Samsung Ad Injections Perfectly Illustrate Why I Want My 'Smart' TV To Be As Dumb As Possible
from the get-the-hell-out-of-the-way dept
Samsung has been doing a great job this week illustrating why consumers should want their televisions to be as dumb as technologically possible. The company took heat for much of the week after its privacy policy revealed Samsung smart TVs have been collecting and analyzing user living room conversations in order to improve voice recognition technology. While that's fairly common for voice recognition tech, the idea of living room gear that spies on you has been something cable operators have been patenting for years. And while Samsung has changed its privacy policy language to more clearly illustrate what it's doing, the fact that smart TV security is relatively awful has many people quite justly concerned about smart TVs becoming another poorly-guarded repository for consumer data.But it's something else stupid that Samsung did this week that got less press attention, but that I actually find far more troubling. Numerous Samsung smart TV users around the world this week stated that the company has started injecting ads into content being watched on third-party devices and services. For example, some users found that when streaming video content from PC to the living room using Plex, they suddenly were faced with a large ad for Pepsi that actually originated from their Samsung TV:
"Reports for the unwelcome ad interruption first surfaced on a Subreddit dedicated to Plex, the media center app that is available on a variety of connected devices, including Samsung smart TVs. Plex users typically use the app to stream local content from their computer or a network-attached storage drive to their TV, which is why many were very surprised to see an online video ad being inserted into their videos. A Plex spokesperson assured me that the company has nothing to do with the ad in question."Now Samsung hasn't responded yet to this particular issue, and you'd have to think that the company accidentally enabled some kind of trial ad injection technology, since anything else would be idiotic brand seppuku (in fact it does appear like it has been working with Yahoo on just this kind of technology). Still, users say the ads have them rushing to disable the smart portion of Samsung TVs, whether that's by using a third party solution or digging into the bowels of the TV's settings to refuse Samsung's end user agreement. And that raises an important point: many consumers (myself included) want their TV to be as slack-jawed, glassy-eyed, dumb and dim-witted as possible.
Like broadband ISPs and net neutrality, Samsung clearly just can't help itself, and is eager to use its position as a television maker to ham-fistedly inject itself into a multi-billion dollar emerging Internet video market. But that runs in stark contrast to the fact that most people just want their television (whether it's 720p or 4K) to simply be a dumb monitor they hook smart devices of their choice up to. Just like people want their broadband ISPs to get out of the way and provide a quality dumb pipe, many people just want a traditional, dumb television to do a great job displaying the signals sent to it and nothing more.
Dumb TVs just make more sense for most users: many people own televisions for ten years, and the streaming hardware embedded in these sets quickly becomes irrelevant even with updated firmware. Dumb TVs, with less sophisticated internals, should also be cheaper to buy. And if you're any kind of respectable audiophile, you've got game consoles and devices like Roku hooked into a receiver and a decent 5.1 (or above) system, making the set's internals redundant. Swapping out a crop of the latest and greatest (not to mention relatively cheap) Rokus or Chromecasts every few years just makes more sense for most of us.
Last I saw, around 50% of people who buy connected TVs aren't using the connected portion of the set. Yet if you peruse the latest sets (especially the ongoing standards minefield that is 4K or UHD) you'll find that buying a dumb television is getting increasingly more difficult. I won't even get into the problems with HDCP 2.2 DRM stifling 4K growth and confusing the hell out of consumers on the bleeding edge, as that's another article entirely.
Bottom line: I want my pipes dumb, my TVs dumber, and my choice of a full variety of intelligent devices and services without bull-headed companies stumbling drunkenly into my line of sight. Samsung's clumsy week simply couldn't have illustrated the growing need for dim-witted television sets any better.
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Filed Under: ad injections, plex, smart tvs
Companies: samsung
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It's far easier to just plug my laptop in and hit play.
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Eat my dust.
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I'd agree, up until you talk about Plex. The Plex app that runs on smart TVs seems to be built right, in that it is as easy to navigate as NetFlix and is pretty fast too. About the only issue I have with it is that it still relies on DLNA updates, which result in File Not Found messages when new stuff is added to the library and you have to exit and restart the Plex App to avoid these errors.
It's far easier to just plug my laptop in and hit play.
Maybe, though the problem there is that you have to have your laptop running and set up to output to HDMI, and a cable long enough to plug in while you are sitting some distance from the TV. I use the Plex app mainly because I don't have to turn on another device. Luckily I am not using a Samsung TV, and I've been monitoring my Smart TV for the same stupidity and have not seen it (no callback to home, no injecting ads, and no listening devices or monitoring devices.) It does have a stupid non-disableable and non-configurable WiFi Access Point, but that seems to be its only stupidity in this current iteration of the firmware.
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Dumb: Yes
I agree with dumb. But I like some degree of brightness control (so not just dim), I prefer LCDs over the old glass tube-based sets, and I worry that a slack-jawed TV will just drool all over my TiVo sitting on a shelf beneath it.
:-)
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Not if you buy a PC monitor instead, which is what I plan on doing in the unlikely event I feel the need for a traditional living room TV setup.
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Hard to find 60" monitors, isn't it?
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Fine if you're happy with such a small screen. No good if you think the 46" TV you have looks too damn small...
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Multipurpose TV's
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Dumb and Dumber
The only option is to switch to a Large Format Display or those flat screens you see in the windows of shops...Which all used to be pretty expensive but now that I've 'just' taken another look, they're actually getting pretty cheap now?
Hmmm...
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I like them dumb
just like amazons living room smart speaker, this is just twists on similar tech that will find it's way into useful profitability or go the (current) way of google glass, where consumers don't really want it although it might live on in some niche markets.
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Re: I like them dumb
Some people like their phones dumb, sure. But unlike the phone, the TV is a gateway to other devices (game consoles, cable boxes, streaming video hardware, cameras). The TV's role is to simply display content from other devices. The phone isn't just a screen, it's a portable computer. I feel like they're quite different.
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Re: Re: I like them dumb
For you.
I have two kids aged 7 and 5, both of them use the smart features on our Samsung TV. They simply do not get why you need to connect a console, laptop, whatever to the TV just to get internet access or watch a film, or play music etc.
I personally don't need, or even necessarily want, a smart TV (I still prefer my desktop with a physical cable for internet access), but that doesn't mean the future isn't smart TVs.
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Re: Re: Re: I like them dumb
Increasingly corporations are establishing ownership of peoples technology, turning the more into serfs that citizens.
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Re: I like them dumb
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Re: I like them dumb
With cell phones, there was no other way to get the same functionality.
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cars will go through the same backlash
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Re: cars will go through the same backlash
Of course they are -- with or without Toyota's/Ford's/etc.'s knowledge and/or consent. Haven't you noticed? The NSA has a rapacious appetite for every data source it can acquire. There is absolutely no reason whatsoever for them to pass this one up.
If a vehicle can be tracked, it will be tracked.
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Will they?
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I.e.
Another device if connected can turn on tv
a standardized and more inovated use of pip i.e. many pip boxes and faster pip response.....hell, how about a one button shortcut on the damn remote for starters
an intuative tv scheduler with some sort of deep intergration with something like imdb
Etc etc
I can attach the smart bit from a device i have more, maybe not enough, but still, more control over then the closed source tv firmware.......tv manufacturers need to improve the tv aspects first and foremost
Android tv has the right idea, i like the aspects of a unified os, but i hope theres competition there in all fields.......i want to start seing competition from new players, ones that take privacy/security seriously
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I will never, ever, own a Samsung product.
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Please keep the SMART out of the TV
I hope I never have to buy a Smart TV. I just want an ordinary TV thank you.
Reasons why:
Competition and open market. I can buy whatever choice of "smart tv" box that I want. Amazon Fire Stick. Chromecast. Google TV. Roku. PS/3, Xbox, MythTV, Etc. I can even have more than one. Even with overlapping functions. Or even no smart tv at all for those who don't want one.
Competition for the smart TV boxes is important for the future. Just think of what happens if there is a new "Microsoft" of smart tv boxes, and maybe then only one major streaming platform (think "Comcast" of streaming platforms).
The price of the TV is cheaper without building in the smart tv.
If the smart tv box is spying on me, it is not part of the TV and I can get rid of it. It probably cost about $100 which is way less than the cost of the TV.
The Smart TV box becomes obsolete long before the expensive TV does. In fact, the TV might last multiple generations of smart TV box. (This is why I also think buying a computer built into a monitor is a dumb idea.) I can replace the inexpensive smart tv box without throwing out the expensive TV part.
If I don't like the EULA of a smart tv, I don't have to forego the nice TV just because it has a smart TV component with a ridiculous EULA.
Keeping the prices unbundled prevents various pricing games that are played when things are bundled.
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Smart TVs are a step of modern progress
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Re: Smart TVs are a step of modern progress
Very funny but oddly not far off...
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Samsung has responded
There are two takeaways from this. First, that this wasn't intended to happen in Australia. Who knows where it was intended for? Also, there are "currently no plans" to do this "in the near future", which means there are absolutely plans to do this at some point later than the near future.
All in all, their response supports the premise that people should not be purchasing smart TVs.
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Re: Samsung has responded
Absolutely. Nobody spends the engineering time and money required to implement this functionality unless they intend to use it.
So now the question must be asked: what else have they installed in those systems? They've already laid proof on the table that they're willing to turn them into audio surveillance endpoints, what's next?
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It's not just tv's either. Remember the flap about Xbox and Microsofts' idea of the camera and microphone in it to check out how many are watching the tv set and spying on what's said by who in the room? Or how about the Google Nest, a thermostat that connects to the net, reporting the owners electricity use?
My lady got a new Kindle Fire. Know what? It doesn't come with a manual. Know how you get it? You have to create an account with Amazon to get it, online. Amazon wants to load it with ads as well as spy on your usage. Well, here's news. I don't allow this house hold to work on wifi for just these reasons. Anything that connects to the net is going to have to be hard wired. That means Amazon will never get one tab of info out of that spy device called a Kindle.
I'm to the point that if it requires the internet (other than a computer) I don't want it.
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No, this is not correct. You can buy them at Best Buy and other places (or ebay). You can use them without connecting to the internet by connecting to a computer via USB and copying your ebooks to them. You can convert ebooks to kindle format without Amzn knowing about it. I have 2 kindles that have never been connected to a wifi network or to Amazon, and can copy files to them through USB.
If you do buy from Amzn and buy one with 'special offers' (you can buy one without at the outset) you can later pay extra to remove the offers. And if you do have the ones with 'offers' (aka ads) they display only as the sleep screen unless you choose to look at them (basic kindle) or on the HDs if you play games that provide them (so don't play those games, you have the choice).
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I have enough smart already.
Do you have a bluetooth keyboard and mouse? Then you just use your favorite remoting software or VPN + RDP and then you can work at your home or work computer as if you were sitting right at it.
In my opinion, smartphones will beat any smart-tv by a mile in a one mile race.
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The article says both Smart TVs should be dumb but 50% of people disable the feature.
How is this Samsung's fault again? If the APP being used is running NOT on the TV and is displaying a Pepsi ad, I'm extremely confused how Samsung is inserting the ad on a TV that supposedly has its "smart" disabled.
Because if the "smart" is disabled, and the ad was injected regardless, this presents a much, much, much more damaging problem about to befall us consumers.
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Because it was the TV itself, not an app, that was doing this. Even if you're playing your own videos from local storage.
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"Because if the "smart" is disabled, and the ad was injected regardless, this presents a much, much, much more damaging problem about to befall us consumers."
True, it would be a much greater problem in that case. But that in no way means that it's not a great problem when it happens with the "smart" enabled.
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You draw a good point...unless the ads were pre-cached?
Is there any clarification on where and how the ads were loaded?
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1. Purchase a real firewall/router and install between your home network and the Internet. Skip the cheap consumer grade ones.
2. Add a default rule that blocks all traffic to everywhere. Both for inbound and outbound traffic.
3. Add specific rules for whatever gizmos you have that you want to allow to talk to the outside world. Limit the traffic to just the specific IP/Domain name needed to enable the functionality desired.
With this setup, even if the smart TV is allowed to report back to 'Smart TV Central Command' via a specific firewall rule, it would not be allowed to access ads from websites other then 'Central Command', so the streaming Yahoo ad would fail.
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But given that smart TVs aren't actually bringing any real value to the table, I think it's easier just to not connect the TV up to the internet at all. If I ever have to buy one of these things (which I doubt I will ever have to do), that will be the approach I take.
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What I want?
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Re: What I want?
No "probably" about it. Hookers are much better at that than corporations are.
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Re: Re: What I want?
Until you get your blood test results...
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Re: Re: Re: What I want?
Until you get your blood test results...
Uhm...doesn't that kinda prove the point?
Independent discovery doesn't change their secrecy handling skills. It's kinda like getting upset with, and suing someone for disclosing one of your Trade Secrets when you didn't tell anyone about your Trade Secret to begin with.
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Preach it!
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HDCP 2.2 and HDMI 2
I had bought an HD television back when they first came on the market. At the time it was DVI, HDCP hadn't yet made it into production cycles. I didn't know what it was.
Simply I got screwed because of this. Lesson: Read all articles on HDCP 2.2 and HDMI 2 before making any purchase. Backwards compatibly should be key in mind when considering all-of-your-equipment.
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One result I expect to be unforseen by Samsung
This falls into the same category of malware as DRM in that it places a limit on how the end user can use the product (e.g. you must submit to another one of our revenue streams).
And this will lead to open source smart-tv software and ultimately barebones tellies on which you are free to choose your OS.
I suppose product manufacturers and venders being dicks is how we test ans build our society's autoimmune system to such bullshit.
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Re: One result I expect to be unforseen by Samsung
I hope sooner than later.
I suppose product manufacturers and venders being dicks is how we test ans build our society's autoimmune system to such bullshit.
Still waiting for someone to jailbreak my Buffalo PC-P3LWG/DVD. I hate proprietary auto-updating firmware, but unfortunately it is so pervasive these days.
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The nest vengeance.
Enthusiasts have learned to code for less.
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Re: The nest vengeance.
I've got two of them, both bricks after an automatic update after the vendor decided to stop supporting them, at some point when I get some time, I'm going to crack open one of them and start playing. Luckily, I didn't pay $449 (list) for either of them, but I wasted way too much money on what I did pay for them.
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Ya know?
1. They dont update the software
2. they dont update the selections
3. They can do anything with the software, and if you dont what they did...
Its asif they put another hardware part in the TV, that they forget about.. And when they DO remember, the only thing they place on it, is PAY FOR channels..
What Iv shown and told a few, is HOW to use the computer, Roku, Smaller computer to DO with the TV, as they would want..Wonder the net, play games, Watch FREE HULU, get Netflicks, Amazon, Any service the computer can run..
Setup to your Stereo, and have REAL audio..
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Cinavia DRM
At least there's a chance that -- unlike Sony -- LG and Samsung TVs will never enforce Cinavia or other DRM in streamed media (Unless, of course, they buy a movie studio).
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Re: Cinavia DRM
Only because they've been in the news most recently. Your point is correct, though, that this is a problem with all major TV manufacturers -- which is one of the main three reasons I recommend that people avoid buying "smart TVs". The other two reasons are that you can inexpensively turn any modern TV into a "smart" one that works better using any of a number of dongles, or Roku, etc., and that if you use the right dongle, you'll maintain complete control over the "smarts" and will be able to upgrade the "smart" and the "TV" separately.
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Re: Cinavia DRM
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Re: Re: Cinavia DRM
That's why it's strongly recommended to disable automatic updates, and research beforehand if any hardware manufacturer's update contains a Trojan Horse such as Cinavia, Macrovision, or other "poison pill" -- they often do.
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Stallman was right
Free software=free society.
https://archive.org/details/EbenMoglen-WhyFreedomOfThoughtRequiresFreeMediaAndWhyFreeMedia
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Jailbreak = Jail?
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Re: Jailbreak = Jail?
The real question is are you violating the DMCA if you jailbreak? The answer is "it depends". It is a baseline DMCA violation, however there are exceptions. If you're doing it in order to engage in legal reverse engineering or as part of encryption research, then you aren't in violation.
There is nothing illegal about disabling or interfering with its snooping measures. Whether or not that's a violation of the ToS is a different question.
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Re: Jailbreak = Jail?
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/feb/11/breaking-smart-tv-surveillance-capabilities-ma y-be/
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In the unlikely event...
That is a felony that I would commit.
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Re: In the unlikely event...
I can't see any real risk here.
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What a marvelous question.
The anti-circumvention clause is allegedly about distributing or altering copyrighted content. Can you circumvent in order to opt out? Can you block your Kinect camera legally?
When it's counting faces can you put a diorama in front of it showing an empty room with a dog laying on the remote?
Are they going to criminalize off switches?
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Smart Appliance Lifespan
As a general rule, anything with a computer in it in this online world of ours has a shorter lifespan than the same thing without a computer in it.?
Why?
Because computerised stuff requires the manufacturer to issue periodic updates and upgrades, especially security ones to patch security holes that keep being found. Security holes which, if left unpatched, would allow hackers to invade your smart device.
The problem is that providing such a service costs the mabufacturers money. So as a consequence all modern operating system have a predefined lifespan. After that you can keep using the device but there will be no more upgrades. You can still keeping the device but you will do so at your own risk.
For example, Microsoft has stopped updating Windows XP and Apple has stopped updating its Snow Leopard system. While you can still keep using such using a computer with such a system, you do at your own risk.
How imagine you own a SmartTV whose OS has reached its end-of-life cycle but which you want to keep owning because you don't want to upgrade to a more recent model, either for cost reasons or because it comes with new features you don't want. Like popup ads you can't disable.
But the thing is do you really want tyo have a device in your living room (or bedroom) which is now an open target to anybody, be it a private hacker or a government snoop, who can find an unpatched security hole? A device which may come with not just a microphone but a camera too.
This problem is not confined to SmartTVs. Think about all the cars with built-in (and poorly secured) wi-fi systems. What happens when the manufacturers decide not to bother updating the software for them (even supposing they are bothering to do so right now)? I recently struck a not-unrelated problem with Toyota. I need to get a a replacement part for my car's doorlocking system only to discover Toyota was no longer making. If I wanted a new one I would first have to buy a brand new third party doorlocking system to replace one tiny component.
Welcome to the future!
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Did you just use those two words in the same sentence? Respectable audiophile is an oxymoron.
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If only that were true
Unfortunately, most people don't seem to know of care about the implications of "Smart TVs", they just want a single simple box to do all their thinking for them. By the time enough people notice it's a bad idea, they'll be ubiquitous enough for it to be too late and the internet connection will probably be as mandatory as a bad computer game.
And yes, I caved and bought a "Smart" TV to use as a screen, though the only things connected to it are (non network) HDMI cables and the wall.
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I considered briefly getting a Smart TV. However it appeared the store we went to didn't sell them at our price point and size (cheap, and 46"). So we bought a dumb monitor.
I'm glad I chose it.
Here's what I want my screen to do:
brightness control, volume, and suitable inputs
On my wishlist are off-timer (NOT sleep timer, I mean turn off at X o'clock each night, my LG has this), and custom names for inputs (even if it's hardcoded DVR/Cable, still more descriptive than HDMI1).
Anything more than that I don't need or care for. I have other devices for streaming Netflix.
As much as I like linux, I don't need or want it (or any other OS) running on my TV.
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It would be nice if Techdirt didn't sign me out randomly, especially since I made another comment a few hours ago.
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Ick...
I have generally been ambivalent about recommending them to others. On the plus-side, they deliver a better service than none at all and they're very good for gently introducing older and more conservative family members to new forms of viewing, such as online streaming and watching films stored on hard drive.
On the downside, performance is far too slow (why do manufacturers always think that we'll be impressed by technology when they've designed it down to a price, rather than up to a specification?), the UI is unintuitive, there's no way to upgrade the smart hardware without replacing the whole unit and I have yet to find anything on the system that can't be done better by standalone, ugradeable third-party boxes.
After watching Sony, LG and Samsung repeatedly shit in their own soup in the intervening time, I'm not nearly so ambivalent. A standard TV and a Roku (or similar) is clearly the way to go.
I think, as time passes and technology gets cheaper, it will only become more difficult to obtain a TV that isn't smart-capable, or even smart-dependent. If the latest slew of invasive, cretinous manufacturer decisions is anything to go by, it won't be something to look forward to.
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Re: Ick...
You could just disconnect the TV from the internet and treat it as a normal TV. You can even connect any box you like to it for your smart features.
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It's also cheaper than their preferred option, which is a horrifyingly overpriced Sky TV subscription. The UK's free and legal services aren't great, but a combination of those, plus a low-cost Amazon Instant sub should be able to replace 98% of everything they currently pay through the nose for, at a substantially reduced cost.
Once they're comfortable enough with the newer OS's, convincing them to stop throwing money away on Skys substandard service should be just a matter of time. :)
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Dumb TV For Me
https://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20120221/03352017827/smart-tvs-not-such-smart -idea.shtml
"It seems the obvious solution is already here: keep the TV dumb, and provide a set-top box (STB) that has the smarts. The STB can thus be replaced cheaply, once out of date. Consumers can easily have more than one STB, not committing to any one company's ecosystem. Do people really want to buy their TV's by ecosystem?"
"Even those actively looking for a TV may resist if there is a price premium...The TV OEMs are going to have to bundle in the smarts for free, and hope that they can make money back on the content ecosystem."
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OLEDs
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