70 AUGUST 2019|COMPUTER SHOPPER|ISSUE 378
VIDEO
AMAZONFireTVStick4K
★★★★★
£50•www.amzn.to/2Y6q8wh
NVIDIA ShieldTV(2017)
★★★★★
£189•www.johnlewis.com
GOPRO Hero7Black
★★★★★
£315•www.slrhut.co.uk
APPLETV4K
★★★★★
£179•www.apple.com/uk
SAMSUNGGear360(2017)
★★★★★
£155•www.amzn.to/2wesOMX
From set-topbox to dangling dongle
and now an ultra-compact stick,
Amazon’s 4K media streamer gets
sleeker with every generation. It’s also been updated with anew
remote, which includes amicrophone forAlexa voice commands.
Agood media streamer/
Android games console hybrid made even better by a
more comfortable controller,awider range of
streaming sources and smart home integration.
The Yi 4K+ is cheaper,but
no other action camera
comes close to the video
quality of the Hero 7Black. That’s largely down to its new electronic
image stabilisation, which keeps footage looking unbeatably smooth.
This big updateadds 4K content (including, forthe
first time,Amazon Video support). The best part is
that if there’s a4Kversion of content you’ve
previously purchased in HD,Apple will upgrade it free of charge.
Samsung’s updated 360º camera
improves on the original in every way: it’s
more portable,supports live video stream,
and is no longer limited to Samsung Galaxy phones. Best
of all, it’s cheaper than the previous model was at launch.
VIDEOOUTPUTSHDMI2.0•NETWORKING802.11acWi-Fi•DIMENSIONS108x30x14mm•
STREAMINGFORMATSUPnP,AirPlay, DLNA,Plex•INTERNETSTREAMINGSERVICESAmazon
Video,Netflix,BBCiPlayer,ITVHub,All4,My5•WARRANTYOneyearRTB•DETAILS
http://www.amazon.co.uk•PARTCODEFireTVStick4K•FULLREVIEWMay2019
VIDEOOUTPUTSHDMI1.4•NETWORKING802.11acWi-Fi,10/100/1,000Ethernet,Bluetooth4.1
- DIMENSIONS159x98x26mm•STREAMINGFORMATSPlex,Kodi•INTERNETSTREAMING
SERVICESNetflix,AmazonInstantVideo,GooglePlayMoviesandTV, GooglePlayMusic,YouTube,
BBCiPlayer•WARRANTYTwoyearsrepairandreplace•DETAILSwww.nvidia.co.uk•PART
CODE945-12897-2505-000•FULLREVIEWMay2017
SENSOR^1 /2.3inCMOS•SENSORPIXELS12megapixels•MAXIMUMRECORDINGRESOLUTION4K
(60fps)•AV CONNECTIONSMicroHDMI•DIMENSIONS45x62x32mm•WEIGHT116g•
WARRANTYOneyearRTB•DETAILSwww.gopro.com•PARTCODECHDHX-701-RW•
FULLREVIEWFeb2019
VIDEOOUTPUTSHDMI2.0a•NETWORKING802.11acWi-Fi,10/100/1,000Ethernet•
DIMENSIONS35x98x98mm•STREAMINGFORMATSAirPlay, othersviaapps•
INTERNETSTREAMINGSERVICESiTunes,AppleMusic,Netflix,AmazonInstantVideo,
NowTV, BBCiPlayer,ITVHub,All4•WARRANTYOneyearRTB•DETAILSwww.apple.com/uk•
PARTCODEAppleTV4K•FULLREVIEWJan2018
SENSORRESOLUTIONDual8.4megapixels•SENSORSIZENotdisclosed•VIEWFINDERNone•
LCDSCREEN0.5in72x32PMOLED•DIMENSIONS100x46x45mm•WEIGHT130g•
WARRANTYOneyearRTB•DETAILSwww.samsung.com/uk•PARTCODESM-R210NZWABTU•
FULLREVIEWOct2017
it’s
am,
t
h.
4K content (including, forthe
DJI OsmoPocket
★★★★★
£329•www.amzn.to/2vl53Ba
Acleverly made alternative to action
cameras, the DJI Osmo Pocket isn’t
intended forextreme sports, but its
mechancial stabilisation ensures smooth, great-looking
footage forlife-logging videos.
SENSOR^1 /2.3inCMOS•SENSORPIXELS12megapixels•MAXIMUMRECORDINGRESOLUTION
4K(60fps)•AV CONNECTIONSUSBType-C•DIMENSIONS122x37x38mm•WEIGHT116g•
WARRANTYOneyearRTB•DETAILSwww.dji.com•PARTCODECP.ZM.00000097.01•
FULLREVIEWApr2019
01
Media streamers have come a
long wayfrom the hard disk-based
set-topboxes of afew years ago.Theynow
come in two main forms: flash drive-sized
dongles that plug directly intothe HDMI
port in the back of your TV,and larger
microconsoles that sit under it. Whichever
model you choose,itwill stream content
from the internet rather than storing
media files locally.
02
Most streamers use their own
operating system, which you can
navigatewith abundled remotecontrol,
but Google’s Chromecast dongle requires
apaired smartphone,tablet or laptop
to stream content on the big screen. If
you’re looking to set up Netflix for
Choosinga... Mediastreamer
someone who doesn’t have asmartphone,
buy astandalone streamer such as aRoku
or Amazon Fire TV device.
03
Amedia streamer is only as good as
the services it supports, although a
device that offers more services won’t
necessarily offer more high-quality content
than amedia streamer with fewer channels.
Instead, look out formajor channels such as
Netflix, Amazon Instant Video,BBC iPlayer,
SkyGoand YouTube.Ifany of these are
missing, the remaining channels aren’t likely
to be much cop.
04
Although nearly all streamers now pull
content from the web,they’re still
capable of playing content stored locally
from anetworked PC or NAS device.Not all
streamers are capable of playing all media file
formats, however.Ifyou have alot of MKV
or MOVfiles, check that your chosen
streamer supports them before you buy.
These are typically the file formats devices
struggle with the most.
05
Media streamers aren’t just forvideo,
either.Many support online music
services including Spotify,Rdio and TuneIn
Radio.Others essentially use the same
hardware as asmartphone and are capable
of running apps or playing games. Some of
the most powerful are compatible with
dedicated game controllers, but these are
typically sold as optional accessories rather
than bundled with the streamer.
