sneaky ass vizio.. the setting to disable this is buried under a system diagnostics section with the word "Reset" prominently showing as the menu entry. It's as if they want to discourage owner from venturing into that menu out of fear of the Reset.
Own a Vizio Smart TV? It’s Watching You
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Re: Own a Vizio Smart TV? It’s Watching You
#12sneaky ass vizio.. the setting to disable this is buried under a system diagnostics section with the word "Reset" prominently showing as the menu entry. It's as if they want to discourage owner from venturing into that menu out of fear of the Reset.
Much safer to never give the TV network credentials.
Re: Own a Vizio Smart TV? It’s Watching You
#13Earlier quoted context omitted.
Tuners on a stick have been around for well over a decade (Hauppauge was probably one of the first consumer focused brands and still sells a myriad of tuners). The problem is CableCard (out of CableLabs, which is run by a consortium of all the providers) and it's amazingly restrictive licensing. This is part of the reason why you can't really get a tuner for things like MythTV... Well, you can - but even though thing…
I am talking about OTA ATSC tuners.
And like I said, plenty of those types of products exist to solve that problem...
http://hauppauge.com/site/products/prods_hvr_external.html http://www.silicondust.com/hdhomerun/
...what I was describing is the problematic issue with CableCard and the DRM problem: the inability to run a trustworthy OS (i.e. non-Smart-TV-solution-that-spies-on-all-your-viewing-habits) to process encrypted QAM and the like... ATSC solutions are aplenty, some of the best are the Silicondust hardware.
Re: Own a Vizio Smart TV? It’s Watching You
#14sneaky ass vizio.. the setting to disable this is buried under a system diagnostics section with the word "Reset" prominently showing as the menu entry. It's as if they want to discourage owner from venturing into that menu out of fear of the Reset.
Much safer to never give the TV network credentials.
One of the crappy things is, for example, the way LG chooses to approach this. My guess is they're just as bad as Vizio with their new "WebOS" TVs (disclosure: I own one, started reading disclaimer - they send all activity to LG proper as well). Opted out of everything thinking I won't watch any OTA or cable on the TV anyway since it's a media room panel, however I did want to use the built in Netflix / Amazon from time to time instead of having to provide another box in a minimalistic A/V setup.
Problem is... As soon as I tried to fire up Netflix the app on the TV needed an "update". To get the update you have to agree to all ToS. Complete and utter BS approach to forcing customers into a path of least resistance.
It's also hard to get a premium panel (I was specifically looking for 4:4:4@60Hz) without the "smarts". It boiled down to price vs features vs requirements and thus I ended up where I did. I ended up revoking my acceptance of ToS and biting the bullet to use an external device for streaming content... Unfortunately I don't think most people care, or if they would they don't realize they should in these scenarios. The unfortunate reality...
Re: Own a Vizio Smart TV? It’s Watching You
#15The "fix" to this is to not let your TV connect to the internet. Instead, use a set top box that you trust to stream Netflix, etc. Mythtv or tvheadend are good solutions for live tv if you have a computer with a capture card.
I wonder how long it'll be before a smart TV is sold that automatically scans for and connects to open wireless access points so it can phone home.
Re: Own a Vizio Smart TV? It’s Watching You
#16I don't understand why you'd want a Smart TV. If something goes south (in this age of disposable tech) it becomes like those TV/VCR combos of the past where 1/2 of it doesn't work. http://www.howtogeek.com/176392/smart-tvs-are-stupid-why-you...
I don't get it either.
That article hits the issues why I won't buy one.
I'd much rather have a plain old dumb tv and a smart device attached to it. With the same tv, I have been through a Chromecast, a NeoTV, a Roku 2 and a Roku3.
I have kept adding features on to the same old tv.
Also, I'm concerned about EOL issues. A friend of mine had a smart Blu-Ray player, the manufacturer stopped updating the software and when YouTube stopped supporting the version of the app on his device, he was shut out.
It was a minor inconvenience to buy a new Blu-Ray player but if it has been his TV, he'd have to either go buy a new TV or buy an external smart device just to enjoy the same feathers the tv had when he bought it.
Meanwhile, I would have spent less for my dumb tv and smart devices while maintaining a more positive overall experience.
Re: Own a Vizio Smart TV? It’s Watching You
#17I don't understand why you'd want a Smart TV. If something goes south (in this age of disposable tech) it becomes like those TV/VCR combos of the past where 1/2 of it doesn't work. http://www.howtogeek.com/176392/smart-tvs-are-stupid-why-you...
I don't get it either. That article hits the issues why I won't buy one. I'd much rather have a plain old dumb tv and a smart device attached to it. With the same tv, I have been through a Chromecast, a NeoTV, a Roku 2 and a Roku3. I have kept adding features on to the same old tv. Also, I'm concerned about EOL issues. A friend of mine had a smart Blu-Ray player, the manufacturer stopped updating the software and whe…
Yup. A smart TV makes you find a single product that is both a good A) TV and B) media center/computer or whatever you want to call it. Decoupling the devices makes it easier to shop for the best TV and the best TV media center.
Re: Own a Vizio Smart TV? It’s Watching You
#18I don't understand why you'd want a Smart TV. If something goes south (in this age of disposable tech) it becomes like those TV/VCR combos of the past where 1/2 of it doesn't work. http://www.howtogeek.com/176392/smart-tvs-are-stupid-why-you...
Smart TVs don't cost more. And they function just fine as normal TVs. I got a 60 inch Vizio smart TV for about $400 and I'm pretty happy with it. I was pretty skeptical about the Smart TV features, but the built-in Netflix and Amazon Prime apps are actually very convenient and are more user friendly than a Chromecast. I can search, pause, rewind, change episodes, etc. without using my laptop. When the Smart TV features become obsolete, or I switch to a streaming service that's not available, it still has HDMI ports like any TV. As for this privacy concern, a) it can be turned off, and b) it's nothing new; Netflix tracks your viewing habits, Amazon tracks your viewing habits, Facebook tracks your web browsing habits, etc.
Re: Own a Vizio Smart TV? It’s Watching You
#19The "fix" to this is to not let your TV connect to the internet. Instead, use a set top box that you trust to stream Netflix, etc. Mythtv or tvheadend are good solutions for live tv if you have a computer with a capture card.
That works until manufacturers make a deal with cellular networks. precedent: onstar
Re: Own a Vizio Smart TV? It’s Watching You
#20[deleted]