Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

#111

Post by mrweasel » Mon, Nov 29, 2021, 6:40 PM UTC

MightyOwl13 wrote: post #25

Depends a lot on country. I think the US has more options than EU (but I might be wrong...). Framework had a blog post ( https://frame.work/blog/in-defense-of-dumb-tvs ) about this exact thing and NEC digital signage displays are an option or Iiyama ( https://iiyama.com/ ) makes 55,60 inch 4K displays that are non smart. I was looking for something similar and it's frustrating to see you can pick up a 65inch Samsung…

When I last complained about not being able to buy a dumb TV someone linked me a Romanian electronics site. There where so many option, but non of them are available in Denmark.

Re: Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

#112

Post by cmckn » Mon, Nov 29, 2021, 6:40 PM UTC

jstanley wrote: post #76

cmckn wrote: post #69

Look, I think it’s a legitimate question, and I’m not thrilled about most “smart” TV operating systems. But why pigeonhole your search like this? You will almost certainly end up with a worse actual display, which is what you’re spending the money on in the first place. Just buy a nice panel and disable as much of the smarts as you can—-it’ll be fine. Android TV is the best option out there, in my opinion; and it’s w…

For some people, a TV that doesn't actively view its owner as an adversary is a "nicer TV" than one that does.

My Bravia runs Android TV, which I legitimately have not seen even one frame of in over 2 years. There is a spectrum of the kind of thing you’re describing. I wouldn’t buy a Samsung for that reason. But it’s not like all smart TV’s are dystopian.

Re: Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

#113

Post by rbanffy » Mon, Nov 29, 2021, 6:40 PM UTC

You may be able to disable non-GDPR TVs by telling whoever is in the support phone line that you are a citizen of an EU country (lying may work) and that you don't agree with any such abuse of your private information.

I also strongly suggest voiding the warranty and disconnecting the wi-fi antenna. That's usually easy.

Dell has a 43" 4K monitor that, with a soundbar, can probably be a reasonable TV, but it lacks a tuner. It's, however, 3x as expensive as an average Smart TV from a rent-a-brand like JVC. Mine (5 yo, FHD) has an ethernet jack but all it ever did was getting an IP address from the DHCP server and nothing else, ever. There hasn't been any traffic for a month or so, before I just disconnected it and reused the cable for a small cluster.

Re: Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

#114

Post by onemoresoop » Mon, Nov 29, 2021, 6:41 PM UTC

jjoonathan wrote: post #104

caymanjim wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

TV display quality is dogshit compared to monitors. Even cheap low-end monitors tend to have better displays. They aren't the same panels at all.

Nope. I'm using an OLED TV as a monitor on my main PC, and it kicks the pants off any monitor I've ever used before, including the 2021 MBP monitor I'm typing this on right now.

Which one are you using if you don't mind me asking?

Re: Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

#115

Post by austinshea » Mon, Nov 29, 2021, 6:42 PM UTC

dncornholio wrote: post #97

austinshea wrote: post #66

Sceptre is fantastic for this. e.g. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Sceptre-55-Class-4K-UHD-LED-TV-HD... Zero smart features, and all modern capabilities. It's also a TV, as opposed to a computer monitor, so it has the expected TV speakers and ports.

I could not find a product description. Stopped scrolling when I reached the related products and could not find a hyperlink in the sidebar. Is this just me stuck in old ways?

This will provide more significant detail: https://www.sceptre.com/TV/4K-UHD-TV-category1category73.htm...

(e.g. https://www.sceptre.com/TV/4K-UHD-TV/U557CV-UMRB-55-4K-UHD-T...)

Re: Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

#116

Post by danudey » Mon, Nov 29, 2021, 6:42 PM UTC

squiffsquiff wrote: post #37

rapsey wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So give it a network connection for initial setup then take it away?

So you'll still have all the adverts, they just don't update?

Run it through pihole to block the ad networks? Or just whitelist hostnames/addresses one by one until the setup works.

Not exactly a user-friendly option, but an option nonetheless.

Re: Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

#117

Post by twobitshifter » Mon, Nov 29, 2021, 6:42 PM UTC

Is anyone just opting for a projector instead? How does that work

It is a bit ridiculous that TVs have to be a computer with internet access to sell nowadays, but that’s coming to just about every household appliance.

Re: Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

#118

Post by gnud » Mon, Nov 29, 2021, 6:42 PM UTC

the_duke wrote: post #74

Swedx [1] has really nice, affordable products. I've bought about 5 of them over the last few years. All of their screens come in a "TV version" with a tuner, and a "monitor version" without one, but are otherwise identical. The speakers are pretty crappy, but that's to be expected. (European company, so not sure where they ship to outside the EU) [1] https://www.swedx.com

Second this.

I have a SwedX FHD or UHD or something screen, not 4K. The remote is simple. The menus are simple. Turning it on could be quicker, but is not horrible. The sound is not great, but functional. It has digital audio out, so I use an external amp and speakers.

The price is quite nice. The lack of any "smart" features even nicer.

Re: Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

#119

Post by mikepurvis » Mon, Nov 29, 2021, 6:42 PM UTC

floatingatoll wrote: post #79

actually_a_dog wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's interesting, but it doesn't look like you have many choices at the 55" size unless you're willing to pay double what I paid 4 years ago for my Sony.

What value would additional choices serve, if it’s just a pane of glass of a fixed size and resolution?

Downward cost pressure, one presumes.

Re: Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

#120

Post by FemmeAndroid » Mon, Nov 29, 2021, 6:42 PM UTC

floatingatoll wrote: post #79

actually_a_dog wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's interesting, but it doesn't look like you have many choices at the 55" size unless you're willing to pay double what I paid 4 years ago for my Sony.

What value would additional choices serve, if it’s just a pane of glass of a fixed size and resolution?

There can still be differences in color gamut, refresh rates, input lag, viewing angle, black uniformity, local dimming, image retention, supported resolutions, SDR/HDR brightness to name a few.