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Lenovo IFA Launch Highlights Include 16-Inch X1 Fold, T1 Glasses
Lenovo IFA Launch Highlights Include 16-Inch X1 Fold, T1 Glasses
What's happening
Lenovo is announcing its new products for the second half of 2022 and early 2023 at the IFA show in Germany.
Why it matters
The announcements include an update to Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Fold, a well-thought-out update to its previous generation. Folding laptops are still in early days, and Lenovo's shows a potential direction they may go.
Lenovo's announcements for IFA 2022 offer a few notable enhancements to existing product lines, highlighted by an overhauled and larger 16-inch version of its Thinkpad X1 Fold, a consumer-focused version of its T1 Glasses "wearable display," the company's first 16-inch Chromebook and an interesting take on a monitor stand with a phone perch for its refreshed ThinkVision line. Lenovo's also refreshed its P11 Android tablets.
ThinkPad X1 Fold
The company made a lot of changes to the Fold based on its experiences with the previous generation -- and don't think that unchanged product name won't get confusing. For example, the bigger screen gives the device more flexibility to operate in multiple ways -- such as a landscape or portrait-orientation laptop, book or tablet -- with webcams on two sides. Lenovo fixed the gaping hinge (which was similar to that of the Microsoft Surface Book) to remove the gap as well. It also uses a new recycled woven fabric for the back cover. That experience becomes clear when you compare it to Asus' recently launched first-gen ZenBook Fold OLED.
The Thinkpad X1 Fold will ship in November starting at $2,499.
2.8 pounds (1.3kg)
16-inch (tablet), 12-inch (clamshell), 2,560x2,024-pixel OLED display with a 4:3 aspect ratio, 600 nits brightness
Options: Bluetooth keyboard with TrackPoint and haptic touchpad, Wacom AES-compatible stylus
Lenovo's Glasses T1
Josh Goldman/CNET
Lenovo Glasses T1
The Glasses T1 are for perching a bigger display on your face or hiding the content on your screen from shoulder surfers. It's a nice idea, but a lot hangs on the implementation -- such as how easy it is to fit your prescription in it -- and price. We won't really know here, at least until 2023; it will ship first in China by the end of this year, then follow "in other select markets" next year. Pricing won't be announced until they're ready to ship. The Glasses T1 also work with iPhones.
Micro OLED screens
Compatibility: Windows, Android, MacOS devices with USB-C connections; iPhone with Lenovo HDMI-to-glasses adapter and Apple Lightning digital AV adapter (both extra cost)
Swappable nose clips
Adjustable arms
Supports prescription lenses (via bundled snap in frame)
Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook
Josh Goldman/CNET
IdeaPad 5i Chromebook
Lenovo supplements its 14-inch IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook with a bigger 16-inch clamshell model that offers the option of a higher-end QHD display than the smaller Flex. It's slated to ship in Europe starting in September for 549 euros; US pricing and availability will be announced later, but that price is equal to about $550.
Display options: 16:10 aspect ratio displays, either 120Hz QHD with 350 nits brightness and 100% sRGB coverage or 60Hz FHD with 300 nits brightness and 45% NTSC coverage (which is really small)
Up to 512GB storage
Up to 8GB LPDDR4X RAM
Up to Core i3-1215U CPU
Up to 12 hour battery
Weight starts at 4.1 pounds (1.9kg)
MicroSD slot, 2x USB-A, 2x USB-C, 1x combo audio
Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5
The Lenovo Tab P11 (left) and Tab P11 Pro (right), 2nd gen.
These are updated models in Lenovo's Tab P11 Android tablet line, a mainstream Tab 11 and high-end Tab P11 Pro (second-gen), with faster processors, newer versions of Android and, in the case of the Pro, a better screen. The Pro is is expected to ship in September starting at $400; the Tab P11 (second-gen) will ship beginning in January starting at $250.
Tab P11
11.5-inch, 2,000x1,200-pixel 120Hz LCD screen with 400 nits brightness
1.2 pounds (520g)
Options: Lenovo Precision Pen 2 (in 2023), keyboard, folio case
MediaTek Helio G99 CPU
Android 12L
Up to 6GB RAM plus 128GB storage
Quad speakers, dual mics
7,700-mAH battery
Either LTE with Wi-Fi 5 or Wi-Fi 6E connectivity
USB-C, 3.5mm headphone jack
Tab P11 Pro
Android 12
11.2-inch, 2,560x1,536-pixel 120Hz OLED screen with 600 nits peak brightness and 100% P3 color gamut, Dolby Vision and HDR10 Plus support
1.1 pounds (480g)
Quad speakers
MediaTek Kompanio 1300T CPU
Up to 14 hours battery (8,000 mAh)
Keyboard included
options: Lenovo Precision Pen 3, folio case
Wi-Fi 6
USB-C with DisplayPort support
The new ThinkVision stand's base has a notch for propping up your phone.
Josh Goldman/CNET
Legion, ThinkVision monitors
Lenovo usually saves its more interesting monitor launches for CES, so it's unsurprising that these feel like somewhat rote updates. There's a new 32-inch Legion 4K, 144Hz gaming monitor, as well as its commercial ThinkVision models in sizes from 24 to 34 inches. However, Lenovo has also introduced a new stand in the latter, which has a clever notch that you can slide your phone into to prop it upright. The ThinkVisions are all expected to ship in January.
Legion Y32p-30 gaming monitor, 32 inches, ships in December and starts at $750
PC and Tablet Shipments Expected to Decline Throughout 2022
PC and Tablet Shipments Expected to Decline Throughout 2022
Global shipments of PCs and tablets are expected to decline this year, thanks to a confluence of economic factors impacting their deliveries, according to the International Data Corporation, a market research firm.
Inflation , the ongoing war in Ukraine, and pandemic lockdowns have all negatively affected demand for PCs and tablets around the world, with global shipments of traditional PCs expected to fall 8.2% year over year, and shipments of tablets expected to drop 6.2% year over year in 2022, according to a new forecast from IDC published Wednesday. Only 321.2 million PCs and 158 million tablets are projected to ship this year.
"Supply shortages have plagued the industry for a while, and the recent lockdowns in parts of China continue to exacerbate the issue as factories struggle to receive new components from upstream suppliers while also facing issues downstream when it comes to shipping finished goods," said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC, in a release.
Read more:Best Desktop PC for 2022
However, PC shipments are anticipated to remain above pre-pandemic levels and will experience growth in 2023, according to IDC's forecast.
Similar forecasts have been made about global shipments of phones and wearables dropping in 2022, with the attributed reasons also being COVID-19 lockdowns, inflation and the war in Ukraine.
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PC and Tablet Shipments Expected to Decline Throughout 2022
PC and Tablet Shipments Expected to Decline Throughout 2022
Global shipments of PCs and tablets are expected to decline this year, thanks to a confluence of economic factors impacting their deliveries, according to the International Data Corporation, a market research firm.
Inflation , the ongoing war in Ukraine, and pandemic lockdowns have all negatively affected demand for PCs and tablets around the world, with global shipments of traditional PCs expected to fall 8.2% year over year, and shipments of tablets expected to drop 6.2% year over year in 2022, according to a new forecast from IDC published Wednesday. Only 321.2 million PCs and 158 million tablets are projected to ship this year.
"Supply shortages have plagued the industry for a while, and the recent lockdowns in parts of China continue to exacerbate the issue as factories struggle to receive new components from upstream suppliers while also facing issues downstream when it comes to shipping finished goods," said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC, in a release.
Read more:Best Desktop PC for 2022
However, PC shipments are anticipated to remain above pre-pandemic levels and will experience growth in 2023, according to IDC's forecast.
Similar forecasts have been made about global shipments of phones and wearables dropping in 2022, with the attributed reasons also being COVID-19 lockdowns, inflation and the war in Ukraine.
Hisense debuts brighter mini led tvs and even more lasers at lowe s hisense debuts brighter mini led tvs and even more lasers at academy hisense debuts brighter mini led tvs and cold hisense debuts brighter mini led vs oled hisense debuts brighter mini led monitor hisense debuts brighter blooms hisense debuts brighter horizons hisense debuts an introduction hisense debuts theater
Hisense debuts brighter mini-LED TVs and even more lasers at CES 2022
Hisense debuts brighter mini-LED TVs and even more lasers at CES 2022
This story is part of CES, where CNET covers the latest news on the most incredible tech coming soon.
Hisense unveiled its 2022 range of televisions, which include models equipped with mini-LED backlights and a pair of so-called Laser TVs -- short-throw projectors with screens included. Some sets include new technologies such as NextGen ATSC 3.0 tuners and gaming-friendly HDMI 2.1 ports, and employ either the Google TV or the older Android TV system. All will be available by the middle of the year and unlike most CES 2022 announcements, Hisense detailed its pricing.
There are three main offerings: the ULED range, a selection of Laser TVs and the entry-level smart TV 'A' range. All of the TVs bar the smallest A4H models boast 4K resolution.
The ULED series is helmed by the U9H and U8H models, and both now include mini-LED backlights for higher brightness (up to 2,000 nits) and as many as 1,200 zones of local dimming. The U8H is an upgrade on last year's U8G which CNET's David Katzmaier said offered "more raw brightness than just about any I've reviewed." These TVs are followed by the midrange U7H and entry-level U6H.
The 120-inch L5G laser TV
Hisense
Last year, Hisense debuted its first dual-cell LCD – the U9DG – which promised better contrast than traditional LCD, but there is no word on a replacement for 2022.
Meanwhile, the PX1-PRO TriChroma Laser Cinema and L5G 4K TVs expand the company's laser TV offerings for 2022. These are short-throw laser projectors that take on models like the Samsung Premiere and include features such as Dolby Vision and Android TV. Prices start at $3,999 and unlike the rest of the range, the laser TVs are available right now.
Lastly, the standout of the A-series is the A7H which offers a massive 85 inches for $1,700 and will ship in the spring. Like the laser TVs, these models will feature the older Android TV OS instead of Google TV.
Here are the rest of the details on the new models, including the sizes and major step-up features for each one:
U9H Series
76-inch
2,000 nits of peak brightness
1,280 full-array local dimming zones
Auto low-latency mode, Game Mode Pro, variable refresh rate and FreeSync
Late summer 2022
$3,200
U8H Series
55-inch, 65-inch, and 75-inch
1,500 nits
Mid-summer 2022
Starting at $1,099
U7H Series:
55-inch, 65-inch, 75-inch and 85-inch
Quantum Dot
FreeSync
120Hz
Mid-summer 2022
Starting at $800
U6H
55-inch, 65-inch, and 75-inch
60Hz
Integrated Google assistant
Summer 2022
Starting at $580
A7H, A6H and A4H Series
A7H, 85-inch, spring 2022, $1,700.
A6H, 43-inch/50-inch/55-inch/65-inch/70-inch, spring 2022, starting at $300
A4H, 32-inch/40-inch/43-inch, spring 2022, starting at $200
Laser TVs
PX1-PRO TriChroma Laser Cinema, $3,999
L5G 4K Smart Laser TV, $4,499 (100-inch) and $4,999 (120-inch)
§
NextGen TV, aka ATSC 3.0, is continuing its rapid rollout across the country. Major markets like Los Angeles, Atlanta, Denver, Houston and more all have stations transmitting. Meanwhile New York, Boston, and many other markets are slated to have broadcasts later this year. While not every station in every market has a NextGen TV counterpart, more and more are coming on the air.
What's NextGen TV? It's an update to the free HDTV you can already get over-the-air in nearly every city in the US. There's no monthly fee, but you do need either a new TV with a built-in tuner or a standalone external tuner. The standard allows broadcast stations to send higher quality signals than ever before with features like 4K, HDR, 120 Hz, and more. ATSC 3.0 proponents also claim better reception indoors and on-the-go -- whether it's on your phone, or even in your car. The best part is that if you're watching it on your TV it uses the same standard antennas available today.
One potential downside? ATSC 3.0 will also let broadcasters track your viewing habits, information that can be used for targeted advertising, just like companies such as Facebook and Google use today.
Read more:Best TV antennas for cord cutters, starting at just $10
NextGen TV to you
ATSC.org
Here's the top-line info:
If you get your TV from streaming, cable or satellite, NextGen TV/ATSC 3.0 won't affect you at all.
The transition is voluntary. Stations don't have to switch. Many have already, however, for reasons we'll explain below.
It's not backwards-compatible with the current HD standard (ATSC 1.0), so your current TV won't be able to receive it. Your current antenna should work fine though.
Stations that switch to NextGen TV will still have to keep broadcasting ATSC 1.0 for five years.
There are multiple models and sizes of TV with built-in tuners available now from Hisense, LG, Sony, Samsung and others.
As of the beginning of 2022 the majority of the largest markets in the US have at least one channel broadcasting NextGen TV. By the end of 2022, nearly all major and many minor markets will have multiple channels .
Here's the map of actual stations as of January 2022. Orange denotes stations that are live now. Blue is launching before summer. White sometime after the summer.
ATSC
How it will work in your home
Put simply: If you connect an antenna to your TV you will receive free programming, just like most people can get now. Yet, that is selling the potential benefits of NextGen TV short.
NextGen TV is IP-based, so in practice it can be moved around your home just like any internet content can right now. For example, you connect an antenna to a tuner box inside your home, but that box is not connected to your TV at all. Instead, it's connected to your router. This means anything with access to your network can have access to over-the-air TV, be it your TV, your phone, your tablet or even a streaming device like Apple TV. There will be traditional tuners as well, of course, but this is a new and interesting alternative.
This also means it's possible we'll see mobile devices with built-in tuners, so you can watch live TV while you're out and about, like you can with Netflix and YouTube now. How willing phone companies will be to put tuners in their phones remains to be seen, however. You don't see a lot of phones that can get radio broadcasts now, even though such a thing is easy to implement. We'll talk more about that in a moment.
'Voluntary'
In November of 2017, the Federal Communications Commission approved ATSC 3.0 as the next generation of broadcast standard, on a "voluntary, market-driven basis" (PDF). It also required stations to continue broadcasting ATSC 1.0 (i.e. "HD"). This is actually part of the issue as to why it's voluntary.
During the mandatory DTV transition in the early 2000s, stations in a city were given a new frequency (channel, in other words), to broadcast digital TV, while they still broadcast analog on their old channel. These older channels were eventually reclaimed by the FCC for other uses when the proverbial switch was flipped to turn off analog broadcasts. Since a changeover isn't occurring this time around, stations and markets are left to themselves how best to share or use the over-the-air spectrum in their areas.
Because there's no new bandwidth, broadcasters will temporarily share transmitters. Two or more stations will use one tower for ATSC 1.0 (HD) broadcasts and those stations will use another tower for ATSC 3.0 (UHD) broadcasts. This will mean a temporary reduction in bandwidth for each channel, but potentially a limited impact on picture quality due to the better modern HD encoders. More info here.
ATSC/TVTechnology.com
While it's not a mandatory standard, many broadcasters still seem enthusiastic about NextGen. At the beginning of the roll-out, then executive vice president of communications at the National Association of Broadcasters Dennis Wharton told CNET that the improvement in quality, overall coverage and the built-in safety features mean that most stations would be enthusiastic to offer ATSC 3.0.
John Hane, president of the Spectrum Consortium (an industry group with broadcasters Sinclair, Nexstar and Univision as members), was equally confident: "The FCC had to make it voluntary because the FCC couldn't provide transition channels. [The industry] asked the FCC to make it voluntary. We want the market to manage it. We knew the market would demand it, and broadcasters and hardware makers in fact are embracing it."
Given the competition broadcasters have with cable, streaming and so on, 3.0 could be a way to stabilize or even increase their income by offering better picture quality, better coverage and, most importantly, targeted ads.
Ah yes, targeted ads…
Broadcast TV will know what you're watching
One of NextGen TV's more controversial features is a "return data path," which is a way for the station you're watching to know you're watching. Not only does this allow a more accurate count of who's watching what shows, but it creates the opportunity for every marketer's dream: targeted advertising.
Ads specific to your viewing habits, income level and even ethnicity (presumed by your neighborhood, for example) could get slotted in by your local station. This is something brand-new for broadcast TV. Today, over-the-air broadcasts are pretty much the only way to watch television that doesn't track your viewing habits. Sure, the return data path could also allow "alternative audio tracks and interactive elements," but it's the targeted ads and tracking many observers are worried about.
The finer details are all still being worked out, but here's the thing: If your TV is connected to the internet, it's already tracking you. Pretty much every app, streaming service, smart TV and cable or satellite box all track your usage to a greater or lesser extent.
Return data path is still in the planning stages, even as the other aspects of NextGen TV are already going live. There is a silver lining: There will be an opt-out option. While it also requires Internet access, if this type of thing bothers you, just don't connect your TV or NextGen TV receiver to the internet. You will inevitably lose some of the other features of NextGen TV, however.
That said, we'll keep an eye on this for any further developments.
Free TV on your phone?
Another point of potential contention is getting ATSC 3.0 tuners into phones. At a most basic level, carriers like AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile are in the business of selling you data. If suddenly you can get lots of high-quality content for free on your phone, they potentially lose money. Ever wonder why your phone doesn't have an FM radio tuner? Same reason.
T-Mobile made a preemptive strike along those lines all the way back in September 2017, writing a white paper (PDF) that, among other things, claims, "In light of the detrimental effects that inclusion of ATSC 3.0 can have on the cost and size of a device, the technology trade-offs required to accommodate competing technologies, and the reduced performance and spectral efficiency that it will have for other mobile bands and services, the decision as to whether to include ATSC 3.0 in a device must be left to the market to decide."
"The market" determined you didn't need an FM tuner in your phone, and in the few phones that had an FM tuner, if you bought it through an American provider, it was almost always disabled.
TV broadcasters, on the other hand, are huge fans of ATSC 3.0 on mobile phones. It means more potential eyeballs and, incidentally, a guarantee of active internet access for that return data path. John Hane of the Spectrum Consortium feels that tuners built into phones is "inevitable," and that international adoption of ATSC 3.0 will help push it forward. Wharton says that the focus is getting TVs to work, but mobile is in the plan.
Then there's portable TVs, of which there are HD versions on the market and have been for years. The next-generation ATSC 3.0 versions of these will likely get better reception in addition to the higher resolution offered by the new standard.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Cost (for you)
NextGen TV is not backward compatible with current TV tuners. To get it, you'll eventually need either a new TV or an external tuner.
However, you shouldn't feel a push to upgrade since:
1. NextGen TV/ATSC 3.0 isn't mandatory, and it doesn't affect cable, satellite or streaming TV.
2. HD tuners cost as little as $30 to $40 now, and NextGen TV tuners, which currently sell between $200 and $300, will eventually be cheap as well.
3. Even after they start NextGen broadcasts, stations will have to keep broadcasting regular old HD.
Here's the actual language:
"The programming aired on the ATSC 1.0 simulcast channel must be 'substantially similar' to the programming aired on the 3.0 channel. This means that the programming must be the same, except for programming features that are based on the enhanced capabilities of ATSC 3.0, advertisements and promotions for upcoming programs. The substantially similar requirement will sunset in five years from its effective date absent further action by the Commission to extend it."
In other words, the HD broadcast has to be essentially the same as the new 3.0 broadcast for five years, perhaps longer depending on future FCC actions.
Which brings us to point 3. By the time people had to buy them, HD tuners were inexpensive and are even more so now. The HD tuner I use is currently $26 on Amazon. The first generation NextGen tuners available now are more expensive than that, though they're not outrageous. We'll discuss those below. By the time anyone actually requires one, however, they'll almost certainly be affordable.
Which is good, because there aren't any planned subsidies this time around for people to get a tuner for cheap. I'm sure this is at least partly due to how few people actually still use OTA as their sole form of TV reception. Maybe this will change as more stations convert, but we're a ways away from that.
As you can see, there are lots of parts that need to get upgraded all along the chain before you can get 3.0 in your home.
ATSC/TVTechnology.com
Here's another way to think about it: The first HD broadcasts began in the mid-90s, but when did you buy your first HDTV? As far as the 3.0 transition is concerned we're in the late-90s, maybe generously the early 2000s, now. Things seem like they're moving at a much more rapid pace than the transition from analog to DTV/HDTV, but even so, it will be a long time before ATSC 3.0 completely replaces the current standard.
How to get NextGen right now
LG
If you want to check it out for yourself, many of you already can. The first stop is to go to WatchNextGenTV.com. That website will help you find what stations in your area are broadcasting, or which ones will soon.
Next up you'll need something to receive it. If you're in the market for a new TV there are several options available from Hisense, LG, Samsung, and Sony. Here's our list of all the 2022 TVs with built-in next-gen tuners.
If you want to check out NextGen TV without buying a new television, you'll need an external tuner. It's still early days, so there aren't many options.
The Tablo ATSC 3.0 Quad HDMI DVR
Nuvvyo
At CES 2022 Nuvvyo announced the Tablo, a quad-tuner box that can connect to a TV directly, or transmit over a network to Rokus, Apple TVs, or computers on your home network.
The Silicon Dust has two models, the $199 HomeRun Flex 4K and the $279 HomeRun Scribe 4K. Both have ATSC 1.0 and 3.0 tuners.
If you want a more traditional tuner, BitRouter plans to start shipping its first ZapperBox M1 tuners in the spring. You can reserve one now for $249. It doesn't have internal storage, but BitRouter plans to add the ability to save content on network-attached storage, or NAS, devices via a firmware update. They also plan to add the ability to send the content around your home network, like what the Scribe 4K does.
Zapperbox
Then there's what to watch. Being early in the process, you're not going to find much 4K content, possibly not any. This was the same with the early years of HDTV. It's also going to vary per area. There is certainly a lot of 4K content being produced right now, and that has been the case for several years. So in that way, we're in better shape than we were in the early days of HD.
Basic and paid cable channels over-the-air?
One company is using the bandwidth and IP nature of NextGen to do something a little different. It's a hybrid paid TV service, sort of like cable/satellite, but using over-the-air broadcasts to deliver the content. It's called Evoca, and right now it's available only in Boise, Idaho. Edge Networks is the company behind it, and it wants to roll it out to other small markets where cable offerings are limited, and broadband speeds are slow or expensive.
It's an interesting idea for underserved and often forgotten-about markets.
Read more: Cable TV channels and 4K from an antenna?
Seeing the future
The transition from analog broadcasting to HD, if you count from the formation of the Grand Alliance to the final analog broadcast, took 16 years.
Though many aspects of technology move rapidly, getting dozens of companies, plus the governments of the US and many other countries, all to agree to specific standards, takes time. So does the testing of the new tech. There are a lot of cogs and sprockets that have to align for this to work, and it would be a lot harder to fix once it's all live.
But technology moves faster and faster. It's highly doubtful it will take 16 years to fully implement NextGen TV. As we mentioned at the top, dozens of stations are already broadcasting. Will every station in your city switch to NextGen TV? Probably not, but the bigger ones likely will. This is especially true if there are already other NextGen TV stations in your area. There's a potential here for stations to make additional money in the long run with 3.0, and that's obviously a big motivator.
There's also the question of how much content there will be. If it follows the HDTV transition model, big sporting events in 4K HDR will come first, followed by lots and lots of shows featuring nature scenes and closeups of bugs. Seriously -- this was totally a thing. Then we'll see a handful of scripted prime-time shows. My guess would be the popular, solidly profitable ones that are produced (not just aired) by networks like CBS and NBC.
So should you hold off buying a new TV? Nope, not unless you only get your shows over the air. And even if you do, by the time there's enough content to be interesting, there will be cheap tuner boxes you can connect to whatever TV you have.
For now, NextGen TV seems to be well on its way.
As well as covering TV and other display tech, Geoff does photo tours of cool museums and locations around the world, including nuclear submarines, massive aircraft carriers, medieval castles, epic 10,000 mile road trips, and more. Check out Tech Treks for all his tours and adventures.
He wrote a bestselling sci-fi novel about city-size submarines, along with a sequel. You can follow his adventures on Instagram and his YouTube channel.
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Hisense debuts brighter mini-LED TVs and even more lasers at CES 2022
Hisense debuts brighter mini-LED TVs and even more lasers at CES 2022
This story is part of CES, where CNET covers the latest news on the most incredible tech coming soon.
Hisense unveiled its 2022 range of televisions, which include models equipped with mini-LED backlights and a pair of so-called Laser TVs -- short-throw projectors with screens included. Some sets include new technologies such as NextGen ATSC 3.0 tuners and gaming-friendly HDMI 2.1 ports, and employ either the Google TV or the older Android TV system. All will be available by the middle of the year and unlike most CES 2022 announcements, Hisense detailed its pricing.
There are three main offerings: the ULED range, a selection of Laser TVs and the entry-level smart TV 'A' range. All of the TVs bar the smallest A4H models boast 4K resolution.
The ULED series is helmed by the U9H and U8H models, and both now include mini-LED backlights for higher brightness (up to 2,000 nits) and as many as 1,200 zones of local dimming. The U8H is an upgrade on last year's U8G which CNET's David Katzmaier said offered "more raw brightness than just about any I've reviewed." These TVs are followed by the midrange U7H and entry-level U6H.
The 120-inch L5G laser TV
Hisense
Last year, Hisense debuted its first dual-cell LCD – the U9DG – which promised better contrast than traditional LCD, but there is no word on a replacement for 2022.
Meanwhile, the PX1-PRO TriChroma Laser Cinema and L5G 4K TVs expand the company's laser TV offerings for 2022. These are short-throw laser projectors that take on models like the Samsung Premiere and include features such as Dolby Vision and Android TV. Prices start at $3,999 and unlike the rest of the range, the laser TVs are available right now.
Lastly, the standout of the A-series is the A7H which offers a massive 85 inches for $1,700 and will ship in the spring. Like the laser TVs, these models will feature the older Android TV OS instead of Google TV.
Here are the rest of the details on the new models, including the sizes and major step-up features for each one:
U9H Series
76-inch
2,000 nits of peak brightness
1,280 full-array local dimming zones
Auto low-latency mode, Game Mode Pro, variable refresh rate and FreeSync
Late summer 2022
$3,200
U8H Series
55-inch, 65-inch, and 75-inch
1,500 nits
Mid-summer 2022
Starting at $1,099
U7H Series:
55-inch, 65-inch, 75-inch and 85-inch
Quantum Dot
FreeSync
120Hz
Mid-summer 2022
Starting at $800
U6H
55-inch, 65-inch, and 75-inch
60Hz
Integrated Google assistant
Summer 2022
Starting at $580
A7H, A6H and A4H Series
A7H, 85-inch, spring 2022, $1,700.
A6H, 43-inch/50-inch/55-inch/65-inch/70-inch, spring 2022, starting at $300
A4H, 32-inch/40-inch/43-inch, spring 2022, starting at $200
Laser TVs
PX1-PRO TriChroma Laser Cinema, $3,999
L5G 4K Smart Laser TV, $4,499 (100-inch) and $4,999 (120-inch)
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NextGen TV, aka ATSC 3.0, is continuing its rapid rollout across the country. Major markets like Los Angeles, Atlanta, Denver, Houston and more all have stations transmitting. Meanwhile New York, Boston, and many other markets are slated to have broadcasts later this year. While not every station in every market has a NextGen TV counterpart, more and more are coming on the air.
What's NextGen TV? It's an update to the free HDTV you can already get over-the-air in nearly every city in the US. There's no monthly fee, but you do need either a new TV with a built-in tuner or a standalone external tuner. The standard allows broadcast stations to send higher quality signals than ever before with features like 4K, HDR, 120 Hz, and more. ATSC 3.0 proponents also claim better reception indoors and on-the-go -- whether it's on your phone, or even in your car. The best part is that if you're watching it on your TV it uses the same standard antennas available today.
One potential downside? ATSC 3.0 will also let broadcasters track your viewing habits, information that can be used for targeted advertising, just like companies such as Facebook and Google use today.
Read more:Best TV antennas for cord cutters, starting at just $10
NextGen TV to you
ATSC.org
Here's the top-line info:
If you get your TV from streaming, cable or satellite, NextGen TV/ATSC 3.0 won't affect you at all.
The transition is voluntary. Stations don't have to switch. Many have already, however, for reasons we'll explain below.
It's not backwards-compatible with the current HD standard (ATSC 1.0), so your current TV won't be able to receive it. Your current antenna should work fine though.
Stations that switch to NextGen TV will still have to keep broadcasting ATSC 1.0 for five years.
There are multiple models and sizes of TV with built-in tuners available now from Hisense, LG, Sony, Samsung and others.
As of the beginning of 2022 the majority of the largest markets in the US have at least one channel broadcasting NextGen TV. By the end of 2022, nearly all major and many minor markets will have multiple channels .
Here's the map of actual stations as of January 2022. Orange denotes stations that are live now. Blue is launching before summer. White sometime after the summer.
ATSC
How it will work in your home
Put simply: If you connect an antenna to your TV you will receive free programming, just like most people can get now. Yet, that is selling the potential benefits of NextGen TV short.
NextGen TV is IP-based, so in practice it can be moved around your home just like any internet content can right now. For example, you connect an antenna to a tuner box inside your home, but that box is not connected to your TV at all. Instead, it's connected to your router. This means anything with access to your network can have access to over-the-air TV, be it your TV, your phone, your tablet or even a streaming device like Apple TV. There will be traditional tuners as well, of course, but this is a new and interesting alternative.
This also means it's possible we'll see mobile devices with built-in tuners, so you can watch live TV while you're out and about, like you can with Netflix and YouTube now. How willing phone companies will be to put tuners in their phones remains to be seen, however. You don't see a lot of phones that can get radio broadcasts now, even though such a thing is easy to implement. We'll talk more about that in a moment.
'Voluntary'
In November of 2017, the Federal Communications Commission approved ATSC 3.0 as the next generation of broadcast standard, on a "voluntary, market-driven basis" (PDF). It also required stations to continue broadcasting ATSC 1.0 (i.e. "HD"). This is actually part of the issue as to why it's voluntary.
During the mandatory DTV transition in the early 2000s, stations in a city were given a new frequency (channel, in other words), to broadcast digital TV, while they still broadcast analog on their old channel. These older channels were eventually reclaimed by the FCC for other uses when the proverbial switch was flipped to turn off analog broadcasts. Since a changeover isn't occurring this time around, stations and markets are left to themselves how best to share or use the over-the-air spectrum in their areas.
Because there's no new bandwidth, broadcasters will temporarily share transmitters. Two or more stations will use one tower for ATSC 1.0 (HD) broadcasts and those stations will use another tower for ATSC 3.0 (UHD) broadcasts. This will mean a temporary reduction in bandwidth for each channel, but potentially a limited impact on picture quality due to the better modern HD encoders. More info here.
ATSC/TVTechnology.com
While it's not a mandatory standard, many broadcasters still seem enthusiastic about NextGen. At the beginning of the roll-out, then executive vice president of communications at the National Association of Broadcasters Dennis Wharton told CNET that the improvement in quality, overall coverage and the built-in safety features mean that most stations would be enthusiastic to offer ATSC 3.0.
John Hane, president of the Spectrum Consortium (an industry group with broadcasters Sinclair, Nexstar and Univision as members), was equally confident: "The FCC had to make it voluntary because the FCC couldn't provide transition channels. [The industry] asked the FCC to make it voluntary. We want the market to manage it. We knew the market would demand it, and broadcasters and hardware makers in fact are embracing it."
Given the competition broadcasters have with cable, streaming and so on, 3.0 could be a way to stabilize or even increase their income by offering better picture quality, better coverage and, most importantly, targeted ads.
Ah yes, targeted ads…
Broadcast TV will know what you're watching
One of NextGen TV's more controversial features is a "return data path," which is a way for the station you're watching to know you're watching. Not only does this allow a more accurate count of who's watching what shows, but it creates the opportunity for every marketer's dream: targeted advertising.
Ads specific to your viewing habits, income level and even ethnicity (presumed by your neighborhood, for example) could get slotted in by your local station. This is something brand-new for broadcast TV. Today, over-the-air broadcasts are pretty much the only way to watch television that doesn't track your viewing habits. Sure, the return data path could also allow "alternative audio tracks and interactive elements," but it's the targeted ads and tracking many observers are worried about.
The finer details are all still being worked out, but here's the thing: If your TV is connected to the internet, it's already tracking you. Pretty much every app, streaming service, smart TV and cable or satellite box all track your usage to a greater or lesser extent.
Return data path is still in the planning stages, even as the other aspects of NextGen TV are already going live. There is a silver lining: There will be an opt-out option. While it also requires Internet access, if this type of thing bothers you, just don't connect your TV or NextGen TV receiver to the internet. You will inevitably lose some of the other features of NextGen TV, however.
That said, we'll keep an eye on this for any further developments.
Free TV on your phone?
Another point of potential contention is getting ATSC 3.0 tuners into phones. At a most basic level, carriers like AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile are in the business of selling you data. If suddenly you can get lots of high-quality content for free on your phone, they potentially lose money. Ever wonder why your phone doesn't have an FM radio tuner? Same reason.
T-Mobile made a preemptive strike along those lines all the way back in September 2017, writing a white paper (PDF) that, among other things, claims, "In light of the detrimental effects that inclusion of ATSC 3.0 can have on the cost and size of a device, the technology trade-offs required to accommodate competing technologies, and the reduced performance and spectral efficiency that it will have for other mobile bands and services, the decision as to whether to include ATSC 3.0 in a device must be left to the market to decide."
"The market" determined you didn't need an FM tuner in your phone, and in the few phones that had an FM tuner, if you bought it through an American provider, it was almost always disabled.
TV broadcasters, on the other hand, are huge fans of ATSC 3.0 on mobile phones. It means more potential eyeballs and, incidentally, a guarantee of active internet access for that return data path. John Hane of the Spectrum Consortium feels that tuners built into phones is "inevitable," and that international adoption of ATSC 3.0 will help push it forward. Wharton says that the focus is getting TVs to work, but mobile is in the plan.
Then there's portable TVs, of which there are HD versions on the market and have been for years. The next-generation ATSC 3.0 versions of these will likely get better reception in addition to the higher resolution offered by the new standard.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Cost (for you)
NextGen TV is not backward compatible with current TV tuners. To get it, you'll eventually need either a new TV or an external tuner.
However, you shouldn't feel a push to upgrade since:
1. NextGen TV/ATSC 3.0 isn't mandatory, and it doesn't affect cable, satellite or streaming TV.
2. HD tuners cost as little as $30 to $40 now, and NextGen TV tuners, which currently sell between $200 and $300, will eventually be cheap as well.
3. Even after they start NextGen broadcasts, stations will have to keep broadcasting regular old HD.
Here's the actual language:
"The programming aired on the ATSC 1.0 simulcast channel must be 'substantially similar' to the programming aired on the 3.0 channel. This means that the programming must be the same, except for programming features that are based on the enhanced capabilities of ATSC 3.0, advertisements and promotions for upcoming programs. The substantially similar requirement will sunset in five years from its effective date absent further action by the Commission to extend it."
In other words, the HD broadcast has to be essentially the same as the new 3.0 broadcast for five years, perhaps longer depending on future FCC actions.
Which brings us to point 3. By the time people had to buy them, HD tuners were inexpensive and are even more so now. The HD tuner I use is currently $26 on Amazon. The first generation NextGen tuners available now are more expensive than that, though they're not outrageous. We'll discuss those below. By the time anyone actually requires one, however, they'll almost certainly be affordable.
Which is good, because there aren't any planned subsidies this time around for people to get a tuner for cheap. I'm sure this is at least partly due to how few people actually still use OTA as their sole form of TV reception. Maybe this will change as more stations convert, but we're a ways away from that.
As you can see, there are lots of parts that need to get upgraded all along the chain before you can get 3.0 in your home.
ATSC/TVTechnology.com
Here's another way to think about it: The first HD broadcasts began in the mid-90s, but when did you buy your first HDTV? As far as the 3.0 transition is concerned we're in the late-90s, maybe generously the early 2000s, now. Things seem like they're moving at a much more rapid pace than the transition from analog to DTV/HDTV, but even so, it will be a long time before ATSC 3.0 completely replaces the current standard.
How to get NextGen right now
LG
If you want to check it out for yourself, many of you already can. The first stop is to go to WatchNextGenTV.com. That website will help you find what stations in your area are broadcasting, or which ones will soon.
Next up you'll need something to receive it. If you're in the market for a new TV there are several options available from Hisense, LG, Samsung, and Sony. Here's our list of all the 2022 TVs with built-in next-gen tuners.
If you want to check out NextGen TV without buying a new television, you'll need an external tuner. It's still early days, so there aren't many options.
The Tablo ATSC 3.0 Quad HDMI DVR
Nuvvyo
At CES 2022 Nuvvyo announced the Tablo, a quad-tuner box that can connect to a TV directly, or transmit over a network to Rokus, Apple TVs, or computers on your home network.
The Silicon Dust has two models, the $199 HomeRun Flex 4K and the $279 HomeRun Scribe 4K. Both have ATSC 1.0 and 3.0 tuners.
If you want a more traditional tuner, BitRouter plans to start shipping its first ZapperBox M1 tuners in the spring. You can reserve one now for $249. It doesn't have internal storage, but BitRouter plans to add the ability to save content on network-attached storage, or NAS, devices via a firmware update. They also plan to add the ability to send the content around your home network, like what the Scribe 4K does.
Zapperbox
Then there's what to watch. Being early in the process, you're not going to find much 4K content, possibly not any. This was the same with the early years of HDTV. It's also going to vary per area. There is certainly a lot of 4K content being produced right now, and that has been the case for several years. So in that way, we're in better shape than we were in the early days of HD.
Basic and paid cable channels over-the-air?
One company is using the bandwidth and IP nature of NextGen to do something a little different. It's a hybrid paid TV service, sort of like cable/satellite, but using over-the-air broadcasts to deliver the content. It's called Evoca, and right now it's available only in Boise, Idaho. Edge Networks is the company behind it, and it wants to roll it out to other small markets where cable offerings are limited, and broadband speeds are slow or expensive.
It's an interesting idea for underserved and often forgotten-about markets.
Read more: Cable TV channels and 4K from an antenna?
Seeing the future
The transition from analog broadcasting to HD, if you count from the formation of the Grand Alliance to the final analog broadcast, took 16 years.
Though many aspects of technology move rapidly, getting dozens of companies, plus the governments of the US and many other countries, all to agree to specific standards, takes time. So does the testing of the new tech. There are a lot of cogs and sprockets that have to align for this to work, and it would be a lot harder to fix once it's all live.
But technology moves faster and faster. It's highly doubtful it will take 16 years to fully implement NextGen TV. As we mentioned at the top, dozens of stations are already broadcasting. Will every station in your city switch to NextGen TV? Probably not, but the bigger ones likely will. This is especially true if there are already other NextGen TV stations in your area. There's a potential here for stations to make additional money in the long run with 3.0, and that's obviously a big motivator.
There's also the question of how much content there will be. If it follows the HDTV transition model, big sporting events in 4K HDR will come first, followed by lots and lots of shows featuring nature scenes and closeups of bugs. Seriously -- this was totally a thing. Then we'll see a handful of scripted prime-time shows. My guess would be the popular, solidly profitable ones that are produced (not just aired) by networks like CBS and NBC.
So should you hold off buying a new TV? Nope, not unless you only get your shows over the air. And even if you do, by the time there's enough content to be interesting, there will be cheap tuner boxes you can connect to whatever TV you have.
For now, NextGen TV seems to be well on its way.
As well as covering TV and other display tech, Geoff does photo tours of cool museums and locations around the world, including nuclear submarines, massive aircraft carriers, medieval castles, epic 10,000 mile road trips, and more. Check out Tech Treks for all his tours and adventures.
He wrote a bestselling sci-fi novel about city-size submarines, along with a sequel. You can follow his adventures on Instagram and his YouTube channel.
Acer Next May 2022: 3D Screens, Predator Gaming Laptops and More
Acer Next May 2022: 3D Screens, Predator Gaming Laptops and More
Acer Next, the company's May announcement event, dropped a multitude of products on us -- mostly a raft of refreshes. We saw updates to existing models including the Spin 5, Swift 3 and Predator gaming laptops with current-generation processors and some design tweaks. One move in particular stands out, though: Acer's expanding its SpatialLabs technology to bring glasses-free stereoscopic 3D to games. It'll do this with a 15-inch 4K display, which will be offered as a standalone monitor and built in to one of its Predator Helios 300 gaming laptops.
SpatialLabs launched at last year's May Acer Next in conjunction with new hardware in Acer's Concept D line of creator-focused gear and an Unreal Engine developer program. Hence, new games supporting the technology. "Support" means the developer has created a profile for the game, which loads when you launch it via the new TrueGame application, along with the ancillary files necessary to render properly to the display. An ancillary app, SpatialLabs Go, will allow the computer to render stereoscopic 3D from most content that can be displayed full screen. The content is rendered to deliver the impression that nearer parts of the scene appear in front of the display (rather than rendering as if further objects were behind it, as the illustration above implies).
Rear view of the SpatialLabs View portable monitor.
Acer
Acer says more than 50 games will support the display, dubbed Acer SpatialLabs View, when it becomes available this summer starting at $1,099. New games will be added to the roster on a regular basis. It doesn't sound like a display you'd want for fast-moving games, given its 60Hz refresh rate and response time of up to a whopping 30ms. (For comparison, a decent response time for a gaming monitor is closer to 5ms or less.) There will also be a commercially oriented version of the monitor, the SpatialLabs View Pro, intended for kiosks and other sales and marketing uses.
The Predator Helios 300 SpatialLabs Edition.
Acer
The monitor can run off battery, though for how long we don't know. The battery does explain why it's relatively heavy -- at roughly 3.3 pounds (1.5 kilograms), it weighs as much as a laptop. Other specs include a maximum brightness of 400 nits, typically 323 nits, and 100% coverage of the Adobe RGB gamut.
You'll find the screen in the Predator Helios 300 SpatialLabs Edition, which also gets a bump up to a maximum of an Intel Core i9-12900H CPU, 32GB DDR5-4800 and PCIe 4 SSD. It's slated to ship in October starting at $3,400.
Acer has also added a 16-inch model to its Predator Triton 300 SE line, and brings the thin-ish 14-inch model up to date with 12th-gen Intel Core processors, LPDDR5-5200 RAM, PCIe 4 SSD and new display choices, including OLED. The smaller model ships in July starting at $1,600, and the 16-inch model will be available in August, starting at $1,750.
The company has also revved its gaming monitors, bringing the 27-inch XB273 up to 4K at 160Hz with DisplayHDR 600 certification and the Nitro XV272 up to 1440p 144Hz (overclocked to 170Hz on DisplayPort) with a peak brightness of 400 nits. Both are expected to ship between July and September, with the Predator starting at $999 and the Nitro at $449.
Acer Aspire Vero 14-inch model.
Acer
Aspire Vero
Acer's eco-friendly product line gets some new members, adding a 14-inch laptop with a Full HD screen and a new blue choice to the existing Aspire Vero 15-inch option, bumping both to 12th-gen Intel Core processors. A 24-inch Vero Veriton All-in-One desktop, 24- and 27-inch monitors (the larger model has a KVM switch and supports power delivery), keyboard and projector join the the lineup, expanding Acer's use of post-consumer recycled plastic to a wider variety of products.
Acer Veriton all-in-one with matching accessories.
Acer
The Veriton desktop incorporates 30% PCR materials, and some components are upgradable. It has a popup webcam, up to 12th-gen Core i9 and GeForce MX550 processors, supports up to 64GB DDR4 memory and takes advantage of some of the Intel chipset updates, such as Wi-Fi 6E.
For low-end projecting, the Vero PD2325W offers a low 1,280x800-pixel resolution and low light output of 2,200 lumens. It does have auto keystone correction (to fix vertical distortion) and can be mounted to the ceiling.
Acer Aspire Vero 14-inch (AV14-51) laptop ships in September starting at $750
Acer Aspire Vero 15-inch (AV15-52) laptop ships in September starting at $750
Acer Veriton Vero (VVZ4694G) AIO desktop ships in October starting at $799
Acer Vero monitors ship in Q3 2022. The CB273 27-inch starts at $350; the 24-inch B247Y G starts at $200.
Acer Vero PD2325W projector ships in Q3 2022 starting at $559
Acer Vero keyboard and mouse set ships in November starting at $80; the mouse alone will cost $30.
Spin and Swift and more
A new version of the Swift 3 has a 2,880x1,800-pixel OLED display (DisplayHDR True Black 500 certified) and upgrades to an H-series 12th-gen Core i7 processor -- that's the higher power CPU line -- and upgrades to LPDDR5 memory and PCIe 4 SSD.
The Spin 5 has a higher-resolution display with thinner bezels.
Acer
In addition to a slight redesign that has much more attractive, thinner bezels on the screen, the 14-inch Spin 5's display gets a minor boost in resolution to 2,560x1,600 pixels. It also works with the upgraded Acer Active Stylus (Wacom AES 2.0), and gets bumped to the latest generation of core processors, LPDDR5 memory, PCIe 4 SSD, Wi-Fi 6E and more. The Spin 3's bezels have also gotten a bit narrower and now uses 12th-gen Intel CPUs as well.
Acer Swift 3 OLED laptop (SF314-71) ships in July starting at $900
Acer Spin 5 convertible laptop (SP514-51N) ships in July starting at $1,350
Spin 3 convertible laptop (SP314-55/N) ships in August starting at $850
Acer
Acer also updated the $750 Chromebook Spin 714's screen and components to keep it fresh and competitive, and launched a rugged tablet, the $400 Chromebook Tab 510. The 10.1-inch tablet is built on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 7c Gen 2 Compute Platform, with a 1,920x1,00-pixel screen, 5- and 8-megapixel MIPI cameras (front and rear) and includes a dockable stylus. Acer claims an 11-hour battery life and says it meets MIL-STD 810H standards for durability. The Chromebook Spin 714 ships in August while the Tab will be available in July.
The company's lightweight business laptops, the TravelMate P4 and TravelMate Spin P4 and the more workhorse P2, jump to the vPro versions of its 12th-gen CPUs as well as AMD's Ryzen Pro (up to Ryzen 7) equivalents; you'll have both 14- and 16-inch options for the P4. The P4 and P2 also incorporate more PCR plastic into their construction.
They'll all become available in the third quarter of 2022. The P4 models start at $1,099, the Spin P4s at $1,199, and the Spin P2 at $899.
And finally, Acer boosted its Concept D 5 and 5 Pro laptops and Concept D 500 and 100 desktops with the latest generation Intel Core CPUs and Nvidia RTX GPUs. The compact, entry-level Concept D 100 still uses last-gen T series GPUs, however, and neither has been bumped to DDR5. And it looks like only the D 5 will be available in the US, at least for now; it ships in August starting at $2,500.
