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Comment by Dylan16807 | Hacker News Reader

A separate streaming device, or a computer, has the same issues. Unless a TV screen is special here it sounds like this logic won't let me use any streaming services.

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I'm not saying that other people should go the route that I did, I'm just adding to the conversation.

I wanted to make my "smart" tv "dumb" without losing smart tv functionality, so I bought a mini pc and installed Kubuntu on it. Normally I don't use KDE but it is a very highly customizable DE and so I customized the hell out of it to make the desktop look like a typical smart tv launcher page. I created launchers for streaming services and YouTube etc. and bought a USB remote control from Amazon.

Now I have a Linux machine that is entirely under my control, runs FOSS software and runs streaming services in a web browser instead of installing proprietary software on my TV. I also have way more features, like being able to use VLC to play local media so it supports pretty much every file format ever (and I have a lot of older video files from decades ago so that's nice).

My "smart" tv is no longer connected to any network but I can still do every smart tv thing that I want to and more.

Unless things have changed, a Linux machine will not give you a high bit rate picture. Netflix requires DRM and will only give you 720p.

So you get freedom, but a worse product. Which is a trade off not all would be willing to make.

There are also few major streaming services which require elevated levels of DRM , preventing them from being used on Linux.

I've not had any issues with any streaming service not working on Linux. Disney+, Netflix, Prime Video, Shutter all work fine for me. If it can be streamed in a browser, on any OS, it works on Linux. Typically your browser just needs to have Widevine installed.

As for Netflix quality, I've not noticed any quality issues at 1080p but I've not measured the stream to confirm if that's what they're actually streaming.

A streaming box can be factory reset or thrown in the trash. If your 65 inch TV doesn't let you roll back an update you have to buy a new TV. Streaming boxes are usually faster and more feature filled than the in built TV stuff as well.

And now we're getting into much more technical details and why I said "inherently".

A proper built-in box will let you bypass it.

That's exactly the problem. There's no guarantee that the built-in will be and remain "proper" with updates. It's like saying we can trust our government with encryption backdoors as long as they behave properly.

My perspective: the incentive for manufacturers is to generate as much revenue as possible. In hardware manufacturing, margins are extremely tight.

Consequently, any additional revenue from selling customer data is incredibly attractive.

Especially if you can do so better/faster than your competitors, thereby competing at the same retail price points with better net margins.

As a result... they have every incentive to fuck their customers over from a privacy perspective.

And what they're doing is invisible.

And this is an entity people are comfortable trusting with unfettered access to their devices/network?

Sorry, I was unclear.

By 'bypass', I mean something that does not require the cooperation of the box.

I should have said the proper way of adding it will let you bypass the box, not phrase things as if the box is the gatekeeper.

Without connecting my TV to the Internet for firmware upgrades, I would be missing out on several fixes and improvements especially with handling of higher frame rates, VRR and IIRC at least one in the HDMI ARC subsystem that was causing audio drops.

Which TV manufacturer is shipping out buggy TVs that require updates?

I imagine all of them. This is all controlled in soft/firmware and as such is bound to have bugs. There's also updates that make better use of the hardware.

Then use USB offline update?

Samsung: https://www.samsung.com/us/support/answer/ANS00062224/

Vizio: https://support.vizio.com/s/article/Firmware-Information-215...

TCL: https://support.tcl.com/rokutv-common-questions/01-how-to-ma...

Name the specific one you're talking about. Either there is a manufacturer we should all avoid, or atleast a model, or you made it up.

Lol ok so I'm making it up, then. I don't owe you anything, dude. You can believe whatever you want, I don't give a single f.

Interesting! I haven’t connected my smart LG to the net since it was new, and it handles everything I throw at it.

I prefer to use an external box as opposed to the built-in apps, to have a more responsive interface, to keep the TV as clean as possible, and to have control over choosing to update the TV or not.

What brand is the one you’re talking about?

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