Helped my parents pick out a new TV and the model they ended up going with (some cheap TCL Fire TV from Costco) had poor reviews mainly because its software is crap.
So I took a gamble and decided to see how annoying it would be if I made it be a dumb TV and never got it online and... seems fine?
So I took a gamble and decided to see how annoying it would be if I made it be a dumb TV and never got it online and... seems fine?
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Our 2005 Panasonic Viera 50" plasma still works, albeit the inner part of the glass is now showing some defect.
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Bonus for the Roku stick - easy to take on vacation.
I hope to avoid "smart" TVs for another 15-20 years.
But... I just got done building a HTPC about a week ago, so now I probably won't be using mine much anymore regardless.
The builtin speakers are horrible and it doesn't even have a way to connect to the internet - which is just what I wanted! Picture is good, I have soundbarv and Chromecast. 50" 4K $200
I had recently seen a video with shockingly good production value on how much it sucks. https://youtu.be/WqXCflhZZXw
The only question will be if it's going to keep pestering them to finish setup.
I think the TCL model is pretty much the only 32" Full HD model around here for sale (ok, there's a Samsung The Frame for almost double the price)
I only have experience with it an extremely cheap Walmart brand Roku TV (which let me skip setup no problem) and this TCL TV which was a little more annoying but doesn't seem to be protesting. Not yet anyway.
And the only two full HD TV's for sale in Brazil are the two I told you.
We have 6 now
Which yes I realize is excessive
They sell "thing" cheap, but then sell "other thing needed to make first thing work that gets consumed" at a significant markup. Same with channels as ink cartridges.
But I also have an LG OLED and would generally prefer the Roku interface. I've just not bothered getting a 4K Roku box yet.
What model, please? This has been my biggest beef with mine.
If your roku remote has volume buttons, it'll probably work after you do this. Also allowing you to use the TV remote on the roku device.
I switched my parents to YouTube TV and two stream boxes (an AppleTV and a Firestick, one for each TV) and now they’ve also dropped their $200+/month satellite!
The power of "it just works" remains undefeated.
I don't think I've used an internal smart system or other external system that isn't kind of a pain in the ass. [I /could/ get used to it, but I could also slap a Roku on it.]
I mention this because customer service won't, and without it, the TV is bricked. (3/3)
USB creation...
https://support.tcl.com/rokutv-common-questions/01-how-to-manually-update-the-software-on-your-tcl-roku-tv
Maybe a high end brand will offer an unlocked TV. 😂
I never connect smart TVs to the Internet.
The box is mandatory, and no TV tuner needed.
I've also seen people just hook up an old desktop or a raspberry pi to the tv.
https://store.google.com/product/chromecast_google_tv?hl=en-US
Actually, scratch that, I wish it to him, that's what he deserves for the school bullying.
LG. I tried the smart TV experience just to see what it was like. It took a few weeks until it was pushing ads to me on startup then later on the screen saver. I pulled the network cable and switched back to a Nvidia Shield.
Might take a more in depth stab at jailbreaking on my own first
The only thing I do different is I use Apple TV
It cost more than Roku, but I feel that the picture quality is better and everything is just faster
The screen savers are a nice bonus too
I bought it coz of high refresh rate (games), optical (sound) output & many HDMI inputs:
- playstation
- PC with Geforce/Ryzen
- until 2 yrs ago a video player scooping TV shows onto HD
- occasional laptop.
Never been connected.
It's just a massive screen.
Also look up the tv on consumerreports’ tv screen optimizer for better picture quality settings. Did this and everything looks so much better
Rest of time it plays radio
They all use variations of a SOM running Android made by some Shenzhen oem, so the next most expensive bit is the panel and thickness of the plastic.
1. It's literally paying money to bring a monitoring suite into your private life so your behaviors can be harvested and sold.
2. The interface was not designed for you, it was designed to guide and record your choices.
No thanks.
Every once in a while the Roku OS tries to convince me I'll have a better experience in the OS as opposed to my computer.
It is never correct.
1st saw this ploy back in 1978 working in coronary care. The company gave us the Intravenous pumps because they made their money on the individual cassettes required.
He was OK using his landline through the NBN but then Telstra cut him off it because he didn't reply to a letter that he thought was just advertising.
You can use it as a hub for homekit, zero ads, sleek metal remote with usb-c recharging, and you can log into all of your streaming services and see the shows and movies like one big library
also, my phone knows to turn itself into a remote when a show is on!
Something something anti-trust enforcement…
I'd love to hear from someone who is happy with over the air programming, especially now that I am letting go of cable TV news.
But they'll fight it until the end because they think they compete on "value add" and not being a good screen.
Probably the only way they can turn a profit anymore.
But Fire TVs all seem to be built with very poor SoCs with very little in the way of RAM
Perhaps it’s just that I got used to it, finding WebOS a bit interesting to figure out
Got a 7.2 Denon AVR-S930H home theater receiver at Goodwill for $15 on BF.
I'm typing this with my computer through the receiver to my TV now.
This Saturday the local Goodwill's will have a Half Price Everything Sale (probably not yellow tags).
We only ever connect our smart TVs via Ethernet for a software update if needed and use an Apple TV.
Factory Reset + Roku = no ads.
I *can* stream using a roku, but I refuse to be "locked in" to these horrible companies.
Anthony Wood just nailed it in terms of the Operating System and remote app.
Here's the thing about expensive Smart TV UIs. They are all different.
Roku is universal and the same. Learning curve is universal for all ages. And it's cheap!
No idea what the fire TVs are like though
The ones we sold were Roku TVs though.
It's hard to find a decent television that doesn't force you to make it smart to use all the features you bought it for.
Only problem is I don’t think it’s really possible to buy a 4K dumb TV new at all
My Reddit: NOT RECOMMENDED!!! TCL w GoogleTV is also...fine, honestly. The hamburger button is slow and I don't like the remote layout, otherwise whatever.
I did just spend more on a Costco Sony for downstairs. It IS nicer but I'd have more money rn if I'd ignored Reddit.
So I plugged it into a full size $50 Echo and got very nice sounding, voice controlled audio. Might do that w Sony cuz Echo sounds 5x better than TV.
1. All your usage and watching data being scraped and sold and
2. Random ‘features’ added later that push advertising or bad usability changes on you.
With this said, my mom loves the free TV Roku/Samsung have. No more cable for her.
It's so much better.
Return the Fire to Costco and get a Roku enabled one
I had a Toshiba that did that constantly. Replaced it with a Sansui dumb TV I picked up at a local flea market for 20 bucks.
A flurry of password changes later, hoping things are better. Sorry, Maldano 🤷🏻♀️
Getting a nice Roku or shield or something is def the way to go.
So yeah if you can't find a dumb TV, get a smart one and ignore the smart part.
I'm not as happy with the Google TV model.
We also got a Roku TCL for my parents and they love it.
Went down to Target, got a Roku stick, plugged it in, used that instead and it works just like new. It was great.
We're getting rid of it now as it's too small for our new meeting room. so thought we'd connect it to the internet and update it.
Software went from pretty snappy to basically unusable lmao.
Install Wolf Launcher, and suddenly you have the single best streaming experience I've ever had.
TV screen does not become obsolete as fast as smart boxes.
(I dont buy new before my kids are old enough not to break it)
i’ve put chromecasts in a TCL Roku and LG smart tv’s and they work great as dumb tv’s, too
Realistically speaking, the firmware in any smart TV will always be abandoned at some point.
Works well and the picture is quite good.
Speakers aren't fantastic.
If I see one ad on any digital device, it's one too many.
I have gotten so used to ad blockers, I will never go back. My eyeballs are not a product anyone can sell.
I'm glad this is working out!
a six week wait for a warranty tech visit
Imagine how cheap that TV could be if they didn’t even bother with the software at all.
You can buy a good 32” dumbo for @$100.
I have monitors that are 20+ years old that still work fine.
Lack of SW support will at best render that TV a monitor in less than 10. And at worst it will be a brick.
Controlled obsolescence.
I like that rokus don't require any maintenance they just work
I did have to de-solder and replace some swollen capacitors on one of its boards a few months ago, but it’s working perfectly now.
They DO all have a hyundai mc4 (or such like) connected to the internet, running an OS and more or less under MY control.
All my TVs are dumb TVs, with a DVI and/or network input from my own local media server. Or streaming video in a browser with all the needed ad-blocking plugins.
But I understand that's not an option for everyone.
I haven't seen anyone try making a TV without hdmi but it's probably coming
BTW good luck with your lofty ambition.
May the #foss be with you.
Glad to hear making the TV dumb was easy.
https://www.404media.co/i-went-to-the-premiere-of-tcls-first-commercially-streaming-ai-movies/
I won't be surprised if the TV starts getting cranky and annoying later, but for now I will give it that for such a cheap TV the picture is pretty phenomenal. It's not quite OLED but it's also not that far
(Ernie and Alec collab when?!?!?!?)
I heard a lot of good about plasma back in the day. These days, I would be surprised if an OLED HDR display doesn't wipe the floor with it on every metric, though. Well, perhaps not by much with regards to black level.