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Make any room a cinema with new portable projector and AirPlay

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With this projector, you can use AirPlay or ChromeCast to project a big screen almost anywhere.
With this projector, you can use AirPlay or ChromeCast to project a big screen almost anywhere.
Photo: BenQ

Want to create an immersive cinematic experience almost anywhere? Now you can with the GV31 Portable Projector BenQ released earlier this month.

With built-in Netflix and Android TV among other streaming options, the 1080p projector can stream on walls or ceilings via AirPlay from your Mac, iPad or iPhone, or from Android devices via ChromeCast.

Netflix games on TVs will use iPhones as controllers

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Netflix games on TVs will use iPhones as controllers
A just-announced Netflix cloud gaming service will bring games to TVs, as well as Mac and Windows.
Graphic: Netflix

Netflix games (remember Netflix games?) are finally expanding beyond iPhone and Android. The streaming service has begun testing its games on TVs and computers, too, via a cloud-gaming service.

A unique aspect of the upcoming service is that gamers playing on a TV will be able to use their iPhone or other handset as a controller.

Netflix’s crackdown on password sharing expands to the US

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Netflix Downloads for You puts suggested shows right onto your iPhone
Netflix's crackdown on password sharing arrives in the US.
Photo: Netflix

Netflix’s crackdown on password sharing has arrived in the US. Going forward, your friends or family members will have to pay extra to stream content from Netflix if they were leeching from your account.

Netflix’s new account-sharing rules require all members to reside in the same household.

Netflix’s password-sharing crackdown expands to US soon

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Netflix Downloads for You puts suggested shows right onto your iPhone
The time to pay for your own Netflix account is coming.
Photo: Netflix

Netflix’s restrictive new account-sharing policy will go live in the United States in the first half of 2023. The streaming company started cracking down on password sharing in New Zealand, Portugal, Canada and Spain earlier this year.

It is fairly common for friends and family members to share a Netflix account among themselves. With its new account-sharing rules, the company wants to clamp down on such behavior.

The real reason Brits don’t watch Ted Lasso

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Not many Brits watch
Not many Brits watch "Ted Lasso," but it's not necessarily for reasons of taste.
Photo: Apple TV+

The smash-hit Apple TV+ comedy Ted Lasso is set in greater London. It’s about the unlikely coach of a fictional team in England’s (and the world’s) top soccer league, which is England’s (and the world’s) favorite sport. So why don’t Brits actually watch the show?

No, it’s not some disconnect between American and British humor. The real reason has more to do with adoption of the streaming service itself. And some people blame Apple TV+ for that.

Spatial audio comes to many more Netflix movies and shows

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Spatial audio for Apple TV in tvOS 15
Lean back and enjoy a film on Netflix in spatial audio.
Photo: Apple

Netflix greatly increased the amount of its most-popular content with support for spatial audio, which lets the tv shows and films offer a surround sound-like experience but without all the speakers.

But the enhanced sound is not for every subscriber. The streaming service is using spatial audio as a way to tempt viewers to its Premium plan.

Fix is on the way for Apple TV users who can’t access Netflix ad-supported plan

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Commercials are coming to Netflix
Apple TV is currently unable to access the cheap new Netflix ad-supported plan.
Photo: Netflix/Cult of Mac

The inexpensive new Netflix “Basic with ads” plan launched Thursday, but users of Apple TV quickly discovered they couldn’t access it. Netflix promised a fix, though.

Users of other devices can now watch the streaming service for only for $6.99 a month, as long as they also watch commercials.

Netflix ad-supported plan costs just $7

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Commercials are coming to Netflix
You'll soon be able to get Netflix at a lower cost by watching commercials.
Photo: Netflix/Cult of Mac

The price of Netflix dropped like a rock for those willing to watch commercials. The streaming service announced Thursday that its new ad-supported subscription plan is only $6.99 a month – 30% to 55% below the current cost.

The new option will debut in November 2022. It’ll then be a cheaper option for enjoying a large library of shows and movies on a Mac, iPad or Apple TV.

Netflix advert-supported plan could cost just $7

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Commercials are coming to Netflix
You'll soon be able to get Netflix at a lower cost by watching commercials.
Photo: Netflix/Cult of Mac

The price of Netflix is going way down … if you’re willing to watch commercials. When the streaming service revealed that it’s prepping an advertising-supported option for subscribers, it didn’t reveal how much it will cost. The price has now leaked out, and it might be 30% to 55% below the current cost.

The new option could debut before the end of 2022.