You've bought a new smart TV and you're keen to pair a media server with it. You can't just browse the videos on your file server using the TV's user interface — you'll need a middleman — but before you rush out and grab a Pi, NUC or install Plex on your desktop machine, make sure your humble NAS can't do the job first.

Dolby Atmos is the latest evolution in surround sound technology that puts audio from movies and games not just around you but above you too, allowing you to hear sound from every direction. It also assigns individual on-screen elements their own audio track that the system can position in the listening space beyond the limitations of traditional 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound channels.

Plex is one of the best ways to store and stream all your movies and TV shows around your house or apartment, but movie night is still a bit of drag if you're watching on a dingy old laptop or a small TV. Now you can experience Plex on a giant screen without leaving the couch, thanks to the company's new virtual reality app for Samsung's Gear VR.

Your phone has one, your laptop has one, and you've got a smart one in the corner of your room telling you the weather - but what makes a good speaker different from a so-so speaker? Why you might consider upgrading the audio capabilities of your TV or computer, and what should you look for if you do?

Dear Lifehacker, I'm moving into a small apartment and I don't have a lot of space for a big TV or huge living room speakers. I also don't have heaps of extra equipment to hook up. Even so, I want the things I do use to look and sound good when I use them. Do you have any tips to help me make the most of my space without spending a lot of money?

You love music, but even if you consider yourself a true audiophile, the cost of high-end sound can be, frankly, a little absurd. We talked with a handful of audio experts to find out how to get audiophile-calibre sound without emptying your savings account. Here's what they had to say.

The HandiTheatre is a blow-up home theatre solution that comes with (almost) everything you need to set up an outdoor cinema in your backyard. The star of the package is a custom-built inflatable screen of up to four metres in length. We tested out the HandiTheatre with a screening of Grease (as you do.) Read on for the Lifehacker verdict.

Kodi, one of our favourite home theatre apps, has used the same Confluence skin as its default since 2009. Now, there's a new skin in town and it looks pretty sweet.

Kodi, one of our two favourite home theatre apps, has been updated to version 16, adding a few new useful features. This includes the very-handy long-press on TV remotes.

Windows/Mac: Plex is making a big change to its desktop strategy. The company is now replacing Plex Home Theatre with the new Plex Media Player. It looks pretty great, too.

When I rip my Blu-Ray discs for my home theatre PC, I'm always debating whether to rip in 720p or 1080p. Can I really see the difference?

A good pair of space-saving, budget-friendly, great-sounding speakers aren't impossible to find. You just need a solid set of bookshelf speakers, and this week we're looking at five pairs that meet those criteria.

A home theatre PC makes TV more convenient than ever, but you might not be getting the best possible picture quality out of the box. Here are a few tricks for improving it.

HDTVs come with all kinds of advanced settings designed to "improve" the picture, but most of them are just marketing gimmicks. In fact, your picture will actually look better with some of them off. Here are some of the settings you'll find in the advanced menu, and what you should do with them.

The cleanest whole home audio and home theatre setups are those with speakers embedded in the walls and ceilings. Here's how to hide your speakers and retain great sound.

Bose Lifestyle home entertainment systems deliver a powerful theatre-like audio experience plus sleek styling -- without wires or fuss. And for a limited time, you can now score Bose's SoundTouch Series II wireless speaker (worth up to $899) as a bonus. Ready to bring your home entertainment to life?

There’s nothing like a real cinema experience -- seeing something huge for the first time, on that huge screen, with that huge box of popcorn (if you eat it in the dark it doesn’t count towards your diet, right?). It just can’t be recreated. There is one element we are coming mighty close with, though. The sound. Here's why.

There are a lot of considerations to make when buying a TV. Chief among them are what size and viewing distance you need. This handy tool takes the guesswork out of both of them.

One of the best parts about XBMC, the kickass customisable media centre software, is its browser-like extensions. If you've ever wanted to incorporate watching TV, listening to podcasts, or playing video games to your XBMC box, this is how it works.