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Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

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Re: Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

#221

Post by bagels »

debugnik wrote: post #178
pupdogg wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wait, this Disney lawsuit thing is news to me. What's up with that? You're right, in the consumer market, there's a much higher demand for 32-40" display. Our UHD controller can easily handle that and comes with 5x total input ports [ 3x HDMI(V1.4a), 1x HDMI(V2.0), 1x DisplayPort(V1.2) ] and can run 3840x2160 or 4096x2160 resolutions @ 120Hz.

Edit: Nevermind, apparently they already did claim it.

Disney makes character branded tvs. It is not a defensible use of the name.

Re: Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

#222

Post by babypuncher »

mustacheemperor wrote: post #180
parker_mountain wrote: post #172

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your LG C2 is a dumb tv - if you dont connect it to the internet. You can even buy a $10 IR remote control on amazon and use that to switch inputs. Or, in my experience, all of my external devices support HDMI CEC and auto switch when i use them.

I have an LGCX and if I hadn't connected it to the internet I would have missed out on some important software updates that significantly improved the display performance. I guess you can toggle the internet on and off when updates are published, but it's not the most convenient solution. Edit: But you can use a USB! Woohoo, thank you repliers!

You can update the firmware on LG TVs with a USB drive, no internet required.

Re: Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

#223

Post by scrollaway »

pupdogg wrote: post #220
schappim wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're going to want to change that name... Disney... They have the class 9 Trade Mark for Dumbo, and call out: "television sets;"[1][2]. [1] https://search.ipaustralia.gov.au/trademarks/search/view/115... [2] https://files.littlebird.com.au/Shared-Image-2023-04-08-06-5...

Yes, going to take care of that. Thanks for the heads up. I really looked that one over...didn't think too much of it as the domain was available. It's hard to do anything the easy way nowadays!

It's a great name for a non-smart tv, to be honest. But Disney'll be Disney. Good luck.

Re: Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

#224

Post by [deleted] »

bee_rider wrote: post #203
parker_mountain wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I have an LGCX and if I hadn't connected it to the internet I would have missed out on some important software updates that significantly improved the display performance. Fwiw toggling the internet is an easy fix compared to the "dumb tv" way of updating firmware - putting a bin on a flash drive.

I’d tend to assume that any data collected would be uploaded opportunistically whenever an internet connection was available.

[deleted]

Re: Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

#225

Post by pupdogg »

whalesalad wrote: post #202
pupdogg wrote: post #133

I've designed and built many such TVs for the commercial/industrial vertical. I am currently working on developing such a TV for the consumer market and launching it under the name DUMBO.TV Let me know your thoughts. Reference pix of 70" industrial display using Samsung LCD panel and in-house LCD controller with physical OSD menu buttons along with IR/RS232 control capability: https://imgur.com/a/k6zrH3s

Where is that overhead factory shot? I am in Detroit so it immediately made me think of a vehicle assembly line.

Small world! Sterling Heights here. Automotive manufacturing plants is a big vertical for us.

Re: Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

#226

Post by m463 »

datadeft wrote: post #25
ed25519FUUU wrote: post #2

The approach I’ve taken is to just keep my TV off the internet (never join a WiFi network) and make it smart via an Apple TV, which I personally believe to have the strongest privacy protection of any smart TV device. Another bonus is my TV UI hasn’t changed despite changing and upgrading TV brands.

If your tv is not going to an open AP mode it is sufficient. Some smart devices had open APs or weak security and it was possible to exploit it.

my lg soundbar creates an access point to talk to the subwoofer, it is annoying. I wish I could just run an optical digital cable or something.

Re: Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

#227

Post by prmoustache »

codetrotter wrote: post #17
was_a_dev wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hasn't some models (thinking Samsung) been shown to connect to any WiFi network they can? edit: Appears to be an urban legend, with not much substance to back it up!

Sure but if everyone has WPA2 encryption enabled on their network, such as is the case in my neighbourhood, then there is no network for the TV to connect to anyways.

Couldn't a device looking for wifi just connect wherever you or your neighbours hit the wps button on their wifi router?

Re: Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

#228

Post by kjsthree »

parker_mountain wrote: post #172
kjsthree wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Keep us updated. I'd likely pay 2x what I payed for my LG C2 for a "dumb" version. Even if just to support such a project.

Your LG C2 is a dumb tv - if you dont connect it to the internet. You can even buy a $10 IR remote control on amazon and use that to switch inputs. Or, in my experience, all of my external devices support HDMI CEC and auto switch when i use them.

This is essentially what I've done. The TV has never been connected to the Internet and my Apple TV drives everything. I would still have payed 2x to support a good dumb TV project and would love to do so in the future.

Re: Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

#229

Post by pupdogg »

babypuncher wrote: post #217
pupdogg wrote: post #133

I've designed and built many such TVs for the commercial/industrial vertical. I am currently working on developing such a TV for the consumer market and launching it under the name DUMBO.TV Let me know your thoughts. Reference pix of 70" industrial display using Samsung LCD panel and in-house LCD controller with physical OSD menu buttons along with IR/RS232 control capability: https://imgur.com/a/k6zrH3s

* OLED * eARC * Dolby Vision and HDR10+ * VRR, preferably with G-Sync and Freesync Premium certification These are my requirements for a new display, anything that meets them in the pipeline? My biggest problem with existing "dumb TVs" is that they lack features like these, yet cost more than "smart TVs" that do.

Yes, we support OLEDs and QLEDs as is. However, "Dolby Vision and HDR10+ * VRR, preferably with G-Sync and Freesync" are some new buzz words for me. Are they just marketing buzz words or do they actually translate to physical or software specs for the controller board/firmware?

Re: Ask Wirecutter: Can you recommend a not-smart TV for me?

#230

Post by CivBase »

> If you can find one manufactured recently that isn’t smart, I don’t know that I would trust it to be worth what you’re paying for it, because it’ll likely be missing several other salient features that you may actually want, like Bluetooth compatibility, HDR functionality, built-in channel scanning, or the ability to auto-label and optimize devices by HDMI input.

I don't care about any of those features except for HDR, and I suspect that's the case for most others who would be interested in a dumb TV.

That said, the easiest solution is really just to buy a smart TV and keep it off your network and connect a laptop or HTPC. But I've heard horror stories of newer TVs auto-connecting to whatever open network they can find and some even having LTE radios, so who knows how long that strategy will work.

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