LATEST ADDITIONS

Christopher Lee gets a chance to play the good guy in this excellent tale of black magic. However, while the film is a fan favourite, this Blu-ray release could prove very divisive. The problem isn't the restoration (yet another wonderfully rich and detailed AVC 1.66:1 1080p encode) or the extras (which are as copious as you could hope for). Instead it's the decision to replace a number of the film's visual effects with new CG ones. While an interesting experiment, it's a real shame that there's no option to switch to the original effects (either via seamless branching or by including the original edit in its entirety). You can check out a couple of 'before and after' examples below.

Sex and violence (often at the same time) remain the driving forces behind this highly-stylised TV series. Having left the gladiatorial arena behind, this latest series follows Spartacus (Liam McIntyre, replacing the late Andy Whitfield) and his band of rebels as they begin their war with the Romans. The AVC 1.78:1 1080p encodes are every bit as remarkable as those of the previous seasons, while the lossless 5.1 audio makes full use of the soundstage. The set also includes plenty of extras.

The Burnout franchise might have been left cooling its tyres since 2008, but developer Criterion Games still has what it takes to nab pole position, if its take on the perennial Need for Speed series is anything to go by.

KEF has today announced a desktop speaker designed for use with a PC, Mac or laptop. The new X300A is an active speaker that connects to its source via a ‘distortion free’ 96kHz/24 bit USB digital input. This, reckons KEF, ensures that 'high-definition sound is achieved throughout the system'. A 3.5mm input is also on hand for smartphones and MP3 players.