STACK #121 Nov 2015

TECH

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TEAMTECH GREATGEARFORYOURSUMMERSPORTSACTION By Keri Algar

out Cricket Australia Live’s official app; it has live streaming, scores, fixtures and highlights. If you’re lucky enough to be at the game, take advantage of the mobiles’ camera. A speedy A8 processor on both models enables 60 frames per second HD video. Or tune into live commentary with the ABC’s Grandstand Sport radio app. Marley Chant Bluetooth Portable Speaker Don’t miss the voices of summer! Commentators link you the game with technical knowledge and comedy. Sync your iPhone 6 to this little gem of a Bluetooth speaker and you and your mates can catch every critical, hilarious, illuminating or clichéd syllable that’s uttered. It doubles as a speakerphone with a built-in mic. The Marley Chant’s custom canvas carry bag encases a 2-inch speaker, complete with a bamboo trim. It’s stubbie-holder sized: about 4 inches tall, 3.4 inches across, and has a built-in battery that is rechargeable via mini-USB (6-hour life). It’s a small speaker, so you won’t be bringing the house down with sound, but it’s perfect for listening to the match in a small room or outside on the bbq deck.

Just as we let the footy season slip by, the summer of cricket turns on. This year’s season boasts more than 330 days of action, including 49 matches in 44 days for the ICC 2015 Cricket World Cup! If cricket’s not your thing, there’s the Australian Open and then the Quiksilver Pro on the Gold Coast. It’s Australia. Sport is everywhere. Love it.

Sonos Playbar For outstanding sound, complement the Sony TV with a Sonos Playbar, one of the more simple and versatile soundbars on the market today. Packed inside this very handsome piece are nine drivers (six mids and three tweeters set on a 45-degree angle) for superb sound – not just louder, but clearer. Speech Enhancement reduces the bass and clarifies voices, a nifty feature for catching the commentators’ calls. Set up is seductively simple, even for a technophobe. There are two cords: a composite cord to the TV and power cord. Boom, you’re done! The Playbar also connects wirelessly to other speakers in the Sonos range, potentially offering a 5.1 sound system. You can even ramp things up with a Sonos sub and stream music as you please. iPhone 6 Take the game on the go with one of Apple’s recently released smartphones, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus. Both are a leap in screen size, 4.7 inches and 5.5

Sony KDL60W600B 60-inch Full HD Smart LED-LCD TV There are two essentials for the viewing season ahead: a comfortable sofa and an awesome TV. Screen-wise, you’ll be looking for something big, at least 48 inches, preferably 60-inches, like the Sony KDL60W600B. This TV’s thin bezel accentuates the size of the screen, but the best thing is that it’s optimised for watching sports. With a 100Hz refresh rate and Motionflow, it delivers up to four times the number of frames per second of a standard TV. This is ideal for fast action because it makes the images appear smoother and removes the irritating ‘ghosting’ and blur some screens suffer from. As you’d expect from a top tier brand, there are loads of connectivity options (4 HDMI, 2 USB, 1 Ethernet), smart TV and network features, power saving modes and a high-end image processor.

inches, respectively; both are thinner, smoothed edged and have sharper screens. Clearly, they’re more than just bread- and-butter phones; they’re reaching phablet status (especially the Plus), which makes them winners for video streaming a summer of sport wherever you are. Check

NOVEMBER 2014 JB Hi-Fi www.jbhifi.com.au

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