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Can you put an indoor tv outside can you put any tv outside using an indoor tv outside if you are indoors how to stay healthy indoors why you shouldn t take your child s phone why you shouldn t smoke why you only call me when you re high
Why You Shouldn't Take Your Indoor TV Outside for the Summer
Why You Shouldn't Take Your Indoor TV Outside for the Summer
Summer is here, and with the sunny days and warm weather, you're probably eager to spend as much time as possible outside. If you have a nice outdoor space like a deck or gazebo, covered or not, you might be curious if you can enjoy TV outside too. After all, watching the big game with friends, movie nights with the family, even just sitting by the pool and binge-watching a new show all seem better enjoyed on a big screen rather than your phone or tablet.
Dedicated outdoor TVs are expensive, however. The brand-new Element outdoor Roku TV is one of the cheapest we've seen and it still costs $1,300, mainly because it's designed to be relatively weatherproof. So why not save hundreds of dollars and bring a standard TV outside? A simple wall mount, perhaps an extension cord to a nearby exterior outlet, and you're good to go, right?
Not so fast. Much like putting a TV in the bathroom, even if it seems your display is away from direct splashes of water, it's in peril. Mounting a regular TV outside is the fastest way to destroy it, other than enthusiastic defenestration. Here's why.
No Groot, we can't watch Tree of Life again.
Kelvin Murray/Getty Images
The fragility of televisions
Heat, humidity and direct sunlight are the enemies of all TVs. For example, here's what LG lists as the operating temperatures for one of its LCD TVs:
Operating temperature 0 to 40 degrees C (32 to 104 degrees F)
Operating humidity less than 80%
Most parts of the US fall outside that range at least a few times a year. LG also advises to "keep the product away from direct sunlight" and not to place the TV in an "area exposed to rain or wind." Other manufacturers have similar temperature and humidity ranges for their televisions.
Anyone know where I can get more salt for this margarita? Wait, never mind.
Matthais Clamer/Getty Images
You might be thinking, "I have the perfect spot that's covered and out of the sun." Can you install a regular TV in a seemingly "safe" environment? You could. No one will stop you. I'm sure it will even work the first few times you try. Just know that TVs are intricate, fragile devices. Used normally they can last many years. Used outside of their prescribed environment, like adding heat, moisture and sunlight, the TV will age significantly faster. If you can afford to replace a TV every few months or every year, you do you. I'm sure TV manufacturers will be extremely pleased. Just don't expect any warranty coverage.
Samsung
Dedicated outdoor TVs are expensive
Several companies make TVs designed for the elements. This is more difficult than it sounds. Sealing a TV against moisture, plus any curious wildlife, limits the TV's ability to cool itself. Heat, as we've discussed before, is by far the biggest enemy of TV longevity. So this rugged redesign, plus the additional components and weather sealing, increase the price.
That Element Roku TV is a 55-inch model with IP55 dust and water resistance but at $1,300 it costs four times as much as a regular Roku TV -- and other outdoor TVs cost even more. Samsung's The Terrace is IP55 and costs $3,500 for a 55-inch model. Another big name in the space, SunBrite, specializes in outdoor TVs and its similarly sized TVs cost around $3,000.
The Nature channel in 8K looks so lifelike!
UrbanCow/Getty Images
Which is to say, doing the job "right" not only isn't cheap, but likely beyond the means of anyone looking to just watch some Netflix on the patio. Fortunately, there are some other options.
What, Mom? You told us to go outside. We're outside.
Andy Ryan/Getty Images
'TV' under the stars
Another option, though still not "cheap," is a TV enclosure. These help protect your TV from the elements, including the front screen, vents on the back, and so on. Some models even have optional antiglare screens, highly important as even a bright TV is going to have trouble competing with the sun. They can also have heaters or fans, to help keep the TV in its comfort zone. However, these enclosures often cost as much as the TV itself. They'll also extend your poor TV's life, but not indefinitely. It's not an outdoor TV now. It's an indoor TV wearing a nice coat.
If you're just planning on watching at night, consider a projector instead. These are likely cheaper than a TV plus enclosure, and are small enough to easily bring back inside when you're done for the night. They can project onto the side of your house, or better yet, a collapsible screen. Even a big sheet works quite well. Battery powered models aren't particularly bright, but just need Wi-Fi to stream. For larger, brighter models, you'll need to run a power cable. These can create images 100 inches or larger with ease, however, making backyard movie night something truly special.
If none of these work for you, consider getting a wheeled cart so the TV is only outside when you're actually watching it. That's definitely not as cool, or as easy, as mounting a TV outside, but it will save you money in replacement costs in the long run.
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.
Crypto news this week crypto news uk today latest news on crypto latest news on crypto crypto market this week cryptos to buy this week the best crypto news the most exciting moment best news this week this week sports this week in destiny this weekend
This Week's Most Exciting Crypto News: UK Announces NFT and More
This Week's Most Exciting Crypto News: UK Announces NFT and More
This week brought some exciting developments in the world of cryptocurrency and NFTs. Our lead story is the UK's push to become a center for crypto asset investment and technology. We'll also dive into a south Florida case where US authorities confiscated $34 million in cryptocurrency and Robinhood's new cryptocurrency wallet. Lastly, we'll discuss Tom Brady's NFT sales, a collection of NFT stick figures going for wild sums of money and what happened to the first mainstream video game to integrate NFTs as in-game items.
Welcome Nonfungible Tidbits, CNET's weekly roundup of news in crypto, bitcoin, NFTs and their related realms. Read on to find out about the six stories you may have missed this week, and stay tuned for more next week.
UK announces NFT to promote national crypto initiative
The U.K. wants to be "a global hub for cryptoasset technology and investment."
HM Treasury
The British government announced plans on Monday to make the UK a global hub for investment and tech in crypto assets. The UK is looking to make stablecoins a valid form of payment, and the Royal Mint will issue an NFT to promote Britain's crypto push. "The measures we've outlined today will help to ensure firms can invest, innovate and scale up in this country," UK finance minister Rishi Sunak said in the announcement. This comes just weeks after the country's financial regulator declared all bitcoin ATMs in the UK illegal and ordered them to shut down. The country's advertising authority has also been cracking down on crypto ads in the country for failing to highlight risks associated with cryptocurrency investing.
Read CNET's full story on the UK's NFT and crypto plans here.
US Authorities Seize $34M in Crypto in South Florida Case
Angela Lang/CNET
US authorities confiscated 34 million worth of cryptocurrency that was allegedly made from selling illicit items and stolen accounts from online services, including HBO, Netflix and Uber, on the dark web, the Justice Department said Monday. The DOJ says this is one of the largest cryptocurrency forfeiture actions the US has ever filed. The announcement didn't specify the identity of the south Florida resident the cryptocurrency was confiscated from or if the DOJ was pursuing further legal action.
Read CNET's full story on the cryptocurrency confiscation here.
Robinhood rolls out cryptocurrency wallet for people on waiting list
Getty
Robinhood's cryptocurrency wallet is now available for eligible users who previously signed up for the waiting list. The wallet's release was announced by Robinhood CPO Aparna Chennapragada on Thursday at the Bitcoin conference in Miami. The Robinhood crypto wallet allows transferring cryptocurrency into external wallets with daily withdrawals capped at $2,999 total and 10 transactions. However, residents in Hawaii, New York and Nevada are not eligible to sign up, due to state regulations. Robinhood has been a subject of controversy since the company's role in the GameStop stock saga.
Read CNET's full story on Robinhood releasing the cryptocurrency wallets here.
ESPN, Tom Brady sell NFTs to promote documentary series
Jordon Kelly/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
An NFT collection from ESPN and Tom Brady was released Wednesday in concert with the Tom Brady documentary series 'Man in the Arena: Tom Brady' arriving on Hulu and Disney Plus. The NFTs feature ESPN magazine covers of Brady, range from $100 to $500 and have already sold out. Brady, along with his wife, Gisele Bündchen, previously took an equity stake in the cryptocurrency exchange FTX and released a commercial for the crypto company.
Read CNET's full story on the NFTs from ESPN and Tom Brady here.
NFT stick figures are selling for thousands of dollars
OpenSea
Over $100 million in cryptocurrency has been spent on 'mfers,' an NFT collection featuring drawings of stick figures in front of color backgrounds. Recently, the least expensive NFT in the collection was 3.97 ether, or around $14,000, and the collection's simple art is very much on purpose. "Underlying mfers' meme art is, hilariously, an argument about intellectual property," says CNET Senior Writer Daniel Van Boom.
Read CNET's full story on why mfers are selling and what's driving the prices here.
First mainstream video game to use in-game NFTs will end new content
Ubisoft
Ubisoft became the first big video game developer to integrate NFTs into mainstream video games when the company introduced 'digits' in Ghost Recon Breakpoint earlier this year, a move that didn't go over well with much of the game's fanbase. On April 5, only a few months post-integration, Ubisoft announced it is ending new content for the game. However, Ubisoft is looking to hire more blockchain-related roles at the company and reportedly wants to put NFTs in future games, so gamers can probably expect to see NFTs in upcoming Ubisoft titles.
Thanks for reading. We'll be back with plenty more next week. In the meantime, check out this cautionary tale from Farnoosh Torabi on how bitcoin blackmailers tried to steal from her dad's E-Trade account.
Sony x80j 4k uhd google television sony x800h review rtings sony x80 tv review sony x80 tv review sony x80j tv review sony x80k tv review sony x80j tv review sony x80k tv review
Sony X80K TV Review: Google TV Smarts, Basic Features and Picture
Sony X80K TV Review: Google TV Smarts, Basic Features and Picture
Sony has been making TVs for 60 years and today it's known for best for expensive, high-performance screens. In 2022 it continued the trend by releasing a kitchen sink worth of high-tech displays, from 8K to mini-LED to QD-OLED, and most demand serious cash. So far 2022 is more about tightening belts than bells and whistles, however, so I took a look at Sony's cheapest TV first. The X80K is a decent all-around performer, and could appeal to TV shoppers on a budget who just want a Sony, but you can certainly do better for the money.
Like
Accurate color
Capable Google TV smart system
Plenty of connectivity
Subtle, understated design
Don't Like
Mediocre contrast and black levels
More expensive than competing TVs with better picture quality
In early summer the X80K costs about the same as the Samsung QN60B and the TCL 6-Series. In my side-by-side comparison of the three in CNET's TV test lab, the Samsung looked slightly better overall than the Sony, with superior brightness and contrast, while the TCL totally trounced them both. That might be a surprise if you're new to the TV buying game and just paying attention to brands -- wait, a TCL looks better than a Sony? -- but if you look at their underlying technologies, it makes perfect sense. The Sony and Samsung use basic LCD backlights while the TCL leverages step-up screen tech, namely full-array local dimming and mini-LED.
Beyond picture I did like Sony's Google smart TV system and no-fuss design, and it comes in a wide array of sizes. Later in the year it's sure to receive hefty price cuts, like TVs always do around the Black Friday and the holidays, that could make it more competitive. For now, however, the X80K doesn't do enough beyond its name to stand out.
Sony KD-X80K sizes, series comparison
I performed a hands-on evaluation of the 55-inch Sony KD-55X80K, but this review also applies to the other screen sizes in the series. All sizes have identical specs and should provide very similar picture quality.
Sony KD-43X80K, 43-inch Sony KD-50X80K, 50-inch Sony KD-55X80K, 55-inch Sony KD-65X80K, 65-inch Sony KD-75X80K, 75-inch Sony KD-85X80K, 85-inch
The X80K series is the entry-level in Sony's 2022 TV lineup, with relatively basic picture features. It's missing the HDMI 2.1 gaming features, 120Hz refresh rate and mini-LED backlight found on step-up models, for example.
James Martin/CNET
Keep it simple, Sony
The X80K blends in rather than stands out with a dark gray color along the bottom of its frame. The other three sides are black and their edges angle in slightly. The stand consists of simple A-shaped legs splayed far to either side. Seen from the side, the X80K is substantially thicker than the Samsung Q60B (2.83 vs. 1 inch), which could be a consideration if you want as flush a wall-mount as possible.
I like Sony's simple remote. The keys are laid out in familiar fashion and the requisite shortcut buttons for YouTube, Netflix, Disney Plus and Prime Video are onboard, and I appreciated the dedicated input key that some clickers lack. I could do without the number key and another dedicated to an over-the-air grid guide at the bottom, but some users might appreciate them.
James Martin/CNET
Google TV: Feature-rich and promo-heavy
Among all of the smart TV systems I like Google TV second-best, after Roku, and its implementation on the Sony X80K is the TV's best feature. Highlights include excellent voice results thanks to Google Assistant, tight integration with Google apps in particular YouTube and YouTube TV, and more apps overall, thanks to the Play store, than proprietary systems like Samsung and LG.
Responses were quick enough but felt a step behind most Roku TVs I've used. Once I selected a profile it took a long second or two for the main For You home page to populate with thumbnails, for example. I didn't love the large chunk of space at the top devoted to promotions of shows and movies on various services. I also wish the "continue watching" row was higher-up rather than placed below the "top picks for you" and apps rows. Top picks seemed to take into account my preferences for sci-fi shows and movies once I went through the "improve your recommendations" screen, but there was still plenty of content I didn't care about. Suggestions across different apps are a fine idea, but I personally the simplicity of Roku app-centric menus.
James Martin/CNET
Google TV's profiles worked well. I was easily able to set up a kid's profile, and I appreciated that appropriate apps like YouTube Kids and PBS Kids were suggested for me to add, and that Netflix automatically invoked the kids profile. During setup I was also prompted to set screen time limits, create a profile picture and more. Google TV's system provides better parental controls than Roku, although Fire TV is similarly robust.
Modest features, extra connections
Key features
Display technology
LED LCD
LED backlight
Direct
Resolution
4K
HDR compatible
HDR10 and Dolby Vision
Smart TV
Google TV
Remote
Standard with voice
As an entry-level TV the X80K's lack major picture-enhancing extras. It has a 60Hz refresh rate rather than 120Hz, although it does offer smoothing, aka the soap opera effect, if you want to turn it on. It supports Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos formats, as well as standard HDR10, as do many other mid-priced TVs.
Four HDMI inputs (One with eARC)
Two USB 2.0 ports
Composite AV input (3.5mm)
Optical digital audio output
RF (antenna) input
Ethernet (LAN) port
Physical connections are better than many basic TVs' however, with a fourth HDMI as well as analog video. It's also the least-expensive TV so far to include an ATSC 3.0 tuner, so it's ready for NextGen TV broadcasts. Such broadcasts are rare today and once they become more common you'll be able to buy a tuner box to allow any TV to watch them, but it's a nice extra on the Sony nonetheless.
James Martin/CNET
Picture quality comparisons
I set up the 55-inch Sony X80K next to its direct competitor from Samsung, as well as less expensive Fire TV and a TCL with superior picture quality specifications. Here's the lineup:
Samsung QN55Q60B Amazon Fire TV Omni TCL 65R646
TV and movies: The Sony delivered the second-worst picture in the lineup overall, beating out only the Omni. Its main weakness was relatively weak contrast, caused by both lighter (worse) black levels and dimmer highlights than the Samsung.
Watching Hustle on Netflix, for example, the black around the credits and the shadows in the locker room were lighter and less realistic than on the other TVs, if only slightly worse than the Samsung and the Omni. The Samsung was also significantly brighter than the Sony in its most accurate picture modes, which made the film's HDR image pop more in comparison. The skin tones of Adam Sandler and the basketball players looked truer than the Samsung and Omni, but overall I preferred the Samsung's picture by a hair.
The story was similar with the challenging Spears and Munsil 4K HDR Benchmark montage on Blu-ray, where the Samsung looked a bit brighter than the Sony. Both outperformed the Omni, which showed less high-level detail in snowscapes for example, but the difference wasn't enough to justify the Sony's much higher price.
The TCL, meanwhile, was superior in pretty much every way to the others, with excellent contrast, deep black levels and powerful brightness that made the Sony, Samsung and Fire TV pale by comparison.
James Martin/CNET
Gaming: Playing Horizon Forbidden West, color was more realistic and accurate on the Sony, and similar to the TCL and LG, while the Samsung in every mode appeared more saturated and, well, game-y. Again the Samsung won for contrast and punch, handily, although to its credit the Sony revealed more details in the shadows, which is an advantage in dark games with enemies lurking in the shadows. The Sony lacked the comprehensive gaming stats display of the Samsung and both had similar (excellent) input lag, but overall I preferred the Samsung's punchier look. The TCL, meanwhile, combined a brighter image than either one with excellent shadow detail and, yes, colors as accurate (and better-looking) than the Sony.
Bright lighting: The Sony measured relatively dim, backing up my subjective impressions, and both it and the Samsung were less-bright than the TCL and a less-expensive Vizio, both equipped with local dimming. Below are my measurements in nits for select comparison TVs in their brightest and most accurate picture modes, using both standard dynamic range (SDR) and high dynamic range (HDR) test patterns.
Light output in nits
TV
Brightest mode (SDR)
Accurate mode (SDR)
Brightest mode (HDR)
Accurate mode (HDR)
TCL 65R635
1,114
792
1,292
1,102
Vizio M65Q7-J01
791
562
764
631
Samsung QN55Q60B
549
343
540
514
Sony KD-55X80K
369
357
446
387
LG OLED65C2
413
389
812
759
Despite its lower light output numbers the Sony is still bright enough for all but the most light-filled viewing environments. As with most TVs, the brightest modes for HDR and SDR (Game and Vivid, respectively) are less accurate. For the accurate results listed above I used Custom mode and I recommend X80K owners do the same to get good color in bright rooms. Note that with SDR, you'll need to disable the Auto Energy Saving setting (Settings > Display & Sound > Picture > Light Sensor > Off) to get full brightness.
The Samsung's screen was better than that of the Sony at dealing with bright reflections in the room. Sitting under bright lights, I saw my reflection in the black screen of the X80K more clearly (and it was more distracting) than in any of the other TV screens.
Uniformity and viewing angle: The screen of the X80K sample I reviewed showed no major issues with bright spots or dark areas, and in test patterns appeared more uniform than the Omni and similar to the other displays. Watching hockey I saw very little evidence of irregularities as the camera panned across the ice. From off-angle the Samsung maintained superior black level and contrast but Sony had better color, much like the TVs' respective performance from straight on.
James Martin/CNET
Picture settings notes
The most accurate settings were Cinema and Custom mode for both HDR and SDR, and Custom measured slightly more accurate so I went with that. Game is best for gaming, thanks to its low input lag, and color was similar to Custom and exceedingly accurate.
The X80K offers settings that engage smoothing, aka the soap opera effect, as I prefer to turn it off for TV shows and movies. You can experiment with the settings (Settings > Display & Sound > Picture > Motion > Motionflow > Custom) and it's off by default in the Cinema and Custom modes.
Geek box
SDR
Result
Score
Black luminance (0%)
0.075
Poor
Peak white luminance (SDR)
357
Average
Avg. gamma (10-100%)
2.46
Poor
Avg. grayscale error (10-100%)
2.27
Good
Dark gray error (30%)
2.07
Good
Bright gray error (80%)
3.04
Average
Avg. color checker error
3.08
Average
Avg. saturation sweeps error
2.52
Good
Avg. color error
2.67
Good
Input lag (Game mode)
11.93
Good
HDR10
Black luminance (0%)
0.084
Poor
Peak white luminance (10% win)
446
Poor
Gamut % UHDA/P3 (CIE 1976)
94.73
Average
ColorMatch HDR error
8.08
Poor
Avg. color checker error
1.54
Good
Input lag (Game mode, 4K HDR)
11.67
Good
See How We Test TVs for more details.
Portrait Displays Calman calibration software was used in this review.
§
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.
Hollywood's Next Hit Could Be Based on an NFT -- And You'd Never Know It
Hollywood's Next Hit Could Be Based on an NFT -- And You'd Never Know It
In 1994, True Lies was a massive hit, raking in almost $400 million at the box office. That makes sense: It starred Arnold Schwarzenegger, one of the most bankable stars in Hollywood history, and was helmed by James Cameron, fresh off directing Terminator 2.
But how many people watched La Totale, the French movie it was based on?
That's the question on John Wick creator Derek Kolstad's mind. In between writing Netflix's upcoming Splinter Cell show, Kolstad is penning an eight-episode anime show, based on Forgotten Runes Wizard's Cult.
If you've never heard of Forgotten Runes, that's probably because you don't spend your nights surfing NFT marketplace OpenSea. It's an NFT collection that launched last July and consists of just under 10,000 fantasy characters. The question is simple: Is it possible for a show based on NFTs to cross over to a mainstream audience that may not even know what those three letters stand for?
"There's real life and there's what Web3 is doing, and there's a divide between the two," Kolstad said in a recent Zoom interview. "You [need] to bridge the divide by just making a good thing, a good thing that makes people say, 'What is this? It's based on something? What's that?'"
NFT collections, like the Bored Ape Yacht Club, typically feature thousands of different characters, as well as a loose story that ties them together. But NFTs are polarizing. They've been enthusiastically adopted by some, but are despised by many. Those working in the industry are aware that interest is too limited to market NFT adaptations, like a TV show, based on its crypto credentials alone.
But that doesn't mean NFT characters, stories and franchises can't be fodder for an adaptation that goes mainstream. Forgotten Runes is one of many NFT brands hoping to jump from the blockchain to the big screen.
"The number of [NFT owners] in a single collection is usually around 5,000," said Bryce Anderson, production executive at Clubhouse Pictures, which helped produce I, Tonya and Birds of Prey. "If that's your audience, it's not enough to make a global brand. We talk about our TV shows, and it's 500,000 people per week or you get canceled. That's what you need."
It won't be easy. Much of the hype around NFTs was generated by the speculative bubble that enveloped the crypto market in 2021. The crash of crypto prices in recent months has sedated that speculative mania, dampening enthusiasm for NFTs. Despite the cold winds of "crypto winter," many creators are trying to prove that NFTs are here to stay.
Similar to how some developers and engineers left the Silicon Valley giants to join the crypto industry, renowned creatives are exploring NFTs. Most notable are the celebrities. Seth Green is working on a show that will star his Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT. Reese Witherspoon's production house is working on a film and TV universe for the World of Women NFT collection. Equally important are the artists and scriptwriters, who've come from companies like Pixar and Marvel.
"You never know what something's going to become," said Bearsnake, one of Forgotten Runes' founders. Bearsnake declined to give his real name but verified to CNET that he ran creative at an entertainment startup acquired by Disney. "Hello Kitty started as a vinyl coin purse. Did they know it was going to turn into... one of the biggest media franchises in the world? No, but it found an organic way to where it is now."
28 of the NFTs in Forgotten Runes Wizard's Cult, a collection of 9,995 pixelated NFTs.
Forgotten Runes/OpenSea
Fund a show, own a character
For some, the goal is for a universe created from an NFT collection to break through the cryptographic ceiling and go mainstream. Others see NFTs more practically: as a way to help fund productions.
"The biggest barrier for any young filmmaker has been finance," said Spike Lee during a talk at the NFT.NYC conference in June. "Where are you gonna get the money?"
Lee says technology has helped decentralize filmmaking, as amateurs can now shoot and edit video on their phones and laptops. Funding, however, continues to bedevil up-and-coming artists. Lee hopes NFTs can change that. He's piloting a program at New York University, where he teaches filmmaking, that will allow his students to fund projects by issuing NFTs.
"Films are still going to be made by the studios, and I think that NFTs will fit in the independent cinema," Lee said.
At the center of the premise is intellectual property. Punters can invest in up-and-coming filmmakers and the characters they create, just like they can invest in startup companies. The more popular those characters become, in theory, the bigger the returns.
IP bleeds into the second proposed benefit of media creation via the blockchain. Buying an NFT often means buying the IP for the depicted character -- and the right to build on top of that IP by creating a backstory. Many hope this can change the way films and TV are written and created.
Take Forgotten Runes. Wizard's Cult is a collection of 9,995, each depicting a different fantasy character: mages, warriors, alchemists, clairvoyants and more. Those who own an NFT get access to the Book of Lore, wherein they can write an official backstory for their character. Once it's written, it can't be changed -- even if the NFT is sold to another person.
It sounds like a recipe for chaos -- the internet is undefeated at loading unsuspecting platforms with offensive content -- but the idea is that self-interest will prevail. Worthwhile characters can be chosen to appear in Forgotten Runes' upcoming anime. If it becomes a hit, the characters within, and their attached NFT, become more valuable.
Writing fan fiction is technically illegal, points out Bearsnake, as it violates copyright law. The proposition, made by many NFT collections, is that franchises can be built quicker by embracing the passion of fans rather than merely tolerating it.
"Some of my favorite pieces of literature of the last 10 years, like actual literature, is stuff people wrote on the internet, and released on the internet, for free," said Clubhouse Picture's Anderson. "That was their creative impulse, and I think [NFTs help find] a way to let that live in a more public way."
Anderson is cocreator of Runner, an upcoming NFT collection. Runner takes place on a planet called Omega and focuses on The Omega Race, a contest that determines who rules the whole planet. It's being penned by Blaise Hemingway who, through the Disney Animation Story Trust, helped write Frozen and Big Hero 6.
Runner is an upcoming NFT collection. It's founded by Bryce Anderson and Bryan Unkeless, both of Clubhouse Pictures. Between them, they've worked on films like The Hunger Games and I, Tonya.
Runner
To Hemingway, the idea of NFT holders being able to create official backstories for their characters reminded him of being a kid and creating storylines for his Star Wars figurines.
"There could be a character that appears on screen for two seconds in a cantina scene, but what's that character's story?" he said. "We're following the story of about 12 central characters, but there's an entire world that has parallel stories going on that intersect with this."
Hemingway and Anderson have plans to adapt Runner to other mediums, though none are concrete yet. A film or TV expression seems inevitable given the team's credentials: Working with Hemingway and Anderson are Bryan Unkeless, producer of the Hunger Games, and Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, director of Snow White and the Huntsman.
NFTs going pop
The business models of NFT collections -- the ones that have business models in the first place -- often rely on the ability to break out into mainstream culture. But breaking out requires quality products, and quality products take a lot of time and effort to make.
Forgotten Runes is among the more ambitious NFT groups. Beyond the anime show, there's a comic book series that had its first issue in June, plans for a tabletop game and, curiously, even a cookbook. A Forgotten Runes massively multiplayer online role-playing game, or MMORPG, is in development and is due for release early next year.
The idea of creating a franchise and expanding it into different mediums is as old as Disney, said Bearsnake. What's new with NFTs is a set of tools that allows fans to play a more crucial role in that process. Those tools, however, create problems as well as solutions. Creators need to make products with mainstream appeal but also placate NFT investors who are mostly speculators, more interested in short-term hype than long-term vision.
"The majority of people in the space are really in it for financial gain, and that's OK," said Bearsnake. "I think there's a lot of unrealistic expectations from a lot of the community to the founders, because not everybody understands what goes into just even making a comic book. Like, that was hard."
It's a difficult time to be branching out. The past few months have been tough on all things crypto. Ether, the currency behind most NFTs, is down over 50% since the year began. That's tanked not only NFT valuations -- Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs are at about a third of their all-time-high -- but also mainstream interest in the arcane technology.
The circumstances for a blockchain blockbuster aren't the most auspicious, but NFT creators don't need to make the next True Lies. They just need to make the next La Totale.
