Author: Press Room
There’s an expectation that science fiction stories at least try to adhere to the rules of real-world science; after all, the word is right there in the name of the genre. But every sci-fi fan learns to let some things slide. Star Trek and Star Wars are both science fiction, but they both have methods of travel — the Warp Drive and the Hyperdrive — that allow characters to zip through the vast emptiness of space at speeds inconceivable by anyone in our world. In an old episode of Star Trek: The Original Series, the Enterprise is attacked with a…
If you’re anything like me, there’s nothing better than a cup of coffee. Especially in the morning. But, unfortunately, brewing the perfect cup of Joe isn’t just about pressing a button and hoping for the best. For the best tasting cup of coffee, there’s a bit more to it than that. You’ve got to understand the coffee machine in your kitchen, and mastering the little details that make a big difference. Whether you’re a fan of the classic drip, the robust espresso, or the artisanal French press, I’ve got the nitty-gritty to turn your average brew into a masterpiece. So…
For a long time now, different studios have been launching their own streaming services, hoping to knock Netflix off its place at the top of the pile. Several years into the so-called streaming wars, it’s pretty clear that won’t happen; Netflix remains the dominant player in the space, with everyone else fighting for second place. But just because Netflix is the biggest streaming service out there doesn’t mean it’s the best. In fact, there’s one service I find myself using more than any other. Content is king HBO Max has the deepest bench of movies and TV shows As a…
There are a lot of factors to consider when looking for a new sci-fi movie to watch. Do you want to watch something recent, or are you down to sample some 20-year-old classics? Do you want something short you can watch without fear it’ll keep you up too late, or something so absorbing you won’t care that it’ll absorb you long past your bedtime? Do you want something scientifically accurate or more of a space opera that fudges the rules of psychics for the sake of entertainment? The 2017 film Okja walks the middle line between all of these. It’s…
The history of TV is littered with great shows cut tragically short. Sometimes they get to belatedly tie up loose ends with a movie or a miniseries, and sometimes they’re just left there, a carcass on the road to warn wary travelers against ever trying anything like THAT again. For the purposes of this list, we’re going to try to look at the tragic cases, the shows that got their legs cut out from under them just before the finish line, or even near the start of the race. So we’re not going to include a show like The Expanse,…
When you think of thoughtful, deliberate sci-fi, Star Wars probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. Star Wars is fun, Star Wars is epic, Star Wars is exciting, but the franchise is often at its best when depicting lightsaber duels to the death or deep space dogfights. If you want careful character development and slow-burning storylines, you might wanna look elsewhere. Or at least that was the case until Star Wars: Andor aired on Disney+. This show takes its sweet time building its story to the point where you figure a lot of Star Wars fans might check…
Reginald Guessing Trousers and his merry team of Apple Rumourmongers made another announcement this week. There’s going to be an iPhone 17e. Perhaps very soon. Which is no great surprise. But Trousers also parped out key info about this new iPhone: its display will be rubbish. Which is also no great surprise. Because ever since Apple unleashed a budget (by Apple standards) iPhone, it’s followed a pattern. Fish an old design out of a dusty drawer. Inject a binned chip. Add the odd upgrade to mollify grumpy people. Then sit back and watch the money roll in. We had this with the iPhone…
A new Game of Thrones prequel series called A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms debuts just around the corner. The show is lighter in tone than either Game of Thrones or the spinoff House of the Dragon, which are both big sprawling affairs with dozens of characters and sweeping conflicts. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is mostly about one guy trying to win a tournament, and that change of pace might be just what the franchise needs. But just because this show has fewer characters than fans are used to doesn’t mean you might not need some help. There’s…
While not the most exciting audio format, the CD is still an excellent way to keep a physical media collection and cheaply acquire lossless digital music files. It’s much cheaper to track down the physical CD for the album you’re looking for than pay full price for a FLAC download. If you have a Mac or Windows PC with access to an optical drive — either an internal one or USB drive — you can rip lossless digital files from your physical CDs. You just have to find the right software. For very infrequent rips, I like to use my…
Music streamers can listen to their favorite songs in surround sound with formats like Dolby Atmos. This Dolby format creates a three-dimensional immersive audio experience using object-based masters. Producers and artists can choose exactly where to place a sound in a virtual spatial environment for maximum effect. This sounds impressive to people used to traditional surround sound formats, which rely on fixed-channel sound that lacks dimensional height. Dolby Atmos is over a decade old, but it’s become more common for music streaming, so you may be trying it out for the first time. However, listening to music in Dolby Atmos…