experience.

That cohesion is accompanied by an immense sense of scale. The opening race sequence in F1: The Movie fills our listening room with the deafening roar of engines and screeching tyres, yet never descends into chaos. The R6 Meta centre anchors dialogue securely amid the mayhem, while the front soundstage stretches confidently beyond the physical positions of the speakers.

Ambient effects spread throughout the room with such conviction that, despite this being a conventional 5.1 package, we rarely find ourselves wishing for dedicated height channels. It can't produce truly discrete overhead effects in the manner of a Dolby Atmos system, of course, but it creates such an enveloping, three-dimensional soundfield that the absence of ceiling or up-firing speakers rarely feels like a compromise.

That ability to immerse without drawing attention to itself proves equally captivating in Blade Runner 2049. The haunting ambience of the abandoned Las Vegas sequences extends effortlessly into every corner of the room, while the thunderous score is delivered with breathtaking scale and authority.

Despite the sheer size of the presentation, however, subtle details are never drowned out. The package remains wonderfully composed, allowing tiny atmospheric cues to coexist naturally alongside seismic low-frequency effects.

The KC92 deserves special praise. If your priority is sheer low frequency extension, there are physically larger subwoofers that will dig deeper, but what the compact KEF lacks in outright depth, it more than compensates for with speed, precision and tonal sophistication.

Bass notes start and stop with remarkable precision, textures remain easy to discern and, perhaps most importantly, the KC92 never sounds like a separate component. Whether underpinning the rumble of an F1 car, the immense organ notes of Interstellar or the ominous low-frequency pulses of Blade Runner 2049, it simply feels like an extension of the main speakers.

Compared with our reference PMC Twenty5.23 speaker package, the KEFs make for a fascinating contrast.

The PMCs remain the more energetic and revealing performers, extracting the finest details from recordings and delivering dynamic shifts with greater urgency and attack, but the KEFs counter with a presentation that's more effortless, more spacious and ultimately more cohesive. They don't simply place effects accurately around the room; they create an enormous, unified soundstage that encourages you to forget about the individual speakers altogether and become absorbed in the performance.

And that's ultimately this package's greatest achievement. Plenty of surround systems impress by throwing effects around the room or bombarding you with bass, but the KEFs never feel as though they're trying to show off.

Instead, they rather dissolve into the background, leaving only the sonic world of the movie you’re watching. That’s why we find ourselves still watching films long after our official testing is complete.

Verdict

The R Meta 5.1 package is beautifully engineered, immaculately built and packed with clever technology, but it's the effortless cohesion with which those individual elements come together that makes it so special.

Whether it's the seamless handover of effects between speakers, the KC92's astonishingly well-integrated bass or the vast, enveloping soundstage, every aspect of the system works towards a single goal: drawing you deeper into whatever you’re watching.

It's not entirely perfect. The R7 Meta floorstanders reward careful amplifier matching if you don't want them to sound a little too easy-going, and there are larger subwoofers capable of plumbing even greater depths. Neither ‘flaw’ significantly detracts from the overall experience, though.

Instead, the KEFs deliver one of the most immersive, refined and convincing surround performances we've heard at this level. This is a package that consistently prioritises the film over the fireworks, and that's precisely why it succeeds so brilliantly.

SCORES

• Sound 5
• Design 5
• Compatibility 4

MORE:

Read our review of the Fyne Audio F8SP AV

Also consider the PMC Twenty5.23 5.1

Read our KEF Q Concerto Meta 5.1 Speaker System review

Best surround sound systems: home cinema speakers and soundbars put to the test

Home cinema is taking a new form in this day and age.

The idea that a home cinema system must be a fixed projector connected to an AV receiver with cables trailing to a surround sound package is now an outdated concept, with opportunities for many more people to dip their toes into the world of home cinema for the first time.

We've had projectors of all shapes and sizes enter our test room, and these form factors are only getting more ambitious. This paradigm shift really kicked off towards the start of this decade, when ultra-short-throw (UST) projectors started gaining popularity.

USTs pack in the big-screen experience, a sound system, and (in most cases) built-in streaming, for an all-in-one cinema experience that doesn't need to take up much more space than a TV.

From that, we've seen the explosion of coffee table projectors, such as the Hisense M2 Pro or BenQ TK705i, which take the same concept and translate it into a portable cube, meaning you can deploy a full home cinema at a moment's notice, and put it away again.

These come in high-end packages, like the Xgimi Horizon 20 Max (£2599 / $2699 / AU$4950), as well as surprisingly affordable models such as the Wanbo Vali 1 (£270 / $279 / AU$499).

Performance obviously differs depending on how much you're willing to spend, but the concept remains the same; coffee table or 'lifestyle' projectors offer picture, sound and content in a compact form that can be tucked away in a cupboard when not in use.

A further extreme is the boom of portable projectors. Xgimi's MoGo series makes things even more flexible by offering a built-in battery, and while the Optoma Photon Go wasn't perfect, we thought its battery-powered UST design was both clever and cool.

Even surround sound speaker packages are following the trend. While we'll always stick by a full surround sound package, we can't deny the impracticalities of setting one up and living with it.

If you're not a dab hand at cable management, then your living room can quickly turn into a spaghetti junction of speaker wires. Floorstanding speakers also take up space, and even the most space-saving of bookshelf units need stands.

That's why we're seeing the rise of the wireless surround sound system. Sony ran with the concept a few years ago with the HT-A9 system, and followed it up with the Bravia Theatre Quad in 2024. We've also seen the likes of the Valerion Thunderbeat, Loewe WE Boost and Hisense Saturn all make appearances since.

LG and TCL have even launched speakers with Dolby Atmos FlexConnect that can be configured to create a full surround sound system, which even takes the hassle out of positioning speakers.

These wireless systems essentially offer a proper surround sound experience – there are speakers technically surrounding the seating position – with a heaping of convenience that makes them more approachable.

Purists may disagree with me here, and I won't argue that a dedicated 4K projector, surround sound speaker package, AVR and 4K Blu-ray player won't offer up a better home cinema experience.

However, not everyone has the time, space, budget or technical know-how for a full system, and let's not forget that watching movies isn't a competitive sport.

Personally, I'm here for these accessible home cinema products. Convenience and affordability are two great ways to tempt new people into the world of home cinema, and once they've had a taste, chances are they'll begin working up to the full package.

And if they don't, then that's fine too. Home cinema for everyone is the ideal outcome here, whether that's a sound-treated, dedicated theatre room made by specialists, or beaming the latest superhero flick onto your wall from a projector sitting on your coffee table.

MORE:

Check out our picks for the best projectors

As well as the best portable projectors

The best Dolby Atmos movies of the decade (so far)

With decades of experience under our collective belts, the What Hi-Fi? reviews team has an exhaustive list of movie scenes on tap for testing all things AV, from simple soundbars to AV receivers, to full-blown Dolby Atmos surround sound systems.

Rows of Blu-ray discs (including the 4K variety) adorn our test rooms and are on standby for when we want to push a subwoofer to breaking point or stretch the processing skills of an AVR.

But what about the people behind the actual products that we test? As we did in 2025, we’ve once again reached out to major players in home cinema to find out which movies and scenes they use to benchmark their products. You’ll find them listed below.

What do you think of their choices? What are your favourite clips for showcasing your home cinema kit? Let us know in the comments below!

Jordi Brinkman – Product Marketing Manager, Consumer Audio, Harman EMEA

Ready Player One – The Impossible Race

This scene has all the classic elements for a great demonstration. It features cars, bikes, trains and giant gorillas – what more could you want? Visually it’s fast and detailed, and the soundtrack matches the images, being big and bold with a massive amount of immersive sound too. But listen carefully, and behind those huge dynamics you can hear the crystal clarity of the token coins bouncing into the distance.

A Star Is Born – Shallow

This film has an outstanding soundtrack. But the standout demo track is the Shallow scene. You can feel the tension between the artists as the song builds, and the vocals and musicians on this track are just tremendous. The entire soundtrack – either Dolby Atmos or DTS HD – has been mixed so well that you really feel that you are part of the performance, and this is totally engaging.

Hans Zimmer and Friends, Diamond in the Desert – Gladiator

This disc is a real favourite of ours and works brilliantly to demonstrate our soundbars or our high-end multichannel systems. The Gladiator track just shimmers with a wide and sweeping performance of this movie soundtrack classic.

The audio mix is both striking, accurate and at times breath-taking, and places you directly in the middle of the performance – immersing you completely. It’s a compelling argument that all soundtracks like this should only be listened to with a home cinema system.

Harry Jones, Sound Experience Engineer, Sonos

Sinners (2025) – 00:55:50

What an incredible film this is; the performances, the music, the cinematography. I’m a huge fan of how this movie sounds, and we are proud to have worked with one of the re-recording mixers, Brandon Proctor, on previous tuning sessions for our products.

A standout moment for me, and many others, has to be the music scene in the juke joint. It’s also been coined ‘THAT’ scene from Sinners - understandably. The scene offers many styles of music, starting with blues and ending with a huge score from Ludwig Göransson, via West Coast hip-hop.

Along with the music, there’s some really interesting perspective panning, especially with the instruments, as the camera weaves through the dancers and onto the stage. There’s a lot of movement of the ‘full range’ elements, so for me it’s a great test of how a system gels together, and the overall integration of the fronts and the surrounds.

Joker (2019) – 00:40:05

Another film with incredible dialogue timbre throughout is Joker from 2019. The social worker scene is a stand-out in terms of tonality, and I use this scene often to understand how a centre channel is sounding.

It is a great test to be able to tell whether it’s too boomy, or indeed too bright. The dialogue is mixed with this rich and chesty quality, and there’s plenty of warm 400/500Hz present. The clip itself is fairly sparse in terms of anything else going on, but I find it to be the yardstick on centre channel performance.

28 Years Later (2025) – 00:35:15

I love the very abstract imagery in this scene, but for me it’s all about the thundering low end throughout. I’m a big fan of using big low end in cinematic presentations, so if this feels slightly on the edge of ‘too much’, it’s probably about right.

John Bagby - Managing Director of PML Sound (Paradigm, Anthem, MartinLogan and GoldenEar)

Project Hail Mary – 1:44:10, Time Go Fishing

This sequence is an absolute torture test for your subwoofer and amplifier. It layers two extremes at the exact same time.

On the low end, you have the heavy, continuous, room-shaking rumble of the spaceship’s engines humming between 20Hz and 60Hz. This demands massive, sustained power. Meanwhile, the mix sprinkles tiny, high-frequency details right on top, like clinking chains and high-pitched spacesuit beeps.

On a lesser system, the heavy bass will swallow these delicate details, leaving you with a muddy, vibrating mess. A great system keeps them perfectly separated. You’ll feel the deep, physical engine rumble in your chest while still hearing those crisp, metallic clinks cut through with absolute clarity.

Venom – 50:30:00, Eddie’s Apartment Fight

This scene is a killer test for texture and midrange control. It flips instantly from Eddie arguing with himself to an absolute mess of close-quarters chaos.

The star of the show here is that deep, layering Venom voice. On the right system, it has this rumbling, dual-tone texture that feels like it’s vibrating inside your own skull and sends chills down your spine. At the same time, you have these wet, gooey, ripping sounds whenever the symbiote shoots out a tentacle.

On a weaker set-up, the voice loses its menacing weight and gets completely buried under the generic thuds of furniture shattering and bodies crashing into drywall. A good system keeps that creepy alien voice front and centre, sounding thick and terrifying while the apartment gets torn apart around it.

Midway – 1:34:55, Attack on the Carriers

If you want to push your surround sound or Dolby Atmos set-up to its absolute limit, play this scene. It is pure, chaotic adrenaline. Fighter planes scream overhead, anti-aircraft guns thump, and debris flies in every direction. The sound design is incredibly fast, panning audio aggressively in a full 360-degree circle around your room.

This is a test of spatial precision and amplifier recovery speed. You want to hear a plane zoom seamlessly from front-left, over your head, and out the back-right without any gaps in the sound.

Because the explosions are so rapid-fire, your system has to recover instantly to deliver the next hit. If your gear is too slow, the chaos turns into a muddy blur; if it’s fast, it feels terrifyingly real.

Eric Kingdon, Technical Marketing Consultant, Sony

James Bond No Time to Die – Chapter 4, 20.00, Car Ambush

In this scene, the dialogue/music should remain clear despite the chaos! Gunfire travels precisely around the soundstage. Car engine and sound ‘impacts’ deliver controlled, but powerful low-frequency bass. The church bells, with great height, separation and detail, create a strong vertical position in the soundfield.

Ready Player One – Chapter 2 , 12.00, Car Race

The scene delivers a wide soundstage, with objects rapidly moving around the listener. It’s also a great test of dynamics and imaging, with a strong sense of height and lateral movement. It delivers a good immersive experience, with excellent smaller details such as when the coins ‘float’ into the car!

Sinners – Chapter 7, 55.45, Music Awakening

The guitar playing has detail plus presence, while the vocals remain focused and natural. Musically, it’s a fine test. Actually, it’s a good test for virtual speaker processing too. As the camera rotates, the soundstage opens up, enveloping the listener. You get the excellent room ambience, with the crowd reactions and musical ‘layers’ demonstrating a feeling of atmosphere, space and immersion. It’s quite immersive in both a musical and visual sense.

Olivier Semenoux, EU head of GTM & Product Management, TCL

6 Underground

For checking Atmos detailed sound, we use movies on Netflix and we typically use 6 Underground as this is one of the best scenes for testing a Dolby Atmos system, which will “detail” and “separate” sound objects clearly into the space.

In the opening Florence car chase scene, cars whip from front to rear, helicopters pass overhead and tyre screeches, ricochets and debris all move convincingly around and above you. It's a proper stress test for how clearly a system can separate and place individual sound objects in space, rather than just throwing noise at you.

Roma

This is the opposite kind of test, and in some ways the harder one. It's subtle rather than spectacular. In the scene just before the fire starts around half way into the movie, we can hear creaking doors, a dog barking from different distances, insects, church bells, all placed with real precision before the flames slowly wrap around you.

Atmos systems that sound impressive with action scenes don't always handle ambience this well, so it's a good way to hear how honest a system is.

Costa Rica (YouTube, Jacob & Katie Schwarz)

This is one of the clips we go back to most for judging genuine 4K HDR performance. It has everything we look for from bright highlights in the sun and the reflections off the water at the beach, deep blacks that still hold detail rather than crushing and fine texture in things like the skin of the snake.

The colours are rich without tipping into oversaturation and there's a real range of detail from the bright clouds right down into the dark shadows. It's a genuinely demanding real-world test that shows the best quality for a display.

MORE:

The annual What Hi-Fi? Home Cinema Week is here!

The best Dolby Atmos movies of the decade (so far) to test your home cinema

I traded my home cinema setup for a VR headset for an evening – here's everything you need to know

Thinking of buying a soundbar? Here’s a better alternative

There was once a time when legendary Japanese AV manufacturer Denon would update its home cinema amplifier range every year. Those days are now long behind us, which is why we’ve waited almost four years for the AVR-X2900H.

In that time, the shoes that this highly anticipated mid-range AV amp has to fill have only grown larger and larger. Most notably, Sony swanned onto the scene with the serial Award-winning TA-AN1000, which knocked Denon off the top spot.

There has also been a fair amount of stagnation in the AVR market lately, which makes every new release all the more important.

So, saying that the AVR-X2900H has landed in our testing room in a particularly high-pressure environment is quite the understatement. With it replacing the AVR-X2800H – a staple of our AV testing room and best AV receivers list alike – the X2900H has to impress. So does it?

Price

The X2900H is officially priced at £899 / $1349 / AU$1799, making it more expensive than its predecessor in the UK and US, but more affordable in Australia. The X2800H launched at £869 / $1200 / AU$2399, for reference.

It’s worth noting here that the version of this AVR sold in the USA is slightly different to the one we’re testing. It adds some key custom installation features including front left and right speaker pre-outs, a 12V trigger and an RS-232C port.

Furthermore, the UK version of the X2900H is the only model to feature a DAB tuner, with all other regions dropping this radio standard.

That said, this AV receiver still sits within the mid-range sector of the market, and specifically in Denon’s lineup it sits between the X1800H and the X3900H, the latter of which is expected to launch soon.

At this level, Denon is facing a rematch with the AV amplifier that ejected its previous amplifiers from our Awards list. Yes, the TA-AN1000 trudges on for yet another year as the sole AV amplifier in Sony’s lineup, but with a couple of years now under its belt, it can be found for £899 here in the UK. Discounts are also frequent, and we’ve seen it drop to as low as £699.

Design

Denon hasn’t been particularly daring with its AVR design in recent years. Much like the Targaryans in Game Of Thrones, or the Weasleys in Harry Potter, some strong genetic characteristics immediately identify this black box as a Denon amplifier.

The X2900H is another angular, brushed metal box sporting a rectangular display flanked by volume and source selection knobs, and a neatly organised row of buttons below it. Denon has made some appreciated updates here by angling the buttons upwards, making them easier to press if your AVR sits on a low shelf in your TV cabinet.

Subtle upgrades aside, this AVR remains functional-looking rather than particularly eye-catching, which is no great shame to us. That said, Denon’s sister company, Marantz, wins the AVR beauty contest – just look at the (admittedly much more expensive) Cinema 30 and tell us you disagree.

Speaking of which, the Denon has taken some inspiration from the Marantz when it comes to the remote. This simple-to-use handset now sports a side-mounted button that activates a backlight, making it much easier to use in a dark home cinema room.

Features

Much like its predecessor, the AVR-X2900H offers seven channels of amplification, supporting up to a 5.1.2 or 7.1 surround sound system.

Denon claims that this amp can output 95W per channel into 8 ohms, or 125W into 6 ohms, although that’s with only two of the seven available channels driven. It hasn’t given an exact figure regarding what the power output is with all channels driven, but Denon reportedly guarantees at least 70 per cent of that power with five channels driven.

It’s worth noting that Denon has its fellow Japanese competitor beaten when it comes to power output (albeit not by much), as the Sony TA-AN1000 offers 120W into 6 ohms with two channels driven.

Internally, Denon has implemented an upgraded 32-bit eight-channel DAC architecture for “improved imaging, clearer high-frequency detail and more confident low-frequency energy across every channel”.

The X2900H has also inherited a set of redesigned power capacitors from the company’s higher-end models, while Denon claims that the addition of silicon steel plates aids more powerful low-end frequencies. It also reports that unwanted vibrations have been reduced thanks to a new transformer plate.

Audyssey MultEQ XT makes a return for straightforward room correction, including automated speaker level and distance settings. Denon has also added support for the basic version of Dirac Live Room Correction this year, although it’s an optional extra that requires additional equipment to set up.

Accessing the MultEQ XT calibration system is a breeze thanks to the intuitive high-definition on-screen interface. Being able to confidently adjust settings without having to peer at the modest onboard display makes things much easier, and this will be a godsend to home cinema novices who might be setting up an AVR for the first time.

In terms of connectivity, the AVR-X2900H sports six HDMI inputs, three of which support signals up to 8K resolution, and Denon has added 1440p video pass-through and AMD FreeSync this year for better PC gaming support. There are also dual HDMI outputs, one of which is HDMI eARC, while the other supports Zone 2 functionality.

Gaming is capped at 4K/120Hz, however, which will be frustrating for PC gamers with more capable rigs, and possibly those with modern OLED TVs that can reach 165Hz. Denon makes up for this by including support for Variable Refresh Rate (VRR), which the PS5 and Xbox Series X and S both support, and Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) and Quick Frame Transport (QFT) are both on board to reduce latency.

There’s also support for both HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, alongside HDR10 and HLG, meaning the X2900H should pass video through to your TV or projector nicely regardless of the make or model.

Wired connectivity extends beyond your TV or projector too, as there is a moving magnet phono input included for hooking up a turntable; ideal for those who are looking for an all-in-one AV and hi-fi amplifier.

Wireless connectivity is also solid, with streaming supported over wi-fi, AirPlay 2 and Bluetooth. Denon’s HEOS platform is also on board, which grants access to countless music streaming apps, including Spotify, Tidal, Qobuz, Amazon Music HD, TuneIn and Deezer.

HEOS also supports multi-room playback, meaning you can tie this AVR into a wider Denon speaker set-up if you have the brand’s wireless speakers dotted around your house. Interestingly, Denon also plans to release a software update that will allow users to use said wireless speakers as wireless surround channels for extra functionality.

Sound

Actually, Denon has two sets of oversized shoes to fill. The Denon AVR-X2800H has just ended an impressive run as both a previous What Hi-Fi? Award-winner, and as a longstanding entry on our best AV receivers list, while the Sony TA-AN1000’s reputation speaks for itself.

We’ve hooked the Denon AVR-X2900H up to our reference PMC speaker package, trying it in both a 5.1.2 and a 7.1 configuration, and we’ve raided our 4K reference library

The Denon DNA is immediately apparent when we fire up Civil War. The military base sequence in Charlottesville is a perfect exhibition of the X2900H’s strengths; this amplifier can provide a broad, bold and weighty cinematic audio experience with ease.

The general bustle of the military camp is presented with a broad, spacious sound, while the grumbling engines of trucks and the meaty rhythmic chopping of helicopter blades are realised with an appreciated sense of heft.

Sonic subtleties aren’t sacrificed entirely for brawn here, though. There is still plenty of detail to be gleaned from the X2900H, such as rippling water and the faint chirping of birds during the conversation between Lee and Jessie.

Its warmth and richness leave the Sony feeling slightly thin in comparison, and that’s paired with a sense of space and openness that ensures the Denon presents a cinematic sound that truly envelopes us.

This becomes more apparent when we switch to Marvel’s Thunderbolts, as the surround sound effect feels more cohesive compared with the Award-winning Sony.

Sound travels more fluidly between the front and surround channels; a particularly striking example of this is when a smoke grenade deploys, and the sound of smoke filling the room flows to reach all channels in our surround sound system.

The Denon also proves to be a dab hand at music. That rich, warm and smooth nature that we’ve already pointed out is well-suited to stereo content in Pure Direct.

Kacey Musgraves’ Butterflies features a superbly textured guitar melody and sweet-sounding vocals, while Bad Bunny’s NUEVAYoL takes advantage of the amplifier’s excellent sense of space to balance the rhythmic drumming, brass elements, electronic instrumentation, and range of vocal effects. In many ways, the Denon does more to draw us into the music than its Sony competitor.

However, it’s not all perfect. The Denon can lean into what we’d call over-indulgence at times. The immediacy and agility of the Sony result in a much more exciting presentation during tense moments such as the Thunderbolts sequence mentioned above. Its snappier, crisper and more direct sound also makes everything – especially dialogue – sound more natural.

Those warm, smooth and rich characteristics of the Denon that we’ve praised are sometimes taken a touch too far, resulting in somewhat dull-sounding vocals, and sudden dynamic shifts (think gunshots or explosions) don’t hit quite as hard as we’d like them to.

This takes us neatly onto the bass performance. Denon has clearly tried to one-up its competitor by raising the bass performance on the X2900H, and we certainly can’t deny that there is more low-end this time around.

Playing the famously challenging Blade Runner 2049 chapter two sequence, the X2900H digs deep and throws out swathes of bold bass. In many ways, Denon should be commended for how it's squeezed this much low-end power out of such a modest amplifier, but it also seems to have missed the point in doing so.

While there is more bass than we know what to do with, and it’s also polite enough to avoid distortion, it unfortunately also lacks definition, tonal variation, and dynamic expression. The rumbling drums in the soundtrack's Flight To The LAPD don’t build here in the way we expect, and it all feels one-note and ill-defined.

This ultimately impacts the steady building of tension in this sequence, and while the Sony doesn’t offer quite the same level of deep bass, its more deliberate handling of lower frequencies makes it the clear winner in this instance.

Verdict

The Denon AVR-X2900H is a feature-packed and, broadly speaking, very good-sounding home cinema amplifier.

It fills in a few sonic shortcomings of its Sony competitor, though in doing so it also makes some of its own flaws more apparent. While we approve of its warm, encompassing sound, it is also lacking some agility, and Denon’s approach to bass has missed the mark.

Nevertheless, this is a genuinely likeable and user-friendly amplifier, so is well worth serious consideration.

SCORES

• Sound 4
• Features 5
• Design 4

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It's Home Cinema Week here at What Hi-Fi?, and to celebrate we've had a bevvy of themed reviews on speaker packages, AV receivers and more.

One of the most notable of those, however, might be the AWOL Vision Aetherion Max projector, now reduced to £3199 at Amazon.

It may not be cheap by UST standards, but considering the specifications involved and the overall performance, it really is a bit of a bargain.

And given how overall impressive it is, from its design to its features to the all-important picture and sound quality, it's sneaked right to the top of our list of UST favourites.

If you had any doubts about the abilities of the AWOL Vision Aetherion Max, here's a snippet from our recent review.

"The Aetherion Max’s picture quality isn’t just a big improvement over the already more than decent LTV-3500 that marks our only previous interaction with an AWOL Vision projector; it’s actually arguably the best picture quality we’ve ever seen from any UST projector. Or, at least, a UST projector selling for anything like as little as the Aetherion Max does," our AWOL Vision Aetherion Max review reads.

The projector is fantastically bright and contrast-rich even in ambient light, but it's in dark rooms that the Aetherion Max really shows how outstanding it is. Colours look even more vibrant, but crucially remain natural, balanced and full of subtle nuances and blends.

Its HDR Standard mode also somehow manages to deliver some of the deepest, most convincing blacks we’ve seen from any 3000-nit or brighter projector, all of which adds up to an endlessly watchable and immersive experience.

The Aetherion Max’s front-mounted speakers, too, are far better than you get built into most projectors, getting loud enough to create a cinematic presence even in large rooms but still retaining detail at high volumes. More bass than most projectors achieve is also on offer, though this does result in some straining under pressure.

Not to be outdone, the feature set is just as impressive. Its DLP optics are illuminated by a triple laser lighting system, for starters, with a claimed 3300 lumens of brightness and an image size of up to 200 inches.

Gamers are extremely well supported, with three HDMI ports that support VRR and reach 240Hz with Full HD (but not 4K) sources.

There's also support for all four current HDR standards, including the premium HDR10+ and Dolby Vision formats, a rarity in the projector world.

Given just how much is packed into the AWOL Vision Aetherion Max and how well it performs, its £3499 launch price was a bit of a miracle. And now our favourite UST is even cheaper, with a £300 discount at Amazon.

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Anyone remember their parents telling them the tale of the boy who cried wolf? I’d argue it’s one of the most important lessons I learned as a child.

Well, that and don’t steal raisins from Sophia – that led to an unfortunate incident in nursery, where I was given a tattoo on my left hand’s index finger after a biro from said classmate found its mark.

Why am I mentioning this now? I'm not sure about my raisin confession, but the cry wolf part is relevant to this article, because it applies to my recent experience speaking to big-name companies to check what's going on with 8K TVs for this year's special Home Cinema Week event. Sadly, it's not good news.

“We can’t comment on this.”

“No updates right now.”

“We have no plans or updates to share for the technology.”

"While 8K represents a significant technological milestone, its broader adoption will depend on the continued evolution of content and distribution ecosystems."

Getting a vibe from the responses yet? I certainly did.

Full transparency, I’m not that fussed about 8K yet, due to the ongoing lack of content mastered at the resolution.

But the cold fish reaction to the tech in 2026 does leave a bit of a sour taste in the mouth, given how hard some firms were pushing 8K to “enthusiasts” who wanted a future-proof set, even a few years ago.

To catch readers up, 8K is an upgraded resolution that delivers four times the pixel density of 4K – 7680 × 4320 pixels (approx. 33.2 million total pixels) to 4K’s 3840 × 2160 pixels (approx. 8.3 million total pixels) to be precise. Samsung started making noise about the resolution being a big deal in the early 2010s and went on to vocally describe it as the future right up to the 2020s.

And since 2018, it, in fairness, has made 8K TVs, in many ways putting its money where its mouth is. One of them, the 2024 Samsung QN900D, even won a What Hi-Fi? Award after earning five stars from our reviewers.

LG and Sony also briefly got in on the action. LG offered three generations of 8K Z-series OLED TVs and Sony the 2022 Z9K 8K Mini LED – though both LG and Sony have since unceremoniously exited the 8K market, leaving Samsung largely unchallenged.

Why the sour taste? Because, truthfully, I know some readers, and one friend with more money than sense, have invested in 8K sets, viewing them as a future-proof purchase, as the marketing at the time suggested.

So now the firms have suddenly turned cold on it and no longer want to speak about it at all, I can’t help but feel a minor grump growing on their behalf and that they're guilty of crying wolf on it being the future; and losing some trust in the process.

This is especially true in 2026 as there are so many other “future of TV” technologies appearing right now. On the panel front, numerous companies are pushing RGB Mini LED as the future and the “OLED-killer” we’ve been waiting for. Though, based on our review of the Sony Bravia 7 II and Bravia 9 II, the team and I are not quite convinced of that yet.

Or there’s Dolby Vision 2, another new “future of home cinema” bit of tech firms seem to be pushing as an essential “future-proof” feature you need to have on your next TV – despite the lack of any content mastered in it.

Sound similar to 8K? Though there are companies confirmed to be making content with Dolby Vision 2 tech, it’s hard not to see at least some similarities. And because of that, I can’t help but think the response is a bit disappointing with 8K and a key reminder that marketing and sales teams aren’t on your side.

Just because a company wants to sell you a fancy new feature as the most important thing ever doesn’t mean it is.

We’ve seen that many times before. And with Samsung the only big player making 8K TVs, you have to wonder, is it destined to be sent to the same farm as 3D and curved TVs? It’s not looking good right now, though I hope to be proven wrong – at the very least for the sake of the readers and my friend who drank the Kool-Aid.

Fingers crossed the silence is because they have a huge 8K announcement coming, and don’t want to spoil the surprise…

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It's Home Cinema Week here at What Hi-Fi?, which, as you would expect, has seen a lot of coverage of speaker packages, Dolby Atmos soundbars, 4K projectors and plenty of other good stuff.

But, as TV & AV Editor Tom Parsons has already written, home cinema in 2026 means much more than the usual screen-and-sound living room setup, and while traditionalists may deem this blasphemy, there's another increasingly popular way to enjoy movies at home: VR.

While most VR headsets will struggle to match the quality of a good home cinema setup, the technology is getting better all the time, and offers immersion and flexibility that most TVs can only dream of.

As the proud owner of a VR headset – the Meta Quest 2, to be precise, following a lockdown-era impulse buy – I've been hunted by virtual reality zombies and even braved the horrors of Among Us VR, but I've never once dabbled in its home cinema capabilities.

Until now. For Home Cinema Week, I have been exploring the possibilities afforded to us by VR home cinema, including the many headsets, apps and viewing experiences on offer.

It's a brave new world for home cinema – let's take a look at cinema in a whole new reality.

VR home cinema: the headsets

To explore the possibilities of VR, you will, of course, need a VR headset.

Luckily, there are several choices when it comes to VR headsets these days, from the relatively affordable to the super-premium.

Standalone VR headsets

The most accessible and most common consumer VR headsets are now standalone models.

The biggest selling point of these headsets is that they don't require a PC or console to work, so are completely wireless, which is of course rather convenient for relaxing and watching movies.

The standalone market is dominated by the Meta Quest series, currently made up of the Meta Quest 3 (£550 / $600 / AU$969) and a budget 3S model (£320 / $350 / AU$569).

Both have mixed reality modes, meaning you can watch a movie while still having full view of your living room, but the Quest 3 has a higher resolution at 2064 x 2208 per eye.

Other notable standalone options include the Pico 4 Ultra (£529 / AU$1299 / around $710), which has a smaller app store than the Quest 3 but a slightly higher resolution of 2160 x 2160, and the Apple Vision Pro.

With a starting price of £3499 / $3699 / AU$6299, the Vision Pro is most certainly a premium option, but with dual micro-OLED 4K displays, it's also the most technically gifted option in the standalone category.

Tethered headsets

As the name suggests, tethered VR headsets require a console or PC to function, but benefit from the added power.

Key examples include the PlayStation VR2 (£400 / $399 / AU$650), which, of course, connects to your PS5 console through a single cable and offers an HDR OLED display with a resolution of 2000 x 2040 per panel.

For PC, there are more options. The Valve Index (£919 / $999 / around AU$1750) has long been a favourite for gamers and features a resolution of 1440x1600 per eye.

The more budget HP Reverb G2 (£520 / $599 / AU$999) boasts 4K resolution per eye, while the HTC Vive Pro 2 (£649 / $800 / AU$1999) goes one better with an incredible 5K resolution per eye if you have a powerful enough PC.

VR home cinema: the apps

So you've just got yourself a brand new futuristic VR headset. The question now is – how do you watch movies in glorious VR?

There's quite a range of options across the various app stores, from truly immersive, cinema-like experiences to clunky streamers. I've tried some of the biggest and best and given you my impressions below.

Dedicated Streaming Apps

The easiest way to watch movies on a VR headset is much like on a TV – use the dedicated streaming apps. Prime Video and Disney+ are available as native apps, though Netflix and other services are available to stream through the headset's browser or by connecting a PC.

I boot up both Prime Video and Disney+ on my Meta Quest 2, and other than the usual password typing faff, they're responsive and easy to use. They're rather basic in the world of VR cinema as they simply offer TV shows and movies with no other gimmicks, but they get the job done if you simply want to watch a movie.

As VR often excels at, it does feel like you're watching movies on a ridiculously large screen – a viewing of Avatar really does feel immersive, like a massive IMAX screen. However, while my headset is supposedly streaming in HD, the image on my Quest 2 does look somewhat blurry – the newer Quest 3 and other more powerful headsets should improve on this.

Newer headsets such as the Quest 3 also offer passthrough, allowing you a full view of the room around you while you watch your VR film. Nifty stuff.

Annoyingly, 3D movies – which could well be experiencing a second wind in VR – are exclusive to the Apple Vision Pro on Disney+, locking an impressive library of 3D films behind a rather pricey paywall.

A special mention should go to YouTube, which, while not a fully fledged streaming service, is rather well-optimised for VR. All the usual 2D videos are available to watch, as well as 'spatial' VR videos that let you move your head up to 360 degrees in some cases.

Football stadium tours, VR tourism, horror videos... there's a surprising amount of content, and it really feels like you're actually there.

Bigscreen VR

If you want to customise your viewing experience, watch with friends or even just socialise in a cinema lobby, Bigscreen VR offers an incredible amount of viewing options.

The big draw of Bigscreen VR is that you can now watch movies in a 100-foot, virtual cinema, complete with chairs, an aisle, and a huge cinema-esque screen. There are several themes available, from a 1980s cinema, a drive-in, a campfire or even a space station.

The traditionalist that I am, I chose the 'Grand Cinema' setting – it was a little eerie sitting in a huge cinema on my own, but it did recreate the immersive, magical movie-going experience in a way that living room setups can't quite match.

There's a social element, too, as you create an avatar and can invite your friends to your cinema for screenings. Or, if you're feeling particularly brave, you can join a public screening with others online.

Props are available too for a bit of fun – a free box of virtual popcorn was included in my screening, but it wasn't long before it spilt all over the virtual floor.

To complete the experience, there's an optional cinema lobby complete with movie posters, a ticket counter, various screening rooms and the chance to socialise with fellow VR movie-goers.

Watch options include native apps such as Prime Video and Disney+, but you can also watch local video files, connect to your PC or rent from select online stores. There were also a few 24/7 'channels' screening free content, but I have to say there was no one else in the virtual cinema for the Classic Doctor Who channel.

Skybox VR

If you're not watching in a group, then Skybox VR might be your go-to VR media player, especially if you're keen on watching high-quality files.

Skybox markets itself as VR media player that can play anything – including video files in formats such as AV1, MP4, MKV, MOV, TS, WEBM, 3D and VR. Its AirScreen technology also claims to stream videos wirelessly from your PC to your VR headset without a loss of quality.

Now my PC isn't home to the most high-resolution of files, but Skybox nonetheless played back video content with impressive sharpness.

There are no social options on Skybox, but virtual cinema environments are once again on offer, complete with wacky options should you wish.

If you have a lot of movies stored on your PC and are keen to watch them alone in the best quality, then Skybox might be for you.

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LG has announced a new picture mode for its TVs. Creator Original Picture Mode is described as an "industry-first picture setting for streaming", and essentially lets the filmmakers decide exactly how the picture should look. Think of it as a step on from Filmmaker Mode.

Because while Filmmaker Mode disables post-processing enhancements for a truer picture, the new mode lets the filmmakers decide parameters such as shadow detail, colour balance, noise reduction and motion handling. These will differ for each film, allowing content creators to have their movies look exactly as they would like.

At least, we think that's how it works. We have a few questions, and have contacted LG for answers – we'll update this story once we've heard back.

The mode is exclusive to Prime Video (and possibly only the Masters Of The Universe reboot, but that's one of the many questions we have posed to LG). It's only available on LG's 2026 OLED evo TVs: that's the W6, G6 and C6 series.

You can also launch Masters Of The Universe by saying "I have the power" into your LG Magic Remote for LG TVs running webOS 23 or later.

Masters Of The Universe has a 67 per cent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

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AWOL Vision might have only been around for six years (the blink of an eye by AV standards), but it’s already managed to cram an awful lot of progress into its short life.

As early as 2024, the brand was impressing us – without quite blowing our minds – with its LTV-3500 Pro ultra short throw model. And now, just two years later, the brand has massively upped the ante with the Aetherion Max.

This is another UST model, but the similarities with the LTV-3500 Pro pretty much end there. From its design through to its features and, most importantly, its picture and sound quality, it truly elevates AWOL Vision into the big leagues – all for a fraction of the price of its predecessor.

Price

Its steep price was arguably the Achilles heel of the LTV-3500 Pro, so it’s great to find the Aetherion Max selling for thousands of pounds (or dollars) less than that model – despite boasting a better design and an improved set of specifications and features.

There are, of course, UST models out there that cost much less than the Aetherion Max’s £3499 / $4499 / AU$6299 asking price – including the excellent Hisense PX3-Pro, which is now being discounted to as little as £1599 at some UK retailers.

If you’re able to afford £3499 for a projector, though, the Aetherion Max not only comfortably earns its extra cost but actually ends up feeling like a bargain.

Design

The Aetherion Max looks like a cross between an alien spaceship and a Robot Wars winner – in a good way.

At heart, it’s the usual UST projector low-slung rectangular shape with a recessed slit in the top where the light gets out, but that core design is embellished with a lovely metallic silver finish, a Battlestar Galactica Cylon-like blue illuminated strip running across the front edge that also sports a fetchingly designed speaker grille, and a host of false corners and angled panels that all catch the light differently, creating a strikingly futuristic, exaggerated 3D effect.

Eye-catching though the Aetherion Max is, its UST design means it’s still far less impactful on your room than a king-sized TV would be. We strongly suggest that such a premium projector be partnered with a good quality screen, but you can make this ‘disappear’ when you’re not watching it if you go for a retractable model that can roll back into its housing when you’re not using it.

As if by commercial magic, AWOL Vision actually sells its own impressive 100- and 120-inch ambient light rejecting motorised floor rising screens, with some dealers offering aggressively priced projector-plus-rising-screen package deals.

Having been sent a 120-inch screen with our Aetherion Max test sample, we can confirm that these are remarkably well built and effective screens for their money. They help images look substantially punchier and richer in bright rooms, while the screen’s black level performance holds up startlingly well in dark room set-ups too.

AV purists should note, though, that AWOL Vision’s screens use a 1.3 gain level, which is slightly higher than the neutral or 1.0 figures usually recommended for accurate dark room viewing.

The Aetherion Max is joined by a neatly designed remote control, complete with attractive and tactile metallic highlight elements, a clean and ergonomic button layout, and effective backlighting.

Features

AWOL Vision has equipped the Aetherion Max with a seriously impressive collection of facts and figures for its price.

Its DLP optics are illuminated by a triple laser lighting system, for starters, and this optical system is claimed to pump out both 3300 lumens of brightness and a colour range capable of covering the full BT.2020 spectrum.

That colour range is seldom really relevant to today’s content, though, which typically works within the smaller DCI-P3 range. Needless to say, 100 per cent coverage of the DCI-P3 gamut is promised, too.

A 7-level iris and an advanced black level enhancer algorithm are provided to try and maintain good contrast despite how bright the projector is, while owners of 3D Blu-ray discs will be pleased to hear that AWOL Vision’s latest projector supports 3D playback.

The Aetherion Max’s lens arrangement features so-called Sapphire glass elements that are made using an ultra-low dispersion design for enhanced sharpness, and coated with a Rare Earth material using a premium ‘planetary’ ultra-even coating process that’s claimed to boost light transmission, contrast and colour accuracy.

Backing up these hardware features is a PixelLock software solution that works to prevent pixel drift, where projected images can gradually lose focus over time due to changes in the projector’s optics or lens.

Unlike many of today’s ultra short throw and ‘lifestyle’ projectors, the Aetherion Max doesn’t carry a sophisticated automatic image installation system. The set-up features provided, though, are extensive and calibrated finely enough to make it possible to achieve perfect focus, geometry and corner-to-corner sharpness without having to work too hard.

The Aetherion Max joins the recently reviewed Valerion VisionMaster Pro 2 in sporting a new anti-rainbow effect technology. This manipulates the image’s refresh rate to reduce DLP projectors’ potential for red, green and blue stripes to flit over stand-out bright objects. The Aetherion Max’s Anti-RBE system works for 3D as well as 2D.

Gamers are extremely well supported by the Aetherion Max. Its HDMI ports support VRR and can stretch to 240Hz with Full HD (but not 4K) sources. We measure input lag at an excellent 9.7ms with 1080p/60Hz sources when the projector is set to its Game/PC preset, which drops to only just over 3ms at 240Hz.

These are fantastic results for a projector – though we should add that the refresh rate increases slightly to 12.0ms if you activate the projector’s AMD FreeSync VRR feature, and also increases to 15ms with 60Hz content if you forget to turn off the high frame rate feature you strangely have to manually activate to unlock higher frame rates.

The Aetherion Max carries three HDMIs – one more than many of its competitors – along with a USB-C DisplayPort you can use for connecting tablets or laptops, an S/PDIF digital audio output, an RS-232C control port, and a 3.5mm AV input.

ALLM support means the projector can automatically switch to its Game mode when a game source is detected, and its low-latency mode remains in play when you’re playing in Dolby Vision.

The only significant gaming limitation seems to be that using the AMD FreeSync version of VRR causes the Xbox Series X to default down to Full HD and SDR rather than 4K HDR.

We mentioned Dolby Vision HDR back there, but impressively the Aetherion Max also supports the rival HDR10+ format which, like Dolby Vision, passes extra signal information compatible displays can use to deliver more accurate picture results.

It’s still unusual for a projector to support even one of these advanced HDR formats, never mind both, so the Aetherion Max deserves major props for being able to play the best version of any content you feed it.

In fact, it even carries IMAX Enhanced certification, meaning it’s been deemed capable of getting the best from IMAX’s special mastering system.

As we’d expect to find with a UST projector, the Aetherion Max carries a built-in smart system. And as usual with projectors, that smart system comes courtesy of Google TV, accompanied by AirPlay 2, Chromecast and Miracast content sharing capabilities. As usual, though, the use of Google TV means there’s no BBC iPlayer support.

The Aetherion Max’s built-in sound system, finally, is impressively able to handle both the premium Dolby Atmos and DTS:X formats – and it does so with much more power at its disposal than your average projector. The two 25W full-range drivers and a pair of tweeters are driven by 25 and 20 watts of amplification, respectively.

Picture quality

The Aetherion Max’s picture quality isn’t just a big improvement over the already more than decent LTV-3500 that marks our only previous interaction with an AWOL Vision projector; it’s actually arguably the best picture quality we’ve ever seen from any UST projector. Or, at least, a UST projector selling for anything like as little as the Aetherion Max does.

Looking at it first in the relatively dynamic and bold presets (HDR Standard and Dolby Vision Bright) that showcase its more extreme capabilities, the projector delivers a fantastically vibrant, bright but also contrast-rich image that punches confidently through daytime living room levels of ambient light.

This is especially true if you’re using the optional AWOL Vision ALR screen mentioned earlier, but it still out-punches most UST rivals even using an essentially neutral screen.

While this bright room capability is likely to be very welcome to anyone in the market for a specifically UST projector, what really tips the Aetherion Max into outstanding territory is how well its picture charms hold up in a dark room setting. Colours look even more vibrant, and brightness for both full-screen and peak highlight image elements looks fantastically intense.

Crucially, though, the enhanced intensity the AWOL Vision delivers in dark rooms isn’t just eye-catching; it’s also endlessly watchable and immersive thanks to the way colours still look natural, balanced and full of subtle nuances and blends despite their vibrancy; the way the brightness doesn’t lead colours to start looking washed out; and the way the projector’s black colours and dark scenes still look compelling and convincing despite the brightness and colour punch they’re appearing alongside.

We need to dwell on this black level point more. After all, unlike premium TVs, the Aetherion Max doesn’t have any true hardware-based local light controls to draw on. Yet its image management is so impressive in its HDR Standard mode that it somehow manages to deliver some of the deepest, most convincing blacks we’ve seen from any 3000-nit or brighter projector, despite its price being far from outrageous by premium projector standards.

These impressive black levels are achieved naturally enough, too, to ensure the Aetherion Max can render stand-out bright objects without either dimming them down to maintain consistent black levels, or black levels slipping into heavy greyness to accommodate the bright object’s intensity.

As well as helping dark images look convincing, this sort of contrast consistency really helps you get lost in what you’re watching – something that should always be the ultimate goal of any display, regardless of how eye-poppingly extreme its on-paper specifications might be.

AWOL Vision’s HDR tone mapping is remarkably good for such an affordable high-spec projector. It consistently shows an excellent knack for delivering an unusually bold HDR image experience by projector standards without leaving the image looking strained or full of distracting over-exaggerations or imbalances.

While the Aetherion Max’s Standard mode imagery is so alluring that it may well become the only setting most households need, we’re very happy to discover that AWOL Vision’s projector seals its status as our UST projector of choice by also managing to turn its hand to accurate dark-room playback.

Whether you’re using the HDR Filmmaker Mode or Dolby Vision Dark settings, the projector does an excellent job of reining in its more extreme tendencies to deliver images that track creators’ intent without looking remotely lifeless and flat like they can on all too many rival projectors running in similar picture modes.

Images still look quite bright by projector Filmmaker Mode standards, for starters, and black levels look, if anything, slightly deeper without crushing out subtle shadow detailing or exposing noise in near-dark areas.

Colours still look balanced and nuanced too, even if saturations are slightly toned down for the most part, and detail levels are high without starting to look forensic or overly gritty.

Skin tones look even more nuanced and believable than they do in the HDR Standard and Dolby Vision Bright modes too, while motion avoids looking excessively juddery even with 24p sources without any potentially distracting side effects from the available multi-strength motion processing.

The Aetherion Max carries all the tools needed for a full ISF calibration if you’re willing to spend money to optimise the projector’s performance for your specific surroundings. AWOL Vision has shown such a fine understanding of both HDR and SDR images with its Filmmaker Mode and Dolby Vision Dark settings, though, that we really don’t think many owners will feel the need to go the extra ISF mile.

That’s not to say, though, that the Aetherion Max is perfect or doesn’t benefit from any intervention. For instance, bright highlights of HDR images can clip (lose shading and colour subtleties) quite strongly in Filmmaker Mode unless you turn off the Enhance Black Level feature. Yet doing that can cause black levels to look a little greyer.

The anti-rainbow-effect technology can cause the projector to output an extra whining sound, and at the time of writing is applied automatically to many of the projector’s presets. If the noise bothers you, you may find you need to turn to a setting that doesn’t have the feature active – so it’s handy that these settings tend to be the most movie night-friendly options.

Strangely, the Anti-RBE processing doesn’t seem as effective here as it did on the Valerion VisionMaster Pro Max. It does reduce the rainbow effect, but not as much – something that people who are particularly prone to seeing rainbowing might want to take note of.

The Dolby Vision Bright mode can generate a hint of shimmering effect over bright picture expanses, as well as introducing a mild green undertone to the image. This green undertone all but disappears in Dolby Vision Dark mode, though, helping it become one of our favourite out-of-the-box Dolby Vision projection options.

Even with its FreeSync VRR resolution and HDR limitation, the Aetherion Max is a fabulous big-screen gaming display.

It really is remarkably responsive for a projector, rivalling the best TVs for how quickly it seems to react to your controller or keyboard inputs. Its gaming images look crisp, punchy and vibrant, too, especially at the higher frame rates the projector can seamlessly handle.

Pro gamers may struggle with the time it takes to move their eyes around images as big as those the Aetherion Max is designed to deliver, but the projector’s silicon, at least, won’t cost such gamers many precious milliseconds of response time.

AWOL Vision provided a couple of pairs of its own DLP Link 3D glasses with the Aetherion Max – and we are mostly glad it did.

Early impressions of this projector had suggested that its 3D pictures might suffer from major crosstalk (ghosting) problems, but such issues seem to have been almost completely resolved with our sample. Its 3D images look impressively detailed and clean, in fact, with practically no crosstalk interference at all.

Judder can be a little distracting during 3D action scenes, but there isn’t any major flickering to worry about, and 3D images look brighter, more naturally coloured and richer in contrast – including excellent black levels – than they do on many 3D-capable rivals.

Sound quality

The Aetherion Max’s front-mounted speakers (where our description of front refers to the side of the projector that faces out into the room) are predictably far better than those you get built into most projectors.

They can get loud enough to create a cinematic presence in even quite large rooms, for starters, and they’re able to maintain impressive amounts of detail in a good movie mix even at near max volume levels.

More bass than many projectors can achieve is on hand to provide action movies with a good sense of weight and scale, and there’s enough headroom in the projector’s mid-range to allow the sound to shift up through a convincing number of gears as action and horror movie set pieces build to a climax.

Dialogue is usually clean without standing out too much from the rest of the mix, and expansive soundtracks are thrown clear of the projector very effectively, creating a soundstage so big it makes you forget that it’s being produced from the diminutive form of a UST projector.

There are a few limitations to its audio efforts, though.

Bass can become slightly strained and huffy under severe pressure, as well as sometimes struggling for timing with deep rhythmical/percussive effects.

Deep male voices can occasionally sound a little hummy/electronic too, and dialogue generally can sound as if it’s coming from below your screen, rather than being raised to the level of the onscreen action.

Finally, very high-pitched sounds can hit your ears a bit harshly at high volumes.

While these niggles explain why we’ve only given the Aetherion Max a score of four for sound, though, as we said at the start of this section, it still sounds much more immersive and cinematic than your average projector.

Verdict

While the AWOL Vision Aetherion Max isn’t cheap by today’s UST projector standards, it delivers a combination of specification and performance that ultimately makes it look like a bargain.

In fact, with the projector’s design, features, specs and picture and sound quality all given appropriate weight alongside its price, it’s sneaked right to the top of our current UST projector chart.

SCORES

• Picture 5
• Sound 4
• Features 4

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These are the best projectors tested by our home cinema experts

It's Home Cinema Week 2026 here at What Hi-Fi?, and we're celebrating our love for all things TV, projector and surround sound related.

One of our favourite TVs of the year has been the Samsung S99H, thanks to a stunning, contrast-rich picture and a feature set that blows most other TVs out of the water.

However, even the S99H lacks two key features found on LG's latest flagship, the G6: Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos Flexconnect. And the LG G6 is cheaper too – the 65-inch Samsung S99H is currently £2899, while the G6 is now down to £2564 at Richer Sounds.

That's quite the step down from the £3000 price we tested at! You can save even more if you're willing to claim cashback – purchase before 18th August and you can claim 10% (£256) cashback from LG. Full Ts&Cs are available here.

After a re-review of the LG following a major software update, we found the G6 to be an OLED of serious ability, as a viewing of Civil War next to its predecessor, the G5, showed.

"The flames in a burning night-time forest continue to offer an enthralling amount of extra detail as well as higher peaks, but, more crucially, characters’ skin tones look nicely realistic, retaining reds far better, to the point that the G5’s picture makes them look slightly jaundiced by comparison," our LG G6 review reads.

"Moving to a daytime scene in a military camp, "balanced" quickly becomes the word that best describes the G6. As a helicopter swoops into the camp over a forest, it's clear LG has backed away from its previous focus on aggressively pushing its TVs' peak brightness at all costs."

This picture quality comes courtesy of a Primary RGB Tandem OLED panel, which uses a ‘four-stack’ panel structure to help the OLED TV achieve higher peak and operating brightness levels while retaining colour volume and accuracy.

It's aided by a new Alpha 11 Gen 3 AI processor and its Hyper Radiant Colour Technology system, which enables higher peak brightness levels than the already dazzling LG G5.

Dolby Vision, HDR10 and HLG are all on board, though do note that HDR10+ is missing. We wouldn't worry too much though – Dolby Vision is far more widely adopted and supports a higher bit depth of up to 12-bit colour compared to HDR10+'s 10-bit standard.

Otherwise, the broader feature set is pretty much flawless. WebOS 26 supports pretty much every app you can think of, including Now, Apple TV, Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, and more niche streaming options.

LG has long been one of our go-to brands for gaming, and the G6 is no different. All four HDMI 2.1 inputs offer up to 4K/165Hz gameplay with VRR, ALLM, and Dolby Vision Gaming HDR all supported.

LG OLEDs have struggled with audio in the past, but the G6 is a step in the right direction. It won't beat a dedicated sound system, but the G6 offers a noticeably fuller, more robust sound than its predecessors.

There's also support for Dolby Atmos Flexconnect, which allows the TV to automatically connect to compatible speakers and use the G6's built-in speakers as the central channel of a surround sound package. It's still relatively new technology, giving the G6 an element of future-proofing.

If you're looking for a new, feature-packed OLED, then the LG G6 is a compelling option. It offers a nuanced, accurate and ultimately immersive experience complete with flawless gaming specifications, now with £436 off at Richer Sounds.

MORE:

Here's our pick of the best TVs for every budget

Want a cheaper LG OLED? Check out our LG C6 review

For last year's model, head over to our LG G5 review

2026 is quite the momentous year: not only is What Hi-Fi? celebrating its 50th birthday, but it's also 100 years since the TV was first invented by John Logie Baird in 1926.

The way TV technology (along with broadcast, film and smart features) has progressed over the past century is nothing short of astonishing: chunky CRT (cathode ray tube) TVs gave way to slimmer LCDs and then even slimmer OLEDs, while screen resolution has gone from cosy standard definition to widespread 4K to futuristic 8K.

We have seen the birth and death of plasma TV, while in 2001, What Hi-Fi? entered a new era of Sound and Vision to expand our coverage to TV/home cinema alongside hi-fi and audio. The 2000s also marked a historic time in broadcast TV as the UK switched from analogue to digital, and the introduction of Full HD resolution was a turning point in TV screen technology that paved the way for constant innovation and advancement in the 21st century.

The What Hi-Fi? review team has been at the forefront of all these technologies, and we've sifted through our magazine archives from the 2000s to today to find the very first instances of when a new TV format of the 21st century – Full HD, OLED, 3D, 4K, 8K and beyond – entered our test rooms to get the full review treatment.

They may not have been the best examples of each TV tech, but they were the very first of their kind to show off just what a new screen technology, format and resolution could offer.

NOTE: To read the full-size text of the magazine images below, click on the arrow sign on the bottom-left corner, and in some cases, further click on 'view original' at the bottom-right corner.

LCD 1080p: Sharp LC-45GD1E (2005)

In today's fast-paced world of constant cutting-edge technology, it's hard to imagine just how big a deal the advent of Full HD (1920 x 1080) resolution was.

Standard TV broadcast was a mere 720 x 576 resolution, and we were perfectly happy with that on the 25-/32-inch CRTs and widescreen LCD tellies that were popular throughout the 90s. Freeview's digital terrestrial service started in 2002 in the UK, while the first "high-definition" BBC HD and Sky HD channels launched in May 2006.

For the best part of the 2000s, most LCD and plasma TVs were 'HD-Ready'. These TVs' native resolution was 1280 x 720 (or 768), but they were able to accept 1080i/1080p videos, and would simply downscale the picture to fit the lower resolution screen.

The first flatscreen LCD TV we encountered with a native 1080p Full HD resolution was this Sharp LC-45GD1E in 2005. We said the picture looked "stunning" when fed Full HD video from a home cinema PC, and that it displayed "an extraordinary absence of noise and motion-smearing."

It was less successful when upscaling standard definition content – a contrast to how advanced upscaling tech has become when dealing with 8K TVs (see below) – and we said cheaper, smaller 42-inch plasma TVs coped better here.

The Sharp's higher resolution came at a premium – £5500 for a 45-inch LCD TV! – so we deemed it more for the "connoisseur" rather than an "everyday TV." Besides, it really needed Full HD content to look its best, and that was hard to come by at the time.

Plasma 1080p: Pioneer PDP-5000EX (2006)

In the 2000s, plasma versus LCD was about as heated as, well, OLED versus LCD is today. Fujitsu launched the first commercial plasma TV in 1997, but it was the legendary Pioneer Kuro sets that everyone still remembers fondly as the peak of plasma screen technology.

Back in 2006, Pioneer was also the first to provide us with a plasma screen that finally did native Full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution. Despite us having already experienced Full HD resolution in LCD TVs, this Pioneer PDP-5000EX was the first set to offer "full 1080p compatibility... with the appropriate input interference" to accept Blu-ray and HD-DVD picture.

Our praise was effusive: "staggering picture quality", "this is the best plasma ever made", "this is what the telly looks like in heaven" – we weren't kidding when we said Full HD resolution wowed us in a way that we never thought possible.

With over two million pixels on screen, we found the definition "extraordinary". When fed 1080p content, the picture was "bright, sharp, colourful and consistently lustrous" and it also coped well with standard-def broadcasts.

Anyone wanting this premium new tech would have to cough up £7000 (a trend for every new TV technology, as we'll see below), but it showed just how revolutionary this new Full HD resolution was to the future of TV as we know it.

OLED: Sony XEL-1 (2008)

LCD and plasma TVs were widespread at the dawn of the new millennium, but a new panel technology – one that was close in spirit to the beloved plasma – was about to change the course of TVs forever.

Like plasma, OLED panels don't need a backlight. Instead, they use self-emissive organic light-emitting diodes that generate their own (white) light, which is put through a colour filter.

The advantage is that when an OLED pixel is turned off, it is truly off and therefore pitch-black. This results in perfect blacks without any hint of backlight bleeding through the image, superior contrast, and richer, punchier colours. Not needing an extra backlight panel meant OLED screens could be much thinner than LCD TVs, too.

The downsides are that the pixels have a limited shelf life due to their organic nature, they can't go quite as bright as LCDs, and at the beginning, larger screens weren't possible to produce due to the difficult nature of manufacturing these panels.

The Sony XEL-1 was the world's first OLED TV. It launched in 2007, with a screen size of just 11 inches and a depth of just 3mm. It boasted a high contrast ratio of 1,000,000:1, while the display resolution was a paltry 960 x 540.

We covered its launch news in the May 2008 issue, which looked at the next-gen TVs entering the market. In 2009, in "the next big thing" TV feature (fifth slide in gallery above), we learned of 21- and 27-inch prototypes of the Sony OLED, while the XEL-1 got even skinnier at just 0.9mm!

Sadly, we haven't been able to find any other coverage or review of this Sony XEL-1 in our magazine archives. It would be a good few years yet before a full-size, full-production OLED TV hit our test rooms, while Sony finally entered the OLED market proper with the stunning A1 (KD-55A1) OLED TV in 2017.

3D TV: Samsung UE40C7000 (2010)

3D wasn't a new technology by any means in 2010. Cinemagoers had been experiencing it since before the television was even invented, with 1922's silent feature The Power Of Love widely considered to be the first commercially released 3D film, shown at the Ambassador Hotel Theater in Los Angeles.

Why would anyone want to watch 3D films at home, while wearing bulky glasses that needed charging? Was it headache-inducing or was it an immersive experience for films and gaming? The jury was split when we tested Samsung's UE40C7000, the first 3D TV to hit the What Hi-Fi? test rooms.

You needed a 3D disc and a Blu-ray player compatible with the format to make the picture (Samsung's own BD-C6900 3D player and a 3D Blu-ray of Monsters vs Aliens, in this case), but it did offer a genuine "depth of field" that was suitably three-dimensional.

If you didn't care about 3D at all, however, then the Samsung UE40C7000 was also a very fine TV in its own right. Across terrestrial TV, DVD and Blu-ray, this 40-inch LCD TV delivered "epic levels of detail", with a subtle colour palette that handled skin tones particularly well. Motion handling was impressively smooth, and the edge-lit LED backlighting balanced black levels, highlights and details well.

An "overall impression of unshakeable solidity" is high praise indeed for this five-star 3D TV.

Read the full review: Samsung UE40C7000

4K LCD TV: Toshiba 55ZL2 (2012)

The Toshiba 55ZL2 made headlines for being the first glasses-free 3D TV – that is, you wouldn't need to wear bulky active or passive 3D glasses to see the picture in three dimensions; the Toshiba's integrated camera and lens technology would track your eye movements and do the hard work for you!

It worked, but with caveats. The subtle depth of field was nice, it was less fatiguing on the eyes, and the picture didn't experience a drop in brightness as it did with 3D glasses. But the tech did require you to sit completely still; any fidgeting or movement would lead to a drop-off in focus, definition and 3D effect, which was less than ideal.

But who cares about 3D? Because the Toshiba 55ZL2 was also the very first 4K TV screen we tested, back when the new reality of "four times the resolution of Full HD/1080p" was still in its earliest stages.

There was no mainstream 4K content yet (and wouldn't be for a long, long time), but Toshiba's 4K picture hinted at what was to come. Fed some demo content of flowers, landscapes, and cityscapes from a hard drive, we said: "native 3840 x 2160 images look, frankly, astonishing. Detail levels are absolutely sky-high, and the most complex patterns remain steady and stable with the sort of casual efficiency that’s the mark of a properly effective device."

With Blu-ray and DVD films, the Toshiba TV's colour balance was "expertly judged", and we praised its black depth for being "excellent by the prevailing standards of LED-backlit LCD screens."

Costing £7000, the cutting-edge 55ZL2 was considerably more expensive than your standard Full HD 55-inch TV at the time, but nowhere near as expensive as the £25,000 84-inch Sony 4K and LG 4K LCD TVs that would hit the market later that same year.

For actual 4K content, we had to wait for another three years: in August 2015, BT Sport Ultra HD launched as the UK's first 4K channel, while the first few 4K Blu-ray discs hit the market in 2016.

Read the full review: Toshiba 55ZL2

Curved OLED: Samsung KE55S9C (2013)

Curved OLED TVs were a short-lived fad, not helped by the fact that you couldn't wall-mount them, viewing angles weren't great for anyone not sitting dead centre of the screen, and the early models quickly became outdated as they didn't support the upcoming 4K resolution.

But the Samsung KE55S9C is notable not for its curved screen, but because it was actually our first time seeing the OLED panel technology on a large screen beyond a mere 11 inches.

As with 3D, the test team argued about the curved screen continuously. Some found it a "distracting gimmick" as the picture distorted according to the curvature when viewing it from the side, while others (those sitting dead centre) found the curve led to greater immersion.

The frame surrounding the 55-inch screen also served as a (rather large) stand, and it was more curved than the screen itself, adding to the illusion. "That curve" was listed as both a Pro and a Con in our review.

What we all agreed on, though, was that OLED looked stunning, handling contrast far better than any LCD TV we had seen. "Dark scenes are some of the deepest and blackest we’ve seen, genuinely resembling the absence of light," we enthused, even if we would have liked subtler shading and variation in the extremes. Colours were rich and vibrant, while the picture was also crisp and clear.

Did we recommend it? Its "prohibitively expensive" £7000 price tag was three times that of our favourite 55-inch plasma at the time, and we can't imagine most people beyond early adopters took the plunge.

We didn't "really understand why we’re seeing curved OLED sets before flat ones" either, but it did point to an exciting future for OLED TVs.

Read the full review: Samsung KE55S9C

4K OLED: LG 55EG960V (2015)

We never tested the £10,000 LG 55EM970V OLED that first arrived in the UK in 2013, but in 2015 we did finally get to test a TV that combined two picture technologies we had been waiting on for years: 4K Ultra HD resolution and OLED.

And the LG 55EG960V was "everything we hoped it would be", delivering the two new technologies with "spectacular results" in a living room-friendly 55-inch screen size. The intensely pitch-dark blacks contrast brilliantly against bright whites, while the 8.3 million pixels on screen were delivered with crystal-clear and precise detail.

"The depth of colours is breathtaking. They aren’t just richer, there are simply more precise shades of them on the screen, giving a wonderfully vivid feel to the picture," we said. There were more subtleties revealed in the deep blacks than before, and while upscaling standard definition content was a little fuzzy around the edges, it was still a punchy picture.

Yes, it was also gently curved (but you could wall-mount it), it did convincing 3D, and its thin screen with floating effect looked rather "gorgeous", too. It was still more expensive than equivalent LCD sets, so we couldn't yet definitely say that OLED was better and better-value.

We can now, though, as OLED has gone from strength to strength and become more affordable in the past decade, delivering even more impressive picture quality with greater subtlety and accuracy alongside unrivalled deep blacks and punchy contrast – from the wildly popular and affordable LG C5 to our TV & AV Editor Tom Parsons' current favourite, the Sony Bravia 8 II.

Read the full review: LG 55EG960V

8K: Samsung QE85Q900R 8K QLED (2018)

Unlike the world of hi-fi, TV manufacturers are in a constant state of innovation and of pushing the boundaries of screen technology. It took ages for 4K UHD broadcasts, streams and discs to become a reality since the first time the screen tech was proposed, but it wasn't long after that 8K was being touted as "the next big thing."

Samsung got there first, with the QE85Q900R 8K QLED hitting our test rooms in 2018. The LED-backlit quantum dot screen (Samsung was still staunchly against using OLED then) had a mind-blowing 33 million pixels to 4K's eight, with this mammoth 85-inch set offering "the same pixel density (104ppi) as a 43-inch 4K model".

4K has pretty high resolution, but if you sit too close to the screen, you can start to see the individual pixels. The advantage of 8K was that you could sit as close to the screen as you want – we sat even a foot away – and still not see any pixels. With native 8K content provided by Samsung, it looked fabulous.

"Predictably, it’s all about sharpness and detail. The image is unbelievably lifelike, and draws you in to an extent that 4K simply can’t match. Naturally, it’s helped by the sheer scale of the 85-inch display – this is cinematic and then some."

The AI-based upscaling technology was almost as impressive, as it had to effectively "make up" so much of the picture on screen when watching 4K, Full HD or DVD content, which was sharp and detailed with no discernible "artefacts, shimmer or noise".

The problems? It's 85-bloody-inches massive, and black levels simply weren't deep enough, with backlight blooming issues pervading the screen.

Also, there was no actual 8K content and, eight years on, there still isn't any. 8K resolution remains an impressive technical feat, but without the practical availability of broadcasts or films (the sheer size of the file/disc needed to accommodate those 33 million pixels doesn't bear thinking), it's unlikely to overtake 4K resolution in the home in the foreseeable future.

Read the full review: Samsung QE85Q900R 8K QLED

Micro LED: Samsung 75-inch Micro LED 4K TV (2019)

While arch-rival LG was leading the way with OLED during the 2010s, Samsung was staunchly working on advancing LED-backlit LCD panel technology, such as its Quantum Dot Mini LED display.

In 2018, though, the brand veered away from LCD in spectacular fashion, with Micro LED, which made its debut at CES in Las Vegas that January.

Micro LED uses tiny, non-organic self-emitting diodes for each pixel, so it's capable of producing the perfect blacks we love from OLED, while also theoretically delivering brighter images, greater colour control, and a longer lifespan of 100,000 hours (just over 11 years of constant use).

Thanks to its modular architecture (each Micro LED screen is constructed using a number of small modules arranged in a grid pattern), these early Micro LED TVs could span huge sizes. They could be even thinner than OLED, too, and their inorganic nature meant they could be left on permanently – great for commercial purposes.

Since then, non-modular, more typical TV-style Micro LED screens have been produced by Samsung, but prices have remained staunchly sky-high – the 146-inch 4K version of Samsung's The Wall Micro LED TV will set you back an eye-watering £199,999 in the UK. Needless to say, both production and adoption of Micro LED haven't been widespread beyond B2B applications.

We did get to see a 75-inch Samsung 4K Micro LED model in 2019, and it gave us an insight into the complexity of its manufacturing process, as well as a taste of its potential picture quality.

The demo footage we saw gave us an impression of "stunningly punchy and vibrant image with truly exceptional colours. Everything looks real and life-like to an extent we've genuinely not experienced before."

"Perfect" bright whites contrast against "perfect" black backgrounds, while there is subtlety amongst the colours too, and viewing angles remain consistent no matter where we were in the room.

Micro LED TVs might well be the true successor to OLED, but even now, they're hard to get hold of at any sensible size, and they're well beyond the means of most people who aren't Premier League footballers.

Read the full hands-on review: Samsung 75-inch Micro LED 4K TV

RGB Mini LED: Hisense UR9 (2026)

With Micro LED parked, TV manufacturers have focused on advancing the backlight quality of LCD TVs, and so RGB Mini LED is the current TV technology du jour.

Unlike conventional Mini LED TVs that use a white backlight shining through a colour filter layer, RGB Mini LED uses independent red, green and blue Mini LEDs to generate colour directly. The result? Brighter pictures and more accurate colour reproduction.

Does that make RGB Mini LED an OLED-killer?

Not quite, at least not yet. Hisense led the charge here, with the Hisense UR9 (65UR9STUK) being the first RGB Mini LED we tested earlier this year, ahead of Sony's recent Bravia 9 II effort. The Hisense UR9 showcases a stable, consistent and controlled picture, with none of the flickering or shifting behaviour we find distracting on traditional backlit TVs. Subtle blooming effects are nicely controlled, too.

We praised the Hisense RBG Mini LED TV's ability to display "consistently strong" black depth, noting "impressive richness and stability to colours", while extra-bright HDR content is delivered with dazzling intensity.

It's impressive stuff for an LCD TV, but it still doesn't quite achieve the three-dimensional quality and solidity of a price-equivalent OLED screen. Deep black levels, subtle colour gradations and even the perception of bright whites against inky blacks are better reproduced on Sony's current best OLED TV.

"Despite its impressive local-dimming system," we said, "the Hisense simply cannot match the pixel-level contrast control of the Sony Bravia 8 II."

Read the full review: Hisense UR9 (65UR9STUK)

Over a decade on, and OLED still rules the roost when it comes to picture technology. Brands have also looked to advance OLED panel technology, with LG Display producing ever-brighter W-OLED panels and Samsung Display firing back with also-ever-brighter versions of its competing QD-OLED technology.

Considering how revolutionary Full HD felt in the 2000s – which was four times the resolution of standard def, which is the same jump in resolution between Full HD and 4K – it has been an astonishing rate of advancement for screen technology.

What will the next 50 years of TV look like? Considering the stunning picture quality available to us these days, it should look pretty darn spectacular.

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Our guide to the best TVs of 2026: flagship OLEDs and budget Mini LED sets tried and tested

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How to optimise your 4K TV settings for Blu-ray, DVD and TV viewing

We're big fans of physical media here at What Hi-Fi?, but there is one rather big downside to hoarding it, as we do – how to store it.

While we love the idea of keeping all our Blu-rays and DVDs on show, that would take up a huge amount of space, which many of us simply don't have. Hence, lots of people turn to more space-efficient storage methods.

While a CD wallet will save you acres of shelf space, it could possibly damage your discs. Here's what you need to know and how to keep the shiny discs looking pristine.

How CD wallets can damage your discs

The issue concerns the plastic sleeves into which you slide your DVDs and Blu-rays.

The very act of sliding your disc into one of these sleeves can cause fine scratches on the disc's surface, especially if the sleeve is tight. But that's not the only danger.

If these sleeves are made of a cheap plastic like PVC, they can melt in high temperatures, melding with your disc and damaging it irretrievably. These high temperatures are more likely if the disc wallet is left in a car in direct sun, but thanks to the increasing number of heatwaves we're experiencing, it could happen in the home as well.

But even if you're extremely careful with how you slide in your discs, and you keep your CD wallet somewhere nice and cool, it's still not completely free of risk. How you store the wallet could also damage your discs.

If you keep your CD wallet on its end, the weight of the discs will bear down on those at the bottom, which could, in time, cause those discs to warp. Not only will this warped disc fail to be read by your Blu-ray player, it could also damage your player's spinning mechanism. Which isn't ideal.

How to store your discs safely

So what can you do? Thankfully, there are some pretty simple steps you can take to future-proof your Blu-rays and DVDs.

The safest option is to keep them in their original packaging, but if you want to save space, invest in a disc wallet whose sleeves are made from a soft, forgiving material like polypropylene, polyethene, felt, microfibre or netting. This will help prevent your delicate discs from picking up scratches while they're being slid in or out of the sleeves.

To avoid heat extremes, keep the sleeve out of direct sunlight, and don't take it anywhere in your car during the hotter months, unless you have extremely effective air conditioning. And definitely don't leave your CD wallet – or your money wallet, for that matter – in your car.

While it might be more convenient to store your wallet lying down, keeping it standing up will reduce the risk of any of your discs warping.

Follow these rules, and your discs should continue to give you much enjoyment for years to come and with no monthly fee. Take that, Netflix!

MORE:

Why I'll never give up my DVD collection

I never thought I’d see Netflix embrace physical media – but things are changing

Sony has waged war on physical media, and I think it’s terrible news for consumers and 4K Blu-ray alike

Nostalgia is a powerful force.

In the 50 years of What Hi-Fi?'s lifetime, we've seen the rise – and occasional fall – of several innovations, trends and fads, from Betamax to widescreen to, yes, 3D.

But are we looking back with rose-tinted 3D glasses? Are we, in fact, living in a golden era of home cinema, complete with perfect-black OLEDs, convenient HDMI eARC connections and affordable soundbar systems?

In honour of Home Cinema Week, I asked the What Hi-Fi? team what they thought about the matter. And it prompted quite the response, with some rather strong opinions popping up on both sides of the divide.

You can see their responses below – and feel free to add your own thoughts in the comments...

Yes – we are in a golden age of home cinema

While premium systems are still going to set you back a fair bit of cash, I still think this is a brilliant time to find a home cinema system if you are on a budget.

Of course, you are not going to get the same level of performance from an affordable TV screen compared to a model that costs thousands more. But the number of options out there for all price points feels like the best yet.

You can get a complete home cinema system for under £1000, which can include a bunch of five-star products that have performed brilliantly in our test room. For instance, the 50-inch TCL C6KS is available for about £429. The budget 4K model offers excellent brightness and contrast, and is an absolute bargain for the money. You could pair that with the Sonos Beam Gen 2 soundbar (£449) to upgrade the TV’s audio performance, delivering impressive Dolby Atmos effects and expressive vocals.

Budget systems might not suit everyone, but it’s great to see home cinema becoming more and more accessible.

I think it's incredibly hard to argue that we're not in a golden age of home cinema.

Home cinema has never been more accessible, whether in terms of price or practicality. At the same time, technologies such as Dolby Atmos and increasingly sophisticated room optimisation have made genuinely immersive sound achievable in spaces that simply wouldn't have supported it a decade ago.

All of this means that someone with a small budget and equally small and/or misshapen room can add an inexpensive, compact soundbar to their TV and find themselves audibly transported to the world of their movie, TV show or video game.

These days, you can even do this via certain tablet/phone and headphone combinations.

Of course, my argument depends on your definition of home cinema including soundbars, headphones and the like, which mine very much does, but even if yours doesn’t, the quality of ‘true’ home cinema has never been higher, either.

Sure, competitors in the AVR market have dwindled somewhat of late, but this hasn’t hindered quality, with Denon and Sony offering awesome entry-level models, Denon and Marantz producing the most feature-packed and user-friendly high-end models we’ve ever reviewed, Arcam and JBL producing uncompromising premium alternatives, and the likes of Anthem and McIntosh catering for the custom install and luxury markets.

Away from sound, meanwhile, the projector market has exploded with designs of all shapes, sizes, prices and technologies. For only a few hundred pounds, you can now buy a projector capable of producing a surprisingly watchable 150-inch image, and thanks to ‘coffee table’ and UST models with increased brightness and adaptive technologies, a projector can now be a viable option for a typical living room as well as a dedicated light-controlled space.

Still not right for you? TVs 100 inches and larger are now readily available and in many cases surprisingly affordable, allowing for a projector-sized experience with typical television convenience.

Essentially, whether your idea of home cinema is a £300 soundbar, a dedicated projector room or a six-figure custom installation, the choice and performance on offer today are unlike anything we've seen before. If that's not a golden age, I don't know what is.

No – we are not in a golden age of home cinema

There are lots of arguments to support the idea we’re living in a golden age of home cinema. New giant TV panel technologies are boosting performance, and the arrival of amazing wireless surround sound systems makes it much easier to get decent audio in the comfort of your own home than ever before. The list goes on.

But for me, there’s one reason I don’t think it’s fair to call it a golden age: the cost of living crisis. Yes, we are seeing a lot of great new tech appear. But the truth is most people are struggling with the price of groceries. So the fact that £5000 projectors and £2000 surround sound systems are better than ever is a bit of a moot point for most of us. I’m a firm believer we could only call it a “golden age” when the benefits of a proper, big-screen home experience are more openly available to people with regular sized bank accounts.

Which, outside of a few rare exceptions, still isn’t the case. Look at our best projectors, or best TV guide, and you’ll still see a number of four-star products with the strap “best cheap”. That’s because, while we’re seeing lots of innovation, it’s yet to trickle down to the mid, let alone the affordable end of the market. Until it does, I’m going to belligerently stick to my guns and refuse to call it a golden age. We only succeed when we all succeed, after all.

Even if we do live in an era of accessible 4K TVs and Dolby Atmos soundbars, there's little point if people aren't able to use these features properly.

This is, of course, due to the rise of streaming. And while there are plenty of upsides to streaming – it is highly convenient after all, providing thousands of films and shows at our fingertips – the cracks are beginning to show. Exclusive content is disappearing forever, with no legal way to watch it anymore. More and more services are springing out of the woodwork, and there seem to be monthly price increases at this point, making costs exorbitant if you subscribe to even just a few streaming services at a time.

This is especially true if you go for the premium tier on each service for 4K streaming and Dolby Atmos, which is now £17.99 a month on Netflix alone. This does mean the overwhelming majority of people are likely watching on the middle or lower tiers, which cap out at HD and 5.1. And even if you do shell out for the premium tiers, it's still a step down from the quality of 4K Blu-ray discs thanks to lower bit depth and compression.

Which wouldn't be a problem if physical media were still accessible, but it's becoming increasingly harder to watch 4K Blu-rays. Sony and Panasonic are the two mainstream manufacturers still offering 4K Blu-ray players, and neither has released a brand-new player in years. And with Sony ending physical disc production for the PlayStation, it seems highly unlikely that the next generation of consoles will have disc drives for 4K Blu-rays, or any other form of physical media for that matter.

Even if our actual home cinema systems are getting better all the time, it's becoming increasingly harder to use them at their full potential. As good as upscaling is these days, it's entirely possible that the average household has not actually watched their 4K TV at that resolution, let alone made use of HDR and all the other home cinema technology.

MORE:

These are the best AV receivers you can buy right now

Check out the best Dolby Atmos soundbars

And here are the best projectors

We’ve tested Denon’s entry-level, mid-range, and premium AVRs in recent years, but it’s been quite some time since we reviewed the brand’s most top-of-the-range home cinema amplifier.

Now, we finally have our hands on the AVC-A1H.

This flagship amplifier promises superior cinematic sound accompanied by a long list of home cinema features, but that all comes at a considerable price.

The thinking here is that if Denon can impress us with its mid-range amplifiers, then its flagship is sure to blow us away. And indeed it does just that…

Price

Officially priced at £6300 / AU$12,499, the AVC-A1H sits at the very top of Denon’s consumer AV amplifier range. It’s sold as the AVR-A1H in the US for $7200, with the ‘R’ in the name denoting the presence of an AM/FM, tuner, which is absent from the UK and Australian version. Otherwise, these amplifiers are functionally the same.

The AVC-A1H has been on sale for a little while now, which means that we are seeing some hefty price drops. It can be found for closer to £5000 in the UK, for example.

Generally speaking, the A1H sits between two notable five-star amplifiers. The Award-winning Marantz Cinema 30 launched at a lower price of £4000 / $4500 / AU$7900, though it can be found for £3500 in the UK (pricing in the US seems to have risen to $4800).

The JBL Synthesis SDR-38, meanwhile, launched at a more premium price of £7300 / $8550 / AU$16,999 – though that, too, is subject to considerable discounts at the time of writing.

Build

The AVC-A1H is one of the bulkiest home cinema amplifiers to cross our home cinema testing room’s threshold in recent memory.

Weighing in at a staggering 32kg, we recommend asking a friend to help you lift this behemoth out of the box and into position. It also has a large footprint to match, measuring 43 x 50 x 20cm (hwd), so you’ll need to make sure you have ample space in your TV unit or, more realistically, AV rack.

If you’ve seen a Denon AV amplifier before, chances are you won’t be taken aback by the AVC-A1H’s looks. This is essentially a scaled-up version of the other amplifiers found in Denon’s range; that’s to say it's a large metal cuboid that comes in either black or silver, with a rectangular screen stretching across the front edge flanked by asymmetrical source selection and volume wheels.

Much like the AVC-X6800H that sits below it, the A1H sports a door that opens downwards to reveal a selection of on-unit controls. However, we find that the backlit, metal-clad remote is the vastly preferable way to interact with the home cinema amplifier. Most Denon remotes we’ve seen on other models are all-plastic, so this is an appreciated change to reflect the A1H’s premium position.

The Denon AVC-A1H leans towards practicality rather than aesthetics, but as we’ll come to find out, the superb functionality is worth the sacrifice of form in this instance.

Features

Denon’s AV amplifiers are renowned for their extensive feature sets, so it should come as no surprise that this is one of the most thoroughly equipped amplifiers that we’ve seen.

With an impressive 15 channels of amplification, the A1H can support speaker configurations up to 9.4.6. Users with smaller speaker packages can also split those amplification channels across two additional zones, meaning you can comfortably power additional speakers in your home from just one amplifier.

Denon claims that the A1H delivers 150W of amplification per channel into 8 ohms, though that is with only two channels driven.

The sheer number of amplification channels is a considerable upgrade over the JBL Synthesis SDR-38, which sports just seven channels, although that amplifier touts a higher 180W output with two channels driven.

Denon has also outfitted the A1H with its most premium internal components. This includes the brand’s most powerful transformers, as well as 10 two-channel ESS Sabre ES9018K2M DAC chips, a high-spec DSP processing engine, and gold-plated speaker terminals.

All of these components have been specially selected and tuned by Denon’s highly experienced engineers at its Shirakawa audio works, where it is also tuned by the company’s Sound Master for the ultimate seal of approval.

This amplifier sports three HDMI outputs (eARC, Zone 2 and Zone 3), and seven HDMI 2.1 inputs. All of these can handle video signals up to either 4K/120Hz or 8K/60Hz, and a plethora of gaming features such as VRR, ALLM and QFT which aid smoother and more responsive gameplay.

This AV amplifier also supports all major HDR formats, including HDR10, HLG, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. The same is true for immersive sound formats, as the A1H can handle Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, Auro 3D and Sony 360 Reality Audio, and it’s IMAX Enhanced certified.

Wireless connectivity is also very comprehensive, with Denon’s HEOS wireless streaming platform handling the likes of Tidal, Deezer, Amazon Music and more. Spotify Connect, Apple AirPlay 2 and TuneIn are also supported, as is Bluetooth 5.0. HEOS also allows for multi-room playback, meaning you can tie this amplifier into a system with other Denon and Marantz wireless speakers and network amplifiers.

Finally, the A1H, much like the rest of Denon’s AV amplifiers, supports Audyssey MultiEQ XT32 room correction. Simply plug the included microphone in and follow the simple on-screen instructions, and the amplifier can measure your space to determine speaker levels and distances. Dirac Live Room Correction and Dirac Live Bass Control are also supported, though the licenses to use these need to be purchased separately.

Sound

Denon has piled on the features, but how does the AVC-A1H sound? That is the most important factor at the end of the day, so we’re pleased to report that this AV amplifier sounds simply incredible.

We’ve hooked it up to the five-star KEF R Meta 5.1 Speaker System for our testing, plugged in our reference Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, and selected a handful of reference discs from our 4K Blu-ray library.

Starting with F1: The Movie, the Denon’s strengths are made immediately obvious during the opening 24 Hours of Daytona race. This amplifier makes light work of creating a hugely spacious and totally immersive sound, with every aspect of the scene bursting with three-dimensional energy.

Everything from the clattering of gravel hitting the tarmac and the screech of tyres as cars spin out, to the crackling of fireworks and a swooping helicopter sounds superbly crisp.

That detail is essential, as it ensures that while this amplifier sounds hugely spacious, it also remains superbly focused and positionally accurate. Most importantly, the A1H knows exactly how to handle each of these competing effects, ensuring that they’re all presented in a way that sounds natural, while ensuring nothing gets lost in the wider mix.

That is also felt with the presentation of dialogue. The way voices are handled, with a reverence to low-level dynamics and tonal variation, is truly impressive. The Marantz Cinema 30 also sounds superb in this regard, but the Denon takes things to another level with natural, balanced and realistic voices that sound as though the actors on screen are instead standing before us to deliver their lines.

What bowls us over most during our testing, however, is how this amplifier handles bass. Two of our favourite bass stress test sequences – Blade Runner 2049’s flight to the LAPD sequence, and Dune: Part One’s worm attack scene – both shine through this amplifier.

The rhythmic drumming of the Dune soundtrack feels wonderfully textured and expertly timed, whereas the tricky effects in Blade Runner’s chapter two balance deep bass and tonal variation with finesse, resulting in a steady build of tension throughout.

This is also a testament to how the AVC-A1H handles dynamics. This amplifier is extremely talented when it comes to dynamic expression, meaning that rather than presenting instant jumps in volume, we feel the swell of larger volume shifts, which once again makes everything sound more natural and immersive.

The Denon doesn’t feel sluggish or lethargic, and when needed it can punch through with big, bombastic dynamic shifts, and it moves sounds around with an excellent sense of agility and pace. Switching back to F1, we find that the rumbling engines of the GT3 cars build and dynamically move around our listening position as they approach and execute an overtake on the racetrack.

This bold, rich, warm and powerful sound also extends to music. Carly Rae Jepsen’s On Wires features a balance of soft vocals with a powerful chorus that suddenly bursts to life, alongside a mix of acoustic and electronic elements; all of which are handled with extreme finesse from the Denon.

The sizzling electronic score of Tron: Legacy (composed by legendary DJ duo, Daft Punk) is presented with equal vigour. The thumping bass and sparkling snares of Derezzed sound electric through the Denon, ensuring the pulse-pounding nightclub action sequence is presented with an appropriate sense of drama and style.

The real question is: how does this amplifier compare to our reference Marantz AVR? Simply put, the Denon takes everything we love about the Cinema 30 and dials things up multiple notches. Considering the price difference, this is sort of what we’d expect, and it certainly doesn’t detract from the Marantz's talents.

In other words, if you have the space in your budget, the Denon is well worth the extra outlay, but no one who can’t stretch that far will be disappointed by the sumptuous performance of the Marantz.

Verdict

Denon’s flagship amplifier justifies its large price tag, and even larger chassis. With a rich, powerful and natural sound, it takes every film and song we throw at it and makes them shine without breaking a sweat.

Equipped with an exhaustive feature set and an intuitive set-up, this enthusiast-level amplifier is actually a stellar choice for all levels of home cinema fans – providing they have a generous budget.

SCORES

• Sound 5
• Features 5
• Build 4

MORE:

Read our review of the JBL Synthesis SDR-38

Also consider the Marantz Cinema 30

Read our Arcam AVR31 review

Best AV receivers: the top home cinema amplifiers we've tested

Music is awesome. Movies are also awesome. So by the laws of mathematics, music videos should be doubly awesome. At least that’s the prevailing theory at What Hi-Fi?.

Which is why, during our latest Home Cinema Week special event, we’ve taken the time to create this list, detailing our favourite examples of the art form.

From golden oldies that have been given a new lease of life via a remaster, to new classics from cutting-edge artists in their prime, as well as sounding and looking great, every entry on this list also offers a great way to test at least one part of your home cinema setup.

As always, the list currently only includes the What Hi-Fi? team’s personal favourites. We have a separate list detailing our picks of the best music videos of all time. If you think we’ve missed any, make sure to get involved in the conversation using the comments section below or our social media channels and forums.

We’re always interested to hear from you, our ever-discerning readers!

Peter Gabriel – Sledgehammer (4K remaster)

Words by Alastair Stevenson

Peter Gabriel is one of the biggest names in music, with a decades-spanning career that started with prog rock legends Genesis, before blossoming into one of the most experimental solo acts to grace the latter quarter of the 20th Century. And while he’s still pumping out tunes to this day, there’s no denying that Sledgehammer from his 1986 album So, is still one of his most recognisable.

That’s as true of its music video as it is of the song itself. Made using claymation and stop motion techniques, the video required Gabriel to lie under a glass table for 16 hours, as they shot parts frame-by-frame. 40 years on, it’s also had an amazing remaster on Apple Music, bringing it up to 4K.

The mix of updated visuals acts as a wonderful accompaniment to the stellar track, which has aged like fine wine. Expertly blending a smorgasbord of genres, including pop rock, dance-rock, funk rock, and blue-eyed soul, Sledgehammer’s music video makes for a compelling listen and watch. We would challenge any hi-fi fan to hear one note of the track’s syncopated bassline and not immediately recognise it. Our only minor qualm is its subject matter (it’s about his crown jewels).

Watch Peter Gabriel's Sledgehammer in 4K on Apple Music

Alanis Morrisette – Ironic (4K remaster)

Words by Alastair Stevenson

Ah, Alanis Morrisette. If you grew up during the late 90s and early 2000s, there’s a strong chance that at least one of her multitude of self-aware tracks featured in your formative years.

Which is why her classic hit, Ironic, isn’t just one of my favourite tracks; thanks to a 4K remaster, it’s also one of his favourite music videos. Sure, the video is basic, showing Morrisette driving a 1978 Lincoln Continental Mark V in the snow, singing to various versions of herself.

But the upgrades are welcome, adding more vibrancy to the colours, a welcome dose of extra detail thanks to the higher resolution.

However, most importantly, the track remains a masterpiece with Morresette's vocals, which flip from booming, life-affirming bellows to subdued, vulnerable pleas over its four-minute run time, are a delight – one that will give any speaker a run for its money when it comes to dynamics.

Ah-ha – Take on Me (4K remaster)

Words by Dan Furn

We could hardly write a list of visually complex, system-testing music videos without Take On Me. Luckily, A-ha have seen fit to spoil us with a 4K remaster so you can really push your setup and enjoy the many, many hand-drawn sketches in glorious Ultra HD.

If somehow you haven’t seen this early music video masterpiece, the premise is simple – a young woman reading a comic book in a café is invited into the comic by its rather suave hero, where the two get chased by thugs in a black-and-white, pencil-sketch world.

This was, in fact, the second music video for the song, and catapulted the track to the top of several worldwide charts and created a pop culture phenomenon. It’s a music video that still resonates today – it’s clocked up well over two billion views on YouTube, has been referenced by everyone from Paramore to Family Guy and even saw a recent resurgence during the FIFA World Cup after being adopted by Norwegian fans.

The pencil-sketch scenes are ideal for testing fine detail, contrast and, of course, motion, as the 3,000 rotoscoped frames should be displayed without judder or blur – the chase scene in particular is an excellent stress test, and, to be honest, just a delight to watch.

Pink Floyd – Money (from Pink Floyd At Pompeii MCMXLII, 4K Blu-ray)

Words by Alastair Stevenson

Pink Floyd is one of the most iconic bands in the world, especially if you’re a hi-fi or prog rock fan. And if you’re after an audio/visual tour de force to push your home cinema setup, we’d strongly suggest checking out the Pink Floyd At Pompeii MCMXLII 4K Blu-ray.

Yes, we may technically be pushing the definition of what counts as a music video, but the remaster is an amazing achievement. The entire set, which saw the band play to an empty amphitheatre, has been expertly remastered to offer 4K visuals and Dolby Atmos. And honestly, they've done such a good job that, if you have the hardware to do it justice, the upgrades really do make you feel like you’re there, at the gig, watching it all live.

You can see cuts of the set, like the one above, online, but the Blu-ray is what you need if you want to get the ultimate experience. If you’re short on time, the performance of Echoes Part 1 and 2 are a particular highlight that theWhat Hi-Fi? team, myself included, keep returning to.

Featuring a magnetic performance from the band against a stunning backdrop, you really want a big screen TV, or even a projector, to do it justice. The Atmos mix of the live performance then brings it to life, offering a unique dome of sound capturing screaming guitar and making it feel like the band’s psychedelic tour de force is marching straight through your living room.

Buy Pink Floyd At Pompeii MCMXLII at Amazon

Steven Wilson - Drive Home (4K remaster)

Words by Alastair Stevenson

Steve Wilson is a huge name in hi-fi circles. First, as the frontman of prog rock legends Porcupine Tree, second as a regular attendee and speaker at hi-fi shows across the globe, where he’s championed new technologies and the need for “good sound” for decades.

He’s also made a number of pretty awesome music videos over the years. But for What Hi-Fi?’s purposes, the 4K remaster of Drive Home is a particular favourite. The remaster was released in 2023 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Wilson’s third solo album, The Raven that Refused to Sing. The video is a work of art, with characters designed by Hajo Mueller and then animated by Jess Cope into a dark, evocative video that beautifully complements the track – especially with the new colouring by colourist Mozart Gabriel for the remaster, which helps evoke a true sense of melancholy and sadness.

The song itself is also incredible. Written after an intense period Wilson spent remixing classic prog bands’ work, it intentionally channels the spirit of King Crimson, Yes, Gentle Giant, and Jethro Tull. It’s a detached, haunting piece mixing flute, string and acoustic guitar parts with Wison’s vocals that slowly builds, only adding electric instruments much over halfway through its eight-minute, 20-second playtime.

My only bit of advice, outside of listening to it as soon as you can, is to jump over to Wilson’s website and invest in the Headphone Dust edition for the ultimate experience. The investment nabs you the Hi-res Atmos and 5.1 cuts of the song alongside an MKV file of the 4K video. Make no mistake, the stereo cut on the above video is good, but the Atmos and 5.1 versions are mind-blowing if you have the hardware to do them justice.

Buy the Headphone Dust edition of The Raven that Refused to Sing at Steve Wilson's website

Gunship – Dark All Day

Words by Alastair Stevenson

Our editor (me) is a big fan of two things: classic horror movies and synthwave. So, when a band creates a music video that combines both elements, well, you can imagine how excited they get.

Enter Gunship’s Dark All Day. The song merges the band’s iconic sound, which uses old synths to create a mesmerising, retro vibe, with a saxophone part from Tim Cappello and vocals from pop sensation Indiana.

Not sure who Cappello is? You’ll almost certainly recognise him either as the main saxophonist from Tina Turner's backing band during the 80s or the muscly front man wailing on his sax during the boardwalk scene of cult classic vampire film The Lost Boys. And the theme of vampires neatly brings us on to the video itself.

Available in 4K on YouTube, it starts with an animated segment, showing iconic vampire hunters from the 80s and 90s cinema battling a horde of the undead before flipping to a visually stunning live section halfway through. The second half, showing Indiana, Capello and the band playing in a pitch-black room with visceral, red blood pouring from the ceiling like rain – a clear homage to an iconic scene from a certain Wesley Snipes 90s vampire movie.

The result is a roller coaster ride that will test everything from your sound system’s rhythmic precision to your projector or TV’s motion handling and dark detail.

Avenged Sevenfold – Nobody

Words by Harry McKerrell

Look, I completely understand that this type of music isn’t to everyone’s taste. Heavy metal, progressive metal, metalcore, whatever you want to call it – it’s something of a niche within this world of Taylor Swift and Sabrina Carpenter. In fairness, I actually quite like Sabrina Carpenter.

Even if this kind of thing isn’t your bag at all, please give Nobody a try. In abstraction, the track might take a few goes to get into, relying more on epic, pulsating soundscapes over catchy, refined melodies, but once it clicks, this is the sort of music that gets deep into your bones. Add the video into the mix, and it’s practically a spiritual experience.

I refer to bones quite deliberately. The accompanying video to Nobody is a miraculous masterpiece, wherein a man’s skeletal ‘soul’ leaves his body and begins wandering through the chaotic cosmos in search of matter, meaning and, you would hope, a bit of epidermis to cover his naked frame.

The result is mind-blowing, with Chris Hopewell’s spectacular stop-motion visuals giving the protagonist’s movements a charmingly comical clunkiness when set against awe-inspiring vistas of the shimmering cosmos. Just wait until you get to the 3:15 mark, where siren-like guitars accompany one endless tracking shot of skeletons fighting on some strange, semi-apocalyptic battleground. Goosebumps.

Avenged Sevenfold have gone all existential during the course of their last few albums, and it doesn’t get more Camus than this. I think the point of the whole thing is that we’re all already dead, like those monks who live with decomposing corpses to remind them of their own mortality. Cheery.

Pomme – Un Million

Words by Robyn Quick

You might not have heard of French artist Pomme, but she is one to watch.

Un million from the album Consolation is one of my favourite tracks from her, and not just because of the magical vocals and mesmerising instrumentals. The accompanying music video continues the minimalist approach of the song, as it is filmed in black and white, all on one spinning stage.

This setup could have resulted in an uninspiring final look, but there is beauty in the small details that make for a hypnotic watch and a great test for your TV or projector screen.

Pomme is dressed as a clown, complete with a ruffled neck collar and frilly sleeves. The intricate textures of the ruffles and a single tear running down her face call for a good level of detail without looking over-etched. As others join her on the spinning stage, this also challenges your system’s motion handling. There’s a delicate balance to strike between movement looking too smooth and juddery, and the swirling stage makes for a great test.

A bright sphere is the centrepiece of the video, which creates a gradual fade from white to black. With the right system, this gradient should look seamless, but there is the risk of banding where you can see the steps obviously between shades.

Talking Heads – Life During Wartime (from Stop Making Sense 4K remaster)

Words by Ioan Hazell

Few bands manage to pack all-out eccentricity into as digestible and catchy a package as Talking Heads. There is so much to talk about in this performance, from David Byrne’s wiry, maniacal dance moves to the contagious excitement of the band, who must have been aware of being at the height of their powers.

This performance of Life During Wartime from their 1984 concert film, Stop Making Sense, was blessedly remastered in 4K and for Dolby Atmos by 4AD back in 2023. At the time, I went to watch the re-release in an IMAX cinema and was astonished by the public response. Some people danced in the aisles; others wept in their seats. Nobody sat still.

While the purpose of resolution is always, to some extent, to revitalise the past, never before had I seen such a vivid example of its power. Coming away from the screening, my legs ached as if I had been at the real concert. My cheeks ached from an irrepressible grin.

With some of the downright coolest backing vocals, strangest gyrations, and grooviest basslines out there, this performance has to be seen to be believed. “This ain’t no party, this ain’t no disco” – yeah, right!

Buy Talking Heads, Stop Making Sense on 4K Blu-ray at HMV

MORE:
These are the best songs for testing hi-fi

We rank the best surround sound systems

Our picks of the best projectors

They seem simple, but there are actually a lot of pitfalls that are all too easy to fall into when buying and setting up a TV.

But based on my personal and professional experience helping numerous friends and readers, most of us are getting better at the buying part. It's the second, "setting it up" part that many people are still outright terrible at.

Yes, based on my time as every person and their dog’s home cinema personal shopper, I’ve been inundated with every question you can think of when helping people find the right TV for their specific needs and budget.

Does it have everything I need to watch the football?

Do I need to get a soundbar too?

Will it work with my Sony Betamax LV-1901?

I’ve heard all of the above and more while giving curated advice on which TV to buy over the years.

But what always throws me is that after spending hours asking questions, researching the set to make sure, when they actually buy one, they nearly always go silent.

And that would be fine if I could put my feet up, pour myself a nice whisky and toast a job well done, safe in the knowledge they’ve set it up right and are making the most of their new purchase.

Except, based on my experience visiting friends and family I’ve helped, and some of the messages I’ve received from readers, most aren’t.

And recently, there’s one big mistake I’ve seen in living rooms, which is especially damaging during the summer months – placing the set right next to a window.

Why is that a problem, you ask? The answer is simple and an issue we’ve flagged many times before: light pollution.

Our TV and AV editor, Tom Parsons, has been a vocal enemy of the phenomenon for quite some time. But for those who have missed our past warnings, it is a problem, as if you place your TV in an incredibly bright area, you will impede its picture quality, regardless of how good the set is.

If it doesn’t go bright enough or doesn't come with an antireflective layer, look forward to watching your own reflection. If you can still make out what’s happening, contrast will still be impacted. Truthfully, lots of ambient light will stop your TV from delivering its best, regardless of the picture settings you use.

So why, oh why, do so many of us put TVs directly next to windows? Yes, it sometimes makes sense with the room’s feng shui, but I’ve had people who’ve spent multiple thousands on a top-end OLED make the mistake.

Many then send me, less than diplomatic, messages asking why I've recommended a terrible TV. They then get even more irritated when I point out it's how they've positioning causing most of the problems they're flagging.

If you’re going to spend that much money on a decent TV, surely it’s then worth investing a little time in creating a space that will let it shine?

Blackout blinds are a godsend, or if that’s too much, honestly, even moving your TV a few feet away can make a difference.

So please, for my and the team’s sanity, heed this warning and make sure to give your TV a good home, one that will give it the space it needs to live up to its full potential.

MORE:

Check out all of our Home Cinema Week coverage

These are the best TVs we’ve reviewed

Our picks of the best OLED TVs

We rank the best soundbars for movie fans

It can be hard to sustain a love for film at the height of summer.

As the balmy prospects of barbecues, pub gardens and beach trips beckon, many home cinema set-ups lie forgotten, gathering dust in darkened rooms while their owners go off galavanting until the weather cools off again.

But we don’t believe that a love for the great outdoors has to come at odds with a passion for watching movies – least of all after compiling this list of products for Home Cinema Week that we think will give you the closest thing to a true home cinema experience, no matter where you’ve set up camp.

Of course, we aren’t suggesting any of these solutions as a total replacement for your dedicated system; but if the house is getting too hot to handle, these al fresco-friendly pairings might sate your cinephile desires without costing your daily dose of sunshine.

Best mobile set-up

Apple iPhone 17 + AirPods Max 2

We are well aware that the iPhone 17’s 6.3-inch screen can hardly be considered a premium viewing experience, but try fitting a flat screen TV into the passenger seat of a Toyota Aygo and you’ll get a taste for our thinking here.

The iPhone 17 features ProMotion, Apple’s variable refresh-rate panel technology, which automatically adjusts the refresh rate from 1 to 120Hz, depending on what you are viewing. This means that you can save battery life while rendering slower content but still keep up with the very speediest of action movies.

What's more, with a peak brightness of 3000 nits, you can be confident that you won’t have to worry about visibility, even in broad daylight.

This iPhone 17’s display also features HDR support in Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HDR10 and HLG formats, which should mean that all streaming services are able to look their best.

Fantastic though these visual features are, no home cinema set-up is complete without great sound. And for that we recommend the AirPods Max 2, which will be able to make the most of both Dolby Atmos and Apple Spatial Audio – both supported by the iPhone 17.

We awarded the AirPods Max 2 a five-star review, saying that these headphones “crossed the line from wireless audio into wireless hi-fi”.

So what’s behind our glowing praise? Well, for starters, they sound “detailed, dynamic and spacious” with an “appealing balance and cohesive organisation”, all necessary features for keeping up with busy action-packed moments and dense soundtracks.

Additionally, you’ll be able to block out intrusive sounds with Apple’s effective noise-cancelling, while their dynamic head tracking does a great job of keeping sounds positioned relative to the screen, for a stable and convincing soundstage.

We acknowledge in our review that movies wouldn’t be the top priority for many users, but, in this case, we feel confident that the AirPods Max 2’s “terrifically cinematic” spatial qualities will be just the ticket.

Best tablet set-up

Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra + Buds 4 Pro

Still car-friendly, but with whopping proportions for a tablet, the Samsung Galaxy S11 Ultra is our top pick for home-away-from-home cinema. That is in no small part due to its 14.6-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display, which makes movies look “considerably bigger” than on the iPad Pro.

The S11 Ultra’s peak brightness of 1600 nits matches the iPad Pro, and should allow HDR scenes to come through with popping colours and satisfyingly deep blacks. The tablet’s anti-reflective screen also lends a helping hand in terms of clarity when viewing dimmer scenes outdoors.

Worried that your suitcase is starting to get too full? Well, don’t fret, because the S11 Ultra is only 5.1mm thick and is very unlikely to take your luggage over any weight limits, at a measly 692g.

In our upcoming review (spoiler alert!), we say that the tablet’s battery life should get you “well into a second day” of viewing, provided an eye is kept on screen brightness. So, unless you are planning on watching the entirety of the James Bond canon, this tablet has your back.

In this case, we think your best bet for audio is the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro 4. These earbuds thrive in pairing with up-to-date Samsung devices that support the brand’s hi-res SSC UHQ codec.

With their grippy, responsive bass, and a detailed midrange, we enjoyed the sound of these earbuds when listening to compatible Samsung devices.

Controls for the earbuds are also integrated within your Samsung device’s native operating system, meaning that many of their features, from noise-cancelling adjustment to immediate pairing, can be accessed without having to fire up an app.

As well as ANC, the Buds 4 Pro feature head tracking, which works only when paired with a Samsung device. So, using them alongside the S11 Ultra will keep your movies’ soundstages stable.

These are a strong contender with battery life too, with 30 hours of charge (including a fully charged case) when ANC is turned off, and 26 hours with it switched on.

Finally, the Buds 4 Pro’s IP57 rating means that dust ingress and immersion in water up to a metre for around 30 minutes won’t cause any permanent damage. So if flash floods strike, you’ll be sacrificing your tent before your audio quality.

Best portable projector set-up

Anker Nebula Mars 3 + JBL charge 6

For those unwilling to sacrifice a big-picture experience, we have to recommend the Anker Nebula Mars 3 portable projector. You’ll need something to project your movies on to, however, unless you’ve parked your boat beside the white cliffs of Dover.

The Nebula Mars 3 packs a 1080p-resolution, LED-lit DLP projection system with a peak brightness of 400 ANSI Lumens into its portable body. Thanks to that brightness, the maximum image size for Mars 3 is claimed to be 150 inches – although pushing the size that far will inevitably sacrifice brightness.

We recommend striking a balance with an image size between 70 and 90 inches.

In our review, we were “really struck by how sharp and detailed everything look[ed]”, with little evidence of visible pixel structure even as we pushed the image beyond 100 inches. We were also impressed by the projector’s saturation and darkness while streaming HDR sources.

The Mars Air 3 has a battery life of 2.5 hours, which should be enough for most movies, but it can also be powered by mains if you are on a campsite with hook-up. If you are using the projector’s built-in speakers without mains, the run time will decrease.

Helpfully, this portable projector contains a Google TV operating system with an official Netflix app, which recognises the projector as HDR capable.

External sources include a single HDMI port, a USB port and integrated Bluetooth, wi-fi and Chromecast.

We are relieved about the Bluetooth functionality, because while the in-built speakers are actually fairly impressive, for a more cinematic experience, we suggest pairing this projector with the JBL Charge 6.

The Charge 6 is even more outdoors friendly than its four-years-running What Hi-Fi? Award winning predecessor, the Charge 5. In our review, we say the speaker has a “durable design that you feel confident will survive all sorts of adventures and inclement weather”. Perfect for rainy camping holidays.

And this isn’t just an impression: the Charge 6 boasts an IP68 waterproof and dustproof rating.

For connecting to other speakers, the Charge 6 supports Auracast, and wired connections are also made possible via USB-C, allowing lossless streaming for outdoorsy audiophiles.

Sonically, the JBL Charge 6 packs a punch in the low end, while maintaining a clear and solid midrange – ideal for picking out dialogue above bassy ominous soundtracks.

When it comes to battery life, this portable speaker has you covered, with 24 hours of charge, which can be extended to 28 hours by enabling the Playtime Boost setting. Notably, the Charge 6 can also be used as a portable charger for smartphones.

MORE

Check out our best portable projectors 2026: mini projectors to max out your picture

And our best Bluetooth speakers 2026: tried and tested for every budget

Stay up to date with the best over-ear headphones 2026: wired and wireless pairs tested by our in-house experts

We are in Home Cinema Week, so it seemed appropriate to celebrate the occasion by marrying our festivities with the superb summer of sport we are enjoying in these balmy (perhaps that should be barmy) days of July.

So we took a look at some top sports (and okay, yes, one game) that have featured heavily in movies we have enjoyed over the years. This, as you will see, is an eclectic list, but each entry, we believe, stands up to be counted as a sporting scene, or subject to be revisited.

And please, do feel free to add your own suggestions for your fellow readers’ enjoyment.

Golf: Goldfinger

You all knew it was coming, so we’ll get this one ticked off first. The original James Bond, Sean Connery, made his third outing as 007 in this tale of a megalomaniac industrialist who wants to rob the US’s gold depository at Fort Knox.

Goldfinger was the film where the Bond franchise really got into its stride, with the introduction of the cool gadgets from Q department, and the humour that became one of the series’ trademarks.

And, of course, it has one of the canon’s great henchmen, in the steel-brimmed hat-throwing Odd Job, whom we first meet toting a golf bag for his boss in the money match that Bond and Goldfinger enter into.

(There’s then a lovely example of how times change in what would, in 1964, have been almost unimaginable ways, when Goldfinger apologises to Bond that he is still having to teach Odd Job the niceties of the game as his caddy: “Golf is not yet the national game of Korea, hey?” Well, it pretty much is now…)

The five-minute scene showing their match is a lovely duel of wits between the industrialist and the spy, with verbal feint and counter-feint interspersed with the thud of gold bars hitting the green, the thwack of the ball – and some spectacular cheating all round.

It sets up the relationship between the characters beautifully, and is a lovely example of how they don’t make ’em like they used to – this is a scene given time to breathe by the director. Wouldn’t be allowed now…

Buy the Goldfinger 4K Blu-ray from Amazon

Buy or rent Goldfinger on Apple TV

Baseball: The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!

The Naked Gun took its cue, of course, from the brilliant TV series Police Squad!, which took its cue from Airplane!. There are worse places to seek inspiration.

This type of silly slapstick is commonplace now, of course, but it’s great to look back at the original and find that it can still make you laugh.

Of course you’ve seen it all before, and of course it’s hit and miss, but that’s almost the point. It’s a relentless barrage of verbal and sight gags that simply refuses to pause for breath; and, once the momentum has built up, it proves utterly irresistible.

This scene finds our hero, Frank Drebin (the incomparable Leslie Nielsen), having to take on the role of home-plate umpire in a baseball match in an attempt to foil an assassin’s plot. It is, naturally, utter carnage, extremely silly, and still able to elicit real belly laughs.

From the first strike, when Drebin seems to forget that he is not there only to find the assassin but has to call the game as well, it isn’t long before he is making it all about him, moonwalking down the third-base line, and frisking the players as he goes.

It’s a real joy. “Steee-riiike” indeed.

Buy The Naked Gun 4K Blu-ray from Amazon

Watch The Naked Gun on Amazon Prime Video

Tennis: Strangers on a Train

From the utterly ridiculous to the sublime. This is Hitchcock in peak mid-season form (with apologies to PG Wodehouse, but to continue the sports theme), and one of the master’s movies that film and media schools regularly study.

From the set-up, where professional tennis player Guy (Farley Granger) falls into conversation with charming psychopath Bruno (Robert Walker) on a train, it’s a study in psychology, guilt and ambition. For Bruno proposes that, since it seems they each have someone inconvenient in their lives who would be far better off out of the way, they should swap murders. “Criss-cross”, as Bruno says. That way, there is no motive for the police to follow, and each of them can have a cast-iron alibi.

Guy doesn’t really take things too seriously. But then Bruno carries out his part of the bargain. And he expects Guy to follow suit.

There is an earlier scene at a tennis match, where the crowd’s heads are turning to the left and right in time with the thwack of ball on racket. With one exception, where a man in a fedora is staring across the court. It is truly unsettling, and sets the psychologically dissonant tone of the movie beautifully.

The main tennis scene, though, is near the denouement. Guy is playing a tennis match, while Bruno is desperately trying to retrieve the cigarette lighter from a drain that he intends to plant to mark Guy as a murderer. Guy, then, needs to finish his match as quickly as possible to prevent the unthinkable. Hitchcock’s brilliance as a suspense film-maker is all here: cuts from one protagonist to the other, desperately reaching fingers for the lighter just out of reach. It’s all stress and anxiety – with the music to enhance all those emotions.

Truly a masterful scene from the master of suspense.

Rent or buy Strangers On A Train on Apple TV

Cricket: Fire in Babylon

This astonishing documentary isn’t really about cricket at all. I mean, it is, of course, but it’s about so much more than simply the game. It is without doubt a worthwhile watch even for those who know nothing about the game – it’s certainly a clear example of where sport and politics definitely mixed.

At face value, this is the story of the great West Indies team that dominated world cricket for about two decades from the mid-1970s.

But just a few minutes in, it becomes clear that this, really, is more of a story about societal change and civil rights, both in the West Indies and the UK; the story of former slave colonies breaking out from under the yoke of empire and finally being able to control their own destinies as free men.

And what men.

When you hear the likes of Viv Richards, Gordon Greenidge, Clive Lloyd, Andy Roberts and the incomparable Michael Holding (and many more) explaining just how important the team was to West Indian and black people all around the world, you can see that the cricket wasn’t the main issue here. And they knew it.

From the pummelling the team took against Australia in 1975, via then England captain Tony Greig’s infamous “I intend to make them grovel”, to world domination for years, these men shouldered the responsibility for the pride of more than a nation – for West Indians everywhere.

And, because it’s the West Indies we’re talking about here, the soundtrack is also a wonderful collection of calypso, ska and reggae tracks – indeed, Bunny Wailer is also a prominent interviewee.

It’s a bit tricky to get hold of at the moment, although it is available to stream with a bit of a search – and you can buy the DVD or Blu-ray, of course.

I urge you to make the effort. This is a fascinating, sobering, yet uplifting documentary that highlights hugely significant societal change; and, much as I love cricket, it’s that that makes it so important.

Buy the Fire In Babylon Blu-ray on Amazon

Football: Marvellous

This Bafta-winning drama, based on the true story of Stoke City's beloved kit-man, Neil "Nello" Baldwin, again takes the sport as the hook, but is actually about so much more. Neil, superbly played by Toby Jones, is a man with learning disabilities – not that he acknowledges that himself. He simply refuses to let life get him down.

The film is both sentimental and remarkably profound at the same time. Fairly early on in the film, for example, Neil says: “I always wanted to be happy. So I decided to be.” Easier said than done for most of us; but for Neil, it’s his way of life.

Neil, a Stoke City fan, has the almost unbelievable knack of making friends, or at the very least acquaintance, with some of the great and good, from all spheres of society: to which end he finds himself on the umpire’s boat at the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race; archbishops and senior politicians all fall under his spell; and, most importantly for Neil, so did Lou Macari, Manchester United legend, and (soon into the movie) newly appointed manager of Stoke City FC.

Macari ends up employing Neil as the kit man for the squad, seemingly on a whim; but it soon becomes clear to the manager that Neil offers his squad far more than simply clean kit.

The joy of this movie is its simplicity, and the almost unbelievable situations in which Neil finds himself. And yet, as the various cameo appearances in the film confirm, all of this really happened.

Lou Macari, Gary Lineker, former top-level referee Uriah Rennie, and circus ringmaster Norman Barrett (sorry, I hadn’t mentioned that Neil was also “Nello”, a circus clown) all make appearances, as does Neil himself, to reassure Toby Jones that it all happened just as he is depicting it.

It’s a charming, moving, funny film that is all the more affecting because it’s true. A real delight.

Buy the Marvellous Blu-ray from Amazon

Stream Marvellous on Amazon Prime Video

Fencing: The Princess Bride

I admit some bias here. The Princess Bride is one of my top five favourite movies, and it’s our family film. It merits its place in a list of movies with great sporting scenes and connections because of the epic fencing duel between country-boy Westley, played by Carey Elwes, and Mandy Patinkin’s swordsman Inigo Montoya.

The movie plot is a film within a film, with a sick little boy (Fred Savage from The Wonder Years) being read a story by his grandfather (Peter Falk). And then, a couple of quick interjections apart, we get on with the fairy tale. There are wonderful cameo performances from the likes of Billy Crystal, Peter Cook and Mel Smith, and it’s a great tale that will (genuinely) delight young and old.

One of the standout scenes, though, is the duel between two of the heroes of the story. It’s a beautifully choreographed set piece that brings to mind Robin Hood from 1938, starring Errol Flynn and Basil Rathbone. Athletic, good-humoured and genuinely impressive, this is a hugely entertaining tussle, with dialogue to match – “I know something you don’t know.”

And it’s one of the most memorable scenes in a movie full of memorable scenes. Inconceivable though that may sound.

Buy The Princess Bride Blu-ray from Amazon

Rent or buy The Princess Bride from Apple TV

Poker: Casino Royale

We top and tail our list with Bond, without apology. It might not be a sport, but Texas Hold ’em is a hugely televised game that, therefore, merits its place on this list.

This scene is classic Bond (see Goldfinger above) with Bond meeting his protagonist in public. This time, rather than the golf course, it’s the casino where our two stags butt heads. And this time it’s nearer the end of the movie than the beginning.

Anyone who knows anything about poker will know that the hands being dished out to these guys are completely insane – many millions to one against, etc – but that’s hardly the point. There is much shuffling of chips, many bold stare-downs, a slew of sardonic smiles and plenty of tension-filled pauses. Just what you want, then, in your Bond movie.

In many ways, it is similar to the Goldfinger golf match: the scene is granted time to play out in a way that has been increasingly rare in this era of jump cuts and incessant action – and it feels all the better for it.

Mads Mikkelsen gives us a glimpse of the Hannibal Lecter to come in his portrayal of Le Chiffre, and Daniel Craig, in his first outing as 007, proves all the doubters over his casting well and truly wrong.

This is classic Bond. Just don’t expect your own hands of hold ’em with your mates ever to come out like that.

Buy the Casino Royale 4K Blu-ray from Amazon

Rent or buy Casino Royale from Apple TV

MORE:

Check out all of our Home Cinema Week coverage

Here are the best TVs and best soundbars you can buy right now

Q Acoustics makes a long-awaited return to our home cinema testing room with its new 3050c 5.1 speaker package.

Built around components from the recently introduced entry-level 3000c series, this surround sound system inherits crucial driver technology and design cues from Q Acoustics’ higher-end ranges.

The brand has built an impressive reputation over the years for delivering massive, room-filling sound in both the hi-fi and home cinema senses, so expectations are high for this new surround sound package.

We’re also eager to see how trickle-down speaker technology performs in practice; top-tier engineering doesn’t always mesh seamlessly with mid-range components, after all. So, how does the 3050c 5.1 package perform?

Price

Q Acoustics doesn’t officially sell the system it's provided us with as a complete set, though it has given us a combined price of £1,896 / $3,506 for this package. It does sell an identically named pack on its website and through other retailers, though this comes with a different subwoofer, so we expect the performance to be different.

The package we’ve been supplied comprises the 3050c floorstanders (£749 / $1349 per pair), the 3010c bookshelf surrounds (£249 / $479 per pair), the 3090c centre channel speaker (£229 / $399), and the Q SUB100 active subwoofer (£699 / $1199). The widely available pre-bundled package swaps the Q SUB100 for the 3060S subwoofer, and costs £1626 here in the UK.

Competition at this price sits squarely with the Award-winning Bowers & Wilkins 606/607 S3 speaker system, which is currently available at various retailers for around £1950, down from its original price of £2496.

The B&W package has proven to be an issue for Q Acoustics before, as it edged out the 5040 5.1 package at our 2023 Awards – who doesn’t love a rematch?

Build & design

The 3050c 5.1 package is a good-looking and well-built collection of speakers. They sport smooth corners and metallic embellishments, resulting in a modern, high-quality look that should blend nicely into many living rooms or home cinema environments.

Our system is in the Satin White finish, though you can also buy the speakers in Satin Black, Claro Walnut, or Pin Oak finishes. All colourways come with a unique champagne-gold baffle surround surrounding the drivers, which gives them an elevated look. The speakers also include magnetic grilles in the box.

The 3050c are a pair of mid-sized floorstanders, measuring 102 x 32 x 32cm (hwd, including spikes and stabilisers), and the 3010c are a very compact set of surrounds at 25 x 16 x 25cm (hwd).

Though it's the 3090c that surprises us most; at just 16 x 43 x 22cm (hwd), it’s one of the smallest centre channel speakers to cross the threshold of our home cinema room in recent memory. The Q SUB100 also keeps things relatively compact at 35 x 35 x 38cm (hwd).

The 3000c family sports a multitude of design features aimed at improving sound. All components feature rear ports, and Q Acoustics has implemented its P2P (Point to Point) bracing system throughout the range for enhanced rigidity, aimed at “improving the focus of the stereo image and giving the soundstage more accuracy than ever before”, according to Q Acoustics.

Specific to the 3050c floorstanders is the inclusion of HPE (Helmholtz Pressure Equaliser) tubes, which are fitted inside the speakers to nullify internal cabinet pressure and improve frequency response, all in the pursuit of eliminating unwanted standing waves and colouration.

Features

Core to the 3000c series is Q Acoustics’ C3 Continuous Curved Cone driver design, which first debuted in the 5000 series speakers; namely the Award-winning 5040 floorstanders.

Found here in the mid/bass drivers, the proprietary speaker design reportedly touts the “bass performance advantages of a traditional straight conic cone with the midrange and high-end control of a flared cone”.

Similarly, the tweeter design for this range also takes inspiration from the more expensive 5000 series speakers. The high-frequency drivers within the 3000c series are hermetically sealed and mechanically isolated from the baffle, which Q Acoustics says will prevent “internal pressure modulations from within the cabinet and from the adjacent mid/bass driver”.

The floorstanding 3050c sandwiches a 22mm tweeter between dual 14cm mid/bass drivers in a vertical arrangement. The 3010c surrounds and 3090c centre channel share the same tweeter, paired with a single 10cm driver in each surround speaker and a symmetrical, dual-driver layout flanking the tweeter in the centre speaker.

Moving onto the subwoofer, the Q SUB100 (and for that matter, the whole of the Q Sub range) is touted to be more powerful than the Q12 subwoofer included with the 5040 5.1 package. It sports a 25cm driver, a claimed peak amplification power of 500W, and a clever source detection system that can distinguish the input type (whether that’s a stereo amplifier or a multi-channel home cinema receiver) and level to adapt bass performance.

Sound

Good looks and an extensive feature-set only tell a small portion of the story; it’s the sound performance that we care most about.

We have the 3050c 5.1 package hooked up to the Award-winning Marantz Cinema 30 for our testing. While this amplifier is undeniably overkill for a speaker package of this price, its revealing sound and plentiful power should help us to identify the strengths and weaknesses of this system.

We also have the Bowers & Wilkins 606/607 S3 speaker package on hand as a reference, and we’ve raided our library of reference 4K discs to assess performance.

Starting with F1: The Movie, the 3050c 5.1 is off to a flying start. The energy and pace of this speaker system are immediately evident, resulting in an exciting, almost nerve-wracking sound during the tense 24 hours of Daytona race at the beginning of the film. As cars overtake daringly and spin out in a spectacular display of carnage, the Q Acoustics’ agility is a clear asset.

The 3050c 5.1 also does an excellent job of putting us in the middle of the action. The cohesion between the front and surround channels is excellent, ensuring there are no noticeable gaps. As such, the surround speakers are also integrated well, meaning we’re not made aware of them in a distracting way.

The sense of space and height is also a highlight of this system. The voices of David Croft and Martin Brundle as they commentate over races have a genuine sense of height, and the wide, enveloping soundfield puts us squarely in the centre of the action.

Moving onto Dune: Part One, we watch the sequence in which the Atreides family survey the spice desert from the air. The voices are clear and crisp, making dialogue easy to understand, and the thunderous drums that command the soundtrack flex the Q SUB100's muscles with a strong leading edge to each strike, and a touch of tonal variety that sprinkles in some texture and life to the rhythmic beats.

Switching our testing disc to Marvel’s Thunderbolts, we use the sequence in which the anti-heroes escape a facility in the desert with the mysterious Bob. The speaker system’s positive attributes are perfectly suited to this sequence; its agile and exciting nature makes the fight sequences feel wonderfully intense, and the talented subwoofer brings a hefty dose of bass to a big explosion and a flurry of gunshots.

However, this scene also affirms a shortcoming of the package, specifically the centre channel. While the majority of the system works in harmony to create a cohesive and cinematic sound, the centre channel feels like it's the only component at odds with that.

Voices sound too narrow and boxed in, making us acutely aware of where they’re coming from. While this does aid vocal clarity, it also means that voices don’t feel particularly well integrated into the greater mix. They also sound tonally quite flat, which makes the snide jabs thrown from one team member to another feel as though they’re lacking in character.

This package has a clear tendency to sound lean. The agility and crispness that are, in a vacuum, two positive attributes can also result in the 3050c system sounding a bit too forward and, at times, slightly insistent. It’s lacking a touch of warmth and naturalness that the Bowers & Wilkins 606/607 S3 5.1 system brings to the table.

This is felt most when it comes to music. Switching to Pure Direct for some stereo content, we find that Maggie Rogers’ Dog Years, Bon Iver’s There’s A Rhythm and Phoebe Bridgers’ Lost Boys all come across as slightly shouty, despite all being fairly soft-sounding tracks.

That said, we can’t dispute the 3050c’s detail and timing, as both are excellent when we listen to music through them.

Verdict

Q Acoustics has launched another eye-catching and exciting-sounding home cinema package that is sure to appeal to those who want a 5.1 system that is bursting with energy. While we feel that it can sound a bit too lean at times, and we wish that the centre channel paired better with the rest of the system, we still think that there is plenty to like here.

SCORES

• Sound 4
• Features 4
• Build 5

MORE:

Read our review of the Bowers & Wilkins 606 & 607 S3 speaker package

Also consider the Fyne Audio F500E AV Pack 2

Read our Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 Home Cinema Pack review

Best surround sound systems: home cinema speakers and soundbars put to the test

It's Home Cinema Week here at What Hi-Fi?, and it seems as if Epson is joining in the celebratory spirit.

The Epson EH-TW7000, one of the Japanese brand's entry-level 4K projectors, was already affordable at launch – and has just hit a new low of £799 at Amazon.

That's an incredible price for any 4K projector, but particularly impressive for one with the picture quality of the five-star Epson EH-TW7000.

Let's get this out of the way first – to achieve this price Epson has not included a smart platform or built-in speakers, meaning almost all we have to judge is the picture performance.

However, the picture quality alone was enough to blow us away.

"We play Venom on 4K Blu-ray and this projector explodes into life from the start, with some excellent HDR handling and dark detail in the opening shuttle crash scene," our Epson EH-TW7000 review reads. "The light levels run from the dark forest shadows to the extreme brightness of the floodlights. Despite this range, the tone of the scene is expertly controlled."

Detail is brilliant for this price point, capturing subtle textures and skin details, while colours are controlled yet dynamic.

Set-up is simple by projector standards, and there's plenty of lens flexibility to boot.

While there's no smart platform, there are two HDMI ports, so you can easily add one of the best Blu-ray players or streaming sticks. There are also two USB 2.0 sockets, as well as the option to send out audio via Bluetooth or a 3.5mm cable.

If you thought a 4K projector was out of your price range, you might want to think again. The Epson EH-TW7000 is an affordable 4K projector done right, stripping out features so all of your hard-earned cash goes towards picture quality – all for £799 at Amazon.

MORE:

These are the best AV receivers you can buy right now

Check out the best Dolby Atmos soundbars

And here are the best projectors

What is home cinema?

It sounds like a simple question, but it’s one that I think is worth considering during our Home Cinema Week, and I suspect you'd get wildly different answers depending on who you asked.

For some, it's impossible without an AV receiver, a projector and at least seven speakers. For others, it's a big TV and a Dolby Atmos soundbar. I'd even argue that, in the right circumstances, it can be a pair of headphones connected to a streaming box.

Perhaps that's controversial, but I genuinely think home cinema is pretty much anything you want it to be.

Now, before anyone thinks I'm trying to rewrite the rules, let me be clear: if your goal is the very best home cinema performance possible, the traditional route is still the right one. A quality AV receiver paired with a carefully matched speaker package and, if your room allows, a projector, remains the pinnacle of what's possible.

I'm fortunate enough to experience setups like that regularly. We evaluate AV receivers, Atmos speaker packages and projectors in a dedicated home cinema test room, and when everything comes together, there's simply nothing else quite like it. I've also owned a traditional 7.1.4-channel system myself, so I know exactly what that experience is capable of delivering.

But here's the thing: somewhere along the way, I think we've started to confuse the best home cinema with the only home cinema.

My own current setup is proof that those aren't the same thing.

When I moved house, I swapped my traditional separates system for Sony's HT-A9 wireless speaker system and a subwoofer. Is it as accomplished as the 7.1.4-channel system I had before? No. But it suits my living room far better, it took minutes rather than days to install, and it still produces a wonderfully immersive Dolby Atmos performance that regularly reminds me why I love this hobby.

And when everyone else has gone to bed, my favourite way to watch a film is with AirPods Max connected to an Apple TV 4K. Is that better than listening through a room full of speakers? Of course not. But it's very immersive in its own right, and it lets me enjoy late-night movies without disturbing the rest of the house.

That's still home cinema to me.

In fact, I'd argue that if you've deliberately chosen a setup because it helps you become more immersed in the films, TV shows or games you love, you're already part of the home cinema community.

Whether that's a flagship projector and a 7.1.4-channel speaker package, a premium Atmos soundbar, a wireless surround system or even a tablet paired with headphones capable of reproducing Dolby Atmos through spatial audio technologies, the goal is the same: to bring the magic of the cinema into your home.

The equipment is simply the means of getting there.

None of this is meant to diminish traditional home cinema. Quite the opposite. If you have the space, budget and enthusiasm to build an AVR-powered surround system, I wholeheartedly encourage you to do so.

But I don't think owning that sort of system should be the entry requirement for calling yourself a home cinema enthusiast.

After all, very few of us started there.

Most enthusiasts build their systems over time, upgrading piece by piece as budgets, homes and family life allow. Others discover that a high-quality soundbar or wireless speaker system gives them the balance of performance and practicality they're looking for. Neither approach is more legitimate than the other – they're simply different stages of the same journey.

One day, I still hope to convert my garage into a dedicated home cinema room featuring an AV receiver, a projector and at least 12 speakers.

Until then, I'll continue enjoying films through my wireless Atmos system. I'll continue watching late-night movies through my AirPods Max, too, and I'll continue recommending traditional separates systems to anyone who wants the very best performance money can buy.

Because I don't think those things are contradictory.

The best home cinema I've experienced has been in dedicated cinema rooms filled with high-end equipment. The home cinema I use most is in my living room. And some of my favourite movie nights have happened when wearing a pair of headphones.

They're all different. One is objectively capable of higher performance than the others. But all of them remind me why I fell in love with home cinema in the first place.

To my mind, that's what really matters.

MORE:

Check out all of our Home Cinema Week coverage

Here are the best projectors, best AV receivers and best surround sound systems

And here are the best TVs and best soundbars

McIntosh never does things by halves, but even by its standards, the MX124 is quite an AV receiver. Its 13.4-channel arrangement means it can connect to four subwoofers at once. This thing is not meant for your spare room.

Rather it's aimed at "today's most advanced home cinema systems", whether that's a pro-level viewing room setup or whole home entertainment system.

Support for 8K video comes as standard, and it's compatible with room correction software to optimise the sound to your environment.

Inside is updated processing architecture, promising advanced audio and video processing.

Its 13 audio channels support speaker configurations up to 7.4.6 or 9.4.4. And its four subwoofer outputs is twice as many as its predecessor, to support more sophisticated system layouts and more precise bass management.

McIntosh is positioning the MX124 as a way to extend the lifespan of your home cinema setup. That's thanks to its support for immersive audio formats like Dolby Atmos, DTS:X Pro, Sony 360 Reality Audio and MPEG-H Audio, as well as its versatility in outputs and next-gen processing architecture.

With nine 32-bit digital-to-analogue converters, it promises "exceptional detail, dynamic range, and sonic accuracy", and it has bass and treble controls for tweaking the sound to your liking.

Room optimisation smarts comes courtesy of not only Dirac Live, but Dirac Live Bass Control and Audyssey MultEQ XT32. So it should sound its best in pretty much any room, with optimised bass performance, imaging, tonal balance, speaker integration and overall clarity, and all while preserving McIntosh's signature musicality.

On the video front, you get seven HDMI inputs and three HDMI outputs, one of which has eARC. They all support 4K/120Hz (and 8K/60Hz) as well as Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HLG and IMAX Enhanced. Gamers will enjoy the addition of ALLM and VRR.

Streaming? You got it. As well as Apple AirPlay and Bluetooth, it supports Qobuz Connect, Spotify Connect, TIDAL Connect, and Roon Ready, with support for high-resolution streaming up to 32-bit/192kHz.

You also get four digital audio inputs, one balanced and eight unbalanced analogue stereo inputs, component and composite video inputs, dual analogue stereo outputs for two additional listening zones, and support for Bluetooth headphones.

And if you're looking to install it professionally with custom integration, you'll welcome the web-based configuration, pre-configuration and file upload capabilities, back-up and restore support, RS232 and IP control, and certification for Control4 Simple Device Discovery Protocol (SDDP) integration.

The McIntosh MX124 is out now, and costs £16,900 (around $23,000 / AU$32,000).

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The best surround sound systems you can buy

A soundbar is a must-buy for any home cinema enthusiast who doesn't have the budget and/or space for a full speaker package – but, with a wealth of options, how do you know which one is right for you? You could start by looking at the size.

While size may not be everything, it does have a big impact on how the bar performs and how it fits into your home entertainment set-up. Let me explain.

Like a glove

First of all, and most obviously, you need a soundbar that fits your space. You might be tempted to get the biggest, most powerful model you can afford, but if it doesn’t fit in the area allotted, it's not going to be much good.

But there's a lot more to it than just making sure it physically fits into your TV cabinet. There are also the aesthetics to consider. Remember, you'll have to look at it every time you settle down to watch something, so you want a soundbar that’s of a piece with its surroundings.

I was so keen to try out the Sonos Arc Ultra for a feature a while ago that I eschewed the tape measure altogether. As you can see from the photo at the top of this article, it made my ageing LG TV look like it had wings.

For the neatest look, go for a soundbar that’s roughly the same width as your TV, or slightly shorter. We’ve made some pairing recommendations below to get you started.

A soundbar that’s too big for your TV won’t simply look awkward; it will skew the sound, too. Soundbars are designed to project sound from just below the screen, and if yours extends way beyond the dimensions of your TV, it could throw the staging off.

Made to measure

There are other, more practical considerations, too. You need to make sure the soundbar doesn’t obstruct the bottom of the screen while you’re watching – otherwise you could miss elements such as a key plot development, visual gag or match-saving tackle.

Most premium TVs let you adjust their height to accommodate a soundbar. But it’s still vital you measure the bar’s height first to make sure it fits.

Your TV cabinet might have a shelf on which your soundbar fits perfectly, but there are other factors to consider.

Lots of the best Dolby Atmos soundbars have upwards-firing drivers to add height channels to the mix – that way, a helicopter on-screen will sound as if it is passing overhead. But if your soundbar is on a shelf, those height channels will be shooting straight into the underside of the surface above. Imagine turning your hi-fi speaker against the wall, and you get the idea.

Wall-mounting avoids a lot of these pitfalls, but that brings hazards of its own – the most important being weight. A big soundbar such as the Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar Max tips the scales at 18.5kg, so you want to make sure your wall is up to the task of supporting it. No one needs their movie watching interrupted by the soundbar thundering to the floor, ripping off half the wall in the process.

The best soundbars for big and small TVs

So now you know what to look out for, which models of soundbar should you consider? We have collected some of the best below to match to your TV size.

The best soundbars for small TVs

When it comes to choosing a soundbar, you might restrict your choice to the big hitters (Samsung, Sonos, Sony), but that would be a mistake. Lesser-known brands can deliver too – just take the Creative Stage Pro.

At 55cm wide, it’s small enough to fit under a 32-inch TV, though you will have to find space for the separate subwoofer. Despite its small size, it delivers a surprisingly cinematic performance, with impressive detail and solid low-level dynamics.

Stepping up a gear is the Sony HT-SF150, which is ideally suited to a 43-inch TV. It is also very affordable, yet feels much more premium, and has Bluetooth for wireless playback from your phone or tablet. Sony’s S-Force Front Surround technology is on board, too – this applies processing to make the sound more enveloping, adding more weight and separation to the mix.

But probably the best of the small soundbars is the Sonos Beam Gen 2, which we have no hesitation in recommending – it has won a What Hi-Fi? Award for five years running. It offers Dolby Atmos but without the upwards-firing drivers. It still puts in a convincing performance, though: rich, three-dimensional and full of detail. It will even serve bigger TVs well, such is its power.

The best soundbars for bigger TVs

At 114cm wide, the Sonos Arc is more than twice the width of the Beam, making it ideal for TVs around 55 inches in size (such as the Sony Bravia 8 II and TCL C7K and LG C6).

It has 11 drivers (two of which are upwards-firing) to create one of the most convincing Atmos performances you can get from a single-chassis soundbar. Placement is superb, and there’s great weight and dynamism to the sound.

The Focal Mu-so Hekla is another great option at this size, though it doesn’t come cheap. Though when you consider that it’s basically a home hi-fi system as well as a soundbar, it looks like considerably better value.

Because of its unusual skillset, it is an odd shape, and so harder to accommodate than a more traditional bar. But one listen and you’ll know that it’s worth it.

The best soundbars for massive TVs

If your TV is more like an advertising screen than a television, then you have some great options for soundbars.

The Samsung HW-Q990F managed to outdo even its Product of the Year predecessor. This soundbar package comes with a subwoofer and two surround speakers, making it a bit more intrusive than a simple ’bar alone. But a big TV demands a big room, so hopefully you’ll have space for these extra components.

And it’s worth making space if you can. The subwoofer unearths new levels of bass, but manages to sound wholly integrated into the overall sound at the same time.

The Sonos Arc Ultra is Sonos’s flagship soundbar, and another Award winner. Its sound is clean, precise, spacious and three-dimensional, with enough scale to do even huge TVs justice.

The KEF XIO also won a What Hi-Fi? Award last year – a stunning feat for KEF’s first-ever soundbar. It blesses larger TVs with impressive musicality, tight bass and a full-bodied midrange.

Finally, the Sennheiser Ambeo Soundbar Max is a hulking beast of a ’bar. It stands 127cm wide and weighs a whopping 18.5kg. Good luck getting it in place, but once you have, the results are glorious.

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I love the idea of a soundbar. Who wouldn’t want the quality of a proper home cinema sound system in a form that fits unobtrusively below the television? Just one box and none of the wiring spaghetti. That was the highly appealing promise offered by the first soundbar What Hi-Fi? reviewed, the Yamaha YSP-1.

That was back in 2005, and I distinctly remember the What Hi-Fi? team’s excitement about this new concept; and, with certain provisos, how much we liked that product.

The YSP-1’s design was hugely ambitious for the time. It featured 42 drive units and clever processing technology that could focus beams of sound to produce a proper multi-channel effect, all from a single, one-box product.

Over the years, I have grown increasingly disappointed with the direction of soundbar design. The cleverness of the YSP concept hasn’t been used as a foundation to progress the category.

Single-unit soundbars largely seem to have given up trying to deliver proper surround sound – the kind that wraps around you – choosing instead to focus on Dolby Atmos to deliver a sense of height. The days of a single soundbar enveloping the listener in a (mostly) convincing soundfield are long gone.

If you do want more of a surround soundfield, manufacturers now offer soundbar systems with separate speakers that sit behind you, and usually a subwoofer, too. Such systems, good as they can be, seem well removed from the original, minimalist soundbar idea.

So, if you are looking for a simple way to improve your TV’s sound, I would like to suggest an alternative. Given that single soundbars often no longer even try to emulate true surround sound, maybe forgo the idea altogether and try stereo.

Stay with me on this.

The stereo system could be a pair of powered speakers or even a traditional two-channel amplifier driving a pair of passives. As long as you can get a signal in, whether through HDMI, optical, coaxial or analogue, and can position the speakers on either side of the screen, it will work.

Not convinced? Think of it this way. Soundbars tend to be pretty thin and long in proportion. It is impossible to use anything other than tiny drive units in such an enclosure.

It isn’t unusual to have a driver count in double figures, so internal volume is at a premium, leading to restriction in the kind of amplification and power supplies that can be fitted

While clever use of DSP and a lot of engineering know-how get a surprisingly capable sound out of such limited ingredients, the two-channel route I have suggested allows much more scope for the designer.

The drive units are larger, and there is more space for amplification, power supplies and drive units to breathe. The result, in my experience, is better sound almost across the board.

Sure, the result is limited to stereo, and you’ll have to live with that. There isn’t necessarily a separate subwoofer to augment the lows, either – but even relatively humble solutions such as Fyne’s Cubitt 5 can produce a sound of such insight, resolution and subtlety that similarly priced soundbars are invariably left floundering.

Height information, too, is off the menu. But, for me, the extra expression in voices and greater dynamic finesse more than compensate. Soundtracks sound more thrilling, and dynamics have more delicacy and punch.

Bass may not be as prominent, unless you add a subwoofer to your stereo pair of speakers, but it is invariably more tuneful and better integrated.

Then there is the added bonus of stereo music sounding better, too. Even the best soundbars on the market tend to struggle to convince with music, but a good, dedicated stereo system won’t.

So, if you want to improve the sound from your TV, I suggest leaving the herd and going full retro with a dedicated two-channel set-up rather than a dedicated soundbar. Take the jump; I suspect you’ll be happy you did.

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When you have a home cinema speaker package that is centred around some five-star stereo standmounts, it makes sense to make as much use of them as possible.

That is why, for this premium cinema set-up, we have married the KEF Q Concerto Meta speaker package with Arcam’s AVR5 AV amplifier.

The system

• Projector: Epson EH-LS9000 (£2999 / $3999 / AU$7299)
• Blu-ray player: Panasonic DP-UB820 (£349 / $550 / AU$849)
• Streaming box: Apple TV 4K (£199 / $150 / AU$299)
• AV amplifier: Arcam AVR5 (£1499 / $1999 / AU$3995)
• Speaker system: KEF Q Concerto Meta 5.1 (£2549 / $4050 / AU$5650)
• Total system price: £7595 / $10,748 / AU$18,092

The AV receiver

Arcam puts sound performance as the main selling point of all its amplifiers, not merely bunging as many features into the box as possible to appeal to its buyer. More features means the potential for more issues with sound, and that is not an acceptable compromise for the brand.

That single-minded insistence on sonic ability is also why the Arcam will power only seven channels of amplification. It will process up to 12 channels of Dolby Atmos, but you’ll need to add external amplification to drive those extra channels, should you want to do so.

What it will do here, though, is provide a brilliant 5.1 experience – and should you want to take advantage of those Dolby Atmos capabilities (which we would urge you to consider) you can invest in a pair of KEF’s Q8 Meta Atmos toppers. Then you would be using the Arcam amp to drive a 5.1.2-channel Dolby Atmos system, without the need for extra external amplification.

Importantly, you would also have an impressively musical two-channel option as well, removing the need for a separate stereo set-up. If space is at a premium, this is a neat solution that should suit most people really well.

A glimpse at the images at the top of this page reveals that this is a substantial set-up, though. And more than seven grand is quite the outlay, of course. But consider that this is a system that can cover both stereo and home cinema – and perform both with aplomb – and things don’t seem quite so eye-watering.

It is, however, a set-up that requires a dedicated space. This is serious home cinema, after all, so a permanently plumbed-in projector and screen, and a room that can be made dark, should be your first aim.

Assuming you have the appropriate space to accommodate it though, this set-up is simply stunning value for money.

The nimble, surefooted Arcam can handle movie scores and sound effects with impressive ability. This really is an impeccable musical performance, and it’s one that can go really very loud without seeming to feel the strain.

The speaker package

An impeccable musical performance can apply equally as well to the KEF speaker package, of course – no great surprise with the five-star stereo abilities of the Q Concerto Meta standmounts that perform the front left and right channel duties.

It’s not all about that pairing, though. The KEF Kube subwoofer holds its own, with a powerful and dynamic low-end kick, and the Q1 Meta surrounds, despite being smaller than their front-channel siblings, certainly don’t let up on a movie as far as sonic scale goes.

No, this package puts in a truly impressive surround-sound display, putting us squarely in the centre of any movie action, while also revealing the subtle abilities of its centre channel by making dialogue pin-sharp and clear.

The projector

While the sound is a massive part of any home cinema experience, it would all be for naught, of course, without a brilliant 4K picture to do it justice.

Which is where the projector comes in. A Best Buy in the What Hi-Fi? 2025 Awards, the Epson EH-LS9000 is, for us, the top performer in its category.

It may not have a native 4K resolution, rather getting to its 4K image via pixel-shifting, but that technology, far from being the red flag it might once have been, has proved time and time again to be capable of producing brilliantly sharp and detailed picture quality. And so it proves here.

The Vivid preset (perhaps surprisingly – certainly unusually) is the setting that, for us, makes the most of the LS9000’s specification and processing. It produces a picture with quite exceptional vibrancy and three-dimensionality without making things look forced or veering drastically away from cinematic intent.

As we say in our review: “Playing Thunderbolts on 4K Blu-ray… we’re instantly struck by the sharpness and detail of the image. There’s an awesome solidity and depth to the picture, which is particularly impressive at the 100-inch scale of our screen, and you almost feel as if you could reach into the image and poke the little figures in the distance.

“Colours are both vivid and natural, and the shading is excellent: the sky over the desert fills the top third of the image and blends beautifully from very light blue on one side to a deeper, more vibrant blue on the other.”

The Blu-ray player

Talking of blue, we would urge you to invest in physical media for a home cinema of this quality. There are fewer and fewer 4K Blu-ray players available to buy these days, with the prevalence of video streaming, but there is no doubt, in our eyes, that the format is the best way to get a top-notch 4K image.

The Panasonic DP-UB820 is our current Award winner, and has been claiming What Hi-Fi? Awards since 2019.

And, as we say in our review verdict, “If you’ve bought into the 4K Blu-ray format and have a suitable home cinema set-up, you need a dedicated player that can deliver on multiple fronts. The Panasonic DP-UB820 is just that, supporting all major HDR formats, delivering a hugely immersive and impactful picture, backed up by a strong audio performance.”

The streamer

While a Blu-ray disc is perfect for those full-on movie nights, we are not obsessive or unrealistic enough to say that everything we watch should be via that somewhat restrictive medium.

Video streaming has come on leaps and bounds over the past decade and more – and the quality of the 4K images on offer is now extremely impressive. The very best option, though, for a home cinema such as this is undoubtedly Apple’s brilliant TV 4K.

Suffice to say that its predecessor romped away with Awards aplenty, and this superb little box is better than it in every department. For us, this is a no-brainer.

Hisense has clearly decided that it’s time to capitalise on its huge success in the lifestyle projector world by launching a shiny, new no-holds-barred flagship model.

Boasting 6000 lumens of brightness, a triple laser lighting system, liquid cooling, a built-in Devialet sound system, an all-glass lens and support for every HDR format in town, the XR10 certainly makes all the right flagship noises.

But can Hisense marshal all these expensive pieces into a class-leading performance?

Price

With Hisense usually found successfully plying its trade in the mid-range lifestyle projector arena, the £5999 / $6000 / AU$9995 price of the XR10 really is a major step up for the brand.

In fact, it will doubtless be a step too far for many home cinema-loving households, and even raises the question of whether a projector that seems from the outside at least to have been designed more as a ‘lifestyle’ model than a serious home theatre machine really makes sense at such a price.

As we’re about to explain, though, we think the XR10 makes all kinds of sense, even at its very high price.

Design

The XR10’s design is nuts in all the best ways. For starters, it ships in a beautifully designed, built-to-measure real leather carry case complete with wheels and an extendable handle that looks like Hisense thinks you’re going to love the projector so much you’ll want to take it on holiday with you.

The projector’s spectacular bodywork, meanwhile, is actually transparent in some places, so that you can marvel at some of the cool things going on under the projector’s hood.

A huge lens aperture sits within a bold bronze-coloured metallic square on one side of the projector’s front, while the left side houses two vertical stripes, one recessed, one not, housing sensors that the projector can use to help it deliver a more effective automatic set-up system.

The projector’s left, right and top edges are finished in the same bronzy colour as the area around the lens housing, while the projector’s shape resembles a larger (and much heavier) version of the sort of roughly cubic designs we’ve started to see dominating the living room projector market in recent times.

The top plate sports a beautifully designed round dial-style volume adjustment, as well as a large ambient light sensor the projector can use to optimise its picture performance to different room conditions.

That volume control, along with the grilles built into the XR10’s left and right edges, reflects the fact that the XR10 carries a built-in sound system deemed powerful enough to enable the projector to be used as a standalone wireless speaker if you so desire.

The various finishes to different sides and even within the front edge of the XR10 ought, by all rights, to make its design look a bit of a mess. Actually, though, it all comes together remarkably well in a vaguely cyberpunk kind of way.

Features

The XR10 is mostly specced to kill.

Its 6000 claimed lumens of laser-delivered peak brightness is huge by serious projector standards, for starters. That’s easily enough to punch through quite a bit of ambient light if that’s what you want it to do; drive a particularly big screen (Hisense claims 300 inches); and/or potentially handle HDR sources better than most projectors can.

Brightness alone can actually be anything but a friend to projector picture quality, though, so it’s impressive to see Hisense backing this brightness up with a healthy claimed native contrast performance of 6000:1. This jumps, too, to a very impressive claimed 60,000:1 courtesy of the projector’s premium lens iris system. As ever, though, the proof of the pudding will be in the eating.

Hisense has gone the extra mile, too, to avoid the sort of rowdy cooling-fan noise you might normally expect to hear from a 6000-lumen projector by integrating liquid (water) cooling into the XR10’s chassis. This is the first time, we believe, that such cooling has been used in an albeit premium living room projector.

Another big justification for the XR10’s price is its use of an all-glass, 16-element lens system that Hisense claims will deliver better light transmission and temperature stability than a plastic system could, resulting in more brightness/contrast and more consistent 4K sharpness.

The colour coverage claimed for the XR10’s laser lighting/DLP optical system is huge too: up to 110 per cent of the massive BT2020 colour space. That’s well beyond the DCI-P3 colour system used for most HDR mastering.

Talking of HDR, the XR10 is one of a very rare breed in the projector world that’s capable of playing all four of the AV world’s main HDR formats: HDR10, HLG, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. It’s even received IMAX Enhanced certification, meaning it has been deemed capable of doing justice to the special IMAX mastering system (which focuses on creating a noiseless look to the image). Basically, the XR10 will take in the best version of any content you feed it.

For all their advantages, setting up premium projectors can often be a pain. Hisense couldn’t have worked harder to simplify the physical aspect of set-up, though. The XR10 carries an industry-first four-8MP-camera and dual Time-of-flight (TOF) intelligent sensing set-up that it can use to correct image size, keystone and focus without you having to lift a finger. Plus, that ambient sensor we mentioned earlier can tie its readings into the calculations of a ‘Smart AI’ auto-adjustment system so that images can auto-adjust to compensate for changing room conditions.

As well as all its sensors and AI brainpower, the XR10 carries an exceptionally wide-ranging 0.84-2.0x optical zoom and bags of vertical and horizontal image shifting. It’s therefore able to (auto) adapt itself to a seriously wide range of different room sizes and layouts – and is also capable of delivering a 100-inch image from a throw distance of just 1.86m.

As we’ve come to expect from today’s lifestyle projectors, the XR10 carries a built-in smart system so that you can stream video without the need for any external sources. Rather than the Google TV system found in most projectors, though, the XR10 turns to Hisense’s own VIDAA system. This is good news, as it’s straightforward and stable to use, and it carries all of the streaming services the vast majority of households will need, including the BBC iPlayer app that’s almost always absent from Google TV systems.

The XR10 is, of course, a 4K projector. It doesn’t have a full 3840x2160 count of digital mirror devices (DMDs) that would be needed for a ‘true’ 4K experience, though. Instead, it features Texas Instruments’ XPR technology to create a 4K image from a lower DMD count using pixel-shifting. The Consumer Technology Association in the US deems the resulting images to be true 4K, though, and as we’ll see, it’s hard to disagree with that stance based on the XR10’s real-life 4K performance.

The XR10’s connections impressively comprise three HDMI ports (one 2.0, two 2.1), three USBs, an optical digital audio output, a headphone jack, an Ethernet port, and the now-expected wi-fi and Bluetooth wireless options. Apple AirPlay 2 is included in the projector’s wireless content sharing options, too.

There is one connection disappointment, though, as we couldn’t manage to get even the two HDMI 2.1 ports to handle 4K content at 120Hz from our Xbox Series X. 120Hz is possible at 1440p resolutions with the HDMI ports set to Enhance Mode Pro, but there’s no VRR support in this set-up, and nor can the projector sustain HDR gaming at any refresh rate above 60Hz.

One last premium aspect of the XR10 is its audio. Not only does it carry a 2.1 speaker system that includes a dedicated bass driver and supports DTS: Virtual X playback, but this speaker system has been tuned by acclaimed audio brand Devialet, picking up on a relationship Hisense previously forged for the speaker systems of its high-end TVs.

Picture

We’ve consistently referred to the XR10 so far as a ‘lifestyle’ or 'living room' projector, based chiefly on its appearance and convenient set-up features. It’s worth reflecting before we get into its performance, though, on the fact that Hisense describes the XR10 as being “built for cinephiles who want the big-screen theatre experience without sacrificing design, flexibility or fidelity”.

In other words, Hisense is backing the XR10 to be good enough to satisfy proper home cinema enthusiasts as well as the more casual projection market. And we’re happy to report that it’s absolutely right.

Particularly spectacular and key to its success is its ability to deliver both extreme levels of brightness and some of the deepest, most convincing blacks the HDR projection world has to offer.

Using any of the XR10’s relatively aggressive picture presets, bright HDR images are absolutely radiant, punching through even high levels of ambient light if you’re watching the projector in a regular daytime living room environment. In a dark room, meanwhile, this brightness can be used to deliver HDR with levels of intensity that we’ve only witnessed a handful of times before – mostly on ultra-high-end laser theatre projectors costing way more than the XR10.

Dark room viewing makes it obvious just how good the XR10 is with dark scenes and, even more impressively, scenes that contain a mix of light and dark elements. Provided you’re careful with the settings you use (more on this later), the XR10 can not only deliver dark imagery with much less greyness around than most, if not all, very bright, HDR-friendly projectors, but it also manages to retain all the faint shadow details you want to see if dark scenes are to feel consistent in depth with bright scenes. There’s little if any ‘black crush’ to worry about here.

Even better, the XR10 doesn’t just retain detail in the darkest image areas; it also retains excellent colour tones and saturations in such light-limited areas, avoiding the widespread tendency in both the projector and TV worlds for dark images to become desaturated.

The XR10’s colour performance is more obviously spectacular, of course, with very bright HDR images. Rather than the brightest highlights of HDR pictures starting to look thin or washed out, the XR10’s colour volume just keeps expanding as it’s fed more light.

Colour volumes push into places, in fact, that we haven’t seen before, beyond, perhaps, a couple of Xgimi models. Crucially, though, the XR10 does a substantially better job than those admittedly more affordable Xgimi rivals of making even the most vibrant colours across almost all of its picture presets look balanced and surprisingly natural. Or, at least, extremely believable.

To put it another way, while the XR10 is proud to show off what it can do, it only does so on a foundation of immersive consistency and a constant connection to the source material.

Despite the extreme vibrancy, brightness and contrast of which the XR10 is capable, as you’d hope of such an expensive and ambitious projector, it also cares about the little things in AV life. Its 4K pictures look fanatically detailed and densely textured, for instance – and this is down as much to the almost infinite subtlety of its colour rendition as it is to raw sharpness. The sharpness feels natural rather than forced or processed even in the projector’s most aggressive settings, and motion is handled without smearing or resolution loss.

If you find judder a touch obvious with 24p content, especially during bright scenes, the projector’s Film motion processing option does a pretty smart job of reducing judder without the results devolving into the dreaded soap opera effect.

While many will find it hard to resist the fantastic dynamism and richness of the XR10’s relatively aggressive image presets, film fans who want to see images that look as their creators wanted them to look can rest assured that their needs are catered for brilliantly, too, by the projector’s Filmmaker Mode preset.

This removes a big chunk of the brightness that is one of the XR10’s strengths. But the resulting images look natural, beautifully balanced, full of subtlety and still just excellently watchable despite Filmmaker Mode turning off many of its picture enhancement technologies.

If there’s an issue with the default Filmmaker Mode, it’s that black levels look a bit grey without any of the projector’s contrast enhancement tools in play. Simply setting the projector’s manual iris setting to its ‘One’ level, though, immediately improves black levels, at the expense of a just slightly cooler look to the image.

Aside from some DLP rainbow striping with very extreme contrast content, this set-up suggestion leads us to arguably the XR10’s one major image flaw. Namely, you need to be prepared to tinker with a few of the projector’s settings to get the best from it. It’s not quite the simple 'unbox, switch on and instantly relax deal' you might have been hoping for.

For instance, while the Dolby Vision Bright preset the XR10 defaults to with Dolby Vision content delivers great contrast for such a bright projector, it pushes some colours too strongly. Greens are over-dominant and skin tones look too ripe. The core colour temperature can also fluctuate within a shot if there are significant light level variations to cope with, and you can sometimes see the projector’s dynamic iris system doing its work too obviously.

Setting the manual iris setting to level 1 helps balance colours and eliminates the fluctuating colour tone, but suddenly sees green tones taking on a strangely brownish hue. Fortunately, there’s an easy solution to this one that simply involves switching to the Dolby Vision Dark preset. This instantly fixes colour balance/consistency issues, delivers natural blacks and skin tones and, if you set the iris feature to ‘0’, leaves the image looking totally stable.

The XR10’s complex iris options include a few presets alongside the multi-step Manual mode. Cinema 1 delivers a nicely judged combination of brightness and contrast, but leaves you having to hit the colour calibration tools to try and stop skin tones and red colours looking too pink, and can also cause some noticeable fluctuations in brightness from the dynamic iris. Cinema 2 delivers some of the best black levels we’ve seen from any projector, but at the expense of huge amounts of the brightness that’s so enjoyable a part of the XR10’s usual picture make-up. Only in a fully blacked-out room is this setting even worth considering, and even then, maybe only the most die-hard accuracy enthusiasts will find the dimness tolerable.

In the end, even where the XR10 offers pre-programmed attempts to provide helpful out-of-the-box feature presets, we ultimately end up reverting to manual intervention via the all-important manual iris setting. A setting which, for better or worse, is kept outside of the picture settings encompassed by the projector’s defined picture presets, so that whatever lens setting you choose applies across every preset for every source until you go back in and change it again.

There are other bits of tinkering we’d recommend too, including turning the sharpness setting to zero but leaving a separate Super Resolution feature active, and braving the projector’s more in-depth colour and white-balance controls, too, if you dare.

The bottom line, though, is that for the most part, making the effort to spend just a few minutes fine-tuning images when you first get the XR10 rewards you with what can be absolutely spectacular but also thoughtful and subtle results. Results capable of adapting, moreover, to pretty much any room shape or ambient light condition.

It’s important to add, too, that the projector responds excellently without manual intervention to the extra picture information provided by the HDR10+ format, making us wish more projectors would adopt this alternative/rival to the Dolby Vision system.

Maybe even more importantly, the XR10’s out-of-the-box dynamic tone mapping system with basic HDR10 content is outstanding. The way it maps the available image data of core HDR10 sources to the projector’s capabilities so that they look dynamic and punchy without succumbing to clipping, unevenness, black crush or colour imbalances is superb, and actually requires less manual intervention than you’d usually expect with most HDR projectors.

The XR10’s automated hardware image correction features work brilliantly, too. So while some of its presets could be better, it’s also actually more helpful than most rivals in other areas of usability and set-up.

One last strength of the XR10 to mention is how incredibly quietly it runs for such a monumentally bright projector. The liquid cooling system Hisense has taken considerable trouble to integrate into the projector proves well worth the effort.

Sound

The XR10’s speakers are capable of pumping out levels of volume and dynamic range that shame many premium TVs. Even at just 50 per cent of its maximum volume, it’s loud enough to satisfy even a quite large room.

Trebles reach high peaks without sounding brittle or warbly, even at high volumes, while at the other end, bass reaches remarkably deep without falling prey to dropouts or crackles, or causing the projector’s metal bodywork to start buzzing. This helps low frequencies avoid sounding overly dominant or distracting, despite how present and deep they are. Similarly, the XR10’s ability to produce high levels of detail in a film or TV mix doesn’t leave busy soundtracks sounding too forensic or ambient effects too bright.

Voices are clean and well-rounded too. The only issue is that they sound a bit trapped inside the projector’s bodywork compared with the rest of the sound mix, which means they also sound rather dislocated from the onscreen action on the other side of the room, and sometimes rather decontextualised from the rest of the soundstage.

Verdict

While it might be the XR10’s startling, beautifully built design that first catches your eye, Hisense’s new showcase projector ultimately justifies its premium price tag with its combination of a startlingly powerful sound system and the best picture quality we’ve seen from any lifestyle or, more accurately, lifestyle/home theatre crossover projector before.

As statements of intent go, it’s hard to see how the XR10 could have served Hisense much better.

SCORES

• Picture 5
• Sound 4
• Features 4

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The high street has been struggling in recent years, and it's easy to see why.

The convenience of online shopping is compelling, as is the ability to read reviews (both ours and from other buyers) and to do your research in the next browser tab along. For bigger purchases like a TV, you can also see the dimensions and measure exactly where it'll go. Plus, you can compare prices across hundreds of retailers from the comfort of your sofa.

But there are still plenty of reasons to buy a TV from your local shop. You'll be supporting a local, possibly independent business. The staff can give you expert advice. And, of course, you can see the set for yourself in the flesh.

A TV is a big purchase. You wouldn't buy a car that you hadn't seen for yourself.

So please, go forth and buy your next TV from a shop. Just don't make these five classic mistakes when buying in-store.

Mistake 1 – assuming the picture will look the same at home

You might be bowled over by the stunningly bright picture in the shop, but wait. In-store, TVs are put into a special demo mode to make them look as eye-catching as possible under the glare of the shop's bright lights.

This mode amps up the brightness and colour volume, but doesn't fare well with fast motion like sport or gaming. Which is why most in-shop TVs only show nature footage to showcase their bright colours.

To get a more realistic idea of how it will look in your lounge, you can ask the shop to put it into a different mode for you – try Filmmaker mode for cinematic fare. Sadly, you can't ask them to dim the lights.

And if they won't change the mode? Make sure you read our review of that particular model for a thorough analysis of how it performs.

Mistake 2 – not measuring up

We get it – you're in the shop, the TV looks so alluring and you can picture it right at home in your lounge. So what if you haven't measured the space first? It'll fit. Of course it will.

Maybe. But then maybe not. And if it doesn't, you've got two choices: navigate the shop's returns policy, or live with a TV that's just too big for its space. Of those two, we would opt for the former. Having to look at a TV that doesn't fit every day would just remind us of our rash decision-making.

Instead, look up the dimensions and measure the space before you head to the shop. And make sure it's the correct size model too – there's a big difference between the 42-inch LG C6 and the 48-inch one.

Trust me, as someone who once assumed the Sonos Arc Ultra would fit on my TV cabinet, I know the importance of measuring first.

Mistake 3 – trusting it will sound OK

Understandably, most TVs are on mute in the shop. It's the only way; otherwise, you'd be met by a cacophony of demo soundtracks as soon as you walked through the door.

Which poses a problem – how do you know what it sounds like? An obliging member of staff might turn the volume up for you, but given all the other sounds in the shop, that will only show how loud it can go.

We have the same issue at trade shows. While companies are keen to talk up their TVs' sound quality on a stand at a trade show, it's impossible to tell how they actually sound. The only real way to find out is to get it into a lounge or testing room, pull the curtains and settle in for some serious viewing. Which you can't really do in a shop.

The salesperson might tell you it sounds great, but don't assume that's true. Again, check our review, and leave yourself some budget for one of the best soundbars to accompany your new TV. Because even a relatively affordable soundbar will outdo most TVs' sonic abilities.

Mistake 4 – taking it home yourself

For most people, buying a new TV is a once-in-a-decade experience, if that. So we don't blame you for wanting to get your new purchase home as soon as possible. But we would urge a note of caution – are you sure you've got room in the boot of your car? Unless you're driving a transit van, you're going to struggle to get a 65-inch TV in there.

Even if you are driving a transit van, do you have the means to secure your new TV and stop it sliding around every time you turn a corner? And as for speed bumps...

It's far better to get the shop to deliver it instead. Yes, it might take a few days, so you'll be stuck with your old TV a little longer (or with nothing, if your old set is kaput). But once you leave the shop with it, a new TV is your responsibility. Any screen cracks from it being bounced around in the back of your Kia Rio are on you.

Mistake 5 – making an on-the-spot decision

This is probably the biggest error of all. Yes, the salesperson might have a compelling pitch, and yes, they might offer you a small discount if you agree to buy there and then. But without reading up on the product to see what it offers and how it compares to what else is available, you could end up buying the wrong TV for you. That's an expensive mistake.

Instead, do your research beforehand, read our reviews, measure up and compare prices. Then, when you do go to the shop to see it for yourself, you'll be armed with plenty of knowledge so you're not swayed by the sales patter. This gives you a much better chance of buying the TV that's genuinely right for you.

A new TV is a big decision, and the right one should serve you well for many years to come. Happy viewing!

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Home cinema, when it’s done right, is a truly magical experience.

Watching a movie you love, on a giant screen, in the comfort of your own home, wearing your Ninja Turtles pyjamas with a cat on your lap and whisky in hand (the last three may just be me). To quote the Goo Goo Dolls, it’s “the closest to heaven that I'll ever be”.

It’s this magic that makes me and the wider What Hi-Fi? home cinema team be part of that lucky minority that truly loves what they do. Specifically, testing the latest and greatest hardware so we can, in a small way, help others enjoy that magic.

But the trouble is, getting there is more complex than most people think, as the magic is heavily dependent on what hardware you’re using – especially if you’re going for a setup our technical editor, Ketan Bharadia, would deign to call “a proper home cinema”, with a multi-speaker surround sound system, long-throw projector, decent AVR and source.

Why? Because, despite the common assumption (even among some of our forum users) that home cinema sound is somehow different to hi-fi sound, and you can get a good setup just by bolting together five-star parts, the truth is, matching is still incredibly important.

And my experience helping test the KEF R Meta speaker package and Denon AVC-A1H (reviews incoming) this week proves that point.

Listening to the speaker package, we started with our reference Marantz Cinema 30 AVR and, not giving any spoilers away, as you'd expect, combining two accomplished pieces of hardware delivered excellent results. The system sounded expansive, cohesive and wonderfully controlled, creating a fabulously immersive home cinema experience.

Watching a difficult test scene from our Dune: Part One 4K Blu-ray, the setup was masterfully in control of every part of the frequency range. Subtle dynamics underneath the scene's pounding drums were suitably present, and the unit delivered a real sense of direction as a flight of ornithopters swooped from right to left and then behind the viewer.

But as we continued, and particularly when we switched to our F1 test disc and spent some time listening to stereo music, our senior staff writer, Lewis Empson, pulled a face – the same one he always does when something's not quite right. One by one, we all did the same until, in near unison, we asked, "Does anyone else think this sounds just a touch too smooth?"

Yes, the sound was refined and effortlessly composed (and remember, at this level we're nitpicking about very small but important differences in performance), but the combination perhaps leaned a fraction too far towards smoothness. It wasn't lacking quality – far from it – but there were moments when we wanted just a little more bite and urgency.

Which is no surprise as our TV and AV editor, Tom Parsons, who is taking the lead reviewing the speaker package, openly described it as “smooth and refined”.

That's not a dig; in fact, in some setups, it's a strength. But it's a problem here because if you jump to our Marantz Cinema 30 review, you’ll find the same words, “smooth, refined and always in control”, at the top of the page.

The two have a very similar sonic character, and while that creates a beautifully cohesive presentation, it also nudges the overall balance a little further towards refinement than we'd ideally like.

It's less that the pairing doesn't work – it clearly does – and more that combining two components with such similar personalities slightly softens the sense of attack.

Enter the Denon AVC-A1H. During testing, the Denon proved to have a more dynamic, more assertive character that complemented the KEF package differently, adding a little extra energy and attack without upsetting its natural balance.

From the moment Led Zeppelin's iconic Whole Lotta Love started, the F1 scene felt more electric, with the Denon adding more bite to guitarist Jimmy Page’s groove.

Then, the moment John Bonham’s iconic drum line lands, it hits with the gut-churning impact you’d expect from a drummer critics openly praised for his "hard-hitting" playstyle. That’s all before we start describing the added heft and impact of the race.

To be clear, this isn't a dig at the Marantz. In fact, the Marantz/KEF combination is an excellent one in many respects, producing a spacious, balanced and hugely accomplished sound.

We simply found that, in this particular system, the Cinema 30's refinement combined with the wonderfully smooth presentation of the KEF R7 Meta front speakers tipped the balance just a little too far towards relaxation. Swap in a more assertive AVR, or pair the Marantz with more overtly energetic speakers, and that balance shifts again.

Lewis summed the idea up nicely, describing it as being like cooking. “Even if you like salty food, if you add several salty ingredients, it’s not going to taste good.”

So, please remember, when setting up a home cinema, don’t just think of the individual parts; think about how they’ll work together as a system and complement one another.

Even if you’re watching at home alone (outside of the aforementioned cat), when it comes to hardware, home cinema is a team game.

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The latest projector to enter our test room is not quite like anything we have seen before. It’s the “world’s first mobile theatre system”, sporting four Dolby Atmos satellite speakers that are housed in the projector’s body.

It can also deliver a 4K picture, with a claimed brightness of up to 3500 ISO lumens. You can push the screen size as big as 300 inches, and it is built around a DLP optical system illuminated by a triple-laser lighting system.

That is all wrapped up in a package weighing a rather hefty 33kg with a set of wheels on the bottom.

That all means that, in theory, you should be able to take everything you need for a movie night in an all-in-one system. It doesn’t come cheap, and will set you back £4499 / $4999 / AU$8999.

Does it deliver on its promises? After we reviewed the product in our test room, it became clear that there are two aspects in which the X1 Pro excels, and two that hold it back from greatness. Let’s dig into it.

Nifty speaker design

The 7.1.4-channel speaker system is arguably the most exciting element of the projector. Each of the four satellite speakers can be placed around the space. They offer a compact yet practical build, with the fronts measuring 8 cm across and the rears coming in at 6 cm wide.

They also include little stands on the bottom with a rubber foot that folds out, making for a sturdy base. On top of that, you can charge them when they are inside the projector, or you can use their individual USB ports to give them some juice.

There’s also a subwoofer inside the projector’s body, which features two drive units, each measuring 13cm in diameter.

It’s a first to see such an elaborate speaker set-up for a portable projector in our test room, and is a draw if you are looking for an entire home cinema system in a box.

Rich, punchy picture

As well as the clever sound and speaker design, the X1 Pro delivers a punchy image performance that makes for pleasant viewing.

When watching Thunderbolts, we note in our review: “The villain’s brightly coloured costume stands out against the background, which makes for an engaging experience.”

Edges of characters and items are crisp and clean, and there is little noise in textures, contributing to an overall picture that feels sharp without tipping into being over-etched. It could do with an extra level of detail considering the price point, but it is still clear enough to see strands of hair and creases in clothes.

When we move to a brighter environment than our dark test room, a fair bit of detail and punch is lost, of course. But this set-up would be watchable with a bright movie when watching outside with the sun still up.

But image looks unsubtle

While it delivers an engaging image, the X1 Pro is not the most subtle of projectors. Its colours look a little over-emphasised, and they verge on unnatural. This becomes clear when watching Civil War as an army chopper lands on lush grass, where the foliage appears a tad too vivid to look realistic.

There is also an issue with the projector’s black depth. During Sinners as Michael B Jordan’s Stack has a terse conversation in a low-lit barn, we found that it “delivers the dark background with a fair bit of banding that verges on grey at points”.

Shadow detail leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to darker skin tones, and it is hard to make out the subtle differences in textures in these areas.

Disappointing sound performance

Unfortunately, while we like the compact speaker design, the sound performance itself rather lets the package down.

The sound is certainly more room-filling than the majority of portable projectors that come with built-in speakers, but we expect a more immersive performance from the 7.1.4-channel system.

With its Dolby Atmos presentation, the system lacks the immersive height and width effects to immerse us truly in the film. And there’s not a huge sense of precision around the space, with obvious gaps in the soundfield.

The bass performance is also underwhelming. Instead of packing a meaty weight, it lands with a rather flat softness. In our review when watching Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings, we say: “Punches should sound deep and impactful, but they lack the powerful drive necessary to convey the right level of force.”

The X1 Pro’s portable, innovative design and punchy picture are not to be dismissed. But the high price tag and lacklustre audio mean that it seems more sensible to invest in a separate projector and sound system to get the best performance from both.

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You can’t have a conversation about the best TVs without mentioning Sony. In fact, if you’re reading these words, it’s likely because you want to know all about Sony’s new 2026 TV range. If so, hello – you’re in the right place.

This year, Sony’s lineup isn't built around brighter OLED panels or another incremental Mini LED upgrade. Instead, Sony is introducing its first True RGB televisions – a new type of Mini LED TV that replaces traditional white backlighting with individually controlled red, green and blue LEDs.

The company believes that this allows it to reproduce colours more accurately, while also delivering dramatically higher brightness than today's OLED TVs can achieve.

The exciting new display tech headlines the new Bravia 9 II and Bravia 7 II, but they're far from the only new TVs in Sony's range. More affordable Bravia 3 II and Bravia 2 II models also join the lineup (with some country-specific caveats), while several existing OLED and LED models continue alongside them.

The Sony tech headlines for 2026

Before we dive into the 2026 Sony TV models proper, here are the headlines across the range:

Embracing the RGB Mini LED revolution

For years, OLED has been regarded as the pinnacle of TV picture quality, but 2026 is shaping up to be the year RGB Mini LED goes mainstream.

Sony joins rivals including Samsung, Hisense, LG, Philips, and TCL in adopting the tech, though the company refers to its implementation as True RGB.

Instead of using conventional white or blue Mini LEDs behind a coloured panel, Sony's new system uses independently controlled red, green and blue LEDs.

The result, in theory at least, is a TV capable of producing richer colours at much higher brightness levels, while also improving colour accuracy and reducing some of the compromises traditionally associated with LCD panels.

Sony is chasing studio monitor picture quality

Sony has long claimed its TVs are designed to reproduce films and TV shows as their creators intended, and that philosophy remains central to its latest 2026 TV range.

The Bravia 9 II, for example, has been developed with Sony's professional BVM-HX3110 mastering monitor firmly in mind, with the company claiming its new True RGB technology delivers colours and brightness that more closely match the displays used by filmmakers during production.

During our early hands-on testing, our TV and AV Editor Tom Parsons found the Bravia 9 II tracked the mastering monitor remarkably closely in many scenes, particularly when it came to colour accuracy and HDR highlights. It’s worth noting that he also stated that OLED still retained certain advantages in perceived depth and overall image solidity.

Super-sized screens

Sony has also expanded its range of truly enormous TVs, with the flagship Bravia 9 II now stretching all the way up to a massive 115 inches, while the Bravia 7 II introduces a new 98-inch option.

Even the more affordable Bravia 3 II gains a 100-inch version for the first time, giving buyers who want a cinema-sized screen more options than ever before without necessarily stepping up to Sony's flagship models.

Sony has finally added four HDMI 2.1 sockets – but only on one TV

After years of criticism, Sony has finally introduced a TV with four full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 ports. The rather bonkers catch? It's the Bravia 3 II, rather than one of the premium True RGB models.

That's right; both the flagship Bravia 9 II and step-down Bravia 7 II continue to offer just two HDMI 2.1 sockets, one of which doubles as the eARC connection for a soundbar or AV receiver.

Frankly, this seems an odd decision. Buyers investing in premium home cinema systems might not all be gamers, but certainly a sizeable chunk of them are. And even if they aren’t, it seems odd to have a superior connectivity feature on a model lower in the lineup. Right?

Welcome additions

While True RGB understandably grabs most of the attention, Sony has refreshed much of the wider user experience, too.

Across the new range, you'll find a redesigned remote control with automatic backlighting, USB-C charging and a construction that uses 80 per cent recycled plastic.

Sony has also introduced a new My Cinema interface that makes picture and sound settings easier to personalise, while Direct Connect allows compatible Sony rear speakers and subwoofers to connect wirelessly to supported TVs without the need for a soundbar.

Elsewhere, Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, Sony Pictures Core, Google TV and Wi-Fi 6 all remain key parts of the experience across much of the lineup.

Sony 2026 TV range breakdown

So, we've covered the key highlights, but what about the individual models themselves?

Fear not, for it's all broken down below – leading with the newest models, before covering all of Sony's existing TVs that are sticking around for 2026.

Sony Bravia 9 II

The Bravia 9 II replaces the original Bravia 9 as Sony's flagship TV, and also marks the company's first commercial RGB Mini LED (or 'True RGB') TV.

Available in 65-, 75-, 85- and colossal 115-inch sizes, it's designed to bring professional mastering-monitor levels of brightness and colour accuracy into the home.

Unlike conventional Mini LED TVs, which use blue or white LEDs behind an LCD layer, the Bravia 9 II uses independently controlled red, green and blue LEDs.

Sony claims that this setup delivers twice the colour volume of the original Bravia 9 and four times that of the Bravia 8 II OLED.

Elsewhere, gamers may be less enthusiastic. Despite being Sony's flagship TV for 2026, the Bravia 9 II still includes only two HDMI 2.1 sockets supporting 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM. It's an increasingly frustrating limitation when many rivals (including Sony’s own Bravia 3 II) now offer four full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 ports.

Audio is another focus area, with Sony's 2.2.2-channel Acoustic Multi-Audio+ system including upward-firing speakers for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X.

That all sounds very exciting indeed, but we have now reviewed the Bravia 9 II, and while it's exceptionally accomplished for a backlit TV, it struggles somewhat to justify itself against the very best OLEDs, most notably Sony's own Bravia 8 II.

Read our Sony Bravia 9 II review

Sony Bravia 9 II specs:

• Sizes: 65, 75, 85 and 115 inches
• Display type: True RGB Mini LED
• Resolution: 4K
• Processor: XR Processor
• Sound: 2.2.2-channel (80W Acoustic Multi-Audio+)
• HDMI 2.1: Yes (x2)
• Gaming features: 4K/120Hz, VRR, ALLM

Sony Bravia 9 II launch pricing:

• Sony Bravia 9 II 65-inch: £3499 / $3600 / AU$5999
• Sony Bravia 9 II 75-inch: £4299 / $4600 / AU$7499
• Sony Bravia 9 II 85-inch: £5499 / $6500 / AU$9999
• Sony Bravia 9 II 115-inch: £22,999 / $31,000 / AU$44,999

Sony Bravia 7 II

The Bravia 9 II may grab most of the headlines, but the Bravia 7 II could end up being the more important TV for most people.

Like its flagship sibling, it adopts Sony's new True RGB backlighting technology, bringing the same fundamental advantages of wider colour reproduction and higher brightness to a considerably lower price point. It also comes in a much broader range of sizes, stretching from 50 inches all the way up to a huge 98-inch version.

Naturally, there are compromises.

Sony positions the Bravia 7 II below the Bravia 9 II by reducing the number of local dimming zones, lowering peak brightness and fitting a simpler 2.2-channel Acoustic Multi-Audio speaker system that omits the flagship's upward-firing Atmos drivers.

The gaming front is also unchanged. Like the 9 II, the Bravia 7 II still relies on Sony's Pentonic 1000 platform, meaning buyers again have just two HDMI 2.1 ports despite support for features such as 4K/120Hz gaming, VRR and ALLM.

On paper, the Bravia 7 II looks like a very tempting performance-per-pound proposition, but like the Bravia 9 II, we feel most buyers will be better served by a similarly priced OLED.

Read our Sony Bravia 7 II review

Sony Bravia 7 II specs:

• Sizes: 50, 55, 65, 75, 85 and 98 inches
• Display type: True RGB Mini LED
• Resolution: 4K
• Processor: XR Processor
• Sound: 2.2-channel (40W Acoustic Multi-Audio)
• HDMI 2.1: Yes (x2)
• Gaming features: 4K/120Hz, VRR, ALLM

Sony Bravia 7 II launch pricing:

• Sony Bravia 7 II 50-inch: £1899 / $1600 / AU$2299
• Sony Bravia 7 II 55-inch: £1999 / $2100 / AU$2499
• Sony Bravia 7 II 65-inch: £2299 / $2600 / AU$3299
• Sony Bravia 7 II 75-inch: £2999 / $3100 / AU$4499
• Sony Bravia 7 II 85-inch: £3999 / $4000 / AU$5999
• Sony Bravia 7 II 98-inch: £6999 / $9000 / AU$12999

Sony Bravia 3 II

Not everyone needs a flagship TV, and Sony clearly hasn't forgotten that.

The Bravia 3 II sits much further down the company's 2026 range, swapping the cutting-edge True RGB backlight found in the Bravia 9 II and Bravia 7 II for a more conventional LED panel.

That naturally means it won't deliver the same dazzling brightness, colour volume or local dimming performance as its premium siblings, but it still benefits from many of Sony's broader software and smart TV improvements.

Google TV remains at the heart of the experience, providing access to all of the major streaming services alongside built-in Google Cast support, voice control and Sony's familiar smart TV interface.

One particularly notable addition for 2026 is the availability of a huge 100-inch version – the first time Sony has offered the Bravia 3 range in such a large screen size. That could make it an appealing option for buyers wanting an enormous display without paying flagship prices.

As mentioned a few times already (you’ve probably guessed by now that there are a few gamers in the What Hi-Fi? office), the Bravia 3 II actually outdoes its more expensive siblings in one important area – it offers four HDMI 2.1 ports. For users with multiple current-generation consoles, gaming PCs and soundbars, that could prove more than a little useful.

Of course, you shouldn't interpret that as meaning the Bravia 3 II is somehow a better gaming TV than the flagship models overall. Picture quality remains the priority higher up the range, and the lack of Mini LED or True RGB technology means HDR performance won't be in the same league.

But if connectivity is high on your wishlist, it's an unusual advantage that shouldn't be overlooked.

Rather bizarrely, though, the Bravia 3 II is not currently scheduled for launch in the UK.

Sony Bravia 3 II specs:

• Sizes: 43, 50, 55, 65, 75, 85 and 100 inches
• Display type: Direct LED LCD
• Resolution: 4K
• Processor: XR Processor
• Sound: 2.0-channel (X-Balanced Speaker)
• HDMI 2.1: Yes (x4)
• Gaming features: 4K/120Hz, VRR, ALLM

Sony Bravia 3 II launch pricing:

• Sony Bravia 3 II 43-inch: £n/a / $600 / AU$1299
• Sony Bravia 3 II 50-inch: £n/a / $700 / AU$1399
• Sony Bravia 3 II 55-inch: £n/a / $800 / AU$1499
• Sony Bravia 3 II 65-inch: £n/a / $900 / AU$1899
• Sony Bravia 3 II 75-inch: £n/a / $1200 / AU$2399
• Sony Bravia 3 II 85-inch: £n/a / $1600 / AU$3499
• Sony Bravia 3 II 100-inch: £n/a / $3100 / AU$5499

Sony Bravia 2 II

The Bravia 2 II completes Sony's 2026 range as its most affordable new television.

Like the Bravia 3 II, it uses a conventional LED backlight rather than Mini LED, making it the entry point into Sony's latest lineup. Buyers still get Google TV, built-in Google Cast, access to all the major streaming platforms and Sony's familiar smart TV experience, but the focus here is very much on value rather than cutting-edge picture technology.

Available in a wide range of sizes from compact 43-inch models up to larger living room-friendly options, the Bravia 2 II is aimed at people who simply want a dependable Sony TV without paying for premium display hardware they'll rarely use. It's likely to prove particularly attractive for bedrooms, guest rooms and more budget-conscious buyers who still appreciate Sony's picture processing and straightforward interface.

While it will naturally lack the spectacular brightness and colour performance of the True RGB models, Sony hasn't stripped away the essentials. Google TV, voice control and support for today's most popular streaming services remain intact, making it an accessible entry point into the Bravia family.

Sony Bravia 2 II specs:

• Sizes: 43, 50, 55, 65 and 75 inches
• Display type: Direct LED LCD
• Resolution: 4K
• Processor: X1 Processor
• Sound: 2.0-channel
• HDMI 2.1: No (HDMI 2.0b x3)
• Gaming features: ALLM

Sony Bravia 2 II launch pricing:

• Sony Bravia 2 II 43-inch: £629 / $400 / AU$1099
• Sony Bravia 2 II 50-inch: £749 / $500 / AU$1199
• Sony Bravia 2 II 55-inch: £899 / $600 / AU$1299
• Sony Bravia 2 II 65-inch: £1199 / $700 / AU$1699
• Sony Bravia 2 II 75-inch: £1399 / $900 / AU$2199

Older Sony TVs continuing in the lineup

Sony's 2026 range isn't made up entirely of new models. Alongside the latest Bravia launches, Sony is continuing to sell several existing OLED and Mini LED models.

Sony Bravia 8 II

While the Bravia 9 II is Sony's flagship LCD TV, the Bravia 8 II sits at the top of the company's OLED range. Despite its name, it isn't a replacement for the Bravia 8. Instead, it succeeds the A95L, with the Bravia 8 continuing lower down the lineup.

It uses Sony's latest QD-OLED panel, paired with the XR Processor and Acoustic Surface Audio+ sound system. Like the Bravia 9 II, gaming support includes 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM, though there are still only two HDMI 2.1 sockets.

If you're deciding between Sony's two flagship TV technologies, the choice is fairly straightforward. The Bravia 9 II prioritises brightness and very large screen sizes, while the Bravia 8 II focuses on OLED's pixel-level contrast, and perfect blacks.

Read our Sony Bravia 8 II review

Sony Bravia 8 II specs:

• Sizes: 55 and 65 inches
• Display type: QD-OLED
• Resolution: 4K
• Processor: XR Processor
• Sound: Acoustic Surface Audio+
• HDMI 2.1: Yes (x2)
• Gaming features: 4K/120Hz, VRR, ALLM

Sony Bravia 8 II prices:

• Sony Bravia 8 II 55-inch: £1799 / $3300 / AU$3999
• Sony Bravia 8 II 65-inch: £2299 / $2600 / AU$3299

Sony Bravia 8

The Bravia 8 remains one of Sony's core OLED TVs and continues in the lineup alongside the newer Bravia 8 II. Originally launched as the successor to the award-winning A80L, it combines a 4K WOLED panel with Sony's XR Processor and Acoustic Surface Audio+ technology.

Like the Bravia 8 II, it supports Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, 4K/120Hz gaming, VRR and ALLM, though only two HDMI inputs are HDMI 2.1.

Available in 55-inch, 65-inch and 77-inch sizes, it continues to offer a premium OLED option for buyers who don't need Sony's flagship QD-OLED model.

Read our Sony Bravia 8 review

Sony Bravia 8 specs:

• Sizes: 55, 65 and 77 inches
• Display type: OLED
• Resolution: 4K
• Processor: XR Processor
• Sound: Acoustic Surface Audio+
• HDMI 2.1: Yes (x2)
• Gaming features: 4K/120Hz, VRR, ALLM

Sony Bravia 8 prices:

• Sony Bravia 8 55-inch: £1399 / $1600 / AU$2499
• Sony Bravia 8 65-inch: £1799 / $2000 / AU$2999
• Sony Bravia 8 77-inch: £2699 / $3000 / AU$4499

Sony Bravia 8A

The Bravia 8A is a variant of the Bravia 8, rather than an all-new TV. Sony says that it delivers identical picture and sound performance, with the only differences being a non-backlit remote control and fewer Sony Pictures Core streaming credits.

Available in the same three sizes as the Bravia 8, the Bravia 8A gives buyers another option if pricing differs between the two models. If it's noticeably cheaper, it could prove the better buy, given that Sony says performance is otherwise unchanged.

Sony Bravia 8A specs:

• Sizes: 55, 65 and 77 inches
• Display type: OLED
• Resolution: 4K
• Processor: XR Processor
• Sound: Acoustic Surface Audio+
• HDMI 2.1: Yes (x2)
• Gaming features: 4K/120Hz, VRR, ALLM

Sony Bravia 8A prices:

• Sony Bravia 8A 55-inch: £1199 / $N/A / AU$N/A
• Sony Bravia 8A 65-inch: £1499 / $N/A / AU$N/A
• Sony Bravia 8A 77-inch: £2399 / $N/A / AU$N/A

Sony Bravia 5

The Bravia 5 continues as Sony's most affordable Mini LED TV, offering a step up from conventional LED sets without the price of the company's flagship models.

Combining Mini LED backlighting with Sony's XR Processor, it brings many of the company's premium picture-processing features to a wider audience.

Available in sizes from 55 inches up to a huge 98 inches, the Bravia 5 also supports Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, 4K/120Hz gaming, VRR and ALLM. As with many Sony TVs, only two HDMI inputs support the full HDMI 2.1 specification.

If you're looking for a Sony Mini LED TV without stretching to one of the company's flagship models, the Bravia 5 remains a compelling option.

Read our Sony Bravia 5 review

Sony Bravia 5 specs:

• Sizes: 55, 65, 75, 85 and 98 inches
• Display type: Mini LED LCD
• Resolution: 4K
• Processor: XR Processor
• Sound: Acoustic Multi-Audio (40W)
• HDMI 2.1: Yes (x2)
• Gaming features: 4K/120Hz, VRR, ALLM

Sony Bravia 5 prices:

• Sony Bravia 5 55-inch: £1099 / $1400 / AU$1699
• Sony Bravia 5 65-inch: £1299 / $1500 / AU$1999
• Sony Bravia 5 75-inch: £1599 / $2000 / AU$2499
• Sony Bravia 5 85-inch: £1999 / $2400 / AU$2999
• Sony Bravia 5 98-inch: £4499 / $5000 / AU$5999

Sony A90K

The A90K remains Sony's premium small-screen OLED, offering buyers a high-end option in 42-inch and 48-inch sizes. Powered by the Cognitive Processor XR, it combines a 4K OLED panel with Sony's Acoustic Surface Audio+ sound system and Google TV.

Gaming features include 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM, with two HDMI 2.1 inputs available. While Sony's newer OLEDs deliver improvements in brightness and overall performance, the A90K remains a premium OLED choice for anyone who wants a more compact TV.

Sony Bravia A90K specs:

• Sizes: 42 and 48 inches
• Display type: OLED
• Resolution: 4K
• Processor: Cognitive Processor XR
• Sound: Acoustic Surface Audio+
• HDMI 2.1: Yes (x2)
• Gaming features: 4K/120Hz, VRR, ALLM

Sony Bravia A90K prices:

• Sony A90K 42-inch: £1399 / $1300 / AU$n/a
• Sony A90K 48-inch: £1499 / $1400 / AU$n/a

MORE:

Check out our Hands on: Sony Bravia 9 II review

Decisions, decisions... Sony Bravia 3 vs Sony Bravia 5: which is the best value Sony TV?

Here are the best TVs you can buy right now

Premium TV brand Loewe has released its latest range of Antares 4K OLED TVs, boasting that the new premium sets combine "timeless design with genuine engineering innovation."

Loewe's Antares TV features OLED modules that the brand claims are individually calibrated before leaving the Loewe factory in Germany to deliver a "viewing experience that remains faithful to the filmmaker's intent."

The calibration comes instead of a next-gen panel, such as the Primary RGB Tandem OLED tech seen in the LG G6 or the QD-OLED in Samsung's S99H TV. These are rival next-gen OLED panel technologies that aim to boost picture quality in key metrics including peak brightness and colour accuracy.

Gamers will be pleased to hear that there is HDMI 2.1 connectivity with up to 144Hz VRR and ALLM. We're waiting for confirmation of exactly how many, however.

The TV features Loewe's os9 platform, which gives users access to most mainstream streaming services, including Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV. There's also voice control included with the set, so in theory, you can navigate to what you are looking for without flicking through the menus.

There's an optional Antares 80W soundbar you can add to the system as well, which delivers "greater depth and immersion". That will cost you an extra £300, though. You can also use the TV's built-in speakers or hook up a separate sound system.

You can customise the TV with the optional aluminium onlays, which come in Silver or Black. Plus, you can choose to mount the TV on the wall, a rotating floor stand or even a motorised rotation system that is controlled with a remote. That gives you a fair bit of flexibility, although you will have to factor in the extra costs.

There is a range of sizes from 42 to 65 inches. The cheapest option comes in at £2500 ($3370 / AU$4815) for the 42-inch model, and the largest size will cost a hefty £4000 (around $5390 / AU$7705).

That's certainly the high end of the OLED market, and even the flagship 65-inch LG C6 TV comes in at a more palatable £3000 / $3399 / AU$4999. Still, it might be a more appealing option for the premium buyer looking for ways to customise the screen to their space.

The Antares star is the brightest in the Scorpius constellation, so we are curious to see whether the TV will live up to its namesake and deliver a dazzling picture performance.

MORE:

Loewe's new premium LCD TVs save on space – but cost as much as an OLED

Check out the best TVs

And here is our review of the LG C6

Here at What Hi-Fi?, we love TVs with brand-new, innovative features that promise to push the industry forward.

We also love it when these TVs have great discounts.

And that’s exactly what we have with the Sony Bravia 9 II. The Japanese giant’s flagship RGB Mini LED TV is now available for £2974 at Richer Sounds with the code SONY15PERCENT.

The Bravia 9 II is one of the first RGB Mini LED TVs available. These TVs use independently controlled red, green and blue Mini LEDs, rather than a colour filter over white LEDs, for higher peak brightness, better colour volume and better contrast.

The catch? Well, the TV is not actually available to buy until the end of July; but you can lock in your pre-order now while there’s a nice £500 discount.

The headline feature is, of course, that RGB Mini LED backlight.

The technology works together with Sony’s sophisticated Backlight Master Drive system and 1530 local dimming zones to produce an impressively immersive picture for a backlit TV.

On one aspect, in fact, the Bravia 9 II surpasses every other TV we’ve tested: colour.

“Quite simply, the Bravia 9 II produces the finest colours we've ever seen from any TV,” our Sony Bravia 9 II review reads. “Richly saturated scenes burst with vibrancy, but never at the expense of authenticity.

“Sony has combined extraordinary colour volume with its traditional restraint, so even the boldest hues remain beautifully balanced and believable. It’s a wonderfully cinematic presentation that constantly impresses without ever shouting for attention.”

Brightness too is exceptional – unlike OLEDs, the Bravia 9 II can maintain its extraordinary brightness across the whole screen, and not just small highlights.

Black levels are also superb for a backlit TV, but we found even the Bravia 9 II’s exceptional dimming system can’t quite replicate the pixel-level precision of OLED.

Sound is also impressively large, spacious and immersive by TV standards, with the Acoustic Multi-Audio+ system offering a genuine sense of height and plenty of subtle detail.

The premium smart TV experience we have come to expect from Sony is present and correct, with the Google TV OS offering all the usual apps as well as YouView and PS Remote Play for PlayStation users.

All the apps that should support HDR10, HLG, Dolby Vision and/or Dolby Atmos do so correctly, and Sony’s Studio Calibrated modes also provide optimised picture settings for services such as Netflix, Prime Video and Sony Pictures Core.

If you regularly watch in an exceptionally bright room or simply prefer not to buy an OLED, the Bravia 9 II should sit right at the top of your shortlist. Sony’s flagship RGB Mini LED model delivers the finest colours we have seen from a television, breathtaking brightness, and a highly accomplished backlight system. And it is now available to pre-order with £525 off at Richer Sounds.

MORE:

Read our review of the Sony Bravia 8 II

Also consider the Samsung S99H

Read our Hisense UR9 review

Projector brand Xgimi has been on a roll with a continuous stream of new models flooding the shelves in the last year. And there are two more joining their ranks.

The new Elfin Flip Laser and flagship Elfin Flip 4K claim to build on the existing Elfin series to deliver “a significant upgrade in both optical performance and audio experience”.

Both projectors offer a claimed maximum brightness of 1600 ISO lumens and use an RGB triple laser light source. Unsurprisingly, the flagship model offers 4K resolution compared to the Flip Laser’s 1080p.

For gamers, the 4K model also offers VRR and ALLM support. However, like most projectors, it only runs at 1080p@120Hz. 4K is still locked to 60Hz.

The design looks practically identical to the predecessor, featuring a “book-sized” foldable build that can be tucked away when not in use. “Pick it up, place it, and the picture is ready” is Xgimi’s mantra here.

Both projectors come with Google TV built-in, which gives you access to a range of streaming platforms including Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV and Netflix. In terms of sound, the models are equipped with a 7W Harmon Kardon tuned speaker with Dolby Audio support, which will supposedly “eliminate the need for external audio equipment”.

There is a range of features designed to make setup easier as well, including auto-keystone, auto-focus and obstacle avoidance.

The Elfin Flip 4K is priced at £869 / $999, and the Elfin Flip Laser comes in cheaper at £689 / $799.

That puts the flagship against the likes of the Award-winning Hisense M2 Pro, which is currently available for around £870. The five-star Hisense model will certainly prove tough competition for Xgimi’s latest bombshell, thanks to its bright picture and easy setup.

Still, the Elfin’s more portable design and promising picture specifications could challenge the current champion.

MORE:

These are the best portable projectors

And check out the best projectors

This is our review of the Xgimi MoGo 4

If you don’t want to bother with the fuss and decision-making of choosing a projector and sound system to pair together for your premium home cinema system, then there has not been a whole lot available on the market.

But the Nebula X1 Pro is trying to plug that gap.

It combines a 4K projector with four detachable Dolby Atmos speakers to deliver the “world's first mobile theatre system”. That’s all put together into a package on wheels, which makes carting it around easier.

On paper, this is a tempting proposition but, in this case, the combination of execution and price doesn’t quite add up.

Price

If you want to get your hands on this unique projector system, then you will have to pay the rather premium sum of £4499 / $4999 / AU$8999.

That’s a pretty big step-up in price from its more modest sibling – the Nebula X1, which we tested at £2200 / $2999. This is a more compact 4K projector to which we awarded four stars for its punchy picture and rich sound. It features a built-in sound system, although you can add Nebula’s two optional wireless speakers, which create a wider soundfield. That differs from the more elaborate sound system of the X1 Pro.

Design

The X1 Pro is quite a special-looking beast, resembling a suitcase-robot hybrid that could easily feature in a Philip K. Dick novel.

It is 76cm tall and weighs a hefty 33kg, but Anker makes its transportation easier with some clever additions. These include an extendable handle and two sturdy wheels to carry the projector around as if you are off to the airport. There are also two handles on the chassis if you need to carry the X1 Pro up the stairs.

There is no built-in battery, so keep in mind that you will need to keep the projector connected to the mains wherever you want to use it. The two-metre power cable is retractable from a cove at the bottom of the projector, so there’s a fair bit of flexibility.

At the top, there’s a handy lid that stores the back-lit remote control and a pair of karaoke microphones, should you wish to show off your pipes. On the remote, you will find buttons for volume, power, settings, the home menu and auto image adjustment. There is a handy back-lit panel on the top of the lid of the projector, which gives you access to many of these features as well.

Arguably, the most exciting aspect of the Nebula projector is its speaker design. There are four detachable speakers hidden inside the X1 Pro’s body, each with a durable black plastic grille.

All of the speakers feature retractable little stands with rubber feet to keep them stable, and they are all simple to set up. There is also a subwoofer built into the projector itself.

Features

But what are the speakers packing under their sleek-looking exteriors? The front speakers have two forward-facing, one side-firing and one up-firing driver each. That differs slightly from the rears, which include one forward-facing and one up-firing driver per speaker.

The subwoofer features two drive units, each measuring 13cm in diameter.

This sound system has Dolby Atmos support. FlexWave, Soundcore's proprietary spatial audio calibration technology, is also included. The brand claims this “uses sensors, spatial algorithms, and auto EQ calibration” to “intelligently adjust to your room's acoustics”.

When setting up the projector, you will be prompted to calibrate your speakers. This takes less than five minutes, as the speakers play a range of test frequencies and a music sample to get the best spatial soundfield.

There’s a neat nook for physical connectivity, consisting of one HDMI with eARC support and three USB ports. Inside is a small light to help with navigation in the dark, which is a handy addition.

As well as the remote and panel, you can control the projector with the Nebula Connect app. This lets you adjust the picture and sound settings, image correction, switch app input, and you can cast from another device. We do not find ourselves reaching for the app much during testing, though, as the remote control and top panel offer much of its functionality.

In terms of screen set-up, there is a selection of shortcuts that make the whole process pretty simple. That includes auto-focus, keystone correction and wall-colour adaptation (useful if you are projecting on a non-white surface). We find that selecting Spatial Adaptation analyses our dedicated screen most effectively, and adjusts focus and sizing all in one.

The projector offers a claimed maximum brightness of 3500 ANSI lumens, and you can push the screen size as big as 300 inches. It is built around a DLP optical system illuminated by a triple laser lighting system.

The X1 Pro can play 4K sources and high dynamic range in the HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision formats, but it only supports up to 4K@60Hz video playback, which will be a bit of a shame for gamers.

There are ten picture modes to choose from, but we go with NebulaMaster when using a 4K Blu-ray as, once tweaked (details below), it delivers the best balance between detail and brightness.

The choice of picture modes changes when we go to streaming – we find that Movie is the best choice in this case thanks to its natural-looking motion and colourful image.

Picture quality

When we boot up the projector in NebulaMaster picture mode for the first time, we are met with overexuberant colours and smoothed textures that make for a distracting viewing experience.

But after knocking the saturation and sharpness down, and turning up the brightness a little, we are left with a more pleasing overall image that is engaging and punchy. The colours are still on the exaggerated side, but they are eye-catching and give the picture a burst of energy.

When watching Thunderbolts, as the rag-tag team face up against Sentry, the villain’s brightly coloured costume stands out against the background, which makes for an engaging experience. The rest of the picture follows this colourful portrayal, with the blue skyline and amber-lit bar area giving the background a lively look.

The edges of characters and items are crisp and clean, and there is little noise in textures, contributing to an overall picture that feels sharp without tipping into being over-etched.

Nebula’s 4K model does not unearth as much detail as we would hope for at this level, but it is still good enough to see the creases in Sentry’s clothes and strands of his hair.

The projector shows off its impressive motion-handling skills with F1 The Movie. This is after adjusting the MEMC (Motion Estimation and Motion Compensation) setting from medium to low, as the default setting results in an unnatural smoothness. With the adjustment, cars zoom around the track with minimal judder and a good sense of authenticity.

However, the projector struggles to portray darker skin tones with the same level of detail as lighter ones. As plucky F1 driver Joshua talks to his cousin, the shadows across the latter's face block out a fair amount of detail, so it is nearly impossible to make out the distinction between his chin and beard.

This issue extends to the projector’s black depth, and is further illustrated by Sinners. As Michael B Jordan’s Stack has a tense conversation in a low-lit barn, the X1 Pro delivers the dark background with a fair bit of banding that verges on grey at points.

We do the majority of our testing with the lights off in our dark test room, which lets the projector deliver a bright and clean overall image. To see how it performs in other scenarios, we turn the lights up slightly from our usual dark testing conditions.

As with most home cinema projectors, contrast suffers, and detail is lost. Continuing with Sinners, for instance, it is hard to differentiate faces as the characters venture outside the barn, which makes for a less immersive overall experience.

Even when we turn the lights up higher, though, it's not unwatchable, and the colours are still reasonably punchy, though diminished a little. You do lose the finest details and the sense of three-dimensionality, but it would still be serviceable for a bright movie.

Overall, the X1 Pro’s picture is likeable and engaging, but it could do with a touch more detail and subtlety. By general standards, it’s a solid performer, but for the price, we know that better is available.

Sound quality

The Nebula X1 Pro’s sound set-up is packing some impressive features by projector standards, so we feel hopeful when we get it in our test room.

There are three sound modes to choose from: Movie, Outdoors, and Music. After a good deal of testing, we opt for the first option as it delivers the best balance between precision and scale.

The sound is certainly more room-filling than most projectors that have built-in speakers, but it is ultimately let down by a lack of precision and dynamics.

Vocals are clear and easy to make out from the rest of the sound, but there is not much expression or subtle inflexion in individual voices.

While watching Sinners, as Sammie calls the spirits with the power of his singing, his voice is at the forefront of the sound, but it lacks the emotion that we have heard with rival systems. His voice should come in tentatively but grow stronger as the scene goes on, but the X1 Pro does not convey this level of subtlety.

There’s also not a great sense of precision as the different voices and instruments chime in. The sound should fill the room and the space between the speakers, but it's obvious where it's emanating from instead of coming from all angles.

When watching Top Gun: Maverick, Tom Cruise’s titular character challenges his cohort of cadets to some aerial contests. As the jet flies up into the sky, we get some sense of height, but it does not extend much further than the middle of the projector screen.

It feels more like there are tall columns of sound coming from the speakers rather than the dome of sound we are looking for with a Dolby Atmos product. You can turn off Nebula’s FlexWave surround sound technology, but this makes the sound feel smaller and less precise, so we opt to keep it on, despite its limitations.

The system doesn’t create a cohesive soundfield with any great skill, and we note gaps even when we’ve taken care over speaker positioning. There is a configuration where the front speakers can be left in the main projector body, almost like a soundbar, but, as expected, this reduces the level of scale and width.

Dynamics are not the strongest, either. As the jet prepares to take off, there is not much of a build-up between the initial rumble of the engine and the crescendo of the plane in flight.

The X1 Pro’s bass also fails to pack a meaty weight, instead landing with a rather flat softness. When watching Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings, our hero faces off against a monstrous soul-sucking dragon. Punches should sound deep and impactful, but they lack the powerful drive necessary to convey the right level of force.

It doesn't help that the subwoofer is built into the projector’s body, which means we cannot tune or position it differently without moving the projector itself.

Verdict

The Nebula X1 Pro’s clever design is certainly an intriguing novelty, and its crisp picture performance delivers a reasonable balance between punchiness and clarity. It would be even better if there were greater subtlety in the rendition of colours, though.

But its audio makes for an underwhelming experience, lacking the necessary insight, dynamic expression and surround capability to convince. It’s fussy to set up, too.

However, the biggest issue here is the price. At this level, it would seem more sensible to invest in a separate projector and sound system to get the best performance from both.

SCORES

• Picture 4
• Sound 2
• Features 4

MORE:

Read our review of the Nebula X1

Read our Epson EH-LS9000 review

Best projectors: the best options tested by our home cinema experts

During Prime Day, we saw some of our favourite OLEDs drop to rock-bottom prices, with the LG C5 leading the charge when it came to price drops.

Well, now it's Samsung's turn – the 48-inch, five-star Samsung S90F has dropped to £749 at John Lewis, the lowest price we've seen for the set so far.

If you're upgrading to OLED for the first time for the football, then the panel technology boasts several advantages for watching sports, including incredible contrast, faster refresh times to minimise motion blur and wider viewing angles so the whole watch party can see.

You'll have to pay an extra £29.95 for next-day delivery, but luckily the S90F can be set up in less than a minute – and should be well worth it for the Messi vs Kane showdown in the England vs Argentina semi-final.

If you're looking for a mid-sized TV, the Samsung S90F currently ranks at the top of our guide to the best 50-inch TVs It's ideal for a small lounge, bedroom or just as a mid-level OLED.

Despite its compact size, it delivers a bright, punchy picture that will offer a fun experience for films, football or whatever you wish to use it for.

After testing with a viewing of Civil War, our Samsung S90F review reads: "Explosions pop out of the dark cityscape with dazzling brightness and a clear, bright fiery hue that makes them truly come to life.

"The S90F also manages to retain colour volume during the tricky scene, with characters’ faces retaining their warmth and offering solid levels of detail in both the darkest and lightest parts of the picture – which is impressive as many OLEDs can struggle here."

Upscaling is also particularly impressive, which will come in useful if you're watching the football on linear TV.

The Samsung S90F is also notably easy to set up, with the screen easily and quickly connecting to the stand thanks to a screw-free design. Ideal for delivery just before the match!

The S90F is also one of the only non-LG OLEDs with four full-fat HDMI 2.1 inputs, along with VRR and ALLM. This means even gamers with multiple consoles can play at 4K/120Hz, or even 4K/144Hz if they have a powerful enough PC.

The main drawback of the S90F, however, is the sound. The 60-watt, 2.1.2-channel Dolby Atmos built-in sound system delivers a reasonable sense of directionality, but lacks oomph – we recommend one of the best soundbars if you want to get that stadium feeling.

A five-star OLED for under a grand, let alone £750, is a bona fide bargain. If you want to watch the last few matches of the World Cup on a glorious OLED, we recommend the Samsung S90F, now 50 per cent off at John Lewis.

MORE:

Read our full Samsung S90F review

These are the best Samsung TVs: budget to premium, 4K, 8K, QLED, QD-OLED

And the best OLED TVs: our reviewers' 5 top picks for serious movie fans

Soundbars tend to come in two flavours now: the usual standalone bar, and the soundbar system with extra speakers that has increased in visibility in recent years.

We’ve rounded up two of our favourites from both categories to see how they stack up. And not just any two – the Award-winning Sonos Arc Ultra, and Samsung’s new HW-Q990H soundbar system.

We’ll go through various categories such as price, design, features and, of course, sound, to find out which is the better buy.

As soundbar standoffs go, it doesn’t get much closer than this. So, after a deep breath, let’s get started…

Samsung HW-Q990H vs Sonos Arc Ultra: price

The Sonos Arc Ultra officially launched at £999 / $999 / AU$1799. However, it does get healthy discounts every now and then – the cheapest we’ve seen it go is £719 in the UK on Cyber Monday.

The Samsung HW-Q990H launched at a more expensive £1599 / $2000 / AU$1999. That’s a £600/$1000/AU$200 increase – though you have to bear in mind that this also includes a wireless subwoofer and two wireless surrounds.

You can add extra speakers to the Arc Ultra, but it quickly adds up. The cheapest way to build a Sonos system is to add a Sub Mini and two Era 100 speakers, which are available as part of the Home Cinema Completion Set for £785/$887/AU$1270, though if you shop around you can often find these products on sale separately.

The Samsung HW-Q990H is also much newer, only launching in spring 2026. Samsung’s annual soundbar system tends to tumble in price quickly and consistently after launch – the HW-Q990H is already down to £1299 in the UK. Last year’s model, the HW-990F, crashed to under £700 over Prime Day, and we’d expect the HW-Q990H to follow a similar pattern.

As things stand, the Sonos Arc Ultra is the better value buy, especially if you get it at a discount – but the two may very well swap places over the course of the next year.

**Winner: Sonos Arc Ultra**

Samsung HW-Q990H vs Sonos Arc Ultra: design

There is, of course, one key difference between the Samsung HW-Q990H and Sonos Arc Ultra; the Q990H is a soundbar system with surrounds and a subwoofer, whereas the Arc Ultra is a solo soundbar.

However, even the soundbar of the Q990H alone is bigger than the Arc Ultra – the Arc Ultra fits all of its channels into a 7.5 x 118 x 11 cm (hwd) bar, while the main soundbar of the Q990H comes in at 7 x 123 x 14cm. The Q990H’s surround speakers are a smaller 20 x 13 x 14cm, while the subwoofer is a 25 x 25 x 25cm cube.

The Q990H is a well-built, premium-feeling system constructed from aluminium and high-quality plastic. However, the design is identical to previous Samsung soundbar systems, and is starting to feel a little tired. The sharp, hexagonal design is a touch brutalist – especially compared to Samsung’s sleek OLED TVs – and the edgy soundbar does feel at odds with the rounded cube-shaped subwoofer.

We prefer the smooth curves of the Sonos Arc Ultra. The solo soundbar is pretty much all grille, with just a Sonos logo and a status light breaking up the appearance from the front, ensuring that sound can emanate from the soundbar in almost any direction.

The Arc Ultra’s design is largely similar to that of its predecessor, the Sonos Arc, with the exception of the 'ledge' at the back of the top of the chassis, which now houses touch controls for playback and volume. The Bluetooth pairing button is hidden in the recess around the back with the HDMI and power ports, which is a tad inconvenient.

The Sonos Arc Ultra gets our vote on an aesthetic level, but we still have features and sound quality to assess.

**Winner: Sonos Arc Ultra**

Samsung HW-Q990H vs Sonos Arc Ultra: features

The Arc Ultra boasts a 9.1.4-channel configuration, with 15 Class D amplifiers powering 14 drivers that are all Sonos-engineered. There are seven tweeters, six midrange woofers, and a 'Sound Motion' woofer, and it's the last of those that's the really big deal.

Rather than the one heavy motor that most speaker drivers employ, the Sound Motion driver has four smaller, lightweight motors in opposing corners. Working together, these motors are apparently able to push the cone to shift far more air and produce far more bass.

The Samsung, on the other hand, is an 11.1.4 system, with an impressive total of 23 individual drivers on board. This includes 15 drivers in the main soundbar unit, three in each of the wireless surround speakers, and two 8-inch woofers (in a push/pull configuration) in the wireless subwoofer. Upward-firing drivers are present in both the soundbar and surround speakers for immersive audio.

Speaking of immersive sound formats, the Sonos Arc Ultra only supports Dolby Atmos. The Q990H boasts three: Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and Samsung’s Eclipsa Audio. Eclipsa has not seen widespread coverage outside of YouTube so far, but it’s handy that the Q990H is futureproofed should this change down the line.

While the Sonos Arc Ultra does have an HDMI eARC output for sending high-fidelity sound from your TV, there are no HDMI inputs to enable passthrough, which could be an issue for any gamers out there. If you have a TV with only two HDMI sockets and more than one game console, you’ll be in a bit of a pickle as the Arc Ultra will take up one of your ports.

The Samsung, on the other hand, has two full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 passthrough sockets, which support up to 4K/120Hz signals with VRR and ALLM, as well as HDR10, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. So you can plug two high-speed game consoles directly into the soundbar itself, and still enjoy plenty of gaming features.

The Sonos Trueplay calibration process for the Arc Ultra comes in two flavours – Quick and Advanced. The Quick method, which is a single measurement using the soundbar’s own microphone, makes a big difference, whereas the iOS-only Advanced method, the ‘hoovering-the-walls’ method we’ve seen before, only very slightly improves beyond that.

Samsung’s SpaceFit Sound Pro feature, which is essentially the Q990H’s’s calibration system, can helpfully accommodate if you can’t place the rear speakers at the recommended 135-150-degree angle behind the listening position. However, this isn’t just a one-time measurement – the feature is a constantly running system that monitors your listening space at all times to make adjustments in real time.

The Sonos app also allows you to access EQ controls and features such as Night mode, Speech Enhancement and the Loudness setting. However, we ran into several bugs during testing, and while a lot of the issues have been ironed out, it’s still not the most intuitive platform.

Luckily, you shouldn’t need to use the app too often – the remote control can handle most duties, and music can be sent directly from apps such as Spotify and Tidal.

Conversely, we find the Samsung SmartThings app to be the preferred way of interacting with the settings menus of the Q990H. The app has a snappy connection and set-up time, with easy-to-understand menus and generally solid stability.

The Q990H can also be connected wirelessly to compatible Samsung TVs, though we’d recommend sticking to a wired connection for the best audio quality and reduced latency. Q Symphony is also on offer, in which the Q990H can work in tandem with the speakers of a Samsung TV – though again, we’d recommend just sticking to the system rather than bringing a TV's sound quality into the equation.

Finally, the Q990H offers a Sound Elevation feature that’s designed to raise the audio upwards to match the position of your screen. We found it overshot things slightly and placed the sound towards the top of our TV, but this could be useful for those who wall-mount their TV and leave a gap between it and their soundbar.

The Sonos Arc Ultra is no slouch in the features department, but it loses out to the newer, feature-packed Samsung HW-Q990H. The soundbar system boasts more immersive audio support, a snappier, more stable app and, crucially, HDMI passthrough.

**Winner: Samsung HW-Q990H**

Samsung HW-Q990H vs Sonos Arc Ultra: sound

Starting with the Samsung HW-Q990H and a test viewing of Civil War, we find this soundbar package excels in practically every aspect. A woodland scene demonstrates the soundbar’s excellent placement of cinematic effects, with birds chirping overhead and twigs crackling underfoot.

Vocal clarity is excellent, with crisp, detailed and full-bodied dialogue, and the tonality and emotions of their voices are captured thanks to the Q990H's rich sonic characteristics and deft handling of low-level dynamics.

Bass is handled very well too, refusing to distort or warble during Blade Runner 2049’s infamously tricky chapter two. In fact, the bass builds nicely throughout, with a sense of tonal variation which makes it sound tuneful and dynamic.

K’s crowded apartment complex and a dystopian street are also captured with a level of finesse and detail that seriously sells the atmosphere of each scene. Background sounds are also cleverly woven into the soundfield without making them sound forced or intentionally singled out.

Moving on to music, we try the Q990H’s Standard mode, which removes the rear speakers and lets the main soundbar unit and subwoofer shine for stereo music reproduction.

Most, if not all, of the positive attributes from our movie testing are present and correct for music, too – vocals are warm and detailed, bass is taut, and there is a general sense of naturalism and balance to the sound. The Samsung system is a talented performer – but can’t quite top the Sonos when it comes to music.

Sonos soundbars have long been among the most musical in the category, though, and the Arc Ultra further solidifies that reputation. We prefer it over the Samsung system thanks to its richer, more rounded and smoother sound – the Arc Ultra is an energetic, exciting and engaging listen, and a crackingly musical soundbar.

Moving away from music, we also put the Arc Ultra through the Blade Runner 2049 chapter two test, and it also impresses. There’s no chuffing from the drivers and it has a really good go at the super-deep notes of the soundtrack. Bottom-end control isn’t cast iron, but the combination of weight and control is impressive.

The spatial sound-effect placement is also quite impressive for a solo bar. Voices and other audio are placed above us, in the top corners of the room and move around us, far beyond the extremities of the TV.

The sound is detailed too – incidental noises are delivered clearly and cleanly without distracting, with the Arc Ultra’s low-level dynamic subtlety ensuring these sounds are presented naturally and realistically. Grand changes in volume are also dispatched without fuss or fluster, with the solo soundbar capable of going very loud indeed.

So who comes out on top? Well, it depends entirely on what you plan to use the soundbars for. The Sonos Arc Ultra is a musical powerhouse and manages to pack in impressive detail and spatial effects into one convenient, plug-in-and-play bar.

The Samsung HW-Q990H, on the other hand, requires a bit more setup and space, but really benefits from the rear speakers for surround and height effects, as well as the rather impressive subwoofer.

It really depends on which soundbar is the best for you and your needs – both products excel in their respective areas, so we’re going to call this one a draw.

**Winner: Draw**

Samsung HW-Q990H vs Sonos Arc Ultra: verdict

As soundbar battles go, it doesn’t get much closer than this. There’s no wrong answer here really, with two top-tier home cinema audio options.

The Sonos Arc Ultra is better looking and is the go-to choice if you want just one box that excels with music and movies. The Samsung HW-Q990H is stuffed with features, including the all-important HDMI 2.1 inputs for gamers.

The Arc Ultra is also cheaper at the time of writing, but the HW-Q990H will inevitably fall to a similar, if not cheaper, price by next year.

If you’ve got the space for a multi-speaker system, then the HW-Q990H is an easy recommendation. But if you’re after the convenience of a single soundbar, then the Sonos Arc Ultra will serve you extremely well.

** Overall Winner: Draw**

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Fancy watching what could be a groundbreaking semi-final on a groundbreaking TV? Then you may want to consider this atypically early discount on Sony's cutting-edge Bravia 7 II.

The Sony Bravia 7 II is one of the Japanese company's brand-new True RGB TVs. And the technology could be yours in time for England's next game, and at a discount. The code SONY10PERCENT will bring the price down by, you guessed it, ten per cent, to £1799 at Richer Sounds.

True RGB is Sony's spin on RGB Mini LED. It's a next-gen panel technology that places red, green and blue LEDs behind the LCD panel for better colour accuracy, improved brightness and better contrast.

We reviewed the Sony Bravia 7 II mere days ago, and while it can't quite match some OLED-specific qualities, it's easily one of the best backlit TVs we've ever tested.

"The general sense of nuance and sophistication extends to how the Bravia 7 II manages its backlight, our Sony Bravia 7 II review reads. "When this TV is in its element, it becomes possible to forget that this is a backlit TV, as the RGB Mini LED system doesn’t distract or detract from the experience.

"This extends to general blooming control, which is extremely impressive by prevailing standards. In a shot from Oppenheimer in which the nuclear bomb testing site is lit up at night by a series of spotlights, we find that the halos of light that we’ve seen time and time again on other backlit TVs have been strictly confined. There is still a very faint amount of blooming, but this is leagues ahead of other LCD TVs that we’ve recently tested."

Sony's typically excellent picture tuning is also on display here, with motion handling being particularly impressive, helping the set deliver a tangible sense of three-dimensional solidity that we rarely see in non-OLED TVs.

As with previous Sony TVs, the Bravia 7 II supports HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision, but not HDR10+. The built-in Google TV is more all-encompassing, however, and we couldn't find any obvious missing apps – all the major domestic and international streaming services are there.

For the gamers out there, there are four HDMI sockets with ALLM, but only two of them are full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 sockets with 4K/120Hz gameplay and VRR.

Sony's usually impressive built-in audio seems to have taken a step backwards for the Bravia 7 II, however. There's a good sense of clarity and detail, but the sound system seems to struggle dynamically – we'd recommend a good soundbar or surround sound system to really get the most from your movies.

There's also a transparent centre stand that Sony has designed to refract light, making it look invisible. It caused quite a stir in our test room, as it truly looks as if the TV is floating in place.

If you want the latest in TV technology, then the Sony Bravia 7 II is a compelling choice. It rectifies several of the shortcomings of previous Mini LEDs, and already has a healthy £200 discount at Richer Sounds.

MORE:

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Best TVs: flagship OLEDs and budget Mini LED sets tried and tested

My rant against 100-inch TVs; a penchant for the four-star Aventho 300; being the only Scot on the team during the World Cup. I have had many controversial opinions during my tenure at What Hi-Fi?.

But recently, a sentence erupted from my lips that made every other home cinema reviewer on the team stop in their tracks: I hate summer.

Not the character from The OC (she’s one of the best parts of millennials’ favourite teen drama), I'm talking about the season.

Why? Because the paltry benefits it brings – BBQs, an excuse to visit the park, etc – don’t make up for the fact that it ruins one of my favourite pastimes. Specifically, watching movies in my home cinema.

How are the two connected? By three big factors driving my neurotic war on summer.

The first is the obvious one; it’s the heat. My home cinema isn’t fancy. I live in a small Victorian-era terraced house in zone three, London. So as I’ve said before, a proper long-throw projector and multi-speaker Dolby Atmos set-up is too big to sensibly fit in my cinema room.

Instead, in the top-floor room, in my converted attic, I have a Hisense PX3 UST, connected to a JBL Bar 1300 soundbar system. That puts it somewhere between a basic TV set-up and what our technical editor, Ketan Bharadia, would deign to call a “proper home cinema”.

And during all the other seasons, I’m happy with it. The wireless satellite speakers and subwoofer do a decent job of bringing movies to life and offer a nice sense of directionality that’s a level up on most basic single-soundbar packages. And the UST projector’s 120-inch image feels gigantic and like a proper step up from the tiny 48-inch LG C2 in my lounge.

So, most weekends, when the wife is out, I’ll scamper upstairs, put on my Ninja Turtles pyjamas and indulge in some serious movie watching.

During summer, that fun treat to myself morphs into an endurance test, both for me and the hardware in the room. Home cinema hardware runs hot to begin with. But because I’ve had to put it all on the top floor, mine is also running in a room that’s automatically a fair few degrees warmer than the rest of the house, even with the blinds closed and window open.

So, by the time I’ve made it through a 90-minute feature, I tend to have devolved into a slimy, primordial monster that has become one with the sofa – and that’s if the hardware has survived that long. Often, the projector will overheat and need a timeout before my metamorphosis is complete.

And the easiest and most popular solution among the team for this problem, an air conditioning unit, is troublesome for a couple of reasons. First, because as a lifelong Captain Planet supporter and proud Planeteer, I don’t like using them (they’re not great for the environment).

Second, because even if I did, they’re noisy. So noisy that every unit I’ve auditioned has been just loud enough to distract me from what’s playing – they hum at the perfect frequency to constantly be in the back of your mind, like a small child crying in the distance.

And speaking of small children…

The summer season brings with it summer holidays. Most think this time’s cute, giving kids time to be kids. And I appreciate that. But as an uncle and repeat godfather, it feels like being a resident of Argos after the gods unleashed the Kraken.

Tiny monsters, descending on you as tired, exasperated parents volunteer my wife and me for babysitting duties, regardless of our protests. “Oh, it's fine,” they say. “Just put some Bluey on in that home cinema room, and they’ll be fine,” they say.

My home cinema is my fortress of solitude and built for better things than Bluey…

But more importantly, tiny summer spawn are the most dangerous kind. Warm, fussy, hyped up on ice lollies and caffeinated fizzy drinks. I’ve been sugar-bombed by many of my “friends” and family over the years.

Editor’s note: Sugar bombing is when you turn your child into a live grenade, loading them with sweet treats, shaking, then tossing them to the person babysitting just as their pupils start to dilate.

They're destructive forces of nature that have a supernatural ability to do two things: destroy expensive home cinema hardware and always be slightly sticky, no matter how many times you make them wash their hands.

Honestly, the last time I babysat, I left the room for two minutes with them happily watching Wicked and came back to chaos. Jam was smeared over their tiny hands and most of the room, including the projector’s glass, even though I don’t have any jam in the house and the kids were “clean” before I left to get them a juice pop.

It’s a mystery I still haven’t solved. Was it in their pockets? Is producing jam out of thin air a superpower all five-year-olds have? I need to know!

It’s this potent combination of factors that makes me hate the summer season and wish we could skip it and get back to the infinitely more home-cinema-friendly winter months. Call me a grump all you like, but you know I’m right.

MORE:

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Sony’s enthusiasm for OLED seems to have cooled off in 2026, and the Bravia 7 II is clear proof of that.

While this isn’t the first time Sony has flirted with sidelining OLED for its own take on the latest backlit panel technology, its new True RGB range is certainly the biggest push it's made to date.

Serving as the step-down model in a duo of new RGB Mini LED TVs, the Bravia 7 II hopes to tempt prospective OLED buyers away with the promise of higher brightness and purer colours, all while directly addressing the traditional shortcomings of backlit TVs

It’s a bold strategy, and after the move didn’t quite pay off when we compared the Bravia 9 Mini LED to the Bravia 8 OLED back in 2024, we’re somewhat surprised to see Sony attempt it again.

So, with the power of hindsight guiding it, has Sony developed a backlit TV that can tempt home cinema fans away from the enticing mid-range OLEDs on offer, or has it stumbled at the same hurdle again?

Price

We have the 55-inch Sony Bravia 7 II in our test tooms, which typically retails for £1999 / $2100 / AU$2999, though some discounts are already appearing.

Sony also sells the Bravia 7 II in a wide array of sizes, ranging from 50- to 98-inches; you can find pricing for the full range below:

It’s worth noting that the 55-inch Bravia 7 II’s launch price isn’t far off the 55-inch Bravia 7’s £1899 / $1900 / AU$2935 launch price; that feels like a pretty fair price increase considering the panel technology upgrade.

However, the Bravia 7 II is, unfortunately, priced higher than the LG C6 at 55 inches. Originally £1700 / $2000 / AU$2995, the C6 can now be found widely for £1499 / $1700 (it seems to be sticking to its launch pricing in Australia). As our current frontrunner for the best TV that we’ve tested this year, this OLED could prove to be a rather pesky thorn in Sony’s side.

Moreover, Sony’s Award-winning Bravia 8 II QD-OLED TV is now widely available for £1799 / $2600 at 55 inches, down from its launch price of £2499 / $3500. Australian availability, however, seems spotty, and pricing looks to have remained at AU$3299.

It may not seem entirely fair to compare this TV to a 2025 model, but Sony’s release strategy means that the Bravia 8 II will remain in the lineup for the foreseeable future. The price of the 7 II will drop throughout its lifespan, but this launch pricing does reveal Sony’s approach to positioning this TV.

With a launch price higher than that of the LG C6, Sony clearly thinks that RGB Mini LED is a comparable or better technology than OLED. In fairness, LG priced the C6 quite competitively, and aggressive discounts since launch means that it’s unlikely that the Bravia 7 II will ever undercut it.

Design

The Bravia 7 II sports an interesting and, if we’re being honest, slightly odd blend of aesthetic choices.

We’ll start with the positives, and the “clear” star here is the new transparent centre stand. Sony has traditionally opted for feet at either end of its TVs, so it already scores points for the convenient central pedestal design as it can be placed on narrower TV units with ease.

However, it’s the transparent part that we’re really excited about. Sony has employed some clever cable management and a one-way plastic panel that refracts light to make it look like no cables are hanging below the TV, and almost as if there’s no stand at all.

It’s hard to describe without seeing it (we’ve tried our best to do it justice with our photography), but the word “magic” was being thrown around the TV testing room upon placing the Bravia 7 II on one of our test benches. It really does give the impression that the TV is floating in place, and the slender bezels around the display help to sell the sleek illusion.

Slightly less awe-inspiring is the rest of the TV’s chassis. It’s when we look at this TV side-on that we’re reminded it’s not an OLED. At 5.4cm in depth, the Bravia 7 II is a fairly chunky set, although Sony has been clever enough to make that thickness mostly uniform throughout with a pleasing taper at each end of the set, ensuring that the TV wears this extra heft fairly well.

Sony has used this opportunity to refresh the included remote, and the new handset ticks practically all of our boxes. It features sharper corners and brings back the backlit buttons and USB-C charging port that were both curiously rescinded on the Bravia 8 II’s remote despite being available on previous generation Sony TVs.

Sony also scores bonus points by using its eco-conscious SORPLAS material here, which is also featured in the main chassis of the television.

Features

We’ve already established that this TV is using the latest panel technology on the market, and it’s only the second RGB Mini LED TV to enter our AV testing room, after the Hisense UR9.

For those not in the know, RGB Mini LED drops the white backlight and Quantum Dot colour filter layer in favour of individual red, green and blue Mini LEDs in pursuit of better brightness, colour accuracy and blooming control.

This isn’t the first time that Sony has made a huge bet on Mini LED. 2024’s Bravia 9 featured a hugely customised Mini LED system, which was powered by Sony’s XR Master Backlight Drive in conjunction with the XR Processor.

Sony’s new RGB Backlight Master Drive Pro is the next evolution of this technology, and it reportedly supports “unprecedented colour volume, precise colour gradation, and a significantly wider viewing angle” on Sony’s new True RGB TVs.

The company’s Triluminous colour system also evolves into RGB Triluminous Max, which the company says can deliver a colour range in line with the Bravia 8 II, while offering the brightness increase of RGB Mini LED thanks to its Luminance Booster feature.

In true Sony fashion, the Japanese AV giant hasn’t given away any official figures regarding brightness levels or dimming zones, but we count 340 dimming zones in our 55-inch Bravia 7 II review sample.

Interestingly, that’s considerably fewer zones than other backlit TVs we’ve tested recently — including the Award-winning 65-inch TCL C7K, which sports 1008 dimming zones.

As with previous Sony TVs, the Bravia 7 II supports HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision, but not HDR10+.

Moving on to the sound system, Sony has outfitted the 55-inch Bravia 7 II with a 40W sound system, comprising two full-range drivers and two tweeters. The TV prompts you to perform an automated room calibration during set-up, which allows the TV to adjust the sound output to best suit your viewing environment.

This TV supports a range of Dolby and DTS audio formats, including up to Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. For those looking to bypass the built-in speaker system (we’ll explain why you may wish to do that shortly), the HDMI eARC socket allows for external audio devices to be connected.

On the subject of HDMI, the Bravia 7 II only sports two full-bandwidth HDMI 2.1 sockets, alongside two HDMI 2.0 ports. They all support ALLM, but only HDMI 3 and 4 support 4K/120Hz gameplay and VRR.

This has been the case for many previous Sony TVs, but in a year in which more TV manufacturers than ever are offering three or more full-bandwidth ports (Hisense and Philips join Samsung and LG this year), the Bravia 7 II is lagging behind its contemporary competition even more than its predecessors did.

Moving on to streaming, the Sony Bravia 7 II doesn’t throw any curveballs here either. Google TV remains the operating system of choice, and we don’t find any obvious missing apps or software stumbles of note.

Generally speaking, Sony’s software feels a bit more robust this year, with less lag and a pleasing new My Cinema interface. This takes the pressure out of changing your TV’s picture and sound settings by presenting three easy-to-interpret modes within a charming visual interface. These modes are: Director’s Cut, Daytime and Dialogue.

The second and third options boost brightness and visibility for watching in ambient light and enhance vocal clarity, respectively, but the aptly titled Director’s Cut is our favourite of the trio. It essentially works in a very similar way to Filmmaker Mode on other TVs – Sony famously refuses to put Filmmaker Mode on its models, instead offering its own Professional picture mode – by applying picture settings that best provide an “as the director” intended picture performance.

Picture

Sony has to justify this backlit TV's expense for it to stand above its self-emissive OLED competitors, and, for the most part, the Bravia 7 II does a pretty good job. This is easily one of the best backlit TVs we’ve ever tested, but it’s not completely picture perfect.

We put the TV through its paces using our thorough product testing procedures; we’ve hooked up our reference 4K Blu-ray player to the TV and raided our library of 4K discs, and we have two comparison TVs on hand to judge the Bravia 7 II against. The first is a lower-priced mid-range OLED, and the second is Sony’s very own Bravia 9 II – the step-up model in Sony’s new True RGB range.

We’ll start with the positives as there are many of note. As a whole, the Bravia 7 II delivers much of what we like from Sony’s other recent televisions, in part thanks to Sony’s excellent picture tuning.

There is a suitable sense of balance and subtlety to the image, ensuring colours are presented with punch and saturation without verging into overblown territory. Foliage in Civil War appears pleasantly verdant without inching into highlighter-green, and a golden sunset appears appropriately rich and warm.

Sticking with Civil War, we find motion handling to be particularly impressive. Sony has long excelled in this area, and the Bravia 7 II continues that tradition. Camera pans are smooth and composed without drifting into the soap-opera effect, while fast-moving objects such as the jets flying over the Charlottesville military camp remain clean and well defined. The Bravia 7 II can't quite match the near-instantaneous response of OLED, but we rarely find ourselves distracted by blur or judder during films.

Most impressive, though, is the solidity and depth on display here. Sony is renowned for capturing three-dimensional depth via the Bravia XR Processor’s ability to analyse the focal point of the image, and generate depth information around it. This system is utilised excellently on the Bravia 7 II, as evidenced when we watch the Matera sequence in No Time To Die.

As Bond crosses a bridge towards a cemetery, there is a tangible sense of solidity that we rarely see in non-OLED TVs, and the backdrop of the Italian vista seems to stretch far into the horizon. These combine to greatly aid immersion, resulting in an image that draws us in with ease.

The general sense of nuance and sophistication extends to how the Bravia 7 II manages its backlight. When this TV is in its element, it becomes possible to forget that this is a backlit TV, as the RGB Mini LED system doesn’t distract or detract from the experience.

This extends to general blooming control, which is extremely impressive by prevailing standards. In a shot from Oppenheimer in which the nuclear bomb testing site is lit up at night by a series of spotlights, we find that the halos of light that we’ve seen time and time again on other backlit TVs have been strictly confined. There is still a very faint amount of blooming, but this is leagues ahead of other LCD TVs that we’ve recently tested.

However, it’s unfortunate that the Bravia 7 II does fall behind the OLED competition when it comes to contrast. Those spotlights don’t punch through with much vigour, resulting in highlights looking rather flat and dull.

This is also evident in the introduction of Alien: Romulus, as the TV is evidently dulling the pinpoint stars to maintain the integrity of the black backdrop of space.

Comparing this with a cheaper OLED, we find a night-and-day difference, as the inky black depths of space contrast wonderfully with focused pockets of brightness.

Furthermore, the introduction of Blade Runner 2049 reveals a strange colour volume issue with darker content. The black background — which, we should note, is still a very dark shade of grey on this TV — and text seem to battle, with the normally vibrant red “replicants” word showing as more of a greyish-pink.

As the text continues line-by-line, the TV seems to really struggle with colour consistency, as the white text fades into shades of peach and grey, worsening with each line of text that appears.

We suspect that this challenging scene is tripping up the RGB Mini LED backlight and, more importantly, the algorithm that deduces where to place highlights and colours, resulting in a form of colour bleeding that influences the surrounding text.

It's worth noting that the Bravia 9 II exhibits very similar behaviour, too, suggesting that this is currently a characteristic of Sony's implementation of RGB Mini LED rather than an isolated issue with the Bravia 7 II. We also find that the Bravia 9 II delivers punchier highlights, which tracks with its higher overall brightness capabilities — but you can find out more about that TV in our separate review.

Viewing angles could also be better. While our OLED reference retains colour purity and detail when we look at it from wider angles, the Sony washes out when we move past a point that’s not all that far from the “sweet spot”.

This is, ultimately, where we have to acknowledge that while the Bravia 7 II is a very good backlit TV, it’s still subject to some of the inherent drawbacks of LCD technology.

You can pick up a very capable OLED for similar or, in many cases, less money than the Bravia 7 II, which affords you better sharpness, perfect contrast and zero blooming.

Sound

Sony’s entire Bravia TV lineup, from the flagship Bravia 8 II to the three-star Bravia 3, have all fared well when it comes to sound. Despite this, Sony seems to have taken a different approach with the Bravia 7 II, and it's a step backwards rather than a step forwards.

Dipping back into Civil War, we find that while there is a good sense of clarity and detail, the sound system seems to struggle dynamically. It all sounds quite forward and a touch shouty, with voices also missing a touch of tonal variety and subtlety.

Blade Runner 2049’s famously difficult chapter two sequence, meanwhile, is often handled in a very specific way by Sony TVs; they tend not to dig too deep into the bass (while still dealing a decent-enough dose of low-end punch) as to avoid any sort of obvious distortion.

It’s a tradeoff that we think has worked particularly well, but it seems as though Sony has tried something new with the Bravia 7 II. Bass feels more present here, but it also comes across as quite hollow and lacking in rhythmic timing or tonal variety. The tense build-up of chapter two instead feels a bit flat as a result.

Swapping in Sony’s Award-winning Bravia 8 II, which employs an actuator-based sound system, we find that everything sounds more natural and directional, with bass sounding more controlled.

We’ll apply our usual advice here and recommend pairing the Sony Bravia 7 II with a soundbar or surround sound system if you are planning on picking one up.

Verdict

Sony’s step-down RGB Mini LED TV is a compelling backlit TV in many ways. The company’s excellent picture processing is clearly on display, and the new panel technology really does help to rectify some of the shortcomings that come with “traditional” Mini LED.

However, you’ll notice that we’re singling out the fact that this is, at the end of the day, a backlit TV. While Sony has worked hard to try to make us forget that by minimising blooming and making black depths more convincing, there are certain OLED-specific qualities that the Bravia 7 II can’t quite match.

While we wouldn’t consider this to be an issue if Sony had positioned this TV as a cheaper alternative to OLED, the fact of the matter is that you can get a better-equipped OLED TV for less money.

If you’re totally against OLED, then the Bravia 7 II is probably one of the best backlit TVs we’ve tested, but for most people, the performance doesn’t quite feel representative of the price tag.

SCORES

• Picture 4
• Sound 3
• Features 4

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Also consider the Sony Bravia 8 II

Read our TCL C8K review

Best TVs: flagship OLEDs and budget Mini LED sets tried and tested

It’s finally here. After roughly 18 months of teases, demos and hands-on sessions, Sony’s flagship RGB Mini LED is in shops and in our test rooms.

The Bravia 9 II and Bravia 7 II are what Sony refers to as ‘True RGB’ TVs – an attempt by the brand to elevate its RGB Mini LED models above the flood of rivals they're facing, while suggesting that those competing implementations aren't quite as sophisticated.

Sony’s ambitions here are huge. The Bravia 9 II sits above the exceptional, Award-winning Bravia 8 II in the brand’s range, with an even higher price than the non-RGB Mini LED Bravia 9 it replaces. It’s also more expensive – at least in 65-inch guise – than the new flagship OLEDs recently launched by Sony’s rivals.

In other words, while Sony might skirt around the term “OLED-killer” when describing the Bravia 9 II, the pricing makes that claim loud and clear.

Can a backlit TV – even a ‘True RGB’ one – really match or surpass the best OLED TVs ever made?

Price

The 65-inch version of the Bravia 9 II that we’re testing is priced at £3499 / $3600 / AU$5999.

That’s a full £500 / $300 more expensive than the 65-inch version of the Bravia 9 (which didn’t make it to Australia) was at launch.

It’s also £500 more expensive than the Bravia 8 II QD-OLED was when that launched last year, and more expensive than brand-new flagship OLEDs such as the LG G6 and Samsung S99H.

While much has been made of the potential of RGB Mini LED technology to offer larger TVs at lower prices than prohibitively expensive, hard-to-manufacture super-sized OLEDs, even the 85-inch Bravia 9 II is either quite similarly priced, or the same price, as the 83-inch versions of those Samsung and LG OLEDs.

The new technology has, though, enabled Sony to also offer the Bravia 9 II in an astonishingly huge 115 inches. Unsurprisingly, this gigantic TV has an equally gigantic price tag – £22,999 / $31,000 / AU$44,999.

Of course, launch prices are just a snapshot in time. The Bravia 9 II’s aforementioned rivals have already received their first discounts, and it probably won’t be full price itself for long. Still, the launch pricing tells us a lot about where Sony is pitching its True RGB flagship.

Design

Sony hasn't played it safe with the Bravia 9 II's design, which is unlike that of any other TV currently available.

Its defining feature is a new Mirage Stand, which at first sounds rather gimmicky but proves remarkably effective in practice. A subtly tinted transparent panel connects two slim metal uprights to a broad rectangular base, but from your normal viewing position, that panel is so inconspicuous that the TV almost appears to float just above your furniture.

Better still, while you can still see the surface beneath the TV and the wall behind it through the panel, the cables routed through the stand somehow disappear from view entirely. Clever stuff.

On the other hand, though, the Mirage Stand can be installed in just one position, which leaves space for a soundbar. There’s no option to lower the TV if you’re not using a soundbar.

The stand largely defines the Bravia 9 II's appearance, too. Unlike the understated elegance of the Bravia 8 II, Sony's flagship RGB Mini LED set makes much more of a statement. Combined with the chunky cabinet that's necessary to house its advanced backlight and speaker system, it has a substantial visual presence that won't appeal to everyone, but there's no doubting the quality of the execution.

Thick though the Bravia 9 II is, the rear panel is completely flat, making wall-mounting pleasingly neat, while the overall build quality is excellent. This is every bit the premium product you'd expect from a flagship Sony TV.

Another interesting design choice is the anti-reflective screen coating. It's among the most effective we've encountered, dramatically reducing reflections and making the Bravia 9 II particularly well suited to bright living rooms.

The trade-off is that the panel has a noticeably more matte finish than the Bravia 8 II, which itself has a matte coating. When switched off – or when displaying very dark scenes in a typically lit room – it doesn't look quite as deep black as its OLED sibling, instead taking on a slightly greyer appearance.

Whether that's a worthwhile compromise will depend largely on your viewing environment and which side you’ve picked in the matte vs glossy war, but our reviewers broadly feel that the LG G6’s anti-reflection coating – which reduces reflections a little less effectively than the Bravia 9 II but has a black-preserving, glossy finish – is the current leader in this area.

Sony has also introduced a new premium remote control. It's slightly larger and more ergonomically shaped than the one supplied with other Bravias of the last few years, and it features automatic backlighting. The layout remains intuitive, too, with the Sony Pictures Core shortcut moved above the navigation pad and the old Menu button replaced by a shortcut to Sony's new My Cinema interface.

Ultimately, the Bravia 9 II is a TV whose practicality is every bit as impressive as its styling is distinctive. The Mirage Stand won't be to everyone's taste, but it's one of the cleverest and most effective pieces of industrial design we've seen in quite some time.

Features

The Bravia 9 II's headline feature is, of course, its RGB Mini LED backlight.

Unlike conventional Mini LED TVs, which use a white backlight shining through a colour filter layer, the Bravia 9 II instead uses independently controlled red, green and blue Mini LEDs to generate colour directly.

Sony argues that this is only half of the story, though. Equally important is the sophisticated Backlight Master Drive system that controls those LEDs. After all, a Mini LED TV is only as good as its backlight processing – and history tells us that Sony knows a thing or two about that.

The 65-inch model we're testing here features 1530 local dimming zones, and Sony claims significant gains in both peak brightness and colour volume over the Bravia 9 that it replaces – and even more so over the Bravia 8 II QD-OLED.

In fact, Sony goes as far as claiming that True RGB is a “best of both worlds technology”, and that the Bravia 9 II is designed to match the “intent and peak brightness of the BVM-HX3110” mastering monitor.

This comparison with the mastering monitor is crucial to the Bravia 9 II’s very existence. According to Sony, its aim is to deliver a home viewing experience that matches what the content creators signed off in the studio. The brand feels that the brightness offered by Mini LED over OLED is vital to this, and that the RGB element is essential to deliver the colour range and accuracy that neither standard Mini LED nor OLED can match.

The Bravia 9 II also introduces Sony's new My Cinema interface, which is designed to simplify picture and sound settings without taking meaningful control away from enthusiasts.

Accessed via the dedicated three-dot button on the remote, My Cinema offers three viewing profiles: Director's Cut, Daytime and Dialogue. As their names suggest, these prioritise faithful reproduction, improved daytime visibility and clearer speech, respectively.

Perhaps the cleverest thing about My Cinema is that it deliberately limits some of the available picture adjustments. In Director's Cut mode, for example, non-Dolby Vision content (which is delivered in Dolby Vision Dark) is automatically presented in the Professional picture preset, preventing users from accidentally drifting away from Sony's intended reference settings.

We do, however, have one small criticism. While the Daytime profile defaults to the Standard Bright picture preset, it also allows you to switch to Standard, Professional or IMAX Enhanced. The Cinema preset isn't available within the Daytime profile at all, though, despite being the obvious choice for anyone wanting a slightly brighter but still authentic presentation. Hopefully, Sony will rectify this in a future software update.

Elsewhere, the Bravia 9 II offers the premium smart TV experience we've come to expect from Sony.

Google TV still isn’t quite as slick as LG’s webOS or Samsung’s Tizen, but it remains a very capable smart platform. Set-up via the Google Home app is refreshingly quick and straightforward, and the TV has Google Gemini built in, complete with far-field microphones for hands-free voice control.

App support is excellent, too. Of the 34 streaming and media apps on our usual checklist, only Apple Music and the Xbox and Amazon Luna game-streaming services are absent. Sony includes YouView, too, to overcome Google TV’s usual blind spot where UK catch-up apps are concerned, and there’s a PS Remote Play app so you can play PlayStation games via the TV even if your console is in another room.

Just as importantly, every app that should support HDR10, HLG, Dolby Vision and/or Dolby Atmos does so correctly, and Sony's Studio Calibrated modes continue to provide optimised picture settings for services such as Netflix, Prime Video and Sony Pictures Core. The TV is IMAX Enhanced-certified, too.

The Bravia 9 II’s audio hardware is unusually ambitious. Rather than hiding its speakers along the bottom edge as most TVs do, Sony arranges almost the entire speaker array in a horizontal line around the middle of the rear of the chassis, with only the Beam Tweeters positioned higher up. The idea is to anchor dialogue and effects closer to the centre of the screen, making the sound appear to come more naturally from the picture itself.

The Acoustic Multi-Audio+ system comprises eight speaker units in total, including two full-range drivers, twin subwoofers, two tweeters and a pair of Beam Tweeters, driven by a claimed 80W of power. Those Beam Tweeters are designed to create a greater sense of height and improve the placement of effects.

Pair the TV with one of Sony's latest Bravia sound systems and the integration becomes even slicker, with audio settings incorporated directly into the TV's interface and full control available through the Bravia Connect app.

Acoustic Centre Sync is also supported, allowing the TV's speakers to work alongside those of compatible Sony sound systems, though our experience with the feature has been mixed enough over the years that we'd recommend experimenting rather than simply assuming it's the best option for your particular set-up.

Picture

One of the highest compliments we can pay Sony's flagship RGB Mini LED is that, for the vast majority of the time, you simply stop thinking about how it's producing its picture and instead become immersed in what you're watching. For a backlit TV, that in itself is a deeply impressive trait.

But there’s also one particular way in which the Bravia 9 II surpasses every other TV we’ve tested: colour.

Quite simply, the Bravia 9 II produces the finest colours we've ever seen from any TV. Richly saturated scenes burst with vibrancy, but never at the expense of authenticity. Sony has combined extraordinary colour volume with its traditional restraint, so even the boldest hues remain beautifully balanced and believable. It's a wonderfully cinematic presentation that constantly impresses without ever shouting for attention.

That balance is particularly evident in Pan, where the dazzling fantasy palette of Neverland looks gloriously rich while still feeling entirely natural. Likewise, the vivid oranges and blues of Captain Marvel have exceptional intensity without ever becoming gaudy or oversaturated.

Bright colours retain their richness where many TVs begin to wash them out, too, and there’s impressive vibrancy right down into the deepest shadows. This top-to-bottom consistency is one of the Bravia 9 II’s greatest strengths.

Brightness, too, is undeniably exceptional.

During our early preview of the Bravia 9 II in Tokyo, Sony demonstrated the TV reaching around 4000 nits in its Professional picture preset, and in action, this is clearly one of the brightest TVs we've ever tested.

Crucially, unlike an OLED, Sony’s RGB Mini LED flagship’s immense brightness isn’t limited to small highlights. Where OLED technology inevitably has to reduce brightness during large, bright scenes, the Bravia 9 II can maintain its extraordinary light output across the entire screen if required.

The white room scenes in The Matrix provide a perfect demonstration. While the Bravia 8 II inevitably has to reduce its overall brightness as the dazzling white fills the screen, the Bravia 9 II simply keeps pouring out light. It's one of the clearest examples of RGB Mini LED's tangible advantage over OLED.

That brightness also gives the TV impressive versatility. Those seeking faithful movie reproduction will be best served by Professional mode, but Standard takes greater advantage of the Bravia 9 II's immense light output without straying too far into artificiality. Vivid, meanwhile, is best avoided altogether, pushing colours and brightness so far that the resulting picture bears little resemblance to the director's intent.

The additional brightness also makes the Bravia 9 II particularly appealing for bright-room viewing. Modern flagship OLEDs such as the Bravia 8 II are already bright enough for the vast majority of living rooms, but those with especially sunlit spaces will appreciate the RGB Mini LED's enormous brightness headroom and superb anti-reflective screen.

Colours and brightness aren’t the Bravia 9 II’s only qualities, though.

The Batman demonstrates just how accomplished Sony's local dimming system has become. Black levels are superbly deep for a backlit TV, blooming around white and coloured highlights is virtually non-existent and, perhaps most impressively of all, the backlight goes quietly about its work while almost never drawing attention to itself through obvious brightness shifts or flickering.

Civil War showcases Sony's typically exceptional processing, combining natural skin tones, outstanding detail and wonderfully controlled motion into a picture that's both cinematic and effortlessly watchable.

All of this adds up to what is, quite simply, the best picture we've ever seen from a backlit TV.

And yet...

Comparisons with Sony's own Bravia 8 II reveal that even this exceptional implementation of RGB Mini LED still can't quite match the fundamental strengths of OLED.

The Bravia 9 II's local dimming system is extraordinarily accomplished, yet it still can't quite replicate the pixel-level precision of OLED. The result is a picture that looks just a touch flatter than the Bravia 8 II's. Objects don't separate from their backgrounds with quite the same solidity, and scenes lack just a little of the three-dimensional depth and effortless dynamism that OLED consistently delivers.

Perhaps counterintuitively, OLED also retains an advantage with bright highlights against very dark or black backgrounds. Sony's Mini LED TV is understandably cautious in these situations, preserving its exemplary blooming control by stopping short of the intensity that the Bravia 8 II produces with bright white logos or isolated highlights.

Viewing angles remain another clear OLED advantage, too. The Bravia 9 II performs better off-axis than most backlit rivals, but colours and contrast still fade as you move away from the centre of the screen, and the otherwise well-hidden blooming is revealed.

There are, however, occasional moments that remind you the Bravia 9 II is still, ultimately, a backlit TV.

The opening text of Blade Runner 2049 remains its most obvious stumbling block. When the first word, “Replicants”, initially appears, it’s closer to grey than it is to the intended red, and as each new paragraph of white text fades in, the whole block briefly flashes a pale pink before settling down. Even then, the text never looks quite right: the white words near “Replicants” retain a faint pink cast, while the final red “Blade Runner” fades to grey as the rest of the words disappear, whereas it should remain a vivid red against the pitch-black background.

This is a highly unusual clip that challenges a TV in a way that 99 per cent of footage never will, but it proves that while the Bravia 9 II’s backlighting system is very impressive, it’s not infallible.

We also encountered one issue with the Bravia 9 II that warranted rather more investigation. During our testing, we consistently observed faint horizontal lines in a handful of Dolby Vision scenes, including parts of Sinners, across both UHD Blu-ray and streaming sources. The artefacts weren't visible when viewing the HDR10 versions of the same material, strongly suggesting an issue specific to the Bravia 9 II's Dolby Vision processing.

The lines are subtle enough that many viewers may never notice them, but once spotted, they can be difficult to ignore. Given their very specific behaviour, we'd hope this is the sort of issue Sony can resolve via a software update. It's important to stress, though, that this isn't the reason the Bravia 9 II misses out on five stars.

Gaming largely reinforces the conclusions we've already reached with movies. HDR titles such as Uncharted: The Lost Legacy look spectacular, with the Bravia 9 II delivering richer colours and greater brightness than the Bravia 8 II. Once again, though, the OLED's superior contrast gives the image greater solidity and depth, making buildings in the opening city sequence look more three-dimensional while revealing finer details, such as the freckles of the young shopkeeper, more readily.

The differences become more pronounced with SDR games. Call Of The Sea looks strikingly vibrant from the Bravia 9 II, but it's also a touch overbearing, with colours skewing richer and redder than we'd like and small white interaction prompts proving less distinct than they are on the Bravia 8 II. The OLED's more balanced presentation ultimately proves easier on the eye over longer sessions, despite looking a touch less immediately spectacular.

Motion, too, reveals one final weakness. There’s a slight smearing to fast-moving action and camera pans that's only occasionally visible with films but becomes much more noticeable in games, where higher frame rates and player-controlled movement make the effect more obvious, especially in comparison with the crisp responsiveness of OLED.

Ultimately, Sony has produced the finest backlit TV we've ever tested, and one that comes close to delivering OLED-like consistency while comfortably surpassing even the best OLEDs for brightness and colour volume. That said, a handful of flaws and relative deficiencies, while individually minor, collectively cost the Bravia 9 II its fifth star.

Sound

Sony has long been one of the few TV manufacturers to treat sound quality as more than an afterthought, and the Bravia 9 II continues that tradition with a presentation that's impressively large, spacious and immersive by TV standards.

The first thing that strikes you is the scale of the soundstage. Audio extends well beyond the physical boundaries of the TV, while Dolby Atmos soundtracks benefit from a genuine sense of height that's still rare from integrated speakers.

Watching Civil War, effects are placed with impressive precision around the TV, while the chaotic soundscape retains plenty of subtle detail rather than collapsing into a wall of noise.

It's an involving listen, too. The Bravia 9 II produces more weight than the Bravia 8 II, helping action scenes feel satisfyingly substantial.

That extra bass comes at a small cost, though. The deep synth notes at the start of chapter two of Blade Runner 2049 have plenty of depth, but they lack the tautness we'd ideally like. Rather than each note starting and stopping with real authority, the bass flaps somewhat, robbing those bassy effects of some of their intended impact.

The Bravia 9 II also falls just short of the Bravia 8 II when it comes to refinement. Dialogue remains consistently clear, but voices aren't projected with quite the same focus or solidity as they are by Sony's flagship OLED. There's also a slight hardness to the presentation that occasionally makes speech sound a touch brash, softening some of the subtle emotional nuances in performances.

That slight lack of finesse extends to high-frequency effects, too. The rain falling onto the balcony in Blade Runner 2049 has a faint metallic edge that makes it sound a little more like static than falling water. It's a subtle trait that you'll rarely notice unless comparing TVs directly, but it does slightly reduce the sense of realism.

Ultimately, the Bravia 9 II delivers some of the most spacious and immersive sound we've heard from a TV, and many buyers will be perfectly happy relying on its integrated speaker system. It doesn't quite match the refinement of the Bravia 8 II, though, and a TV of this calibre still deserves to be partnered with a dedicated sound system if your budget allows.

Verdict

With the Bravia 9 II, Sony has pushed backlit TV technology further than ever before.

Sony's first flagship RGB Mini LED TV delivers the finest colours we've ever seen from a television, breathtaking brightness, and local dimming that's so accomplished you'll frequently forget you're watching a backlit display at all. Add excellent processing, immersive sound and a polished user experience, and this is probably the best backlit TV we've ever tested.

It's not perfect, though.

A handful of relatively minor issues – from the rare backlight hiccups and a peculiar Dolby Vision bug to slightly soft bass and some motion smearing with games – are disappointing in a flagship TV. More fundamentally, despite coming closer than any previous LCD set we've tested, the Bravia 9 II still can't quite replicate the solidity, consistency and pixel-level precision that make the very best OLED TVs so special.

That doesn't make the Bravia 9 II the wrong TV. In fact, if you regularly watch in an exceptionally bright room or simply prefer not to buy an OLED, Sony's flagship True RGB model should sit right at the top of your shortlist. For most buyers, though, the Bravia 8 II remains the more complete television. It's not quite as bright, but it's more consistently convincing, costs less, and ultimately delivers the better picture overall.

SCORES

• Picture 4
• Sound 4
• Features 4

MORE:

Read our review of the Sony Bravia 8 II

Also consider the Samsung S99H

Read our Hisense UR9 review

Best TVs: flagship OLEDs and budget Mini LED sets tried and tested

Fans of Blu-rays have suffered relentless waves of bad news lately, the latest being that Sony's next PlayStation will likely be an all-digital affair with no disc drive in sight. But at last, there is some good news, of sorts.

Japanese manufacturer Buffalo will continue to make Blu-ray disc drives (as reported by PC Watch, via TechRadar), despite previously saying it would stop because of a lack of available components. However, there are a couple of caveats.

First of all, Buffalo will only keep making drives as long as the newly sourced components last. Once they dry up, production will stop, possibly for good. The exact end date will depend on inventory, so no warning will be given.

Also, Buffalo drives will cost more than they did previously. PC Watch reports that the price hikes will be between 33 per cent and 51 per cent, depending on the model of the disc drive. These price rises are said to be due to the global semiconductor shortage and the rising prices of raw materials.

Buffalo is far from the only company affected by these factors. Apple recently raised prices on certain devices, citing the same issues.

Buffalo's drives were due to cease production this month, according to the firm's announcement in February. The one silver lining is that the reason given is component shortages, and not lack of demand. But it's a very small crumb of comfort for us fans of physical media formats.

Previously, Pioneer and LG announced they would withdraw from the disc drive market.

So could this be the end of Blu-ray as we know it? Or could the format 'do a vinyl' and continue to live on?

MORE:

Sony has waged war on physical media, and I think it’s terrible news for consumers and 4K Blu-ray alike

The best Blu-ray players you can buy

Which is the best 4K Blu-ray player, PS5 or Xbox Series X?

Every projector is a product of compromise. Top-tier 4K projectors can deliver excellent detail and black levels, but usually lack a built-in sound system and cannot be easily moved around.

And outdoor projectors make their compromise clear more than any other projector category, as they must carefully handle the balance between convenience and performance.

With the FIFA World Cup in full swing, more people are looking for ways to watch the winning kick on a big screen from the comfort of their gardens. But no outdoor projector has ever offered the perfect delicate equilibrium between each aspect. I’ve tested my fair share of portable projectors so far and, although nothing has achieved the ideal balance yet, I'm always keeping my eye out for a model that could change all that

So what exactly does the perfect outdoor projector offer?

Portability

To take your projector into the garden and even on the road, it needs to be easy to carry around. Otherwise, you will end up lugging a heavy piece of kit around, which doesn’t make for a practical or fun alternative to watching on your TV screen.

We’ve seen some pretty neat designs in terms of portability that certainly tick this box. Take the Xgimi Mogo 4, for instance, which is a can-shaped projector that weighs just 1.3kg and is only 21cm tall.

You can pull out the main body from the sturdy plastic stand when you want to use it, and its small footprint makes it a great example of the portability I’m looking for in an outdoor projector.

There’s a remote that hangs from the stand that gives you access to the basic controls, such as volume and settings, if you don't want to rely on the larger remote that is also available. It is far from the only model to offer this kind of flexibility, but it's a great example of true portability in the category.

Most outdoor projectors these days also come with platforms such as Google TV, which give you access to the usual streaming suspects, including Netflix, Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video. That makes accessing your favourite TV shows and films simple, although some platforms lack World Cup essentials such as BBC iPlayer and ITVX. You can work around this by casting from another device, at least.

A long-lasting built-in battery

If a projector is small and portable, though, then it understandably must make some sacrifices in other areas. One of the biggest of these is the lack of a built-in battery. Many projectors claim to be portable but, if they don't have a battery, then you are limited to placing it where you can get access to the mains.

Some projectors let you connect a power bank to extend their battery life a little, but that depends on the model's capabilities.

And even if your projector offers a built-in battery, it is often only just enough to watch a few episodes. The Xgimi Vibe One is a small, compact model with a built-in battery, but the brand claims it offers a maximum of 1.2 hours of juice until you need to plug it in. That number is only if you are using the projector in the Eco mode, however. In Standard mode, the battery gave us just under an hour of AV action, which will only give you one half of a World Cup match.

In an ideal world, a projector's built-in battery would be able to last entire game or movie without conking out.

Bright, punchy picture

Of course, the picture needs to be a strong performer in various lighting environments. You might start watching a game at 5pm, where the sun is still blazing during these scorching summer months.

That means you need a projector that can deliver a punchy image that can withstand bright viewing conditions. So far, I have not come across a compact model that can deliver the perfect level of detail, black depth and colour.

Ultimately, that is one of the sacrifices that must be made for the projector to be portable and compact, as there is less room for more comprehensive features. If such a model existed that could expertly balance picture performance and size, it would have a prime spot in our test room.

Immersive sound

Finally, the perfect outdoor projector delivers engaging and precise sound that makes every viewing experience even more immersive.

The closest we have come to this dream is with the Nebula X1 – a 4K projector with a 2.1-channel configuration. We say in our review that the projector's "audio makes it stand out from the crowd, as it is rare we have found a projector that can pack such a punch in terms of bass."

Plus, vocals are clear and relatively emotive, delivering a rich overall sound. This is an outlier in the outdoor projector world, as most of the built-in speakers don't manage much dispersion of sound or punch.

The most recent projector to enter our test room promises to tick every one of these boxes (bar the built-in battery). The Soundcore Nebula X1 Pro claims to be the "world's first mobile theatre system", presenting as an all-in-one package on wheels. Yep, actual wheels. It features four detachable speakers to place around your space, a 4K picture that goes up to a claimed 3500 ANSI lumens of brightness, and a clever design.

We are yet to publish our full review but, suffice to say, the Nebula projector has not managed to claim the crown as the perfect outdoor model.

I never actually expect to find a perfect outdoor projector because – as I said at the start – all of them are a product of compromise. Still, I'm excited to see how close we can get.

MORE:

These are the best outdoor projectors

And here are the best projectors

Check out the best soundbars

If you're looking to buy your first AV receiver or upgrade from a budget model, there's some fierce competition in the mid-range market right now.

There are some truly great receivers out there, all jam-packed with features, connectivity and amazing sound. But the Denon AVC-X3800H, now £999 at Sevenoaks, manages to stand out from the competition.

One of our favourite features of the AVC-X3800H is that it can be adapted should you wish to modify or expand your home cinema setup in the future, making it an amp you can expect to keep for a long time as your system evolves.

We first reviewed Denon's mid-range AVR over four years ago, but it remains a top pick at this price thanks to its smooth, rich and cinematic sound, simple setup process and comprehensive feature set.

It offers nine amplification channels (meaning you can drive up to a 5.4.4 channel system), plus six HDMI 2.1 inputs supporting 4K/120Hz (or 8K/60Hz!) signals, so there should be more than enough connectivity options for most people.

As we've alluded to above, the AVC-X3800H is incredibly future-proof. This is thanks to a toggle-able pre-amplifier mode that gives you the option to upgrade the amplification for individual speaker pairs, rather than all at once.

We have our doubts about the future of 8K, but the whopping six 8K HDMI inputs means the Denon AVR will be ready should the resolution revolution happen. There's also support for Dolby Vision and Atmos, HDR10+, DTS:X, IMAX Enhanced and Sony 360 Reality Audio.

Wireless streaming options are also impressive, with AirPlay 2, HEOS, Spotify Connect, Tidal and Bluetooth all on board.

And the all-important sound? Balanced, quick and precise, as we discovered with a viewing of No Time To Die.

"The explosive scene at Vesper’s tomb early on is dynamic and weighty, but the tumbling debris that scatters the mountainside remains distinct and nicely textured," our Denon AVC-X3800H review reads.

"Effects are well spread but accurate, and the result is exciting and immersive while remaining authentic."

Switching to a tricky scene in Dune, and the AVC-X3800H offers rich-sounding voices with a warmth and naturalism that’s even more engaging than some of its pricier competition.

Despite fierce competition, the Denon AVC-X3800H is a force to be reckoned with thanks to future-proofed connectivity, flexibility and a mature, authoritative sound, all for the reduced price of £999 at Sevenoaks.

The AVX-X3800H is a superb choice for an all-round performer with plenty of features and ample scope for system expansion, but if you have a bit more of a budget or have other needs, then consider these alternatives:

MORE:

Check our our top picks for the best AV receivers

Also consider the Yamaha RX-A6A

Read our Arcam AVR5 review

When you watched the England v Mexico game (whether live or on catch-up), could you truly feel the stadium atmosphere of the mighty Azteca? Could you clearly hear every boo from the crowd, every goal hit the net, and the sweet celebratory sound of Wonderwall being played?

If you couldn’t, you might want to consider upgrading your sound system. And I have been eyeing up the Hisense HS214, which can now be yours for £60 at Amazon, as the ideal affordable replacement for my muffled TV speakers.

The HS214 is currently one of Amazon’s best-selling soundbars, and it’s not hard to see why. While soundbars this cheap usually set off alarm bells, our expert testers found the HS214 to be a straightforward and highly effective way of boosting your TV’s sound.

My living room set-up has been getting quite the workout recently from the World Cup – and it has exposed the sonic shortfalls of my TV’s built-in audio.

And that’s where the Hisense HS214 comes in. It doesn’t have the dynamic performance and features of more premium models, but it offers great value for money and a straightforward solution to muffled sound.

You can get a lot less for the money at this price – we were pleasantly surprised by the inclusion of a three-inch woofer, which adds a welcome touch of bass, improved dialogue clarity, and a broader soundstage.

“The enhanced depth that the bass unit brings to the table isn’t superfluous either; there’s a solid sound to the lows and kick that gives the sound a touch more musicality than you would otherwise experience,” our Hisense HS214 review reads. “Watching Leonardo DiCaprio grapple with a bear in The Revenant on Blu-ray, that extra bit of heft means each blow and snarl has more impact and danger attached.”

The HS214 is also excellent at anchoring vocals, so you can be sure the commentary isn’t getting jumbled up amongst all the other stadium sounds. It excels at music too – an area where even expensive soundbars struggle. Despite its size, the soundbar produces a pleasant, uncluttered midrange and a decent stereo image.

It’s simple to set up, too: an HDMI ARC port means you can just plug your TV in via HDMI and be done with it; but there are also optical and coaxial sockets, a 3.5mm mini-jack auxiliary input, Bluetooth 4.2 and a USB port.

With a quality build, the HS214 would fit aesthetically with both a new high-spec TV or an older model, though its compact 9.5 x 65 x 5.8cm (hwd) size might make it a better fit for smaller rooms and screens. There are also rigging points at the rear, with fixings included in the box should you wish to wall mount.

The Hisense HS214 is our super-cheap soundbar of choice, then. If you have a bit more of a budget, though, you might want to consider these alternatives:

MORE:

Read our Hisense HS214 2.1 review

Check out the best budget soundbars: cheap ’bars, tested by our experts

And the best TVs under £1000: affordable OLED, Mini LED and LCD models hand-picked by our experts

When Sony officially unveiled its 2026 TV range, there was plenty of disappointment that it didn’t include a new OLED model – much of it from me.

These days, Sony tends to work on two-year lifecycles for its TVs, so I wasn’t expecting a successor to last year’s Bravia 8 II; but a replacement for 2024’s Bravia 8 seemed a fairly safe bet – as did a successor to the A90K, which is now an incredible four years old.

The omission prompted some (again, mostly me) to theorise that Sony had in fact turned its back on OLED entirely, and that the Bravia 8 II could be the brand’s last OLED model.

Last month, though, we reported on rumours that Sony was bracing to launch a brand-new OLED TV. And now, those rumours have been all but confirmed by the appearance of this new OLED set on several of Sony’s own websites.

The listings, first spotted by High Def News (thanks, The Walkman Blog), confirm that the new OLED is indeed the Bravia 6. And, if the name wasn’t a big enough hint, the TV’s tagline – “OLED essentials, now within reach” – also confirms that this is indeed an entry-level OLED TV.

Naturally, I’m disappointed that Sony isn’t launching a new flagship OLED at this stage, but if the Bravia 6 is indeed Sony’s most affordable OLED TV yet, as the tagline suggests, that’s rather exciting news in its own right.

Full tech specs are currently absent from the live pages (another suggestion that they have gone live earlier than planned), but there are some nuggets of information to be gleaned.

First, the TV is listed in sizes ranging from 48 inches to 83 inches. That’s a broader range than Sony typically offers for its OLED TVs, but it’s also highly suggestive of the Bravia 6 using LG Display’s new OLED SE panel, which is available in exactly those sizes and notably not in 42 inches.

While it’s not confirmed, we believe this is the panel that is already found in the LG B6, a set we will be reviewing very soon.

Another encouraging detail is that the Bravia 6 sports four HDMI 2.1 sockets. Gamers (myself included) have long lamented Sony’s models being limited to just two HDMI 2.1 sockets, with that limitation even being true of the new flagship Bravia 9 II, so this is very good news.

The listing also confirms that Dolby Vision is supported on the video side, and that Dolby Atmos and DTS:X are present on the audio side.

Unsurprisingly, like every other modern Bravia TV, the Bravia 6 also features the Google TV platform, which can be operated via voice control (though it’s not clear whether this is via a microphone built into the remote control or the TV itself).

We do know the TV includes ambient sensors, with the listing promising automatic picture adjustments based on room conditions.

None of the leaked listings includes pricing, so we don’t yet have any indication of where the Bravia 6 will sit in Sony’s range.

We don’t even know, in fact, whether the Bravia 6 will even come to the UK. Sony has a recent habit of releasing some models in certain regions but not others.

If it does launch the new model in the UK, there’s no guarantee that it will do so in all sizes: I note that Sony Hong Kong is listing the Bravia 6 in 48-, 55- and 65-inch sizes, while Sony Gabon is listing the 55-, 65-, 77- and 83-inch sizes.

We have approached Sony UK for comment. We don’t expect the company to confirm the Bravia 6 ahead of an official announcement, but with multiple regional Sony websites now listing the TV, that announcement surely can’t be far away.

Stay tuned for more on the Sony Bravia 6 as we get it.

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These are the best TVs you can buy right now

Will the Bravia 6 be good enough and cheap enough to hit our list of the best cheap TVs?

As much as we love all the bells and whistles and fancy features that come with a big soundbar or speaker system, often they’re just not practical.

No matter the soundbar’s quality, you’ll have to take into account the available space, the screen size, and the positioning of any extra speakers. Luckily, we have found the perfect solution for those looking for a desktop or a small space: the Creative Stage Pro, which is now reduced to £90 at Amazon.

With a main soundbar that measures just 8 x 55 x 11cm (hwd) and a slender subwoofer that comes in at 42 x 12 x 27cm, this is a highly versatile soundbar package that can be neatly tucked onto and under a PC desk, or slot into even the smallest of rooms.

Don’t let the diminutive stature fool you, however – the sound is far more cinematic than we expected at this price.

Computer accessory brand Creative has ditched most fancy features in a straightforward attempt to improve sound, and we think that was a smart move.

As our Creative Stage Pro review reads: “Starting with the 4K Blu-ray of Blade Runner 2049 via our Oppo UDP-203 disc player, we find that the Stage Pro delivers a surprisingly cinematic sound despite its small footprint.

“The challenging bass section towards the start of chapter two is handled with surprising oomph, and while it isn’t the most defined bass that we’ve ever experienced, it remains controlled, tonally balanced and, most importantly, doesn’t distort even at higher volumes.”

The soundbar is an equally pleasant midrange surprise – voices are presented with impressive detail and emotion, while it excels with music too thanks to a pin-sharp sense of timing and impressively clean vocals.

The biggest drawback of the Stage Pro is scale – it struggled to push the sound out to fill our test room fully. But if you have a small room, this ’bar will make an excellent upgrade for your TV speakers, especially at this price point.

The simplicity extends to the set-up process too. A single cable links the soundbar and subwoofer, while the two can be connected easily to your TV or monitor via HDMI ARC or optical cable. There are USB Type-C and 3.5mm auxiliary inputs also, along with support for Bluetooth 5.3.

Given the Creative Stage Pro’s size and price, our expectations were admittedly low going into testing. But we were quickly swayed when we heard the soundbar package in action. For £90 at Amazon, it’s cheap, cheerful, and better than it has any right to be – and it’s our compact soundbar of choice.

MORE:

Read our full Creative Stage Pro review

Check out the best soundbars: options for every need, recommended by our experts

And the best budget soundbars: cheap bars, tested by our experts

Buying a new TV is a major investment.

As a massive home cinema fan, I know I'm in a privileged position; I’m constantly surrounded by the latest flagship OLEDs, and it’s easy to become desensitised to the huge prices that are attached.

That is why I always try to stay grounded when offering buying advice – especially during massive sales events like Black Friday and Prime Day.

Take the LG C5, for example. This Award-winning set was an absolute steal during recent sales, with the 55-inch model plummeting to £989; a massive £910 saving. But even at a heavy discount, it's still a serious chunk of change.

It's easy to get swept up in the hype, but if a new screen isn't in your budget right now, the endless onslaught of deals can be frustrating.

Fear not. If you're craving an upgrade but need to eke out the lifespan of your current display, I’ve got a few tips to tide you over. These simple, free adjustments – ranging from a bit of late Spring cleaning to a deep dive into your picture settings – can make your old TV feel almost brand new.

1. Update your software

First and foremost, you should head to the settings menu within your TV's operating system. Under "about", "system", or "support" (depending on your model of TV), you should see an option to initiate a software update.

There may also be an option to switch auto-updates on, which I would recommend doing to ensure your TV is always up to date.

While it's not always a miracle cure, a software update can help to fix sluggish software, and you might find that your TV suddenly has new features and an updated look, and apps may run smoother too.

2. Clear your apps cache

Another software-related tip that can help speed up a chugging operating system is to clear your TV's applications cache.

Usually found within the apps section of your TV's settings menu (I recommend consulting your TV's manual or searching the model number online to find the setting), clearing your apps cache will declutter unnecessary stored files, which should result in quicker loading times, prevent crashes, and even free up space in your TV's internal storage.

The best part is that you shouldn't be logged out of your apps, and any settings you've changed will also remain.

This is a quick, easy trick that not many people will think to do, but it can help fix those annoying app niggles.

3. Clean that screen

Here's one I'm guilty of not doing enough.

It's simple science: your TV generates static electricity during use, which attracts dust and fibre in the air. That dust build-up becomes more visible over time, which, unsurprisingly, can impact the picture performance of your TV.

Now, if you're anything like me, you'll only have noticed that your TV has gradually been building up dust when the light hits it just right, and then you'll be immediately horrified at how you haven't noticed this sooner.

But fret not! Simply turn off your TV, let it cool down for a short while if you've been using it (especially if it's an OLED, which tends to run especially hot), and then gently wipe the screen with a clean microfibre cloth to clean it, without damaging the screen.

If you want to take things further and wish to give your TV screen more of a deep clean, then you can invest in a screen cleaning kit. We're partial to this Screen Mom set in the TV testing room. Just be sure to spray the cleaner onto the cloth to avoid streaks.

4. Take another look at your picture settings

Diving back into the picture settings can make the TV you've been using for years feel brand new.

Trying out a new picture mode, or tweaking simple settings such as motion, can unearth improvements that you may not have known your TV is capable of.

If you've left your TV in the standard picture mode after unboxing it years ago, then now is the time to try out the movie mode, or delve into Filmmaker Mode (or, if you're using a Sony TV, the professional picture mode) for a more cinematic experience.

Tweaking the motion settings can help to smooth out judder, but if you have it turned up to the maximum setting, then you might find that turning it down will make your TV look much more natural.

Feel free to take a trial-and-error approach here to find the best settings to suit you; most, if not all, TVs we've tested feature an option in the settings menu to reset the picture settings to default if you get a little bit too creative.

MORE:

Check out our picks for the best OLED TV

As well as the best cheap TVs

And read our full LG C6 65-inch OLED TV review

Soundbars have come a long way over the years, now offering effective Dolby Atmos and surround effects all from a single bar.

But there’s one element where soundbars struggle the most: bass.

To address that shortcoming, one of Sony’s most recent releases has come with a convenient solution: the Sony Bravia Theatre Bar 7 + S comes with a subwoofer included. And you can pick one up for £699 at Sevenoaks.

And it really makes all the difference – when we removed the subwoofer from the sonic equation, the soundbar lacked the scale and authority that the tight, agile bass provided.

Unlike its predecessor, the Sony HT-A3000, the Sony Bravia Theatre Bar 7 has dedicated upward-firing drivers, meaning you’ll get ‘proper’ Dolby Atmos height effects and won’t have to rely on Sony’s Vertical Sound Engine processing.

And the effects are immersive and convincing indeed – a test viewing of Top Gun: Maverick resulted in the sound stretching above the TV screen as a jet soared into the atmosphere. You can pinpoint the plane’s position through the audio alone, while a motorcycle ride also showcases the width of the soundstage as Tom Cruise zips from left to right.

Voices are clear and emotive too, offering a huge improvement over most TV speakers.

What makes this soundbar stand out, however, is the well-handled bass from the subwoofer. So much so that when we remove the subwoofer from the equation, the soundbar on its own doesn’t quite feel like great value for money.

As we say in our Sony Bravia Theatre Bar 7 + S review: “While it still delivers clear vocals and convincing height effects, the sound is thinner and lacking the sense of scale and authority that we get when the subwoofer is added.”

Given that the package with the subwoofer is only £100 more than the regular soundbar, that really is quite impressive.

The soundbar has a neat design, with a stylish cloth grille and a 6cm height that should easily fit under most displays. The subwoofer is also fairly compact at 36 x 35 x 13cm (hwd), and can work with the grille either facing the listener or the side of the room.

There are plenty of great features, including full HDMI passthrough of 4K/120Hz, VRR and ALLM for the gamers out there.

There is also DTS:X support, while the Bravia Connect app allows you to fine-tune settings. This is especially important; while there is a remote control, we were disappointed to discover there were no physical buttons or display panels on the Bar 7.

The Sony Bravia Theatre Bar 7 + S is up against some steep competition, in the form of the Award-winning Sonos Arc Ultra, but does boast a more agile and well-integrated bass. If you’re after a bargain soundbar package that doesn’t disappoint in the bass department, then the Bar 7 and subwoofer duo are a match made in heaven, especially with £100 off at Sevenoaks.

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Also consider the Sony Bravia Theatre Bar 9

Check out the best Sony soundbars

Best soundbars: options for every need, recommended by our experts

Well folks, it finally happened.

Sony announced yesterday that all PlayStation games released from January 2028 onwards will be available only as digital downloads; physical disc production will end.

This, unsurprisingly, has rubbed everyone the wrong way. Including more than 6000 angry gamers in the comments section of the PlayStation Blog post that announced the change, as well as on the brand’s various social media pages.

Sony has also been mocked by the likes of Domino’s Pizza. We are even seeing gamers dig up a satirical video made by Sony teaching gamers how to share and resell their games made in 2013 after Microsoft famously tried to implement a system that locked discs to individual users’ Xbox consoles.

We don’t blame them. This decision – which, according to Sony, has been made to “adapt to consumer trends as the general preference for digital media significantly outpaces physical discs” – is without doubt detrimental not only to gamers, but also to cinephiles who value the 4K Blu-ray format.

I’m willing to bet that the PS5 is the best-selling 4K Blu-ray player on the market currently, and that’s mostly because competition isn’t exactly fierce.

Sony and Panasonic are the only mainstream manufacturers offering 4K disc players at the moment – and, one incredibly minor refresh last year from Sony apart, neither has put out a truly new 4K player in years.

While I’m not betting the house on every PS5 owner tapping into the high-resolution disc format for their films and TV shows, the PS5 has felt like a lifeline for the format for quite some time.

The multipurpose nature of its ability to play games and movie discs has really added to its appeal in the world of home cinema, even if it’s missing some AV-focused features such as Dolby Vision HDR support.

But with this change, I think it’s safe to assume that the next-generation PlayStation console will be a digital-only affair.

Sony soft-launched that concept with the PS5 Pro, when it offered the console only without the disc drive, and required customers to purchase a drive separately as an accessory.

It now seems that the company was laying the foundation for this recent announcement – and we fear that the PS6, which is expected to launch next year, could forgo the optional disc drive entirely.

While this will be a crushing blow to 4K Blu-ray fans such as myself – need I remind everyone that physical PS5 game releases come on 4K Blu-ray discs too – this is also a huge blow to consumers in general.

You can forget lending a game to your friend, or selling it on when you have finished playing it. Likewise, those who prefer to buy games on the second-hand market to save money (gaming isn’t a cheap hobby after all) will be out of luck from 2028 onwards.

Historically, Sony has come under scrutiny for the pricing of games on the PlayStation Store. It has even faced lawsuits for allegedly charging gamers unfair digital fees.

This announcement is especially galling after the recent news that, in September, more than 550 films and TV shows will be removed not only from the PlayStation Store, but also from the libraries of people who bought them.

This is due to a licensing agreement between Sony and Studio Canal ending – and it appears as though refunds will not be issued.

This is where my biggest issue lies. I tend to buy my PS5 games on disc for this very reason; so that I own them outright, and they can’t be taken away from me at a moment’s notice and with no compensation.

From 2028, I won’t have that option, and that certainly doesn’t sit well with me. As someone who is constantly vouching for physical media – especially 4K Blu-ray – I’m really discouraged by Sony’s choice. It certainly means that I won’t be rushing out to buy a PlayStation 6 in the same way I did with the PS5.

Overall, this announcement feels more like a punch to the gut for consumers, and I’m not buying Sony’s reasoning.

If it really wants to “drive innovation in how players can access games and provide choices as to where players prefer to purchase new games”, I would suggest it changes its viewpoint on physical media.

MORE:

Read our full Sony PlayStation 5 review

Check out our picks for the best 4K Blu-ray players

Which is the best 4K Blu-ray player, PS5 or Xbox Series X?

LG has launched its latest moveable screen display to deliver “a more flexible and enjoyable entertainment experience”.

That comes in the form of the rather clunkily named StanbyME 2 Max (does anyone else have Ben E. King stuck in their head now?), which expands on the first iteration five years after it came out.

The idea is to take the screen with you from room to room, as it features a detachable display that can be mounted on a wheeled stand. You can use it in either portrait or landscape mode, and you can use the screen-mirroring function with your phone.

The previous model was available in 27 inches; the new version bumps that up a little to 32 inches. This display supports up to 4K resolution, 60Hz refresh rate, and Dolby Vision HDR.

There is also a built-in battery that offers up to 4.5 hours of use before needing to be plugged into the mains, so it should last for at least the runtime of Oppenheimer (and then the start of Barbie).

In terms of audio, there is Dolby Atmos support to provide “an enveloping soundscape with richer detail”. The system is also powered by LG’s Alpha 8 AI Processor Gen3, which uses AI to deliver a virtual 11.1.2-channel surround sound.

When not in use, it can display artwork from the LG Gallery+, which will possibly make it less of an eyesore.

We are still waiting on UK or Australian pricing, but it costs $1299 in the US (around £970 / AU$1870). That seems pretty steep for a 32-inch display, even if it can be wheeled around the house.

Whether it will be a practical portable addition to your home or just a bigger screen to doom scroll on remains to be seen, but we are certainly curious to find out.

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These are the best TVs

Check out the best Dolby Atmos soundbars

Here is our LG C6 OLED TV review