Articles by Carrie Marshall

Contributor

Writer, broadcaster, musician and kitchen gadget obsessive Carrie Marshall has been writing about tech since 1998, contributing sage advice and odd opinions to all kinds of magazines and websites as well as writing more than twenty books. Her latest, a love letter to music titled Small Town Joy, is on sale now. She is the singer in spectacularly obscure Glaswegian rock band Unquiet Mind.

Articles by: Carrie Marshall

The BluHub USB hub and disc drive next to a Mac laptop

This 9-in-1 USB dock with a Blu-ray drive just smashed its Kickstarter goal by 300x — as backers succumb to dongle fatigue and physical media nostalgia

By Carrie Marshall Published 21 August 26

The BluHub is a USB 3 hub with an integrated BD/DVD/CD writer — and despite its early Kickstarter success, some are warning of red flags.

Portrait Of Caucasian Handsome Man Using Smartphone in 3D Cyberspace With Animated Social Media Interfaces, Video Games, Viral Videos, Internet Content. Visualization Of Blockchain Technology Concept.

The Best Web Browsers for 2026: Expert Recommendations for a Superior Internet Experience

By Benedict Collins Last updated 21 August 26

Updated We list the best web browsers to help your browse the internet and better control your online privacy and security.

Sony leak suggests it's rebooting some of its best ever headphones to compete with Bose and Sennheiser — but I'm not sure the predicted price is going to be cheap enough

By Carrie Marshall Published 20 August 26

A Sony leak suggests it's preparing to launch a new, more affordable version of its legendary WH-1000XM4 headphones to better compete in the ANC headphone sector.

Apple TV 4K fans are begging for these 3 upgrades from the leaked Siri Remote — but one is already possible today

By Carrie Marshall Published 20 August 26

What we'd like to see in the 2026 Apple TV remote — and the Apple TV tip you can try today.

A Free Blockbuster library box next to a screenshot of the virtual video store BingeBrowse

Blockbuster is making an unlikely comeback — neighborhood 'Free Blockbuster' boxes are multiplying for DVD and Blu-ray fans, as new website turns Netflix into a 3D video store

By Carrie Marshall Published 19 August 26

The Blockbuster brand is now dormant, but its aesthetics are back for both physical media and streaming.

An iPhone on a green and blue background showing Sonos Live Activities on iOS 26

Want Sonos controls on your iPhone lock screen? They've finally returned to iOS — here's how to get them

By Carrie Marshall Published 18 August 26

The Sonos app now uses Live Activities to put controls on your lock screen. It's off by default but easy to enable.

Dolby says Dolby Vision 2 HDR should come to cheaper TVs than the original — and the basic version is less expensive to license than Dolby Vision 2 Max to achieve that

By Matt Bolton Published 16 August 26

Dolby Vision 2 Max replaces Dolby Vision 1, while Dolby Vision 2 is meant for a new breed of budget TV — and Dolby says its the best-value picture upgrade that manufacturers can get.

'There's no realistic chance all of that content will get remastered from scratch': Dolby Vision 2 will come to more titles than you might expect, thanks to an automated process — but there will be two key creative-led features that aren't automated

By Matt Bolton Published 15 August 26

Dolby Laboratories explain how Dolby Vision content can be upgraded for Dolby Vision 2 without costing streamers a fortune.

Good news, 4K Blu-ray fans: Dolby confirms that Dolby Vision 2 HDR can work on existing players and disc tech — bad news: it's up to the manufacturers, and Sony already said 'we do not plan to provide an update'

By Matt Bolton Published 13 August 26

Dolby says all Dolby Vision 2 TVs will make regular Dolby Vision look better anyway — which is good, because it seems like we might not get the Blu-ray support we'd want.

5 Comments

Screenshots of AI-generated shows on Fairground AI

Roku's new AI channel is top of the slops: is this an important AI milestone or just "the cutting edge of AI slop"?

By Carrie Marshall Published 13 August 26

The new Fairground AI channel on Roku TV is getting mixed reactions, to say the least

The Panasonic Z86C showing an image of the sun, with sun spots and corona flashes. The Panasonic Z90B TV is behind it, showing the same image

Great news for cheap OLED TVs and monitors: LG's new '2-stack' tech should cost less to make and be more energy efficient than its recent 'OLED SE' panel

By Carrie Marshall Published 7 August 26

LG's new 2-stack OLED panel is cheaper to make and delivers better color and viewing angles than current WOLED panels, the firm says

Dolby Vision 2 HDR is officially arriving on certain Hisense TVs — here's which models are getting it first, and what it does

By Carrie Marshall Published 6 August 26

Dolby Vision 2 is available on select Hisense TVs right now, and it's rolling out to more models in the coming weeks.

Marantz Cinema 50 Series 2 shot from the front on a bronze gradient

Marantz's new Dolby Atmos AV receivers bring up to 7.4.4 channels of surround sound — and home theater nerds will love their cool monitoring and diagnostic options

By Carrie Marshall Published 6 August 26

Marantz's gorgeous home theater AVRs get a brand-new DAC, Dirac for everyone, and better gaming support — and come in a range of prices

Samsung's next-gen HDR10+ Advanced is launching on Prime Video this month — surprisingly beating Dolby Vision 2 to the punch, though with some huge unanswered questions remaining

By Carrie Marshall Published 4 August 26

Prime Video and Samsung are launching HDR10+ Advanced in August 2026 for selected content on the streaming service

Philips Hue may be bringing its best ever lightstrip to the back of your TV — but we're primed for a painful price

By Carrie Marshall Published 4 August 26

Hue has mentioned a new Play Pro lightstrip for TVs that isn't currently available to buy. Could it be a TV Omniglow?

Disney+ brings 4K streaming back to European customers, but HDR is still on the to-do list

By Carrie Marshall Published 3 August 26

Disney+ has changed its streaming platform in Europe to restore 4K viewing to Premium subscribers, but HDR hasn't been restored just yet

A photo of the interior of Kurt Martinez's DIY Dolby Atmos garden studio

What does a backyard Dolby Atmos home music studio look like when you’re a sound engineer for major artists? The shed of my dreams, that’s what

By Carrie Marshall Published 1 August 26

The shed of my dreams is very very spatial — and it was all done as a DIY project.

Image of Disney Plus being watched on a TV with a hand holding a remote control

Disney+ just lost 4K and all HDR support in parts of Europe, so you have to ask what the point of a Premium subscription is — and this is exactly why physical media is on the rise

By Carrie Marshall Published 31 July 26

What happens when you're paying extra for 4K and HDR and your streaming provider stops providing it?

Roborock Qrevo Curv robot vacuum in reviewer's home

First drones, now robot vacuums — the US government's ban on foreign robots is confirmed to include many of the best robovacs and robot lawn mowers on the market, and brands may have been caught off-guard

By Carrie Marshall Published 31 July 26

The FCC has confirmed that the US ban on foreign-made advanced robotic devices includes robot vacuums and similar bots

A man wearing old red-blue paper 3D glasses on a color-split countryside background.

'I refused to let 3D die!': Someone built a custom player for all 3D movie formats — and is even futureproofing it to preserve the grandeur of 3D for whatever the future of projectors and TVs holds

By Carrie Marshall Published 29 July 26

An intrepid Redditor has built a 3D movie player that supports three different generations of 3D, with an eye to the future of TV and projector tech.

A man wearing Beyerdynamic DT 275 Pro headphones while recording video footage outdoors

One of the best wired headphones makers launches new ‘pro’ cans that are way cheaper than I expected — Beyerdynamic’s latest on-ears are lightweight, neutral and seem like a steal

By Carrie Marshall Published 28 July 26

The new Beyerdynamic DT 275 Pro headphones promise pro-level performance without the price tag — and with solid noise isolation.

AppleCare One is coming to the UK — here's why it could be a good deal for iPad and Apple Watch owners

By Carrie Marshall Published 27 July 26

AppleCare One launches in the UK in August 2026 and will make it cheaper to cover multiple devices for repairs, theft and loss.

A Panasonic DP-UB820 4K Blu-ray player, with its disc tray open, and copy of Top Gun Maverick on 4K Blu-ray disc in the tray

Someone polled 4K Blu-ray player owners about the reliability of different models over time, and there's a clear winner

By Carrie Marshall Published 26 July 26

A reddit poll of Blu-ray owners shows a big difference in the reliability of different firms' devices over time

3 Comments

The LG C6 OLED TV with a canyon in the sunlight on screen, taken from an angle. The shot shows off the C6's bold brightness

LG's latest OLED TVs will have a 'Creator Original' mode that works with Prime Video: it seems to take some of Dolby Vision 2's best features, but may arrive sooner — and unlike DV2, will be supported on LG's TVs…

By Carrie Marshall Published 23 July 26

LG is rolling out a new picture mode, Creator Original, to 2026 C6, G6 and W6 series TVs. It has similar features to Dolby Vision 2.

The Ring Peephole Camera 2K mounted on a grey door underneath the number 24

Ring has upgraded two of its cameras and the new peephole model looks like it'll be perfect for apartment-dwellers — its no-drill installation won't damage your door, so it's ideal for renters

By Carrie Marshall Published 23 July 26

Ring has updated its Outdoor Camera and Peephole Camera with 2K resolution and 6x enhanced zoom.

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