No matter how much storage you buy for your computers or how many drives you connect, running out of space can be a very real problem. Consider the chance that you might need a file from another computer or your phone, and the idea of cloud-based storage gets better and better. And that’s before we tell you that you can get your hands on 1TB of Koofr cloud storage, for life, for just $140.
That price sounds low, and it is. You’d normally have to pay upwards of $800 to get your hands on this level of cloud storage but if you order now and enter the discount code KOOFR when checking out you’ll save $670 immediately. Those kinds of discounts don’t grow on trees, do they?
You can save a lot of files online when you have 1TB of storage to play with. Whether you’re saving photos, videos, or something boring like your tax documentation, it’s all safe and sound. Koofr Cloud Storage is private and secure and there is no file-size limit to get in the way, either.
Still need convincing? How about the included tool that can help you find and remove duplicate files to help you save space? Or the advanced tools for batch file-renaming or built-in encryption? All of that, and more besides, for just $140. But only while this offer lasts and assuming you remember to enter the code KOOFR when checking out.
If you want to keep your files online for whatever reason, and you’ve less than 1TB of them, this lifetime Koofr Cloud Storage deal could well be the answer you’ve been looking for.
Handheld gaming has returned in a new and weird way. Enthusiast indie handhelds like the Panic Playdate and Analogue Pocket have tapped into the spirit of the old Game Boy. Streaming-capable handhelds like the Razer Edge, Logitech G Cloud and Sony’s upcoming Project Q are playing with second-screen ideas that go back to the Nintendo Wii U, but for a streaming-game age. Then there are shrunken-down gaming PCs for your hands, like the Steam Deck, Valve’s PC gaming handheld. Regardless of the device, though, they all show off how much power can fit in your hands in 2023.
I’ve been living with a Steam Deck for the last few weeks. It’s been available for more than a year and has won gamers over with its surprisingly capable design and the seemingly magical ways it handles PC-level games on the go. As a Nintendo Switch user from Day 1, I’ve been surprised. It has a few flaws — it’s big, and it’s complicated — but in many ways, it’s everything I want a Nintendo Switch 2 to be.
Read more: Steam Deck Evolves: Valve’s Portable Gaming PC, One Year Later
Six years have gone by fast
The Nintendo Switch arrived on the scene on March 3, 2017, and over six years later, not all that much has changed. Since its initial release, Nintendo has improved the Switch’s battery life, released a smaller Lite model and added an iteration with a larger OLED screen. The idea of the Switch, however, has remained the same. All of the models mainly use the same type of CPU and GPU, too. As I discussed with former Nintendo president Reggie Fils-Aimé, the Switch seems due for some sort of upgrade… but according to Nintendo, the Switch’s life cycle could be as long as 10 years.
As always, it’s hard to know whether Nintendo is going to create a truly revamped “Switch Pro” model that’s been expected off and on for years. And for however successful the Switch has been — it’s one of Nintendo’s top products of all time — it’s over 6 years old. It’s overdue for it to get more advanced to stay competitive.
To Nintendo’s credit, it knows how to maximize its hardware and graphics: 2023’s Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Pikmin 4 show how well the Switch can still play games. But it’s fallen behind in other areas, places where Nintendo could leap ahead again with a true Switch successor. Will it happen in the next year? Perhaps. Nintendo has stated there won’t be a new platform in the next financial year, but expectations from the industry, including competitors like Microsoft, say a new Switch is around the corner. Nintendo’s working on something, and has already confirmed that a new platform will be backward-compatible with the current Switch.
Read more: Happy Birthday, Nintendo Switch: Those Years Flew By
The time has come
Nintendo has historically released new consoles roughly every five to six years, and the Switch came out in 2017. The Wii U, in 2012. The Wii, 2006. The GameCube, 2001. The N64, 1996.
Does that mean Nintendo could dream up a whole new successor to the Switch, something that could be completely different and unexpected? As different from the Switch as the Wii was from the GameCube? Who knows? But we may see a true upgraded version of the Switch (a Switch 2, a Switch Pro or whatever it’s called) sooner rather than later if leaks and rumors are to be believed. It should be something that’s a true boost compared with the more modestly tweaked Switch OLED from back in 2021.
Nintendo’s comments last year suggesting the Switch is midway through its life cycle suggest more iterative upgrades to come, but right now, a more powerful chipset seems like the logical next move, whenever that might be. Years ago, Bloomberg reported that game developers already had the hardware to work on 4K Switch games, and in 2022 a reported Nvidia leak took social media by storm as Twitter users pointed out possible hints to new Switch models in the source code.
Nintendo hasn’t indicated any new hardware is coming, although it has acknowledged there will be a new platform. Nintendo keeps its hardware news under tight wraps, and surprise announcements (like 2021’s sudden OLED Switch drop) are the norm. Right now, it’s fine to buy a Switch that’s already out there. The Switch remains a great, but aging, handheld system with a steady supply of games, both Nintendo-made and indie.
But here’s what Nintendo could — and should — do next.
Read more: Nintendo Switch OLED vs. the Others: We Played With Them All
Add a new processor to keep up with the competition
4K graphics aren’t the only thing Nintendo could adopt: think graphics that could let the Switch finally compete with newer Xbox and PlayStation consoles and games. The Switch has struggled with games requiring high-end graphics performance that can run on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. It’s led to a trend of cloud-streaming games on the Switch that need to be internet-connected to work. While game streaming is only going to grow, the next Switch needs to handle these games better on the console. Could it even, somehow, add graphics processing in the dock itself? That would ramp up the cost, but it’s an interesting thought. Some computers can do that now, adding a Thunderbolt-connected graphics unit while docked. But on a console, it could become a messy idea (memories of the Sega Genesis 32X start to pop up).
One question with an upgraded Switch processor would be how Nintendo balances games for the “new” system versus the older one. The Nintendo 3DS got a chip upgrade midcycle with the New Nintendo 3DS, but its advantages were subtle. Sony’s PlayStation 4 Pro improved graphics for many PS4 games, acting as a stepping stone between the PS4 and PS5, but it wasn’t an essential pickup for most gamers. Microsoft did something similar with the Xbox One X before the Series X and S, so there’s precedent.
Valve’s Steam Deck is the new mark for where handheld game systems can evolve. Even though the Steam Deck is huge by comparison, it’s capable of running full PC games. It can stream games, too. Nintendo’s Switch needs to catch up, to some degree, with where the rest of the mobile and handheld gaming landscape is heading.
Fix those Joy-Cons
Those little versatile Joy-Con controllers that slide onto the Switch are a brilliant idea… but they’ve aged awkwardly. Many Joy-Cons end up with drift problems or worn-out buttons over time. (The Switch OLED’s Joy-Cons are meant to have subtly addressed the drift problem, but are otherwise the same as ever.)
In 2023, I can’t stand how small they are. Also, their trigger buttons, which aren’t analog, feel dated. The Steam Deck’s smooth analog triggers are the basic expectation of most gamers now, and Nintendo should join the rest of the pack. The Joy-Cons’ haptic vibrations, while ahead of their time in 2017, now seem behind what the Xbox and PlayStation (and phones) can do, too. And the Valve Steam Deck adds other inputs: haptic-enabled touchpads that I love having as an additional option, and rear paddle triggers.
I’d love a whole new type of Joy-Con, one that could still work with older Switch games. I’d even say that an improved Joy-Con might be my most hoped-for feature on a next-gen Switch. Whether Nintendo adds new types of buttons or controls, I’d like them to be sturdier and improved, and fix those triggers.
An even better Switch display
The OLED Switch has an excellent 7-inch OLED screen that’s far more vibrant than previous Switch models. I love it, but it’s not enough. That display’s 720p resolution is fine for Nintendo’s current games, but a 1080p OLED makes more sense for a next-gen Switch. The Switch can already output 1080p on a TV with the dock. Maybe that screen size could be improved even more, too, creeping to 8 inches. The OLED Switch shrank bezel sizes considerably compared with the older Switch, but there’s still wiggle room.
The current handheld gaming landscape isn’t faring much better. The Steam Deck’s display resolution is 720p, too. Adding a higher-res screen could end up taxing the Switch 2’s processor and battery life.
Most current Nintendo games don’t lean on high-res graphics that much, but if Nintendo boosts that processor to allow for more competitive next-gen games to work on Switch hardware, there would be reasons to improve that display. Then again, Nintendo hasn’t generally been about bleeding-edge resolution specs in the past.
Will Nintendo get weird?
The wild card is Nintendo itself. Nintendo doesn’t tend to walk in straight lines when it comes to gaming hardware: Its history of consoles is full of wild zigs and zags. The Nintendo DS’s split-screen, stylus-enabled design, for example, turned the Game Boy design on its head. The N64 had its wild three-prong controller. The Wii’s transformative motion controllers were followed up by the Wii U’s included touchscreen tablet controller. The 3DS added glasses-free 3D. Will Nintendo have a Switch 2 curveball?
One theory has Nintendo somehow adding a DS-like second screen to the Switch 2. This is total speculation, but I’ve come to love that idea. In an age of foldable phones, a second screen no longer seems that weird. It would also allow Nintendo to revive its entire DS and 3DS game library, which has vanished. And there’s a practical point: Folding down the top screen could protect the bottom one.
Another report suggested some dial-like controls on the top. I don’t think anything is impossible, knowing Nintendo. I’d love a little bit of weirdness on the new Switch… in fact, I’m hoping for it. It’s also how a Switch 2 could differentiate itself from the competition. After all, even the little Panic Playdate had an analog crank.
I also wonder about peripherals. The Nintendo Labo cardboard sets toyed with new ways to play with the Switch, and so did Ring Fit Adventure. Nintendo hasn’t had any new Switch accessories in a long time, and it’s a territory the company dives into (I remember the Wii Fit balance board well).
The Switch is fine… for now
For now, be happy with whatever Switch you have, and even buying a new one (especially if it’s on sale) isn’t a terrible idea. There are plenty of great games. But I’m ready to keep an eye out for something new on the horizon. It’s been two years since the last Switch, and odds are something is on its way in the next year.
There are a few dozen ways to consume anime in the US and abroad, but Crunchyroll is arguably the leading streaming service that fans flock to for new and classic titles. It’s been the primary destination for global fans to watch Attack on Titan, for example, which was the world’s most in-demand TV show in 2021. The service’s mixture of theatrical films, originals such as Tower of God and hit shows like Chainsaw Man and Demon Slayer have helped it earn the unofficial title among fans as the “Netflix of anime.” I rank it as the best anime streaming service, hands down.
Initially launching in 2006 as an anime piracy site, Crunchyroll has become a titan in the genre thanks to a series of deals, partnerships and acquisitions. Today, it’s a Sony-owned brand that encompasses anime streaming, gaming, merchandise and digital manga. It also hosts its own events like the annual Crunchyroll Anime Awards. After officially merging with fellow industry giant Funimation in 2022, the platform is home to more than 40,000 episodes of content for viewers in over 200 countries. And you can watch everything legally.
While the site has more than 100 million registered users, Sony reported earlier this year that Crunchyroll had over 10 million paid subscribers by the end of 2022. It’s continuing to expand.
You can watch some content on Crunchyroll for free, but paid subscriptions start at $8 per month and give you access to everything. In this age of streaming price hikes, it’s one of the more affordable services. Even though it’s relatively niche, Crunchyroll is not without its competitors. Hulu, HiDive, Netflix and the international arm of Disney Plus carry exclusive titles that you can’t find on Sony’s service, while platforms like RetroCrush and Tubi offer audiences an assortment of titles for free.
Is Crunchyroll worth the price of a subscription? That depends on your taste and budget, but if you’re looking for an all-you-can-eat anime shop with the largest stock of titles, this is the place to go.
How much is Crunchyroll?
Crunchyroll offers a free, ad-supported plan that grants access to roughly 1,000 hours of content, but as of spring 2023, the free plan excludes new simulcasts from Japan. There are three premium subscriptions available that stream without ads: Fan, Mega Fan and Ultimate Fan.
Crunchyroll subscription plans
Free
Fan
Mega Fan
Ultimate Fan
Monthly price
—
$8
$10
$15
Number of screens you can watch at the same time
1
1
4
6
Ads?
Yes
No
No
No
Mobile downloads
No
No
Yes
Yes
Digital manga access
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Crunchyroll offers a free 14-day trial for the service. Only subscribers with a premium subscription can stream the entire library and watch new weekly episodes, use the music feature or access the digital manga library. If you have a free account, you’ll see a lock that indicates which content is behind a paywall.
The higher membership levels come with built-in perks, such as Crunchyroll store discounts on merch and physical media. In addition to what’s listed in the chart above, here’s what users are also entitled to:
Mega Fans: Early access for events, and a Crunchyroll store discount of $15 off a purchase of $100 (every three months).
UltimateFans: A swag bag, early member-only access for events and exclusive merch purchases, and a Crunchyroll store deal of $25 off a purchase of $100 (every three months).
Added benefits are something that you don’t normally see for premium streaming subscriptions. Netflix and Max don’t give you specials on merch.
What you can stream on Crunchyroll
The Crunchyroll-Funimation merger folded in content from both brands and their subsidiaries, Wakanim and VRV, creating a huge library of anime films and series. Crunchyroll’s catalog has more than 1,600 hours of content for fans in over 200 countries and 10 different languages. Viewers will find subtitled and dubbed versions of most titles, in a collection of vintage and new anime for just about any genre.
Crunchyroll regularly updates its lineup of new anime releases for each season, with a few surprises in between. The company drops a list of titles that will air in the winter, spring, summer and fall that includes originals, the latest installments of series or theatrical releases such as One Piece Film Red. Occasionally, Crunchyroll will announce the streaming of OAD episodes (extras or side stories) which are typically only available on Blu-Ray and DVD.
One of the platform’s biggest draws is its same-day simulcasts for Japan’s broadcasts. New episodes of shows such as Jujutsu Kaisen and Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation air within hours of their debut on Japanese networks. To help fans keep up, Crunchyroll maintains a simulcast calendar on its website with separate schedules for viewers with free or premium accounts. The site also notes if a foreign language dub is available.
You’ll find popular fan-favorites on the streamer like Attack on Titan: Final Season, My Hero Academia, Demon Slayer, One Piece (English dub) and Chainsaw Man, as well as classics such as Akira, GTO, Dragon Ball Z, Mobile Suit Gundam (both series) and Naruto. Crunchyroll has a decent collection of older anime from the ’80s, ’90s and early 2000s that fit in well with your 2023 binge lists of new releases.
Read more: The 14 Absolute Best Anime You Should Stream in July 2023
Does it have everything? No. You’ll still have to subscribe to a different service like Hulu or HiDive to watch select titles that aren’t available on Crunchyroll. Examples include Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, Oshi no Ko, Beastars, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners and new episodes of Tokyo Revengers.
While the service carries anime from numerous studios and manga publishers like Kodansha and MAPPA, there’s one standout offering on Crunchyroll: music. If you have a premium account, you can stream music videos and 100-plus full-length concerts from various artists known for performing anime hits. The Sony partnership features a roster of artists such as Blue Encount, Super Beaver, Aki Toyosaki and Yuta Hashimoto.
App navigation and the interface are reliable and smooth
Crunchyroll’s home screen opens with punchy graphics highlighting the latest release at the top: in this case, Jujutsu Kaisen. There’s a button that allows you to start watching instantly. The show’s age rating, genre and subtitle/dub availability are listed in the description. The TV app has an additional “more info” button, while the mobile version information is accessed by clicking on the series’ tile image.
Scrolling down, there’s a recommendation row called Top Picks for You right under the main offering. Directly underneath is my Continue Watching row and personal watchlist, which I find to be convenient placements. As with similar streaming services, more curated recommendation rows follow, including a list of this month’s new simulcasts, the most popular, what to watch if I liked Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero and some genre-based suggestions. Mixed in with these rows are large, one-off tiles for shows like Bungo Stray Dogs and Undead Murder Farce that enable you to start watching right away.
The TV app’s menu is located on a sidebar where you can navigate to screens for search, home, watchlist, history, browse or settings. The mobile version has a menu with icons for the home page, my lists, browse, simulcasts and your account, with the search bar at the top. In addition to streaming anime on your computer, those logged in to Crunchyroll on a web browser can also access manga, news and the Crunchyroll store. One note for the web: You have to manually expand to full-screen mode while viewing to make your experience less distracting.
When using the browse feature, I had the option to search by genre, alphabetical order, new additions or a list of popular titles. The phone app also takes it a step further with filtering by dubbed or subtitled content or series versus movies only. You can also browse concerts and music. Web users who click the browse menu will see more, including the simulcast roster and Crunchyroll’s release calendar.
Because anime is typically released in Japanese with subtitles, you may have to wait longer for a series or film to arrive dubbed in your chosen language. When you first set up your Crunchyroll account, you can select the language for content subtitles and the app itself. Content will default to those settings every time you open it, but for the mobile version, you have the ability to change the audio settings while an episode is playing, by clicking the gear button. For example, when I streamed an episode of Hell’s Paradise, I tapped the gear icon, clicked audio, and I could switch to Japanese, English, Dutch, Spanish and several other languages.
While there is no prominent menu option that displays subbed and dubbed content separately, checking the thumbnail can give you an idea. Additionally, Crunchyroll’s calendar lets you know when a series will premiere in a specific language.
The search function is fairly straightforward if you need to drill down to a certain title, genre or, in some cases, episode. If you can’t remember a series name or you want to dig through vintage anime or search for a specific character, the search function won’t be much help with Crunchyroll’s massive library. For instance, I tried typing in the popular character’s name Deku, and while five titles popped up, none of them were My Hero Academia.
I didn’t have any playback issues during my tests, and I left the autoplay feature enabled. One cool thing about the phone and web app is that you can view comments from other anime fans under the episode/movie. Crunchyroll’s phone app — for Android and iOS — will also allow you to mark an episode as watched or share links for series and episodes via text. The link will automatically open for the recipient.
As far as downloads, it took a couple of minutes for a single 23-minute episode of a Jobless Reincarnation to hit my phone — though it still has 256GB of storage as I don’t have a lot of apps clogging it up. I was able to stream the download without any problems, but I noticed there’s no option to download entire seasons with one click.
I tested the app on the web, Roku Stick, an iPhone, Android phone, Fire Stick, Apple TV and Google Chromecast. The Crunchyroll app is not available for every smart TV model, but you can download it on iOS and Android mobile devices, PS4 and 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, Roku, Google TV, Apple TV 4K, Amazon Fire TV devices, Android TV and Windows.
Harness features for specialized organization
Watchlists may seem like a straightforward thing for most streaming services, but Crunchyroll does something unique for mobile and web users. When you tap on My Lists or the watchlist icon, your basic watchlist pops up with titles you’ve added. But if you click on Crunchylists, you can make up to 10 lists that can hold 100 titles. It works similar to a Spotify playlist. For example, I created one Crunchylist and added two entire series, with the ability to add 98 more. You can name and delete these individual lists as you see fit. It’s an easy way to curate and track what you’re watching, or if you’re sharing an account, it can keep things separate.
The app also has a history feature — located on the main menu or under watchlists for the mobile app — that enables you to easily check out shows you’ve already watched or titles you may have started and stopped. If you click on something in your history, it picks up exactly where you left off in any series, episode or movie, avoiding the problem of having to watch from the beginning. Whereas Continue Watching picks up the most recent episode or movie you’ve watched, the history section can track multiple episodes from one series. That means if you’re in the middle of three different episodes of Jujutsu Kaisen, you can resume any of them from the history page.
What’s missing from Crunchyroll
Unlike other platforms such as Netflix, Max or Disney Plus, Crunchyroll does not have a parental controls setup allowing you to manage what types of content younger viewers can watch. There is a button you can toggle in the preferences section of your account that enables mature video or manga content for viewers who are 18 and older, but that’s it. It defaults to the off position, so kids can’t watch this type of content off the bat, but it would be useful if the company added configurable controls.
Whether you decide to stream Crunchyroll on your TV, phone, gaming console or laptop, there’s one constant: You get a single profile for your account. Yes, there are cute avatars to choose from (mine is Fushi’s vessel Joaan from To Your Eternity), but it’s not like Hulu or Netflix where you can set up multiple profiles for everyone using your account. The premium subscription does allow four or more screens so people can stream on multiple devices at the same time. And using the Crunchylists feature is a workaround to create individual watchlists that are not connected to the account’s main watchlist.
Another area where Crunchyroll can improve is accessibility features. There is no audio description option, which provides narration for scenes in between dialogue; Hulu, Netflix, Max and Disney Plus all offer this. Some users complain that the service doesn’t provide closed captions while watching English dubs, even when subtitles are toggled on. However, if a title streams in Japanese and subtitles are available in a select foreign language, you can read them whether closed captions are toggled on or off. For those with light sensitivity issues, there’s no way to change the brightness settings within the app, which is something you’re able to do with Netflix.
Should you get the service?
Crunchyroll’s extensive catalog might be overwhelming for those new to anime. But the impressive selection is what makes it so good, and with plenty of content to watch for free, it’s an effortless way to start exploring. For diehard anime fans who love to catch the latest releases as soon as they arrive, a paid Crunchyroll subscription is well worth it, especially since the paywall prevents you from enjoying everything in its fullness. Additionally, a premium subscription comes with free, unlimited access to the Crunchyroll Manga app (though there are other options for that, too). The streaming service is our first pick for anime based on its huge catalog, availability of new simulcast episodes and its affordable price.
Stardew Valley Plus, the popular farm life simulator, sprouted up on Apple Arcade Friday. If you subscribe to Apple Arcade ($5, 5 or AU$8 a month), you can play this game at no additional charge, and without ads or in-app purchases, which is why this version is called “Stardew Valley Plus.”
This game was developed by ConcernedApe. It was nominated for a handful of awards in 2016 and won the Golden Joystick Awards’s Breakthrough Award that same year.
Stardew Valley opens with you leaving your office job and moving back to your grandfather’s rundown farm with the hope of living a simpler life. But if you scratch beneath the surface you’ll find that this game is anything but simple.
Sure, you can stay on your land as you grow crops, raise animals and fix your home, but there’s so much to do in Stardew Valley Plus.
For example, you can form deep friendships and relationships with many of the game’s characters. By getting to know these characters, you can learn their hopes, dreams and in some cases their fears. One character in particular will admit he worries that he’s not the biological father of his daughter. You can also have a little virtual family in the game by marrying certain townspeople and raising children with them.
But my biggest gripe with the marriage system is that the wedding happens three in-game days after you propose. The whole town comes to your ceremony, too. How did your character plan a whole wedding in that amount of time? It took my wife and I at least a week to figure out just our venue. This might be the most unrealistic thing about the game for me.
You can access this game, and many others, in Apple Arcade for $5 a month, or $60 annually. You can also try Apple Arcade for free for one month with your first sign-up, or you can get a three-month free trial when you buy a new Apple device. To access Apple Arcade, open the App Store on your iOS device and tap the joystick in the menu bar.
It’s the final major of the season as the world’s best golfers descend on the Royal Liverpool course in northwest England for the 151st Open Championship.
Defending champion Cam Smith will be aiming to cling on to the iconic Claret Jug trophy from the likes of world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, P.G.A. Championship winner Brooks Koepka and US Open champ Wyndham Clark.
Rory McIlroy will have high hopes of ending his nine-year wait for another major title as he heads to Hoylake on a high, following his triumph at last weekend’s Scottish Open.
The 2023 British Open runs from Thursday to Sunday. Keep reading to find out the best live TV streaming services to use to watch each day of the tournament live wherever you are in the world.
Livestream the British Open in the US
As mentioned above, linear TV coverage in the US is split between NBC and USA Network, while streaming service Peacock boasts comprehensive coverage of the entire tournament, with exclusive early round action, featured groups and featured hole coverage.
Four of the major live TV streaming services offer NBC and USA Network. The catch is that not every service carries every local network affiliate, so check each one using the links below to make sure it carries NBC in your area.
Livestream the British Open in the UK
Golf fans in the UK can watch the tournament live on Sky Sports. The tournament will be broadcast on its Sky Sports Golf channel. Coverage begins at 6:30 a.m. BST for Rounds 1 and 2, 12 p.m. for Round 3, and 11 a.m. for Round 4.
Livestream the British Open in Australia
The Open can be watched Down Under on Fox Sports via Foxtel. If you’re not a Fox subscriber, your best option is to sign up for streaming service Kayo Sports. Coverage kicks off at 3:30 p.m. AEST for Rounds 1 and 2, 7 p.m. for Round 3, and 6 p.m. for Round 4.
Stream the Open Championship 2023 in Canada
Comprehensive live coverage of the 2023 British Open will be available in Canada via TSN. Cord cutters can watch via the network’s streaming service TSN Plus. Coverage starts at 7 p.m. ET or 4 p.m. PT for Rounds 1 and 2, and at 7 a.m. ET or 4 a.m. PT for Rounds 3 and 4.
Quick tips for streaming the British Open using a VPN
With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — your experience and success when streaming the British Open may vary.
If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
If you’re having trouble getting the tournament after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help, since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.
From the cinema to the home to your earbuds, spatial audio has made immersive 360-degree sound accessible to almost everybody, in almost any environment. And now that includes live performances.
David Byrne and Fatboy Slim’s Here Lies Love, a biographical musical about Filipino politician Imelda Marcos, opened on Broadway and features a form of spatial audio designed to follow the actors as they move around on a massive stage. That area is also filled with audience members, and the show is as much a three-ring circus as it is a Broadway show. I was on the floor for one of the final previews of this startling production, and it gave me an idea of how this audio technology could translate to your home.
Spatial but in real time
Immersive technology is in vogue right now, from the promise of AR and VR to physical experiences such as Meow Wolf. When it comes to Here Lies Love, what makes this production immersive is literally something you can’t see: the sound design. This musical seamlessly uses spatial audio to help envelop you in its world.
Whether it’s Netflix and Amazon Prime Video or Apple Music and Tidal, streaming has brought spatial audio to the masses. It’s portable and convenient, but it involves a fair bit of effort to get to our ears. In terms of movies, Dolby Atmos mixes are performed on a sound stage for use in a cinema and at home, while spatial music involves painstaking remixes of existing albums. But how does this translate to a live performance on stage?
French company L-Acoustics specializes in live sound, and its technology has been used in stage productions for artists such as Adele and Bon Iver, as well as in the studio. The company’s take on spatial audio, the free-to-download L-ISA tool, enables users to move audio objects around a sound field in real-time. In the case of Here Lies Love, the production’s engineers said they “lost count at 150” voices, using a combination of live surround mixing and automation.
The production features two different mixes performed simultaneously, one for the floor and the other for the seated, mezzanine area, sound designer Cody Spencer said. The control room is downstairs from the theater, so the engineers had to rely on dozens of video cameras to track where the actors were in real time.
The software is inter-compatible with the default standard Dolby Atmos, L-Acoustics said, which means it could be translatable to the home. Though the original 2010 recording of the album featured female artists such as Sia and Tori Amos, there was also a cast recording of the 2016 off Broadway production. There’s an opportunity to record the new cast for streaming on Apple Music, for example, using L-ISA, Spencer said.
“We have talked about it and Atmos is a kind of very big thing. But in theory, hopefully, maybe (remixers) can look at what we’re doing and kind of mimic it in the 360 environment that is Atmos.”
Here Lies Love
In the ’80s, the term “Imeldific” was coined to mean something that was gaudy and excessive, so you could guess that the stage production was going to be bombastic. If all you know about Imelda Marcos is that she owned a lot of shoes, it isn’t really about that at all. The show is colorful, often loud, but surprisingly tender in its portrayal of Marcos, from living in a small village to her rise to power and then eventual exile.
The production features an all-Filipino cast and doesn’t shy away from Marcos’ bad side — mostly by juxtaposing her wealth with the poverty of her country. For instance, the show highlights her building of the elaborate Manila Film Center and the fate of the workers who died during its construction.
The idea of immersive theater gives me the heebie-jeebies — having to be a character and talking to actors — but Here Lies Love was a lot less than that. I did have a couple of people with video cameras zoom by me, and a political candidate extended his hand for a handshake, but mostly I was there to dance. The dance floor itself featured a series of modular walkways that let the actors move between the front and the back of the space, and these changed for each song. Airlinelike “ramp agents” with pink glow sticks directed us around as stagehands altered the floor plans.
Before the musical opened, the producers were criticized for the lack of live musicians. But when you consider the complexity of the show, its basis as a collaboration with an electronic musician, and the audio tracking features, it isn’t hard to understand. As a result of the negotiations, however, the show now includes live elements, and this mostly consisted of percussionists who moved through the crowd.
The dance floor audience, which also included creator David Byrne toward the end, also had another function — it was designed to simulate different types of crowds throughout the show: patrons at a Filipino club, onlookers at political rallies, dancers at NYC’s own Studio 54 and even protesters.
Because experiencing the audio system was one of the main reasons I attended, I paid special attention to it. The overhead audio was able to track the actors in a way that became seamless. I tried to “catch them out,” but almost every time, the actors were where the speakers told me they were.
A friend in the upper level said they couldn’t hear the audio move in the same way that we on the floor did, but instead watched the audience members turn their heads as a clue to where the actors were.
Overall, the songs were strong, and the show was fast-moving. Some parts were literally shocking, and in all, it was an exceedingly enjoyable time. If you’re going to see the show and don’t mind both standing and being jostled around for 90 minutes, then definitely get tickets for the “dance floor.”
Ty Pendlebury attended Here Lies Love as a guest of L-Acoustics
AMC Theaters is ending its Sightline preferred seating trial because it didn’t affect consumer behavior, the company said Thursday. This means that in the select theaters where Sightline was being tested, all seats will now be the same price, regardless of position.
Sightline gave customers the option to pay slightly more to sit in the middle seats, often considered the best seats when viewing a movie. The front rows, however, were slightly discounted. AMC found that three out of four guests who had previously sat in those middle seats continued to do so, paying the upcharge. The theater company didn’t see more people sitting in the front rows, despite the discount.
AMC said it will end the Sightline trial in an effort to remain competitive and that it also didn’t see other chains emulate the model. AMC, however, said it’ll try a new program with select theaters in the coming weeks. In an effort to get people to sit in the front row, the company said it’ll offer spacious front row seats with “extensive seat recline” later this year.
AMC Theaters didn’t immediately respond to a request for further comment.
Movie theaters are still struggling to attract audiences as the pandemic changed viewing habits for millions. Streaming services now offer robust catalogues and will quickly bring in new movies weeks after premiering in theaters. People’s home theater setups have also seen great innovation, with vibrant displays and sound setups that can be had at more affordable prices. It doesn’t help that the average movie ticket price has been steadily increasing during the past two decades, with Dolby and IMAX options jumping above $20 in some markets.
For cost-conscious consumers, there are some options to continue seeing movies in theaters at lower prices. MoviePass is back, allowing you to see multiple movies with a single membership. AMC Stubs A-List, Regal Unlimited, Cinemark Movie Club and Alamo Season Pass all offer options to watch multiple movies for one price.
In just a few months, iOS 17 will be available to download on your iPhone, bringing some exciting new features. Apple’s adding a new Standby mode, a Journal app and a major update to Messages. But not all iPhone users are getting access to iOS 17 — there will be a cutoff for some older iPhone models, including the iPhone X from 2017.
Read more: Don’t Install the iOS 17 Developer Beta on Your iPhone
If you aren’t sure which iPhone you’ve got, a quick check in your settings can show you. Open your Settings app and tap General > About. Next to Model Name, you’ll see which iPhone you have.
We’ll tell you how to find out whether your iPhone will be compatible with iOS 17. If you’d like to try out iOS 17, the public beta is now available. Also, check out our list of best iPhones to discover if there’s a newer model that might work for you.
What if your iPhone isn’t on the compatibility list?
If your iPhone isn’t listed above, it won’t support iOS 17 and you won’t get a notification to download the newest software. For instance, if you have an iPhone X or older, the latest software you’ll ever be able to use on that phone is iOS 16.
For more about WWDC, check out the new 15-inch MacBook Air and Vision Pro. Also, new features are coming to WatchOS this year.
Soon, Whole Foods shoppers in the United States won’t have to bring their wallets to go grocery shopping. All US Whole Foods locations will be outfitted with Amazon One’s palm payment system before too long, Amazon said Thursday.
“By the end of this year, all 500+ Whole Foods Market locations in the US will offer Amazon One for payment and Prime membership benefits,” Amazon said.
Amazon One is a palm-based identity service that lets you verify your identity and pay by holding your hand over a scanner at stores and venues. Amazon began rolling out the technology at Amazon Go stores in Seattle in 2020 and has expanded to include some Panera Bread locations and Denver’s Coors Field.
Amazon One uses biometrics to scan palms as a way to authenticate an individual’s identity, similar to how law enforcement departments collect and store fingerprints.
Amazon’s handling of biometric data has raised some concerns, though. In March, Amazon was sued over New York City’s biometric surveillance law. The lawsuit alleges Amazon Go stores in the area failed to post signage that warned customers of biometric surveillance.
In 2021, a group of US senators also sent Amazon CEO Andy Jassy a letter questioning Amazon’s data collection practices and how secure these practices are.
“Amazon One reportedly uploads biometric information to the cloud, raising unique security risks,” the letter reads. “Ensuring the security of user data and protecting consumer privacy are of the utmost concern.”
In response to concerns, Amazon has said that Amazon One “was designed in accordance with Amazon’s long-standing privacy policies and controls.” The company also writes that palm prints aren’t stored on the palm-reading devices and that palm data is kept secure by both technical and physical means.
The additions came from 1.275 million new accounts in the US and Canada, just over 3 million in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, 767,000 in Latin America and 2.523 million in Asia-Pacific.
It comes after Netflix began racking up hundreds of thousands of new subscribers since it started charging people extra if they have other users on their account in the US. Netflix began testing password-sharing fees in Latin America last year, then brought the fees to Canada, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain in February and the US, the UK and Australia in late May.
The password-sharing crackdown appears to have had a significant impact in the US and Canada. In the three months from January to March, Netflix only gained 102,000 new accounts. But between April and June — the extra charge was introduced in May — Netflix saw 1.173 million new accounts added.
Read more: Crackdown on Netflix Password Sharing: What It Means for You
Netflix on Wednesday also announced it’s ending the cheapest subscription for new signups, removing its basic ad-free option in the US and the UK unless you already have it. Netflix phased out the ad-free version in Canada last month.
The only options on the US Netflix site are now: Standard with Ads ($7), Standard ($15.50) and Premium ($20). It also now costs you an additional $8 in the US on top of your subscription fee to have someone not from your household using your account.
Other streaming services, like Max, Disney Plus, Hulu and Amazon Prime Video, don’t currently have an extra charge for password sharing.
For more on streaming, here are CNET’s tips on how to pay less for your streaming service, and here are our picks for the best streaming services of 2023 and the best live TV streaming services if you want to get rid of cable.
