As 2025 comes roaring in, it’s a great time to look back at some of our favorite home entertainment products of 2024. It’s been a great year for consumer tech, with some standout releases from some of our favorite brands. With new releases just around the corner, we’re excited to see what’s on the horizon. For now, I wanted to highlight a few products that caught my attention this past year. I’ll even showcase a couple of products that have been around for a while but deserve to be mentioned among the very best home theater gear available.
My Favorite OLED TV: LG G4
LG is practically synonymous with OLED, releasing standout performers year after year. With its G-series models, LG packs the best tech it has to offer, such as an MLA panel for extra brightness and a new Ai processing engine for enhanced picture quality. OLED TVs offer perfect black levels, and with the G4’s extra brightness punch, contrast is taken to another level. The G-series is also designed to look great on your wall thanks to its picture frame-like design. Select screen sizes also come with a wall mount in the box, which is designed to deliver a high-end appearance thanks to its flush design. Available in a variety of screen sizes, from 55 to 97 inches (97” model doesn’t include MLA), the LG G4 is at home in any viewing environment.
My Favorite Mini-LED TV: Sony Bravia 9
While OLED TVs have a loyal following, it’s hard to deny some of the advantages that Mini-LED TVs offer. Namely, screen size to dollar ratio and their ability to get super bright. Sony is a TV giant, and the Bravia 9 is the best Mini-LED Sony has ever made in my opinion. Not only do you get Sony’s excellent picture processing, but this TV can reach brightness levels that most OLED TVs can only dream of, making it a great choice for rooms with a lot of natural light. While the Bravia 9 can’t match an OLED TV’s black levels and dark room performance, it comes close, delivering a truly cinematic experience thanks to its local dimming technology that keeps blooming at bay and brings dark scenes to life. OLED TVs are also the king of wide viewing angles, but the Bravia 9’s X-Wide Angle technology help viewers who sit off-center still enjoy good picture quality from the TV’s VA LCD panel.
My Favorite Projector: BenQ W5800
This one was tough. On paper, the W5800 isn’t the brightest DLP Laser projector at just 2600 lumens. But brightness isn’t the only thing that gives an image its “wow factor.” Image processing and color reproduction also play important roles, and the W5800 is a stellar performer thanks to its DCI-P3 performance, HDR image optimization with HDR10+ support, and calibrator friendly ISFccc capability. Professional calibration support is a great option, but not a requirement as the W5800 is designed to look great out of the box thanks to its HDR tone mapping, grayscale tracking, and Filmmaker mode, allowing you to enjoy 4K content as the creator intended. While TVs are the more popular living room and day to day option, when it comes to dedicated theaters and large viewing environments, projectors still offer the most immersive experience; and with support for screens up to 200”, the W5800 is ready to be the heart of your home theater.
My Favorite Soundbars: Samsung Q990D and Sonos Arc Ultra
The only thing tougher than deciding which projector I liked most was choosing a soundbar. So much so, I chose two, but with good reason, as I believe both make a compelling case.
Samsung’s Q990-series soundbars have been highly regarded for years. While its TVs are true head turners, Samsung deserves a lot of credit for its soundbar systems. The Q990D is one of the most immersive soundbar systems ever made with support for up to 11.1.4 Dolby Atmos and DTS:X soundtracks—and unlike some systems, the wireless subwoofer and speakers are included. If you have a compatible Samsung TV, the soundbar’s Q-Symphony technology allows it to also utilize the TV’s built-in speakers, offering seamless integration. On its own though, the Q990D delivers the kind of powerful sound that rivals dedicated systems that feature more components and a heftier price tag. Samsung really knocked this one out of the park and we’re excited to see what comes in 2025, but for the time being the 990D is ready to bring your home theater audio to life.
The Sonos Arc Ultra was released in the 2nd half of 2024 and we reviewed it here. The original Arc was a personal favorite of mine, having reviewed it several years ago. So, when the new Arc Ultra was announced, we were excited with the sonic enhancements it promised to deliver, such as better bass performance, a bonus for users who opt not utilize a subwoofer. If you’re tied into the Sonos ecosystem however, you can add the Ultra to your existing whole home music environment as well as add additional speakers like the new Sonos 4 Sub for extra low frequency impact and a pair of Era 100s to serve as surround speakers, creating a complete home theater soundbar system. Sonos’ recent app update offers a stable experience for all your connected speakers.
These next two products weren’t released in 2024, but still offer some of the best performance you can get and are readily available to take your home entertainment experience to new heights.
My Favorite Disc Player: Panasonic DP-UB820
Have you heard the rumor? Blu-ray is dead. While there’s no slowing down streaming media, there’s a still a compelling case for choosing physical media, especially for enthusiasts who want the best picture and sound quality available. This 4K Ultra HD Panasonic Blu-ray player is rock solid, has HDR tone mapping support built-in, and is compatible HDR, HDR10+, and Dolby Vision discs. I’m hoping Blu-ray sees a resurgence like what we’ve seen with vinyl, as display technology advances, we need devices like the DP-UB820 Blu-ray player to deliver the very best picture quality your display is capable of. If your display supports 3D, this player has you covered there as well.
My Favorite Streaming Player: Apple TV
While there are a variety of great streaming devices on the market, the Apple TV has been my personal favorite for a number of years. Not only does it support Dolby Vision, HDR, and HDR 10+, but it also boasts Dolby Atmos playback, dialogue enhancement features, and one of the cleanest user interfaces on the market. Apple users will feel right at home with the Apple TV as it offers a layout that iOS users are already accustomed to, and I believe non-Apple users will still appreciate its clutter free experience. Like Sonos, the ecosystem is where Apple really shines. Allowing you to have a centralized location for all your personal media including photos and music, and even allowing you to use your iPhone as a FaceTime camera. With wide developer support and frequent software updates, the Apple TV is one of the best investments you can make in home entertainment today, even if it’s a few years old.
It's Been a Great Year for TVs
How was my list? Did I leave something out? What products stood out to you? Excited about the new home entertainment product releases for this year? We’d love to hear from you.
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