The team behind the Deus Ex games is tackling one of Marvel’s most famous superhero groups next. At its E3 2021 keynote, publisher Square Enix revealed that Eidos Montreal, the studio behind games like Deus Ex: Human Revolution, is working on a game titled simply Guardians of the Galaxy.
The game puts players in the role of Star Lord (aka Peter Quill) in a third-person action-adventure experience. In a unique twist, Peter will be joined by the rest of the Guardians at all times, with the likes of Groot and Rocket being AI companions. The story takes place several years after some kind of intergalactic war, when the Guardians are still a relatively fresh group, having been together for less than a year.
Eidos also says that choice will play a large part: as the team’s de factor leader, you’ll have to make decisions that impact the story. During one sequence, for instance, you’ll have to decide whether to sell Rocket or Groot to some kind of monster collector. (Curiously, the Guardians were previously featured in a choice-based adventure game from Telltale back in 2017.) Early gameplay footage shows a game filled with big shooter battles, colorful worlds, plenty of ‘80s music, weird alien monsters, sleek starships, and lots of banter.
This isn’t Square Enix’s first foray into Marvel, as the publisher previously released an Avengers game primarily developed by Crystal Dynamics (Eidos Montreal also assisted on that game). Despite a well-received single-player campaign, the game was saddled with live-service elements and microtransactions that were largely criticized. Guardians of the Galaxy, meanwhile, will be entirely single-player, with no add-on DLC or microtransactions.
Marvel games don’t necessarily have the strongest track record, though that has been slowly changing. Most notably, Sony studio Insomniac released an excellent take on Spider-Man, and followed it up with an equally excellent spinoff starring Miles Morales.
Guardians of the Galaxy launches on October 26th for the PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
Thermaltake’s Argent H5 Stereo boasts solid build quality, clear sound and a no-nonsense approach that will either meet your needs or leave you wanting more.
For
+ Very comfortable, snug fit
+ Affordable
+ Excellent sound out of the box
+ Attractive, minimalist design
Against
– 3.5mm only
– Mic doesn’t filter out background noise well
– No way to adjust mic volume levels on the fly
– Hi-res performance could be better
The Thermaltake Argent H5 Stereo is a no-frills headset aimed squarely at gamers on a budget who want to just plug in and play instead of spending time tweaking settings. It looks to compete with the best gaming headsets with a detachable 3.5mm cabling and a detachable mic for easy portability. With an MSRP of $65, the Argent H5 is also an affordable way to experience hi-res audio with great speakers and an impressively wide frequency response.
The Argent H5 Stereo’s sleek, minimalist, stealthy aesthetic does a great job of communicating a commitment to simplicity, and these cans are also very comfortable for long gaming sessions. The question, then, is whether or not this alone is enough to satisfy your needs.
Thermaltake Argent H5 Stereo Specs
Driver Type
50mm neodymium
Impedance
32 Ohms
Frequency Response
Speakers: 20 Hz – 40 KHz
Mic: 100 Hz – 10 KHz
Microphone Type
Bidirectional, detachable
Connectivity Options
3.5mm (single TRRS and split TRS)
Cables
6 feet (2m) 3.5mm cable
Weight (with mic)
0.8 pounds (370g)
Lighting
None
Software
none
Design and Comfort
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
The Thermaltake Argent H5 Stereo is fairly large in size and decked out in sleek, matte black. It’s a stealthy pair of cans, save for the Thermaltake logo in white on the outside of each earcup. The metal frame is stained a matching black, and the leatherette headband shows off the stitching, where it meets the memory foam padding underneath. The detachable mic matches the stark black finish of the rest of the unit, completing a minimalist overall look that will be at home in a wide variety of gaming setups and won’t look out of place in a professional setting.
The cabling is, likewise, very simple. A single cable that houses the headset controls and ends in a single 3.5mm TRRS plug attaches to the headset via a mini USB connector. Thermaltake also includes an adapter that splits into two 3.5mm TRS connectors for devices that don’t support audio input and output through a single TRRS jack. The controls consist of a single volume wheel and a switch that turns the microphone on and off.
Despite its imposing appearance, the Argent H5 may weigh less than you think at just 0.8 pound. There are lighter wired cans in this price range, and I have a couple of them on hand. The HyperX Cloud Core + 7.1 is 0.7 pound, and SteelSeries Arctis 1 Wireless is 0.6 pound, but the Argent H5’s weight still allows it to be comfortable to wear for long periods of time. The earcups swivel, letting you rest the headset on your neck when not actively in use. Adjustments to the headband are easy to make too, as the Argent H5 employs the industry standard push/pull mechanism.
The headband and the earcups both feature soft memory foam padding, with the latter offering just the right amount of depth to ensure that your ears are cradled but not crushed against the drivers. Ultimately, the Argent H5 has a tight, comfortable fit. It took minimal adjustment to get it to sit just right on my head, and its grip is firm but not suffocating. The Argent H5’s mic also features a flexible boom arm that’s easy to bend into the optimal position.
I came away from my time with the Argent H5 impressed by how comfortable it was for long gaming sessions. Simplicity seems to be the word used most often during the Argent H5’s design process, and this yielded good results from a comfort and useability standpoint.
It’s unfortunate, however, that Thermaltake opted for 3.5mm connectivity alone. While this does cut down on the amount of cables and adapters that have to be used with the headset, it also limits the overall utility of the device. It would be nice to also have USB connectivity, considering most phones have dropped the 3.5mm headphone jack entirely and gamers with a full sound system hooked up to their PCs will need to unplug some cables to be able to use the headset with the mic if their PC doesn’t support audio input and output via a single 3.5mm cable.
Audio Performance
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
The Argent H5 boasts oversized 50mm drivers that support hi-res audio with an impressively wide frequency response of 20 – 40,000 Hz. For comparison, HyperX’s Cloud Core is specced for 15 – 25,000 Hz, and SteelSeries’ Arctis 1 Wireless for 20 – 20,000 Hz.
For testing purposes, I loaded up 24bit .WAV (I also tested with some of my own mixdowns that were exported as 32bit .WAV files at 96K) and .FLAC files with sample rates of 96K and 192K and listened side by side using both the Argent H5 Stereo and the Steelseries Arctis 1 Wireless, which doesn’t support hi-res audio. I also did side-by-side comparisons with in-game audio and movies. I immediately noticed a much clearer, brighter frequency response. The Argent H5 definitely makes the jump to hi-res audio noticeable, especially if you’ve never experienced that type of audio before.
But when it came to other, pricier hi-res headsets, the Argent H5 Stereo couldn’t quite compete. Hi-res performance wasn’t in the same league as the HyperX Cloud Mix ($197 as of writing) or Asus ROG Theta 7.1 ($290 as of writing) in terms of richness and fullness of tone. And it can’t compete with the Asus ROG Delta S, our favorite hi-res gaming headset, which is more beefed out with a Quad DAC and MQA renderer. That said, the Argent H5 Stereo still sounds markedly cleaner than many headsets in its price range.
Compared to many gaming headsets, the Argent H5’s audio is very well-balanced, lacking the overwhelming bass that is de rigueur in the field. There’s a tightness to the bass response that enhances clarity, alongside a well-defined midrange and clean treble frequencies. The overall frequency response is natural and flat, with good separation between lows, mids and highs that allows audio mixes to sound as they were intended. The drivers do a great job of retaining clarity when they are pushed. Maxing out the volume didn’t produce any notable distortion, and these cans get quite loud.
Gaming audio gets high marks. The flat default EQ curve of the Argent H5 Stereo made sure that details weren’t lost in frantic firefights in FPS titles, like Doom Eternal and CS:GO, while more claustrophobic aural experiences, like Outlast, dripped with menacing atmosphere. True to its namesake, this headset does not offer virtual surround sound natively.
If you insist on surround sound, you’d have to enable Windows Sonic or some other third-party software. While the Argent H5 Stereo does play nice with Windows Sonic, thanks to it being outfitted with speakers that are up to the task, gamers who focus on competitive play may balk at not having native positional audio out of the box.
Music, meanwhile, pops through these speakers with excellent clarity, even at high volumes. The Argent H5 stereo rendered dense material, like Opeth’s Blackwater Park album, and more sparse, punchy mixes, like Snoop Dogg’s Doggystyle, equally well . At no point during my testing did low end overwhelm the mix, which can be a problem with gaming-grade headphones.
Movies likewise played well over the Argent H5 Stereo. The Battle of Helm’s Deep in Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Helm’s sounded thunderous without sacrificing clarity, and the sparse, subtle and eerie mix of The Witch shined.
The overall audio performance of the Argent H5 Stereo is impressive and with no way to tweak it natively, that’s a good thing. Gamers who like to adjust audio settings, however, may be turned off by the lack of options.
Microphone
The Argent H5 Stereo’s bi-directional mic is serviceable but not great. The frequency response is a respectable 100 – 10,000 Hz, cutting out boomy lows and shrill highs. But the mic doesn’t do a very good job of filtering out ambient noise. During gameplay and test recordings using OBS, the sound of my air conditioner was clearly audible, despite it being on the far opposite side of my room. Keyboard chatter was much louder than it should be too.
Additionally, the mic level by default is on the quiet side — about 3-5dB short of where I want it to be, based on my measurements of other headset mics I have on-hand in OBS software. Because of this, my teammates in competitive titles had trouble hearing me. Unfortunately, there’s no way to adjust the mic level on the headset itself. The inline controls only function as a means to adjust the headphone volume and turn the mic on and off. Adjusting the mic volume would require you to play with settings in Windows or the audio software supplied by your laptop or motherboard vendor.
Features and Software
Unlike many gaming headsets today, there’s no software for the Argent H5 Stereo. This is great for gamers who just want to plug in a headset without installing software to adjust settings. Most importantly, by default, the headset’s audio is mostly good enough to not require any further tweaking. This does cut both ways, however.
The mic volume is not adjustable via the inline controls and will require third-party software to manipulate. The mic itself is also unremarkable – clear enough to prevent complaints but not good at filtering out room noise.
Bottom Line
(Image credit: Thermaltake)
Thermaltake’s Argent H5 Stereo is a solidly built, attractive and great sounding headset that hits the mark when it comes to simplicity and ease of use. It also scores highly when it comes to comfort. These cans provide ample padding and have a snug fit that is free of wobble without feeling constrictive. The Argent H5 Stereo retails for only $65, so it’s also a great value.
Unfortunately, the minimalist approach the Argent H5 Stereo exemplifies also means sacrifices. Connectivity is limited to either a single 3.5mm TRRS or dual, split 3.5mm TRS plugs. Of course, many smartphones have ditched 3.5mm, and it’ll be an annoyance if your system’s 3.5mm jacks are already taken by your 5.1 setup. Without an adapter, you’d have to unplug your external audio system to use the headset.
And tweakers will want to look elsewhere, as there’s no native software for the headset. If you want more control over EQ and mic levels in the same price range, consider the SteelSeries Arctis 1 Wireless or the HyperX Cloud Core instead, which also offer more connectivity options. But you’ll have to forego hi-res audio.
The Argent H5 Stereo’s hi-res abilities make it a nice introduction for those new to the format, but for those serious about hi-res, it’s worth investing in something like the Asus ROG Delta S or the more affordable HyperX Cloud Mix.
But if you’re looking for a gaming headset that looks and sounds great out of the box for a very fair price, the Argent H5 Stereo is easy to recommend.
Whichever way you look at it, lockdown in 2020 meant more time at home. And with all those extra hours indoors, many of us took to music – and scouring the internet for records to add to our collection in particular – as a way to feel alive and connected.
Vinyl sales rocketed in 2020, enjoying their best year in three decades. In the UK, sales of the once-humble record climbed for the 13th consecutive year, and Stateside, vinyl revenue actually overtook CDs for the first time since 1986.
During what was an extremely difficult year, many British music fans went analogue in lockdown. Sales of vinyl jumped by over a tenth (11.5 per cent) year-on-year to almost 5 million (4.8m), as reported by the BPI.
But let’s get to the point – we’re here to celebrate Record Store Day 2021 after all. Do you think you know the vinyl albums UK music fans were buying? You do? Time to put your knowledge to the test, friend.
The biggest vinyl album release in 2020 came from Kylie Minogue, whose November album drop had shifted in excess of 21,500 units by the start of 2021. A staggering 13,500 of those were in its first week of release, where it went straight to the top on the Official Albums Chart and made Kylie the first female artist to score a UK Number 1 in five consecutive decades.
But make no mistake, this quiz concerns the top 40 albums sold on vinyl in 2020 in the UK and, as you can probably guess, new music hardly dominates the charts here. Only 17 of the albums in this top-40 list were actually released that year.
Fancy a few hints? Sure thing. You’ll get the name of the band, the year the work was released and a sentence or two about it – we’re not monsters (although we do love Gaga). Ready? You’ve got six minutes. Click ‘Play’ on the quiz and type your answers into the text bar that appears.
MORE:
Try another! See all the What Hi-Fi? quizzes
Just got a turntable? Read where to buy vinyl: affordable ways to start a record collection
If you have a deep-felt appreciation for vinyl, then why not share it with the rest of the world? That was just the sentiment of the many filmmakers and collectors who made the documentaries about the coveted record that are listed below.
From a look into the private record collection of one of Britain’s legendary radio DJs to everything you could want to know (and more) about the turntablism movement, these docs all capture, in one way or another, the essence of the culture of record spinning, record collecting and record shops.
Many are available to watch on YouTube for free, while others are available to rent digitally at home for a small fee or to purchase on DVD.
So have at them, vinyl junkies.
13 of the best Record Store Day releases for 2021
Vinyl (2000)
For the fans by a fan, Vinyl sees Toronto filmmaker and avid record collector Alan Zweig explore, not vinyl albums themselves, but rather what inspires people to start collecting them in the first place – and the emotional attachment, and in some cases obsession and excessiveness, the hobby can provoke. His own and others’ confessions really open a window into the psyche behind record collecting.
Watch Vinyl on YouTube
Scratch (2001)
Before going on to write and produce the HBO docuseries The Defiant Ones (which chronicles the legendary careers of Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine), American filmmaker Doug Pray made a feature-length documentary on the story of the hip-hop DJ, from the invention of scratching and “beat-juggling” vinyl in the ’70s to the more recent ‘turntablism’ movement. In Scratch, we hear from both underdogs and virtuosos who have changed the way we create and hear music.
Watch Scratch on YouTube
Find Scratch DVD on Amazon
John Peel’s Record Box (2005)
Exactly what it says on the tin, this hour-long documentary looks at the private record collection of the legendary BBC Radio 1 presenter. Filmed the year after Peel passed away, it digs into the ‘special box’ in which he stored 143 of his favourites. The film features interviews with John’s wife Sheila Ravenscroft as well as radio DJs and artists such as Mary Anne Hobbs, Sir Elton John, Ronnie Wood, Roger Daltrey and Michael Palin.
Watch John Peel’s Record Box on YouTube
I Need That Record! The Death (Or Possible Survival) Of The Independent Record Store (2008)
The culmination of a project that began as American student Brendan Toller’s undergraduate thesis, this bittersweet, but no less interesting for it, documentary investigates some of the reasons 3000 indie record stores closed across the US over the decade previous to its release.
Rent I Need That Record! on YouTube or Google Play Store
Sound It Out (2011)
A feel-good portrait of the last surviving independent record shop in Teesside, north-east England, Sound It Out Records, three miles from where director Jeanie Finlay lives. Sound It Out features the very knowledgeable shop owner, Tom Butchart, and documents what the shop means to its long-standing customers, including how it helped shape Finlay’s love of music and life-long vinyl obsession.
Rent Sound It Out on Vimeo, YouTube or Google Play Store
Find Sound It Out DVD on Dogwoof
Vinylmania: When Life Runs at 33 Revolutions Per Minute (2012)
A sincere love letter to the “object that has never lost its soul”, this doc explores the history, cultural impact and comeback of – and the fascination with – the vinyl record. Includes commentary from Philippe Cohen Solal (Gotan Project), Winston Smith (Dead Kennedys, Green Day record sleeve artist), Peter Saville (Factory, Joy Division, New Order record sleeve artist) and DJ Kentaro (2002 DMC World DJ Champion).
Rent Vinylmania on Vimeo
Last Shop Standing: The Rise, Fall And Rebirth Of The Independent Record Shop (2012)
Based on the 2009 book Last Shop Standing by record distributor Graham Jones (which we’re now promptly adding to our reading list), this British, crowd-funded documentary – and the official film of Record Store Day 2013 – is a pertinent (and often nostalgic) examination of the record shop’s sheer importance in Britain’s musical and cultural history. An homage to the independent, all the more touching with the hindsight of today’s vinyl revival, it casts record store owners and their loyal customers, music fans and journalists, and even Johnny Marr, Billy Bragg and Paul Weller.
Rent Last Shop Standing on Vimeo
Find Last Shop Standing DVD on Amazon
The Vinyl Revival (2019)
It’s a testament to the reversal of vinyl’s fortunes that, seven years on from Last Shop Standing, Pip Piper followed up with The Vinyl Revival, a 43-minute exploration of the record renaissance. In addition to long-established record shops owners, he visits those that are newer on the scene and explores the growing passion for vinyl among those born in the digital era. The film discusses how record collecting lost its image as a hobby for middle-aged men, becoming instead a pursuit of fashion-conscious consumers, and asks the question: if the upward trend is sustainable, for how long will vinyl remain fashionable ? It includes interviews from Nick Mason (Pink Floyd), Philip Selway (Radiohead), Adrian Utley (Portishead), Joel Gion (The Brian Jonestown Massacre), The Orielles and CASSIA.
Rent The Vinyl Revival on Vimeo
Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton: This Is Stones Throw Records (2013)
A Hollywood record shop gets the Hollywood treatment with this celebrity-studded documentary that celebrates almost two decades of avant-garde Los Angeles-based record label Stones Throw Records. The store was founded in the mid-’90s by DJ/producer Peanut Butter Wolf (a self-confessed “awkward white kid from San Jose”). Featuring in-depth interviews with the artists who put the label on the map, as well as testimonials from the likes of Kanye West, Snoop Dogg and Common, Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton is an energetic, underdog-story depiction of the left-of-centre hip-hop label.
Find Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton on iTunes
Rent Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton on YouTube or Google Play Store
In Wax We Trust (2016)
While touring his 2016 By Any Beats Necessary album in the US, French DJ Wax Tailor (Jean-Christophe Le Saoût) interviewed owners of small record stores across the country, asking them what drives them, day in and day out, to sell records in an increasingly digital, dematerialised world. The upshot is a 30-minute documentary, released to coincide with the album launch, that provides a soapbox to members of the record community that so persistently exist at its very heart.
Watch In Wax We Trust on YouTube
Desperate Man Blues: Discovering the Roots of American Music (2008)
Chronicling the life of eccentric record collector Joe Bussard (founder of Fonotone Records), Desperate Man Blues tells the story of America’s ‘real music’. At 84, Bussard has devoted his life to preserving the music of the American South, including blues, hillbilly, bluegrass, gospel and jazz, during which time he has amassed more than 25,000 records. The film includes treasure hunts, hilarious stories and quotes like: “There are no good jazz records made after 1927.” And it has a fantastic roots-heavy soundtrack featuring Charley Patton, Son House, The Carter Family, Uncle Dave Macon and Blind Willie McTell.
Find Desperate man Blues on Amazon
MORE:
Where to buy vinyl: affordable ways to start a record collection
The first drop of Record Store Day 2021 records arrives on Saturday 12th June. It’s that time of year when record shops stock all manner of rarities, reissues, special editions and exclusives produced especially for the big day itself. For us vinyl anoraks, it’s like Christmas, but without the family commitments. So better than Christmas, then.
This year, Record Store Day 2021 takes place over two days – the next is Saturday 17th July. Both days will offer another bumper crop of vinyl, with the first drop alone comprising no fewer than 347 releases. If you want to see what’s worth checking out without trawling the full list yourself, see our picks below. And if you do want to do the trawling for yourself? We’ve got you covered there too, with our full list of Record Store Day drop one releases. Enjoy!
The Doors – Morrison Hotel Sessions
The Door’s Morrison Hotel studio album turned 50 recently, and here for the first time on vinyl is a collection of rare session tapes from the original recording sessions. It promises to give a unique insight into the creative process that birthed Roadhouse Blues, Peace Frog/Blue Sunday and Queen Of The Highway, among others. The limited edition package was mixed and assembled by The Doors’ original engineer Bruce Botnick, who also put together the new liner notes. It’s limited and numbered to 16,000 copies, so better get in early Doors (sorry).
The Academic – Tales From The Backseat
Mick Jagger likes this Irish four-piece (he handpicked them as a support act for the Stones), and so should you. Their guitar-driven sound is uplifting and melodic, and tight as a drum – hardly surprising considering they’ve been playing together since school. This is their debut album, originally released in 2018, and now getting a special limited edition re-release on yellow vinyl. Very summery.
Warpaint – The Fool. Andrew Weatherall Sessions
(Image credit: Rough Trade)
Andrew Weatherall, the legendary musician and producer, who sadly died last year, was given access to the master tapes of 2010’s The Fool, with two of his efforts making the finished product: Baby and Undertow. For the first time, this Record Store Day edition brings together all the mixes Weatherall created while working on the project, including a never released before, finished version of Jubilee. A must for fans.
Belle & Sebastian – The Boy With The Arab Strap
(Image credit: Jeepster)
This is a reissue of the band’s critically acclaimed album, on green vinyl. Don’t know what an Arab Strap is? (Neither did the band, reportedly.) Trust us, don’t Google it. But do enjoy this excellent slice of indie rock.
Bernard Butler – People Move On
The ex-Suede guitarist’s first solo album gets a reissue for the first time since 1998, and it’s no standard repressing – this one comes on two 180g clear vinyl discs, marking it out as a Record Store Day special edition. Get it while it lasts.
The Chemical Brothers – The Darkness That You Fear
(Image credit: EMI)
Tom Rowlands and Ed Simon’s first new music since 2019’s No Geography is a proper summer anthem – an uplifting jam that provides a much-needed glimpse of hope. The single came out in April, but is getting another bite of the cherry for Record Store Day, alongside a B-side which is as yet unreleased. Exciting.
The Flaming Lips – The Soft Bulletin (Companion Disc)
This was originally only available as a promo CD, handmade by the band’s management and dished out to lucky media outlets around the release of The Soft Bulletin (one of The Flaming Lips’ best-selling albums). It has since been widely circulated among the fan community, and now is available as an official Record Store Day 2021 release. It features outtakes, alternate mixes, and radio sessions from the era. Essential.
Genesis – Live at Knebworth
(Image credit: Rough Trade)
This legendary concert was only ever released on DVD and as a two-CD set, but now for the first time it gets the full vinyl treatment. Each one is numbered, so you can be sure you’re getting a piece of musical history, and each sale helps raise money for Nordoff Robbins, a charity that uses music to enhance the quality of life for those with life-limiting illness, disabilities or feelings of isolation.
The Jaded Hearts Club – Live At The 100 Club
This supergroup is made up of Miles Kane (The Last Shadow Puppets), Nic Cester (Jet), Matt Bellamy (Muse), Graham Coxon (Blur), Sean Payne (The Zutons) and Jamie Davis. Their ambition? To mine the history of rock and soul music to create original interpretations of lost classics. And with a lineup like that, they’re better equipped than most to do so. This is a live recording of their first ever gig, at London’s legendary venue, and includes the hits Gloria, Have Love Will Travel, My Generation and Sunshine Of Your Love. It’s like the best wedding set ever.
Oneohtrix Point Never – Russian Mind
(Image credit: Software)
Daniel Lopatin’s experimental electronica has gained popularity since his award-winning soundtrack for Good Time and, more recently, Uncut Gems. He’s also grown in stature since gaining production credits for major pop acts like The Weeknd. For RSD 2021, five of his out-of-print works are being released on coloured vinyl.
Primal Scream – Dixie Narco EP
This rarity hasn’t been reissued since its original release in 1992, so it’s something of a treat. Recorded at Ardent Studios, Memphis, it picks up a lot of the themes explored in the preceding – and critically acclaimed – Screamadelica album; namely it’s a similar blend of acid house and country blues influences, with the same thrilling end result. There’s even a rare Dennis Wilson cover. If you missed it first time around, this is the perfect opportunity to right that wrong.
Thelonius Monk – The Custodian’s Mix
Step back in time to 1968 Palo Alto, before that town became a tech hub that’s home to Apple, Google, Tesla and Facebook. Then, legendary jazz pianist Thelonius Monk took to Palo Alto High School’s auditorium with his quartet to deliver an electrifying performance. This limited edition LP was recorded by an unknown high school custodian, so you’ll hear the concert as if you were right there in the audience.
Mogwai – ZeroZeroZero
(Image credit: Rock Action)
Mogwai created the soundtrack to the eight-part crime drama TV series ZeroZeroZero, and now it’s available exclusively on double white vinyl for RSD 2021. It’s only been available digitally before, and comes with a free MP3 download, should you want to listen to it on the move as well. But it’s of course all about the vinyl really…
View all the vinyl: Record Store Day 2021 release list
Apple is bringing one of streaming’s trendiest features to iPhone users with the debut of SharePlay in iOS 15 later this year, allowing FaceTime users to stream music, online videos, and movies together with friends. The move positions FaceTime to compete more directly with platforms like Facebook Messenger, Instagram, and Houseparty, which all offer ways to video chat while watching things as a group.It offers Apple a chance to hook a new generation of users on FaceTime — but the service is still missing some key integrations to make that happen, particularly for the teens most likely to use it.
SharePlay, announced earlier this week and likely arriving in the fall, will allow FaceTime users to share and stream media in real time from an iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple TV. It’s a neat tool for the pandemic era, and it takes inspiration from the watch party modes that many major streaming platforms — including Disney Plus, Hulu, and Prime Video, among others — added themselves in the last year. For services where it’s not supported, like Netflix, there are popular extensions that enable simultaneous streaming and chatting as well.
The goal isn’t to compete with those native platforms, though. After all, you’re still watching Hulu, just in a different space. Instead, the update puts FaceTime square against services like Facebook Messenger that dominate messaging and have already been trying to build out co-watching experiences, but without as robust of a service list as Apple has the ability to line up.
SharePlay particularly makes sense for the next generation of iPhone users, as teens are more inclined to watch videos on their phones. Video-based social media apps like Instagram and TikTok are immensely popular among teens, and an overwhelming majority of teens have access to these apps on their own personal smartphones. Video chatting is hugely popular, too, with a 2015 survey from Pew Research finding that 59 percent of US teens video chatted with their friends.
The introduction of SharePlay also jibes with Apple’s reported plans to make iMessage compete more directly with Facebook-owned WhatsApp by becoming more of a social network. It makes a lot of sense that the company would similarly invest in developments for its video-calling product as well, which is just a couple of taps away.
But if Apple wants SharePlay to be a success among the demographic of consumers most likely to use it, it’ll need to expand the number of apps that support it.
Apple said that at launch, Disney Plus, ESPN Plus, HBO Max, Hulu, MasterClass, Paramount Plus, Pluto TV, TikTok, and Twitch will be supported on SharePlay, which is a somewhat limited grab bag of streaming options. Granted, there’s plenty of time for that list to get longer before iOS 15 officially rolls out to users in the fall. And Apple told The Verge that SharePlay will be available to any streaming app that wants to support it, so we’re likely to see wider adoption down the road.
Some of the best applications of this feature failed to make their way into Apple’s initial slide of supported services, though. Netflix is perhaps the most obvious of these simply on the basis that virtually everyone has a Netflix login, whether they’re actually paying for it or not (at least until the inevitable password crackdown). But YouTube was not mentioned either, and neither company had comment to share about potential support down the line when contacted by The Verge this week. A spokesperson for Peacock, however, told The Verge that SharePlay support was on its “roadmap.”
YouTube, in particular, seems like a huge miss for Apple, especially where teens are concerned. YouTube hosts just about every digital media format imaginable — music, movies, news, personalities, tutorials, live feeds, etc. — but most importantly, it’s free. As video callers tend to skew younger already, apps with highly shareable content like livestreams seem like the best use case for SharePlay outside of live sporting events. That’s particularly true given that for paid services, each participant in a SharePlay streaming session will need a login for the app. After all, if the tool didn’t require credentials and allowed just anyone to drop in a FaceTime stream of content from a paid service, SharePlay would be a piracy nightmare.
But that’s part of what makes the practical application of SharePlay a bit of a puzzler. Streaming the game or a movie premiere could get expensive fast. If your friends are watching NFL coverage on Sling TV, you’ll need a $35 subscription to join in (assuming the content is included in one of the service’s base plans). If you wanted to watch a Premier Access release like Cruella on Disney Plus, you’d need to pay the $8 monthly subscription cost on top of an additional $30 early access ticket fee. (A spokesperson for Disney Plus confirmed to The Verge that SharePlay users still need to pay for access to watch.)
It’s hard to imagine that most users would pay for a service just to be able to FaceTime while they’re watching a title. Then again, based on recent media consumption trends among teens, maybe SharePlay is part of the future of how entertainment is consumed, at least for the younger subset of Apple users.
It makes sense that a company investing heavily in its services offerings would jump on the watch party trend, if not a little late, and it does feel like a natural way for Apple to not only stay relevant but also sell subscriptions and hardware — even if right now, SharePlay alone seems unlikely to balloon numbers for streaming services. Free, social-leaning services and streaming titans are most likely to see success with this feature, and livestreaming apps seem likely to perform best. But they’ll actually have to beon SharePlay for that to work. As it currently stands, many are not.
Frontier Communications, an ISP that serves around 3 million subscribers, has been sued by Warner, Sony, and Universal’s record labels for allegedly not taking action against its users who pirate music (via Ars Technica).
The record labels allege in their complaint (PDF) that not only did Frontier fail to disconnect people who repeatedly pirated, but it even encouraged them by advertising the ability to “download 10 songs in 3.5 seconds” and profited from the result. The labels also allege that Frontier ignored its subscribers’ piracy so it could keep collecting subscription fees, saying that the ISP valued profit over legal responsibility.
Frontier denies wrongdoing, telling The Verge that it has terminated customers when copyright holders complain. The ISP plans to “vigorously defend itself.”
The suit, which was filed in the state of New York, seeks damages from Frontier for its subscribers who have infringed on almost 3,000 copyrighted works after the ISP was repeatedly told about their infringement. A list of pirated songs (PDF) includes Thank U, Next by Ariana Grande, Verge (no relation to this publication) by Owl City, and Rich as Fuck by Lil Wayne featuring 2 Chainz.
The labels are seeking $300,000 per infringement, which would put the ISP on the hook for over $850 million. It’s worth noting that Frontier Communications emerged from chapter 11 bankruptcy last month — having to pay that much in damages wouldn’t be good for any company, but especially not one that’s just getting out of that situation.
Warner, Sony, and Universal have also sued other ISPs like Charter and Cox on similar grounds, winning a $1 billion award from the latter (though that case is still going through the appeals process). And over the past 20 years, the music industry has tried different approaches to curb online piracy, from suing individuals to working with ISPs to set up a strike system.
The approaches haven’t been particularly effective and have largely been abandoned, and it’s hard to foresee the tactic of suing ISPs working to stop music piracy. And, as Ars Technica points out, ISPs being forced to cut off pirates could affect other people living with them as well, denying entire households access to a fundamental part of modern day life.
Have you even made it as an artist if you’re not singing in a made up language for a Sims game? There’s a proud tradition of popular musicians like Carly Rae Jepsen or Janelle Monáe re-recording songs in Simlish, the in-game language of The Sims, and now, celebrated alternative artist Japanese Breakfast (Michelle Zauner) is joining their ranks with a cover of her single “Be Sweet” for The Sims 4 Cottage Living.
Zauner’s track is summer-y and eminently danceable, and it feels just the same underneath a trailer hawking more features for The Sims 4, even with the chorus transformed to “Ya wana baleesh da voo ya wana baleeeeeeeeesh”. It’s also delightfully weird in the way all covers in “Simlish” are — I just love hearing famous musicians sing nonsense! Check out the song in English (with an X-Files inspired music video) for a better comparison:
Simlish is a deliberately cultivated kind of baby talk, relying more on rhythm, emotion, and cadence than direct translation from one language to another, according to The Sims’ developers. There’s just something bizarre about hearing a song you love filtered through The Sims’ almost understandable, but totally inscrutable digital babbling. It’s even more strange seeing it happen in-person, like in this now-infamous Katy Perry video:
Lending some talent to a classic life simulation game isn’t Zauner’s only foray into video games either. The artist is also composing music for Sable, an upcoming Xbox and PC open world game. We just learned at the Summer Games Fest that Sable is coming out later this year on September 23rd, 2021.
Apple made several major Apple Spatial Audio announcements at its WWDC developer conference this week, but it seems to have held back a key feature, reports 9to5Mac.
On Wednesday a Reddituser spotted a new function called ‘Spatialized Stereo’, hidden in the iOS 15 beta. The feature is said to take any non-Dolby audio – such as a song from Spotify or a movie soundtrack from Netflix – and simulate the effect of Spatial Audio.
“The greatest thing about this is that it supports EVERY audio track,” wrote the shocked Reddit user. “Sure I’d pick Atmos Spatial Audio mixes over Spatialized Stereo every time, but for the moment there are only a dozen or so options for Atmos available on Apple Music, so this is such an amazing feature to have!”
Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos is a version of surround sound. It lets you use your AirPods Pro and AirPods Max wireless headphones to experience dynamic head tracking, which means means that the sound always stays relative to the screen, even when you move your head.
The Cupertino giant recently rolled out expanded support for Spatial Audio – it’s now available to Apple Music subscribers for no extra cost. Apple has also announced plans to bring it to tvOS and MacOS.
Spatialized Stereo is a different kettle of fish. It seems to be Apple’s attempt to simulate the effect of Spatial Audio without using Dolby Atmos. It works with any content but you’ll still need a pair of AirPods Pro or AirPods Max wireless headphones to access it.
Lucky enough to be on the iOS15 beta and fancy trying Spatialized Stereo for yourself? Hit play on some non-Dolby audio content and then bring up the Control Center. Press and hold the volume slider and then tap ‘Spatialize Stereo’. With any luck, the track should sound more like 3D audio, and less like two channels being piped into your left and right ear.
MORE:
Apple spatial audio: what is it? How do you get it?
Apple Music’s spatial audio with Dolby Atmos launches today
Apple Music lossless: which devices will (and won’t) play lossless and Spatial Audio
(Pocket-lint) – The Polar Ignite 2 is the follow-up fitness watch to the 2019 original. While it gives you all those key sports watch features, its key skills are to track your workouts and tell you the ones you should be doing next.
The relatively low asking price puts it up against the likes of the now older Apple Watch Series 3 or Fitbit Versa 3, but does the second-gen Polar deliver enough spark?
Design and display
1.2-inch IPS TFT touchscreen, 240 x 204 resolution
43mm case diameter, 8.5mm thick
Waterproof to 30 metres
Weighs 35g
The Ignite 2 is virtually identical to the original watch. It has the same-sized round polymer case, with a single physical button tucked away in the bottom corner, and a touchscreen controlled display.
Pocket-lint
That’s partnered up with a silicone strap with a traditional watch-style buckle that comes in two size options. Those straps are removable too with a simple pin mechanism, letting you quickly swap for one of Polar’s dressier options or a strap that looks a lot like one of Apple’s sport bands.
Polar is offering some more colourful options here too as well. There’s now champagne, blue, black, and pink strap options to go with the four case colour options.
The Ignite 2 is a light watch – at just 35g – and we’ve found it’s been very comfortable to wear 24/7. If you like the idea of a watch that doesn’t sit big and bulky on your wrist, then it’s got appeal.
The biggest design change over the Ignite lies with the more textured, grippier finish on the case. With the right case and strap combo, it gives a slightly nicer-looking watch than its predecessor, but it’s the smallest of changes where pretty much everything else otherwise remains the same.
Pocket-lint
Another element that hasn’t changed is the screen. It’s the same 1.2-inch touchscreen display that offers the same in the way of overall quality and viewing angles. It’s not as crisp, vibrant or as colourful as an AMOLED screen, but it’s a good enough screen surroundings to soak up your stats.
What isn’t so good is the still lingering lagging you get when interacting with this screen. It was the same on the first Ignite and clearly Polar hasn’t sought to improve things regarding the screen’s slightly delayed response.
Software and performance
Phone notifications, music controls and weather forecasts
Works with Polar Flow and third-party apps
As is the case with all of Polar’s watches (aside from a brief play with Google’s Wear OS for its M600 watch), it sticks to packing on its own in-house operating system.
It’s a software that pairs to your phone over Bluetooth and does offer the ability to pair up external Bluetooth heart-rate sensors. In the Ignite 2 you don’t get the ANT+ connectivity you get on more expensive Polar watches to widen the support of devices you can connect it to.
The software experience is similar to what you’ll find on Polar’s top-end watches, albeit with a greater emphasis on using the touchscreen to navigate your way around the interface. You can commence workout tracking in the same fashion, while swiping left and right on the watch screen will drop additional information around the watch face, such as current heart rate, activity tracking data, and a useful weekly summary of your training.
Polar has sought to offer more smartwatch features on the Ignite this time around, rolling out features that have already appeared on its Vantage series and Grit X watches. Along with the same notification support, you now getting weather forecasts, the ability to adjust the look of watch faces, and there’s now music controls here too.
Pocket-lint
They’re not groundbreaking features, but they’re ones that make the Ignite 2 more useful to have around when you’re not just working out. They work well enough, too, although displaying notifications still feels a little clunky. The music controls are easy to use and work with third-party apps like Spotify, though, which is good news.
Off the watch, your go-to place for setting things up is the Polar Flow phone app or desktop app, but this is a watch that will play nice with third-party apps if you want to bypass Polar’s own once you’ve set things up. Much like Garmin, there’s a lot going on in Polar Flow and it pays to spend some time to get to know where things live in the app and get a sense of what all of the extra training insights mean.
Sports and fitness tracking
FitSpark workout recommendations
Nightly Recharge measurements
Pool swim tracking
Despite its small stature, Polar still manages to pack in quite an impressive array of features into the Ignite 2. There’s built-in GPS, the same Precision Prime heart rate monitor technology used on its pricier Vantage watches, and a rich collection of training features like adaptive running programmes.
Pocket-lint
For sports tracking, you’re getting access to over 130 profiles – with activities like running, cycling, pool swimming the best served. There’s also profiles for HIIT and cross training, with a bigger emphasis on monitoring heart rate to measure effort levels during those workouts.
GPS signal pick-up was nice and snappy on our outdoor runs and distance tracking accuracy and core running metrics were in line with a similarly-priced Garmin watch.
In the water, however, the Polar wasn’t so good. Accuracy of tracking laps was fine on shorter swims, but accuracy waned noticeably over swimming longer distances above 400-500 metres.
Pocket-lint
If you’re hoping for a reliable heart rate monitor, then the one on the Ignite 2 performed well in most of our tests. On runs and home workouts, it was a few beats per minute (bpm) out from a Garmin HRM-Pro chest strap monitor. For something more intense like interval training, that accuracy and ability to keep up with the sudden spikes and drops in heart rate shows though. It’s not a terrible performer, but if you yearn for supreme accuracy, take the opportunity to pair up an external sensor.
One of the standout features on the Ignite 2 is FitSpark. This is Polar’s smart suggested workouts feature that looks at the types of sessions you’ve logged with your watch to recommend workouts you should do around them. So it may suggest working on strength if you’ve been smashing the cardio lately, or adding some mobility work to better balance your training.
It works really well too, clearly instructing you what to do during the workouts and will start a countdown and send a vibrating buzz to let you know when to prepare for the next workout. It’s not a feature unique to this Polar watch, but it’s one that’s great to use if you’re not sure about what to do when it comes to training.
Pocket-lint
If you’re yearning for some of the more advanced training analysis you get on Polar’s other watches, you can still get details on your cardio load status and you can learn more about whether you’re under- or over-training. You can now also understand what’s fuelling your run with the new Energy Sources feature – this heart rate-fuelled feature gives you a breakdown if you’ve used carbohydrates, proteins or fats to power a workout.
The Ignite 2 doubles up as a pretty solid fitness tracker too. It will track steps, distances, nudge you when you’ve not been active for a period of time, and display in the app a breakdown of when you were most active during the day.
But what’s really impressive with the Ignite 2 is the sleep tracking. It offers all the typical things you’d expect to find on a sleep monitoring watch, including a breakdown of sleep stages including REM sleep and sleep scores. Where things get interesting are the Nightly Recharge measurements, which aim to help you better assess if you’ve recovered from a tough physical day. It looks at sleep quality and how your autonomic nervous system calms during the early hours of sleep to generate the measurement. It can then offer tips on whether you should train or why you might have had a bad night of sleep.
Pocket-lint
The accuracy of sleep tracking ultimately dictates how useful this feature is – and against a Fitbit’s pretty impressive sleep tracking the Polar held up really well on that front. So if you’re looking for a watch that tracks sleep but also offers useful, actionable insights based on that data, the Ignite 2 fits the bill.
Battery life
165mAh battery, up to 5 days per charge
100 hours in training mode
20 hours GPS battery life
The Ignite 2 promises to deliver up to five days of life in smartwatch mode – with continuous heart rate monitoring in use. When you’re using GPS, you can expect to get 20 hours of tracking time. And there’s now a new training mode that will record workouts up to 100 hours.
What we’ve learnt over our experience with Polar’s latest watches is that they can come up a little short on those claims. That doesn’t change with the Ignite 2. It’s clear the more advanced sleep monitoring features Polar has introduced have quite a noticeable drain on battery – and you can’t turn it off. You can disable continuous heart rate monitoring, which will get you to that five day mark – otherwise it’s more like four.
Pocket-lint
When you’re putting GPS tracking to use, you’re getting around the same battery life as a similarly priced watch from Garmin, but significantly more GPS battery life than what you’re going to get from any Apple Watch model. If you want something that can get you just under a week of training, then that’s what the Ignite 2 will get you.
When it’s time for charging, Polar retains the same disc charger that clips onto the back and takes over an hour to get from 0-100 per cent, so it’s a relatively snappy charger.
Verdict
Polar hasn’t made wholesale changes compared to the first Ignite, instead focusing on improving the look and trickling down some features from its pricier watches into the Ignite 2.
But it’s got pretty much everything you could want in a fitness watch, offering solid tracking for most activities, plenty in the way of data, features and insights, and is a light and comfortable watch to live with.
Features like FitSpark and the Nightly Recharge measurements is what really makes the Ignite 2 stand out from the similar price competition. The latter though clearly is a drain on battery life.
As a smartwatch you’ll get more from the likes of Garmin, Fitbit and Apple. But in terms of a fitness watch first and foremost there’s a lot to like here.
If you like the idea of a watch that does a great job of bringing training and recovery closer together and helping you make sense of it, the Ignite 2 is worth strapping on.
Also consider
Pocket-lint
Apple Watch Series 3
While you’ll have to live with much less battery life, the Series 3 gives you a better screen, smartwatch features, and pretty solid sports tracking in a more attractive, customisable look.
Read our review
squirrel_widget_148296
Pocket-lint
Garmin Venu Sq
The square Venu Sq is in a similar price range and again offers a nicer display and more smartwatch features like Spotify offline playlist support.
Read our review
squirrel_widget_2682025
Pocket-lint
Polar Unite
If you can live without the built-in GPS, the Unite offers those great FitSpark and Nightly Recharge measurements for less money.
Monoprice seems to be on a mission to make Dolby Atmos technology as accessible as possible. After releasing a 5.1.2 system for less than $450 earlier this year, the company has announced the SB-300, a 2.1 soundbar with virtual Dolby Atmos that comes in at just $180.
While the SB-300 doesn’t have any upward-firing drivers or surround speakers for ‘true’ Dolby Atmos, Dolby’s Virtual Atmos technology utilises DSP (digital signal processing) and psychoacoustics to (theoretically) reproduce the height dimensions of compatible content for a more cinematic home theater experience.
Despite the bargain price, Monoprice has still given the SB-300 a decent feature set that includes two HDMI ports and an HDMI eARC output, as well as coaxial and optical inputs.
A USB port allows for audio playback of MP3s from a hard drive, while Bluetooth 4.2 is onboard for streaming from portable devices. There’s also a 3.5mm analogue audio input, which means this budget bar is well suited to those with an older TV set.
The soundbar offers ‘Movie’, ‘Music’, and ‘News’ modes to tweak the sound depending on the content you’re watching. Music mode is (obviously) for music playback, Movie mode attempts to focus on both dialogue and sound effects for a more dramatic movie experience, and News mode emphasises dialogue clarity.
Included in the box is an infra-red remote, HDMI cable and hardware for wall mounting.
The SB-300 is available in the US now for $180.
MORE
Best Dolby Atmos soundbars 2021: the best Atmos TV speakers
(Pocket-lint) – Whether you agree with the polarising design or not, Apple’s AirPods became an overnight phenomenon back in 2017. Since then those in-ear wireless buds have gone on to become the number one sellers in the world – and you only have to head to any city street to see how many people are wearing a pair.
Following the launch of a tweaked second-gen AirPods earlier in 2019, Apple has deemed the headphone popular enough to expand the range with the AirPods Pro. But this isn’t just about offering tweaks; no, it’s a completely redesigned experience, adding active noise-cancellation (ANC) and more.
But with so many in-ear headphone choices on the market, do the AirPods Pro offer a decent package or are you better off going with Bose, Sony, or a myriad of other options? We’ve be wearing them since launch.
A pro design
Each bud: Measures 30.9 x 21.8 x 24mm maximum / Weighs 5.4g
Wireless charging case included (45.2 x 60.6 21.7mm / 45.6g)
There are two elements to the AirPods Pro that you need to worry about: in the ear and in the pocket.
The carry case, which doubles as the charging case, is shorter in height but wider in design than the one you’ll find with the original AirPods. It’s still very much just as pocketable, in fact one of the most pocketable in-ear headphones cases on the market, and comes in a gloss white finish. It’s also included as standard.
Pocket-lint
The AirPods Pro headphones slot into the case and instantly drawn in by magnets and start charging immediately. Charging can be done via a Lightning cable or by putting the case on a wireless charging pad, even the newer MagSafe charging pucks.
The Pro design is considerably different to the AirPods. The most noticeable difference is the inclusion of silicone tips to improve the fit or ‘seal’, while the thin rod that hangs out of your ear isn’t especially long. This short length will certainly appeal to those who thought the originals’ design just looked odd.
Finding your fit
Three silicone tip sizes; small, medium, large
Vent system for pressure equalization
Ear Tip Fit test via iOS 13.2
Uses Apple H1 chip
Connecting the AirPods Pro for the first time is incredibly simple. You simply open the case near your iPhone (running iOS 13.2) and press ‘connect’ on the screen. It’s as simple as that thanks to the use of Apple H1 chip – as also found in the AirPods and Beats Powerbeats Pro.
Unlike AirPods, the Pro requires a secondary step, which involves running an Ear Tip Fit Test. Using both the internal and external microphones within the headphones, iOS 13.2 analyses the sound and tweaks its profile to sound better for you.
Pocket-lint
The process, which involves playing some music, takes about five seconds. It’s during this time that it will determine whether you’ve got a good fit, and if not recommend you change the silicone tip to another size – there is a small, medium, and large options included. For us the medium worked perfectly and we were up and running with a minute.
The silicone tips feel a little tight in the ear – more so than the standard AirPods, but not that they’re uncomfortable – so Apple has included air vents to try and reduce potential pressure and isolation build up. It calls this a “vent system for pressure equalization”, and in all the time we’ve been wearing them they’ve been fine. It doesn’t hurt wearing them for a long period of time, and if you have concerns over whether or not they would be as easy to put in and out as the standard AirPods, they aren’t.
Active Noise Cancelling (ANC)
Internal and external microphones actively listen for noise changes
Adaptive EQ and Transparency Mode
One of the main features of the AirPod Pro is ANC, or active noise-cancelling technology. This uses the in-built microphones to check the ambient noise around you over 200 times a second and react accordingly, dumbing down external sound. This is the same process as other noise-cancelling headphones, designed to negate wind tear and other real-time sounds around you as best as possible.
You can also dial-down the feature if you want to hear more around you – a feature called Transparency – which allows you to hear people talking, given the frequency cut-off. This is all controlled via a squeeze of the AirPods Pro, via your iPhone volume control settings, or using the Apple Watch.
We’ve used them on the London Underground, the train, by the sea side, cutting the grass, and on a plane, and in all cases the Pro earbuds cut out the majority of the noise. Classical music fans will no doubt love the Pros, as will those that want to really immerse themselves in the music.
Pocket-lint
Switching between the two modes with that squeeze will take a little getting used to, as there’s a specific indented area where you need to squeeze. Precision is key; as is speed: do it too quickly and you’ll stop the track. It’s yet another new control mechanism that you’ve got to learn. Overtime it has become second nature.
Another interesting side effect is wearing the AirPods Pro while talking. Because of the microphones both internally and externally that are trying to cancel the noise, your own voice is amplified when in Transparency mode. The best way to describe it is akin to speaking into a microphone while wearing headphones to hear yourself. You don’t get that experience when you’re on a call with ANC on, although the silence is somewhat alien if you’re used to hearing lots of noise around you all the time when on a call, and if the environment you are in is loud, we’ve found your voice is cancelled out, according to the person at the other end. Our advice is not to use ANC when talking to people on the phone.
Music sounds better with you
5 hours battery life / 4.5 hours with ANC enabled
Custom high dynamic range amplifier
Custom high-excursion Apple driver
We’ve tested the new AirPods Pro with a range of music, from dance tracks from Ministry of Sound, to the Interstellar soundtrack by Hans Zimmer, and everything inbetween from Pink Floyd to Billie Eilish.
Pocket-lint
What is clear is that the AirPods Pro are considerably better than the standard AirPods and certainly hold their own compared to the competition.
The originals focus of the AirPods was on ease of use rather than amazing sound quality, whereas the AirPods Pro address that latter point espeically when you factor in support for Apple’s Spatial Audio technology that’s now rolled out on Apple Music and is available on both the AirPods Pro and AirPods Max and will be coming to more apps and services later this year with iOS 15.
Following the launch we’ve been listening to a number of tracks in Spatial Audio. Some tracks are clearly enhanced by the new experience, while others are barely noticeable. When you do notice it though, the results are amazing. The best way we can describe it, is that It’s a bit like 4K on your TV. Some can see the changes instantly and refuse to watch anything else, while others will be more than happy with the HD footage and wonder what the fuss is about. Apple has big plans for Spatial Audio bringing it to everything from FaceTime calls to games. All that’s left is to see whether the industry embraces it and then runs with it. That’s where things will really start to get interesting.
The Spatial Audio feature also works with movies and that really sings when connected to an iPad or iPhone, especially when it’s been recorded in Dolby Atmos.
But you don’t need Spatial Audio to enjoy the AirPods Pros. They work perfect well in standard stereo whether that’s listening to music, watching a movie or TV show, or taking a voice call. Sure, the Pro doesn’t come as bass-focused as the PowerBeats Pro, for example, but still certainly delivers a decent sound for what they are. For many they will be more than good enough for commuting, especially once you factor in the ANC performance and when available Spatial Audio.
Best USB-C headphones for Android phones 2021
By Dan Grabham
·
Verdict
We are incredibly impressed with the ease of setup and quality of sound that the AirPods Pro deliver. Active noise-cancellation makes a huge difference to ambient noise, making these in-ears far more capable than the originals, and Spatial Audio enhances the music experience to the “next level”.
The Pro is more comfortable to wear and better sounding than we were expecting from Apple, too, given the previous AirPods experience.
But with Beats offering the Powerbeats Pro for a smidgen less cash, the AirPods Pro isn’t the only H1 chip-touting in-ear wireless headphones in town. They will be better if you want to be more “active” or are worried that the AirPods Pro will fall out – they shouldn’t but we also know that some people’s ears just aren’t suited to this type of headphone.
And falling out, or should we say taking out, is one of the big advantages here. Popping them in and out of our ears for the last two years has been easy, and if you make a lot of calls, that’s almost worth it on its own.
The ease of use and great sound, make this a great buy.
This article was originally published on 29 October 2019 and has been updated to reflect its full review status
Also consider
Pocket-lint
Beats Powerbeats Pro
squirrel_widget_148688
Like the sound of active noise-cancellation but want more bass and bigger sound? That’s where Beats comes into play, if you’re willing to pay the extra for the improved quality.
If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.
Late on Monday night, Apple flipped the switch on two new features for its Apple Music subscription service: immersive Dolby Atmos spatial audio and lossless-quality streaming. It feels like the company is really only excited about one of them, though, and it’s not the latter.
Eddy Cue is Apple’s senior vice president of services and the person who oversees Apple Music. He didn’t mince words when he told Billboard that the sudden proliferation of lossless audio isn’t going to significantly evolve or change how we listen to music. “There’s no question it’s not going to be lossless,” he said when asked about what technologies will bring about the “next-gen” of music streaming. Cue firmly stands on the side of the crowd that argues most people can’t hear any difference between CD-quality or hi-res tracks and the AAC or MP3 files that’ve been filling their ears for so long now. He did acknowledge that the higher-bit rate tracks might matter to music lovers with particularly sharp hearing or premium audio equipment, but he was also direct about how niche that group is.
“The reality of lossless is: if you take 100 people and you take a stereo song in lossless and you take a song that’s been in Apple Music that’s compressed, I don’t know if it’s 99 or 98 can’t tell the difference.” Cue revealed that he has regularly done blind tests with the Apple Music team, and they confirm how rare it is for anyone to be able to consistently recognize lossless audio. “You can tell somebody, ‘Oh, you’re listening to a lossless [song],’ and they tell you, ‘Oh, wow. That sounds incredible.’ They’re just saying it because you told them it’s lossless and it sounds like the right thing to say, but you just can’t tell.”
If you go by the message that Cue and Apple are pushing, the Dolby Atmos-powered spatial audio feature is where the true breakthrough is. “When I look at Dolby Atmos, I think it’s going to do for music what HD did for television,” Cue said in the Billboard interview. And then he really went in:
“I think this is going to take over everything. It’s the way I want to listen to music when I’m in my car. It’s going to be the way I listen to music immediately with my AirPods. It’s going to be the way I listen to music in my house. In a way, it won’t feel very good when I’m listening to something that’s not Dolby Atmos because it’s so good. It’s like when I’m watching HD, it’s hard to go back.”
“This requires somebody who’s a sound engineer, and the artist to sit back and listen, and really make the right calls and what the right things to do are,” Cue told Billboard about mixing for spatial audio. “It’s a process that takes time, but it’s worth it.”
Problem is, with much of the Dolby Atmos content on Apple Music I’ve sampled so far, it doesn’t seem like everyone is making those right calls. It’s a hit-or-miss game of exploration, and songs that truly showcase the immersive potential of Atmos are more often the exception than the rule. In many cases, spatial audio tracks have an artificial wideness to them, unfamiliar placement of vocals and instrumentation, and just sound… off. Distant? Too reverb-y? Pick your preferred interpretation. Yet, Apple is so confident in Apple Music’s spatial audio that essentially overnight it became the default for millions of customers listening with AirPods.
But let’s back up a bit.
What is spatial audio supposed to do for music?
In a word, it’s all about immersion. Here’s how Cue hyped it: “it makes you feel like you’re onstage, standing right next to the singer, it makes you feel like you might be to the left of the drummer, to the right of the guitarist.” On its website, Apple says “music created in Dolby Atmos is freed from channels, allowing artists to place individual sounds all around you.”
Whoa there. Like all of Apple’s senior executives, Eddy Cue knows how to pitch something. But if you slap on your AirPods and expect to feel like an invisible person standing in the middle of a recording session, you’ll probably be underwhelmed.
When it’s done well, spatial audio does indeed give music a unique feeling of breadth. And it’s in a different way than a high-end pair of headphones might bring the most out of a stereo track’s soundstage. In particular, vocals often have a very distinct placement in the mix and cut through better than on traditional stereo tracks. That’s the most consistent advantage I’ve noticed with spatial audio music. But because of the different mix, you’ll very likely also pick up on details or sounds that ordinarily don’t stand out in the regular version of a song. And on the best Atmos tracks, everything has a lot more room to breathe.
But when engineers don’t put much care into an Atmos mix, it really shows. Sometimes giving everything so much space can take the impact or crunch out of guitars. Or other aspects of a track fall flat. I’ve included just a few samples below where the spatial audio version of a song is an obvious downgrade from the original. But there are many, and when you hit a few in a row where the vocals sound weird or something’s amiss, it can detract from the listening experience.
How many songs are available in Dolby Atmos spatial audio?
Apple currently isn’t providing a hard number, and is instead only saying that “thousands” of tracks are available with spatial audio at launch, with many more on the way.
How do I know when I’m hearing spatial audio on Apple Music?
You’ll see either a Dolby Atmos or Dolby Audio logo appear on the Now Playing screen beneath the album artwork.
A few random, good examples of Apple Music spatial audio:
“Don’t Know Why” by Norah Jones— This is one where I nearly buy into Cue’s description. Close your eyes, and you could almost transport yourself to a small club where the spread of this mix feels like a live version of Jones’ career-making hit. Stereo doesn’t take you to the same place.
“Paparazzi” by Lady Gaga — With a very surround sound-esque mix (skip to the second verse at 1:23 for the best examples), this is a great example of an old pop hit with an excellent spatial audio treatment.
“Boom” by Tiësto and Sevenn — A fun, lively track that does give off a nice surround sound effect.
“Black Skinhead” by Kanye West — This one is another good example of the “beyond two-channel” openness that spatial audio can provide.
A whole lot of jazz and classical — If there are two genres that naturally lend themselves to spatial audio and Dolby Atmos, it’s jazz and classical. Orchestras can sound truly massive, and it’s a captivating way to listen to jazz ensembles where it’s easy to hear even the quietest notes.
Other examples where it just sounds wrong
“Buddy Holly” by Weezer — The guitars basically lose all life in this mix and vocals dominate the entire thing in a way that just sounds strange and bad. And yet this song is on Apple’s own playlist meant to showcase Atmos.
“Follow Your Arrow” by Kacey Musgraves— Apple mentioned Musgraves as an artist to check out with Atmos. And while her most recent album Golden Hour sounds… fine… her breakthrough Same Trailer Different Park is pretty rough in spatial audio format. “Follow Your Arrow” seems to lose most of its background vocals, and even the main guitar melody is way quieter here than in the regular mix. It almost comes off like a demo recording.
“What’s My Age Again?” by Blink 182 — This is another song that Apple seems to think makes spatial audio sound good, but I’d strongly argue it does the opposite. Mark Hoppus’ muffled vocals legitimately sound like they were recorded through a phone.
“Alex Chilton” by The Replacements — Is that enough cowbell for you during the chorus? It overpowers everything else and makes me feel like I’m in the old Christopher Walken SNL skit, only with a different band.
I’m curious to hear some of your examples that sound great, and others you’ve found that are a disappointment with Atmos.
Do I need AirPods or Beats headphones for Apple Music spatial audio?
No. Apple Music’s spatial audio works on:
All headphones and earbuds
The loudspeakers on supported iPhones, iPads, and Macs
Apple TV 4K
If you set Dolby Atmos to “always on” in settings for the Music app, you’ll see a pop-up advising that it probably won’t sound right on all speakers, but Apple Music will still play the spatial audio mix if that’s your preference. In fact, Apple clearly states that you can “listen on any headphones” to Apple Music’s spatial audio.
How do I turn off Apple Music spatial audio if I don’t like it?
iOS and iPadOS: Go to Settings > Music > Dolby Atmos (under “audio”), and there you can pick between automatic, always on, and off.
If you’d prefer to leave Atmos on by default but want to quickly switch to a regular stereo version of any song that’s playing, just pull down Control Center, press and hold on the volume slider, and toggle off spatial audio. Apple Music will switch over to stereo. If you turn spatial audio back on, you’ll return to the Atmos track.
macOS: In the Music app, open preferences and select the “playback” tab. Halfway down you’ll see an “audio quality” section and Atmos is in there. You get the same three automatic / always on / off choices as on Apple’s mobile devices.
Head tracking is coming to Apple Music spatial audio this fall
Apple Music’s spatial audio is currently much different than the spatial audio experience you get when watching movies and TV shows on an iPhone or iPad. For videos, Apple includes a head-tracking feature that adjusts the sound placement as you turn your head to keep it anchored to the source device. This trick is exclusive to the AirPods lineup, but it’s a very impressive effect.
Apple has said it plans to bring this sound-changes-as-you-turn-your-head feature to Apple Music in the fall — likely with iOS 15.
Is this just a gimmick?
That’s really the question that remains to be answered. But Apple isn’t alone in hyping multidimensional music (nor is it the first to do so). Amazon, Tidal, and others are also increasingly pushing the experience. I recently reviewed an extravagant Sony speaker that positions 360-degree audio as its main selling point.
Are people like Eddy Cue and Zane Lowe right in their insistence that spatial audio will revolutionize how we consume music in the same way that stereo did? Or is this a gimmick like 3D TVs that will fizzle out and be forgotten within a few years? If it’s going to be the former, it’ll take a lot of work and creativity from artists, producers, and mixers to make this format shine.
Because right now, for every Atmos spatial audio track that’s a standout on Apple Music, there are a dozen others that are quite meh — or worse than in stereo. We’re still in the early days, and now that Atmos is officially part of Apple Music, hopefully the consistency will improve. When you do find those mixes where they totally nail it, it’s something special.
Apple should make it easier to switch between Atmos and stereo
But in the meantime, and to avoid turning people off from Atmos when they land on a lackluster mix, Apple Music should make it easier to go back and forth between spatial audio and regular stereo tracks on a per-song basis. One solution could be displaying a choice when you tap on the Dolby icon, similar to the “go to artist / album” options that appear when tapping on an artist’s name.
You won’t find many true wireless earbuds that come close to matching the all-round brilliance of the Sony WF-1000XM4
For
Clear, detailed bass performance
Wonderful sense of musicality
Comfortable
Class-leading battery life
Against
Missing Sony’s Multipoint feature
Lacking ear tip choices
No aptX HD
How do you improve on arguably the best all-round true wireless earbuds on the market? Sony has gone back to the drawing board and designed a brand new pair that look nothing like their predecessors – and the result is the WF-1000XM4. Is it a brave move? Definitely. Crazy? Quite possibly.
Sony’s WF-1000X range of wireless earbuds has been a dominant force in this category over the last few years, and the last pair to emerge from its stable, the WF-1000XM3, are two-time What Hi-Fi? Award-winners.
But instead of making the odd refinement here and there, Sony’s engineers have gone to town on the WF-1000XM4 with an all-new design, a new charging case and a new audio processor. They have even found time to develop a new eartip material, which here is appearing on a pair of Sony earbuds for the first time. What could possibly go wrong?
Luckily for Sony, very little does. In fact, the WF-1000XM4 are one of the most feature-packed, user-friendly and sonically gifted pair of wireless earbuds we’ve tested.
Pricing
Unsurprisingly, the Sonys sit at the premium end of the market, coming in at £250 ($280, AU$500). That places them right in the firing line of other five-star rivals such as the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 (£279, $299, AU$499), Bose QuietComfort Earbuds (£249, $280, AU$399) and, of course, the Apple AirPods Pro, which at the time of writing range in price between £199 ($199, AU$300) and £249 ($249, AU$329).
Build
(Image credit: Sony)
Your initial contact with the WF-1000XM4 is a surprising one. Sony has ditched the usual glossy box for recycled packaging made from a special blend of paper. This makes for a more compact box (34 per cent smaller than the WF-1000XM3’s), and one that’s plastic-free. That’s great news for the environment, though it doesn’t really give off the vibe that you’ve just bought a pair of premium noise-cancelling headphones.
Sony WF-1000XM4 tech specs
(Image credit: Sony)
Bluetooth version 5.2
Noise-cancelling Yes
Battery life 8 hours (BT + ANC), 24 hours (total)
Voice control Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa
Finishes x2
Weight 7.3g (x2)
Once you’ve liberated the WF-1000XM4 from their packaging, you’re greeted by a small, black charging case. It’s smaller than the case that comes with the Bose Quiet Comfort Earbuds, and positively tiny (40 per cent smaller) compared with the charging case that comes with their predecessors.
The case charges via USB-C and also introduces wireless charging to the WF-1000X range for the first time – all you need is a compatible Qi charging pad. You can even battery share with compatible smartphones and piggyback off their power supply, too.
You shouldn’t have to worry too much about the battery life. Sony’s new buds might come with a smaller case, but the XM4’s battery life is actually up compared with the XM3. You now get eight hours of play from the earbuds with noise-cancelling and Bluetooth turned on, and Sony claims the case can supply a further 16 hours of charge. That places their battery life from a single charge above all major rivals. The AirPods Pro can only manage five hours, the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless seven hours and the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds six hours. Turn off noise-cancelling and the Sony’s life is extended to 12 hours from a single charge and 24 hours with the case. A five-minute quick charge is good for one hour of playtime, too.
You can see the life remaining in both the buds and the case through Sony’s Headphones Connect app, which will also give you a reminder when the case drops below 30 per cent charge.
As with all wireless earbuds, battery life can vary due to a number of different factors, such as the quality of files you’re listening to, how hard the internal processor is working, and the volume you’re listening at. During our testing, we found the battery life consistently good enough to get us through a day of mixed use.
Comfort
(Image credit: Sony)
Flip open the magnetic case and you’ll see the all-new earbud design of the WF-1000XM4. Based on a combination of customer feedback about the XM3 and research about the human ear, Sony has settled on a rounder body that sits more inside the ear opening.
The matte finish on each earbud gives the headphones a premium feel, while the small accents around the microphone and sensor holes add a tiny splash of colour. Speaking of colour, the XM4 come in a choice of black or silver.
If you want your XM4 to double as sports or running headphones you’ll be pleased to know they boast an IPX4 rating, making them resistant to “splashing from any angle” – a big improvement on the old model.
Besides the new-look earpieces, the XM4 also have brand new eartips. Made from polyurethane, which feels like a cross between silicone and foam, Sony claims they help secure a tighter, more stable fit. The thousands of tiny bubbles in the tips are also supposed to help reduce and dissipate noise.
The only downside here is that you only get a single set of small, medium and large-sized tips to choose from. Sony says you will get years of use out of one pair, and naturally extra tips should be available to purchase if you need them.
We don’t have any major problems sliding the earbuds in and twisting them into place. If you are struggling for a seal, you can pinch the tips and slide them into your ear canal, until they expand. We find they sit snugly in your ear opening, but they are comfortable over longer listening sessions.
To make sure you have the perfect fit, Sony has introduced a new air-tightness test, accessible through its Headphones Connect app. The app fires out a test tone and reports back on whether or not you need to make any adjustments. It’s worth trying out, especially if you feel the sound is lacking bass or there is outside noise leaking in.
In fact, we’d recommend installing the Headphones Connect app when you first connect the XM4. It gives you direct access to all the key features and functions of the earbuds so you can choose which ones to enable and disable. It also helps you get set up for listening to music in Sony’s 360 Reality Audio format from compatible streaming services such as Tidal and Deezer.
Features
(Image credit: Sony)
The circular outer surface of each earpiece is a touchpad and, by using the Headphones Connect app, you can customise the functionality of each one. They can control volume and playback or switch between noise-cancelling and ambient sound modes through the usual combination of taps, presses and long holds – and the headphones are quick to respond to these actions. Switching between sound modes, changing volume and activating and deactivating features such as Quick Attention (which drops the volume of what you’re listening to, so you can have a quick conversation without having to remove the earbuds from your ears) happen with minimal fuss.
The Sony WF-1000XM4 borrow the Speak-to-Chat function that debuted in the WH-1000XM4 wireless headphones. This feature allows you to talk to someone while the earbuds are still in place and is triggered when you start talking. It works well, although as is the case with the over-ears, it’s only triggered a second or so after you start talking.
This slight delay can be frustrating, as can the tendency for the feature to be triggered by a cough or an impromptu karaoke session while sat at your desk. You can reduce the sensitivity of the feature, or you can turn it off completely and either use Quick Attention or remove an earbud completely (which pauses playback automatically).
On the inside of the XM4 is plenty of new technology. The earbuds feature an improved DAC and analogue amplifier and are powered by a new Integrated Processor V1. Sony claims it provides a clearer sound and even better noise-cancelling than their predecessor. The new model also gets Sony’s DSEE Extreme audio processor with Edge-AI, which we have already experienced in the WH-1000XM4 over-ear headphones, and is designed to upscale low-bitrate music files to near hi-res quality.
The 6mm driver used inside the XM4 is similar in size to the one used in the previous model, but it’s made from a new material and features a bigger magnet, which Sony claims helps improve sound quality and noise-cancelling, especially with certain low frequencies.
There’s no aptX HD support onboard, but the XM4 support Sony’s LDAC file format, which, streamed over Bluetooth from a compatible source, allows hi-res audio files up to 24-bit/96kHz to be transmitted at data rates of up to 990kbps.
(Image credit: Sony)
Sony has also aimed to deliver clearer call quality with new features, including beam-forming and the use of a bone conduction sensor that stops the mics from picking up distracting ambient sounds while you’re talking. There’s even an automatic wind noise reduction mode which attempts to cut out swirls of noise passing through the headset and into your ears.
All of this works with Sony’s Precise Voice Pickup technology, originally introduced in the WH-1000XM4. The net effect is an impressive call quality for a pair of wireless earbuds. The technologies all combine to do a solid job of dampening down outside noise and interference, especially for the person on the other end of the line.
The general level of noise-cancelling is excellent, especially for a pair of wireless earbuds. Not everyone likes that ‘vacuum’ feeling you get when it’s turned on, but it’s extremely effective through the Sonys and you’ll struggle to find better noise cancellation at this level.
Android users will be pleased to hear the Sonys are compatible with Fast Pair so you can get up and running with minimal fuss. You receive a battery notification pop-up on your smartphone when they power up and you can even track their location down using the Google Find My Device app.
Unfortunately, iOS users don’t get any such pairing perks, but all you need to do to start pairing is open the case and take the headphones out. It’s a shame Sony hasn’t carried across the ‘Multipoint’ feature enabled on the WH-1000XM4 over-ears. This allows you to connect the headphones to two different Bluetooth devices simultaneously, which can come in handy if you’re working on a laptop but still want to be connected to your phone. Here’s hoping it can be added at a later date.
In terms of stability, we use an Apple iPhone 12 and Macbook for the bulk of our testing and find the connection to be rock solid with no dropouts, even in more built-up areas.
Sound
(Image credit: Sony)
Before we get to the WF-1000XM4’s immense musicality and expressive dynamics, we should note the way the headphones handle bass. The quality of bass and the clarity of low frequencies is stunning. There’s such a fantastic level of detail on display that it makes rival headphones, such as the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds, sound congested in comparison.
We’re keen to hear how the earbuds handle one of our favourite bass-heavy test tracks, Massive Attack’s Angel – and we’re blown away by the confidence with which the song is dispatched. Every element of that pulsing bassline is precisely deployed and dripping in texture. It’s the clarity around the notes that really grabs you – it allows the WF-1000XM4 to communicate intricacies in the bass notes that other headphones struggle to uncover.
But it’s not a sound that purely favours low frequencies. There’s clarity across the board and a sense of rhythmic precision that allows the Sony’s to switch pace effortlessly. They sound as at home keeping up with, and succeeding in not being tripped up by, Radiohead’s 15 Step as they are dispatching the slow, deliberate swagger of Nina Simone’s Feeling Good.
Simone’s effortless vocal oozes class and sophistication, with every nuance in her delivery laid bare for the listener. Combine the emotion in her voice with the impact of the piano, percussion and wind section and the Sony’s create a captivating sound you can’t help but be swept away by.
If you were wondering whether the WF-1000XM4 would be a step up from the WF-1000XM3, we can confirm that they are. The newer model sounds more informative and uncovers more subtle detail. Bass notes are better defined and the overall sound is better balanced. Even the much-admired Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2 struggle to match the Sonys for tonality and refinement.
You can hear that refinement and natural tone shine through as we listen to Ludovico Einaudi’s Experience. From the delicate, deliberate piano strokes at the start to the soaring strings at the song’s climax, the Sonys bring the individual personalities to life and mix them together like the ingredients of a fine cocktail.
Verdict
We’re quite taken by the Sony WF-1000XM4. Given all the design changes and new features in these wireless earbuds, it must have been a real challenge to get them right. But Sony has absolutely nailed it. The headphones deliver a satisfying user experience, class-leading battery life, some of the best noise-cancelling we’ve heard in this category, and absolutely stunning sound quality. Put simply, this is a new benchmark for premium true wireless earbuds.
Netflix has announced that the long-awaited live-action adaptation of Cowboy Bebop will premiere this fall. The science fiction, noir, and Western-infused bounty hunting series will also feature new music from the anime’s original composer, Yoko Kanno.
There was, unfortunately, no trailer alongside Netflix’s announcement, but it did reintroduce a few of the cast members, who already seem to be fitting into their roles quite well — specifically John Cho as Spike Spiegel, Mustafa Shakir as Jet Black, and Daniella Pineda as Faye Valentine.
Yoko Kanno, the composer behind the iconic soundtrack of the original COWBOY BEBOP anime will be creating the soundtrack for the new Live Action Series. Also confirmed…Cowboy Bebop is coming this Fall. #GeekedWeek pic.twitter.com/6lHZQcoFR6
— Netflix Geeked (@NetflixGeeked) June 8, 2021
Reports first surfaced that Netflix was producing a live-action adaptation of the iconic series in 2017 and were later confirmed in 2018. The full cast of actors playing the show’s bounty hunters was revealed in 2019, including Cho as the series lead. The show is set to receive a 10-episode season written by one of the screenwriters of Thor: Ragnarok Christopher Yost.
We’ll have to wait a bit longer for a real look at the new Cowboy Bebop, but at least we can rest assured space bounty hunting antics will be kicking off later this year.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
