Podcast #1133: Best of CES 2024

On this week’s show Ara and DJ of Brightside Home Theater Podcast rundown the best of CES 2024. Are also reads your emails and takes a look at the week’s news.

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Samsung’s glare-free OLED TV - Samsung  has developed a Glare-Free technology  that it claims will be great in both low light and brighter rooms, won’t be affected by viewing angles, and won’t mess with contrast or colors either. Look for this in the S95D and S90D. People who have seen this tech say “It's where light goes to die”. The Best TV according to The Verge and Best Audio/Video according to Digital Trends and CNET [Best of CES 2024]

TCL QM89 115-inch QLED TV - the world’s largest QD Mini LED TV! With a 115” screen, the new mega-size 115QM89 truly becomes the ultimate home theater. This model includes QD Mini LED ULTIMATE with a massively high 20,000 dimming zones. It also incorporates the TCL AIPQ ULTRA Processor, as even more horsepower is needed for such high zone control to ensure huge, yet pristine images. This new 115” model includes all the features of the other QM8 models, plus a 6.2.2 Channel Speaker system for truly room filling sound. Best Audio/Video according to Digital Trends

Samsung The Premiere 8K - The Premiere 8K is the world’s first projector offering wireless connectivity. Removing the need for cables, this solution allows consumers to keep their living spaces neat and tidy. The ultra-short throw projector comes packed with smart features — such as picture-off premium home audio, cloud gaming, always-on voice with far-field mic and four multi-view screen splits — to extend usability and provide almost increased use cases. The projector incorporates Samsung’s patented “Sound-on-Screen” technology, integrating the top speaker module and software algorithms for an immersive sound experience. Best projector according to Tech Radar (best Gadgets)

Hisense 110UX TV - The 110UX incorporates over 40,000 backlight zones across a 110-inch screen. That high-output mini-LEDs produce 10,000-nit maximum brightness which is about five times brighter than the typical high end TV. Hisense says the 110UX can achieve 95% of the BT.2020 Spec. No mention on HDR support but why would they build a TV like this and not support Dolby Vision? No pricing of availability has been announced. Best Audio/Video according to Digital Trends

Ballie - Introduced in 2020 Ballie is a smart home companion that welcomes users home by taking care of household tasks, displaying the day’s events and sharing weather updates. It got an upgrade thai year and has added a moving projector, in case you want it to display a workout video onto your wall or project a little greeting message on your floor when you come home. Most irrationally loved product according to The Verge and Engadget [Best of CES 2024]

Lockly Visage and Philips Palm Recognition Deadbolt- TechRadar (The Best smart Home Tech) 

Sennheiser Momentum 4 True Wireless - adding Qualcomm's new chip with Snapdragon Sound for CD-quality audio if you have a compatible phone, but they're also ready for the future of regular Bluetooth with support for Bluetooth 5.4 and LE Audio and Auracast. Best Headphones according to Tech Radar (best Gadgets) and Engadget [Best of CES 2024]

LG Signature OLED T - it's only available in 77”. It uses LG’s wireless transmission technology so the only wire running to the television is power. A separate box that can be placed up to 30 feet away from the TV transmits source video. Future versions could go bigger or smaller depending on customer feedback. Pricing has not been set. Best in show according to The Verge and Best TV according to Tech Radar  (best Gadgets) and Best Audio/Video according to Digital Trends and Engadget [Best of CES 2024] and CNET [Best of CES 2024]

Samsung HW-Q990D - This soundbar features a 11.1.4-channel configuration, immersive Dolby Atmos sound and supports pass through of content in 4K 120Hz. It analyzes audio and uses AI to optimize sound for the perfect experience across a wide range of content. Best Soundbar according to Tech Radar (best Gadgets)

Samsung Music Frame - According to Samsung this customizable speaker seamlessly blends into its environment by camouflaging as a modern picture frame that can display art or photography. It features built-in woofers along with intelligent audio processing for a premium audio experience. Using Q-Symphony technology, it provides surround sound when paired with 2024 Samsung TVs and soundbars or can operate as a standalone wireless speaker. [No pricing or availability announced] TechRadar The Best smart Home Tech and Best Audio product according to The Verge and Engadget [Best of CES 2024]

Nanoleaf Essential Matter series - TechRadar (The Best smart Home Tech)

EcoFlow Delta Pro Ultra - You can start out with just one battery and inverter ($5,799) that can power your home’s essential devices for a couple of days and then build up to a bigger system with up to three inverters and 15 batteries that could power the entire home for over a month. Best Smart Home Product according to The Verge and Engadget [Best of CES 2024] and CNET [Best of CES 2024]

XGIMI Aladdin - Aladdin is a ceiling light that's also secretly a projector and a Bluetooth speaker. There's no price or release date for the Aladdin yet, but the Japanese model it's based on retails for ¥129,800 (which is around $895 / £700 / AU$1,330). TechRadar (The Best smart Home Tech)

Not Home Tech related but we briefly mentioned it on the last show. The Withings BeamO won many awards. The $250 product is a “multiscope.” that combines a body temperature sensor, an electrocardiogram, an oximeter and a digital stethoscope into one surprisingly light consumer device that promises to make it easier to collect basic health metrics at home.