Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen • Hacker News Board

Re: Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen

#131

Post by notsureaboutpg » Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 5:47 PM UTC

scrollaway wrote: post #77

Question to HN users: I have a dumb display attached to an nvidia shield. The Shield is nice: It's powerful enough, runs decent version of the common apps I care about (netflix, plex, youtube, spotify are the ones I use), and the remote is minimalistic and nice to use. Let's say I want to opt out of Google for this. What the hell do I do? I do have a Windows PC attached to the TV, for gaming, but if I wanted to run t…

Most tvs have multiple HDMI inputs, why not have your Windows PC for gaming and a Linux PC with Kodi or whatever you like.

I personally just run mpv on my Linux box plugged into my TV and connected to a DLNA media server in my home and use my Android phone as a remote with KDEConnect, I'm not a big app person. I mostly watch YouTube videos my media server auto downloads when they are available from creators I like. For my family I have Netflix.

You're right it's not as nice as using a TV remote though! I bet Kodi or Plex, etc. would be more navigable with a remote. I wonder if you can get a Bluetooth remote that connects to a PC...

Re: Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen

#132

Post by nitrogen » Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 5:47 PM UTC

dagmx wrote: post #38

Ansil849 wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People still bought products that had the capability of ads being inserted retroactively. If you don't want the potential of ads being inserted into hardware you purchase, then don't purchase hardware that allows it. It is very straightforward.

So you're future victim blaming now? People need to be able to predict all possible eventualities and are to blame for any future changes to a system?

Many people definitely predicted this outcome years ago. At the time it was dismissed with "slippery slope fallacy" etc.

Re: Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen

#133

Post by enos_feedler » Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 5:48 PM UTC

Time for Apple to start taking tvOS seriously. There is a lot of advertising revenue for Apple to capture that doesn’t involve plastering ads everywhere. Just think about live sports intermissins.

Re: Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen

#134

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 5:48 PM UTC

ajsnigrutin wrote: post #100

cf100clunk wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is kind of a twist on the old "nobody ever got fired for using IBM" idea regarding marketplace saturation: "nobody ever complained about Google"?

I mean.. honestly, if I had to set up some "media device" for a relative, I'd pick google over anything else... usually it just works, it's simple, if something doesn't work, "it's googles fault", if something isn't supported, again, googles fault. ...basically same as with IBM. At home... libreelec. +importing ipvt playlists... +epg, which gets banned by the telco, and then reappears somewhere else. +subtitle servic…

[deleted]

Re: Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen

#135

Post by isoprophlex » Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 5:48 PM UTC

jmacd wrote: post #116

CharlesW wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's nearly perfect now that they've fixed the remote, and absolutely the device to beat at the moment. Most of the "channel" apps are also very nice, the exception being Amazon's clunky Prime Video app. The Plex client is quite good too.

The plex client is rock solid

Apple tv has plex?!! I'm getting one!

Re: Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen

#136

Post by scrollaway » Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 5:48 PM UTC

MrVitaliy wrote: post #127

scrollaway wrote: post #77

Question to HN users: I have a dumb display attached to an nvidia shield. The Shield is nice: It's powerful enough, runs decent version of the common apps I care about (netflix, plex, youtube, spotify are the ones I use), and the remote is minimalistic and nice to use. Let's say I want to opt out of Google for this. What the hell do I do? I do have a Windows PC attached to the TV, for gaming, but if I wanted to run t…

Install another TV launcher app (I like Simple TV Launcher). Once installed, use Android dev tool on a remote laptop/workstation (platform-tools, adb.exe) to remotely connect to the Shield device and disable Google TV. The command to disable Google TV launcher is something like 'adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 google.android.tv' Once Google TV Launcher is disabled, Shield picks the next installed Launcher on your…

Thanks, I was not aware the launcher could be swapped out so easily. This seems like a decent option if I want to keep my Shield.

Re: Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen

#137

Post by sneak » Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 5:48 PM UTC

I once asked an Alexa device in my kitchen for a unit conversion or the weather or something.

It responded as it always had, then advertised something after the response, some new Amazon feature I didn't care about.

I calmly but immediately ripped it out of the wall and spiked it hard into the tile floor, where it shattered into pieces. It went out with the garbage that day.

Vote with your eyeballs. Smash that shit to pieces and never buy anything that says Google or Android on it ever again.

Re: Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen

#138

Post by jbluepolarbear » Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 5:49 PM UTC

yellowfish wrote: post #111

techlaw wrote: post #106

I am hopeful that now that the FTC has a pro-consumer Chair that some of these anti-consumer acts will be curtailed. I would also argue that some of these bad acts could be considered to be false / deceptive trade practices under the various state laws (in the U.S. at least). For example, some people would never have bought a FireTV cube for streaming video if Amazon had revealed that they would be adding advertiseme…

there's nothing wrong with ads on stuff like this; televisions aren't sacred ground.

Nothing wrong. But I and many others have migrated away from google products because of actions like this.

Re: Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen

#139

Post by Cyph0n » Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 5:49 PM UTC

CharlesW wrote: post #75

jmacd wrote: post #49

The new Apple TV 4K is a absolutely better than any of the high end android tv devices. I’ve been through them all (at considerable expense) and am now totally happy on the new apple tv

It's nearly perfect now that they've fixed the remote, and absolutely the device to beat at the moment. Most of the "channel" apps are also very nice, the exception being Amazon's clunky Prime Video app. The Plex client is quite good too.

If you want an app that supports Plex/Emby/Jellyfin as well as direct network storage, Infuse is unbeatable in my opinion.

Re: Reviews of Android TV launcher after Google added ads to the homescreen

#140

Post by vtbg » Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 5:49 PM UTC

scrollaway wrote: post #77

Question to HN users: I have a dumb display attached to an nvidia shield. The Shield is nice: It's powerful enough, runs decent version of the common apps I care about (netflix, plex, youtube, spotify are the ones I use), and the remote is minimalistic and nice to use. Let's say I want to opt out of Google for this. What the hell do I do? I do have a Windows PC attached to the TV, for gaming, but if I wanted to run t…

I have a Sony tv with Android, and I disabled or uninstalled anything google I could find. Still works perfectly. (Disclosure, I’m probably in HN’s bottom 5th percentile in tech skills)