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• Warning: Major spoilers ahead for season seven, episode 11 of the Starz drama "Outlander."
• Actor David Berry spoke to BI about shooting an intimate scene with Caitríona Balfe.
• The actor said he would always wonder if they could have done it differently.

Season seven, episode 11 of "Outlander" saw the Starz drama take on one of the most-anticipated — and controversial — storylines from the book series written by Diana Gabaldon.

After learning in the previous episode that the ship Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan) was traveling on had sunk, Claire Fraser (Caitríona Balfe) and Lord John Grey (David Berry) were left grief-stricken.

When audiences saw them next, the pair hastily married to stop the English army from arresting Claire for espionage.

While their marriage was meant to be entirely platonic — given John's sexuality and Claire's unending love for Jamie — the two unexpectedly ended up consummating their marriage while in a haze of despair, drunkenness, and delirium while both imagining that the other is their beloved Jamie.

Speaking to Business Insider, Berry reflected on the experience of shooting his first sex scene for "Outlander" and the challenges that came with it.

"This was a very big moment for me as an actor because it's the first time that I was called upon to do sort of an 'Outlander' intimate scene," Berry said, adding that it "was a moment I was afraid of but also looking forward to."

Berry's trepidation at taking on the scene is understandable. While not the most shocking scene in "Outlander" — the show has long been serving up challenging scenes — it is one particularly unpopular with fans given its implications for Jamie and Claire's romance.

But Berry said that despite his concerns, he went into the storyline with enthusiasm.

"I think as someone who's been on the show for eight years and has sometimes felt like I've been on the bench, this was a great opportunity for me to step up my game," Berry said.

"There was a lot of excitement, on my behalf, to portray something so challenging and weird and just kind of solve that mystery of how and why these characters do what they do," he continued, adding: "It's a dangerous moment for the show because it really tests the credulity of the audience to believe that these characters would do such a thing."

"You still have to ground it in some element of truth," he added.

The actor said it was no easy feat to nail the scene in a way that would communicate his and Balfe's characters' shared trauma, corporeal urges, and the humanity behind their decision.

The pair prepared for the sequence with Vanessa Coffey, who has worked as an intimacy coordinator on the show since season six.

But preparation began long before even getting to set.

"Cait and I spent some time just doing some drama school kind of nerdy stuff, just improvising through the scene to find that stuff that isn't spoken about," Berry recalled.

"Of course, everyone had different ideas about how it should be depicted, and having Vanessa there to arbitrate all that was was really great," he continued. "She had a really tough job because it was not like any other love scene that's been depicted on the show."

Due to its unique, unconventional nature, Berry said he would always look back on the scene and wonder if they could have done it differently.

"It's one of those moments in which I'll always look back and think, 'Could we have done more?' Because there are so many different ways to do it," he said, adding that he thought they "gave it a good crack."

"I was willing to push it as far as needed to go," he continued. "There were ideas about how far we should push it, of course, and questions like 'Do audiences really want to see what John and Claire get on heavy?' and I still don't know the answer."

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• Abigail Weidmer moved to a new city and wanted her kids to find playmates in the neighborhood.
• She hoped they would develop friendships by playing on their block with other children.
• The mom found that kids rarely played outdoors in the area. She set up a play club to help them do so.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Abigail Weidner, 36, a mom of three from Billings, Montana. It has been edited for length and clarity.

My kids socialized with a lot of kids in our former city of San Antonio. They had friends who lived on our cul de sac and we'd meet other children in the park.

By contrast, when we moved to our current home in Billings, Montana, we found local kids weren't really around. We'd hang in the driveway to try to meet neighbors, but nobody was out and about. It made it hard for my two older kids — a 7-year-old daughter and a 5-year-old son — to make connections.

So, I took matters into my own hands and set up a play club called "Free Play Friday." I was inspired by Let Grow, a non-profit that encourages children to play independently without parents or teachers hovering over them.

I invited the kids of some moms I'd exchanged numbers within the neighborhood. It felt a bit odd reaching out to people I barely knew.

But I explained my vision from the beginning. The children would choose their own activities with minimal adult involvement. This would be a throwback to our childhoods in the 1990s and early 2000s when kids were less scheduled with after-school activities and often left to do their own thing.

The older kids help the younger ones

The parents stayed the first few times as we got to know each other. After a while, they dropped off their kids or walked to the club on their own. I took turns hosting with another mom.

It felt especially important for my daughter and another child her age to take ownership of their play. They helped the younger ones participate in things like pop-up art classes.

The older ones rotated as "the teacher" and invented various projects. Around Thanksgiving, my daughter prepared a turkey craft ahead of time. She cut out the pieces they'd need and walked them through the steps without my involvement.

Another time, one of the kids brought in some papers that were different colors. "Let's make them into flags," he said. The project was the kids' self-assigned activity that afternoon.

Other times, I've seen them setting up cones in the backyard to do sports like soccer or ride their bikes. They found a kite and ran around. It was refreshing to them because it was unstructured play.

I left the garage door open so other kids could join

Rules were kept to a minimum. No one could play in the front yard alone, and they had to clean up after themselves before they went back home.

It gradually became more natural for the children to interact without interference. We trusted them to work things out on their own and manage arguments. It fostered independence — a quality that will help them in the future.

Meanwhile, it was unseasonably warm this fall. I deliberately left the garage door open in case any kids who were passing by wanted to join in. It was a sign that we were a household that welcomed kids who wanted to experience the fun of free play.

Do you have an interesting story to share with Business Insider about your style of parenting? Please send details to this reporter at [email protected].

When it comes to finding the best PC monitors, there’s something for everyone, whether you’re after a reliable second screen, a higher resolution 4K display or a gaming setup that packs a punch. With options ranging from cheap monitors to high-end displays, today's market offers a wealth of choices for all budgets. But the world of monitors is about more than just screens; it’s about getting the right pixel density, understanding ergonomics and selecting the right match for your workspace or gaming setup.

If you're curious about IPS monitors for vivid colors or are thinking of investing in a lower resolution display that doesn’t break the bank, there’s likely a monitor out there for you. We’ve gathered the top picks, including options from our own monitor reviews to help you find the best fit for your needs.

Table of Contents

• Best monitors under $200

• Best monitors under $400

• Best monitors under $500

• Best monitors under $1,000

• Factors to consider

Best monitors under $200

Best monitors under $400

Best monitors under $500

Best monitors under $1,000

Factors to consider

Panel type

The cheapest monitors are still TN (twisted nematic), which are strictly for gamers or office use. VA (vertical alignment) monitors are also relatively cheap, while offering good brightness and a high contrast ratio. However, content creators will find that LCD, IPS monitors (in-plane switching) deliver better color accuracy, pixel density, picture quality and viewing angles.

If maximum brightness is important, a quantum dot LCD display is the way to go — those are typically found in larger displays. OLED monitors are now available and offer the best blacks and color reproduction, but they lack the brightness of LED or quantum dot displays. Plus, they cost a lot. The latest type of OLED monitor, called QD-OLED from Samsung, just came out in 2022. The most notable advantage is that it can get a lot brighter, with monitors shown at CES 2022 hitting up to 1,000 nits of peak brightness.

MiniLEDs are now widely used in high-end displays. They’re similar to quantum dot tech, but as the name suggests, it uses smaller LED diodes that are just 0.2mm in diameter. As such, manufacturers can pack in up to three times more LEDs with more local dimming zones, delivering deeper blacks and better contrast.

Screen size, resolution and display format

In this day and age, screen size rules. Where 24-inch displays used to be more or less standard (and can still be useful for basic computing), 27-, 32-, 34- and even 42-inch displays have become popular for entertainment, content creation and even gaming these days.

Nearly every monitor used to be 16:9, but it’s now possible to find 16:10 and other more exotic display shapes. On the gaming and entertainment side, we’re also seeing curved and ultrawide monitors with aspect ratios like 21:9. If you do decide to buy an ultrawide display, however, keep in mind that a 30-inch 21:9 model is the same height as a 24-inch monitor, so you might end up with a smaller display than you expected. As a rule of thumb, add 25 percent to the size of a 21:9 monitor to get the vertical height you’d expect from a model with a 16:9 aspect ratio.

A 4K monitor is nearly a must for content creators, and some folks are even going for 5K or all the way up to 8K. Keep in mind, though, that you’ll need a pretty powerful computer with a decent graphics card to drive all those sharp pixels. And 4K resolution should be paired with a screen size of 27 inches and up, or you won’t notice much difference between 1440p. At the same time, I wouldn’t get a model larger than 27 inches unless it’s 4K, as you’ll start to see pixelation if you’re working up close to the display.

One new category to consider is portable monitors designed to be carried and used with laptops. Those typically come in 1080p resolutions and sizes from 13-15 inches. They usually have a lightweight kickstand-type support that folds up to keep things compact.

HDR

HDR is the buzzy monitor feature to have these days, as it adds vibrancy to entertainment and gaming – but be careful before jumping in. Some monitors that claim HDR on the marketing materials don’t even conform to a base standard. To be sure that a display at least meets minimum HDR specs, you’ll want to choose one with a DisplayHDR rating with each tier representing maximum brightness in nits.

However, the lowest DisplayHDR 400 and 500 tiers may disappoint you with a lack of brightness, washed out blacks and mediocre color reproduction. If you can afford it, the best monitor to choose is a model with DisplayHDR 600, 1000 or True Black 400, True Black 500 and True Black 600. The True Black settings are designed primarily for OLED models, with maximum black levels at .0005 nits.

Where televisions typically offer HDR10 and Dolby Vision or HDR10+, most PC monitors only support the HDR10 standard, other than a few (very expensive) models. That doesn’t matter much for content creation or gaming, but HDR streaming on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and other services won’t look quite as punchy. In addition, the best gaming monitors are usually the ones supporting HDR600 (and up), rather than content creation monitors – with a few exceptions.

Refresh rate

Refresh rate is a key feature, particularly on gaming monitors. A bare minimum nowadays is 60Hz, and 80Hz and higher refresh rates are much easier on the eyes. However, most 4K displays top out at 60Hz with some rare exceptions and the HDMI 2.0 spec only supports 4K at 60Hz, so you’d need at least DisplayPort 1.4 (4K at 120Hz) or HDMI 2.1. The latter is now available on a number of monitors, particularly gaming displays. However, it’s only supported on the latest NVIDIA RTX 3000- and 4000-series, AMD RX 6000-series GPUs.

Inputs

There are essentially three types of modern display inputs: Thunderbolt, DisplayPort and HDMI. Most monitors built for PCs come with the latter two, while a select few (typically built for Macs) will use Thunderbolt. To add to the confusion, USB-C ports may be Thunderbolt 3 and by extension, DisplayPort compatible, so you may need a USB-C to Thunderbolt or DisplayPort cable adapter depending on your display.

Color bit depth

Serious content creators should consider a more costly 10-bit monitor that can display billions of colors. If budget is an issue, you can go for an 8-bit panel that can fake billions of colors via dithering (often spec’d as “8-bit + FRC”). For entertainment or business purposes, a regular 8-bit monitor that can display millions of colors will be fine.

Color gamut

The other aspect of color is the gamut. That expresses the range of colors that can be reproduced and not just the number of colors. Most good monitors these days can cover the sRGB and Rec.709 gamuts (designed for photos and video respectively). For more demanding work, though, you’ll want one that can reproduce more demanding modern gamuts like AdobeRGB, DCI-P3 and Rec.2020 gamuts, which encompass a wider range of colors. The latter two are often used for film projection and HDR, respectively.

Console gaming

Both the Xbox Series X and Sony’s PS5 can handle 4K 120Hz HDR gaming, so if you’re into resolution over pure speed, you’ll want a monitor that can keep up and provide the best gaming experience possible. 4K resolution, HDR and at least 120Hz is the minimum starting point, but fortunately there are 27-inch displays with those specs starting at well under $1,000, so you can still achieve high FPS gaming without breaking the bank.

Pricing and parts shortages

Though the pandemic has eased, monitor supply is still a bit tighter than pre-pandemic levels due to supply and demand issues. To that end, you may have trouble finding monitors at Amazon, B&H or elsewhere for the suggested retail price point. For our guide below, we’re basing our picks on the MSRP, as long as the street price doesn’t exceed that by more than $25.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/accessories/best-monitor-130006843.html?src=rss

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© ASUS

The two-hour special airs on Thursday, Dec. 12 and will be hosted by comedian Michelle Buteau

• "Outlander" season seven has seen one major member of Jamie Fraser's family recast.
• Jenny Murray was played by Laura Donnelly in earlier seasons.
• As of season seven part two, Kristin Atherton has taken over the role.

Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Outlander" season seven, episode nine, "Unfinished Business."

The second half of "Outlander" season seven has reintroduced viewers to a few characters not seen since the show's early days.

As Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitríona Balfe) made their return to the Frasers' ancestral home, Lallybroch, in the midseason premiere, which aired on November 22, the couple reunited with a number of old acquaintances, including Ian Murray (Steven Cree) and Laoghaire Mackenzie (Nell Hudson).

Among the returning characters was Jamie's no-nonsense sister, Janet "Jenny" Murray. But while the character was originally played by Northern Irish actor Laura Donnelly in early seasons, she has been replaced by another actor for season seven.

Starz announced in late 2022 that Kristin Atherton would be taking over the role from Donnelly, who last appeared on the show in season three, which aired in 2017.

The reason behind the recasting decision has not been made public. Representatives for Donnelly and Starz did not respond to a request for comment sent by Business Insider.

However, Donnelly has been busy with several other projects since she last appeared in "Outlander."

Donnelly played the protagonist in HBO's "The Nevers," which began airing in 2021, and has appeared in the movies "Tolkien" (2019) and "The Heist Before Christmas" (2023). Most recently, she played the older version of Emma Healy's character in the Hulu historical drama "Say Nothing," which premiered on November 14.

Elsewhere, Donnelly, who is an Olivier Award-winning and Tony-nominated actor, has been appearing in the Broadway run of "The Hills of California," directed by Sam Mendes and written by Donnelly's husband, Jez Butterworth.

Meanwhile, Atherton, who made her "Outlander" debut in Friday's episode, is best known as a voice actor and has voiced several video game characters. Her television roles include appearances in the British dramas "Waterloo Road" and "Doctors."

Jenny is just one of several key characters from past seasons who'll be making a comeback this season. As well as the aforementioned characters, Dougal MacKenzie (Graham McTavish), Geillis Duncan (Lotte Verbeek), Brian Fraser (Andrew Whipp), and Joan MacKenzie (Layla Burns) will appear.

Given that these returning characters are dead, audiences may be wondering how exactly they will be written back into the story. While flashbacks are possible, showrunner Matthew B. Roberts hinted at another possibility.

"One of the many joys of our epic story is the element of time travel which allows us to revisit some of our favorite characters in different times and places," he said in a statement to BI.

"Outlander" airs Fridays at 8 p.m. ET on Starz, streaming on Prime Video with Starz or Hulu with Starz.