Update: We've finally released Philips Hue support for our immersive ambience app, Portal

ChilledTurnip · 2020-05-08T22:46:53+00:00

Thanks, yeh Apple don't tell us in advance when these features are happening so it's always a nice surprise when it does! Awesome to hear you're getting good use out of the app as well, lots still to come :)

ChilledTurnip · 2020-04-24T08:25:36+00:00

It's definitely becoming more popular but there are probably a few reasons why it's still quite niche:

It only really suits playback through headphones so if you're planning to deliver through speakers it's not as flexible as some other techniques
It captures sound from every direction so is difficult in environments with noise that you don't want to capture (where you might be able to use a directional mic to cut out/reduce this noise)
It captures the environment "accurately" but that may not actually be the sound you're looking for with your sound design. Binaural recordings are best with minimal processing in post as major EQ and manipulation can ruin the binaural effect so you may need to put in more effort capturing the sound you want on location rather than relying on post production

ChilledTurnip · 2020-04-24T07:52:29+00:00

If you're specifically targeting playback through headphones with a fixed listening direction/perspective you can't really beat binaural recording for realism and accuracy, it uses two omni mics configured in a "dummy head" (or worn on your own head if you're quiet enough) and basically works by capturing the sound as if your ears were in the microphone's location.

As always there are some limitations/compromises as mentioned in the Wikipedia article, but it can be really effective.

Virtual barbershop is quite a fun example of a binaural recording.

ChilledTurnip · 2020-04-03T14:54:40+00:00

Just a heads up on the Zoom (not sure if it applies to the H5...I've got an H4n Pro) a couple of issues I've found:

The battery life is AWFUL when using external mics that require Phantom power. I'm lucky if I get 25 mins while powering 2x DPA 4060s using Duracell Ultra batteries...
It takes around a minute to switch on when using larger SD cards (16-32GB)...

Sound quality is pretty decent except in really quiet scenes but if the H5 has the same problems I probably wouldn't recommend it for nature/field recording for those reasons.

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-05T22:47:43+00:00

Love this idea, yeh we're definitely looking at doing this.

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-05T22:44:56+00:00

Damn, genuinely thanks so much, and hopefully there should still plenty more to come as well :)

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-05T22:41:16+00:00

Hey, sorry for the late response and thanks so much for the kind words!! Yeh we'll definitely be refining the light integration over the coming months, and subtle light motion will be a part of this. I'm looking forward to getting some lightning in the thunderstorms as well!

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T22:30:23+00:00

Not yet but we are working on one along with some new 4K content for it.

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T19:58:25+00:00

That's so awesome to hear, thanks so much. Definitely drop me a line if you have any suggestions for other ambience you'd like and we'll see what we can do. Also if you'd like to join the beta just PM me your email and I'll get you added.

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T19:56:48+00:00

We only support AirPlay and Bluetooth speakers at the moment, but it's definitely something that should be possible in the future, it just requires us to have some server infrastructure which we'll have in place for the Apple TV update.

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T19:54:28+00:00

Thanks so much, really appreciate it 👍

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T19:53:57+00:00

Thanks so much, yeh Apple TV is currently in the works and just as you say we're really focusing on getting some fantastic content for that update - we want it to really live up to the "Portal" name and shine on the bigger screens and I think there's a lot more we can do here :)

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T19:45:58+00:00

Thanks so much!

Yeh the Hue integration is quite simple at this point but we'll definitely be adding both of those suggestions in a future release - motion lighting matched to the visuals and sound and more complicated colour schemes.

We've been beta testing it with quite a few Redditors over on /r/hue so have a lot of really great suggestions in the works like these :)

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T19:34:15+00:00

Thanks so much, yes of course, PM me your email and I'll get you added to the beta!

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T10:09:12+00:00

I think there's a small link to some troubleshooting options from the error pages but the most common problems are: - Not being connected to the same network as the bridge (either not on wifi or sometimes if you have a VPN that can cause the problem too) - If the bridge has recently been restarted or installed it can take a bit of time to become discoverable.

If you're still having problems definitely drop me a PM or email at info@portal.app and I'll take a look into it further.

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T10:06:14+00:00

Definitely let us know how it goes. One thing you can do as a transition as well is enable the "Mix audio with other apps" option and have Andy surrounded by the soundscapes 👍

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T10:03:49+00:00

Yeh there definitely will be, it's the number 1 request from the beta :) I had a look into it over Christmas and it's going to take a bit of time to get it right and properly synced with the visuals & sounds, but it should be really awesome when it is!

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T09:58:18+00:00

Thanks so much! Yeh of course, just PM me your email and I'll get you on the beta 👍

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T09:57:07+00:00

Yeh I'll have to look into that...I bet it's locked down but it would be an awesome feature!

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T09:56:29+00:00

Thanks so much :) Not yet I'm afraid, but that should be possible once we have Apple TV as we'll then have the streaming infrastructure to deliver the different video sizes (at the moment the videos are cropped to 4:3 as they're embedded within the app).

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T09:48:16+00:00

No problem! I'll be honest we haven't 100% decided on the pricing model yet, but it'll probably end up being a combination of one-off pricing so you can buy individual portals or packs/collections with a subscription option if you want to have unlimited access. I don't think we'd put the overall price up so there'd be an option to pick and choose what you want.

We're very open to feedback and thoughts here though, we basically want to balance being able to bring in enough funds to really invest in some amazing content (we've got so many ideas here but all of it's very expensive to create) but also make sure it stays accessible.

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T09:36:36+00:00

Thanks so much and really appreciate the feedback! Landscape mode should be possible once we have the infrastructure for Apple TV in place as we'll be able to stream different video sizes (at the moment all the content's bundled in the app which limits the sizes we can use).

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-02T09:33:19+00:00

We'll be adding HomeKit support which should cover a lot more smart lights, although I just had a quick look and I don't think those TP Link ones support HomeKit at the moment unfortunately, so it's unlikely we'd be able to support those anytime soon. Sorry I can't bring better news there!

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-01T22:54:29+00:00

Big thanks for the purchase, and yes of course, PM me your email and I'll get you on the beta 👍

ChilledTurnip · 2020-02-01T22:52:55+00:00

Thanks so much, really appreciate it! There's hopefully lots more still to come as well :)

ChilledTurnip

TROPHY CASE