Soft serve ice cream and frozen drinks at home: Earlier this year I tested the Gourmia 2-Quart Automatic Soft Serve Ice Cream and Frozen Drink Maker, which was selling at Costco for $199.99. The review will eventually go on the cooking website I am working on, but I was still looking for an opportunity to mention it in this column. When I visited Costco over the weekend I saw it on sale for only $149.99, which seems like ample reason to mention it now!

The Gourmia is an impressive little machine that is easy to use, and it makes some terrific ice cream. It has dispensers for cones and toppings built-in, and it comes apart for easy cleaning. It can make frozen alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks as well, though I did not test that feature. I do think it would look great spinning a colorful concoction at a home bar! I liked the Gourmia enough to donate one to a nonprofit that means a lot to me, where it has been quite popular and is regularly enjoyed by staff and visitors. Please note that I checked availability on the Costco website and it was not showing available at the warehouse, though there were dozens for sale on an end cap when I was there. So, if interested look for it in person when visiting Costco. gourmia.com

Q. I recently purchased a TCL 65QM6K television. Would the sound improve by adding both a Z100 subwoofer and a single Z100 Atmos speaker? I’m 73 and a movie and music enthusiast, but my hearing is not quite as sharp as it was 40 years ago. I want to improve the sound quality, but at a reasonable expense.

—D.A., Pittsburgh

A. Adding those speakers will make a gigantic improvement. One of the great things about the higher-end TCL televisions like yours is the way you can pair them with the matching Z100 wireless subwoofer and Z100 wireless Atmos speakers. You can add one Z100 subwoofer and up to four Z100 Atmos speakers, from four providing a full surround system with the television acting as the center channel, to just one in the back to provide surround effects and spaciousness at low cost with a small room footprint. Setup is fully automatic. The TV will detect the number of speakers and where they are placed, set the volume level of all the speakers to match the television and each other, and even fine-tune the sonic output of the Atmos speakers and subwoofer to the acoustics of your room, like an equalizer. TCL Z100 speakers are $299.99 each, so the Z100 subwoofer and a single Z100 Atmos speaker would cost under $600.

I've had a few people write in and ask if it is OK to just add the Z100 subwoofer if surround sound is not important to them. The answer to that is yes. The subwoofer will fill in the low bass for more full-range sound and a deeper, richer presentation from your television, especially when used in a large room. That said, I do recommend adding at least one Z100 Atmos speaker to the back if you have the room and the budget. The speakers are solid and heavy, beautifully constructed, and have outstanding sonic performance. Not only do you get the spaciousness from having sound coming from different directions, there is information in the rear channels that is not contained in the front channels. Unless you have a speaker dedicated to reproducing it, you won't hear this information at all. It is especially noticeable and satisfying with sports and movies. tcl.com

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