Sony has unveiled a new soundbar that comes complete with a wireless subwoofer and wireless rear speakers for a reasonable price. For £349 (around $500, AU$650), the new HT-S40R promises maximum oomph and minimum clutter.
The system delivers 600W of power, Bluetooth for music streaming and support for Dolby Audio (there’s no mention of object-based Dolby Atmos, but we wouldn’t necessarily expect it at this price).
According to Sony, the HT-S40R delivers “room-filling sound” and “no wires between the front and rear speakers”. The subwoofer and soundbar share a single power connection and those with a Sony Bravia TV that supports “TV wireless connection” can beam audio between the TV and HT-S40R wirelessly.
There is a slight catch: Sony’s one-box wonder isn’t completely wireless. It does require a compact wireless amplifier (included in the box) to power the rear speakers. The amp can be placed nearby or mounted on the wall, but it will need to be plugged into the mains. You can see it in the bottom-left of the picture below.
(Image credit: Sony)
Sony gives you four different sound modes to choose from – Cinema, Music, Standard, and Auto – so you can pick the setting that best suits what you’re watching or listening to. There’s also Night and Voice modes, which aim to provide clear dialogue at low volume, so as not to disturb the neighbours. Connections include HDMI ARC, a USB port, plus optical and analogue inputs.
Although we’re yet to test the Sony HT-S40R, on paper it seems to offer plenty of bang for your buck. If you’re after an affordable 5.1 system for movies and music, this could be a cheaper alternative to building a system around, say, a Sonos Beam soundbar (£399, $399, AU$599).
The Sony HT-S40R is due to hit shops in May. That gives you just enough time to weigh up all the options listed on our best soundbars and best Dolby Atmos soundbars pages.
Wharfedale’s Diamond 12.3 floorstanders are refined, entertaining and well built. What’s not to like?
For
Superbly balanced presentation
Expressive and revealing midrange
Pleasing build and finish
Against
Nothing at this price
Mention the words ‘Wharfedale Diamond’, and the image that comes to mind is that of a small talented budget standmounters. That description applies to the originals from 1982, as well as the star performers from subsequent generations.
What of the various Diamond floorstanders? As a breed, they have proven to be solid over the years but relatively unremarkable on the whole. Wharfedale, like pretty much every other speaker brand out there, has struggled to make a properly musical budget tower. Until now that is.
While the new 12.3 can’t truly be called budget, they do sit at the more affordable end of the market. Most importantly, they have a musical performance that, if anything, impresses us even more than that delivered by the lauded Diamond 12.1 standmounters.
Build
(Image credit: Wharfedale)
Wharfedale tends to start with a clean sheet every few generations of the Diamond, and so it is with the 12 series. The cabinet is a carefully crafted, straight-edged design that’s strategically braced to provide a solid and low resonance platform for the drive units to work from. It’s all wrapped in a neat, classy finish that belies the 12.3’s modest price. We even like the tidy feet arrangement and smart design of the spikes.
Wharfedale Diamond 12.3 tech specs
(Image credit: Wharfedale)
Type 2.5-way floorstander
Sensitivity 89dB
Nominal impedance 8ohms
Frequency response 45Hz – 20kHz
Dimensions (hwd) 98 x 18 x 32cm
Weight 19.5kg (each)
These speakers are available in four finishes: black, walnut, white and a rather classy light oak. And the drive units are just as admirable. The 12.3 are a 2.5-way design where the upper 13cm driver covers everything from midrange downwards, leaving the second one to reinforce the lows. Both drivers use a cone material called Klarity, a mix of polypropylene and mica, claimed to be light, rigid and well damped.
Wharfedale follows standard industry practice by using the same tweeter throughout the Diamond 12 range. It’s a 25mm coated woven polyester soft dome, and a good one it is too. A carefully shaped faceplate leaves as much of the dome exposed as possible, and the contouring closest to the dome is there to provide a small degree of horn loading.
Combined with a carefully calibrated, relatively sophisticated crossover, the result is a speaker with a sensitivity of 89dB/W/m and a nominal impedance that’s quoted as being 8ohm compatible.
Perhaps it’s more useful to know that the minimum impedance is 5ohms, which means these floorstanders are unlikely to give any decent price-compatible amplifier a problem.
At just short of 98cm tall, the 12.3 aren’t massive speakers, but they still perform best if given a little room to breathe. We find they work well if positioned at least 50cm from the rear wall; we settle on 90cm in our test room. Similarly, keep them at least 70cm away from the sidewalls if you want to maximise stereo imaging, sonic balance and clarity. A bit of angle towards the listening position helps to firm the stereo imaging, too, but the 12.3’s broad dispersion characteristics mean that you don’t have to be millimetre-perfect to get good results.
Speakers at this level have a difficult job to do: they have to be forgiving enough to sound acceptable with budget all-in-one electronics but still have the transparency to make the most of the best price-compatible separate components around.
Compatibility
(Image credit: Wharfedale)
The Diamond 12.3 are masters at juggling these almost contradictory demands. They’re smooth, even-handed and wonderfully refined for the money. Feed them a poor signal and they are skilled at revealing the shortcomings without shouting about them. They’ll round off rough edges and downplay unwanted aggression without sounding like they’re smothering the life out of the music.
But given a good source and suitably capable amplification, they perform superbly. While we use our usual reference Naim ND555/555 PS DR music streamer and Burmester 088/911 Mk3 amplifier for part of the test, the bulk of our listening is done with more price compatible electronics in the form of the Marantz PM6007 amplifier and Cambridge CXN streamer. Regardless of the combination, these Wharfedales work a treat.
Sound
(Image credit: Wharfedale)
Feed them Trance Frendz by Ólafur Arnalds and they deliver a lovely layered sound that’s brimming with detail and dynamic nuance. These speakers capture the album’s laid-back rhythms in a pleasingly sure-footed manner and don’t get tripped up when things get complex.
They resolve a large amount of information but also present it in an organised and controlled way. The Wharfedale’s chief rival is the multiple Award-winning Fyne Audio F302, which sound more enthusiastic but are notably less refined at high frequencies and lack the Diamond’s innate sophistication.
As we move from Jay Z’s Blueprint 3 to Kate Bush’s Hounds Of Love, we appreciate the 12.3’s articulate and expressive midrange and the seamless integration between the drive units. We like how Wharfedale has avoided excess; there’s enough bass weight to satisfy but not so much that it spoils the balance of the presentation. The lows are agile, satisfyingly rich and textured with it.
These Diamonds also sound good at lower volume levels. Too often we come across speakers that only come alive when pushed hard, but the 12.3 can be enjoyed at levels that won’t wake the kids or upset the neighbours late at night. That counts for a lot in our books.
Play them louder and these speakers don’t complain. They deliver Hans Zimmer’s raucous The Battle from the Gladiator OST with verve, tracking the brutal dynamics well. There’s punch and power when required, but also a level of subtlety that’s rare to find in a floorstander at this price. You can add an even tonal balance and stable stereo imaging to the list of plus points, too.
Verdict
It’s tough to make a truly talented affordable floorstander, but Wharfedale has cracked it with the 12.3. They are terrifically accomplished for the money and good enough to claim a space in the Diamond’s hall of fame. Don’t buy another tower at this level without hearing this one first.
Looking for a brand new Dolby Atmos soundbar? Bluesound just added the Pulse Soundbar+ to its lineup of wireless home cinema products, and this one features a ‘3D immersive audio engine’ with support for Dolby Atmos. Bluesound says the Soundbar+ takes the firm’s original Pulse Soundbar 2i (which we awarded a highly-commended four stars under intense review) and pushes its credentials even further.
The Pulse Soundbar+ is billed as the “ultimate audiophile-grade soundbar that will satisfy any home entertainment need” and to that end it offers support for Dolby Atmos, 24-bit high resolution audio, 120W of full-frequency multi-room and multi-channel audio, a choice of black or white finishes and is configurable to a range of home entertainment applications. It also comes supplied with a wall mount bracket as well as two kickstand feet (if you don’t want it on your wall).
(Image credit: Bluesound)
Designed to fit perfectly under HD TVs, the Pulse Soundbar+ promises a fully immersive sonic experience thanks to a “full audio-chain redesign with advanced DSP processing” that now supports 3D audio from Dolby Atmos, meaning a wider, higher, and more enveloping soundstage.
The ‘bar itself boasts eight “audiophile-quality” drivers and, according to Bluesound, it “is to audio what the 8K TV is to video”, which sounds decidedly ambitious to us. The Pulse Soundbar+ can either be used alone or paired with the Pulse Sub+ (sold separately) to add drama through the low end, and Bluesound is quick to add that by including a pair of Pulse Flex 2i speakers as rear channels you’ll get a complete wireless Dolby surround sound experience.
Under the hood, the Pulse Soundbar+ features a custom-specified ARM Cortex A53 Quad-Core chipset that can, says Bluesound, process audio eight times faster than previous generations of Bluesound architecture. Combined with two wi-fi chips to prevent network latency, this flagship board design apparently provides rock solid and zero-lag audio performance, even for demanding gaming applications.
Connections? Of course. You can connect nearly any audio source to the Pulse Soundbar+. TVs, gaming consoles, music streaming services, laptops, and music libraries can all be accessed through HDMI eARC, Apple AirPlay 2, two-way aptX HD Bluetooth, TOSLINK, RCA, USB, and Bluesound’s own proprietary BluOS music streaming system.
(Image credit: Bluesound)
Newly added simple touch controls on the front panel now mean quick access to play, pause and volume, and with a smartphone or tablet, the built-in BluOS wireless multi-room streaming technology can connect and sync audio to, from, and around any room in the home. Hands-free control of your home entertainment is on board with Amazon Alexa Skills integration, Google Assistant and Apple’s Siri too, and the company states that professional smart home integrators can get access to drivers for other popular control systems such as Lutron, Crestron, RTI, Elan and others.
As with all Bluesound Pulse speaker models, the acoustic design and speaker voicing was performed at Canada’s National Research Council, by Lenbrook’s speaker design and engineering team.
It doesn’t come cheap, though. Available for pre-order now, the Pulse Soundbar+ will begin shipping in April 2021, priced at £799 (€999, $899) in black, or £899 (€1099, $999) in white.
MORE:
Read all our Bluesound reviews
Dolby Atmos not essential? See the best soundbars 2021: the best TV speakers you can buy
On a tight budget? We hear you. See best budget soundbars 2021: excellent, affordable TV speakers
YouTube Shorts, the company’s short-form answer to TikTok, is launching in beta in the United States starting today. The short video format has already been available for several months in India, but today marks its debut stateside (along with the addition of several new features).
For the beta launch, YouTube Shorts will feature all the basics of any TikTok clone: a multi-segment camera that makes it easy for creators to quickly string together clips, a wide selection of music tracks (with catalogs from “over 250 labels and publishers”), and a robust-looking captioning tool, the last of which is debuting alongside the US launch. “We really want to create a playground of creativity here where we give creators the raw materials to produce great videos,” says Todd Sherman, YouTube’s product lead for Shorts.
Like TikTok, users will be able to swipe through an endless, algorithmically generated feed of short videos, subscribe to their favorite creators, explore specific hashtags or sounds, and remix other videos’ audio tracks. Even the interface looks similar to TikTok’s player.
But instead of getting its own app, Shorts will live on a new carousel on the home tab of the mobile YouTube app. (The company is also experimenting with a dedicated Shorts tab.)
And while Shorts checks off a lot of the basics, it’s missing plenty of features that make TikTok such a unique viral hit. There’s virtually no collaborative features available in Shorts at launch — so users won’t be able to reply to other videos or join together in a version of TikTok’s popular duet or stitch features. Also missing is a way to view a more curated feed. For now, Shorts only offers its main, algorithmic feed (similar to TikTok’s “For You” page), with no option to only view videos from accounts to which you’ve subscribed.
Sherman says that the company views Shorts as a new avenue for the next generation of content creators to emerge. YouTube itself is filled with a hyper-competitive landscape of established creators who specialize in making videos that typically run 10 minutes or longer. Shorts offers creators a chance to break that mold, much like what YouTube originally offered to internet creators when it first launched in 2005.
“I think the real core of what Shorts is about is enabling that next generation of creators that maybe even found it too difficult, previously, to even consider creating on YouTube,” Sherman explains. “And if we can help fulfill our mission of giving them a voice, then I think that would make us feel like we’re continuing to grow a YouTube in a way that keeps it relevant for this next generation of creators to find a voice on this platform.”
That’s not to say that Shorts won’t offer anything to existing creators. For starters, YouTube will share subscriptions across traditional channels and Shorts. So any users that find your content in Shorts and subscribe to get more of it will also be signing up for any long-form videos, and creators with tons of subscribers already will have a built-in audience to whom they can deliver Shorts. In at least one implementation of Shorts that the company is trying, Shorts videos will appear directly in users’ subscription tabs.
According to Sherman, YouTube has some big plans for how it’ll tie Shorts into the broader YouTube ecosystem down the line — features that might help the fledgling service stand out in a crowded field that’s already dominated by TikTok and other (less established) competitors like Instagram’s Reels or Snapchat’s Spotlight.
And those features are going to be essential: YouTube is coming very late to a party that’s already ruled by TikTok, and as Reels and Spotlight have shown, its no small task to not only replicate but outdo TikTok’s seemingly magical blend of algorithmic alchemy, collaborative tools, and viral trends. Unfortunately, YouTube Shorts is already playing catch-up, and its uniquely YouTube features are still very half-baked.
Shorts does have a few clever ties into traditional YouTube videos: at launch, creators will be able to jump right to creating a Short from music videos for licensed songs, for instance. And in the future, the company plans to allow users to remix sound from any YouTube video for use in Shorts, a potential goldmine of content for creators to remix into new memes and videos. (YouTube users will be able to opt out, if they’d prefer to not have their audios used.)
But Shorts just still barely scratches the surface. For example, Shorts that use a song clip can link out to the music video on YouTube proper, but there’s no easy collection or link to find Shorts of a song from the regular video player, for instance.
While it’s starting from behind, YouTube is an unparalleled force for videos online, and the fact that creators can seamlessly transition between Shorts and long-form videos — while bringing their audiences with them — isn’t something to discount.
“As we grow Shorts, we can connect that ecosystem to the broader YouTube. And that means that if you are a short-form creator and you grow to be a long-form creator, that audience can grow with you,” Sherman says.
Being able to directly link to the original sources of content for audio — whether it be a song, a movie clip, or a snippet of an interview — is also a powerful advantage for YouTube, as is the sheer size of the site.
As Sherman explains, “One of the underpinnings that has helped so many people become creators is that you if give them high-quality inputs, they’re more likely to get to high-quality outputs by remixing other things.” And if you’re looking for videos to input, it’s hard to find a bigger source of them than Youtube.
But there are still big unanswered questions that YouTube has to figure out about Shorts — chief among them, how creators will make money. “I think the world has come to expect YouTube to support creators. And I think that’s going to extend to Shorts also,” says Sherman. “The way we think about it is: television has a different business model than movies, YouTube has a different business model than television, and short-form video is going to have a different business model than long-form YouTube.”
For now, though, YouTube isn’t making any announcements as to what monetization options will look like on Shorts.
Another big question is what — if anything — YouTube is planning to do to make sure that Shorts doesn’t end up as another place for clout-chasing content farmers to just repost popular TikToks and reap the rewards (something that Instagram Reels continues to struggle with.) Sherman says that it’s something that the Shorts team is looking into, but that they have a fine line to walk: YouTube doesn’t want to discourage creators from posting their content on multiple platforms, but it also doesn’t want people just reposting videos from other people that they just downloaded off TikTok either.
The company says that it’ll take a bit of time for Shorts to roll out, but that it should “be available to everybody in the US over the next several weeks.”
Google is expanding its real-time caption feature, Live Captions, from Pixel phones to anyone using a Chrome browser, as first spotted by XDA Developers. Live Captions uses machine learning to spontaneously create captions for videos or audio where none existed before, and making the web that much more accessible for anyone who’s deaf or hard of hearing.
When enabled, Live Captions automatically appear in a small, moveable box in the bottom of your browser when you’re watching or listening to a piece of content where people are talking. Words appear after a slight delay, and for fast or stuttering speech, you might spot mistakes. But in general, the feature is just as impressive as it was when it first appeared on Pixel phones in 2019. Captions will even appear with muted audio or your volume turned down, making it a way to “read” videos or podcasts without bugging others around you.
Live Captions captioning audio from a podcast player
Chrome’s Live Captions worked on YouTube videos, Twitch streams, podcast players, and even music streaming services like SoundCloud in early tests run by a few of us here at The Verge. However, it seems that Live Captions in Chrome only work in English, which is also the case on mobile.
Live Captions can be enabled in the latest version of Chrome by going to Settings, then the “Advanced” section, and then “Accessibility.” (If you’re not seeing the feature, try manually updating and restarting your browser.) When you toggle them on, Chrome will quickly download some speech recognition files, and then captions should appear the next time your browser plays audio where people are talking.
Live Captions were first introduced in the Android Q beta, but until today, they were exclusive to some Pixel and Samsung phones. Now that they’re on Chrome, Live Captions will be available to a much wider audience.
Sony has been announcing new games coming to PlayStation 5 all day as part of a spotlight on indie titles. Included in that list is Disco Elysium – The Final Cut, a “definitive edition” of the game, launching on March 30th.
The Final Cut includes new quests, quality of life improvements, and voice work from professional actors across the world. The game, previously a PC exclusive, is heading to the PlayStation store, alongside Steam, GOG, Epic Store, Google Stadia, and the App store.
Here’s the full list of other games announced today:
Operation: Tango
Operation: Tangois an asymmetrical co-op game from Clever Plays Studio in which players act as either a hacker or agent to solve puzzles. The game will launch for PlayStation 4 and PS5 in the spring.
Chicory: A Colorful Tale
In Chicory: A Colorful Tale, players must restore color to the world with a magical paintbrush. Developer Greg Lobanov says that they wanted to “center the player’s individual creativity at all times” and that players will have many options for customizing their worlds. It launches this spring for PS4 and PS5; Night in the Woods publisher Finji will release it.
Nour: Play With Your Food
Nour: Play With Your Foodcombines “adaptive music” with very good-looking food. As you play with food, in preparation and presentation, the music reacts accordingly; different foods have different sounds to play with. The game launches this summer.
Where the Heart Leads
Metroid Prime 3 developer Armature Studio’s latest game launches July 13th for PS4 and PS5. Where the Heart Leads is a choice-driven story following one man “through his past, present, and future as he reflects on his life and the pivotal moments where one choice or another made him who he is.” The game features dozens of endings, depending on what path the player takes.
Puzzling Places
Puzzling Places, a 3D jigsaw puzzle game, is coming to PlayStation VR this winter. Much like putting together a real puzzle, players piece parts together to create each location in VR.
Heavenly Bodies
Heavenly Bodies, coming later this year, is a physics-based puzzle game set in space. Using the DualSense controller, players do maintenance and assembly by controlling their astronaut’s limbs. The game will be available for PS4 and PS5 and includes local co-op.
Remember Justin Long, the “I’m a Mac” guy from Apple’s old Mac vs PC ad campaign from the mid-2000s? Well, now it seems he’s switched sides since he’s starring in a new series of “I’m a Justin” videos that are part of Intel’s new “Go PC” ad campaign.
Titled “Justin Gets Real,” the series opens each of its videos with Justin standing in front of the typical white background from the old Mac vs PC ads while music reminiscent of those old commercials plays. Justin then says, “I’m a…Justin, just a real person doing a real comparison between Mac and PC,” and the ad continues.
Obviously, the goal here is to bank on nostalgia, but with a new (questionable, of course) feeling of fairness, all while joking that PCs have gotten so good that the “Mac guy” has switched sides. It’s a clever gambit, but like the print ads that came before it, it falters by ignoring the real reason behind these ads.
That, of course, would be Apple’s new M1 chip. Apple’s move to its own Arm-based processors means that Intel is now synonymous with PC, but that’s not what these “Justin Gets Real” ads focus on. Instead of talking about the difference between Intel processors and Apple processors, they hype up PC-exclusive features that Intel was totally fine with Apple not supporting back when it was on Mac, too.
These include ads about the lack of Mac convertibles or the existence of unique PC laptops like the Asus Zenbook Duo. Again, innovations that have nothing to do with Intel but are now coincidentally synonymous with the brand since Intel is now only available on PCs.
But Macs have their own unique advantages as well, like long battery life or powerful fanless designs, something that Mac users have been quick to point out on other Go PC ads.
While there’s a conversation to be had about Mac’s limited selection of devices, the selling points of specific builds have little to do with Intel specifically. Some of the PC features these ads focus on, like gaming, are simply not something much of the Mac audience is looking for. And the ads also ignore that while, yes, Mac isn’t the best platform for gaming, that was still true when Macs used Intel.
All of which flies in the face of the angle of fairness that Intel’s aiming for by presenting actor Justin Long as a newly liberated individual making real choices, as opposed to the “Mac guy.”
This probably explains why these ads all have a more than 80% dislike ratio on YouTube. Top comments are frequently bringing up the word “desperate,” as well.
What’s more, the timing for this ad campaign also eerily mirrors Apple bringing back actor John Hodgman, who played the “PC Guy” in its old ads, for its M1 Mac announcements. While Hodgman was still playing up a villain there, Intel’s new Justin Long ads make it pretty easy to imagine a strange, new (beautiful?) world where the Mac and PC guys have both swapped sides.
Samsung Galaxy S21 out of your budget? The newly launched Samsung Galaxy A52 5G promises flagship features – including a 120Hz display – at a very reasonable price.
Launched today at the Korean company’s latest Unpacked event, the A52 5G aims to “make innovation available to all” with a 6.5-inch Super AMOLED FHD+ display, quad rear camera set-up (64MP, 12MP, 5MP and 5MP) and 128GB of storage.
The main draw? As far as we’re concerned, that’s the 120Hz display, which should deliver smoother scrolling and video playback. For the initiated, the technology is typically reserved for top-tier devices such as Samsung’s S21 series and Google’s Pixel 5.
Of course, Samsung has made the odd compromise to make champagne on a beer budget. While the Galaxy A52 has a larger screen than the standard S21 (6.5in vs 6.3in), it misses out on support for HDR10+ and wireless charging. It’s also rated IP67 for water and dust resistance, rather than IP68.
Not that the A52 5G seems to be lacking in features for the money. You get an in-screen fingerprint reader, 3.5mm headphone jack and sizeable 4500mAh battery (Samsung claims it holds enough juice for two days’ use).
(Image credit: Samsung)
Now, the all-important pricing. The Samsung Galaxy A52 5G costs just £399 (around $550, AU$725) – pretty cheap when you consider that the Galaxy S21 starts at £769 ($799, AU$1249).
Better still, UK customers who order the Samsung Galaxy A52 5G on a Vodafone contract before the 27th April can claim a free pair of Samsung Galaxy Buds+ worth around £139.
Today’s Unpacked event also saw the launch of a non-5G version of the Galaxy A52 handset, as well as the A72, which gets you a 6.6-inch, 90Hz Super AMOLED display for £419 (around $580, AU$760).
We’ve not reviewed the A52 but, on paper, it could be a decent option for those seeking an affordable 5G phone. Heres’ a list of the best smartphones you can buy, if you fancy doing a bit of virtual window-shopping.
MORE:
Read the full Samsung Galaxy S21 review
These are the best Android phones going
And these are the best smartphones for music and movies
We all know about Dolby Atmos’ application for the home (think select 4K TVs, Dolby Atmos soundbars and AV receivers), but there’s still one arena where the immersive audio tech hasn’t made any inroads. Until now.
It’s always been a matter of when, not if the technology would make the transition onto four wheels and we now know you’ll be able to experience the first automotive application of Dolby Atmos is the Lucid Air electric vehicle (EV).
The luxury saloon (or sedan if you’re reading this from across the pond) comes with a 21-speaker Surreal Sound system. It consists of front, rear, side and height speakers which have been positioned in a way that you and your passengers should be able to hear individual sounds move around the cabin.
With Dolby’s input, Lucid Motors tuned the system using the legendary Capitol Records Studio C recording studio, where artists such as Beck, Gloris Estefan and Robbie Williams have all recorded and mixed.
“As the first car to integrate Dolby Atmos, Lucid Air delivers an elevated, multi-dimensional sound experience on par with the other innovations at Lucid,” said Derek Jenkins, Senior VP of Design, Lucid Motors.
We’ve seen a number of manufacturers announce plans to offer immersive in-car audio experiences over the last couple of years. We had a demo of Devialet’s vision for in-car audio back in 2019, while more recently, Sennheiser has showed us its Ambeo Mobility sound system which should work with all available immersive audio formats. And, at CES 2021, Klipsch and Panasonic teamed up to support in-car Dolby Atmos music. Could we see other car manufacturers sign up to support Dolby Atmos in their vehicles?
MORE:
Our pick of the best Dolby Atmos soundbars
CES 2021: Panasonic and Klipsch team up to support in-car Dolby Atmos Music
Lucid Motors is gearing up for the release of its first electric vehicle, the Lucid Air sedan, and at SXSW, the company revealed a unique detail of the upcoming automobile: it’ll be the first car to offer Dolby Atmos sound, thanks to its 21 speaker “Surreal Sound” system.
In a four minute-plus video detailing the new sound setup, the company highlights its ability to not only merely adjust the placement of sound in the vehicle on a horizontal plane (i.e., shifting between left and right sides of the car or from the front to the back) but also vertically — allowing for music or ambient car signals to be targeted higher or lower inside the car.
“It was very obvious to us that Lucid was trying to do something different and trying to do something that was unique to the automotive experience,” said Tim Pryde, Dolby’s director of music.
And as odd as the idea of automotive Atmos sounds, a car is actually a pretty good environment for an Atmos setup, given the controlled, encapsulated space that’s relatively easy to ensure has full speaker coverage for Dolby’s spatial sound system. While its not always easy to mount speakers in your ceiling (or to get up-firing rear surrounds) setup in your living room, a car — especially one with 21 speakers — that’s been designed to integrate the system from the start is a natural fit.
In addition to music, Lucid is also using its Atmos setup for indicators and alert sounds — for example, if a passenger in the rear seat isn’t wearing their seatbelt, the seatbelt chime will target that passenger’s corner of the car specifically.
Lucid isn’t the only big car company to be looking at major audio partnerships, either. Audi recently announced that it would be partnering with Sonos on its upcoming Q4 E-Tron, with more details on that partnership set to be revealed in April.
Keeping fit is hard for a lot of people, especially if you’re still avoiding health clubs (or were never a fan to begin with). A year after many of us started staying home, we’re still looking for ways to stay in shape and stay healthy.
We asked the staff of The Verge what they were using to keep fit and healthy during the pandemic and got the following answers.
Fitness videos and websites
Yoga With Adriene
If you’re looking to try yoga, I really recommend the 30-day challenges offered by Adriene Mishler’s YouTube channel, Yoga With Adriene. She’s very welcoming and makes my wife and I, who are absolute yoga beginners, feel like we are doing a great job whenever we show up to the mat. Plus, in later videos, her incredible dog, Benji, shows up and flops around. — Jay Peters, news writer
305 Fitness
I’ve never been so sedentary in my life than this past winter. If I had a tracker monitoring my fitness / movement, the past several months would be a sad, low pit on the graph… thank you, New York winter! Sometimes, when I’d muster up some energy, I’d do a 305 dance cardio video with the instructor, Sadie. Her energy made me smile and dancing alone in my apartment made me laugh, which is a plus during this time. The music is great and the 40 minutes goes by fast because you’re basically just dancing. — Alix Diaconis, director
Hiking Project
Hiking Project
I’ve always been partial to hiking and other outdoor activities, but the pandemic has made them even more attractive — it’s easy to social distance when there’s less than 20 people around and you’ve got the entire side of a mountain to explore. Hiking Project (and its counterparts and alternatives like MTB Project, AllTrails, and Trailforks) has been instrumental in helping me find new and longer hikes to do — and in keeping me from getting lost while doing them. I’ve also been playing with the Guthook Guides app as an exercise in daydreaming. — Mitchell Clark, news writer
Fitness equipment
Saris Fluid Indoor Bike Trainer
Saris Fluid 2 TrainerPhoto: Saris
I wanted to do indoor bike exercising, but I don’t have the space for an indoor bike, so I wanted to use a bike I already have. My setup is Apple Fitness Plus and a Saris Fluid trainer — I have the original model, but there’s a slightly updated model that comes with a smart sensor that can speak to some smartphone apps. Apple Fitness Plus can’t read it, but other indoor bike apps like Zwift or Garmin can.
The Saris is great because I don’t have to remove my wheel to use it, it’s not hideously loud, and it’s made in Wisconsin. If you’re looking at getting something like this, my very strong advice is to buy it from a local bike shop. I did, and they gave me great advice on compatibility with my bike, including directing me away from a fancier, incompatible trainer and hooking me up with a new axle from the Robert Axle project so my bike would work with the Saris. — Dieter Bohn, executive editor
Exerpeutic Folding Magnetic Upright Exercise Bike
Exerpeutic Folding Magnetic Upright Exercise Bike Photo: Exerpeutic
While walking is a good way to do at least some daily movement, it’s all too easy to shrug and put the thought aside if the weather is wet, cold, or just generally unpleasant. I decided that an exercise bike might help, but we don’t have much room in our small and very crowded home. Finally, I decided on the Exerpeutic Folding Magnetic Upright Exercise Bike. It’s nowhere near as flashy as the Peloton — it’s not “smart” at all — but I can now pedal in my living room while watching streaming content on my TV, fold it up, and put it away until tomorrow. — Barbara Krasnoff, reviews editor
The Stick Original muscle massager
The StickPhoto: Power Systems
An embarrassingly big part of my life pre-pandemic was massages. Biking and running around NYC makes you sore! And apparently sitting in my apartment also makes me sore, somehow. This hard foam roller is not a massage, but it’s a darn good replacement and much cheaper, too. It’s hard, but flexible, which is very effective for working out knots. Plus, it’s easy to use because of the grips, unlike traditional foam rollers that are just cylinders of styrofoam. — Alix Diaconis
PowerBlock Sport 24 Adjustable Dumbbell
PowerBlock Sport 24 Adjustable Dumbbell Photo: PowerBlock
While I missed all the machines at the gym, I knew that I was never going to be able to fit any of them into my apartment. However, the PowerBlock Sport adjustable dumbbells let me keep doing at least some amount of strength training, without taking the massive amounts of space a regular set of weights would. Having access to weights is a lifesaver for me — I’ve found that the only reliable way for me to stave off a repetitive strain injury is doing dumbbell rows. The one downside is that I went with the non-expandable version and, not to literally flex, after using them for a year I’ll probably need to upgrade them — I’m starting to use the heaviest setting available. — Mitchell Clark
Fitness footwear
Saucony Peregrine 11 trail runners
Saucony Peregine II Photo: Saucony
I invite you to click through and look at these Trapper-Keeper-ass shoes. Really, just get their vibe. I’ve spent a lot of the pandemic hiking — hell, I even took up running — and these trail runners from Saucony are really, really good. They’re grippy on uncertain terrain without being too heavy or stiff, so whether I want to jog on some dirt or knock out a long hike, these are my go-tos. Obviously, the shoe that works best for you will vary based on your foot and gait and so on, but if you’re thinking of taking up hiking, trail runners are lighter than hiking boots and often more comfortable. Plus, you can wear some genuinely shocking neon. — Liz Lopatto, deputy editor
Cairn Pro II Adventure Sandals
Cairn Pro II Adventure SandalsPhoto: Bedrock Sandals
If you want to go hiking and, like me, find hiking boots unbearably uncomfortable (especially in the summertime), I can give Bedrock Sandals two thumbs up for being ultra-comfortable and durable hiking shoes that will keep being comfortable even after a river crossing or five (and for being versatile enough to bike in and wear to the beach or grocery store). — Mitchell Clark
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If you’ve used a ThinkPad before, you probably know 90 percent of what to expect from the ThinkPad X1 Nano. All of the staples are here. It’s got the black carbon fiber chassis, the discrete buttons on top of the touchpad, the mechanical privacy shutter, the ThinkPad logo on the palm rest, and (of course) the red pointer nub in the middle of the keyboard.
But one thing is unique about the X1 Nano: it’s the lightest ThinkPad Lenovo has ever made. Starting at just 1.99 pounds, the Nano isn’t technically the lightest laptop on the market. But it’s still one of the best combinations of portability, build quality, and performance that you can buy.
Lenovo has made a few other useful tweaks as well, though they’re not tweaks you’ll necessarily notice when you’re looking at the machine. There’s not much to overthink here: it’s a smaller, lighter ThinkPad. Lenovo didn’t reinvent the wheel, but the updates it made succeed in keeping the Nano current among its rapidly innovating peers.
The keyboard is “nearly full-sized.”
Here’s what’s new with the Nano, in addition to its lightweight build. It has a 16:10 screen, a feature that a number of this year’s ThinkPads are adopting for the first time. It has a new 11th Gen Intel processor, and it’s certified through Intel’s Evo program (which is the chipmaker’s way of verifying that a laptop includes its latest features like Thunderbolt 4, Wi-Fi 6, instant wake, and fast charging). And there are a few enhanced security features, including a match-on-chip fingerprint reader and a dTPM 2.0 chip, which will mostly be notable for business users.
What looms over that verdict, of course, is the Nano’s price. Technically, it starts at $2,499 and maxes out at $3,719. The good news is that Lenovo’s products are very often heavily discounted, and the current sale prices at the time of publish range from $1,149 to $2,231.
The Nano is highly customizable. It comes with a Core i5-1130G7, a Core i5-1140G7, a Core i7-1160G7, or a Core i7-1180G7, all of which support Intel’s vPro. You can also select 8GB or 16GB of RAM, 256GB through 1TB of SSD storage, and a touchscreen or non-touch screen (both with 2160 x 1350 resolution). There’s even a Linux option. My review model (which runs Windows 10 Pro) is in the middle, with a quad-core Core i7-1160G7, 16GB of memory, 512GB of storage, and the non-touch display. Folks interested in the touchscreen should note that those models are heavier (2.14 pounds) and a bit thicker as well.
You’re paying a premium for the Nano’s weight and the extra business features. A comparable Dell XPS 13 to my test model, for example, is $1,599.99 and 2.64 pounds (over half a pound heavier than this unit).
That said, the Nano’s weight is astounding. I feel like I’m carrying nothing while I’m holding it, even one-handed. I’d easily haul it in my purse or throw it into my backpack and forget that it’s there. For a few comparisons: it’s half a pound lighter than the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9. It’s close to a pound lighter than the ThinkPad X13, as well as the latest MacBook Air. These are already laptops known for their portability, and the Nano is noticeably slimmer.
The laptop achieves this without sacrificing durability, which is often a concern with ultra-light devices. The chassis feels sturdy — there’s just a tiny bit of flex in the keyboard and screen, and I’d be very comfortable jerking it around in a briefcase. Lenovo says the Nano has been “tested against 12 military-grade certification methods,” so there’s also that.
I’m also very happy with the 16:10 display, which is about the same height as a typical 14-inch 16:9 screen. In addition to the extra vertical space it provides, it’s sharper than a 1080p display, and it delivers a nice picture.
There’s also a Dolby Atmos speaker system, which includes two upward-firing and two downward-firing woofers. The laptop comes preloaded with Dolby Access, which is one of my favorite audio apps. You can swap between presets for Movies, Music, and other scenarios (as well as custom profiles), and the settings make an audible difference. You can also personalize the four-microphone array for different uses, including conference calls and voice recognition.
My one quip with the chassis is the keyboard. It’s a fine keyboard, and the little red nub is there if you want to use it. But the Fn and Ctrl keys are swapped from the locations where you’ll find them on other laptop keyboards — every time I meant to hit Ctrl, I hit Fn. After a week of use, I have not yet adjusted to this.
Now, I want to be very clear: I know this is the way ThinkPad keyboards have been laid out since the dawn of time. I also know you can swap the two keys in BIOS. Still, if you’re not currently a ThinkPad user, you should note that you’ll either need some time to get used to this keyboard layout or you’ll be using mislabeled keys.
The port selection is also limited, though that’s not unique among thin devices. You get two USB-C ports and an audio jack, and they’re all on the left side.
Performance-wise, the X1 Nano did an excellent job. It’s not what you’d want to buy for demanding tasks like heavy gaming or video editing, but it kept up with my gaggles of Chrome tabs, spreadsheets, and streaming apps without a stutter. I never heard any noise out of the machine or felt noticeable heat, even when I was running fairly taxing loads.
“Anti-fry circuitry” ensures that USB-C chargers send the correct voltage.
As mentioned earlier, the Nano has a number of new security features that are coming to 2021 ThinkPads across the line. The one I found most useful was the presence-sensing tool, which automatically locks the device when you’re not in front of it and unlocks it when you’re back. ThinkPads aren’t the only business laptops to adopt this technology, but it is convenient and worked well in my testing. You can also turn it off if it creeps you out. Elsewhere, there’s a match-on-sensor fingerprint sensor next to the touchpad (the qualifier means that fingerprint enrollment, pattern storage, and biometric matching all happens directly within the sensor). The sensor also uses AI to distinguish between real and fake fingers, in case that was a concern of yours.
The one feature that isn’t quite stellar here is the battery life. I averaged 6 hours and 38 minutes between charges with my daily workflow (around a dozen Chrome tabs with office stuff like emailing, Slack, Google Docs and Sheets, occasional Spotify and YouTube streaming, with brightness around 200 nits). That’s fine, and not unexpected since the Nano only has a 48Whr battery, but I often see over seven hours out of machines at this price. It means that if your workload is similar to mine, you may not make it through a full workday on a charge. The 65W charger took 43 minutes to juice the device up to 60 percent.
In the ThinkPad X1 Nano, Lenovo is playing to its strengths. You’re getting a comfortable keyboard and touchpad, a red nub, and a capable processor in a sturdy system that’s built to last. The Nano brings a new factor to the table — a chassis that’s (just) under two pounds. The target audience here is clear: business users who like the traditional ThinkPad look and feel and are willing to pay more for an ultralight machine.
The main compromises you’re making are the battery life and port selection. Neither of these is an absolute disaster for the Nano, but they mean that a chunk of users may find competing business laptops more practical. There are a number of ultraportable business laptops with superb battery life, more useful ports, and comparable weight (such as Asus’ ExpertBook B9450 and HP’s Elite Dragonfly). That said, for users who are attached to the ThinkPad brand and want the lightest of the light, the X1 Nano will deliver.
T-Mobile has announced a new perk for its customers: a year of access to a version of Pandora with ad-free stations on weekends, along with a few other benefits, at no extra cost. This is not to be confused with Pandora’s paid premium service, but rather a version of the free service with a handful of extras. It starts on March 23rd as part of the company’s T-Mobile Tuesdays promotion, which is included on most postpaid plans.
Beginning next Tuesday, customers can get access by logging into the T-Mobile Tuesdays app and redeeming the offer through their Pandora account. After — ironically — watching a short ad each week, they’ll have access to music stations without ads over the weekend. They’ll also get early access to SiriusXM podcast episodes, SiriusXM original podcasts, and special “top tracks” stations. All of the features included with the standard free version of Pandora are also available, of course.
Access to this version of Pandora will last through March 2022, at which point T-Mobile’s users’ accounts will revert back to the standard free version. There are no current plans to offer this type of account to other customers, either during or after the promo period. It’s not exactly a promotion worth switching to T-Mobile for, but if you’re already a customer and you use a free Pandora account, it’s a nice bonus — so long as you don’t mind watching an ad to get it every week.
(Pocket-lint) – Despite being well known for invoking nostalgic memories of big wooden speaker cabinets and crackling vinyl, Klipsch is a brand that has adapted with the times. Its first pair of true wireless earbuds was such a great-sounding pair that it became one of our favourites for pure music enjoyment.
The second-generation – the aptly named Klipsch T5 II True Wireless – comes with lots of refinements in terms of design and performance, and also comes in two Sport models, one with exclusive McLaren F1 design. In this review, we’re focusing on the regular model.
Design and build
IP67 water- and dust-resistant
Colours: White / Gunmetal
Physical control button
6 pairs of oval tips
Charging case
It’s in the design department you’ll notice the biggest difference between the T5 and the T5 II. Starting with the first thing you get to: the case. Thankfully, the main ethos remains same, as it still looks friggin’ cool – almost like a chunky Zippo lighter. It’s smaller and thinner than the previous version, but there’s a solidity and durability to it. It feels like it might hurt you if you dropped it on a toe, and gives a reassuring clank when you open and shut the lid.
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As for the ‘buds, these almost keep to the same essence too. It’s a similar hard-to-describe shape, featuring a tapered oval design but, again, the second-gen is slimmer, smaller and lighter than the originals. That also means that in the non-Sport model, there’s nothing holding these ‘buds in your ears except for the redesigned oval silicone tip.
The tips extend out from underneath the main body in an unconventional design, but once stuck inside the entrance of our ear canal, we found the fit was secure and steady. These ‘buds never felt like they’d fall out – and didn’t gradually push their way out either. Since the silicon tips are soft and thin, they give just the right amount of pressure. In our ears, the pre-applied tips were the perfect fit, but the T5 II comes with six different sizes, so you should easily find a pair that works for you.
Another interesting change is that there’s one single button on the outside, which depresses really easily to ensure that when you press, it gives easily and doesn’t lead to that feeling that you’re just pushing an earbud deeper into your ear. The button gives in once it feels even the remotest bit of resistance, which makes good sense.
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Around the edge of that button is a metal collar, which makes up that outer surface. It’s more than just decoration though, it’s an external antenna to ensure there’s nothing getting in the way of that connection between the ‘buds and what you’re connecting them to.
The main takeaway here is that the T5 II is a lightweight and secure package. Not so secure that we’d recommend using these in-ear in the gym or when out running, but that’s what the Sport models are for instead.
Despite that, with an IP67 water- and dust-resistance rating, the ‘buds should survive pretty much anything anyway. Whether inside your ears, or inside their own metallic bunker/charging case.
Sound
5mm dynamic moving coil micro speaker
10Hz – 19kHz frequency response
EQ control
With frequency response as low as 10Hz, the 5mm drivers inside the Klipsch ‘buds produce sound you wouldn’t expect to hear from such small drivers. Of course, human hearing only really goes as low as 20Hz at a push – but it’s that control at the lower end of the sound spectrum where these earphones definitely excel.
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With the equaliser (EQ) set to its default flat mode, there’s still plenty of bass, without it being overwhelming, but – more importantly – you still get clean and bright notes at the top end.
We love how acoustic bass drum kicks retain that feel of air moving around the kick pedal or inside the drum every time the skin is struck by the pedal. Or in songs like Hey Ma by Bon Iver, you get the full airy feel of the bass and mid notes swelling near the beginning or, later on, the muted bass note plucking. What’s more, in that same track, the subtle percussive noises are clear without dominating the primary elements of the track.
The Klipsch T5 II is adept at tackling any genre of music, and will give you the right feel from those acoustic songs, but is sonically strong with more synthesised tracks too. Crank up Leon’s Better in the Dark and enjoy the way the bass sounds when the synth and bass drum strike at the same time, without crumbling.
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Of course, you can adjust the EQ, so if you need even more bass you can get it, but we found there was plenty from the default setting. In fact, we never felt the need to tweak the default sound profile. But it’s nice of Klipsch to give that option for those users who have preferences.
Features, performance and calls
8 hours playback + 24 more hours in the case (32 hours total)
Quad mic system for external noise cancelling during calls
Bluetooth 5.0 + signal boosting external antenna
Transparency mode
To get the first thing out of the way: there’s no active noise-cancelling (ANC). An increasing staple feature in the world of premium in-ears, but we’ve often argued that with a good set of well-fitted in-ears, it’s not as noticeable as it would be on over/on-ear cans. Passively, the T5 II does a good job of blocking out noise thanks to those soft tips.
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Although ANC isn’t a feature here, you do still get an audio transparency mode, which uses mics around the ‘buds’ casing to let in and amplify noise from around you. Using the Klipsch Connect app you can switch it on and select how much transparency you want – it works pretty well but isn’t always all that effective once you have music playing.
It’s also worth noting that the ‘buds don’t feature any automatic play/pause feature when you remove them from your ears. There’s no proximity sensor for this, which is a bit of a shame.
On the plus side, you do get to pair the T5 II with up to eight different devices – although only one can be connected at a time.
With those external antennae doing their job, we found the wireless connectivity to be very strong. Walking from room to room and leaving the music source where it was, we struggled to make these in-ears drop connection. It’s a similar story with voice calls: you get strong performance here as well, with calls coming through clearly.
The best Lightning headphones 2021 for your iPhone or iPad
By Dan Grabham
·
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As battery life goes, it’s very unlikely you’ll ever need to worry about it much. With a maximum of eight hours outside the case, thee T5 II will comfortably get you through your commute to work – well, when we all eventually return to work – and the case will keep recharging in the interim another four times over. That’s well over a full day of non-stop listening time.
Verdict
The first-generation Klipsch T5 was one of our favourite pairs of true wireless earbuds. The second generation takes what was great and refines it, making for a truly stunning pair of ‘buds.
Sure, a few advanced features might be absent – there’s no proximity sensors or active noise-cancelling – but in all the ways that matter, the T5 II performs really well. For music lovers, at this price, you’ll struggle to find anything that sounds better or packaged in as neat and stylish a product.
If you love music, we think you’ll love the sound produced by the Klipsch T5 II. There’s little to rival the quality on offer here.
Also consider
Pocket-lint
Grado T220
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Grado has a similar approach to Klipsch – in that it’s all about the sound – and the T220 sounds fantastic. In fact our first listen left our jaw on the floor, it was that good. It has some downsides though, like a finicky design and sensitive touchpad.
Read the review
Pocket-lint
Bose QuietComfort Earbuds
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If you want all the bells and whistles in a great sounding pair of buds, Bose has the ones for you. QC Buds have excellent noise-cancelling, great sound overall, plus a comfortable and secure fit.
Read the review
Writing by Cam Bunton. Editing by Adrian Willings.
(Pocket-lint) – If your TV audio isn’t up to snuff then there are a bevy of options on the market to help step things up a notch. Among these is Polk Audio’s React soundbar, which is available for less cash than many a rival.
But just because you’re paying less doesn’t mean you’ll get less in terms of raw sound capability. Especially if, as we have for this review, you opt for the bundled React soundbar and React Sub package.
That said, the Polk React doesn’t offer any fancy object-based sound decoding, it doesn’t even play pretend – as there’s no Dolby Atmos surround output here from the bar itself – instead sticking to Dolby Digital and DTS surround formats.
You can later invest in Polk’s RS2 surround speakers, which are simply paired at the touch of a button, to create a fully fledged 5.1 system (if you have the Sub) in smaller steps rather than forking our a massive chunk of change up front. That, we think, is a big part of this soundbar’s wider appeal.
Design & Setup
Ports: 1x HDMI (ARC) output; 1x optical input
Controls: Included remote / four-button top-of-‘bar panel
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Alexa voice control integrated
Dimensions (soundbar): 56mm (H) x 864mm (W) x 121mm (D)
Dimensions (sub): 348mm (H) x 218mm (W) x 419mm (D); 7.5kg
Having recently reviewed the JBL Bar 5.0 MultiBeam – which is an all-in-one box solution that can’t ever be connected to separates – it was interesting to dig into the Polk React for its points of difference. The Polk is a longer soundbar – at 864mm it’s 160mm longer by comparison – so even sat against a 55-inch telly, as pictured, it’s fairly good at covering the majority of the screen width, which is handy for a wide soundscape to help match the action on screen.
The Polk is simpler than the JBL in terms of core specification, though, as there’s no HDMI input, just the one HDMI input – the latter of which is ARC (audio return channel) capable. For us this meant a slight rejig of our TV’s four HDMI ports, as we couldn’t passthrough using the soundbar itself, ensuring the HDMI ARC cable provided was running from TV to React ‘bar.
Thing is, our ARC port is one of the two 4K resolution capable HDMI ports on the TV (every maker does this at present), so our BT TV box for telly had to be relegated to HDMI 4 (running Full HD maximum – which, in fairness, is how majority content from there is streamed) to save HDMI 1 for our PlayStation 5 (our source of Blu-ray and 4K streaming apps such as Netflix). ARC does its job though: once the TV is switched on the audio handshakes between device and soundbar.
Well, it didn’t at very first. For a brief period of time we were in a no man’s land of having both TV audio and soundbar audio outputting simultaneously. That’s because the setup is, to our mind, a little finicky. The soundbar needed an update out of the box, that much it told us (by voice alert), but having advised us to install the Polk Connect app – which we did on our Google Android phone – it then didn’t like it, forcing a handover to Amazon Alexa instead. But the Alexa app initially failed to get things talking successfully.
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Success did come after a few attempts, after which there’s been no issues, but it very much points to this Polk’s intentions: it’s an Alexa voice control soundbar through and through. There’s even an Alexa button pride of place on the included remote control. There’s not even a proper off button – as your main TV remote will take over for that duty anyway – and there’s always a glowing light of some colour to the front of the ‘bar, which we think is a design downside when watching movies in darkened rooms.
Oh, and Alexa shouts crazilyloud for some reason too – almost to the point of distorting – and there’s no simple way that we can find to turn this down, which is irksome.
The included remote isn’t the prettiest, but it’s well appointed, able to switch between TV and Bluetooth audio sources. There are adjustments for bass up/down on the left, volume up/down in the middle, voice up/down on the right, four quick-select movie presets below this, and surround sound volume/balance adjustment to the bottom of the controller.
That surround sound adjustment won’t do anything unless you’ve bought into the Polk’s expandable options though. As the React soundbar itself is a straight forward left, centre, right speaker arrangement. But if you buy the RS2 surround speakers – not on test here – then you can easily sync them at the touch of a button on the back of the soundbar and boost things to a 5-channel system.
Go with the subwoofer – paired in the same way, using the same button to quickly sync without extra wires – and that brings 5.1 channel potential into your living room. The sub is pretty beefy in terms of scale – and deeper than it is either wide or tall – but the addition of true bass at the lower end of the spectrum is transformative to the sound profile. We think it’s an essential addition to make the React ‘bar deliver its potential.
Best speakers for PC gamers 2021: All the sound and RGB lighting you could ever need
Which brings us to the whole reason to buy a soundbar: to enhance audio quality, notching up TV audio to new heights. And the Polk React does a generally decent job, although given its positioning to the base of a screen (inevitable, of course) and lack of object-based sound control it lacks any distinct verticality – so on larger screens voice parts might not give the impression they’re coming from the person speaking with the greatest of precision.
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Otherwise there’s a lot of tweaking that can be done with ease, so it’s great to have all that control directly to hand. The presets are particularly useful, selecting Movie to enhance that extra bass – there’s always a good down-pitched “wommm” in an action flick – or Night to quieten such frequencies and allow your family/neighbours/whoever to get some shut-eye when you’re having a late night session.
The independent controls for bass and voice are handy too, the latter really adjusting the mid-to-high-end of the frequency range to give more curvature to vocal output. So if you’re finding the bass balance is a bit too high, then this can help voices to cut through the mix with greater clarity. We like that it’s a simple system, too, not over-complex in how many ways it can all be adjusted.
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However, bass-wise we’ve heard soundbars with chunkier capability. Which is why, once paired with the React Sub, you’ll really hear and feel the difference. With the React subwoofer linked up the sound has a much more rooted appeal, delivered with gusto. It’s got great musicality too, to the point we’ve ceased using our Marshall standalone speaker in the living room and instead just tuck into the Polk React and Sub on Music mode for the best possible listen.
Through the Alexa app it’s simple enough to get the soundbar to register as part of your home network. With Google Home open it’s easily identified (although not directly controllable here, as Alexa rules the way), so Spotify plays nice – and you can ask Alexa by voice to load your favourites.
We suspect that adding a pair of RS2 speakers would add to the expanse of the overall sound as, like we said up top, the Polk React doesn’t support object-based audio, so you’re not going to get any Dolby Atmos pseudo height and all-around sense from this soundbar. But, really, given how such systems can sometimes fly off the handle in weird (and not always wonderful) ways, we think Polk delivers here exactly what people will want – enhanced sound on a smaller budget.
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That will raise the question, however, as to whether you want something smaller and more technologically complete, such as the JBL Bar 5 MultiBeam that we mentioned at the beginning of this review. It can’t match the smacking bass of the subwoofer by any means, but if you don’t have the space then it might be a better fit to your needs – and the Atmos found there is impressive given the right source material.
Verdict
While the Polk React doesn’t have object-based sound decoding bells and whistles – that’s to say there’s no vertical channels for pseudo surround – as a standalone large ‘bar with decent output and control, for a very fair price, it’s got a lot going for it. Especially if you’re keen on Alexa integration for voice control.
But things really step up a notch when you add a React Sub as part of the package. That’s when the sound becomes extra full, deep and rich – to the point that it’s taken preference as our living room music speaker when the telly is out of use. Now if that’s not high praise, then what is? Keep your expectations in check in terms of technological prowess and Polk delivers strong at this end of the market.
Also consider
Pocket-lint
JBL Bar 5.0 MultiBeam
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It’s a different prospect, as it’s a single box solution – so you’ll never be able to add extras or a sub – but that might better suit your space restrictions. However, it permits passthrough (thanks to HDMI in and out ports with eARC) and offers Dolby Atmos decoding, which with the right source delivers a more complete sound. That said, the Polk’s React Sub, if you want to fork out the extra cash, takes impactful sound to the next step where the JBL simply cannot reach.
Read our review
Pocket-lint
Yamaha SR-C20A
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Looking for something smaller? If what you need is a bit of everything from your soundbar – ignoring that, at this price point, you can’t expect surround sound – you can’t go far wrong with this little Yamaha. It’s a one-box solution (so, like the JBL above, there there’s no subwoofer here) and can turn its hand to pretty much anything, without ever making itself the centre of attention. A different prospect, but a nice neat little package.
Read our review
Writing by Mike Lowe. Editing by Adrian Willings.
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