I Am Living Towards My Star Wars Childhood Dream With The Progression Such As LG’s AI-Enabled ThinQ Devices!

Hi Huneybees,

We have certainly came a long way with Artificial Intelligence (AI). I could still vividly recall the excitement of watching R2D2 and C3PO supporting human in their daily activities all over the galaxies, and I never thought (at a tender age of 6 then) I could live to see the realisation of it.

Today, while we are not exactly living in the Star Wars world yet, we do already have a taste of it like the moving Robot Vacuum that many of us owned at home. Whether you like it or not, AI has already made great leap intertwining into our daily life - from our mobile devices that we carry around to the house appliances at home ready to enhance our living experience.

With the rise of Internet Of Things (IoT), smart appliances are abound but companies such as LG Electronics’ (LG) continues to innovate in AI technology and design to realise my childhood (and many Huneybees alike) of living in the Star Wars fantasy. It is this exact determination that have earned the Korean electronic giant the recognition from the European Imaging and Sound Association (EISA).

LG’s AI ThinQ-enabled products including LG OLED TV, LG SUPER UHD TV and LG XBOOM were honored for their high competitiveness in categories assessing premium picture quality, artificial intelligence performance and sound excellence.

The LG OLED TV AI ThinQ (model OLED65E8) was named the EISA PREMIUM OLED TV 2018-2019, marking this the seventh consecutive win for the company’s OLED technology. The TV was praised for its picture quality powered by the α (Alpha) 9 processor, which provides true-to-life images with incredibly rich colors, sharpness and depth for more realism and its class-leading artificial intelligence functionality. The EISA jury also praised the Dolby Atmos™ performance and its front firing speakers which produce the most immersive audio-visual experience possible. The picture-on-glass design was also cited for perfectly blending into any environment.

The LG SUPER UHD TV AI ThinQ (model 65SK9500) was recognized as the EISA ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TV 2018-2019 for producing the ultimate LCD TV picture through the combination of technologies including Nano Cell, Full-Array Local Dimming (FALD) and the α (Alpha) 7 processor, as well as LG’s AI ThinQ plat-form and Google Assistant built in.
With LG’s proprietary AI ThinQ, users can control the  TV,  connect  easily to external  devices, switch picture mode and search for content.

The latest advanced voice assistant technology embedded in the TV is achieved by employing Natural Language Processing (NLP) to deliver intelligent voice-activated control and connectivity based on LG’s exclusive deep learning technology. And with the Google Assistant built in, LG’s AI TVs offer a streamlined experience that allows them to manage different tasks, find answers, or control smart home devices, serving as the center of the smart home.
LG’s SUPER UHD TV offers denser backlighting zones throughout the display and significantly improves black levels and picture dimensions through independent control of LED light zones. This delivers better shadow details and reduces light bleeding for enhanced local contrast, important for viewing HDR content. Thanks to the innovative Nano Cell Display, TV viewers can enjoy superb color accuracy and consistency at wide viewing angles without compromising picture quality.

EISA also named LG’s premium AI speaker, the LG XBOOM AI ThinQ (model WK7), as its EISA ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE LOUDSPEAKER 2018-2019 thanks to extraordinary sound quality combined with intelligence. The technical collaboration with Meridian, the British pioneer of high resolution audio, enables LG XBOOM AI ThinQ’s full audio performance to be unleashed for high-fidelity sound, precise vocal definition and accurate bass.
The LG XBOOM AI ThinQ’s High Resolution Audio is compatible with high quality lossless files, allowing it to faithfully recreate sounds originally recorded in the studio.
With Google Assistant integrated directly into the device for quick setup, LG XBOOM
AI ThinQ responds to a user’s commands without the need for a remote control or
smartphone like “Hey Google, what’s my schedule today?” As a hub, the speaker can
control Google Assistant-enabled smart home devices as well as LG home appliances
compatible with LG ThinQ.

Once again, congratulation to LG for this year's EISA honors. It's innovation such as LG's AI-enabled ThinQ devices that is going to move us a step closer towards living my Star Wars childhood dream!

Don’t forget to stay tuned to my blog / like my blog’s Facebook page / follow me @huney_84 on Twitter & Instagram  for the latest updates!

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Does "A New TV Experience Really Awakens" As Claimed by Sony BRAVIA With The Unveiling Of New 4K HDR TVs In A8F And X9000F?

Hi Huneybees,

Sony has announced an update to its BRAVIA range of new and expanded 4K HDR television series - A8F and X9000F - designed to  deliver enhanced contrast, colour and clarity, thanks to Sony's proprietary innovations!

The new 4K HDR OLED TV spots a minimalist design that gives it a clean and timeless look that harmonizes with the space surrounding the TV and comes in 65 inch and 55 inch display.

Apart from the above-mentioned, sadly, there were NO notable technological upgrade, following the success of Japanese multinational conglomerate's first OLED TV release of A1E series last year.

While I understand, as a trained engineer, it takes a lots of time and effect for the R&D team to develop new improvement to the already impressive picture clarity and on-screen noise reduction thanks to the its cutting-edge 4K HDR Processor X1™ and the even more impressive Acoustic Surface™ technology that produces sound directly from the screen;  BUT by introducing a whole new model, with an almost identical technical specification, all inherited from XBR77A1E, which is the recipient for CES2018 Innovation Awards under Video Displays category, might lead to potential media backlash and possible product cannibalization. Equally puzzling is the absence of the 77 inch display from the A8F offer.

The other new range of BRAVIA that was unveiled at the same time with A8F was the X9000F. Designed as an update to X9000E series to meet the increasing customer needs for a wider variety of large premium 4K HDR screen TV, the new X9000F series is available in the massive 85 inch 4K HDR LCD display on top of 49 inch, 55 inch, 65 inch and 75 inch option, as in previous series.

The highlight of  X9000F is the improved motion blur management for sports and fast action scenes that is a common problem for large screen TV and thanks to the new X-Motion Clarity technology that was demonstrated at the event, all fast action scenes look smooth, bright and clear.

X9000F series also spots the same cutting-edge 4K HDR Processor X1™ in A8F that promises to reproduce greater depth, texture and more realistic pictures with exceptional contrast and more accurate colours.

While sound bar and the idea of mimicking a real cinema at home experience is not new, the new X9000F series is designed to work seamlessly with Sony's new Dolby Atmos®/DTS:X™ soundbar with Vertical Sosund Engine - HT-X9000F - to bring audio and visual pleasure to the next level at the comfort of home.

Credit goes to Vertical Surround Engine, Sony latest surround technology, HT-X9000F can create virtual surround sound of 7.1.2 that seems to come from all around the user regardless the type of room that he / she is in,

Like the earlier sound bar systems offered by Sony, HT-X9000F continues to support both USB and Bluetooth wireless technology that allows user to play or stream songs from his/her mobile device.

Both BRAVIA A8F and X9000F series will supports Dolby Vision, the latest HDR format from Dolby Laboratories and are second generation of Sony's Android TV.

While the price has yet to be released, both series will be available in Singapore by 2nd Quarter of 2018.

In my opinion, Sony has certainly invested in the right direction in making its BRAVIA smart TV smarter by partnering with Google.

With Google Assistant now built in to all Sony's Android TV, the user can control the TV and its connected Google Assistant compatible devices, by simply press the mic on the remote controller and talk to it! From the demonstration at the event, the integrated system did look responsive and easy to use but I wasn't sure if I would want to introduce more bacteria to one of the dirties home appliance around!!

While the new OLED 4K HDR TV was a let down, overall with the new technologies that Sony has been rolling out this far, I am confident that BRAVIA TV is certainly heading in the right direction in bringing a new TV experience to its users.

Don’t forget to stay tuned to my blog / like my blog’s Facebook page / follow me @huney_84 on Twitter & Instagram  for the latest updates!

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