Samsung has unveiled a new soundbar that promises to provide a Dolby Atmos experience without the need to stick a bunch of speakers to your ceiling.
Dolby Atmos, in case you weren’t aware, is a cinematic ‘5.1.4’ audio technology that takes the concept of surround sound a step further. As well as pumping sound at you from behind and in front, it’ll play sound from above for full 3D sound immersion.
Naturally, while this is practical to achieve in a decent cinema set-up, it’s a little trickier for home viewers to replicate.
Samsung thinks it has the answer. Its new HW-K950 soundbar is the company’s first to feature Dolby Atmos technology, but it comes with an additional user-friendly twist.
Rather than packing it out with extra speakers, the HW-K950 Soundbar has a fairly traditional-looking setup. It includes a soundbar, a sub, and two rear speakers. That’s it.
Related: Best TVs
The trick is in the soundbar portion. As well as three forward-facing speakers, the HW-K950’s soundbar contains two upward-facing speakers. These serve to bounce sound off your ceiling, giving the impression of true vertical sound.
Meanwhile, the rest of the HW-K950 set-up connects wirelessly, so you won’t need to worry about trailing cables across your room.
The Samsung HW-K950 Soundbar will be on display at CES in Las Vegas later this week, along with the rest of Samsung’s new home cinema range.
See how we celebrated the best tech of 2015 in our TrustedReviews Awards video:
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
