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Ears On
How Smart Does Your Smartphone Have to Be?
Mark Fleischmann  |  Dec 01, 2017
Normally I use this blog to explain things. In this case, perhaps I need you to explain something to me. Specifically (in Jerry Seinfeld voice) what's the deal with those expensive phones?

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Blu-ray Movie ReviewsUltra HD Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Boss Baby
Thomas J. Norton  |  Dec 01, 2017
Picture
Sound
Extras
When a new baby arrives at the Templeton house, seven-year-old Tim has his world turned upside down. He’s even more flummoxed when he sees that the baby is wearing a suit, carrying a briefcase, and is here on a mission from BabyCorp, where babies come from. Puppy Co., the company that Tim’s parents work for, is threatening BabyCorp’s only market by producing cute, cuddly, “forever puppies” that threaten to eliminate the human passion for babies.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Circle
Mike Mettler  |  Dec 01, 2017
Picture
Sound
Extras
If you do something in your life and there’s no camera around to capture it, did it really happen? In essence, that’s the core conceit of The Circle, director James Ponsoldt’s of-the-moment adaptation of Dave Eggers’ 2013 speculative fiction novel that imagines a fully interconnected world where the life unfilmed is not worth living (well, kinda).
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Philips Announces Low-Priced Roku HDTVs
SV Staff  |  Dec 01, 2017
P&F USA, the exclusive licensee for Philips televisions and video products in North America, has announced a new series of budget 1080p TVs built around Roku’s OS 8 operating system, which features an upgraded electronic program guide.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Emotiva Introduces Configurable Surround Speaker
SV Staff  |  Dec 01, 2017
Emotiva Audio has introduced a wall-mountable surround speaker that can be configured as a direct radiating bipole speaker or as a forward- or rear-oriented dipole speaker to accommodate a variety of surround-sound installations.
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Soundbar Reviews
Yamaha YAS-207 Soundbar System Review
Mark Fleischmann  |  Nov 30, 2017

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $300

AT A GLANCE
Plus
DTS Virtual:X mimics height/surround
HDMI in and out with ARC
Pleasant voicing in most modes
Minus
Only one video input
3D Surround mode can be slightly harsh

THE VERDICT
The Yamaha YAS-207, which uses DTS Virtual:X processing to simulate height and surround effects, sounds pretty good and is easy on your checkbook.

When Dolby Atmos and, shortly thereafter, DTS:X made their debuts, I expected I’d soon be reviewing a flood of speaker systems and receivers supporting object-oriented surround in a 360-degree soundfield. My hope was that height-capable surround would spark renewed interest in surround speaker packages and receivers — and in home theater overall.

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Throwback Thursday
Flashback 1972: Atari Tests Pong
SV Staff  |  Nov 30, 2017
Pong, one of the earliest arcade video games, had an inauspicious start 45 years ago this week when gaming pioneer/Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell and game designer Allan Alcorn wheeled a prototype of their first coin-operated game machine into Andy Capp’s Tavern in Sunnyvale, California to see how the bar’s patrons would react. It was an instant hit.
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Ask S&V
How Can I Make My iPhone Sound Better?
Al Griffin  |  Nov 30, 2017
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q Apple regularly gets flack for not offering Hi-res versions of its iTunes music catalog. I also hear that the quality of the DACs in the latest iPhones (Android phones, too) is not the greatest. Is there any device I can add to my iPhone that will coax the last bit of sound quality out of it?—Scott Oakley, Pine, AZ

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3D Blu-ray Movie ReviewsAudio Video News
2017 Holiday Guide: 11 Outstanding Blu-ray Gift Sets
Chris Chiarella  |  Nov 29, 2017
So, apparently putting a bow on a fancy new TV and cramming it under the tree (or wherever your holiday customs dictate) is a thing now, which means you (or some lucky recipient) will need something extra-good to watch on it. We’ve got you covered. Each of the Blu-ray titles on our 2017 holiday list have been hand-picked to bring the merriest of AV enjoyment — half of this year’s crop even elevates the holiday cheer to 4K status. Sort of makes me think that poor VHS has become the modern equivalent of a lump of coal….
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Music Reviews
Marillion: Misplaced Childhood: Deluxe Edition
Mike Mettler  |  Nov 29, 2017
Performance
Sound
I hate to admit it, but I didn’t “get” Marillion when I saw them open for Rush at the Rosemont Horizon just outside of Chicago on March 21, 1986, playing their 1985 breakthrough album Misplaced Childhood in its entirety. While I was properly enamored with the uplifting performance of their touchingly seductive FM hit “Kayleigh,” I just wasn’t able to connect with the rest of the set for some reason. Apparently, I wasn’t alone in that feeling, since I also heard a good bit of the crowd boo/catcall Marillion throughout their performance, the first time I had heard such a thing occur at a live show.
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