Author: Press Room

The best horror series on TV right now isn’t on Netflix

Horror movies are having a moment lately, what with films like Weapons and Sinners taking home Academy Awards. But if you’re looking for something more bite-sized, there are also a number of solid horror TV shows out there. Big ones like IT: Welcome to Derry and Interview With The Vampire have made waves, but one of the best horror series on TV has flown almost completely under the radar. That show is From, which airs on MGM+. From is about to return for its fourth season, and now is the perfect time to get on board this spooky train. From…

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One Raspberry Pi was all I needed to turn my Samsung TV into a streaming powerhouse

TVs are great for entertainment, but they’re ultimately screens — which means the software running them is always a secondary concern to the manufacturer. Streaming adds its own layer of complexity on top of that. There are region and geo blocks. There’s DRM. There’s whether your TV can actually decode a given codec. And then there’s the operating system — and whether it lets you take advantage of the advertised CPU and RAM, or limits you to the bare basics. We have a big curved Samsung QLED TV. It’s curved, so you know it’s not new — about 10 years…

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8 cancelled sci-fi shows that were ahead of their time (and where to stream them now)

One of the points of science fiction is to give us an idea of what our future could look like. Sci-fi movies and TV shows don’t always get things right, but there’s fun to be had in the attempt, and there are rare cases where they predict things with an almost eerie degree of accuracy. Sometimes, a sci-fi TV show is so far ahead of its time that it confuses or puts off audiences, and it gets canceled too soon. That’s always disappointing, but at least shows like that are still available to stream. Related 5 sci‑fi thrillers that unravel…

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I almost quit Succession after Episode 3 — finishing was one of my best TV decisions

Generally speaking, if you don’t like a TV show from the first episode, watching further on faith that it might improve doesn’t make much sense. There are other shows to watch and other things to do. And yet, you’ll sometimes hear some TV snob insist that this or that show only gets good half a season in, or two seasons in, or whatever, and that it’s worth it to soldier on. This is one of those times. While I’m usually loathe to recommend someone sit through a few episodes of a show that isn’t entertaining them, there can be more…

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Your brand new screen looks dimmer than the store display for one very specific reason

You’ve probably noticed this at some point. A display looks incredibly bright and vibrant at a store, but once you bring it home, it somehow feels a bit dull and less impressive. It’s quite easy to assume that something’s wrong with your brand-new screen. In reality, it usually isn’t a hardware issue at all. Many monitors ship with certain settings enabled by default that affect how screen brightness and colors are handled. In a controlled store environment, these settings can make the screen look more eye-catching, but at home, they can have the opposite effect. The fix is often simple.…

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I switched to a Linux-based webOS TV and liked it way more than I expected

Just because your TV has smart features built in, doesn’t mean you should use them. Smart TVs typically come with bloatware, advertisements, and unwanted tracking. They might feature slow Ethernet ports or outdated processors, too. All of these concerns are valid reasons to buy a dedicated streaming stick or box, like a Roku, Apple TV, or Google TV streamer, instead of sticking with your smart TV’s default operating system. On the flip side, if your smart TV’s interface is actually good, using it can save you the added cost and complexity of buying separate hardware. I’ve tried smart TVs running…

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I stopped using Google Maps on Android Auto after trying this change

I spent quite a bit of time trying to make Google Maps work better on Android Auto. I experimented with different settings, adjusted navigation preferences, and hoped something would finally improve the experience. For context, I’m very much a self-aware passenger princess. That means I’m usually the one sitting beside the driver, casually watching the route, missing out on directions (sometimes), and occasionally pointing out when something looks odd on the map. In reality, it also means I notice every wrong turn, confusing lane suggestion, or oddly timed instruction. So, even from the passenger seat, it became pretty clear that…

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The best sci-fi series on Netflix isn’t a Netflix original

There’s no shortage of fantastic sci-fi TV series out there, but not all of them are easily accessible. The Expanse is one of the best space epics ever made, but it’s cordoned off behind the Prime Video paywall. Andor is the boldest thing to come out of the Star Wars universe in decades, but you need a Disney+ subscription to see it. And then there’s Apple TV+, an underrated streaming service which specializes in great sci-fi shows. Basically, if you want to get people’s attention, it helps to be on a broadly popular platform like Netflix. Back in September of…

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I almost skipped this Apple TV+ show until Season 2 turned it into a masterpiece

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters revolves around an organization that studies the biology and movements of giant monsters called Titans, the most famous of which are Godzilla and King Kong. The show is set in the same universe as the 2014 Godzilla movie as well as 2021’s Godzilla v. Kong and 2024’s Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. With a pedigree like that, you’d figure the Apple TV+ show would be a huge deal, but its first season went largely under the radar in 2023. Season 2 is airing now, and it’s proving that the show is worth another look. The…

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7 films to watch if you loved War Machine

War Machine dropped in early March to become the most popular movie on Netflix for several weeks running. It’s about an unnamed soldier played by Reacher’s Alan Ritchson training to become an Army Ranger. When he and his team are sent out on a final training exercise, they run into an alien craft that hunts and kills several of them, until only a few are left who can stop it. Combining a sci-fi movie with a war movie is an idea that’s been done many, many times before, because it works. If you enjoyed War Machine, you owe it to…

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