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Samsung UR55 UHD Monitor

Read More Xbox One and a half month into Xbox Game Pass, I’m happy to report that it is an insane deal. It doesn’t even make any sense how MicroSoft is even making money off Game Pass… the value is just that good! Sure, some games …

I recently picked up a Samsung - UR55 Series 28" IPS 4K UHD Monitor for my Xbox Series X and have been pretty happy with it.

You see, I’ve been using an old 1080p 20 inch portable monitor, and while it does the job… after a month of using it, I started seeing areas that I wanted to see improved: the built-in monitor speakers are tinny, the panel is not as bright, and image quality isn’t the best on an 1080p.

To be honest, I wanted a smaller screen, but they don’t really make 4k displays at the 20-inch size. Still, the new Samsung UR55 monitor is perfect for my needs.

The specs lists 8 million pixels at 3840 x 2160 Resolution. With HDR and AMD FreeSync support at 4 millisecond response time, they said it’s good for watching 4k movies and gaming. From what I’ve seen, it’s pretty good.

There is another feature that they highlight, and I found it really useful. The monitor has the ability to do Picture in Picture (or as Samsung lists it PBP). What this means is that the monitor can display two simultaneous sources on the monitor at the same time. You have some options, side-by-side or a small popup screen (which you can position in four areas and with varying sizes). The P-i-P is the best thing about this monitor.

The only thing that the monitor lacks are speakers… which is forgivable, because no one buys these monitors for their amazing speakers. Why would you pay for crappy speakers, so save a few dollars and not have speakers at all. Instead, what you can do is use the audio-jack out and plug it into a standard speaker (which is what I have done).

As far as inputs, it has two HDMI 2.0 and one Video Display Port. When I’m not using the monitor as an Xbox Display, it’s actually hooked up to my computer as a third monitor.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

P.S. Now that I have a decent 4k setup, I may start buying more 4k Bluray discs.

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

The Mi Box

Mi Box Specification Output resolution Up to 4K 60fps Processor Quad-core Cortex-A53 2.0GHz GPU Mali 450 750MHz RAM 2GB DDR3 Storage 8GB of on-board storage Connectivity Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Dual-band Wi-Fi 2.4GHz/5GHz Bluetooth 4.0/3.0 Video VP9 Profile-2 up to 4K x 2K @ 60fps H.265 HEVC MP-10 at L5.1, up to 4K x 2K at 60fps H.264 AVC HPat L5.1, up to 4K x 2K at 30fps H.264 MVC, up to 1080P at 60fps Supports HDR10/HLG HDR processing (software upgrade required) Sound DTS 2.0+ Digital Out, Dolby Digital Plus Up to 7.1 pass through Ports HDMI: HDMI 2.0a x 1 port (HDCP 2.2) USB: USB 2.0 x 1 port AV: SPDIF Out / 3.5mm audio output x 1 port Power: 1 port Software Android TV 6.0 Dimensions and weight 101 x 101 x 19.5mm 176.5g Color Black Read More Roku So, I previously poo-poo the Roku because it did not support YouTube. You know, the most popular video service in the world and Roku just didn't work with it? It's sad and lame, in my opinion. ....

I recently upgraded my television to a Samsung 4k (UHD). It's only 40-inch, but it's big enough for me (especially for the sale price). My current first-gen PS4 isn't powerful enough for 4k (or wasn't really design to output at that resolution), and, at of this writing, only the Xbox One S and the new PS4 Pro offers 4k support. Unfortunately, I'm not going to re-buy a PS4 and I'm patiently waiting for the Xbox One Scorpio... so I can't just buy the current Xbox (although I really want to get it it now).

The 4k problem is actually the lack of content. Streaming 4k is not a great option, because my internet cannot handle streaming it. Downloading it takes forever... and not to mention the sheer takes up too much valuable disc space on my harddrive. 4k discs are being sold, but are limited to certain popular titles and at an extra cost. Discs are priced at usually at $30, which is $10+ more than Bluray discs. Plus, unless you got an Xbox One S, 4k disc players is an added $150 or more extra cost.

Basically, it's a chicken and egg problem, but eventually 4k is the future. For collectors, the steelbooks and special packaging are only available on Bluray, so they're not migrating any time soon.

So why would you want a 4k TV? Let me break it down to you: the image quality is much better than a standard 1080 screen. It's not just my imagination, because the pixels look smoother/sharper because the image is upscale on the same display size. The smaller the dots, the better it looks... but only if you have really good 20/20 vision (or look closely at the display).

The other cool thing about my Samsung set is that it comes with apps, so if you're watching TV, you can click on the extra icon to see the latest weather or play minesweeper, etc. Although you can install apps directly on the TV, the Samsung App store is severely limited.

My only 4k streaming box options right now are: Roku 4, Chromecast Ultra, Nvidia Shield, or the Mi Box. Having own the Roku 2, I was not impressed with its inability to turn off or that it does not support multiple audio or even something simple as subtitle support.

As for the Chromecast, you basically need an Android Phone (which I currently don't own), and the Nvidia Shield is just too expensive ($200 for the base model and the remote is an extra $50, and the stand is $30)..... so that left me with my only choice: The Mi Box. If you aren't familiar with the Mi Box, it's a $69 Android TV box sold by Chinese company Xiaomi.

When you get the Mi Box, I suggest getting the Kodi app (formerly known as XBMC) so you can stream your local DNLA or add streaming video playlists. Kodi is really just the best app, I've used it on various platform. It will play everything, and it does multiple audio and multiple subtitles. It's really the only video player you need.

Some things I do not like about the Mi Box:

Power cord is not very long and seemingly exclusive to Mi Box (meaning you can’t just swap it out for another longer cable).

Limited to only Android TV selections (this is a Google limitation)

Voice search is not very good (again, this is a Google limitation)

Chromecast did not really work for me on some applications I tried.

No Apple Mirror (this is an Apple restriction/DRM issue)

One USB, no SD card reader

Some things I love about the Mi Box:

Has all the Apps I like: Haystack, Pluto TV, Kodi, etc.

Game option with the Mi Controller (may buy one if I find it in stores)

Cheap! $69

Small and compact design.

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ facebook.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic