Latest research suggests home entertainment will continue to ride a wave of popularity and the expected recovery of cinemas – buffeted in some countries almost to the point of closure because of Covid-19 – could be in question.
It was a result which surprised leading big TV and projector experts Samsung: in New Zealand, their research showed 56 per cent of households expressed interest in Samsung's new Premiere projector – which can play onto a giant 130-inch screen.
"We weren't expecting that," says Samsung's Head of Marketing Consumer Electronics, Adam McElroy, "even though there has been a clear shift to big TV screens and home entertainment during the pandemic."
The Premiere laser system boasts a new level of startling cinematic quality at home and its two models ($7999 and $12,999) reflect that quality.
Forecasts around the globe have predicted cinemas will stage something of a revival as vaccinations take effect and things become closer to normal. But McElroy says the research results show that the vast changes in New Zealand households might be here to stay – with home entertainment a big part of the way Kiwis adjusted their spending and lifestyles to cope with Covid-19.
Now, he says, the move to cinematic quality home theatre is gathering pace: "I hope cinema does not go anywhere. I love going to the movies – it's a unique communal experience. But it's becoming obvious Kiwis have realised they have an opportunity at home to access a huge library of cinema-quality content, much of it that you can't see in the cinemas.'
It's also clear, he says, Kiwis have latched on to streaming's new ethic – people want to watch when they are ready, not according to anyone else's schedule.
"What the research has shown us is that there is a large segment of Kiwis interested in a cinematic experience at home. That's been clear from the growth figures as people move up in TV screen size (the 55-inch TV, the most popular size in 2019, has almost halved in terms of desirability, with buyers' focus shifting to bigger sets like 60-, 65-, 75- and 82-inch, in 2021).
"Now we are seeing heightened interest in the full, cinema-scale viewing experience. Part of the reason for that is that the likes of Amazon, Disney and Netflix are making movies with cinema-scale budgets which cry out for a cinema-quality viewing experience."
Samsung's Premiere seems a big step in that direction. It's 4k pictures are extremely sharp and colourful for such a big field of vision but the projector itself is compact.
Previously, projectors conjured up images of bulky, heavy machines which had to be hung from the ceiling and which demanded a big room to view them in. No more, it seems. The Premiere is about the size of a standard briefcase – and you don't need to be a civil engineer to set it up. It can sit just 24cm out from a wall and McElroy says a projector screen isn't required if the home has a "nice white wall".
"Matter of fact, that's what we did when we launched it," he says. "We set it up in an apartment and projected onto a wall – and everyone there was just amazed at the picture quality and size of the image.
"If you think about it, a 130-inch image is like having four 65-inch TVs set up, two up and two across."
Not only is the Premiere portable – Mc Elroy says you can easily unplug it and put it away until next time – it is easy to operate as any of today's Smart TVs with which it shares the same menus, apps and functionality. It can also connect easily with a smartphone, casting content to the huge screen.
McElroy says the Premiere's other big step forwards is sound – with cinema quality sound from 4.2 channel 40-watt speakers and Acoustic Beam technology which uses 22 holes to distribute a deep and rich room-filling sound, maximising left and right to create "an unparalleled immersive experience".
Other features include:
- Filmmaker mode - Designed to keep the picture as true to the director's vision as possible, Filmmaker Mode helps remove motion smoothing and other post-processing treatments.
- Game mode – reduces lag time, essential in gaming, and recognises the genre of game, whether it is a racing game or a first person shooter game, adjusting the viewing experience accordingly.
Various media reports of home entertainment systems versus the cinema experience have forecast a mixture of both will prevail. McElroy hopes that is so and notes that many of the movie studios have worked out deals with cinemas in the US, for example – giving varying periods of time before movie releases move onto digital channels after cinema-only screenings.
But there will still be a lot of day-and-date releases (when a movie is launched in cinemas and on streaming outlets at the same time) and McElroy says: "I think many people will do both – but, that said, there is no doubt in my mind that in New Zealand the trend is shifting towards home cinema."
Learn more at samsung.co.nz