The Linksys EA9500 pierced my apartment’s WiFi-proof walls
I live in a two-bedroom San Francisco apartment built in 1916. It has a view of the bay and the top of the Golden Gate bridge. There’s crown molding, high ceilings and some pretty dope neighbors. It should be perfect. And it is — if you’re cool with plaster walls blocking 90 percent of all WiFi signals.
My livelihood is gadgets, most of which need to be online. But if anything is farther than 12 feet from the closet where I store my router, I know I’ll experience drop-outs or painfully slow speeds. I’ve resorted to using two routers placed in separate corners of the apartment. It’s ridiculous. So when Linksys offered up the EA9500 Max-Stream MU-MIMO router for review, I wanted to see if it could permeate what I assume are the lead-filled walls of my home.
Like most modern WiFi routers, the EA9500 resembles a spider that’s been flipped onto its back. The eight adjustable antennas can be positioned to optimize your signal. But, during setup I followed Linksys’ recommendation to leave the blades pointed straight up. I would have to decide later if I needed a little extra WiFi pointed in a particular direction.
If you’ve set up a router in the past 15 years, you know the drill: Plug the router in, find the wireless network, launch your browser, plug in the IP number. Fortunately in the past few years, Linksys has killed the default password in favor of a unique alphanumeric passcode generated during setup. That’s good news for folks who might not be aware that ‘admin’ and ‘administrator’ might not be the best username-and-password combo. (We realize that might not be you, dear Engadget readers, but perhaps your less tech-savvy relatives?)
After using the browser-based setup wizard I logged onto the router with my MacBook Air from the living room. Success! WiFi was flowing freely throughout my Faraday Cage of a home. Even the furthest room from the network closet was awash in free-floating zeros and ones. I was even able to log onto the network from my garage three floors down.
To accomplish this the router goes a little overboard for the typical home and you pay a steep price ($350) for all that future-proofing. The tri-band router can spew 1,000 Mbps on the 2.4GHz band and 2166.67 Mbps on one of its two 5GHz radios. That sounds awesome until you realize most of your devices can only handle about 1,300 Mbps. It’s like buying a Ferrari only to drive 25 miles per hour.
It also supports MU-MIMO — a wireless feature that creates dedicated data streams between the router and supported devices. The end result is quicker throughput. Right now it’s found on most high-end smartphones and Windows-based computers. Where you won’t find it are Macs. While the iPhones 6S and 7 support the wireless standard, Apple has yet to add it to their laptops or desktops. I use Macs so I’m missing out on the router’s coolest feature right now. Linksys sells USB dongles that add MU-MIMO, but they only work with Windows machines.
If you own a Windows computer, then, it should be amazing. Apple users are stuck using WiFI the old fashion way. While Apple is expected to announce new MacBooks before the end of the year, there’s no guarantee they’ll support MU-MIMO. That alone might give you pause to purchase the powerful EA9500 if that’s your platform of choice.
That said, the router and its companion app have made network troubleshooting in my house a breeze. Anything I can do from the browser, I can do from the app including setting up guest access, port forwarding, device prioritization, password changes, firmware updates and most importantly, restarting the router. All these features can be accessed both in the home and out which is especially helpful when you get a frantic call during the workday that the WiFi is down at home.
Finally, the EA9500 has eight gigabit ports, which are essential if you’re trying to fill your house with the Internet of Things and need somewhere to plug in all those hubs. But like everything else on the router, it’s probably overkill for the average user.
After a month of use, I can’t imagine going back to another router, even with the lack of MU-MIMO support on my computers. But, I’m an extreme use case. I need all those gigabit ports, my home is a giant lead cage and frankly, being a tech reporter gives me more reason to be ahead of the curve. For the average home, the features on the EA9500 are mostly unnecessary.
If you’re in the market for a router and want access to the helpful Linksys app, the less expensive $250 EA8500 is a more than adequate 802.11 router with MU-MIMO. If you don’t need MU-MIMO because you live in an Apple house, the E8400 is a dual-band router that’ll cost you $230.
As for me and my home, I’ll continue to enjoy wireless access to the Internet in my entire apartment for the first time since I moved in.
Source: Linksys
SkyBell Trim Plus Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
SkyBell’s new Trim Plus doorbell.
SkyBell
Startup SkyBell, makers of the $199 SkyBell HD Wi-Fi Video Doorbell, unveiled a new product at the CEDIA consumer product conference in Dallas this week — the SkyBell Trim Plus.
Other camera tech:
- Nest’s hardy outdoor camera watches over your roost
- Pro version of the Ring Video Doorbell swaps flexibility for refinement
- SkyBell’s HD door buzzer steals the show
Similar to the brand’s HD doorbell, the Trim Plus boasts 1080p high-definition video resolution, night vision and access to the related Android and iPhone app. But the Trim Plus comes with two bonus features: a smaller design and optional battery power.
This is important for a couple of reasons.
First, the current roster of connected doorbells is huge. Of course, “huge” is relative when you’re talking about a device that traditionally goes on a doorframe, but the SkyBell HD Wi-Fi Video Doorbell, August Doorbell Cam and Ring Video Doorbell are all significantly larger than your standard push-button buzzer that’s less than an inch wide.
That’s partly because these devices can do a lot more than the not-so-smart doorbell you probably have at home today. Additional features like live streaming, motion alerts and recorded video clips make them much more like security cameras than your traditional entryway buzzer. Some of these features, especially the camera portion, take up space. But SkyBell’s Trim Plus apparently packs all of these features into a 1.39-inch-wide frame.
Second, the battery option offers flexibility for anyone who doesn’t have a hardwired doorbell, but still wants to enjoy the features offered by a connected model. In the case of the battery-powered-optional Ring Video Doorbell, taking the battery-powered route means no access to a live stream (as it would drain the batteries fast). I’ve reached out to SkyBell for confirmation on whether this is also the case for the Trim Plus.
August’s Doorbell Cam is smarter than your front door buzzer
The $199 Doorbell Cam by startup August lets you see who’s at your front door straight from your phone.
by Megan Wollerton
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In addition to the Trim Plus, SkyBell will also offer Chime, a standalone speaker designed to play a doorbell melody. Chime is outfitted with LEDs that are supposed to change colors as someone approaches, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth “for communicating with other smart home devices,” according to the official press release.
SkyBell’s Trim Plus and Chime are expected to hit retail toward the end of the year. Details on pricing and third-party integrations are forthcoming. Check back soon for updates.
Oppo UDP-203 Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
Oppo
For the past ten years or so Oppo has been the foremost name in enthusiast-level video players — from DVD to Blu-ray and now seemingly to 4K Blu-ray. Its players have been our reference models in the CNET labs for almost as long with the BDP-105 serving as one of our current 1080p standards.
So you can imagine we were quite excited by the stealthy announcement of the UDP-203 at this year’s CEDIA expo, and which Oppo has now made official. While details are still scant, journalist Chris Heinonen posted some tidbits on his Twitter page including a few pictures.
The new UDP-203 will be priced the same as the previous BDP-103 at $499, but it won’t include Darbee processing, Heinonen says.
Based on the back panel pictures the player will have a 7.1-channel analog output, two HDMI outputs, two USB 3.0 ports (plus one on the front), in addition to digital coaxial and optical.
According to Heinonen the player will be available by the end of the year, and so in the immediate absence of a Sony player and only a more expensive Panasonic player to contend with, this again looks like it could be the videophile player to buy.
Look forward to more details as they come including UK and Australian availability and pricing.
LG X Power Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
The X Power promises monster battery life.
César Salza/CNET
Two days of battery life. That’s how long LG says its X Power phone, which it officially announced earlier this summer, is expected to last between charges.
You might think that such a giant 4,100mAh battery would top a list of other high-end hardware, but LG takes the opposite approach, surrounding the (nonremovable) battery with midrange specs that help pin the full retail price to $130.
Already available for US Cellular and Cricket Wireless, Sprint and Boost Mobile’s version contains one important difference: it uses MediaTek’s Helio P10 chip (1.8GHz octa-core) rather than the quad-core Qualcomm processor found in other models.
While we haven’t yet been able to compare this with the Qualcomm variation, that’ll be one of the first things we do when we get our hands on both phones.
Curious about the other important specs? The LG X Power also has:
- 5.3-inch screen with a 1,280×720-pixel resolution
- 8-megapixel rear camera
- 5-megapixel front-facing camera
- Android 6.0 Marshmallow software
- microSD card slot
The LG X Power goes on sale today at prepaid carrier Boost Mobile, and arrives at Sprint next week.
SpeedX Leopard AL Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
SpeedX
Smart bikes are real, and more affordable than you might imagine.
SpeedX debuted the Leopard and Leopard Pro smart road bikes on Kickstarter earlier this year. Both bikes featured carbon fiber frames, built-in bike computers with integrated GPS and a price that seemed too good to be true.
The campaign would go on to become the most funded bike on Kickstarter. I was initially skeptical, but that changed once I got a chance to test ride the Leopard Pro. SpeedX is now back with its third and most affordable bike yet, the Leopard AL.
The Leopard AL is a midrange bike that is designed for the entry-level cyclist. It lacks the carbon fiber frame and high-end groupset from the Leopard and Leopard Pro, but it does have an aluminum frame and fork with full internal wiring, a first for an alloy bike. The components are middle of the pack — a 10-speed Shimano Tiagra 4700 groupset — but it does include hydraulic disc brakes, which the previous Leopard models didn’t have.
But what makes the Leopard AL stand apart from brands like Trek, Cannondale and Giant is the built-in bike computer and internal sensors, which essentially replaces the need for a separate Garmin or Polar computer. The Leopard AL includes GPS, an altimeter and speed sensors all integrated into the frame.
These sensors are used to measure moving time, distance, speed, altitude, cadence, calorie burn and can provide navigation. There’s also Bluetooth and ANT+ built-in for connecting a power meter or heart-rate sensor. All of this data can be viewed in real time on a 2.2-inch color screen, which can also display incoming calls and notifications when your smartphone is connected.
The Leopard AL is available now for $1,200, which is about $350 cheaper than the comparable Giant Defy Advanced 3, which lacks a bike computer like the Leopard AL packs. International pricing wasn’t immediately available, but the US price converts to about £905 in the UK and AU$1,600 in Australia.
As I said when I wrote about the Leopard Pro, SpeedX is still a company we know very little about. This isn’t like buying a bike from Trek, a company that has been around for over 40 years and has made a name for itself with reliable service and strong frames. While SpeedX does offer a lifetime warranty on the frame, but for a company with little history some might find that warranty hard to have faith in.
Specs
- SpeedX 6061 alloy frame and fork
- Shimano Tiagra 4700 groupset
- Shimano Tiagra hydraulic disc brakes
- Forumula 24h double wall wheelset
- Vittoria Zaffiro – 700x23c road tires
- KMC X10 chain
- Integrated bike computer with 2.2-inch color display
- GPS, Altimeter, speed sensors
- Bluetooth, ANT+
- 9.9 kg (about 22lbs) for 45cm model
Sevenhugs HugOne Sleep Tracking System Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET
The SevenHugs HugOne Sleep Tracking System.
SevenHugs
French tech startup SevenHugs has a fancy-looking sleep tracking system that’s available now in the US.
Called the HugOne, the $180 system is a colorful, family friendly set of gizmos. Place one of the system’s sleep sensors on the corner of your bed (one for each person sleeping in it), and it’ll track your movements throughout the night. In the morning, after you’ve woken up, the sensor will transmit the data back to the base station using SevenHugs’ proprietary frequency, letting you track everything on your Android or iOS device.
The sensors also track the temperature and humidity conditions in each room. If anything’s amiss, the base station will change from a blue glow to a pink one to let you know to take action and open a window.
SevenHugs
The system is also compatible with a few notable smart home gadgets. Sync it up with a Nest Learning Thermostat, and you’ll be able to trigger your thermostat whenever everyone’s in bed, and again when everyone wakes up. You can also connect it with Philips Hue’s smart LED lighting system and trigger your bulbs to turn off when you get in bed, or to fade on in the morning. Take advantage of the system’s channel on the free automation service IFTTT, and you’ll be able to trigger even more smart home gadgets.
The system is also compatible with Amazon’s Alexa, which lets you ask the voice-activated virtual assistant to tell you the air quality in each bedroom.
This isn’t the first we’ve seen of SevenHugs. Back in January, at CES, the startup offered CNET a look at a prototype of a touchscreen remote for the smart home, with contextual controls that change depending on what you’re pointing it at. The SevenHugs team had it on hand again at this week’s CEDIA tech expo in Dallas, but tells us that it’s still a work in progress with an ETA of early 2017.
The HugOne sleep tracking system is available now through Amazon Launchpad. Additional sensors cost $50 a piece.
iOS 10 review: Apple evolves
With iOS 10, Apple is basically polishing a pearl. iOS 8 introduced a vibrant and “flat” new aesthetic. iOS 9 was focused on refinement. So by this point, we should get something completely fresh and new, right? Well, not quite. Just like the iPhone 7, Apple’s latest mobile OS doesn’t look that much different on the surface. Instead, the company once again chose to focus on improving the overall experience. In particular, this year’s refinements collectively make the OS a lot more convenient (and help Apple play a little catch-up). If you’ve longed for some of the features you’ve seen on your friends’ Android phones, iOS 10 is more than enough to keep you under Apple’s spell for another year.
Getting started
At this point, moving to a new version of iOS probably feels routine. While there were widespread reports of the update “bricking” devices during its launch day, it looks like most of those issues have been ironed out. As always, though, be sure to back up your device before doing any sort of major upgrade. Even if you have your current iOS device set to automatically back up on iCloud, it’s still worth making a local copy through iTunes in case all hell breaks loose. (Also, restoring your phone from the cloud is much slower than with a local copy.)
There’s a good chance you’ve already been prompted to upgrade, but if you’ve procrastinated, head to the “General” section in the Settings app to manually initiate the update. Then just wait for the installation file to download (it’s over 1GB, so it takes a few minutes), and proceed with the installation. You’ll want to have your phone connected to a charger while you’re going through this process, unless your battery is almost full.
A revamped lock screen
Assuming all goes well, you’ll be presented with the all-too-familiar lock screen. This time around, though, it brings some new tricks. Swiping left bring you to the Today screen, which is now far more customizable than before. It’s basically a quick way to access widgets, which can do things like show you the weather, the latest news and your upcoming appointments. Naturally, there’s a bunch of built-in Apple widgets, but plenty of third-party developers are building them as well, including The New York Times, The Weather Channel and yes, even Google.
Swiping right from the lock screen brings up the camera, something that happens almost instantly on my iPhone 6S. Previously, you had to drag up from the bottom right of the screen to open the camera, which was a bit more difficult. I often missed the touch target completely, which left me swiping up a few times in futility. And, come to think of it, I’ve missed out on a few great photo opportunities because of that. Swiping right (get your jokes in now) has turned out to be a much more accurate gesture.
You can also do a lot more with the notifications that appear on the lock screen. If you have a 3D Touch-capable phone like the iPhone 6S or 7, you can interact with things like text messages without even leaving the lock screen. Some notifications will require you to unlock the phone to use 3D Touch features, but that’s just good security. Swipe down from the top of the lock screen to get your full list of notifications, all of which are also interactive using 3D Touch.
A more useful Control Center
If you swipe up from the lock screen, and indeed anywhere else in iOS 10, you’ll bring up the ever-useful Control Center. Instead of cramming all of its functionality in a single screen, it now spans two separate pages. The first houses all of the quick settings you’re familiar with — toggling on and off Airplane mode, WiFi, Bluetooth, Do Not Disturb and screen rotation lock — along with buttons for managing AirPlay Mirroring, AirDrop and Night Shift. And of course, those handy quick tools like the flashlight and timer are still at the bottom.
But, you might be wondering, what happened to the media controls? All of that is handled in the second page of the Control Center, which has room for more options. In addition to merely playing and pausing songs and skipping tracks, you can jog through your location in a track without leaving the Control Center. That’s particularly useful for longer files like podcasts and audiobooks. The bottom of the screen lets you easily switch between all available AirPlay devices on your current WiFi network.
The redesigned Control Center has ended up being one of the highlights of iOS 10 over my past few months of testing. I don’t have to jump into my iPhone’s settings or music/podcast apps nearly as much anymore. What’s the word for that? Oh right: convenience.
3D Touch (and Taptic Engine) finally feels useful
Apple introduced 3D Touch in last year’s iPhone 6S as a new method of smartphone interaction. Sure, it basically just replicated the “right-click” from PCs, but there was a lot to like in theory: What if you could just quickly access the most popular features of your favorite apps? Who wouldn’t want that? Even I was sold on Apple’s pitch back at the time, and over the past year I’ve grown to rely on it for apps like Swarm and Evernote.
The problem, though, is that Apple didn’t pay nearly enough attention to 3D Touch and the Taptic Engine in the 6S. While a handful of built-in apps and some third-parties adopted it, Apple almost seemed to distance itself from the feature after the 6S launch. Perhaps it was focusing its energy on the more powerful Taptic Engine that would be coming in the iPhone 7, but whatever the reason, many iPhone 6S owners felt like there was a lost opportunity to tap into 3D Touch (heh).
That’s less the case in iOS 7, where 3D Touch works in almost every part of the OS. There’s the notification integration I mentioned earlier, but I also learned to love the smaller additions, like using 3D Touch to change the brightness of my iPhone’s flashlight. Thanks to its more powerful Taptic Engine, the iPhone 7 also brings haptic feedback to simple things, like scrolling through the time in the Clock app, or scrolling through your library in the Music app. It gets to a point where you almost feel like you’re scrolling through a physical book, or a pile of CDs.
The Messages app takes on Snapchat
Apple really focused on improving its core apps in iOS 10, and the Messages app got the bulk of the upgrades. You can now change the intensity of iMessages (the chats labeled in blue that you’re having with other iMessage users), from a huge “Slam” effect that almost takes up the whole screen, to an obscured “Invisible Ink” message that has to be swiped to be read. The latter is particularly useful if you’re in a public place with lots of prying eyes. There are also screen effects that can accompany your notes, including a bunch of balloons, falling confetti, laser lights, fireworks and a shooting star. They’re fun at first, but they’ll be particularly useful for annoying your friends endlessly.
Just like the Apple Watch, you can send hearts (but of course, not your actual heart rate) and other symbols from within Messages using Digital Touch. You can also react to things people send you with “tapback” responses by double-tapping on them. You can also send a handwritten message by turning your iPhone into landscape mode (of course, you can also bring up the keyboard if you prefer typing this way). In the iOS 10 beta, you had to manually enable the handwriting mode, but it was also a bit hard to find.
The biggest change in Messages is that it now has an ecosystem of its own apps and sticker packs. By default, it includes apps for image and video searching (hooray easy-to-find animated GIFs!), as well as for sharing your most recently played Apple Music tracks. But you can easily add even more apps by hitting the icon of four dots at the lower left of the screen. (If that sounds confusing, you’re not alone. Apple’s interface around the entire Messages App experience needs some work, especially once you start piling in more software. It’s one area where I seriously began to feel the limits of the iPhone’s 4.7-inch screen, though it doesn’t seem much better on the 7 Plus either.)
Once you’ve made your way to the Messages App store, you’ll see a plethora of stickers, games and software that will appear right within your chats. It works just like the normal app store, except this time whatever you download shows up in the Messages app section. There’s also a good chance you’ve already installed apps that have brought along their own Messages apps, like Yelp, Evernote and Venmo.
Messages apps are similar to Apple Watch apps: They’re typically focused on a few functions that will work well within a chat. Yelp, for example, lets you share restaurants that you’ve recently viewed. Similarly, you can share specific movie times and locations with Fandango. One of the more interesting app implementations comes from OpenTable, which allows you to pick five restaurants and vote on them with your friends. Once you decide on a restaurant, you can complete the reservation process right from within Messages. (Eater has a good overview of how the whole process works.)
The games selection in the Messages app store isn’t huge, mostly consisting of simplistic board games at the moment. But it’s still cool to be able to play a quick game of chess with friends right from a text conversation. I suspect we’ll see plenty of multi-game entries like GamePigeon, which currently packs in pool, poker, sea battle, Go and a Scrabble-esque anagram title.
The Message app’s Stickers are merely that: Images that get sent to anyone, even friends on other platforms. Much like ringtones, they’ll likely end up being an easy way for Apple to get a few bucks from its users more often. But I’ll admit, the stickers are a lot of fun to use. I dropped $2 on the first collection of Pokémon pixel art. No regrets.
Apple’s intent with all of Message’s upgrades is pretty clear: It wants you to leave the app as seldom as possible, even if that means working even closer with third-party companies. Given the fast rise of Snapchat and Facebook Messenger, it’s not surprising that Apple is actually trying to cultivate its one successful “social network.”
Smarter Photos
So, about those other core iOS app upgrades: The Photos app now uses computer vision technology to make some sense of your piles of pics. For example, searching for “cats” brings up a healthy dose of my obsessive feline photography. It’ll also automatically detect the most common faces in your photos. While it’s up to you to actually name those faces, it’s still a big help if you hate organizing photos as much as I do.
Photos also creates “Memories,” or auto-generated slideshows of pictures from your library. It’s similar to the way Google Photos slideshows work in that they’ll typically focus on a single person or photos taken around a specific event. The Memories themselves are a combination of stills, Live Photos and video in your library. You can also set the music mood and length of each Memory, which will likely be useful if you’re throwing them over to an Apple TV to watch with a group.
Memories usually turned out well, though they’re still clearly a work in progress. Sometimes the software would choose photos with fingers blocking them, or pictures that I know for a fact have a better duplicate in my library. Still, it’s useful if you don’t want to build a slideshow on your own.
Refined Music
The new Music app actually looks very different from what came before, which isn’t the case for the rest of iOS 10’s updates. The new interface is all about large fonts, bold colors and disc art wherever possible. Those of you who were annoyed by Apple focusing more on its streaming music service than your own collection of tunes will likely be pleased, as your local library is the first thing to pop up. The “For You” section also does a better job of recommending tunes (as well as explaining why you might want to listen to them).
I’ve seen both praise and criticism of the Music app’s redesign, but personally I dig the clean aesthetic. But really, anything is better than the last iteration. One nifty addition: You can quickly access lyrics of songs on Apple Music from within the Now Playing screen. It’s not there for every song, but it’s an easy way to get prepped for karaoke.
Siri gets smarter, again
After launching to much fanfare, it’s almost as if iOS users have grown to hate Siri. She had a penchant for not hearing you properly, and her actual capabilities were fairly limited. That’s changing with iOS 10, as Apple has — you guessed it — opened up Siri to other developers. I was able to book Uber and Lyft cars, as well as send cash to a friend using Venmo, with only voice commands. You’ll still have to deal with some accuracy issues, but at least now Siri is actually starting to get useful.
Siri also powers contextual awareness in iOS 10’s predictive keyboard. So, on top of just trying to guess what word you’re typing next, it can do things like fill out contact information if you start chatting about someone’s phone number. And if you’re trying to schedule something, it can also tell you when you’re available by looking at your calendar. This feature still seems to be in its early stages, but it’s a fascinating way of implementing predictive intelligence.
Odds and ends
- I didn’t talk much about iOS 10’s design because, honestly, nothing really changed. The home screen still looks like the same old wall of icons you’ve seen before.
- Yes, I know we’ve seen plenty of these features in Android already. But at this point, everyone in the mobile industry is shamelessly getting “inspired” by the competition.
- While iOS 9 offered up some big changes for iPad multitasking, iOS 10 doesn’t add much. The Control Center has a bit more room to breathe, but that’s about it.
- You can finally remove built-in Apple software, like the much-maligned Stock app. But, to be clear, the app basically just disappears, it doesn’t actually get uninstalled.
- It really feels like iOS 10 breathed new life into my iPhone 6S, and I’m hearing similarly good stories from people installing it on the iPhone 5. It also runs well on my first-gen iPad Air.
- I didn’t have any HomeKit-equipped hardware to test out the Home app, but I’m looking forward to seeing how Apple tries to unify the messy IoT space.
Ultimately, iOS 10 is a collection of small, but important, changes to an already solid mobile OS. I would have liked to see a whole new design too, but what matters more is that actually using the OS is a significantly better experience. The combination of the new Today screen and Control Center has already saved me plenty of time.
We’ll probably end up seeing a major facelift next year, but for now, iOS 10 is an upgrade that Apple users should look forward to.
2017 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S review – Roadshow
Sep 2016
The Good The 2017 Carrera 4S is a joy to drive, thanks to a responsive engine and an impressively quick transmission.
The Bad The 911 can pick up some serious wind noise at speed, and if you include every option, the car’s price heads north of $150,000 in a hurry.
The Bottom Line The latest iteration of the 911 might add two turbochargers, but its core character remains the same — it’s a wondrous sports car that won’t become a chore on longer jaunts.
These days, everybody wants their cars to be superheroes. We want them to be sporty, but not so sporty that we can’t be comfortable. We want power, but we’re not willing to give up fuel economy. We want our cake and, dad gum it, we want to eat it too. Cost keeps most cars from achieving this goal, but most cars aren’t the Porsche 911.
While it may have started its life as a lithe rally machine, the 911 has grown considerably, spawning many different variants along the route, nearly all of which sport turbochargers as of 2017.
It’s an efficiency move, no doubt, but the 911 has soldiered on through worse, and I’m happy to report that the car you see here, the 2017 911 Carrera 4S, hands out the cake on a fork and begs drivers to take a bite. Whether it’s cruising down the expressway in proper grand-touring form or whipping about the back roads of Insert State Here, it’s a delight.
Easy to pick out of a lineup
If you’ve seen a Porsche 911 since 1966 or so, it’s not hard to pick one out on the road. Its rear-engine layout gives it a familiar, demi-ovate silhouette that hasn’t changed much, save for generational expansions along all three axes. Mild revisions for the 2017 model year include a revised front end, new taillights and a new engine cover. This specific color, Graphite Blue, is worth the $710 cost of admission.
If you’re unsure what you’re looking at, the litany of badges across the rear end will definitely remind you.
Nick Miotke/Roadshow
Inside, 911 traditions remain, like the five-gauge binnacle and the left-side ignition, but they’re given a 21st-century update — the key now stays in your pocket, and the center-right gauge houses a 4.6-inch color display.
Even though the infotainment screen dominates the center stack, there are still loads of dials and buttons. I found the menagerie of controls below the shifter, which adjust all manner of chassis and powertrain bits, confusing at first. By the end of my week with the car, though, opening the exhaust or lifting the front end (a $2,590 option) was muscle memory.
My tester came with a blue-and-white leather interior, and it was hard to find a surface that didn’t feel nice and expensive. The seats, despite carrying a Sport moniker, are comfortable and supportive on long trips. Except for the rear seats. No matter how big the 911 gets, the rear seats are, have been, and always will be, a cruel joke.
Thankfully, I could fold down the rear seats and use the parcel shelf as additional grocery storage. If you need to grocery shop for more than two people, the 911’s frunk will need some help, as it’s just big enough for several backpacks or a smaller weekender bag.
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No longer analog
Whether tucked away inside the suspension or right up front on the gauge cluster, technology makes the 2017 Carrera 4S decidedly digital. Drop $3,970 for the Premium Package Plus, and the 911 picks up LED headlights that provide ample illumination, auto-dimming mirrors and heated and cooled seats.
Porsche’s latest iteration of its PCM infotainment system is snappy and very easy to figure out — except for the settings menus.
Nick Miotke/Roadshow
As for infotainment, I was blown away by the latest iteration of Porsche’s infotainment system, which is new for this year. It now supports Apple CarPlay, but not Android Auto. The screen features a proximity sensor, hiding extraneous bits until a hand draws near.
I found this new infotainment system easy to use, but slightly difficult to fully figure out. For example, it gave me three different ways to change settings — use of the Opt button on a specific screen, through the touchscreen’s Settings menu or forcing attention up to the gauge cluster’s information display, which has its own control stalk.
If you need to remain connected on the road, the 911 car can be equipped with a 4G LTE antenna supporting a Wi-Fi hotspot. Optional onboard apps deliver fuel prices, weather, online destination search, news and even Google Earth maps to the screen. Porsche also has the Porsche Car Connect app, which lets the driver control vehicle functions using either a phone or wearable device.
While it may not come loaded with every new safety system on the planet, Porsche will add adaptive cruise control and autonomous emergency braking for $2,490. Another $850 tacks on blind spot monitoring. Parking sensors and a backup camera come standard, which helps keep the shiny parts shiny.
Vizio M-Series 2016 review – CNET
Update August 10, 2016: Vizio has issued the software update allowing the P-series and M-series TVs to work with HDR10 sources like 4K Blu-ray players. It worked well in our initial tests. We expect to review an M-series TV soon.
The successor to CNET’s favorite LCD TV of 2015, Vizio’s M series, is getting improved image quality chops and a revamped smart TV system that includes a tablet remote in the box.
The 2016 version of the M series is shipping now, available in sizes from 50 to 80 inches, and starts at $850.
The new M series packs many of the same features as the more-expensive P series, which scored very well in our review.
Vizio M series features
- Full-array local dimming with up to 64 zones
- HDR compatible with Dolby Vision support
- 4K resolution
- Includes free Android tablet remote (6-inch screen, 720p)
- Google Cast compatible
Those are some pretty impressive image-quality specifications. The M series halves the number of local dimming zones on the P series, but 64 is still an impressive number (more zones generally leads to improved image quality), and twice as many as the M had last year. Vizio says “up to” 64 zones; smaller sizes will have fewer zones.
HDR is another high-end picture enhancement new for 2016, and Vizio will support both formats, as it does with the P series. One difference between the P and the M is that the M series doesn’t get the “Ultra Color Spectrum” feature, so I doubt its coverage of the P3 color space used for HDR will equal the P series’.
Vizio
Just like the P series, the M does away with a traditional onscreen menu system in favor of the Google Cast feature and the Vizio SmartCast app. That means it too will lack native support for Amazon’s streaming videos, including its 4K and HDR library. Amazon was the first with HDR streaming via the HDR10 format, and will offer Dolby Vision HDR later this year.
The M’s “free 6-inch tablet” has 720p resolution instead of the 1080p found on the P series, as well as a slightly worse processor (quad-core, not octa-core) and less storage (8GB vs. 16GB). Otherwise they’re very similar, and both include the slick wireless charging dock.
These TVs lack a built-in tuner, so they can’t receive local TV stations available via antenna/over-the-air broadcasts. In fact, lack of a tuner means they’re not technically “TVs” anymore, which is why Vizio’s web site calls them “Tuner-Free Displays.” If you’re someone who watches a lot of TV via antenna, rather than cable, satellite or streaming service, Vizio recommends you purchase a third-party tuner.
See my review of the P series for more details.
Here’s how the models break down.
Vizio M series 2016
| Size | Price | Dimming zones | Panel type |
| 50 inches | $849 | 32 | VA |
| 55 inches | $999 | 64 | VA |
| 60 inches | $1,249 | 64 | IPS |
| 65 inches | $1,499 | 64 | VA |
| 70 inches | $1,999 | 64 | VA |
| 80 inches | $3,999 | 64 | VA |
According to Vizio’s site, the 60-inch size in the series uses an IPS panel instead of VA. In previous testing we’ve preferred the image produced by VA panels overall, and we expect that to be the case this time around as well.
Vizio’s has also announced a new 2016 version of the less expensive E series, which lacks HDR and the tablet remote.
AIVAnet 