Kevin Boone: Why are modern televisions so cheap?

In TV terminology, "smart" means built for the manufacturer, not the user.

I am actually sort of becoming ok with this.

As long as I can avoid the privacy invasion by running the TV in a disconnected "dumb" mode (typically called either "store" or "demo" mode), I'll survive with the lower cost for the hardware made possible by "dumb" users data.

Give away razors (TV sets) and sell blades (YOU)