Computer Shopper - UK (2020-01)

60 JANUARY2020|COMPUTERSHOPPER|ISSUE383

HOME CINEMA

SONY

KD-55XF9005

★★★★★

£949•www.johnlewis.com

There’s no

ultra-high-

tech trickery

here: just asoundbar,subwooferand their combined

14 drivers blasting out pristine-quality audio,with Samsung’s usual

high standards forconnectivity.

SPEAKERS (^14) • RMSPOWEROUTPUT372W•DIMENSIONS1,230x83x136mm (soundbar),
203x400x416mm (subwoofer)•NETWORKING802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth•WARRANTYOneyear
RTB•DETAILSwww.samsung.com/uk•PARTCODEHW-N850•FULLREVIEWFeb2019
SCREENSIZE55in•NATIVERESOLUTION3,840x2,160•VIDEOINPUTS4x HDMI•
TUNERFreeview HD•DIMENSIONS771x1,228x258mm•WARRANTYOneyearRTB•
DETAILSwww.sony.co.uk•PARTCODEKD-55XF9005•FULLREVIEWAug2018
Direct-lit backlighting,excellentupscalingand
beautifully smooth motion make the KD-55XF9005 a
worthy alternative to high-end OLED TVs, even though
it only has aVApanel.
SONOSBeam
★★★★★
£399•www.sonos.com
The Beam could join
ahomecinema
setup on sound quality alone,but it’s loaded
with smart features, too. It can adjust sound output to the size
and layout of aroom, forexample,and form amultiroom system
with other Sonos speakers.
SPEAKERS (^5) • RMSPOWEROUTPUTNotstated•DIMENSIONS651x100x69mm•WEIGHT
2.8kg•DOCKCONNECTORNone•NETWORKING802.11ac Wi-Fi, Ethernet•WARRANTYOne
year RTB•DETAILSwww.sonos.com•PARTCODEBEAM1UK1•FULLREVIEWApr2019

PHILIPS55PUS6753/12

★★★★★

£580•www.laptopsdirect.co.uk

This Philips set

doesn’t have

the best

implementation of HDR we’ve

seen on aTV, but otherwise,the

55PUS6753/12 is afantastic 4K screen forarelatively low price.

SCREENSIZE55in•NATIVERESOLUTION3,840x2,160•VIDEOINPUTS3x HDMI,5xcomponent•

TUNERFreeview HD•DIMENSIONS781x1,244x266mm•WARRANTYOneyearRTB•

DETAILSwww.philips.co.uk•PARTCODE55PUS6753/12•FULLREVIEWDec 2018

POLKAUDIOCommandBar

★★★★★

£249•www.amzn.to/33TdAv4

This is agenius combination

of soundbar and smart

speaker,and foralow price

too. It’s great forfilms, TV and music, and

you can use Alexa as avoice-activated remotecontrol.

SPEAKERS (^3) • RMSPOWEROUTPUT260W•DIMENSIONS1,091x102x51mm(soundbar),
367x188x368mm (subwoofer)•WEIGHT2.3kg(soundbar), 3.9kg(subwoofer)•DOCK
CONNECTORNone•NETWORKING802.11acWi-Fi•WARRANTYThreeyears RTB•
DETAILSen.polkaudio.com•PARTCODECOMMANDUK•FULLREVIEWOct2019

SAMSUNGHW-N850

★★★★★

£649•www.box.co.uk

excellentupscalingand

/

01

If you don’t have space in your home

cinema setup foraset of surround-

sound speakers, asoundbar is the next best

thing. Whether you opt forasoundbar

(which typically sits in front of your TV

stand) or asoundplate(which sits

underneath your TV), you’ll be getting

significantly better audio than the weedy

speakers today’s flatscreen TVsprovide.

02

If youwant to cut down on cable

clutter,look forasoundbar with

multiple HDMI inputs and outputs as well as

Audio Return Channel(ARC). Not all

soundbars use HDMI, with many making do

with digital optical audio connections

instead. This means you’ll have to connect

Blu-rayplayers, games consoles and set-top

Choosinga... Soundbar

boxes to your TV and run all audio through a

single cable.Also look forphono inputs for

connecting older devices and 3.5mm audio

jacks fortablets or smartphones.

03

As with any speaker,the number of

speaker drivers inside asoundbar

should give agood indication of its audio

capabilities. Although this won’t tell you

everything about sound quality,you should

still look out forseparatemid-range drivers

and tweeters, as these should be able to

deliver awider frequency range than

full-range drivers alone.

04

Bluetooth support is amust if you

want to listen to music from a

smartphone or tablet without wires.

Most soundbars now include Bluetooth as

standard but, if your device supports it, it’s

worth looking foramobile soundbar that

includes aptX. This less-lossy codec is

capable of higher-quality streaming than

the standard A2DP profile.

AirPlaystreaming is less common, but

iPhone owners should keep an eyeout forit.

05

Foralittle extra bass, be sure to

look forasoundbar with aseparate

subwoofer. Many soundbars include a

wired sub,but forextra convenience you

should look foramodel with awireless

subwooferinstead. These can be placed

anywhere in aroom near apower socket,

without having to run acable back to the

soundbar itself.

- N850

PHILIPS65OLED803

★★★★★

£1,999•www.currys.co.uk

If you’ve got the budget

foranOLED TV,thisisa

great pick. The panel technology’s built-in

strengths, such as perfect blacks and wide viewing angles, are

aided by Philips’ exemplary image processing engine,resulting in

truly wonderful picture quality.

SCREENSIZE65in•NATIVERESOLUTION3,840x2,160•VIDEOINPUTS4x HDMI,1xComponent

• TUNERFreeview HD•DIMENSIONS824x1,449x280mm•WARRANTYOneyearRTB•
  DETAILSwww.philips.co.uk•PARTCODE65OLED803/12•FULLREVIEWApr2019

S

★

£

0333

ett

ndBar

control