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Ask Slashdot: Why Do You Want a 'Smart TV'?
Reader kheldan questions the need for a Smart TV (edited for clarity): Yesterday we read about how Samsung is planning on 'upgrading' the firmware in its smart TVs so that it could inject ads into your video streams. This raises the question yet again: Why do you even need a 'smart TV' in the first place? We live in an age where media-center computers and DVRs are ubiquitous, and all your TV really needs to be is a high-def monitor to connect to these devices. Even many smartphones have HDMI connectivity, and a Raspberry Pi is inexpensive and can play 1080 content at full framerate. None of these devices are terribly expensive anymore, and the price jump from a non-smart TV to a smart TV makes it difficult to justify the expense. Also, remember previous articles posted on the subject of surveillance many of these smart TVs have been found guilty of. So I put it to you, denizens of Slashdot: Why does anyone really want a 'smart TV'?
I just bought a new TV over the weekend, so I have recent experience with shopping. When it comes to large screen 1080p or 4k monitors, I didn't see any in the stores that weren't "smart" in one way or another.
That said - I have no use at all for those features excepting one... The set I bought can act as a Chromecast receiver (and it does so marvelously, I might add). I won't use any of the other apps on it since I already have other devices that run those apps and more perfectly well, but I am definitely happy with the ability to wirelessly cast to it because none of my existing devices had that capability.
Didn't Google recently announce Android for Raspberry PI? If you could get those working together, you could use the Android Netflix app.
My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
I have a Smart TV that was given to me as payment of a debt. I like the TV, but after trying to get the smart features to work satisfactorily I ultimately gave up and plugged in my Roku.
The tv's smart interface and all apps are dreadfully slow to respond. The Netflix UI is terribly dated in appearance and functionality, and the Plex app wouldn't connect to my plex servers. I sideloaded a plex app from the deveoloper and this was able to connect to my servers, but stopped functioning shortly thereafter. The Youtube app was slow and pairing it with an android device was always a crapshoot.
The tv was missing a critical app for me, so the Roku purchase was inevitable, but the apps included with the smart tv are by no means a working substitute. If Samsung et al would actually provide a positive user experience with their smart suites then I would certainly be onboard. But in reality, much like SOHO router vendors who pathetically attempt to provide 'premium' features with their device firmware, tv vendors should stick to selling tvs.
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I had a lengthy conversation with netflix support, apparently, there is NO way to view 4K netflix content except for a smart TV that supports "software" as they call it. Essentially, its DRM as demanded by studio.
So as in my case, I have 40" 4K monitor, all the hardware, a 4K plan with netflix, 50mbps internet, but I cannot get 4K because its only available on these so called Smart TVs.
Before we argue, 4K content is a lot lot sharper. I do want it, but Netflix won't stream it to my PC.
I basically had the exact opposite experience. I got a smart TV because that's basically all they were selling in the size I wanted with other specifications such as 3+ HDMI ports. I thought for sure I'd end up buying a Roku in less than a year because of all the comments similar to yours that people post.
3 years later I still don't have a need for another device to be hooked up to my TV. It connects to Plex using DLNA, no specific app needed. Although there is a Plex app, I've never felt the need to download it. The Netflix and Youtube apps work well enough for my usage. The ability to stream videos directly from my tablet or phone is a big plus. It still gets updates every couple of months, so they are doing some stuff to keep it up to date. I haven't found any deficiencies with my Smart TV. It's an LG tv if anybody is wondering.
Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
I bought the best plasma TV panel I could find anywhere. The picture is amazing. The "smart" features mostly don't work (voice and gesture control - nice idea but neither actually works for shit), but they came with the TV. One nice bit is the camera built into the TV folds up to point at the ceiling (that's the off switch), though there's no easy way to physically disable the microphone.
I tried the Netflix app, but the Netflix UI is just a lot better on my laptop, so the TV is just a monitor now. The YouTube app is a sad joke - the TV supports a USB keyboard and mouse, but the YouTube app doesn't, so you have to use the shitty on-screen keyboard to search. Worthless.
Basically, all the apps my TV came with are worthless, but it's a great monitor for watching movies.
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