If you have children you have a moral imperative to pirate content and prevent this from infecting their lives.
Search for a plexshare. $20 for everything, zero ads. Screw these greedy bastards.
The downfall of smart TVs: From promises of seamless viewing to ad tool
61–70 of 579 posts
Re: The downfall of smart TVs: From promises of seamless viewing to ad tool
#62This type of expectation is why I've always gravitated towards Roku sticks. They're cheap, really well designed, centrally controlled on your account and you avoid any need to over-invest in specific TV vendors to have the same experience across the board. And it can't do anything that the HDMI port can't do.
I get what your saying but the article specifically mentions Roku partnering with Walmart to not only show ads but even facilitate the purchase... My solution has been a Raspberry Pi running Kodi.
There's a part of me that wonders if this wasn't by necessity.
I went into Best Buy just before Christmas and they had Google TVs and Amazon TVs everywhere, prominently displayed and fully stocked. They only had 2-3 little Roku TV's hidden in the back corner that I had to ask somebody to even find.
If I go into Sam's Club or Walmart, I can find Roku everywhere with great options.
It made me wonder if the other vendors were trying to push Roku out and because of that they were forced into a deal with Walmart to remain viable.
Re: The downfall of smart TVs: From promises of seamless viewing to ad tool
#63Earlier quoted context omitted.
The "they use any open wifi they can see" myth has been brought up on HN multiple times, and never did anybody provide any credible proof of this rumour (that started as a single reddit comment).
I would be surprised if modern TVs didn’t connect to open WiFis; there is literally no reason for TVs not to do this, and every incentive to do it. Even if we discount the ads as a motivator, it’s still a simple solution to get people’s stuff configured automatically.
Until someone makes a honeypot library that just spams Google Cast/AirPlay 2 streams when it sees a random TV join
Re: The downfall of smart TVs: From promises of seamless viewing to ad tool
#64> Some may argue that there's no need to be dramatic and that there's nothing wrong in seeing an occasional ad every now and then. Oh, no, I am very dramatic about this. I will go to any lengths not to see advertising. I will entirely forgo any platform that shows me even one ad, especially when I pay them. Amazon Prime video is already pushing it with their preroll previews. The second it's something else I'm cancel…
Just cancelled Disney+ with the one worded reason: commercials
Re: The downfall of smart TVs: From promises of seamless viewing to ad tool
#65Downfall implies a failure or ending, it seems like they're still selling like hotcakes. This is why we need regulation to save us from surveillance, most consumers want cheap and don't understand/care that they're selling their privacy instead.
They’re selling like hotcakes because you cannot find non-smart TVs anymore
It's called a large computer monitor or projector, but you have to pay a lot more because it's not being subsidized by ads or surveillance.
Re: The downfall of smart TVs: From promises of seamless viewing to ad tool
#66There is a much better option for HN crowd: Buy a large/modern computer monitor and connect it to your homelab’s media server. Literally there is no need for a smart TV so long as you are capable of setting up a small homelab.
The existing options for monitors, suitable for use as a TV, are extremely limited. For TVs 55" and 65" are common, for monitors there were just a few, which were dumb TVs basically. And then there are bigger sizes, different types of panels (there are no 4K QD-OLED monitors for example) that are not available for monitors.
I think, if telemetry and ads are concern, buying TV without connecting it to the internet (using Apple TV or a homelab media server) is a better choice for many TV buyers.
Re: The downfall of smart TVs: From promises of seamless viewing to ad tool
#67At home, I've never connected my TV to my network. The few firmware updates I've needed to do were applied using a thumb drive, and I use an AppleTV as my interface. When I travel, I bring along an AppleTV and plug the HDMI port into their set. This lets me keep the services I subscribe-to and use them with their display. This has worked great until my most-recent rental, which had a RokuTV -- presumably setup on Wif…
> The few firmware updates I've needed to do were applied using a thumb drive
What kind of firmware updates do you need to do on it, when its only purpose is to act as a screen?
Re: The downfall of smart TVs: From promises of seamless viewing to ad tool
#68Earlier quoted context omitted.
> they will start embedding SIM cards in TVs that can’t be disabled Open up the TV and solder the antenna to ground. If the TVs refuse to work when there is no Signal, good luck with customer complaints - here in Germany, we have huge black-spots with no reception whatsoever (mostly rural areas, but people still live in those).
If the % of people who don't connect their smart TV to internet is small, then the % of people who will go through the trouble of soldering their TV (and voiding their warranty) is essentially 0%.
The whole "void warranty if any changes are made" is mostly not enforcable in Europe and as I understand it in some part in the US. In Germany, you would just have to proof that your change is not the culprit of the damage. I.e. if your OLED panel breaks, you can still claim warranty.
Re: The downfall of smart TVs: From promises of seamless viewing to ad tool
#69I have an LG C1, which is an amazing TV, but even after disabling every single ad-related option, I'll still occasionally get a pop-up ad when the TV turns on.
Re: The downfall of smart TVs: From promises of seamless viewing to ad tool
#70I am planning to migrate from smart tv to just panel + some android tv box. Any suggestions for the box? Needs to be android for some local tv apps to work.