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Hisense has unveiled some seriously impressive smart home tech at this year's IFA exhibition. With clever, cutting-edge solutions for smart laundry, smart air care and smart kitchen the new Hisense ConnectLife scenarios are here to make your everyday easier. 

In August, Hisense announced that it's a regional partner of Real Madrid in Spain, Africa, and the Middle East. Hisense and Real Madrid will jointly launch a limited edition 100-inch television, offering unprecedented picture quality and immersive sound to enhance the experience for fans around the world. At IFA 2024, Hisense demonstrated its unwavering dedication to leading the industry in providing top-quality entertainment solutions, with the commitment to "User-centric Technology" and "Ultimate Quality," Hisense strategic upgrades in brand, scenarios, industrial structure, and globalization, positioning the consumer electronics giant for continued growth in the global market.

The smartest way to care for your clothes

Let's start with laundry. Smart laundry means less effort, longer lasting clothes and lower energy, water and detergent usage, so it's not just a win/win scenario: it's a win/win/win laundry assistant that's good for you, your pocket and the planet. 

Hisense's smart laundry technology combines innovative engineering and design with  AI technology to optimise every wash for incredible results. Take the Hisense Washing Machine Series 7i, which comes with iPlay intelligent laundry, iJet Pro superior cleaning and iFit design to ensure it's the perfect fit for your home. 

It's clever stuff, and it's all controlled via the ConnectLife app and the washer's 6.86-inch TFT touchscreen to make every wash easy. AI Super Wash constantly monitors your wash, optimising its settings to deliver the best results each and every time, and the iJet Pro delivers perfectly mixed bubbles of water, detergent and/or softener to really penetrate the fabrics and deliver exceptional stain removal even at very low temperatures. And in the Series 7 tumble dryer, AI Super Dry uses multiple smart sensors to deliver completely dry clothes.

(Image credit: Hisense) The smartest solutions for your kitchen

Hisense ConnectLife gives you an unprecedented, intelligent cooking experience that includes AI health care, AI recipes, AI master cooking, AI smart clean and  AI eco. It's like having your own catering crew on call 24/7.

Hisense's Smart Kitchen uses multi-screen interlinking to make your kitchen super-connected, enabling your fridge to tell your oven how best to cook your meal, for your oven to tell your dishwasher how best to clean the cookware afterwards, and for your fridge to update your shopping list when you're running low on key ingredients. It can even suggest recipes based on what's in the fridge for those evenings when you just can't decide what to cook and provide recommendation of the wine based on what you eat.

The Hisense Refrigerator PureFlat Smart Series is a great example of how Hisense's smart kitchen system delivers "my fresh choice". As the ConnectLife hub, a control center of all appliances in your home, It gives you intelligent food storage that knows expiry dates for everything inside, and its 21-inch built-in TFT display is great for AI-suggested recipes: forget squinting at your phone screen when you're cooking something special. 

You don't need to miss anything when you're in the kitchen – the football, a concert or anything else you might normally view on your mobile. That's because your fridge can mirror your phone and show it on that big screen. 

(Image credit: Hisense)

Hisense's smart fridge goes really well with the Hi8 series oven, which is a really clever multi-cooking system that doesn't just roast and grill but bakes, air fries, cooks pizza and delivers the power of steam cooking too. Steam cooking is a fantastic technology: it makes your favourite recipes even better, retaining all the flavours, colours and textures to bring out the best in every ingredient and lock in all of their taste and nutrients. It's a cleaner way to cook too, delivering crisp outsides and perfectly cooked insides without spattering or creating unwanted crusts – and that means less clean-up afterwards. 

The Hi8 series includes cool-touch doors and a massive 77L capacity that's ideal for even the hungriest families or friends. And it's smart too. The cutting edge VisionPlus TFT colour display enables you to reach new culinary heights thanks to its intelligent culinary helper, which can manage all the timings and recommend the best settings for truly memorable meals. 

(Image credit: Hisense) The smartest Air Care for your home

By using the ConnectLife platform, you can remotely control your air conditioner, providing you with a smarter experience. With ConnectLife, many functions can be easily managed, making your life more convenient and efficient.

Through the ConnectLife platform, you can remotely control your air conditioner, integrating the advanced AI Smart technology. This allows you to precisely manage temperature and humidity from anywhere, ensuring your home remains perfectly comfortable with just a few taps. 

Smart Eye uses infrared sensing to automatically recognize your position and activity. When you’re exercising, you can use the ConnectLife platform to select the ‘airflow Follow you’ mode to keep you cooler. When you’re reading, you can choose the ‘airflow avoid you’ mode to avoid discomfort.

With the ConnectLife platform, you can remotely activate the HI NANO sterilization function. It releases a large number of dual ion groups, quickly killing and removing bacteria and viruses through indoor air circulation. These healthy, high-concentration ions effectively remove airborne dust and viruses, inhibiting bacteria, and ensuring your environment stays fresh and healthy—all controlled effortlessly from wherever you are.

The Air Care on the ConnectLife platform brings intelligent control to your home environment. It divides your rooms into different scene and intelligently monitors the temperature, humidity and air quality in each scene. When adjustments are needed, Air Care automatically modifies the AC settings to ensure you stay comfortable. Additionally, you can easily select different modes through the ConnectLife platform to meet your specific needs, providing a personalized and seamless living experience.

Smarter tech to help you live a smarter life

Hisense isn't just about the smart home. It's about your smart life. By bringing all kinds of clever smart home tech together via its ConnectLife platform, Hisense is showing the future of the smart home – a future where your smart devices work together to make your life easier, your food tastier and your air cleaner and more comfortable.

Click here to discover how ConnectLife can help you enjoy your smart lifestyle. 

This week on Politics Lab, we’re talking about AI’s potential impact on the election—and why it’s so hard to regulate nationwide.

After a public standoff with a judge over X and Starlink’s operations in the country, Elon Musk is showing signs of wavering.

A new kind of spiritual advisor is rising among clergy trained in handling grief and other difficult emotions.

(Image credit: Kimberly Winston)

To target the tiny prey they depend on, humpbacks have developed a way of trapping them with nets made out of bubbles. A new study shows exactly how they do it.

(Image credit: Hunter Warick)

Technics' new Grand Class hi-fi turntable features something that sadly, you'll rarely see: a beautiful brass-topped platter that looks like it's made from solid gold. But it's not there to be looked at. The 2mm brass top layer is part of a three-layered platter and sits atop an aluminum middle and a rubber lower section to boast exceptional rigidity and vibration damping.

The new SL-1300G is a direct drive turntable that builds on the wildly successful SL-1200GR2. Like that turntable it has Technic's ΔΣ-Drive (Delta Sigma Drive) motor control to eliminate micro-vibrations and deliver a richer soundstage, and in addition to that heavier platter it also adds a more powerful motor. 

Technics SL-1300G turntable: key features, pricing and availability

The chassis is made from a rigid two-layer construction of bulk moulding compound and die-cast aluminum atop vibration-dampening feet, and the S-shaped aluminum tonearm with high precision bearings comes cartridge-free, so you can pick your preferred musical partner. Technics says that the new multi-stage silent power supply achieves an exceptionally low noise floor to deliver a superb signal-to-noise ratio.

In our glowing review of the SL-1200GR2, we praised the 2023-issue deck's tank-like build quality and the positive, articulate and revealing sound, but we also noted that price-wise it was very much at the top end of this market – not least because in addition to the ticket price you'd also need to drop around $500 / £500 / AU$650 more on a cartridge worthy of the turntable. Going cheap on the cartridge with a turntable of such a high spec would be a false economy.

That's the case here too: where the SL-1200GR2 cost $2,190 / £1,799 / AU$2,999 the new SL-1300G is considerably more expensive with an RRP of $2,999 / £2,799 / around AU$5,740. That's a lot of money for a turntable. But then again, just look at it.

Technics' new SL-1300G turntable will be available from October 2024 in a choice of black or silver finishes. One for our newly-updated best turntables buying guide? We'll see if we can get our hands on one to give it a full review… 

You may also like

• Our review of the Victrola Hi-Res Onyx is worthwhile reading, if you're looking for a slightly cheaper deck
• See our pick of the best wireless speakers
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There are fears that the death toll may rise, police said, as President William Ruto called the news “devastating.”

(Image credit: AP)

The sooner you open one of these top CDs, the greater your earning potential could be.

A phone with magnetic mods, a new handheld gaming console, and a robot vacuum that can climb stairs. Here’s the best new gear announced at IFA in Berlin.

Android 15 still hasn’t rolled out to any phones yet – though it will be coming to Pixel handsets very soon – but already we’re hearing about Android 16, and specifically a major change it could bring to the notifications and Quick Settings screens.

Digging around in the latest Android 15 QPR beta, Mishaal Rahman – writing for Android Authority – has managed to activate a new version of these screens, which they believe is intended to launch as part of Android 16.

Currently, if you have a Pixel handset then swiping down from the top of the screen will display all of your notifications, along with four Quick Settings tiles. This dropdown will also fully cover whatever app is running underneath.

If you want to access the rest of your Quick Settings tiles, then you’d have to swipe down a second time.

But with this new version that Rahman has found, swiping down with one finger will once again show the notifications panel, but this time you won’t see any Quick Settings, and the dropdown will only cover the top half of your phone’s screen, so you can still see whatever app you’re running beneath it.

To access the Quick Settings panel, you’d instead use a two-finger swipe, and then swipe left or right to access additional Quick Settings tiles.

You can see how this all looks in the video above, though note that this is an unfinished version of the feature, which for example doesn’t handle light mode well, since it makes the white text impossible to see. So if and when this change launches, it will presumably do so in a more polished form.

The gist in any case is that getting to Quick Settings no longer requires two swipes, but it instead requires a two-finger swipe. Whether that’s better or worse is rather subjective, but it could prove quite divisive, with Rahman for example describing the change as "annoying."

A Pixel-specific change

It also remains to be seen whether this change will launch at all, because while it’s clearly something Google is experimenting with, that doesn’t mean the company will decide to go ahead with it.

If we do see this, the most likely launch timing is with Android 16, which isn’t likely to be finished for around a year, though it’s always possible the change could come as part of a smaller software update in the meantime.

Oh, and if you don’t have a Pixel phone then you probably won’t get this change regardless, since most other manufacturers make their own tweaks to the notifications and Quick Settings screens anyway.

You might also like

• Android 15: latest news, rumors, and everything we know so far
• Best Android phones: top Google-powered phones for every budget
• Best Pixel phones: these are the Google phones to buy right now

Android 15 still hasn’t rolled out to any phones yet – though it will be coming to Pixel handsets very soon – but already we’re hearing about Android 16, and specifically a major change it could bring to the notifications and Quick Settings screens.

Digging around in the latest Android 15 QPR beta, Mishaal Rahman – writing for Android Authority – has managed to activate a new version of these screens, which they believe is intended to launch as part of Android 16.

Currently, if you have a Pixel handset then swiping down from the top of the screen will display all of your notifications, along with four Quick Settings tiles. This dropdown will also fully cover whatever app is running underneath.

If you want to access the rest of your Quick Settings tiles, then you’d have to swipe down a second time.

But with this new version that Rahman has found, swiping down with one finger will once again show the notifications panel, but this time you won’t see any Quick Settings, and the dropdown will only cover the top half of your phone’s screen, so you can still see whatever app you’re running beneath it.

To access the Quick Settings panel, you’d instead use a two-finger swipe, and then swipe left or right to access additional Quick Settings tiles.

You can see how this all looks in the video above, though note that this is an unfinished version of the feature, which for example doesn’t handle light mode well, since it makes the white text impossible to see. So if and when this change launches, it will presumably do so in a more polished form.

The gist in any case is that getting to Quick Settings no longer requires two swipes, but it instead requires a two-finger swipe. Whether that’s better or worse is rather subjective, but it could prove quite divisive, with Rahman for example describing the change as "annoying."

A Pixel-specific change

It also remains to be seen whether this change will launch at all, because while it’s clearly something Google is experimenting with, that doesn’t mean the company will decide to go ahead with it.

If we do see this, the most likely launch timing is with Android 16, which isn’t likely to be finished for around a year, though it’s always possible the change could come as part of a smaller software update in the meantime.

Oh, and if you don’t have a Pixel phone then you probably won’t get this change regardless, since most other manufacturers make their own tweaks to the notifications and Quick Settings screens anyway.

You might also like

• Android 15: latest news, rumors, and everything we know so far
• Best Android phones: top Google-powered phones for every budget
• Best Pixel phones: these are the Google phones to buy right now

Morning Edition to discuss his return to rap after 11 years.'/>

LL Cool J is out with his first album in over a decade. He says on Morning Edition, "I've been here for years, baby. How are you going to call it a comeback?"

(Image credit: Shuran Huang)

IFA – the world's biggest consumer and electronics show – is in full swing in Berlin, and a number of brands have taken the opportunity to show off their new robovacs.

I've been on the floor getting some hands-on time with the latest models, and have been impressed with what I've seen. There are some innovative new features being introduced – as well as software-side innovations (AI, inevitably, is everywhere), there are some interesting hardware developments aimed at enabling these little home helpers to reach places that have previously been off-limits, as well as solutions to other issues that have so far limited their usefulness. 

I'm expecting some of these features to start becoming more common in our best robot vacuums guide before too long. Here's a quick look at the coolest new robovac innovations at IFA 2024…

1. Magnetic mop pads

As seen on: Dreame L40

Even though many robot vacuums have the ability to raise their damp mop pads to try and keep them off your carpets, it's not a failsafe solution – particularly if your soft floors are especially plush. On its new L40 robovac, Dreame has decided to solve the problem by letting you remove them altogether. 

(Image credit: Future)

The mop pads are attached by magnets, so when you want to vacuum your carpet after a mop, you can tell the robovac to go back to the dock, and drop them before continuing its cleaning. And it can also pick them back up again as required – no manual intervention needed. 

(If you don't have deep-pile carpet, the side brush, main brush and mop pads can all move up and down by a centimeter or more, with different settings for different modes, to effectively separate the mopping and vacuuming processes. But that's much less fun.)

2. Bouncy suspension

As seen on: Roborock Qrevo Curv

Another issue that can limit the usefulness of a robot vacuum is its ability to navigate big differences in floor height. While we're still a way off from a robot vac that can climb stairs, we're starting to see models that are much better at handling uneven terrain. 

(Image credit: Future)

Qrevo Curv has the suspension system of a boy racer car. Flip it over and you'll find three wheels, each of which can be independently adjusted by up to a centimeter, enabling the Curv to reach a maximum clearance height of 4cm. So that room with a double-height entrance will no longer be off-limits, and your ultra-thick rug won't pose a problem either. 

3. AI everywhere

As seen on: Narwal Freo Z Ultra (and many others)

It's no surprise that one of the themes of IFA is AI. Or, more specifically, AI appearing in places you wouldn't expect it. (I will not use the word 'shoehorn'.) The Narwal Freo Z Ultra is far from the only robot vacuum to use AI, but it's perhaps the one that goes hardest on this front. It has two separate CPUs – one dedicated solely to AI – and packs equivalent processing power to an Xbox. 

That AI is used to help the Freo Z Ultra avoid obstacles, and to adjust its cleaning approach based on context. So that's everything from using hotter water to clean greasy spillages on hard floors, to knowing which obstacles to get right up close to (chair legs) and which to give a wider berth (dog poop).

4. Mini hair snippers

As seen on: Dreame L40

How to prevent long hair tangling up your brushrolls is an issue for manual vacuum cleaners and robot vacs alike (it's one of the factors we look for when deciding the best robot vacuums for pet hair). Dreame has decided to stop messing around, and introduced an accessory that promises to eradicate the problem once and for all. 

The 'TriCut' brush literally has a little pair of scissors in it, which snip up long hair before it enters the bin, so there's no chance of it getting tangled in the mechanics. Note, this isn't part of the L40, but an optional accessory aimed at hairy households.

5. Smart suction

As seen on: Shark PowerDetect

With its new robot vacuum launch, Shark has ported some of the most popular features found in today's best Shark vacuums. So there are five different detection capabilities – dirt detect, edge detect, wet edge detect, stain detect, and floor detect – and the PowerDetect will adjust its cleaning approach in response. So when it shifts to hard floor from carpet it knows to lower its suction, and when it encounters the edge of a room where dirt tends to build up, it'll amp up its suction to ensure that all gets cleared away. 

(Image credit: Future)

I saw it being demoed, and could hear it ramping up and down as it encountered areas of heavy spillages or reached the edge of the demo space. The aim is a more efficient clean, without wasting battery unecessarily.

6. Steam sterilization

As seen on: Samsung Bespoke Jet Bot Combo AI+

Rather than unveiling something brand new, Samsung is using IFA to show off the Bespoke Jet Bot Combo AI+, which has just gone on sale recently (we're in the process of testing it on team – full review incoming).

An interesting (using the term loosely) feature here is the addition of a steam cleaning at the base station, to sterilize the mop pads, generally make things more hygienic, and lower the risk of a stinky robot. 

(Image credit: Future)

Elsewhere, AI is getting a look-in again. Here, it's being used to identify objects, humans and pets, as well as being employed to help with initial room mapping – so the Bespoke Jet Combo can identify appliances and furniture and add them to your maps, as well as suggesting names for different spaces. This robovac can also sense how thick a carpet is, so it can deliver effective cleaning as well as avoiding getting it damp with the mop pads. If you're already in the Samsung ecosystem, you'll be pleased to learn that the Bespoke Jet Bot connects to SmartThings – Samsung's smart home management app – for convenient control from a single location. 

IFA – the world's biggest consumer and electronics show – is in full swing in Berlin, and a number of brands have taken the opportunity to show off their new robovacs.

I've been on the floor getting some hands-on time with the latest models, and have been impressed with what I've seen. There are some innovative new features being introduced – as well as software-side innovations (AI, inevitably, is everywhere), there are some interesting hardware developments aimed at enabling these little home helpers to reach places that have previously been off-limits, as well as solutions to other issues that have so far limited their usefulness. 

I'm expecting some of these features to start becoming more common in our best robot vacuums guide before too long. Here's a quick look at the coolest new robovac innovations at IFA 2024…

1. Magnetic mop pads

As seen on: Dreame L40

Even though many robot vacuums have the ability to raise their damp mop pads to try and keep them off your carpets, it's not a failsafe solution – particularly if your soft floors are especially plush. On its new L40 robovac, Dreame has decided to solve the problem by letting you remove them altogether. 

(Image credit: Future)

The mop pads are attached by magnets, so when you want to vacuum your carpet after a mop, you can tell the robovac to go back to the dock, and drop them before continuing its cleaning. And it can also pick them back up again as required – no manual intervention needed. 

(If you don't have deep-pile carpet, the side brush, main brush and mop pads can all move up and down by a centimeter or more, with different settings for different modes, to effectively separate the mopping and vacuuming processes. But that's much less fun.)

2. Bouncy suspension

As seen on: Roborock Qrevo Curv

Another issue that can limit the usefulness of a robot vacuum is its ability to navigate big differences in floor height. While we're still a way off from a robot vac that can climb stairs, we're starting to see models that are much better at handling uneven terrain. 

(Image credit: Future)

Qrevo Curv has the suspension system of a boy racer car. Flip it over and you'll find three wheels, each of which can be independently adjusted by up to a centimeter, enabling the Curv to reach a maximum clearance height of 4cm. So that room with a double-height entrance will no longer be off-limits, and your ultra-thick rug won't pose a problem either. 

3. AI everywhere

As seen on: Narwal Freo Z Ultra (and many others)

It's no surprise that one of the themes of IFA is AI. Or, more specifically, AI appearing in places you wouldn't expect it. (I will not use the word 'shoehorn'.) The Narwal Freo Z Ultra is far from the only robot vacuum to use AI, but it's perhaps the one that goes hardest on this front. It has two separate CPUs – one dedicated solely to AI – and packs equivalent processing power to an Xbox. 

That AI is used to help the Freo Z Ultra avoid obstacles, and to adjust its cleaning approach based on context. So that's everything from using hotter water to clean greasy spillages on hard floors, to knowing which obstacles to get right up close to (chair legs) and which to give a wider berth (dog poop).

4. Mini hair snippers

As seen on: Dreame L40

How to prevent long hair tangling up your brushrolls is an issue for manual vacuum cleaners and robot vacs alike (it's one of the factors we look for when deciding the best robot vacuums for pet hair). Dreame has decided to stop messing around, and introduced an accessory that promises to eradicate the problem once and for all. 

The 'TriCut' brush literally has a little pair of scissors in it, which snip up long hair before it enters the bin, so there's no chance of it getting tangled in the mechanics. Note, this isn't part of the L40, but an optional accessory aimed at hairy households.

5. Smart suction

As seen on: Shark PowerDetect

With its new robot vacuum launch, Shark has ported some of the most popular features found in today's best Shark vacuums. So there are five different detection capabilities – dirt detect, edge detect, wet edge detect, stain detect, and floor detect – and the PowerDetect will adjust its cleaning approach in response. So when it shifts to hard floor from carpet it knows to lower its suction, and when it encounters the edge of a room where dirt tends to build up, it'll amp up its suction to ensure that all gets cleared away. 

(Image credit: Future)

I saw it being demoed, and could hear it ramping up and down as it encountered areas of heavy spillages or reached the edge of the demo space. The aim is a more efficient clean, without wasting battery unecessarily.

6. Steam sterilization

As seen on: Samsung Bespoke Jet Bot Combo AI+

Rather than unveiling something brand new, Samsung is using IFA to show off the Bespoke Jet Bot Combo AI+, which has just gone on sale recently (we're in the process of testing it on team – full review incoming).

An interesting (using the term loosely) feature here is the addition of a steam cleaning at the base station, to sterilize the mop pads, generally make things more hygienic, and lower the risk of a stinky robot. 

(Image credit: Future)

Elsewhere, AI is getting a look-in again. Here, it's being used to identify objects, humans and pets, as well as being employed to help with initial room mapping – so the Bespoke Jet Combo can identify appliances and furniture and add them to your maps, as well as suggesting names for different spaces. This robovac can also sense how thick a carpet is, so it can deliver effective cleaning as well as avoiding getting it damp with the mop pads. If you're already in the Samsung ecosystem, you'll be pleased to learn that the Bespoke Jet Bot connects to SmartThings – Samsung's smart home management app – for convenient control from a single location. 

The first trailer for Landman, the latest rural America drama from Taylor Sheridan, has been released – and I'm convinced it'll be Paramount Plus' next big TV hit.

Released yesterday (September 5), the forthcoming show's first teaser doesn't just give us a glimpse of its impressive star-studded cast. Indeed, the latest original series from Yellowstone creator Sheridan also gives us our best look yet at the explosive melodrama that'll not only be a major part of Landman's appeal, but has also come to define many of Sheridan's acclaimed works for Paramount's streaming platform.

Hooked already? I know I am. After all, Sheridan's track record with making engrossing television for one of the world's best streaming services is incredibly strong. 

The incredibly popular Yellowstone, which Sheridan co-created with John Linson, is one of the best Paramount Plus shows around, notwithstanding, Sheridan has almost single-handedly put Paramount's streamer on the map with a number of other highly-rated series. That roster includes Yellowstone spin-offs 1883 and 1923, the Jeremy Renner-led Mayor of Kingstown (Sheridan co-created it with Hugh Dilllon), the Sylvester Stallone-starring Tulsa King, and the Zoe Saldana-fronted Special Ops: Lioness. There's no reason to suspect, then, that this'll be a certified dud among viewers and/or critics upon release.

Speaking of its launch date, Landman is set to make its Paramount Plus debut on Sunday, November 17. It'll arrive with a two-episode premiere, with new installments set to air weekly on the platform until its finale is released on January 12, 2025.

Who is part of Landman's cast? And what's it about?

Billy Bob Thornton stars as Tommy Norris in Landman (Image credit: Paramount Plus/Imperative Development)

Plot wise, there isn't much to go on. Paramount is playing it pretty coy on the story brief front, with only a couple of differently worded synopses being released before and alongside Landman's first trailer.

In a press blast accompanying the show's inaugural teaser, Paramount simply said of Landman's story: "Set in the proverbial boomtowns of West Texas, Landman is a modern-day tale of fortune seeking in the world of oil rigs". As I said, that's about as secretive as you're going to get from a story synopsis standpoint, but there are other snippets of information that we know about it.

Firstly, Landman isn't a wholly original idea concocted by Sheridan. It's actually based on a monthly podcast series called Boomtown that was developed by Christian Lawrence and produced by Texas Monthly. The 11-part series, which launched on audio streaming platforms including Spotify and Apple Podcasts in December 2019, tells the story of the ever-expanding big oil industry in the Permian Basin, which sits in the southwest corner of Texas.

As for the other big thing we've learned about Landman, it concerns its extremely talented cast. Indeed, there are plenty of heavy hitters set to star in it, including Billy Bob Thorton (Fargo, Goliath), Demi Moore (Empire), John Hamm (Mad Men), Michael Pena (Ant-Man), Ali Larter (Heroes), and Andy Garcia (The Untouchables, The Godfather Part III).

Landman is set to compete for viewer's attention with some big TV rivals in mid-November, not least from Cobra Kai season 6 part 2, which arrives on Netflix on November 15. But, armed with its star-studded cast, engrossing plot, and talented showrunner in Sheridan at the helm, it's got a good chance of holding its own.

You might also like

• These are the best Paramount Plus movies to stream right now
• Paramount Plus’ Apartment 7A trailer reveals the prequel story to 1960s horror hit Rosemary’s Baby
• Check out everything that's new on Paramount Plus in September

The first trailer for Landman, the latest rural America drama from Taylor Sheridan, has been released – and I'm convinced it'll be Paramount Plus' next big TV hit.

Released yesterday (September 5), the forthcoming show's first teaser doesn't just give us a glimpse of its impressive star-studded cast. Indeed, the latest original series from Yellowstone creator Sheridan also gives us our best look yet at the explosive melodrama that'll not only be a major part of Landman's appeal, but has also come to define many of Sheridan's acclaimed works for Paramount's streaming platform.

Hooked already? I know I am. After all, Sheridan's track record with making engrossing television for one of the world's best streaming services is incredibly strong. 

The incredibly popular Yellowstone, which Sheridan co-created with John Linson, is one of the best Paramount Plus shows around, notwithstanding, Sheridan has almost single-handedly put Paramount's streamer on the map with a number of other highly-rated series. That roster includes Yellowstone spin-offs 1883 and 1923, the Jeremy Renner-led Mayor of Kingstown (Sheridan co-created it with Hugh Dilllon), the Sylvester Stallone-starring Tulsa King, and the Zoe Saldana-fronted Special Ops: Lioness. There's no reason to suspect, then, that this'll be a certified dud among viewers and/or critics upon release.

Speaking of its launch date, Landman is set to make its Paramount Plus debut on Sunday, November 17. It'll arrive with a two-episode premiere, with new installments set to air weekly on the platform until its finale is released on January 12, 2025.

Who is part of Landman's cast? And what's it about?

Billy Bob Thornton stars as Tommy Norris in Landman (Image credit: Paramount Plus/Imperative Development)

Plot wise, there isn't much to go on. Paramount is playing it pretty coy on the story brief front, with only a couple of differently worded synopses being released before and alongside Landman's first trailer.

In a press blast accompanying the show's inaugural teaser, Paramount simply said of Landman's story: "Set in the proverbial boomtowns of West Texas, Landman is a modern-day tale of fortune seeking in the world of oil rigs". As I said, that's about as secretive as you're going to get from a story synopsis standpoint, but there are other snippets of information that we know about it.

Firstly, Landman isn't a wholly original idea concocted by Sheridan. It's actually based on a monthly podcast series called Boomtown that was developed by Christian Lawrence and produced by Texas Monthly. The 11-part series, which launched on audio streaming platforms including Spotify and Apple Podcasts in December 2019, tells the story of the ever-expanding big oil industry in the Permian Basin, which sits in the southwest corner of Texas.

As for the other big thing we've learned about Landman, it concerns its extremely talented cast. Indeed, there are plenty of heavy hitters set to star in it, including Billy Bob Thorton (Fargo, Goliath), Demi Moore (Empire), John Hamm (Mad Men), Michael Pena (Ant-Man), Ali Larter (Heroes), and Andy Garcia (The Untouchables, The Godfather Part III).

Landman is set to compete for viewer's attention with some big TV rivals in mid-November, not least from Cobra Kai season 6 part 2, which arrives on Netflix on November 15. But, armed with its star-studded cast, engrossing plot, and talented showrunner in Sheridan at the helm, it's got a good chance of holding its own.

You might also like

• These are the best Paramount Plus movies to stream right now
• Paramount Plus’ Apartment 7A trailer reveals the prequel story to 1960s horror hit Rosemary’s Baby
• Check out everything that's new on Paramount Plus in September

Rate cuts might be right around the corner, so now's the time to maximize your interest earnings with a high APY.

For some people, 1-day topical treatments for yeast infections can cause their own irritation. And some doctors steer their patients away from the 1-day options — which contain 12 times the medicine of the 7-day treatment.

(Image credit: Selena Simmons-Duffin)

Queens of the chart, field and Maori adorn the quiz this week, and we also address seasonal topics like memoirs and TV shows. Enjoy it while you can!

The middle school winner of NPR's Student Podcast Challenge tells how her golden retriever, Lopez, changed her life.

(Image credit: Emily Elconin for NPR)