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Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live stream: how to watch the 2021 French Open Men’s Final for free

Novak Djokovic can win his second French Open title tomorrow – if he can beat talented Greek pro Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Men’s Singles Final at the Roland-Garros. Both players have aced their way to the finale, but who will win the legendary Grand Slam? UK fans can watch the 2021 French Open Men’s Final free on ITV Hub on Sunday! Make sure you know to watch a Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live stream for free from anywhere.

Played at the Stade Roland-Garros in Paris annually, the French Open attracts the world’s top tennis players. Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal found themselves in the same half of the draw but Federer withdrew at the quarter-final stage to protect his recovering knee injury, leaving the path clear for a Nadal–Djokovic semi-final.

World number three Nadal – the most successful player ever to have competed at the French Open – took a marathon first set but Djokovic levelled the match with the second, took the third set 7-6 and then cruised to victory in the fourth set. Nadal’s dream of 21st major title are now on hold.

Djokovic’s opponent, Stefanos Tsitsipas, faced a tough challenge it the semis. The Greek pro took the first two sets before 24-year-old German Alexander Zverev took the next two to level the match. But, in the end, it was Tsitsipas’ experience that won out as some 5000 Parisian fans cheered a masterful display (not to mention a few baseline zingers).

Djokovic has looked at home throughout this year’s Roland-Garros but can he fully recover from Friday night’s epic semi-final win over Nadal? Or will Tsitsipas win his first ever Grand Slam title? New balls please!

Here’s how to watch a Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live stream for free, and catch the clay court action from anywhere in the world.

Watch Djokovic vs Tsitsipas free in the UK and Ireland

(Image credit: Wikipedia: By Michael Frey (Michael Frey) – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=29456976)

ITV has the rights to air the 2021 French Open in its entirety on ITV4. Provided you have a TV licence, it’s completely free to watch Djokovic vs Tsitsipas and can be accessed by any viewer located in the UK.

Away from UK during the tennis? Simply use a VPN to access ITV Hub from anywhere, without being blocked. We recommend ExpressVPN as it comes with a risk-free 30-day money-back guarantee.

Djokovic vs Tsitsipas will also be shown live on Eurosport which you can watch in both HD (channel 521 and 522) and in 4K HDR on Virgin Media (channel 205 and 999).

Not a Eurosport subscriber? You can watch the 2021 French Open finals for £6.99 per month on Eurosport Player, or grab an annual pass for £39.99. Top tip: subscribe through Amazon Prime Video and get a free 7-day trial.

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Watch Djokovic vs Tsitsipas free from anywhere in the world using a VPN

Even if you have subscribed to the relevant Djokovic vs Tsitsipas rights holders, you won’t be able to use them when outside your own country. The service will know your location based on your IP address, and will automatically block your access.

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) helps you get around this obstacle. A VPN creates a private connection between your device and the internet, such that the servers and services you’re accessing aren’t aware of what you’re doing. All the information passing back and forth is entirely encrypted.

There are many VPN providers out there, with some more reliable and safe than others. As a rule, we’d suggest a paid-for service such as ExpressVPN which offers a 100 per cent risk-free money back guarantee. If you’re not happy with the service any time within the first 30-days, then you can cancel with no penalties at all.

French Open 2021 Try ExpressVPN risk-free for 30 days

ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money back guarantee with its VPN service. You can use it to watch on your mobile, tablet, laptop, TV, games console and more. There’s 24/7 customer support and three months free when you sign-up. Try it – it’s easier than you think.

Watch a Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live stream in the USA

(Image credit: Wikipedia: By Vladsinger at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2262555)

NBC is broadcasting full live coverage of the 2021 French Open, including the Men’s Final between Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas. You’ll need a cable subscription to NBC Sports, which will also allow you to stream the tennis live, via the NBC Sports app.

Don’t have cable? You can get a Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live stream on Peacock TV, NBC’s streaming service. Peacock costs just $4.99 a month and includes thousands of movies, TV shows, kids content and other live sport.

Going to be away from the States during the tennis? Simply use a VPN to access Peacock TV from anywhere in the world, without being blocked. We recommend ExpressVPN as it comes with a risk-free 30-day money-back guarantee.

Another option for is to watch NBC via a cable-replacement service such as Fubo TV. New subscribers get a 1-week free trial, cancel anytime. After that it’s $65 a month. So, not cheap, but Fubo does get you a ton of premium channels, from ESPN to A&E.

Lastly, US fans also have the option to subscribe to Tennis Channel Plus for $110 per year. This gets you Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live stream plus comprehensive coverage of over 100 ATP & WTA events.

Watch a free Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live stream in Australia

Channel 9’s Wide World of Sport is the place to see the 2021 French Open Men’s Singles Final live and free-to-air. Aussies can also get a Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live stream via the 9now website.

Watch a Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live stream in Europe

Eurosport holds the rights to broadcast the 2021 French Open Men’s Final in continental Europe.

You can get a Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live stream by purchasing a monthly or annual subscription to Eurosport Player here.

In France, you can see Djokovic vs Tsitsipas live on free-to-air channel France TV Sport. The same goes for Servus TV and ORF in Austria.

French Open 2021 schedule

(Image credit: Stade Roland Garros)

May 30th – June 1st: Round 1

June 2nd – 3rd: Round 2

June 4th – 5th: Round 3

June 6th – 7th: Round 4

June 8th -9th: Quarter-Finals

June 10th -11th: Semi-Finals

June 12th: Women’s Singles Final

June 13th: Men’s Singles Final: Djokovic vs Tsitsipas

See Roland-Garros website for latest order of play

NBC Universal to show the Olympics in 4K HDR and Dolby Atmos

(Image credit: The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games)

NBCUniversal will air live coverage of the Tokyo Olympics in 4K HDR, a first for a US broadcaster. The NBC Olympics coverage will also be accompanied by Dolby Atmos surround sound.

Events that will be featured in 4K HDR during the rearranged Tokyo ‘2020’ games include track and field, swimming, diving, tennis, beach volleyball, golf, gymnastics and more.

NBCU has yet to announce the schedule, but with the Olympics said to be “100% happening” and the opening ceremony expected to get underway at 12pm BST on Friday 23rd July, the clock is very much ticking.

Accessing high-quality coverage of the world’s best sprinters and swimmers might not be as easy as it sounds, though. NBCUniversal notes that while it will distribute 4K HDR coverage to its partners (i.e. cable and satellite TV networks), it will be up to those partners to decide whether to broadcast the coverage in 4K HDR or step down to a lower quality.

Not a cable subscriber anyway? NBC has confirmed it will stream live coverage of “selected” Olympic events though its Peacock streaming platform, but hasn’t yet said whether any of those streams will be in the 4K HDR format. The Peacock app is available on a long list of devices that now includes most Samsung smart TVs.

Still, with Japan’s borders closed to foreigners, and lingering uncertainty as to the level of athlete participation this year, NBCUniversal’s 4K HDR Atmos coverage could prove to be the best seat in house.

The BBC has the rights to broadcast the Olympics in the UK and has the capability to stream in 4K and HDR via the iPlayer app. Whether it will offer both for live events is yet to be confirmed, and the broadcaster has never offered Dolby Atmos before. There’s a first time for everything, though.

In need of a smarter set for Tokyo 2020? Here’s our guide to the best TVs and the best media streamers on the market. Live in Europe? BBC iPlayer and Eurosport 4K are expected to broadcast coverage of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in 4K HDR.

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Apple is trying to dominate watch parties, but it needs more help

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 be on SharePlay for that to work. As it currently stands, many are not.

Sharp unveils 2021 4K TV range: 50-inch model for just £530

(Image credit: Sharp)

Sharp has announced its new 4K TV range just in time for the Euro 2020 kick off, and there are some seriously affordable big-screen options. Both the DL and DN ranges come with very slim bezels, the Android TV operating system, HDR tech and sound by Harman Kardon.

HDR10 and HLG formats of HDR come as standard, and the DN series TVs also have Dolby Vision on board. The DN sets also feature Sharp’s Active Motion 600 technology, which sharpens up movement and reduces distortions, and 12-bit HDR colour coding to improve the smoothness of shading and reduce banding and colour disruptions common to standard non-HDR sources. The 65-inch model has a slim, full-aluminium body enhanced with a high brightness LCD/LED panel producing 400 nits output.

And there’s plenty of audio tech to get your teeth into (or ears into, rather). As well as integrated speaker systems from sonic specialists Harman Kardon, there’s Dolby Atmos tech onboard (though only on the DN models) to give 3D audio. The DN range also benefits from DTS Virtual:X post-processing tech, apparently improving clarity and ensuring better-quality high frequencies. Again, the 65-inch model gets a little extra – in this case, a 15W Harman Kardon sub to go with the 10W stereo speakers, making a 2.1 system.

The usual apps are present and correct, including Netflix, Prime Video, Spotify, Deezer and Tidal. Google Chromecast tech lets you stream content from your mobile device or laptop to the big screen, and of course Google Assistant lets you control it just by speaking.

Unusually, the 50-inch models have more HDMI inputs than their 65-inch siblings (four compared to three). Go figure.

The entry-level 50-inch 50DL3KA costs £530, and the 50DN3KA (with Dolby Atmos and Dolby Vision) is £550. Stepping up in size, the 65-inch 65DL3KA is £730, and the 65DN3KA is £750.

They will all be available “this summer”. So probably not in time for Euro 2020 after all. Ho hum. if you need a set for then, why not check out our list of best TVs?

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Amazon’s new Echo Show 8 is a little faster and has a better camera

Amazon’s midsize Echo Show 8 is the best smart display in its lineup. It is larger and more capable than the diminutive Echo Show 5, while costing far less than the larger Echo Show 10. The Echo Show 8 is handy for watching video, listening to music, getting weather reports, controlling smart home devices, making video calls, and more.

So it’s no surprise that the second-generation model, which sells for $129.99 and is shipping this week, doesn’t rock the boat. It’s largely the same smart display as before but with slightly faster performance and an improved video calling camera. It has the same display, same design, same speaker system, and the same set of features as its predecessor.

Improving the video calling capabilities makes sense, given how much video calling has been done while everyone was (and for large part, still is) stuck at home during the pandemic. The new Echo Show 8 borrows the 13-megapixel camera from the flagship Echo Show 10, replacing the pathetically low-resolution, mediocre 1-megapixel camera that was in the first gen. As before, there’s a mechanical privacy shutter you can slide in front of the camera to both disable it and block its view.

The improvements in video calls are immediately noticeable. You can use the Echo Show for video calls to the Alexa app on phones or other Echo Show devices, or you can join Skype, Zoom, or Amazon’s Chime calls from it. In my testing with Zoom calls, the image is much sharper and more pleasant to look at, with better color and much more detail.

The Echo Show 8 doesn’t have the motorized base on the bigger Echo Show 10, but it still can automatically frame you and follow you around as you move thanks to its high resolution. The autoframing isn’t as good as the new iPad Pro’s Center Stage feature, and it moves much slower and tends to constantly reframe itself, like you’re the star of a Ken Burns documentary. But the Echo Show is a $130 smart display, not an $800 tablet, so it’s hard to complain, so long as you stay relatively still during video calls. If you don’t want the camera to autoframe, you can say “Alexa follow off” to disable it.

You can use the Echo Show 8 for Zoom calls, but it works best for one-on-one calling, not groups

That said, there’s still plenty of room for improvement. The new camera has a much wider-angle lens, which allows it to do those auto-framing tricks. But it can also cause the image to look distorted at times and isn’t always very flattering.

The Echo Show 8’s eight-inch display works fine for one-on-one video calls, but it’s too small to comfortably use for a group call. If you are on a call where someone is sharing a screen, it’s hard to see what’s happening, and while you can view messages posted to a chat, you can’t type any out yourself on the Echo Show’s display. Joining Zoom calls can be done entirely by voice, but it’s much easier to call up the Zoom app on the Echo Show by saying “Alexa, open Zoom” and then typing in a meeting code or starting one yourself from the touchscreen.

I also observed an echo of my own voice in several Zoom calls, both with individuals and group calls, which made it hard to use the Echo Show for anything work related. Other parties on the line also said there was an annoying echo of my voice whenever I unmuted my mic. Amazon says it is looking into this problem and I will update this review if a solution is found.

The new processor in the second-gen Echo Show 8 does make the smart display respond quicker to taps and swipes than its predecessor. It’s not a huge difference, and Amazon’s software still has a long way to go to make it more useful via touch, but when compared side by side, the new one opens menus and screens quicker.

Elsewhere, the changes are either nonexistent or very minor. The wedge-shaped design is exactly the same; you can still get it in the same white or black color options as before. (Annoyingly, both colors come with a white power cord.)

The display has the same 1280 x 800 pixel resolution, but now it can adjust its color and white balance to the lighting in the room. Like the new processor, the difference isn’t huge, but the new model is slightly warmer and more pleasant to look at when the adaptive color setting is enabled. I’m still more impressed by the ability of Google’s Nest Hub to mimic the look of a printed photo by adapting its color to the lighting in the room.

The dual-driver speaker system is unchanged and it’s as loud and full sounding as the first gen. The Echo Show 8 can fill a small room with sound surprisingly well, and its bass response is better than expected. At times, it might even sound too bassy, but you can adjust the EQ in the Alexa app easily enough to compensate for that. Unfortunately, Amazon dropped the 3.5mm output jack on the back of the new model, so it’s not possible to hook it up to a larger speaker system with a wire.

You can watch Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and Netflix on the Echo Show, but Disney Plus, Peacock, HBO Max, and many other streaming services aren’t available. YouTube is available through the Echo Show’s Silk browser, but it’s not as seamless of an experience as available on Google’s Nest Hub, and you can’t easily cast videos from your phone to the Show’s screen.

The Echo Show 8’s software is the same as what debuted on the Echo Show 10 earlier this year. Amazon is starting to make better use of the display, with split screens that show weather data alongside news, but it still feels very much like a voice-first device. Though the new Echo Show 8 is faster, it’s still a chore to tap through all of the screens to get to the smart home controls, and managing what shows up in the rotating information screens on the display requires a lot of menu diving and trial and error to get what you want. (And even then, you’ll still probably get nagged about new Alexa Skills or other Amazon promotions you don’t care about.)

There are of course many, many other things you can do with an Echo Show smart display — far too many to cover in the scope of this review. The things that I find it most useful for are weather reports, managing a grocery shopping list, and viewing the video feed from a doorbell or security camera.

The Echo Show 8’s main competition is the second-gen Nest Hub from Google, which has a slightly smaller seven-inch screen and costs $30 less. The Nest Hub supports more video streaming services, has a more useful touch interface, can track your sleep, and works with the Google Assistant instead of Alexa. But it doesn’t have a camera for video calling, its single speaker is blown away by the Echo Show’s dual speakers, and it’s much slower and laggy to use. Ultimately, the choice comes down to how you want to use the smart display and which smart assistant you prefer.

Facebook’s 10-inch Portal is another option if you plan to use a smart display primarily for video calling, but it loses to the Echo Show 8 in effectively every other aspect.

If you do prefer Alexa, the new Echo Show 8 remains the best smart display to get, as it has a big enough screen to read from across the room, doubles as a great speaker, and comes with a host of camera-related features, including the aforementioned video calling and security camera features. It’s also over $100 less than the motorized Echo Show 10, while still providing many of the same features and capabilities. And given Amazon’s frequent discounts, you’ll likely be able to find the new Echo Show 8 for less than its sticker price quite often.

The new Echo Show 8 doesn’t redefine what a smart display can be, but it’s still a very good virtual assistant with a screen for an attractive price.

Photography by Dan Seifert / The Verge

Netflix ‘Play Something’ feature comes to Android smartphones

(Image credit: Netflix)

Binge-watching Netflix on your smartphone just got easier. The streaming service is letting some users of its Android app try ‘Play Something’, a feature that suggests content for you to watch, Engadget reports.

The feature is already live on Netflix’s TV apps but it’s only being tested on select Android users for now, ahead of a wider rollout. If you’ve been selected, you’ll see the Play Something button appear on both adult and child profiles.

Play Something uses your viewing history and algorithms to suggest movies, documentaries, and TV shows that you might like. Hit the Play Something button and you’ll jump right in, no endless scrolling required.

Don’t like what you see? With another click, Netlfix will pick something else – this will either be from your queue, something you haven’t finished watching, or something else new based on your viewing habits.

Given the rise in rival streaming services such as Disney+, Apple TV+ and Amazon Prime Video, Netflix appears to be looking for extra ways to distinguish itself from the competition. What will it think of next?

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Samsung launching new Tizen-powered ‘Smart Monitors’

Samsung has been growing the number of displays it sells over the last few years, adding professional-grade and gaming monitors to its line-up. Now, Samsung is attempting to add another category to its list – Smart Monitors.

Samsung’s Smart Monitor range is expanding this week, with a new 43-inch 4K M7 model and a smaller, 24-inch M5 model with 1080p resolution. The key thing that sets these monitors apart is the introduction of Smart TV technology, powered by Samsung’s own Tizen processors.

Samsung wants these to be “do-it-all” displays, good for work, gaming and general entertainment, which will be accessible through a Smart TV style UI with support for apps like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. These Smart Monitors also feature apps for remote desktop connections and productivity apps like Microsoft Office. This functionality essentially turns the monitor into its own all-in-one computer.

Samsung now has Smart Monitors in 43-inch and 32-inch 4K options, as well as 1080p versions from 24-inches up to 32-inches, with prices starting at $229.99.

KitGuru Says: The lines between PC monitors and TVs has been getting blurry over the years. What do you think of Samsung’s ‘Smart Monitors’?

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Netflix reported to be going all-in on gaming, plotting rival to Apple Arcade

(Image credit: Netflix)

Netflix might be the world’s largest subscription streaming service with more than 180 million paid subscribers worldwide, but it seems it’s not resting on its laurels. Growing evidence – collected by TheVerge – suggests that Netflix itself wants to become the Netflix of games.

The rumours started last Friday when The Information reported that Netflix was looking to expand beyond film and TV content. The article revealed that the streaming giant was on the hunt for a top executive to oversee a major push into gaming.

Then, on Monday, Axios followed up by quoting an anonymous source who tipped the upcoming service to be “a smaller Apple Arcade” bundle, featuring a mix of Netflix-developed games and indie titles. The source claimed ‘Netflix Arcade’ could launch as soon as 2022.

Other outlets have since suggested that Netflix had already approached several high-flying games industry veterans with a view to offering subscribers both streamed and downloadable games.

If the rumours are true, ‘Netflix Arcade’ will be the company’s second significant foray into button-bashing. Back in 2019, Netflix teamed up with Finnish studio Next Games to create a puzzle role-player based on the hit 80s-themed horror series, Stranger Things.

Netflix is yet to comment, but in the past, in a statement issued to GameSpot, it has hinted that interactive experiences are very much on its radar:

“Members… enjoy engaging more directly with stories they love – through interactive shows like Bandersnatch and You v. Wild, or games based on Stranger Things, La Casa de Papel and To All the Boys. So we’re excited to do more with interactive entertainment.”

In the past 20 years we’ve seen many a video game franchises, from Tomb Raider to Resident Evil, adapted for the big screen. Netflix is currently showing four series of Castlevania, a TV show based on the hit 90s platformer, while Paramount+ is expected to launch its Xbox-inspired Halo TV series in February 2022.

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Deepfake dubs could help translate film and TV without losing an actor’s original performance

What exactly is lost in translation when TV shows and films are subbed or dubbed into a new language? It’s a hard question to answer, but for the team at AI startup Flawless, it may be one we don’t have to think about in the future. The company claims it has the solution to this particular language barrier; a technical innovation that could help TV shows and films effortlessly reach new markets around the world: deepfake dubs.

We often think of deepfakes as manipulating the entire image of a person or scene, but Flawless’ technology focuses on just a single element: the mouth. Customers feed the company’s software with video from a film or TV show along with dubbed dialogue recorded by humans. Flawless’ machine learning models then create new lip movements that match the translated speech and paste them automatically onto the actor’s head.

“When someone’s watching this dubbed footage, they’re not jolted out of the performance by a jarring word or a mistimed mouth movement,” Flawless’ co-founder Nick Lynes tells The Verge. “It’s all about retaining the performance and retaining the original style.”

The results — despite the company’s name — aren’t 100 percent flawless, but they are pretty good. You can see and hear how they look in the demo reel below, which features a French dub of the classic 1992 legal drama A Few Good Men, starring Jack Nicholson and Tom Cruise. We asked a native French speaker what they made of the footage, and they said it was off in a few places but still a lot smoother than traditional dubbing.

What makes Flawless’ technology particularly interesting is its potential to scale. Flawless’ pitch is that deepfake dubs offer tremendous value for money: they’re cheap and quick to create, especially when compared to the cost of full remakes. And, with the advent of global streaming platforms like Netflix, Disney Plus, and Amazon Prime Video, it’s easier than ever for such dubbed content to reach international markets.

As a recent report in The Wall Street Journal highlighted, demand for streaming services in the US is saturated and companies are now looking abroad for future growth. In the first quarter of 2021, for example, 89 percent of new Netflix users came from outside the US and Canada, while the service’s most watched show, Lupin, is a Parisian thriller.

“What you’re seeing is more and more streamers come online realizing the vast majority of their consumers are going to be outside the US, over time,” Erik Barmack, a former Netflix executive responsible for the company’s international productions, told the WSJ. “The question is how international does your content need to be to be successful.”

As Barmack suggests, there are different ways to answer this demand. You can create shows with local flavor that still entertain domestic viewers. You can do remakes of local hits for new audiences. And you can roll out the subs and dubs. But Flawless is betting that its technology provides a new option that will be particularly enticing for filmmakers.

This is because the company’s deepfake dubs preserve, to some degree, the performance of the original actor, says Lynes. Flawless’ technology is based on research from the Max Planck Institute for Informatics first published in 2019. As you can see in a showcase video below, the dubs it produces are somewhat sensitive to the facial expressions of the performers, retaining their emotion and line delivery.

Flawless has developed these techniques over the past three years, says Lynes, speeding up production time and reducing the amount of input footage. The end results are still a balance of automated dubbing and manual retouching (about 85 percent to 15 percent) but speedy to edit. “If something comes out we don’t particularly like we’ll do a few iterations; resubmit the training data in different forms and get another result,” says Lynes.

The company hopes that preserving the original performance will be appealing to filmmakers who want to retain the magic of their original casting. Lynes gives the example of the 2020 Oscar award-wining Danish film Another Round, which stars Mads Mikkelsen as one of a group of teachers who experiment with low-level alcoholism to see if it improves their lives. After its success at home and on the international award circuit, the film is set to be remade for English-language audiences with Leonardo DiCaprio in the main role.

The news sparked discussion about the value of such remakes. Is the Danish drinking culture that forms the film’s backbone really so alien to American audiences that a remake is required? Is Mikkelsen, an actor who’s appeared in such mainstream fare as Hannibal, Doctor Strange, and Rogue One, such an unknown that he can’t attract viewers in the US? And is the “one-inch barrier” of subtitles (to quote Parasite director Bong Joon Ho) simply too much for audiences to overcome?

From Lynes’ point of view, a deepfake dub would at least be a cheaper way to bring Another Round to English-language audiences while retaining its original flavor. “They’re quoting $60 million to make that movie,” he says. “If we’re offering something that’s two percent the cost of the remake, we only need to be half as appealing to offer 10 times better value.”

Those in charge of the remake will have concerns other than money, of course. No matter how beloved Mikkelsen is, he’s not as bankable as DiCaprio. But Lynes hopes that as deepfake dubs become common it’ll change the calculations for such remakes in future. Much more than that, he says, it’ll could even reshape the international film landscape, allowing actors and directors to reach new audiences with minimal effort.

“I think the pulling power of actors will change globally as a consequence of this technology,” he says. “Different people’s performances and directors’ choices will be better recognized, because a wider audience will be able to see them.”

Perhaps so, but for the moment, Flawless needs to prove that audiences actually want its technology. The company, which launched earlier this month, says it’s already got a first contract with a client it can’t name, but there’s no timeline for when we might see its wares in a commercial TV show or film and that will be the real test. The proof is in the dubbing.

Amazon Echo Show 5 (2021) vs Echo Show 5 (2019): What’s the difference?

(Pocket-lint) – Amazon updated its Echo Show 5 and Echo Show 8 in 2021 with a couple of new features.

There aren’t huge differences between the new Echo Show 5 and the older Echo Show 5, but if you’re wondering which to buy, you’ve come to the right place. If you’re looking at whether to buy the Echo Show 5, Show 8 or Show 10, then head to our separate feature. We also have a full Echo devices comparison feature.

Keep reading here if you want to know how the new Echo Show 5 (2021) differs from the old Echo Show 5 (2019) though.

What’s the same?

Design and controls
Features
Speaker hardware

To be honest, almost everything remains the same between the new Echo Show 5 and the old Echo Show 5. Both devices measure 148 x 86 x 73mm and weigh 410g. They also both have a 5.5-inch touchscreen and they both come with the same design and controls.

There’s a camera cover switch at the top of both devices, along with a microhone on/off button and volume buttons. On the rear of the fabric-covered speaker base, there’s a power port, while the top of the display has a front-facing camera within the bezel of the top right corner. Both have the same speaker setup too.

All the features are the same across the second generation Echo Show 5 and first generation Echo Show 5 too, including built in Alexa and everything that comes with Alexa, like smart home control, news and weather reports, games and Alexa calling. Both also have the ability to stream music from various services, or stream your favourite TV shows from the likes of Prime Video and Netflix.

What is Alexa and what can Amazon Echo do?

What’s different between the 2nd gen Echo Show 5 and first gen?

Despite looking identical and offering the same features, there are a couple of differences between the first generation Echo Show 5 and the second generation. Here’s what is different.

Front camera

Though the front camera positioning is the same across the new Echo Show 5 and the old Echo Show 5, the new model has a 2-megapixel camera, while the older model has a 1-megapixel sensor with 720p video recording.

Energy efficiency

The new Echo Show 5 is ‘Climate Pledge Friendly’. It is made from 30 per cent post-consumer recycled plastics, 100 per cent post-consumer recycled fabric and 100 per cent recycled die-cast aluminium. Additionally, 99 per cent of its packaging is made of wood-fibre-based materials.

Colours

The new Echo Show 5 is available in Charcoal, Glacier White and Deep Sea Blue colours, while the old Echo Show 5 only comes in Charcoal and Glacier White.

Price

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The new Echo Show 5 is available to pre-order for £74.99 in the UK. It will be available from 9 June 2021.

The old Echo Show 5 cost the same at launch, but it is now available for £64.99 in the UK.

Conclusion

The second generation Echo Show 5 is identical in design to the first generation model, but it offers a more sustainable build, new colour and a higher resolution front camera.

The new model is more expensive than its predecessor though, and it offers the same processor and features so the older model is still just as capable.

If you want to do your bit for the environment, really like the blue colour option or you want a high resolution front camera for video calls, the 2021 Echo Show is the one you want. If none of those are super important to you, you might find the old Echo Show 5 at a great price and you don’t miss out on much.

Writing by Britta O’Boyle.

Walmart could undercut Roku and Amazon with $30 4K Android TV streamer

(Image credit: Walmart)

Earlier this year we reported that Walmart was prepping a new streaming stick under its affordable ‘Onn’ brand. The big-box retailer is yet to release details of that product, but now another Onn media streamer has shown up on Walmart’s website.

First reported by 9to5Google, the official listing for the ‘onn. Android TV UHD Streaming Device’ promises 4K and Dolby Audio support, as well as Chromecast built-in and Google voice controls for the princely sum of $29.88.

As you can see, this version is a streaming ‘box’ rather than a ‘stick’ and has a slightly different remote with dedicated buttons for YouTube Netflix, Disney+ and HBO Max. (The leaked photo of the streaming ‘stick’ showed it with an Amazon Prime Video shortcut.)

Spec-wise, the new box is just what you’d expect from a budget-friendly streamer that runs Google’s Android TV. There’s support for WiFi 5, an HDMI port (for video output) and a micro USB connection (for charging).

There are plenty of 4K streaming sticks already on sale around the $50 mark, with the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K and Roku Streaming + both proving popular choices at the moment. But at less than $30, Walmart’s onn. Android TV UHD Streaming Device could give consumers another tempting proposition (and rival brands a sleepless night or two).

The device isn’t available to purchase yet – Walmart shows it as “Out of stock” – but the fact that the listing is public points to a launch in the near future. Perhaps we’ll see this model joined by the rumoured Onn streaming stick? Over to you, Walmart.

MORE:

Best media streamers

Check out our Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K review

And our Google Chromecast with Google TV review

Our Verdict

It’s nigh-on impossible to find meaningful fault with Netflix

For

Excellent video quality
Big, easy-to-navigate catalogue
High quality Originals

Against

Rarely first for big film releases

Netflix just keeps on getting better, making a more compelling case for your money at every turn. It’s everything you want from a video streaming service: simple to use, available on your preferred platform and filled with content you want to watch.

But it’s now got more rivals than ever and they’ve also upped their game, so is Netflix really the best video streaming service out there?

Pricing

Netflix UK pricing and features (Image credit: Netflix)

Netflix subscriptions start at £5.99 ($8.99, AU$10.99) per month for standard-definition streams to a single screen. Up your spend to £9.99 ($13.99, AU$15.99) per month and get high-def stuff available to watch on a couple of screens simultaneously.

Or go the whole hog (provided you’ve already gone the entire pig on a 4K Ultra HD TV) and spend £13.99 ($17.99, AU$19.99) per month for 4K content on as many as four screens at a time.

MORE: How to use Netflix Party: watch Netflix with friends online

Features

It goes without saying not all content is available in HD (720p) or Full HD (1080p), let alone Ultra HD or 4K. One of the great pleasures of a Netflix subscription is happening upon classic films such as Easy Rider and old episodes of cult TV shows such as Peep Show, and it would be optimistic in the extreme to expect them to represent the state of the technological arts.

But there’s now a huge stack of 4K content available, from The Crown and Last Chance U to Shadow Bone and Snowpiercer, and that stack is forever growing.

Netflix has a continuing good relationship with Sony Pictures that also grants the streamer exclusive rights to some Sony films. There’s also the excellent Studio Ghibli oeuvre now available in most countries.

In terms of bespoke content, Netflix distances itself from any nominal competition.

Netflix now prioritises its own content to such an extent that it seems less committed to adding blockbuster films from other studios than its main rival Amazon Prime Video. And now that Disney+ is on the scene, it’ll likely never be the first streaming service to add a Disney, Marvel or Star Wars title to its catalogue. But Netflix still has a strong selection of older favourites and not-too-aged blockbusters such as, at the time of writing, Arrival and Rocketman.

And as a content provider in its own right, Netflix goes from strength to strength, whether that’s through cinematic adventures or its increasingly impressive run of excellent documentary features and series.

And if you have an HDR (High Dynamic Range) compatible TV, there’s now loads of HDR content on Netflix too. It’s not immediately obvious, as there isn’t an HDR section anywhere in the menus, but if you type HDR into the search box you’ll find a list of HDR content such as After Life, The Witcher and Lupin. You’ll see an HDR logo (or Dolby Vision logo, if your TV supports it) on relevant content.

MORE: Best 4K TVs 2021

Provided your broadband connection is up to the task, it has always been a fuss-free and stable experience, and its broad compatibility is a strong sell too.

PCs and Macs, Google Chromecast, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV devices, Roku streamers, any smart TV worth its salt, games consoles, Blu-ray players from all the big brands, tablets and phones, whether iOS, Android or Windows, are all on the menu. In fact, there’s a strong argument that if a smart device doesn’t have Netflix, it can’t really be considered smart at all. It’s certainly the first app we look for whenever testing a new streaming product.

There’s good news for mobile users too. In the early days it wasn’t possible to download anything from Netflix to watch offline. Since November 2016, though, content can be downloaded to your phone and tablet to watch, glitch free, at your leisure on the Netflix app – and it does not count toward the limit of how many screens you can watch on at the same time. You can’t download literally everything, but there’s plenty of choice and lots of the most popular content is there for you to stick on your device.

MORE: Amazon Prime Video review

Ease of use

(Image credit: Netflix)

Ergonomically, things could hardly be simpler.

Aside from the TV app’s rather retrograde A-Z keyboard (rather than QWERTY) search function, it’s straightforward to browse, create a shortlist and enjoy Netflix’s more-hit-than-miss recommendations based on your previous viewing habits.

You can establish multiple user profiles, including parental locks to prevent the kids stumbling onto Zombeavers or similar.

There are also handy and fun features such as Play Something/Shuffle Play for when you’re stuck for what to watch next, and Netflix Party to watch online with friends.

MORE: 25 Netflix tips, tricks and features

Performance

Whether 4K, Full HD or standard definition, Netflix serves video streams at exactly the sort of quality you expect. Watch a 4K HDR stream such as Formula 1 Drive to Survive on an appropriate display and it’s prodigiously detailed, vibrant and stable.

Colours pop, contrast is punchy and the sheer amount of information available for your enjoyment is thrilling. It almost goes without saying, but if you own a 4K TV or 4K projector, the top tier £14 ($18, AU$20) subscription should be considered almost compulsory.

It’s all equally high-contrast, steady-motion, fine-detail good news for Full HD too. Native 1080p content looks accomplished, though obviously the exact amount of detail revealed in dark scenes (for instance) is to an extent dependent on the source material.

MORE: 15 of the best movies of the 1990s to test your home cinema

Given a fighting chance, though, Full HD stuff such as Collateral is vivid, stable and eminently watchable. As regards standard-def stuff, you take your chances.

The majority of decent TVs – and certainly all the screens we recommend – are equipped with effective upscaling engines and won’t make you regret your partiality for schlocky thrillers such as Ravenous.

5.1 audio is now available on many titles, and Netflix serves it up in the same manner as it does pictures: robustly and positively.

Provided you have the necessary home cinema set-up (or even the right soundbar) at home, Dolby Atmos is also available on a good portion of Netflix’s own TV shows and movies. It presents an altogether more substantial and immersive sound than anything your TV’s integrated speakers can manage.

Verdict

It’s difficult to think of a downside to Netflix. Set your mind to it and you can search for plenty of films it doesn’t have, but the same is true of any movie streaming service and Netflix is better than almost all of those when it comes to the combination of original content, cherry-picked classics, video and sound quality, usability, and individual recommendations.

Disney+ will have turned many a head, but there are plenty who are left cold by the House of Mouse’s output, and, with recent price hikes to Netflix and Disney+, signing up to both services is not quite the financial no-brainer it once was.

Sure, the Premium tier (£13.99, $17.99, AU$19.99) now feels a more considerable monthly outgoing than before. All the same, if we had to live with just one video streaming service, it’s no contest. The quality, consistency and breadth of content available mean that Netflix is still king.

MORE:

Amazon vs Netflix – which is better?

9 simple ways to get better Netflix recommendations

10 of the best sports films and documentaries on Netflix UK

Best movies on Netflix

The 40 best TV shows to watch on Netflix right now