What letters do today’s Quordle answers start with?
• I
• L
• M
• S
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM.
Quordle today (game #889) – the answers
(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)
The answers to today’s Quordle, game #889, are…
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I tried a new approach today, suggested to me a while ago by a reader: use two start words rather than three, in order to give myself a chance of solving Quordle in six guesses, rather than the seven that my three-start-word strategy would allow at best.
But which words to use? I decided to go with TRAIN and CLOSE: between them they used four of the vowels, leaving out the less common U, plus the six most common consonants. Most were also in their most common positions, although S was a notable failure on that front.
Anyway, it worked well enough, in that I solved what may have been a fairly tough Quordle, but then again I needed seven guesses – so there was no advantage over my standard approach. I’ll give it another few tries before deciding whether to stick with it or not.
Finally, a nod to the Daily Sequence, which served up a quartet of horrible words today. Well done if you solved that one.
The France vs Belgium live stream will be one of the highlights of the round of 16 at Euro 2024.
France were the joint favorites pre-tournament but they were unconvincing in the group stage. They have only scored twice so far – one was an own goal and one was a penalty. Their coach Didier Deschamps is tried and tested at this level, though, and France have significant star quality across the pitch.
Belgium were equally unimpressive in Group E, scrambling to a second-place finish despite widely tipped to collect maximum points. The Red Devils may well dominate possession against this cautious France side, but their defense is cause for concern. If Belgium are to cause an upset, they will need Kevin De Bruyne to be at his best.
France vs Belgium Live Stream Quick Guide
Key Details
Date: Monday, July 1
Kick-off time: 12pm ET / 5pm BST
FREE France vs Belgium live stream broadcasters
You can watch France vs Belgium for free with English language commentary on ITV in the UK, RTÉ in Ireland and on TVNZ in New Zealand.
Other, non-English language France vs Belgium free streams can be found on ZDF (Germany), NOS (Netherlands), TF1 (France), RTVE (Spain), RAI (Italy), VRT (Belgium), RTP (Portugal) and Servus (Austria).
How to watch France vs Belgium live stream in the US
The France vs Belgium live stream is on FS1 in the USA.
Coverage of the knockout stages of the 2024 Euros is split between FOX and FS1 in the US.
If you’re looking to pick up FOX or FS1, and you don’t have cable, then a cable-replacement service will give you instant access. The ones we like best are Sling and Fubo.
Official France vs Belgium broadcasters by region
Americas
TSN (English commentary) and TVA (French commentary) have the rights to show this match in Canada, and all of Euro 2024.
It’s ESPN that has the TV rights to this match and all of Euro 2024 in Central and South America. The significant exception here is that Globo will air the Euros in Brazil.
Asia
You can watch all Euro 2024 games on Sony Six in India.
In South Korea, you’ll need CJ Media to watch Euro 2024 matches.
CCTV and iQIYI are the official Euro 2024 broadcasters in China.
You can watch the Euro 2024 final on WOWOW in Japan.
Football fans in Singapore can watch Euro 2024 on SPOTV and MediaCorp.
BeIN Sports has the rights to broadcast Euro 2024 in the MENA areas of Asia.
Oceania
Optus Sport will show all Euro 2024 matches in Australia.
Africa
SuperSport South Africa, BeIN Sport, New World TV and SportyTV Nigeria are the major Euro 2024 broadcasters across Africa.
Can I watch France vs Belgium for free?
Check your local broadcaster above but viewers in the UK, New Zealand and most of Europe can watch all Euro 2024 matches for free.
France vs Belgium starts at 6pm local time (Germany) on Monday, July 1, 2024.
Here are the France vs Belgium kickoff times around the world:
USA – 12pm ET / 9am PT
Mexico – 10am CST
Brazil – 1pm BRT
UK – 5pm BST
Central Europe – 6pm CET
South Africa – 6pm SAST
India – 9.30pm IST
Singapore – 12am SGT (Tuesday, July 2)
Australia – 2am AEST (Tuesday, July 2)
New Zealand – 4am NZST (Tuesday, July 2)
Can I watch France vs Belgium on my mobile?
Of course, most broadcasters have streaming services that you can access through mobile apps or through your phone’s browser.
You can also stay up-to-date with UEFA’s official Euro 2024 social media channels on X/Twitter (@EURO2024) and Instagram (@euro2024).
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
The Portugal vs Slovenia live stream will bring Monday’s last 16 action at Euro 2024 to a close with one of the most fascinating knockout games. It’ll be no walkover, either – expect fireworks.
Portugal came into the tournament flying after registering a perfect 10 qualifying record but haven’t always looked at their fluent best in Germany. Cristiano Ronaldo is yet to score. His side needed an injury-time winner to beat the Czechia and lost 2-0 to a brilliant Georgia in the groups. In between was a 3-0 demolition of Turkey. Bernardo Silva and Bruno Fernandes will return but has their momentum gone?
Slovenia were the team to bring Roberto Martinez’s 11-game winning run as Portugal boss to and end in March’s 2-0 friendly win and have the set up to do some damage again. Matjaz Kek’s side finished third in Group C after three draws, conceding just twice thanks to captain Jan Oblak in goal and Jaka Bijol in defense. Can they cause another upset?
FREE Portugal vs Slovenia live stream broadcasters
You can watch Portugal vs Slovenia for free with English language commentary on BBC iPlayer in the UK, RTE in Ireland and on TVNZ in New Zealand.
Other, non-English language Portugal vs Slovenia free streams can be found on ARD or ZDF (Germany), NOS (Netherlands), TF1 or M6 (France), RTVE (Spain), RAI (Italy), RTBF or VRT (Belgium), RTP (Portugal) and ORF or Servus (Austria).
Use a VPN to watch any Portugal vs Slovenia stream
How to watch Portugal vs Slovenia live stream in the US
The Portugal vs Slovenia live stream is on FOX in the USA.
Coverage of the 2024 Euros is split between FOX and FS1 in the US. There were also six group stage games that are exclusive to FuboTV and Vix.
If you’re looking to pick up FOX or FS1, and you don’t have cable, then a cable-replacement service will give you instant access. The ones we like best are Sling and Fubo.
Official Portugal vs Slovenia broadcasters by region
Americas
TSN (English commentary) and TVA (French commentary) have the rights to show this match in Canada, and all of Euro 2024.
It’s ESPN that has the TV rights to this match and all of Euro 2024 in Central and South America. The significant exception here is that Globo will air the Euros in Brazil.
Asia
You can watch all Euro 2024 games on Sony Six in India.
In South Korea, you’ll need CJ Media to watch Euro 2024 matches.
CCTV and iQIYI are the official Euro 2024 broadcasters in China.
You can watch the Euro 2024 final on WOWOW in Japan.
Football fans in Singapore can watch Euro 2024 on SPOTV and MediaCorp.
BeIN Sports has the rights to broadcast Euro 2024 in the MENA areas of Asia.
Oceania
Optus Sport will show all Euro 2024 matches in Australia.
Africa
SuperSport South Africa, BeIN Sport, New World TV and SportyTV Nigeria are the major Euro 2024 broadcasters across Africa.
Can I watch Portugal vs Slovenia for free?
Check your local broadcaster above but people in the UK, New Zealand and most of Europe can watch all Euro 2024 matches for free.
Portugal vs Slovenia starts at 9pm local time (Germany) on Monday, July 1 2024.
Here are the Portugal vs Slovenia kickoff times around the world:
USA – 3pm ET / 12pm PT
UK – 8pm BST
Mexico – 1pm CST
Brazil – 4pm BRT
Central Europe – 9pm CET
South Africa – 9pm SAST
India – 12.30am IST
Singapore – 3am SGT
Australia – 5am AEST
New Zealand – 7am NZST
Can I watch the match on my mobile?
Of course, most broadcasters have streaming services that you can access through mobile apps or through your phone’s browser.
You can also stay up-to-date with UEFA’s official Euro 2024 social media channels on X/Twitter (@EURO2024) and Instagram (@euro2024).
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
We wrote about the Exos X26z, the largest hard drive Seagate makes, back in December 2023. The 25TB enterprise HDD is a host-managed shingled magnetic recording (HM-SMR) unit that doesn’t work with Windows or macOS. The Linux-compatible drive was created exclusively for Seagate’s largest enterprise customers and has always been famously hard for anyone else to get hold of.
In fact, when Storage Review did manage to get one to test, the site had to go through eBay as it wasn’t available to purchase directly from Seagate or any of its official partners.
That has changed now, as you can buy the Exos X26z online through ServerPartDeals, and it won’t cost you a fortune to do so either. The 25TB 3.5in 7.2K RPM SATA 6Gb/s drive is currently retailing for $319.99 (with discounts available for bulk orders).
Stop, HAMR time!
The drives for sale are “Manufacturer Recertified”, with a two year warranty. “New” and “Seller Refurbished” drives are listed (for $359.99 and $299.99 respectively) but they are currently sold out with no word on when the stock will be refreshed.
The Exos X26z is only really of use for the largest hyperscalers and increases the capacity per slot by 25% versus conventional hard drives. In the tests that Storage Review ran on the HDD – pitting it head-to-head with Seagate’s 20TB IonWolf Pro drive – the Exos X26z performed well, but it’s important to remember that since then Seagate has launched drives which use advanced hard-drive recording (HAMR) technology.
Seagate has said that its future drives, fueled by HAMR, will be able to break data capacity barriers. The company is ultimately eyeing 50TB, and unlike the Exos X26Z HDD, those drives won’t be quite so elusive when they eventually arrive.
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The best wireless earbuds of 2024 so far have been impressed us a lot by packing top audio tech into teeny-tiny designs. We’ve seen a rise in open-ear designs that allow you to stay aware of your surroundings, advances in noise-cancelling technologies, and audio excellence that proves wireless earbuds are here to stay.
In this guide, we’ve rounded up all of the biggest launches from 2024 so far, including what we thought of the wireless earbuds during our testing, which bigger trends they reflect, and how these designs might be improved in the future.
We’ll then take a look ahead at which brands we know are bringing out new wireless earbuds in the second half of the year, as well as some predictions about what we might see soon and where the super popular wireless earbuds form factor is heading next.
Whether you’re a hardcore audio tech fan, or simply thinking about buying a pair of wireless earbuds, this guide will give you a temperature check of the highlights so far – and what’s coming around the corner…
Wireless earbuds in 2024: what have been the biggest launches so far this year?
(Image credit: Final)
We’ve tested so many wireless earbuds over the past six months that it’s challenging to know where to begin. But where better place to kick off our summary than with some incredible earbuds that sound excellent – because that’s what’s most important here, right?
When we first got our hands on the Final ZE8000 MK2 (above) we were unconvinced by the claims that these buds deliver ‘8K sound’, but we were wrong. In our Final ZE8000 MK2 review our reviewer wrote: “I truly think this is among the most nuanced, detailed and just best audio you can buy in a set of true wireless earbuds.” In terms of sonic excellence, also take a look at the gloriously expansive and agile Cambridge Audio Melomania M100 with some best-in-class ANC to boot.
We’ve also seen several brands launch buds that boast Dolby Atmos sound as their big selling point. If achieving an incredibly powerful and immersive audio experience is a priority for you, then you’re going to want to take a look at the LG Tone Free T90S and the Jabra Elite 10. The latter in particular are a highly-accomplished pair of wireless earbuds, with our Jabra Elite 10 review praising their solid feature set, comfortable fit and excellent Dolby Atmos performance.
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But we know not everyone needs immersive or audiophile-grade sound, or has the budget for it. Luckily, we’ve also tested some great mid-range wireless earbuds that still tick all of the boxes.
(Image credit: Future)
Our recent Nothing Ear (a) review showed us why we love this cool brand so much. At only $99 / £99 / AU$169, the Nothing Ear (a) are incredibly well-specced, with a sound we described during our testing as “fun, zealous and expansive”, a great-looking transparent design that Nothing is becoming known for and top ANC. Nothing also launched the third-gen of its Nothing Ear wireless earbuds, too. Expect some seriously Earth-shaking bass, excellent sound personalization and a comfy fit. Did we mention how much we love the Nothing brand?
One of the biggest developments in wireless earbuds in 2024 so far has been the number of audio tech companies bringing out open-ear designs. These are designs that don’t cover your ear, like the best over-ear headphones, or fit inside your ear, like many of the best true wireless earbuds. Instead, these wireless designs use what’s called air conduction technology and place a tiny speaker above your ear canal instead.
The design of these buds is difficult to get right – there’s nothing to ‘anchor’ them in place – but we’ve been testing many of these open-ear designs in our best open ear headphones guide and highly recommend taking a look at our Shokz OpenFit review and Bose Ultra Open Earbuds review for our current top picks.
Wireless earbuds in 2024: what launches are we expecting during the rest of the year?
(Image credit: Samsung)
It can be tricky to know which launches to expect in the future because we only tend to hear the biggest news and rumors about the biggest tech brands. That’s why one of the most major launches we’re expecting in the second half of 2024 comes from Samsung.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro are going to be the next version of Samsung’s flagship wireless earbuds and an upgrade on the already stellar Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro. Although Samsung hasn’t said anything official about these buds, we’re expecting them to be announced at its next Galaxy Unpacked 2024 event on July 10, and for them to pack some great, high-res sound quality with improvements on AI, ANC and noise-cancelling.
Rumors also suggest they might have a transparent Nothing-like case and long Apple AirPod-like stems. As well as the Pro version, we’re also expecting a new version of the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3. Expected to be announced at the same time, they’re successors to the Samsung Galaxy Buds 2.
(Image credit: Beyerdynamic)
As air conduction tech was hugely popular during the first half of 2024, we can expect that trend to continue into the second half. We predict that several brands will launch open-ear designs, but what we know for sure is that Beyerdynamic’s first open-ear headphones (above) are on the way, and will promise hi-res audio quality without cutting you off from the world.
Another trend our spidey senses are noticing is upgrades to the charging cases of our wireless earbuds. Sure some have built-in features, like cleaning tech and even a screen. But this could become more of a thing in the second half of this year.
For example, the Jabra Elite 8 Active Gen 2 and the Jabra Elite 10 Gen 2 earbuds will boast a smart case with Bluetooth LE audio. This means that a Bluetooth LE audio chip in the case will enable you to connect audio sources to the case via its 3.5mm jack. The case itself will then be capable of streaming audio to the earbuds in your ears.
(Image credit: Iyo)
Finally, expect more and more buds to integrate AI in interesting and innovative (and maybe in some cases totally unnecessary) ways. The Iyo One (above), a pair of wireless earbuds heading our way later this year, claim to be “the first audio computer”, which includes real-time language translation, coaching you through workouts, life organization and audio features, like spatial audio, head tracking and AI-enhanced voice boosting. But hold up.
While the Iyo One is certainly interesting, plenty of other brands are doing things with AI. For example, Apple will be bringing Apple Intelligence to products, including its AirPods, later this year. And some other companies are already combining earbuds with AI, like the way Nothing is doing interesting things with its Nothing Ear integration with ChatGPT.
As with every other product category, the challenge will be determining whether AI is actually enhancing our experience with our wireless earbuds or just over-complicating things for the sake of sticking “AI” on the box. Expect to see a bit of both as we move into the second half of 2024.
Apple is rumored to be planning to add a new model to its line-up of the best AirPods: specifically, AirPods with infrared cameras installed, which can be paired with a Vision Pro headset and create a spatial audio experience that changes as you move your head.
This comes from Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who is right more often than not when it comes to Apple predictions. However, the IR-enabled AirPods aren’t going to be available anytime soon, with mass production said to start in 2026.
It’s worth noting that back in February, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman also reported that AirPods with cameras were being looked at by Apple. That’s two good sources to back up this rumor, though of course Apple’s plans can always change.
The camera system inside the AirPods will be similar to the tech used for Face ID on the iPhone, according to Kuo. They would be enough to detect when someone is turning their head – so certain sounds could be increased or decreased accordingly. If you’re in a virtual 3D environment, that kind of audio trickery can be very effective.
What the future might hold
The Apple Vision Pro (Image credit: Apple)
Something else that the cameras might be able to detect are hand gestures, Kuo says. Gestures can already be used for actions inside the Vision Pro, but as our Apple Vision Pro review makes clear, there’s absolutely room for improvement in this area.
While sales of the Vision Pro don’t seem to have been particularly significant, Apple is said to be pressing ahead with a cheaper model – which coincidentally (or not?) is also said to be arriving on the consumer market at some point 2026.
When iOS 16 arrived in 2022 it brought with it a Personalized Spatial Audio feature for the AirPods, which worked with the help of an iPhone for the 3D scanning. These immersive experiences would seem to be something Apple is particularly interested in.
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No doubt we’ll hear more rumors and leaks about AirPods with cameras in the months ahead. In the meantime, the standard AirPods models are also supposed to be being refreshed this year or next, so we can apparently look forward to the 4th-gen standard AirPods and the Apple AirPods Pro 3 in the not-too-distant future.
This article is part of TechRadar’s Smart Home Week 2024, where we’re giving you all the latest news, tips and tricks to help you make the smart home of your dreams.
Mornings can be tough and, for some, it can take a lot of effort to get your day started – especially if you lack a routine (I’ve been guilty of this in the past). However, my new Alexa speaker has helped me fix my morning routine in ways I never thought I needed, and this is all down to some of the best Alexa Skills.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Alexa Skills, they are essentially apps you can enable to broaden your Alexa device’s capabilities. Its range of entertainment and playback Skills have made a huge difference in rejuvenating my mornings, making my work-from-home days just as alive as office days.
There are three Alexa Skills in particular that I’ve started to use more frequently in the mornings, spanning across music playback, news and information, and fun games to pass the time, ensuring a dynamic start to your morning. You can read how to enable Alexa Skills at the end of this, but first, these are the Skills that are integral to starting my day.
(Image credit: Future)
Radio
When I want to take a break from listening to my Spotify Daylist or Blend mixes, I can always rely on the BBC Sounds Alexa Skill to offer a different listening experience; if you’re in the US, a great alternative is the myTuner Alexa Skill. While Spotify generally has everything I need podcast and music-wise, there’s something about radio presenters – and even the annoying little ad breaks – that injects a sense of reality and humanness into the listening experience. There’s also the bonus of nostalgia, taking me back to the good ol’ days when the car radio would always be playing on my school commute.
With Alexa Skills, radio broadcasts have never been easier to access in my home; all I have to do is say ‘Alexa, ask BBC Sounds to play Radio One’, or whatever station I feel like starting my morning with… but this is live radio with a twist.
If you’ve missed a news round-up or a radio segment with your favorite presenters, BBC Sounds allows you to rewind and fast-forward broadcasts by asking Alexa – I’ve not been able to check if this is also possible on TuneIn. When I discovered this, it was like experiencing Sky for the very first time – but that’s just the surface. If I want to listen to a particular genre of music, I can ask Alexa to ask for pop, dance, classical, or whatever music I’m in the mood for – almost like radio station-made playlists.
The skill encapsulates all things music and news, and is a great way to get into podcasts (I’d recommend Sidetracked for all you pop music fans) – all you have to do is ask.
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(Image credit: Amazon)
Flash briefings
I find Alexa’s flash briefings are a useful way of getting a concise news round-up of daily headlines – a very practical Skill, especially if you don’t like sitting through an entire news report.
I’ve been getting into the habit of using the Sky News flash briefing, which gives you a quick summary of breaking news across topics like politics, entertainment, sport, and culture. Other news outlets have Skills available with Alexa like NPR News now, BBC News, CNN, and CNBC, so it’s all down to personal taste. Whichever Skill you choose, you can launch any of them by using the command ‘Alexa, give me my flash briefing’, and Alexa will sort you out.
Flash briefings have become the reason why I no longer scramble to open my news apps on my phone first thing in the morning. With my flash briefing, I get the surface-level news I need in record time, which works wonders for when I have a morning commute ahead of me and I’m running late.
(Image credit: Amazon)
Jeopardy!
I’m all for using Alexa to add some life to my mornings, and Alexa Skills don’t always have to be so serious and factual. Sometimes, you need a bit of fun to get you moving in the morning – which is why I’m hooked on the Jeopardy! Alexa Skill.
Just like America’s favorite game show, the Jeopardy! Skill puts you in the shoes of a contestant, sans the cash prizes. I got into this when I was experimenting with different Skills while working from home, and it came in handy when it was time for me to take breaks from staring at my laptop screen or to get the cogs turning in my brain before my morning coffee kicked in.
Use the command ‘Alexa, start Jeopardy!’ and it will read out the daily general knowledge questions which you answer in the form of a question, just like the TV show. The Jeopardy! Skill also has a song quiz feature spanning six decades of pop that begins after you’ve completed the daily clues. The only downfall with this Skill is that you’ll need to be a premium subscriber to unlock its full potential and go head-to-head in weekly events, but I find that the basic package is satisfactory and gets my intellectual juices flowing.
How to launch Alexa Skills
All of the Skills mentioned can be launched through the Alexa app and once I enabled them, I found them all very simple to navigate. Just head to the app and tap ‘Skills and games’ under the ‘More’ tab. That will take you to a search bar where you can find over 100,000 Skills. Tap ‘launch Skill’ and whatever Alexa device you use, and you’re all set.
JBL may not be a brand best known for its microphones and streaming kit, but they are a hardy brand with an excellent reputation. The brand’s Quantum Stream Studio is one of its first stabs at a premium streaming microphone for you to shout into, and by and large, it’s a solid option that’s well-priced and specced. It looks great with an entirely integrated design and thoughtful touches such as an integrated mute button, on-board gain control with LED lights for gain and monitoring volume, and a choice of four polar patterns.
Elsewhere, the Quantum Stream Studio performs well with a clear, well-rounded pickup with both a fair bit of low-end and excellent clarity. Those four polar patterns make it versatile too, as it can be used for single-person recording, as well as in one-on-one interviews, or when recording in a group. Not many other microphones for streaming and gaming offer this function in 2024, so it’s a welcome addition to JBL’s option.
However, the Quantum Studio has a couple of shortcomings compared to more established options, such as its sub-par noise rejection. The software here, while functional, is also on the basic side, sticking with options also found physically on the microphone’s control panel, such as gain control and choice of polar pattern.
(Image credit: Future/Reece Bithrey)
JBL Quantum Stream Studio: Price and availability
$149.99 / £129.99 / AU$199.95
Available in the US, UK and Australia
Solid value for money
In the context of premium mics for content creators, streamers, and that kind of audience, the price tag of the JBL Quantum Stream Studio is decent and offers robust value. Against some of our favorite streaming microphones, JBL’s option retails for slightly more than the Blue Yeti in the USA, but identically in the UK, while also being comparable to options from audio giants Audio Technica and its AT2020 USB-X with its $149 / £116 price tag.
With this in mind, the Quantum Stream Studio is also much more affordable than premium choices such as the SteelSeries Alias, which goes for $179.99 / £179.99. In Australia, JBL’s mic becomes even better value than SteelSeries’ option, given its price is half – it’s AU$199.95 against the Alias’ AU$399. Across the board, the Quantum Stream Studio represents solid value for money with its feature set.
JBL Quantum Stream Studio: Specs
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Price
$149.99 / £129.99 / AU$199.95
Polar pattern
Cardioid, bidirectional, omnidirectional, stereo
Sample rates
44.1kHz / 48 kHz / 96 kHz / 192 kHz
Bit rate
16 / 24 bits
Frequency range
50Hz – 16kHz
Impedance
16 / 32 ohms
(Image credit: Future/Reece Bithrey)
JBL Quantum Stream Studio: Design and features
Sleek, cylindrical chassis
Intuitive controls
Simple connectivity and lighting
Compared to some of the more avant-garde designs seen more recently with microphones such as the SteelSeries Alias, the JBL Quantum Stream Studio sticks to something more conventional. Its main body is cylindrical, with a tall stature that carries presence when plonked on a desk, while there is a mute button on top and convenient controls on the front fascia.
The pop filter on the Quantum Stream Studio is integrated, meaning there aren’t any unsightly protrusions here, keeping JBL’s microphone looking clean. The chassis here is almost entirely metal too, exuding a high-quality finish that matches the price tag.
Elsewhere, JBL’s mic also comes with a small stand, which echoes the marvelous quality found elsewhere. It carries plenty of heft and keeps the Quantum Stream Studio in place well, although allows for some movement out of the box. This can be alleviated by tightening the dials on each side, as well as on the base. The underside of the stand also provides a strip of non-slip rubber to prevent the Quantum Stream Studio from sliding around unnecessarily on a desk. It worked well both on a desk and on my mousepad in testing.
The controls on the Quantum Stream Studio are wonderfully simple to use and easy to access, being contained on the front panel or on the top and bottom sides of the cylinder. The front panel is home to a dial, giving you quick access to gain control or monitoring volume if you’ve got headphones plugged into the mic’s 3.5mm jack on the back. You can also choose between a balance of the two by clicking the dial-in until it reveals a half-and-half pattern. The dial also has a small LED which can be used to monitor levels without trawling through software, which is nifty.
(Image credit: Future/Reece Bithrey)
Also contained on the front panel are four white LED lights at the bottom which allow you to pick between the different polar patterns that the Quantum Stream Studio has, much like the Blue Yeti can do. These are accessed with a button on the bottom side of the mic, marked with a P. Click it in, and it’ll change the pattern with ease.
On the top of the Quantum Stream Studio’s chassis is a big mic mute panel, which operates as more of a pad than a button. Press on the mic mute icon, and the LED on the top changes from green to red, giving you a convenient visual indication that no one can hear you. You do have to be quite precise with your finger placement to ensure the microphone mutes, as pressing anywhere but directly on the mic mute icon does nothing.
The back side is home to a USB-C port for connectivity, as well as that 3.5mm jack for monitoring. Interestingly, the Quantum Stream Studio itself doesn’t have a thread mount for putting elsewhere other than the desktop mount. However, the base of the desktop mount unscrews for putting into a standard boom arm mount. Nifty.
(Image credit: Future/Reece Bithrey)
JBL Quantum Stream Studio: Performance
Clear, full-bodied pickup
Versatile with four pickup patterns
Basic software configuration
Out of the box, the Quantum Stream Studio offers reasonably solid pickup with decent clarity and body. The default cardioid pickup pattern is best suited for vocals and instruments and provides good comms in both chatting with friends over Discord, in-game chats on Counter-Strike 2, and when testing in Audacity for recording my own dulcet tones.
The initial thesis with the cardioid pickup pattern is that with it picking up noise solely from the front, it should reject noise from the back and sides. However, at least in this pattern, the noises of my custom mechanical keyboard a few inches away from the back of the microphone were picked up. The distinct lack of any form of noise cancellation or rejection is a shame, especially when other premium streaming microphones offer much better performance in this particular area.
The other polar patterns are less useful for individual recording, but they are useful if you’ve got multiple people involved to huddle around one microphone. The omnidirectional pattern means the Quantum Stream Studio will pick up sound from all directions, making it ideal for podcast recording with a singular microphone. It essentially opens up the soundstage, and isn’t the best for single-person recording, picking up a lot more background noise.
(Image credit: Future/Reece Bithrey)
There’s also a bidirectional pattern, where the microphone captures inputs from the front and back – ideal for one-on-one interviewing. This option did a solid job of isolating noise elsewhere than the front and back in testing. The final pickup mode is arguably the most interesting, as the Quantum Stream Studio has a stereo mode, which can be used for recording instruments or if you’ve got two people on the same side of the microphone.
The mic’s software comes in the form of the Windows-only JBL Quantum Engine, which installs automatically when you first plug the Quantum Stream Studio in. As opposed to offering a plethora of customization with its own mixer, as SteelSeries’ GG does, the Quantum Stream Studio’s software is a bit more basic.
Quantum Engine allows for on-the-fly adjustment of the levels of gain and monitoring, as well as allowing you to choose the polar pattern. You can also customize the color of the lighting for the mic’s built-in level indicator which shows around the volume wheel on the front so you know you can be heard without being too loud. Otherwise, that’s pretty much it, apart from a cool graphic of the mic’s outline itself which rotates around in the bottom right corner.
(Image credit: Future/Reece Bithrey)
Should I buy the JBL Quantum Stream Studio?
Buy it if…
Don’t buy it if…
Also consider…
If you’re still not sold on the JBL Quantum Stream Studio, here’s how it stacks up against two similar options.
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Row 0 – Cell 0
JBL Quantum Stream Studio
Blue Yeti
HyperX DuoCast
Price
$149.99 / £129.99 / AU$199.95
$129.99 (around £100 / AU$180)
$99/about £80/AU$140
Polar pattern
Cardioid, bidirectional, omnidirectional, stereo
Cardioid
Cardioid, omnidirectional
Sample rates
44.1 kHz / 48 kHz / 96 kHz / 192 kHz
48 kHz
44.1 kHz / 48 kHz / 96 kHz
Bit rate
16- / 24-bit
16-bit
24-bit
Frequency range
50Hz – 16kHz
20Hz – 20kHz
20Hz – 20kHz
Impedance
16 / 32 ohms
16 ohms
32 ohms
How I tested the JBL Quantum Stream Studio
I used the JBL Quantum Stream Studio as my main microphone for two weeks. I tested it with both Audacity for test recordings, as well as when chatting with friends over Discord and in games such as Counter-Strike 2 for in-game chats. I also made sure to install the additional software to best test its functionality on Windows.
If you’re paying out for YouTube Premium every month, there are five new features now rolling out for you to take advantage of, covering YouTube Shorts, smart downloads, improved navigation, and – of course – AI.
As explained in a post on the official YouTube blog, the new features aim to give you more control over your YouTube experience. The post also mentions that the number of YouTube Premium and YouTube Music Premium subscribers now exceeds 100 million.
First up is a new skip feature, available now to US users on Android (and coming to iOS soon). If you double-tap to skip ahead, you’ll see a button that takes you right to the most popular part of the video, direct. We’d previously heard that such a feature was being tested, and there’s more on how it works here.
Then there’s picture-in-picture support for YouTube Shorts, available now on Android devices. This adds to the picture-in-picture experience that’s already offered for standard videos, and means you can up your multitasking game.
Still experimental
Some new features are still labeled as experimental (Image credit: Future)
The other three new features are all labeled as experimental, and can be accessed and enabled on the web. You can choose to enable smart downloads for YouTube Shorts, for example, so you’ve always got some bite-sized content to watch, even offline.
Then there’s conversational AI, for Android users in the US. This means you can ask an AI bot questions about the video you’re watching, via the Ask button underneath it. This is in addition to the AI summaries that YouTube Premium subscribers can already access.
And the last experimental feature is a redesigned watch page, which rejigs how video and other page furniture (including the comments) gets shown on screen. As with all of these experimental features, you have the option to leave feedback, good or bad.
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While these new upgrades aren’t particularly big on their own, together with the other perks of YouTube Premium, it all adds up. A subscription to the service currently costs $14 / £12 / AU$17 a month, and includes YouTube Music Premium.
It’s Samsung’s newest OLED and five-star rated in our Samsung S95D review so this $400 discount that drops it to the lowest price yet is not to be missed. The S95D is a sought-after model as it offers Pantone-validated color, Real Depth Enhancer, and a heap more options to guarantee incredible picture quality and performance whatever you’re watching or playing.
Today’s best Samsung TV deal
The Samsung 65-inch S95 OLED TV is the TV you’ve dreamed of owning. It’s refined OLED technology so that you don’t have to worry about awkward glare (something that torments me with my older OLED), while its colors look exceptional through OLED HDR Pro and Pantone-validated colors. Samsung’s Real Depth Enhancer mirrors how the human eye processes depth by increasing foreground contrast.
Sound is also great with Dolby Atmos and Object Tracking Sound+ ensuring you feel drawn into whatever you’re watching or playing by feeling like sound is all around you. When gaming, there’s also Motion Xcelerator 144Hz which smooths out the action even when things get fast and potentially blurry.
The Samsung 65-inch S95 OLED TV is even beautifully designed as it has a ‘floating’ appearance so it’ll look good in your living space. Samsung tops our look at the best TV brands because, of course it does. It’s a great all-rounder and the best Samsung TVs easily overlap with the best TVs overall.
As well as the 4th of July TV sales, there are some exciting Prime Day deals coming up too which mean further discounts on top tech. We’re expecting to see some excellent TV deals across cheap, budget and premium sets, while there will be some special OLED TV deals around too.
