Chinese brand TCL today at the all-digital CES 2021 announced that all of its 2021 6-Series Roku TVs will feature 8K resolution, up from 4K, with the lineup set to begin rolling out later this year. As with TCL's other recent Roku TVs, these 8K models should support AirPlay 2 for wirelessly streaming audio and video to the TV from Apple devices like an iPhone or iPad, as well as HomeKit for controlling the TV with Siri and the Home app.
TCL also plans to releases its first 85-inch Roku TVs this year, including two 4K models that should support AirPlay 2 and HomeKit. Exact pricing, availability, and specifications have yet to be disclosed for any of the TVs.
In the home audio department, TCL is teaming up with Roku to launch new "Roku TV Ready" sound bars this year, including wired and wireless options, with advantages being TV and sound bar control with one remote, automatic software updates, consolidated on-screen sound settings, and optimized audio/video synchronization.
One of TCL's new sound bars will be the Alto 82i with Dolby Atmos surround sound, dual built-in subwoofers, and support for AirPlay 2, Amazon Alexa, and Google Assistant, set to launch in the third quarter of 2021.
Thursday February 5, 2026 12:54 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple turns 50 this year, and its CEO Tim Cook has promised to celebrate the milestone. The big day falls on April 1, 2026.
"I've been unusually reflective lately about Apple because we have been working on what do we do to mark this moment," Cook told employees today, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "When you really stop and pause and think about the last 50 years, it makes your heart ...
Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld.
The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld.
Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by Juli Clover
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do.
The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up.
Upgraded Architecture
The next-generation...
Tuesday February 3, 2026 7:47 am PST by Joe Rossignol
While the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate is now available ahead of a public release, the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April.
Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far.
iOS 26.3
iPhone to Android Transfer Tool
iOS 26.3 makes it easier...
The iPhone 18 Pro Max will feature a bigger battery for continued best-in-class battery life, according to a known Weibo leaker.
Citing supply chain information, the Weibo user known as "Digital Chat Station" said that the iPhone 18 Pro Max will have a battery capacity of 5,100 to 5,200 mAh. Combined with the efficiency improvements of the A20 Pro chip, made with TSMC's 2nm process, the...
Ugh. Nobody needs 8K TVs at these display sizes (unless you're sitting close up in front of them because otherwise you can't tell the difference, even with 20/20 vision). I could only kind of tell a difference in resolution on my 65" LG C9, but I got a sturdy ass mount that extends it out from the wall about 2ft closer. I use that when watching 4K movies and it makes the display size a lot bigger than the apparent size of 77" stuck to the wall. By moving it closer, I can really see the increase in resolution.
But here is the big downside to all these 8K TVs: They'll start only putting the new display technology that matters (better color, dynamic range, panel technology, refresh rate, etc into 8K displays instead of 4K, much like they did with 1080p and 4K back in the day. And this will only serve to keep the prices of TVs very high as 4K TVs drop in price with outdated specs. This is probably a good year to jump on 4K OLED if you haven't already. I did last year and it's great and will hopefully last me for a while. I bought my LG C9 after the CX was announced and saved a lot. I recommend others to do the same with the CX this year if you can afford it. Great TVs.
85" 8K TVs don't really make any sense to me. A 36-42" 8K desktop display makes some sense to me, as you sit a lot closer. But 85"? For most living rooms, 4K would do just as well. For 8K you need like over 120" for it to be worthwhile for most setups, and by that point you're talking about needing a second mortgage. You can probably start to see some benefit around 100" from a typical viewing distance. I guess if you have a tiny apartment and are sitting 5ft from the TV then this might be worth it, but then you have other factors to consider: Do you have enough wall space in a tiny apartment? Will you feel comfortable sitting only 4-5ft from a giant TV display? Will the HDR scorch your retinas from that distance? Are you likely to find much 8K content in the coming years? Many TV streaming services are still only 1080p. I think Fox was the only app I found streaming 4K NFL Playoffs this weekend. As slow as they move I expect it to be another 10 years before 8K starts to come online.
It just seems like the display resolution to screen size to amount of space it takes up is reaching a point of imbalance with extremely diminishing returns. But someone always comes on here and says I'm a luddite or something, even though we're talking about exceeding human vision at this point. There will probably never be enough processing power, but display resolution? Definitely hitting a wall on that.
