Consumer Tech
- Recently Added
- Popularity
- Name
About 15 filtered results
by John Foldi · Posted
You just bought your first drone, the batteries are charged, and you're ready to run outside to see what it can do, but wait! Before you take to the sky, you must make sure you're following the law. As with most mobile devices that can interact with other people, wildlife, and public property, there are laws to ensure everyone’s safety. This article will go over, in general terms, the rules and regulations that apply to flying drones within the United States. By no means is this article complete or official, as drone regulations are complex
by Gabby Bloch · Posted
Dolby Atmos technology can be utilized in several ways with varying degrees of authenticity and sound resolution. This article will explore what it takes to get a bona fide Dolby Atmos home theater system and how you can set up a decent approximation without paying an arm and a leg.
AV Receiver and AV Processor-Based Dolby Atmos Systems
For purists, a true Dolby Atmos experience can only be achieved through an AV receiver (AVR) or AV processor (AVP) component-based system. This approach will give you the most control because it allows you to
by Gabby Bloch · Posted
For many of us, earbuds are an essential accessory, providing us with endless hours of audio entertainment and enjoyment. However, for some, the cost of prolonged use is a nagging itch. Why does this happen and what can you do about it? Let's talk about some of the potential causes of itchy ears and what you can do to stop it.
The Causes of Itchy Ears
Allergies
One of the most common reasons for itchy ears is allergies. That’s right. You may be allergic to silicone material, or at least the grade of silicone used by most earbud brands. This
by Gabby Bloch · Posted
When Bluetooth headphone technology first arrived on the scene, wireless headphones couldn’t come close to offering the same resolution as a wired headphone. And in some respects, this unfortunate fact remains true.
However, Bluetooth technology has undoubtedly improved since its early days, now offering Hi-Res Bluetooth codecs like aptX HD, aptX lossless, and LDAC. In short, you can now play Hi-Res Bluetooth audio without compromising too much sound quality. As a result, many audiophiles have accepted Bluetooth headphones as a reasonable and
by Jill Waterman · Posted
Did you know that power cords and surge protectors have a limited lifespan? It’s true! With continuous use, these products gradually become less effective, so you should try to replace them every 3–5 years. If this is a shock (ha ha), you’re not alone. There are a lot of not-so-obvious dos and don’ts when it comes to electrical safety, so let’s review with a surge protector and power strip rundown.
Safety Basics
We’ll start with some basic information about power cords and work our way into the nitty gritty
Posted
Matt Zefi shares five ways to improve your home entertainment setup. His tips will help transform your movie nights and big game watch parties.
0:00 - Introduction
0:25 - Short Throw Projector
1:21 - Speakers
1:49 - Apple TV and Google Chromecast
2:10 - Lighting
3:04 - Final Thoughts
What sort of tech do you have in your home setup? Let us know in the Comments section, below.
Posted
Budget-friendly and featuring great audio quality, the Sonos Era 100 and 300 will be welcome additions to your home sound system. The Era 100 is perfect as a portable speaker or in a stationary setup in your home. Meanwhile, the Era 300 offers 360 surround sound and is compatible with Apple Spatial Audio. Watch to see which one is right for you.
0:00 - Introduction
0:50 - Physical Upgrades
1:42 - Set Up Process
2:34 - Playing Music, Podcasts, and More
3:00 - Audio
5
by Rich R · Posted
Choosing the right TV size for your living room or bedroom isn’t exactly like determining where to sit in a movie theater, but there are certainly similarities. In movie theaters, people generally prefer to sit centrally, maybe a little front-of-center. Studies have shown that the same is true at home—central, on-axis viewing is preferred.
In movie theaters, we generally don’t like to sit in the front third of the theater because often, we’d have to move our head or eyes from side-to-side to follow the action; the angle at which we’re viewing
by Todd Vorenkamp · Posted
Not every specification for the products that B&H Photo sells requires a secret decoder ring. We all know what height, width, length, and weight are. Photographers are familiar with megapixels and ISO ranges. However, there is one specification that pops up across many product lines that you might not be familiar with: IP Rating.
You will find the “IP Rating” specification on products like hard and waterproof cases,
by M. Brett Smith · Posted
According to the CDC’s Guidelines for Cleaning and Disinfecting, routinely touched surfaces, such as your smartphone, heighten the risk of exposure to the coronavirus. To combat that risk, the CDC recommends regularly cleaning and disinfecting those same surfaces—including your phone. To guide you through the cleaning process, we’ve put together a general walkthrough that will illustrate all the dos and don’ts of how to properly disinfect your
by Jason T · Posted
Have you ever put on your favorite pair of earbuds and thought they sounded muffled? Not quite as crisp as you remember them sounding? If so, the fix may be as easy as giving your buds a deep cleaning.
Let's face it—most of us don’t clean our earbuds very often, even though we wear them inside our ears, for crying out loud. On top of it being a bad health habit (dirty earbuds have been found to have very high relative levels of bacteria on them), gunked up, waxy speaker openings can have more of a negative impact on the sound quality than
by Jason T · Posted
As someone who has been obsessed with all things audio for most of my life, I always find it interesting to hear what people have to say about sound quality. I find it especially fascinating to hear the opinions of people who aren’t in the audio field themselves. A great live sound engineer once said to me, “Most folks know something doesn’t sound right; they may not be able to tell you why, but they know something sounds off the mark.” I think there’s a lot of truth to that statement. Just ask my wife, who’s heard a lot of the songs I’ve
by Jason T · Posted
Most of us spend a ton of time at our desks working, and if you’re a music lover, as I am, there’s a good chance you rely on your favorite tunes to help you make it through the workday. As someone who works in pro audio, comfortable, isolating, great-sounding headphones that don’t tire my ears are essential to the work I do. But, even when I’m not editing a podcast or mixing a song, I still usually have my headphones on because I’m listening to music while writing articles or emails. So, in my years as an audio engineer, as well as a writer, I
by Rich R · Posted
In the 1960s, we saw starship captains flipping open a pocket-sized device and talking to their crew in orbit, and family members calling one another in full color through what looked like a TV (or at least, what a TV looked like at the time). Steven Spielberg once said, “There is no such thing as science fiction, there is only science eventuality,” and just 50 years after these shows originally aired, you can video chat with anyone around the world while waiting for a taxi, ask a speaker to play your favorite sappy love song, or tell your TV
by M. Brett Smith · Posted
5G, the next generation of wireless technology, is nearly upon us. With the first specs now established and multiple carriers announcing plans to launch 5G networks later this year, it’s time to get familiar with all things 5G. Don’t worry though: this won’t be some jargon-laden deep-dive. Instead, we’ll give you the 5 things you need to know about 5G.
What is It?
At its most basic, 5G is simply a set of wireless networking standards—think of them as rules or requirements a network must meet to be called 5G. The G in 5G stands for “generation