Nicole Scherzinger makes emotional speech after winning first Tony Award
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News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
Sonos Ace Australian review: Premium headphones that keep getting better
Exceptional premium headphones should be seen but not heard. In other words, they should not get in the way of the original sound the artist or filmmaker intended. There are few headphones that do that really well. Brands like Sony, Apple, and Bose are among my favourites when it comes to reproducing sound that is authentic, nuanced and tonally balanced. Good headphones allow you to hear individual instruments along with the vocals while extra features like spatial audio create even deeper immersion into the audio as you move your head. The newest player in that line-up is Sonos, a brand well known for premium speakers and soundbars, which has produced the Sonos Ace. The Bluetooth headphones have been lauded by some of the top tech and audio reviewers in the world for their sound and comfort and even took out one of Time's Best Inventions of 2024. Now recent software upgrades have added new features including TrueCinema technology, updated TV Audio Swap for two, smarter Active Noise Cancellation, and enhanced call clarity. Sonos says it is part of its philosophy of working with artists and sound engineers from around the world to achieve the right balance. 'I spend a lot of time working on our products so you don't know you are listening to them,'' says Giles Martin, VP, Sound Experience. The approach is also about ensuring that products that not only last but also get better over time. 'Since our earliest days, we've used meaningful software updates to deliver new features to existing products, from 24-bit audio support and Trueplay, to the recently debuted Speech Enhancement technology on Arc Ultra,' said Jason White, Head of Software at Sonos. The TV audio swap feature allows two individual listeners to enjoy the same TV audio in sync on their own Sonos Ace headphones when connected to a Sonos soundbar. Sonos' TrueCinema feature understands the dynamics of your space, acoustically treats it, and makes it sound like you have a beautifully tuned 3D audio system in your headphones. 'True Cinema is a feature to make Spatial Audio for headphones more realistic,'' Chris Pike, principal research scientist, media experience, says. 'The way that we do that is to account for the acoustics of the room that you are in and build that into the headphones and that makes it feel like the headphones disappeared.'' Sonos says the 'open-air listening effect feels like you aren't wearing headphones'. The better noise cancellation upgrade now adapts to your hair, glasses and hats in real-time using advanced sensors to compensate for sound leaks. The enhanced call clarity promises more natural conversation including a sidetone feature which allows you to hear a bit of your voice during calls while automatic noise cancellation is on. Are Sonos Ace better than Airpods Max? We've been testing the Sonos Ace headphones for a number of weeks and have been impressed by the sound quality, exceptional noise cancellation, bluetooth range, battery life and clarity during phone calls. The headphones, which have eight microphones, are light enough to wear for extended periods, even for people with a larger head like myself. In some ways they are similar to Apple's AirPods Max, arguably better. At just over 300 grams, compared with 387 grams for Apple's top headphones, they are definitely better for longer use. You can customise the sound you want through Sonos app with basic EQ settings like bass, treble and left right balance. The on headphones controls are simple and easy to use. On the left is the power button which you also hold down for initial Bluetooth setup. On the right, an up and down toggle is for volume control while you can tap it to pause or play your music, double tap for the next track or triple tap to go the previous track. A second button allows you to switch between noise cancelling or 'aware mode', allowing you to hear more of what is going on around you, which is obviously safer when walking around busy streets. The battery life is very good on the headphones, with up to 30 hours of listening or talk time with active noise cancellation enabled. Three minutes of rapid charging will give you about three hours of playback which is great for just before a domestic flight. Despite being mostly plastic to keep the weight down, they have a premium look and feel really solid and well made. There's been a lot of effort made to ensure they are comfortable with a mechanism to ensure pressure is equally distributed around your ear. The top headband is really soft, while the removable magnetic ear cups angle to follow the natural taper of your ears. One concern, however, is the material on the ear cups is not as cool as the more breathable knit material on the AirPods Max. The telescoping stainless steel rod design makes for easy adjustment and once adjusted they do stay put. The case is one area that certainly could be improved. You need to fully collapse the headphones for them to fit while the zipper can easily get snagged. But they do come with both a USB-C to USB-C cable and a USB-C to 3.5mm cable, allowing them to be used as regular wired headphones and on planes. While I haven't had a chance to test them on a plane, other reviewers have said the noise cancellation is in the A+ category. With a price tag hovering around $500 ($599 full retail price), the Sonos Ace headphones are not cheap, but they offer good quality and with updates, greater longevity.
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
Nicole Kidman's daughters Sunday and Faith look grown up in intimate family photos
Nicole Kidman shared rare family photos of daughters Sunday and Faith in a sweet social media post. In the carousel posted via Instagram on Wednesday, Kidman kissed daughter Faith, 14, on the cheek while embracing her in the summer sunset. The actress wore a two-piece blue dress, while Faith wore a white halter dress, and both mother and daughter showed off their natural curls. In a similar photo, she wrapped daughter Sunday Rose, 17, in a hug while smiling softly at the camera. Sunday wore a black dress with red flowers while enjoying her mother's affection and rocked beachy waves. Additionally, the Nine Perfect Strangers star shared memories from a music festival with her two daughters, where they took in an Olivia Rodrigo performance. Kidman, 58, also shared a sweet glimpse of Sunday's 17th birthday celebration — a white cake with pink-and-red details, including red macarons. The iconic actress added a few summer moments of her own, including a clip in which she donned a black swimsuit and plunged underneath crystal clear waters for a swim, and a pic of herself reclining on a bench in the summer heat. 'Summer memories. Now back to school,' the Oscar winner captioned the Instagram post. Fans praised the curly hair snapshots. 'Love your hair natural,' one follower gushed in the comments thread, while another wrote, 'THE WAVY HAIR OMG YESSSS.' 'Let the curls run free! Beautiful,' enthused a third, while a fourth praised Kidman's 'beautiful family.' Kidman's youngest daughters — whom the actress shares with husband Keith Urban, 57 — have been emerging into the public spotlight this year with budding careers of their own. Earlier this month, Sunday Rose — who made her runway debut in October 2024 — landed her first fashion magazine cover with Nylon magazine. And last month, Faith joined her famous mum for a sweet cameo in a dreamy campaign for Clé de Peau Beauté. In the artistic short film, Kidman donned several ethereal looks to convey 'radiance' — and at one point, she pulled Faith into a hug for an affectionate mother-daughter moment. 'She's my baby, and it was a sweet little way to capture her at 14,' Kidman — who also shares adult kids Isabella, 32, and Connor Cruise, 30, with ex Tom Cruise — told People of Faith's on-screen moment. 'It was one of those things where you say, 'This isn't a job. This is actually a gift.''
Perth Now
2 hours ago
- Perth Now
Philip Seymour Hoffman's son Cooper wishes his dad was still around to give him acting advice
Philip Seymour Hoffman's son, Cooper Hoffman, wishes his late dad was still around to offer him advice about his acting. The legendary actor - who was known for playing a wide variety of distinctive character roles and supporting roles in the likes of The Big Lebowski, Almost Famous and Boogie Nights - tragically passed away in 2014, at the age of 46, with his death ruled an accident caused by "acute mixed drug intoxication, including heroin, cocaine, benzodiazepines, and amphetamine". His 22-year-old son followed in his father's footsteps and made his acting debut in Paul Thomas Anderson's coming-of-age film Licorice Pizza in 2021, for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award. He has since portrayed Dick Ebersol in the 2024 comedy-drama Saturday Night and made his stage debut in an Off-Broadway production of the tragedy Curse of the Starving Class. Cooper - who has two sisters - idolised his father and would give anything to get his professional opinion on his acting, though he admits he "would be terrified". He told GQ of his beloved parent: 'He's my favourite actor, but he's also my dad. 'He's also not here. A lot of people idolise their parents because they're great parents. It's a different thing to idolise your parent because you love their art.' He continued: 'I get to figure this out on my own. But also, I would love his advice. And I would also just love my dad.' One job that he would have appreciated his father's advice on was when he made his Off-Broadway debut earlier this year. He admitted: 'I was like, I'm so ill-prepared for this. 'The only person I really wanted to talk to was my dad.' Cooper added: 'As much as I would love him to be here and talk to him about acting, I also would be terrified to have him see my stuff and judge my stuff. 'Not that he would judge it, because he was a very empathetic person, and he would probably — hopefully — hold my hand through all of it.' Cooper's upcoming roles include the biographical comedy drama film, Artificial, which chronicles the controversial 2023 firing and rehiring of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Andrew Garfield will star as Altman while Cooper plays OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman.
