What TV Resolution do you Need?

I want to begin by saying that I love my 85-inch 4K Sony television. The picture is amazing and the screen is huge. Being a Sony employee I get discounts on our electronic products and so I didn't have to pay full price. Before that I had a 60-inch 1080p Sony television that had the added benefit of being passive 3D. That is the same technology used in movie theaters so when I wanted more glasses, I could just bring the ones from the movie theater home with me. So the question is if I notice a difference and if I think an 8K television would be better.

First I have to say that I like the larger screen but that is not what I want to focus on today. I have a large theater room in my house and the 85-inches fits perfectly. The size of the television is constrained by where you will put it. If you are in a small apartment, 50-inches may be perfect. If you are sitting within a few feet of the screen, 85-inches is definitely too large.

Resolution is a different metric than size and refers to the number of pixels on the screen. Your standard television from 30 years ago had a resolution of 640x480. That is not very many pixels and it is tough to go back to those old displays now. The picture quality is not that great. Now try to go back and watch an old VHS video cassette. That resolution came in at 320x240 and is painful to watch now.

A 1080p screen means there are 1920x1080 pixels and became the gold standard for televisions about 10 years ago. We also moved from a 4x3 aspect ratio to 16x9 which created a wider screen but that is yet another metric we don't need to focus on. Let's stick with just the number of pixels on most screens.

I remember attending an internal Sony technology fair about 10 years ago and seeing the first 4K televisions. The pictures looked very lifelike and made great demos. I wondered how long it would take for content to become available as a 4K screen has as many pixels as 4 1080p ones. That means videos are that much larger and streaming services require that much more bandwidth to send them to you.

It didn't take long for content to arrive but did it really? Your common Blu-ray player is limited to 1080p. If you want to see anything in true 4K, you have to upgrade to the newer 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player found in the PlayStation 5. Now you can try to stream that high resolution but the reality is that you won't get true 4K content. A streaming service like Netflix requires you to have the the premium service and all of your devices have to support 4K. Then you have to have the right Internet connection. The truth is that you will rarely see 4K content from any streaming service provider. That doesn't mean it is impossible, just rare.

People use televisions for more than just watching things. I used to spend a lot of time gaming and higher resolution monitors provide an advantage. While some games don't support the higher resolution, some do and they look amazing. I also have a 4K television that I have connected to my Mac computer and I like having that much screen real estate. It allows a lot of open windows at the same time.

So what resolution do you really need? If all you are doing is watching television and movies, your 1080p is just fine. I would not go out and buy a new TV. Now if something happened to your old television and it is time to get a new one, I would definitely recommend one that is 4K. I had a TV go bad in my vacation condo that I rent out and I replaced it with a 4K one. Yes I had to spend a little more but it should last awhile.

If you are big into gaming or use your television as a computer monitor, I highly recommend 4K and wouldn't even look at a lower resolution. Furthermore I would make sure the minimum size of my computer monitor is 43 inches. Smaller than that and you have to sit too close to the screen for it to be comfortable. My wife has a 4K monitor connected to her laptop that is 32 inches and she has reduced the resolution as it is too small at true 4K.

Now some of you are probably wondering if you need an 8K TV. Currently Sony does not make one and so you have to look at other manufacturers. Because of that, I won't be buying one soon. Furthermore there is little to no content available for them. Remember that 8K is like having 4 4K TV's. That minimum 43-inch monitor explodes to 86 inches if you want to use it as a computer monitor. That won't even fit on my desk. My neck hurts just thinking about it.

Eventually I may change my mind. As bandwidth from Internet providers increases and content becomes available, the change may make sense. I just don't see it right now. Should I need a new TV any time soon, I'll stick with 4K for now.  

Using AI Appropriately

I had the pleasure of helping develop the PlayStation 5 video-game console when I worked in Research and Development at Sony Interactive Entertainment. One of the advantages of the hardware is that the file system is fast enough so it is not necessary to keep multiple copies of digital assets. What does that mean? When you create a virtual world, it is made up of a number of digital assets such as trees, rocks, buildings, or any number of other things we find in the real world. Most of the time, those assets are used over and over again. For the sake of an example, a forest is made up of a lot of trees. There may be only 5 different tree models created for a game and then they are reused many times to give the illusion of a forest. With the PS4, game designers would copy those 5 trees hundreds of times. That isn't necessary on a PS5 as you can have just the 5 tree types and point back to each one on the file system any time you need it. Assuming each tree requires 4KB of memory (an arbitrary value pulled out of thin air) and you have 1000 of each tree in a game, the PS4 would require 4MB for each tree used while the PS5 only needs 4KB. Theoretically PS5 games should be significantly smaller than for other game consoles. This becomes very helpful for games like Red Dead Redemption 2 that required 2 Blu-ray disks for the game. For physical game disks, it saves a bit of money and for digital downloads, they don't take as long to put on your system.

So what does that have to do with using AI appropriately? It boils down to why game developers only make 5 tree models. Most gamers don't slow down and look at every tree in a forest to see if it is different than all the others. So why take the time to create more than 5? If you can throw the problem at a generative AI program, you can let it create hundreds of different trees. This provides a level of uniqueness currently missing in a lot of games. This totally eliminates the benefit of the PS5 over other gaming consoles as its games once again become bloated. The reality is that while the PS5 doesn't require duplication of digital assets doesn't mean game studios are using the feature. You will still find copies of digital assets spread throughout quite a few games. Why not make the games more unique?

I have been thinking about this issue for the past couple of days and came up with another area where the use of AI should be applied. I walked through my kitchen this morning to get myself some breakfast. My floor is a high-quality laminate with a simulated pine surface. While pine is great looking, it is a very soft wood and makes horrible flooring that is easily scratched and dented. Using a high-quality laminate allows it to be almost indestructible yet look beautiful. The downside to a laminate is that there are only about 5 patterns on the boards. They repeat quite often and if you look closely you notice a lot of the boards are the same. The laminate floor company could use AI to create 100 different patterns instead of just 5. This would create a much more unique floor.

Yes these two solutions for generative AI don't seem to be high priority. After all if they were, companies would spend the effort to make their products more unique. The beauty of using AI is that products can become more unique and special without humans having to spend more time making it happen. You will still need those humans to fine-tune what is generated but their time can be spent being creative and not doing repetitive and mundane tasks.

 

With Computers, Heat is Your Enemy

When it comes to computers, heat is an enemy. I recently visited my youngest son in Ohio and enjoyed an evening of watching him play Spider-Man 2. The way he has his PS5 set up is that it sits in a television stand below his TV. His stand has doors on it and so when he plays, he has to open the doors to make sure the console has enough airflow to remain cool. When he forgets to open the doors, it gets really hot and the PS5's fan sounds like a jet engine. Continuing to run the console could cause damage and render it useless.

When I worked in Research and Development at Sony Interactive Entertainment, the PlayStation 5 early development kits took many precautions to ensure they didn't overheat. I can't go into too many details because of my existing confidentiality agreement but we always worried. about heat. The consumer units have been designed to withstand a lot, but they are not designed to run in an enclosed space without proper cooling.

The PlayStation 5 is similar to high-end home computer systems. Both need to be appropriately cooled. This means ensuring there is good airflow around intake and exhaust vents. Dust needs to be cleaned from fans and airways. Basically you should constantly evaluate your computer setup and make sure nothing has changed that would create an overheating hazard.

Video Games for Younger Kids

My 6-year old grandson loves to come over and play video games. This is not a new thing as he has done it for the past couple of years. Sunday when he came over, it took him all of 3 seconds after walking in the door to ask to play video games. Of course we spent some time with everyone eating a nice dinner my wife prepared. Then after my grandson helped with dishes, we headed into the TV room and played, "Lego Harry Potter Collection."

The Lego-branded video games are a cross between dexterity and puzzle solving. That means I wouldn't start with it for smaller kids. There are much better choices. One of the launch games for the PS4 was Knack and while created to show off the new features of the console, It is a great game for kids. I actually prefer Knack II for younger kids and think most 4-year olds can pick it up easily when playing with someone older in 2-player mode. It has the advantage that if one player is new and doesn't know where to go, the player is transported to the same location as the more advanced player. This feature comes in handy when the youngster surpasses the adult in ability.

I find that when I complete a video game, I am not eager to repeat it. That isn't the case with young children. My grandson has completed Knack II and we are back at it again going through the story one more time. That is important to remember as an expensive game will get more than one play through. Unfortunately the Knack series of games is only available on the PlayStation consoles.

Another game that my grandson loves to play is another PlayStation exclusive called, "Sackboy A Big Adventure." It is part of the Little Big Planet series of games and is another great game for 2 people to play. He started playing it with his dad but knows that I also own the game and he will sometimes ask to play it when he comes over. This is one game where my grandson is better at it than I am.

My son won a contest at work and received a Nintendo Switch console so he has that in addition to a PlayStation 5. Before I started working at Sony, we had a Nintendo 64 that my kids grew up playing. There is a lot of content specific to the Nintendo platforms that is great for smaller children. When I go over to my grandson's house, he is always trying to get me to play on the Nintendo. I think the current favorite is Super Mario 3D World. Then there is always Mario Kart that everyone loves.

Video games can be addicting and so it is important to set limits, especially with small children. An hour a day is about the maximum amount you should allow and it doesn't need to be a daily ritual. I play with my grandson only about once a week. I also would not start a game and then abandon a small child to play alone. I look at video games as a way to bond with the younger generation and it is something I can do with my grandchildren now. I don't know how long it will last but it is fun and one of the reasons my grandson loves coming over.

PlayStation 5 Consoles Available

I just received an e-mail from Sony Interactive Entertainment letting me know that they have PlayStation 5 consoles available for purchase. You can go to https://direct.playstation.com and buy one without having to wait in line. It even ships to your home.

I know that COVID caused some severe supply chain interruptions but having to wait 2 years for the latest video game consoles seems a bit excessive. Knowing that there is finally enough product to meet consumer demand is encouraging. Hopefully it signals the end of supply shortages for automobiles as well.

Please remember that I used to work for PlayStation and am a fan of their product so I am not completely unbiased.

Christmas Ideas for 2022

Every year I try to post ideas for Christmas gifts related to computers and technology. I find it gets harder ever year as I try to come up with new ideas. After all, it is not hard to go back through old postings and see my recommendations from previous years. So what are some new ideas this year?

New Video Game Console - Yes I used to work for Sony PlayStation and now I work for another part of Sony and so it is easy to expect I would recommend picking up a PlayStation 5. They are still hard to find but not impossible. I have also seen several deals on the XBox Series X and Series S consoles. Which one you get really depends upon the person you are getting it for. If it is for your son and all his friends have XBox consoles, he will want to play online games with them and so I recommend an XBox. If all your son's friends play on the PlayStation then go for that console. I do not recommend just getting a new console because you found one in stock. Make sure it is the console that is wanted.

Video Games - Here you have a lot to choose from. Be sure to ask those probing questions about if there is a game the person on your list wants to start playing. I am not a fan of sports games and so I would be disappointed with one. I am an anomaly though and so don't base a game purchase off my preferences. Find out what games are wanted and then try to find a great deal on them. If you have no idea what to get and that someone on your list is a fan of Star Wars, I highly recommend "LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga" as it has games for all 9 movies. That is on my list this year.

A Quadcopter or Drone - When I worked in Research and Development at PlayStation we had a number of quadcopters on the floor and would race them around the office. It was a lot of fun. DJI has emerged as the drone vendor of choice and they make quality stuff. There are quite a few models to choose from and which one you get is determined by your budget and list of features. If it is a first drone, I recommend a budget version. More than likely it will meet with tragedy and you will know if it is a good replacement gift for next year.

Portable Bluetooth Speaker - I have a number of Portable Bluetooth speakers scattered throughout the house and use them all the time. Both my wife and I have small ones that put out nice sound and are great when you don't want to wear headphones or ear buds. They can range in price from $40 all the way up to $100's. I wouldn't suggest any lower than $40 unless you are willing to gamble with quality.

Another Robot Vacuum - My house has multiple levels and our current robot vacuum cannot go up or down stairs. To solve that problem my wife will carry the robot to another level and let it run until the battery dies. A better solution is to have a robot vacuum for each level of the house. Don't tell my wife, but that is probably what she is getting this year.

Hopefully there are some new ideas in this year's list and I have helped you out. If not, feel free to leave a comment about what you think would make a great gift.

Video Game Review: Horizon Forbidden West

Friday night my wife went to dinner with her siblings. I opted to stay home and finish up Horizon Forbidden West. What a great game! Now I am probably partial as I used to work for PlayStation and this is an exclusive title that I got for free when one of my former colleagues gave me a download code as a parting gift from the company. I also played the precursor Horizon Zero Dawn all the way through and enjoyed it so much I earned every trophy in the game (also known as Platinuming).

At the end of Horizon Zero Dawn you discover there is more to the story and another cataclysmic event about to happen to earth. Horizon Forbidden West is that continuation. You continue to play as Aloy and move from the Intermountain West to the West Coast of the United States. There are new lands to explore and more people to discover that are even more bloodthirsty than the previous game. Naturally you show your excellent fighting skills and are immediately accepted by everyone except the bad guys who try to kill you. While you pretty much have combat mastered with the robot dinosaurs from the previous game, you get to meet more advanced versions as well as superior robots with an extraterrestrial origin. The only downside is you don't get to keep your invincible armor from the first game. Its batteries are dead and that became a foreshadowing of what would happen to me in a lot of battles . . . I died.

If you enjoyed the first game, you probably will the second as well. There are various quests to complete and friends to meet along the way. Not all weapons are created equal and so be sure to use your interactions to learn about what works best for you. My son ran through the game and focused on the main story at the expense of side quests. I found those extra missions added to the story and I enjoyed searching out different areas in the hopes of gaining experience. When it came time for the final battle, I did very well and sort of breezed through it. I think I enjoyed the game much more than my son.

Today I got an e-mail from PlayStation congratulating me on my accomplishment of finishing the main story of the game. They also reported that I spent 116 hours playing the game and earned 47 trophies. I still have 14 more to go to Platinum the game and will probably do that over the next week or so. My son's total hours played came in at much less than that. I guess I took my time.

Horizon Forbidden West has an ESRB rating of T for Teen because of language, mild sexual themes, and violence. To be honest I didn't notice any strong language but I am sure it was there. As for violence, there is a lot of that and the blood to go with it. The story also includes hints at same-gender relationships, hence the mild sexual theme warning.

I highly recommend this game to anyone looking for a 100 hours of pure entertainment. If I had not gotten a free copy of the game, I would have had no problem paying the $65 when it first came out so I could play it on my PS5. It is also available on the PS4.

I Have a Spare PS5

Last week I received an e-mail from PlayStation letting me know I would be given the opportunity to purchase a PlayStation 5 at the manufacturer's suggested retail price. On Wednesday, I was told to log into the PlayStation Direct site on Thursday at noon using a special link to purchase the PS5. At 12:01pm on Thursday, I logged in and found myself in a virtual queue waiting to purchase the coveted console. I was told the line was about an hour long. 10 minutes later, I was let in and purchased the device. It then arrived at my house on Saturday at 1:25pm.

This is my second PS5 and so I didn't purchase it for myself as I already have one. I got it for any of my family or friends that want one and didn't want to pay the scalpers for it. So far, nobody has taken me up on my offer to sell it to them for what I paid, $536.24. I used to work for Sony Interactive Entertainment and am contractually not allowed to sell it for a higher price than I paid. While I no longer work for PlayStation, I do work for Sony and am honoring the agreement just to be sure. I would hate to have Sony cut off my account, which is something they could easily do.

I sent out messages to all of my family members on Saturday and everyone declined my offer. Next I talked to a few people that have expressed interest in the past about getting a PS5. They are still thinking about it. I am reluctant to advertise too widely about my device as I don't want someone buying it only to turn around and resell it for a profit. I looked at the usual retail sites like Walmart, Gamestop, Best Buy, Target, and a few others only to confirm the console is still hard to find. It is.

If you can convince me you will keep the PS5 for your own use and not resell it for a profit, you are welcome to buy it from me for the price I paid.

No Internet for an Evening

I got home from work yesterday and while eating dinner with my wife I received a text message from my Internet provider. They apologized that my service was down but were doing everything they could to restore it. They had an estimated time of the problem being resolved in an hour. I finished eating, did the dishes, and then wondered how best to use my time.

Lately I have been playing Horizon: Forbidden West on my PlayStation 5. I have the game downloaded to my console and so I thought I would try to see if I could play it. Nope because before the game will start, the PS5 checks the entitlement database to make sure I have permission. Without the Internet connection, that information couldn't be verified. If I had a physical disk for the game, I could have played it but I was given the electronic version for free. I will be sure to purchase physical copies of games in the future for this reason.

I thought about watching a movie as I have a huge DVD and Blu-ray library and it is impossible to stream a movie without an Internet connection. Ultimately that would have just been filling time and so I looked at other activities. I thought about practicing guitar, which is something I do every evening. Sometimes I use Rocksmith on my PS4 and I have a physical disk for that game. Instead I decided to go for a walk with my wife. That is something else I do every evening and last night I did it a bit earlier than usual. The only downside being the warmer temperature as I like to wait for the sun to go down a bit more during the summer months.

My wife and I returned from our walk and our Internet was working again. By then, I had no interest in the activities that required me being online. I practiced guitar and then watched broadcast news before turning in for the night.

This morning I woke up and didn't really think much of the lack of Internet last night. At the time though I felt myself scrambling for worthwhile activities. Truth be told, the walk I took was probably more worthwhile than anything else I could have done online.

Network Issues on the PlayStation 5

A few weeks ago I noticed that my PS5 kept dropping its network connection. While it wasn't a big deal for solitary gaming, it sure made watching a streaming movie tough. My WiFi access point had been having some issues and so I had spent time fixing that. Unfortunately that did not resolve the issue with the PS5. I was in a troubleshooting mood and so I spent some time searching the Internet for similar issues that others may have had.

I came across a number of posts where other PS5 owners kept having the console drop their WiFi connections. The solution was to turn off automatic frequency selection and limit the WiFi to just 2.4 GHz. The frequencies available to WiFi are either 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz with the faster speeds generally found on 5 GHz. While the PS5 has the hardware to take advantage of the higher frequency, the software engineers did a poor job of implementing support for it. That just means once a patch is made available, PS5 owners will be able to go back to 5 GHz.

I gave the solution a shot and regained my stable WiFi connection. Ultimately that was not the problem though. The fix worked because my new television also has WiFi capability and it turns out that the TV and PS5 kept interfering with each other. I really would like to go back to the 5 GHz signal for the PS5 and so I looked if I could set the TV to use 2.4 GHz but cannot.

Forcing the WiFi connection on the PS5 to 2.4 GHz seems to be working for now but I look forward to the day when I can go back to 5 GHz WiFi. At least I can watch a whole movie without it pausing while the stream buffers.

Video Game Review: Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order

Before the pandemic started, I had my buddy that used to work at Electronic Arts (EA) purchase me a copy of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order for the PlayStation 4. I then payed him back the $20 for the game and brought it home. My youngest son found the unopened copy of the game and asked if he could borrow it. I was finishing up another game at the time and so I loaned it to him. Naturally he redeemed the code inside for the extra goodies and ended up paying me for the game while he kept it for about a year. He then loaned it to my older son who played it for quite awhile.

With not being able to go to the office to get another copy for myself, I was feeling a bit left out. Then my oldest son let me know the game was on sale at the PlayStation store for about the same price as my friend could get it for me. Naturally I jumped on the store and picked up an electronic copy to download. I just finished playing it and am glad I finally got the chance to run through the game.

Jedi Fallen Order is an open-world adventure game which is a genre I really like to play. It is not nearly as complex as Horizon Zero Dawn or any of the recent Far Cry games. While there are some puzzles to solve and plenty of combat, it doesn't have all of the complex gathering and crafting. You have some echos and collectibles to find but they are minor parts of the story, unlike in other games.

If you are a fan of the Star Wars movies, you will love this game. It takes place just before the original Star Wars movie and has a pretty interesting story line that adds insight into saga. You also get to explore some of the planets in the Star Wars universe. It took me about 70 hours to complete the game and I played it on my PlayStation 5 even though it was created for the PS4.

The game has an ESRB rating of T for Teen due to some mild language and violence. After all, you do run around with a light sabre slicing droids, storm troopers, and creatures in half. I would have no problem letting my grand kids watch while I play this game. The fact that you don't have a complex crafting system also makes it easier for younger audiences should they wish to play.

I found the game to be very enjoyable and recommend it to anyone that is a fan of the Star Wars movies. Towards the end, it did get to be a bit redundant but less so than many other games I have played. There is still a lot I can do should I wish to platinum the game (get every single trophy or achievement) but I also have a lot of other games that I am interested in playing. I paid about $20 for the game and feel you get a lot of entertainment for that price.

Getting the Most out of my PlayStation 5

When I first got my PlayStation 5, I kept it on my desk in my home office as I used it for work. Now that I am no longer working for Sony Interactive Entertainment, I have moved it into my theater room. I now have it connected to my brand-new 85-inch television. Unfortunately it was not as simple as plugging it into my TV as I had to also connect it to my surround-sound system.

Yesterday I posted about the importance of refresh rates and why 120 frames per second or Hz is significant for the latest televisions. I want to preserve the high refresh rate from my PlayStation 5 and that just isn't possible if I plug it into my current television receiver which is then connected to the TV. My receiver only supports 60 Hz at 4K and I do not want to spend money replacing it right now. I probably will in the future but for now I want to keep using it. So how do I keep the high video quality and also keep the high sound quality?

I can't take full credit for this as my oldest son helped me figure it out. The solution is to use the audio return channel or eARC HDMI output from the television. The high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) has been around for over 15 years and has evolved to allow for various scenarios like this. When I set up my PlayStation 5, I plugged it directly into my new television using one of it's two HDMI 2.1 interfaces. The second is used to connect the TV to the receiver. Now what happens is the picture and sound are sent to the television from the PS5. The sound is then sent back to the receiver for that shake-the-neighbors experience. HDMI works both ways so that any devices connected to the receiver use that same HDMI interface into the television.

One would think that with a PS5 I wouldn't need to connect any other device. It streams video, has a DVD drive, a Blu-ray drive, and can play 4K Blu-ray disks. I also have a PS4 Pro connected to a PlayStation VR as well as an old VHS video cassette player, from Sony, of course. The moment you connect your PS VR to your PS4, you lose the ability to play games in 4K without having to swap cables. Rather than deal with that, I just kept my PS4 Pro and use it with my PS VR. I also use it to play video games with my grandson and keep a healthy mix of age-appropriate games loaded on it. As for the VHS tapes, their quality is really horrible even with 4K upscaling. You never know when you may need to watch an old video though.

My son and I connected everything and then started watching Return of the Jedi on Disney+. While we enjoy the movie, we wanted to make sure the sound and picture were in sync. After all, nothing ruins the experience of a movie when you hear an explosion before you see it. The lip movement not matching the dialog can also be really annoying, which is why I prefer subtitles to dubbing for non-English movies. Fortunately both the TV and the receiver have mechanisms for delaying one or the other. In my case, the sound led the picture. I went into the receiver settings and added a 10ms delay. That improved things somewhat but wasn't perfect. I upped the delay to 20ms and everything synced perfectly. If it had been the other way around and the picture led the sound, I would have added the delay to the television.

Once we got the timing worked out on the PS5, I had to go in and check it on the PS4 and VHS cassette player. The PS4 is in sync but there is a 20ms delay on the VHS. I can turn off the delay setting in the receiver when I play video tapes to solve that problem. As I doubt I will watch a lot of VHS tapes, I'm fine not worrying about it. I can probably set custom parameters for each device and save them to the receiver but am fine with how things are set up now.

Should you find yourself with a new PS5 and an older receiver, just connect it directly to the television. Then use eARC to pull in your surround-sound receiver. You may have to adjust some settings but once you get it set up, you will be amazed at the quality.

The Importance of Television Refresh Rates

My new 85-inch television is awesome! Friday night we got everything configured correctly and then watched the latest version of the movie Dune. Having read the book and also having met Frank Herbert when I was very young, I am always interested in any movie about it. I have to say that this movie did not disappoint. It is very methodical in the storytelling and does a great job sticking to the book, at least as how I remember it. Should you wish to see the movie on HBO Max like I did, make sure you see it on a really large 4K television and also have an awesome sound system. I don't think my subwoofer has had that much of a workout since I bought it many years ago. If your house isn't rattling, your sound isn't loud enough.

One of the things that makes my television so great is its high refresh rate. Understanding the importance of refresh rate is very important to know why I setup my home theater system the way I did. So let's begin.

In the early days of movie making, industry pioneers discovered that the human eye sees pictures in motion at 24 frames per second. That means if you are shown a series of pictures at less than 24 per second, they will look like individual pictures. If you are shown at 24 or higher, it will look like smooth motion. Up until recently, all movies have stuck to the 24 frames per second refresh rate.

When television came along it used alternating current for power which, in the United States, is regulated at 60 Hertz or cycles per second. Rather than come up with complex circuitry to match the movie frame rate of 24, the engineers just divided frequency of the input power by 2 and set the television frame rate to 30. Besides 30 is more than 24 and shouldn't be noticeable to the viewer right? For the most part, that is true but it does create some difficulties when encoding a movie to be shown on television.

Now let's add video games and computers to the mix. The original home computer monitors were just televisions. As higher-end graphics cards and monitors emerged, 30 frames per second was no longer the best picture you could get. Kids raised on television could tell the difference between 30 frames per second and 60. Given about 5 minutes watching the two different signals, most people can and they prefer the higher frame rate. It actually turns into an advantage for those playing video games and so console makers started increasing frame rates. The current generation of video game consoles like the PlayStation 5, support 120 frames per second.

That higher frame rate comes in handy for video enhancements. My old 3D television used the higher frame rate to show the left-eye image followed by the right-eye image in the next frame. The glasses you wear block the right-eye image in the left eye and the left-eye image in the right. So even though the TV is showing the movie at 60 frames per second, you are only seeing the movie at 30 frames per second. If you want to see the movie at 60 frames per second, the TV needs to bump up to 120 Hz.

There is also another very important reason for having higher frame rates. While working on the PlayStation VR, we discovered that virtual reality glasses need to have the highest frame rate possible. VR allows you to move your head around and a low frame rate introduces lag into the picture. If you move your head slightly, the image doesn't quite match with what you see in real life. This induces motion sickness. We knew we were getting the right frame rates when we could do a short demo to a room full of executives and nobody threw up.

High frame rates are now very important at amusement parks. A few years ago, I attended a developer's conference put on by Sony PlayStation. One night we rented out the Hogwarts section of Universal Studios in the Los Angeles area. With only a few hundred people in the park, we had no lines and could ride the Hogwart's Castle ride over and over. If you have never been on it, it is a giant VR ride coupled with a roller coaster. Unfortunately they use a very low frame rate and most people are rather sick after the first go around. I rode it 3 times in a row and came very close to blowing chunks. I don't normally get motion sick as I am a sailor and have even sailed a boat from Hawaii to California through 2 hurricanes. When I get sick, that is bad. Several other coworkers were not so lucky and spent part of the night hunched over garbage cans clearing their stomachs.

Television frame rates keep getting higher and higher and there is a reason for it. As we enhance our entertainment experiences more and more, our televisions will need to keep up. Now if we can just get our high-end amusement parks to keep up, we won't find ourselves with motion sickness.

Silicon Slopes Summit 2021

Today I attended the second day of the Silicon Slopes Summit. I attended as a guest of another company and appreciate Lucid Software for inviting me to the event. I made sure to wear my PlayStation 5 jacket and got a lot of comments. I learned a lot and want to share some of that today.

When I first arrived, I made sure to register and get my wristband so I could move freely about the summit. One of the people there saw my jacket and asked if I work for PlayStation. I told him I did and he responded that he loves his PlayStation 5. Naturally I asked how he managed to get one and he gave me a good secret. He said that a local furniture chain (RC Wiley) has some in stock and you just need to ask if they have any. Sometimes people will get a PS5 ordered but then not be able to pay for it. If you get them on the right day, you can pick up a new console. I will have to check if that works. Fortunately it did for the guy I talked to.

Next I went to look for the Lucid booth so I could thank them for the ticket to the summit. It took me a bit because I couldn't find a map of the exhibits floor. I ended up walking around and eventually found them. While walking around, I had several people ask me if I worked for PlayStation. They all thought it was cool and had some good questions. The most common was why there is a shortage of consoles. The best answer I could give is that we are manufacturing them as quickly as possible but demand is more than anticipated.

I did a bit more walking around the floor and discovered that there are a lot of companies hiring in the Salt Lake area. Now is a great time to see about improving your job situation if you live here. I liked seeing what new technology companies are in the area.

Eventually I made my way to the presentation that drew me to the conference in the first place. I enjoyed what I saw and glad I could attend. Once I finished the presentation I boarded the train and headed home.

Looking forward to the next Silicon Slopes Summit, it is an event that I will plan to attend in the future. Should you find yourself in the area next year, I recommend setting aside some time so you can do the same.

Sometimes You Can Get a PS5

My youngest son sent me a text message saying that PlayStation Direct sent him an e-mail with an exclusive code to get a PlayStation 5. It is because he is a PlayStation Plus member and opted in for the chance to buy one as soon as it became available. I told him he should get it the moment he could as PS5's are still very hard to get. He didn't think he would and so I told him I would buy it off him if he didn't want it as I have a large number of people that are trying to get one but can't. I told him I wouldn't make any money off the deal but would do it as a service for someone.

My son decided to go for it and buy it knowing he wouldn't lose any money. He got in the queue at exactly the time he needed and ended up only waiting 20 minutes before being able to purchase the PS5. Two days later it arrived at his front door. I then got another text from him saying that I could have it when I come to see him in two weeks if he couldn't sell his current PS4. With the backwards compatibility of the PS5 he doesn't really need the PS4 any more and that can help offset the cost of the new console.

Only 5 minutes after that text I got another one saying that he had already sold his PS4. I asked him how much he got for it and he told me. Now he didn't pay anything for his PS4 as I gave it to him as a gift and so he really had no idea how much I paid for it. He ended up selling it for $100 more than I paid. Now I get a significant discount for them because I work for PlayStation, but that amazed me. He said he could justify the premium as he threw in his second controller and a few games. I'm still amazed.

On Thursday I saw an article saying that because of shipping delays you will want to start your Christmas shopping early. Fortunately my son got a special invitation and now has some of that shopping done. He also proved to me that it is possible to get one of the latest video game consoles.

Video Game Review: Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

Saturday morning I woke up early as I couldn't sleep. I got some breakfast and then headed into my office to finish up my latest video game: Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart. I knew I was close to the end as the game told me so. I got the message that once I started the next section of the game, I wouldn't be able to stop until I completed the game. With a whole Saturday before me, I started the final battle and finished the game in about 30 to 45 minutes. I actually expected it to take longer.

Unfortunately the latest Ratchet & Clank game is only available on the PlayStation 5 console and not everyone that wants one can get one. The only reason I have one is because I work for PlayStation and had the chance to get one on launch. I also received a copy of Rift Apart for free as it came from Insomniac which is part of my company. While I try not to let that influence my review, it probably does. My hope is that should some of you finally get your hands on a PS5 and look for games to play, you will be able to decide if the game is for you.

My two sons love the Ratchet & Clank games. They have ever since the PlayStation 2 days. Needless to say we have every Ratchet & Clank game. This is actually the first Ratchet & Clank game I have ever played all the way through. I have watched my sons play them but never really played more than a few hours. There was the one Christmas I played with my daughter but I never really completed any games. I have to say I enjoyed it a lot and am glad I finally played one of the titles to completion.

Ratchet & Clank games are fun for the whole family. Yes there is cartoon violence and so this game has an ESRB rating of E-10+, meaning it is for everyone but players should be at least 10 years old. Most of the violence is against robots and they are obviously bad guys. I would have no problem playing this with my 4-year-old grandson. In fact, my son did play it with him watching.

One of the things that used to confuse me watching my sons play the Ratchet & Clank games is the large number of weapons to choose from. By the end of Rift Apart, I had collected something like 20 different weapons. Each has their own strengths as well as stash of ammunition. The more you use a particular weapon, the more you can upgrade it. Ultimately it becomes an exercise in trying to find the merits of each weapon and use it appropriately. When you go to select a new weapon, all action stops. That allows you to take your time selecting the best tool for the job. It also allows you to let your pulse slow back to somewhat normal levels.

The story line for Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is a lot of fun. While there is a natural progression to things, you have the option of going back and finishing the task of finding collectibles in other parts of the story. I made sure to have everything collected and all parts of the story completed before beginning the final battle Saturday morning. I am also close to collecting every trophy from the game but am not yet sure if I will go back to try and platinum the game.

If you are looking for a fun game to play because you are a kid or want to play it with your kids, I highly recommend Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart. I consider myself to be a big kid which is why I enjoyed it so much. I can't really comment on the price of the game other than to say that I have a huge backlog of games to play and I prioritized it over a number of other great titles and am glad I did. If you can get your hands on a PS5, it is the favorite of all the PS5 games I have played so far.

An Evening Without Internet

Last night I lost my Internet service at the house. I first noticed it when my wife tried to look up an address on her smartphone so she could go get us a Christmas ham. Her phone had been having problems all day and so she thought it related to the mobile device. Fortunately my daughter mentioned that she also had connection problems on her laptop. I suggested that my wife turn WiFi off on her phone and see if she could get directions. Sure enough it worked and we now have a massive ham to celebrate the birth of someone that wouldn't have eaten ham. Anyways . . .

Spending an evening without Internet service is a bit tough in today's day and age. It really surprised me at how much I rely on my computers being able to connect to many others out there. I started with my PlayStation 5. I finished all of the tasks in Astro's Playroom and wanted to see what trophies I still needed to complete. PlayStation's trophy service requires being able to access the Internet.

Next I wanted to look up some potential investments. I have decided that it is time for me to get back into the stock market. For the past decade or so, I have relied on the expert of others to manage my investments. Back in my 30's I really enjoyed following individual companies and have opened an online trading account. I'll keep you posted if I do well or not but ultimately I couldn't do any research last night because of the lack of Internet. Too bad I don't get a copy the Wall Street Journal as I could have looked through that.

I thought about watching a Christmas movie but this year I have already seen the ones I have on DVD and Blu-ray. No Internet means no streaming video services and so I looked for other ways to kick off the first evening of my Holiday break. As the night wore on, I pulled out my guitar and Rocksmith only to be reminded that all of the extra songs I have purchased are not playable without a connection to the Internet to verify that I have the paid to play them. Sure Rocksmith comes with 60 songs but I wanted to rock out to all my Christmas ones. Instead I ended up playing my acoustic guitar with my songbook full of Christmas music.

Eventually my service provider got the Internet working again. I checked my e-mail and during the time that the Internet was down, I only received 2 messages which goes to show it wasn't down that long. However it still felt like an eternity.

To show how important the Internet is in our daily lives, I have the day off and here I am back on the Internet. Sure I got up and went skiing this morning at Snowbird. We got 16-inches of new snow last night and I had one spectacular run in untracked snow before the crowds destroyed any hopes of a repeat. When I got home, I did a few chores but have spent the past 2 hours utilizing my home Internet connection. I am done though and will be heading off to do things that don't require a computer . . . oh wait, I may continue one of my video games. Scratch that.

Video Game Review: Astro's Playroom

My grandson has been spending a lot of time at my house this week and whenever he shows up, he wants to play Astro's Playroom. He calls it the "Robot Game." He'll come down in my office, which is where I have my PlayStation 5 set up, and we will play for an hour before we are asked to come join the rest of the family. That is fine though as you really don't want to play video games for more than an hour a day.

Astro's Playroom is a game that comes installed on all PlayStation 5 consoles. When I first saw the game, it didn't interest me that much. I actually didn't want to play it until my grandson wanted to spend time with me and I knew it would be a fun and safe game for him. We tried it out a bit and he really likes most of the game. There are certain levels that are a bit too intense and he doesn't like them. He also gets bored of watching me fail on a number of the challenges. Overall though, we have a lot of fun.

One of the purposes of the game is to get PlayStation 5 owners familiar with the DualSense wireless controller. If you are familiar with the PlayStation 4's DualShock 4 wireless controller, it is the next step in the evolution of input. It has all the bells and whistles of the previous controller and also includes haptic feedback. That means you feel things like recoil in the triggers when firing a gun. It adds a new level of sensing to the gaming experience and needs to be felt to be understood. This brings us back to Astro's Playroom and how it shows you all of the features of the DualSense wireless controller.

I encourage everyone to run through the game just to see what the new platform is capable of doing. The game only took me about 5 or so hours to complete and that includes explaining things to my grandson. It has an ESRB rating of E for Everyone and truly is a game that everyone can play and will enjoy.

It is important that I let everyone know that I do work in research and development at Sony Interactive Entertainment, which is the company responsible for the PlayStation 5 console. The game is free and didn't cost me anything, nor will it cost you as long as you own a PS5.

PS5 is Cheap Compared to Skiing

My youngest daughter is a ski instructor at Alta Ski Resort here in Utah. Before lunch I talked with her a bit and she looked into how much she makes per lesson compared with how much the resort makes. It is important this season as there won't be group lessons because of COVID-19. That means she will be giving private lessons all winter long. For an all-day private lesson, Alta Ski School charges $700. Let's not worry about how much of that my daughter will see (not much, if you are wondering). That figure startled her as it did me. I decided that if I was just getting into skiing, I couldn't afford it.

That $700 figure doesn't include ski equipment rentals, lift tickets, or food. So basically, if you need help learning how to ski, plan on dropping $1000 for a single day of skiing. All I can say is, "Wow!"

Now Alta is known as a relatively inexpensive place to ski. When I was in college, I liked Alta because a lift ticket cost so much less than other resorts in the area. Naturally my daughter and I became curious and looked at how much private lessons are at Park City. You can plan on dropping $900 there. We also looked at the most expensive resort in Utah and that is Deer Valley. During peak season, expect to spend over $1100 for private lessons there.

When the PlayStation 5 price was announced, I thought it a bit pricey. Now I realize that I can afford to play video games a lot easier than I can afford to go skiing. For the price of one day of skiing, I can get a PS5 and an XBox Series X. The only problem is finding a store with the new video game consoles.

Getting My PlayStation 5

Yesterday I received my PlayStation 5 at 10:10am thanks to next-day service from UPS. I have to say that it was a bitter-sweet moment. I am happy to have the latest generation video game console but I also see all of the problems people are going through to try and get one. I had a neighbor text me asking if I had a way of working magic so he could help his boss get one. I had to respond that I couldn't help my sons get any. I even tried.

My oldest son found out that Walmart would be making stock available throughout the day at specific times. In an effort to help him get one, I logged onto the Walmart site at 3 different times. On multiple occasions I got a PS5 in the shopping cart only to have them all sold out before I could finish paying for the device. I found the experience disappointing.

Today my youngest son wanted to log into my PS5 and remote play it. I have several new games loaded on my PS5 and told him to give one of them a try. He has been eagerly anticipating the new Spider-Man and really wanted to give it a go. Unfortunately his wife has made him promise he won't play it until he finishes his first semester of grad school. He did get a kick out playing with the new user interface (UI) all the way in Ohio while the physical machine is located with me in Utah.

For those that have yet to purchase the PlayStation 5, all I can say is that Sony is working hard to make more stock available as quickly as possible. While I work for the company I don't have any insight into how many units are being produced nor which stores have stock available right now. The only reason I have my console is that the company set aside enough units so that the employees could get them on day 1 if they wished. I sincerely appreciate that they did that for us.