October 25, 2015

Blogger delays on VMHD

Apologies to a number of guys who attempted to post comments on a number of recent posts - Spam filters on Blogger have been a little over enthusiastic of late. All comments incorrectly quarantined have now been published.

October 19, 2015

4k TV inevitable?

"No," says a broadcasting pro in this interesting piece from TechRadar: The TV industry wants you to go 4K, but the professionals won't be joining you. Are we in danger of falling for the manufacturers hype again?
"In 2013 the average UK screen size in the UK was 36.8 inches (diagonal). At this time Sharp was predicting that by 2015 the average screen size would be 60". Here we are in 2015 and the latest BARB research suggests that the majority of UK homes own a main screen in the 35-50" range. Only some 3% of homes have a 51"+ size screen."
For me that's the hard reality of the dimensions of the average UK home. As I walked the other night around the streets where I live I was amazed to see how many large panels are bolted (too) high on living room walls, but I reckon few if any are over 50 inches.  Living rooms just aren't big enough, and no-one really likes sitting in the front row of the cinema, do they? Worst seat in the house.
So 4K to my mind will only become dominant if it comes with a telly whether you want it or not. Much like 3D, broadcasters will struggle with the bandwidth requirements and lack of content, and in a market where DVDs still outsell Blu-Ray discs the appetite for greater than 1080p resolution is questionable, especially if it comes at a premium.
There's more to 4K than just packing in the pixels, but I can't see people upgrading solely to get the upscaled content and odd BT or Sky channel.

October 04, 2015

New on Netflix UK in October

Here are some of this month's Netflix new arrivals, courtesy of Vodzilla:

Scream: Season 1 – 1st October
Stewart Lee: 41st Best Stand Up Ever – TBC
Atlantis: Season 1 – 1st October
About Time – 3rd October
A time travel rom-com from Richard Curtis
What We Do in the Shadows – 10th October
Brilliant comedy from the Flight of the Concords guys
The Pirates! Band of Misfits – 10th October
Better known in the UK as "Pirates in Adventures with Scientists". From Aardman Animation and top stuff.
The Muppets – Sunday 11th October
The 2011 movie
Homeland: Season 4 – 12th October
Season 4 of the spy thriller arrives just in time for Season 5’s broadcast on Channel 4
Archer: Season 6 – 15th October
Super – 15th October
Beasts of No Nation – 16th October
Idris Elba stars in Netflix’s first ever original feature film. 
All Hail King Julien: Season 2 – 16th October
Netflix’s Madagascar spin-off
Alfie (2004) – 17th October
Jude Law remake
American Horror Story: Freak Show – 21st October
Just disturbing...
Kung Fury – 22nd October
How to Get Away with Murder: Season 1 – 22nd October
Hit US show stars Emmy winning Viola Davis 
Saving Mr. Banks – 24th October