ViacomCBS plans to launch its Paramount + video streaming service on March 4th. As the media group announced, the start will initially take place in the USA and Latin America. In Canada, CBS All Access will be renamed Paramount +. To Europe, Paramount + is supposed to be on 25. March come, but initially only in Scandinavian countries such as Norway, Finland, Sweden and Denmark. In the middle 2021 the streaming service should then also start in Australia.
Unclear is when ViacomCBS will offer Paramount + in Germany. The announcement for the launch of the streaming service only states in general terms about an expansion that “an extended offer will be available later in the year” – without naming other countries.
The offer from Paramount + is likely to be largely an extended version of CBS All Access, a streaming service that the group started in October 2014 first in the USA and then brought to Canada would have. A renaming was already in the room in May 2020.
Film and Series Catalog At Paramount +, ViacomCBS will largely use its own catalog of series and films, including Star Trek films and series. Viacom and CBS had split up 2006 and thereby split the Star Trek rights. After the renewed merger 2019 to ViacomCBS, the rights are now completely with the group again. So far ViacomCBS has licensed the streaming rights to the Star Trek films and series to other streaming services. In addition to Amazon Prime Video (Star Trek: Picard), Netflix in particular shows new and old Star Trek series, including Star Trek: Discovery.
It is unclear whether this will stay that way in future or Paramount + exclusively reserves the profitable content after the expiry of the contracts. Because it will be difficult without such profitable content to gain a foothold in the currently highly competitive streaming market and to cut a decent piece of the video streaming pie.
Disney + has also shown that it can It can be good not to license in-house content to other streaming providers in order to bind customers to your own offer. This is good for companies, but customers have to take out several subscriptions with different providers in order to be able to enjoy certain films and series.
In addition, Paramount + should stream sports events like the NFL, as previously CBS All Access, and local content at least in the US and Canada. ViacomCBS also announced in-house productions such as “The Offer” and “Lioness” last year, which should run on the new streaming service. Overall, the group can fall back on films and series from among others the brands Paramount Pictures, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV Nickelodeon and Showtime.
Details about Paramount + will be viacomCBS on 24. February notify. Then prices for the service should also be mentioned. (olb)
There is currently a real gold rush feeling among the streaming providers. Both Netflix and Disney + are seeing record growth in user numbers due to the ongoing corona pandemic. So it is not surprising if other film studios also want something from the streaming cake.
With HBO Max, the film and television company Warner Bros. has already sent its platform into the race. Paramount Pictures is now following suit and will be releasing its own streaming service on March 4th 2021 with Paramount +. For the time being, however, this will only be available in the USA, Canada and Latin America in cooperation with Viacom-CBS. It is still unclear whether and when the said service can also be subscribed to in Germany.
In addition, Paramount Pictures has currently licensed most of the works in this country. In addition to Netflix, the studio’s series and films can also be found on Amazon Prime. How long the contracts will run is currently not known. However, it can be assumed that Paramount intends to play its own content exclusively via Paramount +.
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Users in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden can the service from 25. March use. So Paramount definitely seems to have a global marketing strategy for the platform. Viacom-CBS also announced to the public on 24. February 2021 to present further details on the service.
With the introduction of Paramount +, the fragmentation in the streaming market continues to increase. It is currently unclear what effects this will have. At the moment it is rather unlikely that users will opt for several providers at once. It is unlikely that the operators will join forces in the future and offer their customers a combination subscription model. Even a ticket system that would allow only individual series or films to be streamed for a certain period of time would not be very popular with viewers.
All five seasons of The Muppet Show will stream on Disney Plus beginning February 19th, Disney announced today. With the addition, Disney Plus is now home to nearly every Muppets title — except two.
While Disney owns the rights to The Muppet Show, Muppets Most Wanted, The Muppet Movie, Muppet Treasure Island, The Muppet Christmas Carol, The Muppets,and The Great Muppet Caper,all of which are streaming on Disney Plus, The Muppets Take Manhattan and Muppets from Space are owned by Sony. As such, Disney can’t host the entire Muppet movie collection. Disney will also make the fourth and fifth seasons of the series, previously never available to purchase through home video offerings, available on Disney Plus.
It’s a similar situation to Spider-Man: Homecomingand Spider-Man: Far From Home. Despite the fact that Marvel Studios (and therefore Disney) co-produced the film with Sony, Sony owns the rights to the series. That’s why the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe collection isn’t available on Disney Plus. Licensing rights! The bane of every subscriber’s existence.
Fans of Jim Henson Company’s entire body of work are in even more of a pickle. While most of the Muppets works are on Disney Plus, the entirety of Fraggle Rock belongs to Apple. When the tech giant decided to reboot Fraggle Rock, the company purchased the streaming rights to the entire series in order to have the full collection. That means anyone who wants to stream all of Fraggle Rock or every single Muppets title needs to do it in three ways:
Sign up for Disney Plus
Sign up for Apple TV Plus
Purchase Muppets from Space and The Muppets Take Manhattan through iTunes, Vudu, Amazon, or some other digital retailer. They’re currently $3 each on Amazon Prime.
This type of fracturing was always where subscribers, based in the United States especially, were headed. As more conglomerates launch streaming services to try to earn recurring revenue, there are more exclusivity plays. More exclusivity plays means there are likely more streamers to sign up for to watch every single movie or TV show in a franchise until all the licensing rights are bought back. Hopefully, eventually, Disney Plus will be home to every single Muppets title — the question is whether Disney wants to strike that licensing negotiation with Sony, and when.
If being able to watch any Muppets movie or TV show whenever possible means more to you than pulling up a site like JustWatch to see where something is streaming, just purchase them all. It’s a streaming-first world, but nothing beats ownership.
ViacomCBS is set to relaunch its CBS All Access service as Paramount Plus on March 4th, with a special event to introduce the new streamer on February 24th, the company announced today.
The service will also launch in Latin America on March 4th, followed by the Nordics on March 25th and Australia in mid-2021. The version of CBS All Access that is currently available in Canada will rebrand to Paramount Plus on March 4th, with an expanded offering being made available to subscribers later in the year. To better introduce Paramount Plus, and give a more comprehensive look at ViacomCBS’s overall streaming portfolio (that includes Pluto TV and Showtime’s OTT service), the company will host a two-hour event on February 24th following the company’s earnings call.
ViacomCBS CEO Bob Bakish previously announced in September that CBS All Access would rebrand to Paramount Plus, and noted in a later interview that executives decided upon the name because Paramount had more brand recognition than CBS. Paramount certainly has more name recognition internationally where the label has been used on more products (Paramount Plus already existed in some capacity in parts of Europe), but Paramount in 2021 isn’t exactly Disney or Warner Bros. As The Verge previously noted:
It would be one thing if the Paramount name was going to drive hordes of people to sign up because Paramount is synonymous with big franchises in 2020. Franchises like Marvel, Pixar, and Lucasfilm are synonymous with Disney (alongside Disney live-action and animated films), so Disney Plus works. How many people are walking around going, “Oh right, the studio I closely associate with Mission Impossible, Transformers, and Sonic the Hedgehogmovies.”
Still, ViacomCBS is going to try very hard to sell Paramount Plus as a must-have service for people. Or, more accurately, ViacomCBS is hopeful that Paramount Plus will take some attention away from Disney Plus, Netflix, Peacock, HBO Max, Apple TV Plus, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, and wherever else people are streaming.
To do so, ViacomCBS is introducing a number of new originals for Paramount Plus. Those include The Offer, a 10-episode scripted miniseries about the making of Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather,a new iteration of MTV’s Behind The Music,and a revival of The Game. Plus, more than 30,000 additional episodes and movies from ViacomCBS’s various content houses (BET, Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central) are headed to the streaming service. This could only be done because of the merger between CBS and Viacom in 2019.
The new video streaming system of Apple has arrived all over the world for a few months and after having had the opportunity to subscribe for free for a whole year and then for a further 3 months, the Cupertino company decides to extend the period until July 2021. Here’s how to get it.
by Bruno Mucciarelli published 19 January 2021 , at 10: 21 in the Apple channel Apple
After a long wait last November 1st 2019 Apple has released its first video streaming platform. Apple TV + offers on par with Netflix TV series and streaming movies directly on a platform designed and created by the Cupertino giant. He made his debut during the March presentation 2019 and we have seen in recent months that the platform has only made original productions ready to compete with Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. The cost of the subscription has a price of 4, 99 euro per month , but those who bought an iPhone, an iPad, an iPod Touch or an Apple TV box could even afford to have a year of Apple TV + completely free . A year that then became more than a year since until a few days ago the company had decided to extend it until the end of February 2021 and now the news on new free period for another 6 months.
Apple TV +: How does it work?
In this case to be able to have another 6 months of Apple TV + free until in July 2021, no procedure is needed as Apple will update the subscription of users who already have it for free in a completely automatic way, without having to do anything manually. In this case, Apple TV + was given as a free subscription to those who had purchased a new Apple device among those supported by the list for the 2019. Once the promotion was activated, they could see all the TV series proposed by the Cupertino company for an entire year.
The deadline was therefore set for the month of February 2021 but clearly the pandemic of recent months has blocked any type of newly produced TV series and this clearly limited the proposal to users on the platform of new content. For this reason, Apple has rightly decided to postpone the paid renewal for another 6 months for users who have been lucky enough to subscribe for free in 2019. So everyone who has had it so far will continue to see the content on Apple TV + until July 2021 completely free.
Apple TV + : which devices are supported
Apple TV + can be viewed in different ways and especially from different devices. Clearly the simplest and most immediate is clearly the Apple TV app that can be found on all Apple devices from the iPhone to the iPad, Apple TV 4K, Apple TV HD, third generation Apple TV, iPod touch and Mac (on mobile devices iOS operating system is required 12 .3 or later, tvOS is required on Apple TV 01. 3 or later, macOS Catalina is required on Mac).
Not only because Apple TV + can be also seen on the TV and in this case, however, it is only possible if the television clearly supports the new update released by the manufacturers of smart TV in collaboration with Apple. Here is the list of all supported TVs:
Samsung QLED 8K Q 900 R and Serif TV (2019)
Samsung QLED 4K Q 90 R, Q 80 R , Q 70 R, Q7DR, Q 60 R and Q6DR (2019)
Samsung Frame TV LSO3R / LSORN (2018 is 2019)
Samsung 4K UHD TV RU 8000, RU 800 D, RU 740 D, RU 7300, RU 730 D, RU 7100 and RU 710 D (2019)
Samsung 4K UHD TV NU 8500, NU 7200, NU 740 D, NU 7300, NU 7200, NU 7100, NU 710 D, NU 6950, NU 6900, NU 6900 B , NU 6080 and NU 6070 (2018)
Samsung Smart Full HDTV N 5300 (2018)
LG OLED (2019)
LG NanoCell SM9X series (2019)
LG NanoCell SM series 85 and later (2019)
LG NanoCell SM series 83 and earlier (2019) Arriving
LG UHD series UM7X (2019)
LG UHD UM6X series (2019) Arriving
VIZIO P ‑ Series Quantum X (2019) Arriving
VIZIO P ‑ Series Quantum (2019 is 2018) Arriving
VIZIO P ‑ Series (2018, 2017 is 2016) Arriving
VIZIO M ‑ Series Quantum ( 2019) Arriving
VIZIO M‑ Series (2018, 2017 is 2016) Arriving
VIZIO E ‑ Series (UHD models 2018, 2017 is 2016) Arriving
VICE V ‑ Series (2019) Arriving
VIZIO D ‑ Series (2018) Arriving
Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K (2018)
Amazon Fire TV Stick ?? Gen 2 (2016)
Amazon Fire TV Stick ?? Basic Edition (2017)
Roku 4K TV A 000 X Coming Soon
Roku TV 7000 X, C 000 X, 8000 X
Roku Smart Soundbar 9101 X
Hon. ?? ?? Roku Smart Soundbar 9100 X
Roku Express 3900 X, 3930 X
Roku Express + 3910 X, 3931 X
Roku HD 3932 X
Roku Streaming Stick 3800 X
Roku Streaming Stick + 3810 X, 3811 X
Roku Premiere 3920 X, 4620 X
Roku Premiere + 3921 X, 4630 X
Roku Ultra 4640 X 4660 X, 4661 X, 4670 X
Roku Ultra LT 4662 X
Roku 2 4210 X, 4205 X
Roku 3 4200 X, 4230 X
Alternatively you can view the contents of Apple TV + via a browser by connecting to the website Apple TV . The browsers compatible with the service are Safari, Chrome and Firefox.
The online mail order company Amazon has applied for a broadcasting license. The responsible Bavarian regional center for new media has confirmed corresponding media reports heise online. The process is currently still running.
First, the industry magazine teltarif reported on the Amazon application. According to the teltarif, the Munich-based German Amazon subsidiary submitted the application last November. It is about a TV program called “Prime Video Live”.
Amazon has not yet commented on the application for the broadcasting license, the Bavarian State Center for New Media has responded with reference to the current Procedure also not commented on the background to the process. It is unclear whether Amazon is planning a linear TV channel or just a streaming channel.
Champions League at Amazon It is possible that Amazon’s broadcast license is primarily about the Champions League: Amazon will hold from the season 2021 / 22 Rights to broadcast Tuesday evening games of the premier football league exclusively in Germany. A broadcast license may be required for such live broadcasts.
The usual on-demand offers from Amazon do not require authorization because they are not classified as broadcasting under the Interstate Media Treaty. However, Amazon already owned the rights for audio live streams and video transmissions of Bundesliga games. In addition, the mail order company on Amazon Prime Video works with the sports livestream provider DAZN, who has already 2019 received a broadcast license from the Berlin-Brandenburg media authority.
The State Media Treaty replaced the State Broadcasting Treaty on November 7th 2020. It softens the boundaries between the media forms: For example, the same rules now apply to live streamers on Internet platforms as to television.
The Amazon products are back on offer starting from new Echo Dot 4th gen. Discount also for the always highly requested Echo Show 8 . And watch out for the various Fire TV Stick because they enable very powerful features on all Smart TVs: all versions now on offer! All offers here .
Brand new Samsung Galaxy S 21 available for pre-order : Galaxy S 21 5G, Galaxy S 21 + 5G and Galaxy S 21 Ultra 5G. Attention because by entering the promotional code S 21 TRADEIN in the cart after selecting the Galaxy S version 21 5G you get one discount of 100 Euro .
SUPER, while stocks last: Huawei P 30 Lite New Edition has Google services, 6GB RAM, 256 GB of storage, great cameras even with wide angle and AI , dual SIM. They finish quickly! Xiaomi Poco X3 128 GB at a great price and with availability for today. Hurry up, because it’s one of the most requested smartphones now on Amazon. There is also on offer Huawei Redmi Note 9 Pro , in the version 6GB / 128 GB !
Follow us on ours Instagram channel , many news coming soon !
They start to arrive with the dropper but there are: here some laptops with excellent features and really ok price . Here are two HP with display from 15, 6 inch Full HD: CPU Intel Core i5- 1035 G1 , RAM 8GB , SSD from 512 GB or 256 GB (here is the reason for two different prices).
Amazon offers with a big discount Realme X 50 Pro with 8Gb of memory and 256 GB of storage, together with 5G support: a top of the range at a mid-range price. Price super also for realme 7 Pro : display uper AMOLED 6.4 “, Snapdragon 720 G , 8GB RAM + 128 GB ROM , Sony quad camera from 64 MPixel + camera Selfie 32 MPixel !
Here are today’s offers concerning iPhone and AirPods! Pay particular attention to iPhone 12 from 256 GB in Blue color .
SSD Samsung 970 PRO PCI Express x4 from 3500 Megabytes per second at a great price, record low!
OR Lightning bolt! Mini PC with AMD RYZEN 5 3550 H and Radeon Vega 8 graphics card, 16 GB of RAM DDR4 (2 x 8Gb) and 512 Gb PCle SSD M.2. Valid for a few more hours.
Attention also to Xiaomi Band 5 under 30 EUR!
The bundle consisting of Echo Dot and the two Philips Hue Color Smart Bulbs and Fire TV Cube , the fastest and most powerful device in the Fire TV family. Returning to smartphones, check the price of Samsung Galaxy A 12 as regards entry-level.
The always in demand robot vacuum cleaners are back on offer Ecovacs Deebot Ozmo 950 is 905 , among the most complete and reliable in their product category.
Child seat Cybex with device anti-abandonment Tippy Pad for minors from 0 to 4 years, now on offer. All the offers on Cybex car seats (and there are many …) here.
The price of Oculus Rift S , the Reality viewer, remains very low, given the value of the product Virtual to connect to PC.
Fitbit Inspire 2 is an intuitive fitness tracker that offers continuous heart rate tracking , activity and sleep monitoring, up to 10 days of autonomy and more. Now on sale.
SanDisk Cruzer Glide USB Sticks at excellent prices . Reliable storage for photos, videos, music and other multimedia files with password protection and encryption of your private files with SanDisk SecureAccess software. Lightweight design with retractable USB connector.
Great for anything : for gaming, for working, for video editing … for all! 120 Euro less than normal for MSI Prestige 15 TO10 SC – 002 IT, notebook 15, 6 “Full HD, Intel Core i7 10710 U, 13 GB RAM, 512 GB NVMe SSD, Nvidia GTX 1650 Max-Q GDDR5 4GB.
Great price today for the great Samsung TV from 65 “TU series 8070 !
Don’t miss these great hair clipper beard rule Braun ! Caffitaly Compatible Yespresso Capsules now at a super price!
But there are also great products Philips ! Here only two examples, but a really interesting Philips promo is active!
Back on offer OnePlus NORD , equipped of a great display 6, 44 ” AMOLED with an update frequency of 90 Hz and Quad-Rear camera system.
Pay attention to the balances on brand shoes !!! Other examples? All offers Timberland between 50 and 100 Euros can be found here, but there are also Geox and Clarks, Adidas and Nike !
Different offers on Oral-B electric toothbrushes , available in various versions, with spare heads and different assortments.
Super price for headphones Sony WH-CH 510 , but also the very good Sabrent PCIe 3.0×4 from 256 GB less than 50 Euro doesn’t joke. The price of the 2.5-inch Seagate external hard drive (no power supply, USB is enough) is really low 4TB !
Disposable face masks on offer on Amazon : we have two packs of 50 pieces and the special washable cotton solution with the hair band. It is also worth buying on Amazon the antibacterial hand sanitizing gel .
Verifying how oxygenation is going in the blood, the oximeter can provide an indication of how the lungs are working.
Huawei P 30 Lite New Editon is really a bargain: 6GB of RAM, 256 GB of storage, active Google services , great camera and also the world’s highly regarded AI ecosystem Huawei / Honor. It would be a shame not to take advantage of it.
There are two very good, high quality TVs on offer, Sony brand. Un 55″ it’s a 65 “, lowest price ever .
Also in promotion AVM FRITZ! Repeater 600 International. Always staying at home AVM FRITZ! strong price cut for FRITZ! Box 6820 LTE , the famous router for LTE connections from the German company.
Great offers Sennheiser : three models, all excellent, super discounted !
Even the Surface PRO X models with 128 is 256 GB now on sale.
Big discounts on various headphones Jabra .
An idea that is always appreciated are Gift Vouchers Amazon , freely configurable as regards the amount.
Staying at Amazon, they are on offer Echo Show 5, Echo Flex and Echo Auto .
Also worth noting are these excellent smartwatches as well as one of the FreeBuds models 3 in promotion.
Shoes! The price varies according to the number
Here are the two electric scooters now on offer on Amazon, both from the Ninebot brand.
Apple Mac Book Pro 13 latest model, in versions with 1TB SSD or 512 GB, with 200 Euro discount . Check out the Apple store!
The discount goes up to 300 EUR for MacBook Pro 16!
The Promo of
is back Amazon Music Unlimited : 3 months of FREE music for listen to millions of songs in an unlimited way and without advertising Click here for all the details
Remember that now Amazon Prime Student is also available: the same Prime services but at half price for students! Try it for free!
Homeschooling can be a challenge at the best of times and there’s no shame in tapping out whenever you need your sanity and switching on the TV, particularly when there’s such a wealth of excellent educational TV shows available on the likes of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, BBC iPlayer and YouTube.
Watch iPlayer from abroad
If you’re a UK citizen trying to access all of the best educational TV shows from abroad, then you’ll need to use a VPN to avoid getting blocked. There are plenty to choose from but both NordVPN and ExpressVPN offer particularly good services and very low prices.
Whether you’re a video service subscriber, a pay-per-view renter or you’d like to own an educational TV series, we have options for you below covering topics including maths, English, geography, history, art, the sciences and more. If you’re stuck abroad but trying to access your US educational shows or the best homeschooling programmes on iPlayer, then don’t forget to use a VPN.
There’s the best of the BBC and homeschooling shows from further afield too, and make sure to check out the BBC’s children’s section on the iPlayer.
Whatever TV shows you’d like to stream with your kids at home, we’ll show you how to do it wherever you are in the world. Now pay attention and no talking back there. You might learn a thing or two.
The best 4K movies and TV shows to watch right now
Deadly 60 (wildlife, primary)
Join naturalist Steve Backshall on his journey round the world as he searches for the 60 deadliest creatures on the planet. Each series takes us to another continent for Backshall to scour. Not every predator he meets makes the grade but all provide an excellent education on animal physiology and behaviour. Prepare to engage with the likes of the Yellow Anaconda, the Wind Scorpion, Lion Fish and many, many more. As for your host, think Steve Irwin with added British reserve.
iPlayer | Amazon
Horrible Histories (History, primary)
With ten years and five seasons under its tunic, Horrible Histories is quite simply the very, very best history show around. To say that it’s funny and informative is a double understatement.
Covering topics from the Celts to the World Wars with accuracy and humour, it’s a rip roaring watch for the whole family. You can pay for it or buy it on all sorts of services but you can watch three seasons free of charge on iPlayer, too. Oh, and when you’re done with that lot, there’s also a film.
iPlayer | Amazon
TED ED (all subjects, all ages)
TED isn’t just for adults. Add another two letters and you get the child-focused version of the inspirational lectures platform. The best place to begin is the TED ED website and then sign yourself up to the daily newsletter which has been launched in response to the worldwide need for home schooling. Each day you’ll get video lesson suggestions and playlist options dropped into your inbox.
There are topics of all kinds for all ages including riddles, why venomous animals live in warmer climates, the chemistry of skunk spray, how bird vomit helps us understand history and much, much more. Just bear in mind that videos are short, so have a few cued up.
YouTube
The Great Greek Myths (mythology, secondary)
Pretty racy from the off, these excellent and engrossing stories of the Ancient Greek gods are very much for those already familiar with the birds and the bees. There are 20 x 26-minute episodes covering some of the major stories in the pantheon, including the birth of the gods, Zeus’s loves, Prometheus, Orpheus, Daedalus and Icarus and, of course, Heracles.
Each is a mix of animation, classical paintings and sculptures, all topped by a serious-sounding voice-over with the fascinating story to tell. We challenge you not to get hooked. It’s all free and available in HD on Prime Video.
Prime Video
Team Umizoomi (Maths, pre-school/KS1)
Join Geo, Milly and Bot on their mathematical adventures around Umi City. These fun, friendly episodes focus on recognising patterns, identifying shapes and basic arithmetic in a bright, colourful and morally palatable world.
Watch out for the brilliant Shape Bandit episode and anything featuring the deep-voiced Umicar. You’ll find four seasons available to buy and three for those with Prime Video subscriptions.
Prime Video | Google Play
10 of the best musical soundtracks to test your speakers
Go Jetters (Geography, pre-school/KS1)
Disco plus Ge-Force equals a high-concept geography-based TV show for younger children which manages educate on the sly. Your young ones will be captivated by the action of the Go Jetter Academy explorers and very amused by the failings of arch-nemesis Grandmaster Glitch, but they’ll also be able to tell you all about the Pyramids and the Leaning Tower of Pisa once they’re done. Of course, it’s all about Ubercorn the disco unicorn, really.
iPlayer | Netflix | Amazon
Planet Earth / Blue Planet (Biology, all ages)
There are two seasons apiece of these epic David Attenborough natural world shows, and it doesn’t matter if you’ve already seen them before. It’s time to watch again. Both the Blue Planet and Planet Earth offer brilliant opportunities to discuss topics from zoology to ecology.
Naturally, there’s a focus on anatomy and animal behaviour but they’re a brilliant way to foster positive attitude towards caring for the world around us.
Save the Netflix Our Planet series for when 4K comes back.
iPlayer | Google
Blaze and the Monster Machines (Physics, pre-school/KS1)
The characters are a bit two-dimensional and the world’s all a bit happy and shiny, but find us another show which has a child-friendly song about friction. Blaze and the Monster Machines centres on a group of friendly monster trucks who like nothing more than racing around jump tracks while explaining some really quite complicated physics concepts in a nice, easy way. Also features maths.
Four seasons available on Prime Video with five to buy on Google Play.
Prime Video | Google Play
Art Ninja (Art, primary)
Bristol-based Ricky Martin, aka the Art Ninja, can offer 40 episodes worth of art classes for the home-schooling parent and their protégé.
Each show has a theme and consists of lots of short makes, including some done in under a minute. The idea is to do things quickly and easily with lots of bang for your buck, making art into a bit of fun rather than projects to labour over.
iPlayer
Operation Ouch (Human Biology, primary)
Twins – and actual doctors – Dr Chris and Dr Xand van Tulleken have amassed a whole 94 episodes worth of top-notch experiments, facts and giggles about the human body.
The pair follow paediatric Accident and Emergency personnel and patients at working hospitals in Manchester, Liverpool and the West Midlands, and have managed to create one of the very best pieces of educational TV out there. Dig in.
iPlayer |Prime Video | Google Play
Abstract: The Art of Design (DT, secondary)
This utterly mind-blowing and beautifully shot TV show is guaranteed inspiration for any older student interested in design. Each episode follows a top designer in their field (and there are only 16 of them so far so make sure to ration them). They include a graphic designer, illustrator, photographer, automotive designer and a Nike shoe designer. It’ll wow your kids and make you feel like you’ve failed at life.
Netflix
Explained (Culture, secondary)
A superb watch for adults and older children alike, these brilliantly-produced short documentaries make a fascinating and grown-up entry point into society. Each of the 30 episodes covers a topic of the zeitgeist, which is guaranteed to make the viewer think twice about popular culture and their behaviour as an individual within it.
Themes include eSports, cryptocurrency, cloning, the racial wealth gap and why women are paid less. You may wish to avoid the ones about weed and the female orgasm if you’re watching with younger viewers.
Netflix
The Twilight Zone (English/Drama, secondary)
There are few finer examples of the short story form than those of the original Twilight Zone. Begin by discussing what a short story is all about and then watch any of the over 100 episodes, find out what it is about human nature they’re getting at and if, and why, they work.
Don’t miss Nightmare at 20,000 Feet with William Shatner, or Eye of the Beholder. When you’re done with those, try the 19-disc set of the Tales of the Unexpected on DVD.
YouTube
The Body Coach TV (PE, all ages)
Not exactly a TV show, but Joe Wicks, known as The Body Coach, is one of YouTube’s many fitness stars who are promising to become your kid’s new PE teacher.
Don’t be put off by the abs: Wicks is going to keep things basic for his 9am live sessions which are focused on getting your kids moving, feeling energised, positive, and optimistic. Expect routines aimed at pre-schoolers all the way up to secondary. Adults can get in on the action too – if they don’t mind embarrassing themselves.
YouTube
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Netflix increases the prices for the use of its streaming service in Germany. The standard and premium tariffs are affected by the increase. The basic tariff should still cost 7, 99 Euro per month.
Netflix raises the price of the standard tariff, which enables streaming of videos in HD quality and use on two devices at the same time, from 11, 99 Euro to now 12, 99 euros per month. The premium tariff will cost two euros more in future. The price for this is 17, 99 Euro instead of 15,99 Euro. In the premium tariff, users can watch videos in Ultra HD quality with HDR and Dolby Atmos. The price of the basic tariff remains unchanged and is still 7 99 euros for the monthly subscription. However, the quality of the video stream is limited to SD. In addition, streaming is only possible on one device, so this tariff is not suitable for parallel use in families.
The new tariffs are effective immediately for new subscribers. Existing customers are not yet affected. For them, the price increase should take place in the next few months. Existing customers will receive 30 days before the price increase of their subscription takes effect, according to Netflix.
Price increase due to rising costs Netflix justifies the price increase with increasing costs for the production of its own films and series. In the German-speaking area, investments have been “massively” increased in order to produce more German-language content. They want to keep that 2021.
The last price increase in Germany was two years ago. Before that, Netflix had already raised the subscription prices 2017 and 2015. The fact that Netflix leaves the basic tariff untouched seems to be due to the fact that the streaming service can advertise with a low entry price in comparison with competitors. With Amazon Prime Video, the starting price for a monthly subscription is also 7, 30 Euro, with Disney + currently still at 6, 99 Euro. However, Disney + increases the starting price from 23. February by two euros to 8, 99 euros.
During the coronavirus pandemic, people not only spend more time at home but also on their smartphones. They download more new apps than ever before and spend more money on them. This comes from statistics from the market analysis company App Annie.
According to this, users last year 218 Billions of new mobile apps downloaded, seven percent more than 2019. Mobile phone users in the app stores from Apple, Google and the Android derivatives in China have a total of 143 billion US Dollars (about 125 million euros after the annual mean exchange rate), an increase of 20 percent. The average mobile phone time around the world is 4 hours by the same percentage and 10 Minutes increased daily.
Mobile phone usage in Europe below average Users in Europe spend less time on Cell phone than the global average. In Germany, for example, it was only a little over two and a half hours a day. But that’s ten minutes more than 2019.
According to the Statistics last year 2.2 billion new apps downloaded and in the app stores of Apple and Google 3, 12 billion dollars (2, 45 billion euros) spent. In Austria it was 400 millions of new apps and 230 million dollars (202 Million Euros). Although Switzerland has fewer inhabitants, users there 610 downloaded millions of new apps and 240 million dollars (210 million euros) spent. German users were on average significantly more generous than Austrians for new apps, and much more generous than Swiss.
Mobile phone usage is not only increasing among younger users in Germany. Generation Z at the age of 16 to 24 recorded a year-on-year increase of 11 Percent increased usage time, the greatest increase. Generation X 45 also spent seven percent more time on the smartphone than in the previous year. Millenials aged 25 to 44 years have only increased their cell phone usage time by three percent.
Social networks, video streaming and delivery services Mobile phone users spend a lot of their time on social networks. TikTok is the big winner. The video portal with its short amateur clips was 2019 behind WhatsApp and Facebook in terms of usage times in Germany. 2020 TikTok was able to reduce its usage times to an average of 19 more than double hours per month. That is significantly more than WhatsApp (less than 11 hours per month) or Facebook (eleven and a half hours per month).
Video streaming on smartphones stopped last year at 40 percent increased. However, the use of YouTube has decreased in Germany, from almost 13 hours to around 12, 5 hours a month. It looks similar with Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. Users who are more at home can use larger screens such as TV, PC or laptop more often. Apps like the game streaming service Twitch and the Joyn Mediathek from ProSiebenSat.1 were able to grow last year.
Delivery services for food or recipe information were further winners for the most popular mobile apps in times of the pandemic. The usage times of delivery services in Germany have increased by more than half over the last year. According to the market researchers from App Annie, the coronavirus pandemic and the exit restrictions have led to cell phone use rising as much within one year as it did in three years.
We’ve had Sony’s Airpeak drone, Samsung’s butler robot for your washing-up needs, tuneable glasses that let you adjust lens strength, and pretty much a health-checking app for everything. Indeed, while CES 2021 has been a markedly different affair due to its online-only format, the consumer electronics show has kept up its tradition of being a stage on which the latest, greatest and craziest technological innovations are introduced.
But while it’s a soapbox for future, far-out concepts, it’s also a reliable launchpad for the next-generation technology coming to our homes. As has become par for the course, TVs have hogged most of the CES 2021 spotlight, with LG, Samsung, Sony, Panasonic and TCL all revealing brand new TV technologies and models.
No CES is complete without a slew of new audio products, though, and doing two-channel proud has been the likes of JBL and Sony – even if high-end hi-fi remains something of a distant memory for the Vegas trade show.
The first-ever virtual CES may have been a frustratingly hands-off affair, but we can’t complain about the quality of new products that have been revealed. From rollable phones and TVs, to wireless earbuds and next-gen OLED panels, here’s our round-up of the most exciting consumer electronics products and technologies; the best of CES 2021.
LG ‘OLED evo’ TV panel
(Image credit: LG)
LG is sticking to its OLED guns for (at least) another year, but the arguably necessary shake-up comes in the form of a brand-new OLED panel it’s calling ‘evo’. The OLED overlord says it brings such advancements that it represents the ‘Second Evolution’ of OLED (with the first having been the move to 4K HDR in 2015), and is no doubt the company’s response to critics who say OLED panel technology has reached its technical limitations.
By featuring a new luminous element to the panel structure, evo supposedly produces brighter, punchier and more detailed images than the OLED panels LG has previously produced for itself and other TV brands. While the majority of LG’s OLED TV line-ups in recent years have shared the same panel, this will, however, introduce more disparity in the 2021 LG OLED range – only the 4K G1 OLEDs (and presumably the higher-ranging 8K models) are set to get it, with the lower-ranging 4K A1, B1 and C1 series missing out.
LG 2021 TV lineup: everything you need to know
LG unveils G1, C1 and B1 4K OLED TV ranges
Sony 360 Reality Audio expansion
(Image credit: Sony)
Sony’s expansion of its 360-degree spatial sound technology is two-fold: it’s introducing two new 360 Reality Audio-supporting wireless speakers, and pairing the format with video streaming for the first time in an attempt to emulate an immersive live gig experience.
The Sony SRS-RA5000 (£500, €599) and SRS-RA3000 (£280, €359) are hi-res, wi-fi and Bluetooth speakers with omni-directional drivers that have not only been designed to make the most of the formatted tracks (which are currently available on Tidal and Amazon Music HD), but also to upscale stereo tracks, courtesy of Sony’s Immersive Audio Enhancement technology.
During its CES 2021 press conference on Monday, Sony showcased its 360 Reality Audio and video pairing with a Zara Larsson concert clip – an experience that could, to some extent at least, fill the gaping hole in gig-going caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Sony is currently in talks with music labels and service providers to begin launching streaming video content later this year, so watch this space.
Sony launches 360 Reality Audio wireless speakers and video streaming service
LG Rollable phone
Roll up, roll up! Or, in the case of LG’s new rollable phone, roll sideways, roll sideways. LG already makes rollable TVs, of course (and has a new one to show off, at that), but, perhaps unsurprisingly, it’s now working on developing a rollable phone. We’ve known this since September, however CES 2021 has provided our first look at the concept handset in action.
During the firm’s press conference, the LG Rollable was demoed expanding sideways to create a tablet-like device. As you can see in this clip and the one above, its screen smoothly expands into a larger one by rolling out from the opposite edge. Details are slim on the ground, but LG’s message to the phone industry (and perhaps specifically its Korean rival, Samsung) was clear: the future is rollable, not foldable.
Groundbreaking LG Rollable phone turns into a tablet in CES 2021 teaser
Samsung Neo QLED TV
(Image credit: Samsung)
The fact that Samsung is finally launching consumer-friendly versions of its MicroLED TVs this year is fantastic news… for the mega rich. Indeed, while the giant, modular displays the firm has dazzled eyes with for years are going to be offered in more living room-friendly packages and without quite the eye-watering price tags, they’re still going to be prohibitively expensive for most of us. A more accessible Samsung offering? Its equally exciting, all-new Neo QLED TVs (pictured above and top).
These premium TVs essentially pair QLED (quantum dot) technology with Mini LED backlighting. Our Samsung 2021 TV lineup offers a detailed lowdown on the technology, but in short the Neo QLEDs use extremely tiny ‘New LED’ backlights that, instead of having protective packaging and light-guiding lenses like traditional LEDs, use a new ‘micro layer’ that guides the light through the quantum dots (which provide the set’s colours).
The promise: no light leakage or blooming. Because the New LEDs’ diminutive size means significantly more of them can be packed in, we can expect even better contrast control than last year’s already impressive QLED TVs. Fingers crossed.
Samsung 2021 TV lineup: everything you need to know
Samsung announces 2021 ‘Neo QLED’ TVs with Mini LED backlight tech
Sony Bravia CORE video streaming service
(Image credit: Sony)
Sony has introduced its own movie streaming service, and while it’s not going to be a replacement for Netflix, it could well set a new standard for streaming picture quality.
The Bravia CORE catalogue offers “hundreds of the latest releases and classic blockbuster movies” (including the “largest IMAX Enhanced collection”), available to stream in 4K HDR on compatible* Sony Bravia TVs in up to 80Mbps quality – that’s almost four times the quality of Netflix’s 4K HDR streams.
Of course, that means you’ll need huge internet capabilities: a minimum internet speed of 115Mbps for 80Mbps quality (or 43Mbps for 30Mbps quality), according to Sony. If you’ve got the bandwidth you should have picture quality that more or less matches Ultra HD Blu-rays. That’d be a first for movie streaming.
*Sony lists eligible new TVs at the bottom of this page and also specifies how many free ‘credits’ (i.e. films) a TV purchase gets you.
Sony’s Bravia CORE streaming service goes big on IMAX Enhanced movies
JBL 75th anniversary hi-fi
(Image credit: JBL)
Hi-fi launches at CES have been dwindling in recent years. This isn’t hugely surprising considering, a) the increasing headline-stealing dominance of TVs, and b) the quality of the international Munich High End Show further in the calendar year. But there’s often a gem or two to be found – last year they were the JBL L82 Classic and NAD Masters M33 – and this year’s no different. JBL has kicked off its 75th anniversary on the front foot, using the world stage to introduce two new celebratory products.
The limited-edition JBL L100 Classic 75 floorstanders ($5500), of which there are only 750 pairs, are acoustically and aesthetically tweaked versions of the 2018-released (and well reviewed) L100 Classic, complete with special edition badges and commemorative plaques.
The second member in the inarguably classy combo is the JBL SA750 Class G streaming amplifier ($3000, pictured), which marries old with new by packaging streaming-savvy features into a retro casing made of milled aluminium and teak wood veneer.
JBL kicks off 75th anniversary celebrations with L100 Classic speakers
JBL SA750 is a modern-retro Class G amplifier with streaming
Google TV gaining momentum
(Image credit: Google )
Google’s Android TV has been the smart platform for Sony and Philips sets in recent years but now the search giant has a new software platform: Google TV. Already inside the latest Google Chromecast stick, we’re now seeing the first TVs that will run it.
At CES 2021, both Sony and TCL announced new models that embrace Google TV. Sony’s 2021 Bravia XR TVs – the Master Series Z9J, A90J, A80J, X95J, X90J, X85J and X81J – all support it. TCL has been less forthcoming about specific models, simply stating it plans to roll out a series of Google TV-toting sets in the US first, before expanding to other regions later in the year.
Google TV offers over 6500 apps and supports more than 30 streaming services. It’s slick, highly usable and has one of the best recommendation engines we’ve ever tested, so it should make for an excellent addition to forthcoming TVs.
More Technics true wireless earbuds
(Image credit: Technics)
At CES 2020, Technics announced it was joining the true wireless earbuds revolution with the EAH-AZ70W, which proved themselves fine performers. Twelve months later and we have a promise (albeit very little else) of the firm’s next pair, due “later this year”.
We don’t know whether this new model will be a successor to, or a sibling of, the EAH-AZ70W, but there was a hint that they could be cheaper: “Now, for the first time, that legendary audio experience is available to everyone,” announced the speaker during the Panasonic press conference.
Noise-cancelling was also mentioned, so hopefully we’ll have a nicely priced pair around the £150 ($150) mark to rival the Sony WF-1000XM3 and AirPods Pro and help stamp the brand’s authority on the market.
Technics teases cheaper wireless earbuds to rival AirPods Pro
OLED TV is going smaller (again)
(Image credit: LG / The Boys, Amazon Prime)
Just a few years ago, OLED TVs were limited to 55 inch and 65 inch sizes. Fast forward to 2021 and we have a choice of seven screen sizes. That’s in part due to the rising popularity of much bigger screens, especially in the US, but also recently due to the availability of smaller OLED screens too.
Last year, LG introduced the 48 inch size – the Sony KD-48A9 (which used LG’s 48in OLED panel) was our TV of the year, no less, and LG’s own OLED48CX (pictured above) also proved impressive, demonstrating that the panel technology could flourish in smaller screens too.
And 2021 could be the year we see a 42-inch OLED TV on shop shelves. LG Display has shared key specs on the displays it’ll be offering to TV manufacturers this year, and they include a 42-inch option. However, no TV brand has yet announced plans for a 42-inch model – so it’s one for the future.
Whenever it arrives, one thing looks certain: OLED isn’t done yet and will undoubtedly hit more homes, and maybe even more rooms in homes, if sizes and prices continue southwards.
LG Display announces its smallest OLED TV panel to date
The BBC Sounds app is now available on Sky Q. BBC Sounds – the successor to iPlayer Radio – brings more than 80,000 hours of audio content, including live radio shows, podcasts, music mixes and more.
To open BBC Sounds, just say “Launch BBC Sounds” using voice search on your Sky Q remote.
Once you’re in BBC Sounds, you can bookmark shows to listen to later, pick up where you left off listening on other devices, subscribe to shows and get recommendations for other audio content.
BBC Sounds is the latest in a long line of apps to be launched on Sky Q, a list which also includes Disney+, Discovery+ and Amazon Prime Video.
“We know the value our customers place on BBC content so it’s great that they can access the best of music, radio and podcasts alongside their favourite TV, in one place, easy,” said Patrick Behar, Sky’s chief business officer.
MORE:
Find out how to watch HDR on Sky Q
These are the best films and TV shows on Sky and Now TV
Become a Sky ninja: 18 Sky Q tips, tricks and features
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The Korean consumer electronics specialist has presented its new TV series G1 OLED evo. The G1-evo models should be in 55, 65 and 65 inches and also with 83 inches diagonal to be available. The diagonal extension went up – the – inch diagonal flew on the new evo TVs apparently out.
For this, the organic screens of the Gallery series from 2021 should be brighter shine, which should refer to both the peak luminance for HDR and the overall brightness of the OLED. Sony also promises higher luminance levels for its new OLED models and stated that the organic panels were additionally coated with a metal film on the back. Since LG is the only manufacturer of large OLED modules for TVs, this should also apply to LG’s OLED TVs.
LG optionally offers an elegant stand for its OLED TVs.
(Image: LG)
LG’s G1 models can be attached very close to the wall with a special bracket, the connection cables were routed downwards in grooves in the TV back. We do not yet know whether the wall bracket is optional or whether it is included with the models in addition to the usual feet. There is also an optional high stand with which the TV can be placed anywhere in the room.
Redesign for WebOS and remote control LG has revised its WebOS interface, the WebOS version 6.0 doesn’t seem so playful anymore. As with the new TVs from Samsung and the Bravia TVs from Sony, there is now a bar with recommended content, which is populated based on the series and films watched so far. The streaming platform Twitch is now directly available as a TV app.
Annoying: The bars for recommendations and app icons seem to occupy the entire screen, when you click on the home Button, the actual picture content is covered.
The new WebOS homescreen looks nice and tidy, but apparently always completely covered the current image content. This creates a lot of space for advertising and should annoy a number of users.
(Image: LG)
The shape of the Magic Remote has also been revised, a trackpoint has been integrated and a microphone button for the AI -supported voice control of the TV and built-in buttons for the Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa There are also buttons for Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney + and LG Channels – the latter is a collection platform for the apps and content used by the user.
The Magic Remote has got a new button design and a recessed grip the bottom.
(Image: LG)
The Magic Remote of the high-end TVs also has a built-in NFC chip: Using the Magic Tab, users should make their smartphone easier and faster can connect to the TV to stream content from and TV content to the smartphone.
Recognize and optimize images LG’s Alpha 9 AI processor in the fourth generation is responsible for scaling and image optimization. It treats the foreground and background of the scenes independently of each other in order to remove interference and also takes faces into account. In addition, the processor recognizes the genre of the content, the lighting conditions in the scenery shown and the ambient light in the room, and uses these parameters to optimize the display quality. The alpha processor should also conjure up virtual 5.1.2 surround sound from the built-in speakers.
8K gaming with 60 Hertz and G-Sync For gaming, the OLED TVs offer switching times of 1 millisecond, LG also promises a low input lag, without giving specific figures. The most important HDMI 2.1 features should be supported on all four HDMI inputs; LG was already a pioneer here.
According to the manufacturer, the new OLEDs are the first TVs to allow gaming in 8K / 60 Hertz with activated G-Sync and RayTracing. In addition, they offer the so-called Game Optimizer in their menu and allow cloud gaming.
In addition, LG’s OLED TVs are G-Sync-compatible, so Nvidia classified them as suitable themselves synchronize with the incoming graphics card signals via G-Sync to the same frame rate. The TVs do not have a built-in G-Sync module, however, which is reserved for a few expensive G-Sync monitors. In addition, the LG models can handle FreeSync, VRR and ALLM.
There’s really not much of a resemblance between the webOS software that runs on LG TVs and the Palm smartphones where the operating system had its beginnings many years ago. But LG’s TV interface has grown to be among my favorites for its efficiency at staying out of the way. When you hit the remote’s home button, a shortcuts bar with apps, HDMI inputs, and other destinations slides up at the bottom of the screen but doesn’t completely overtake whatever’s on-screen. Highlight a streaming app, and an additional row slides up to reveal recommended picks and what’s streaming.
Well, so much for that.
LG is giving webOS a major overhaul for its 2021 TVs. Version 6.0 of the software gets rid of the slide-up bar altogether and now has a full home screen that looks akin to what you’d find on, well, any other TV. The colorful webOS “blades” interface is completely gone. At least on the surface, everything looks more bland. It’s just a long list of stuff. You’ve got a hero area at the top with large banners, then “top picks,” followed by apps, home dashboard / your inputs, and a bunch of other categories.
Image: LG
LG says “the new home screen provides faster access to the most frequently used apps and streamlines content discovery with the ability to receive recommendations based on the user’s preferences and viewing history.” You can see a big “sponsored” slot in the top left there, so yes, you can expect some ads and paid placement recommendations on the home screen of your future LG TV. (LG’s latest Magic Remote will also have shortcut buttons for select streaming apps including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney Plus.)
There will be individual rows for shopping, sports scores, and the ad-sponsored LG Channels — where you can stream free programming — on the home screen. These were all separate areas of webOS before, but now they’re being moved into the spotlight. Unfortunately, LG told me there’s no way to hide rows you don’t have any use for. I really hope that changes.
LG doesn’t usually bring each year’s new version of webOS to past TVs. So if you bought an LG OLED sometime in the last couple years, it’s likely you’ll stay with the previous interface. But I’ve asked LG for confirmation on this since the annual changes aren’t typically this drastic.
Earlier versions of webOS were colorful and less obtrusive.Image: LG
I don’t want to give a thumbs up or down on webOS 6.0 until I’ve seen it first hand, but my early feeling is that it seems like a regression. Maybe it’ll only take a few days with one of the new sets to get a hang of this refreshed layout, and this approach will probably be easier to navigate and more intuitive for non-techies. But I’ll miss the touch of whimsy that webOS on LG TVs had until now.
On the upside, LG says the new remote will have NFC capabilities, so you can tap a smartphone against it to share content to the TV screen. And the list of voice commands for Alexa and Google Assistant has been further expanded in webOS 6.0.
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