I'm mostly sailing the high seas, using the tv as a giant monitor for the always-on laptop connected to it. I'm afraid of the 1984-esque "You must connect to the internet to continue using this TV" that might come after some time.
Should I unplug my smart tv from the internet?
a year ago by ReginaPhalange to c/nostupidquestions
fishy 7 points a year ago
I've got 20/10 vision and the difference is so negligible as to not really matter after 1080. Especially because all the smoothing and image effects new TVs have are so horrendously bad that they make me feel sick.
I still run an 8 year old LG TV that stopped getting updates 4 years ago and doesn't even attempt to connect to the internet. It's great because it just turns on and works.
ikidd 8 points a year ago
I've fixed a couple extras and have them stored. If you find a "dead" TV, shine a flashlight into the screen and see if you see the picture. If so, then there's probably just a problem with the backlighting, which is why TVs get trashed most often. Order up a set of backlight strips, find a youtube vid on taking that model apart, and put new strips in. Takes about 30 minutes and baby, you got yourself a TV.
AoxoMoxoA 2 points a year ago
I have 4 tv's , all dumb. One in the bedroom , one in the living room and two on ice. I've got a stack of dvd / blue ray players and a region free DVD player with a 3k+ dvd collection and an antenna I made myself. Fuck all that smart TV bullshit. I'll fix them all if I have too, the info is all available on YT like you say and the parts are cheap.
I've had 4 or 5 opportunities to get free OLED (or what ever trash is out now) tv's for free and I turn them all down. People that aren't the least bit paranoid about all these connected devices bug me out. Facebook freaks and Amazombies
yaroto98 3 points a year ago
My next tv is probably going to be a dumb tv. You can search for commercial business tvs online and find dumb tvs for displays and digital signage. Same screen, just no smarts, plays a network stream, off a usb, or hdmi input. Nothing else.
Diplomjodler3 21 points a year ago
But think of all the wonderful ads you're going to miss out on!
Darkassassin07 32 points a year ago
A smart TV is primarily a surveillance device that also happens to display video.
homesweethomeMrL 31 points a year ago
I have a box that connects to the internet for video things. The TV has and will never connect.
o0evillusion0o 2 points a year ago
Or didn't it did?
maxwells_daemon 25 points a year ago
You should've never connected it in the first place. Never even set up any functions that a piece of hardware prompts you to. Most of those are enforced only because the company behind them gains something from you having them set up. Unless you actually need something that depends on that function, disable the function.
oppy1984 24 points a year ago
Yes.
Get a dumb TV, I've had great luck with the Specter brand, and hook up a set top box for your smart functionality.
Smart TVs spyon you, report on you, eat bandwidth even when off, and become out dated quickly.
zod000 6 points a year ago
I also bought a Sceptre "dumb TV" within the last year or so and highly recommend it. I had been recommending it over and over, but recently I found that the model I bought was no longer offered. I hope Sceptre didn't abandon them.
oppy1984 4 points a year ago
TVs don't seem to be a core business for them, I get the impression that they are a monitor focused business. Of course it's not hard to upgrade a monitor to a TV so why not?
They do list all their products on their website so maybe check there?
zod000 3 points a year ago
Sceptre was more of a TV company in the past, but over the last decade or so have definitely moved more into the monitor business. I have actually owned 5 different Sceptre TVs over the last 20 years, but back in the day it was because they were some of the least expensive LCD televisions on the market.
oppy1984 1 point a year ago
TIL. I first encountered Sceptre during lockdown when I needed better monitors than I was sent home with. I've been impressed and have bought two more since then for other devices. And about two years ago I bought one of their dumb TVs, and it's worked flawlessly.
Successful_Try543 15 points a year ago
You could also do that "softly" with PiHole, if you intend to use some of the apps, but if you don't, it's only beneficial to disconnect it entirely from the internet.
Successful_Try543 4 points a year ago
I'm also surprised annoyed how often the FireTV stick and the Samsung TV are calling home, or at least how often they try.
ada 5 points a year ago
This is what I do. It stops it from auto updating and from phoning home, but still lets the individual apps function. Some of the apps don't work, because they can't update either, but if we get desperate, we just punch the TV through the pihole just long enough to update the individual app. It's a reasonable middle ground.
kibiz0r 4 points a year ago
I set up a PiHole for my Hisense TV.
Thought maybe I didn’t do it right or their ad-delivery was too sneaky, cuz the home screen still defaults to full-screen promos for shows I’ve never watched. Oh well, leave it how it is.
Disabled the PiHole for a couple days to test something else.
Holy shit, banner ads everywhere on the TV.
TrippyHippyDan 3 points a year ago
I tried this for a while to appease the wife, and I just couldn't. The amount of shit my pi hole blocked from just one TV was ridiculous. The thing is not connected to the internet anymore, and I use a different pi as a streaming PC
Jimmycrackcrack 0 points a year ago
I don't see how they could, the laptop isn't going to know what to do with them, they'd have to also get you to install something on the laptop which you'd obviously not do.
Jimmycrackcrack 2 points a year ago
I seem to have misunderstood the point to their comment. They're lending support to the idea that you should unplug it from the internet whereas I initially thought they were saying that even if "unplugged" from the internet, OP's current setup wouldn't save their privacy anyway because the TV will send those screenshots to the internet whether it's by via the TV's own apps, or "through" the HDMI cable which in my mind implied either getting internet connectivity through that cable or at least sending the images to the laptop and having that send them. I couldn't see how that was supposed to work.
I realise now that's not their point at all, they're saying that if it's allowed to remain connected to the internet, simply abstaining from using the TV's own apps and using persistently a connected device via HDMI instead, it'll still send screenshots of that HDMI output through its own internet connection and so yes, indeed OP should disconnect the TV from the internet.
crumbguzzler5000 13 points a year ago
Yes.
As someone in a similar situation, entertainment PC connected, I've never connected my smart TV to the internet. There is no need.
forrgott 4 points a year ago
Eh, I've always been paranoid about firmware patches and the like. Also, curiosity got the better of me; I had to see what the crap smart features were like.
You do make a very good point though!
Empricorn 1 point a year ago
I definitely understand the instinct to always be up-to-date with the newest. But then digital storefront "updates" started removing features and even content! Runaway capitalism ruins everything...
forrgott 1 point a year ago
Well, the program is that the computer in my TV is a potential security issue. That said, there's no way of knowing if I can trust updates to patch problems or create new ones, so... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
kent_eh 2 points a year ago
Is there a ful list anywhere of brands and models that lock non-network features behind a network connection requirement?
I've heard people complaining about some that don't let you select HDMI input without first connecting to the internet and "activating" the TV, but the model is usually not specified in those complaints.
prenatal_confusion 11 points a year ago
Its silly how many people are proposing dumb TVs as something better ore something you need to hold on to at all costs. Get a TV with a screen that suits you and connect some playback device via HDMI or such. Kodi, custom entertainment PC, android TV, whatever. The tips about pihole are not good either. Its not a firewall with DPI, just a dns blocker. If the TV uses hardcoded IP then you are shit out of luck. And it bet they do.
CoffeeBot 13 points a year ago
I wish dumb TVs were more available. I have a Samsung and I mainly use their interface to swap HDMI inputs - though the built in Spotify app has a better screensaver.
My main issue is that good screens in large formats, like the latest OLEDs aren’t really available in dumb TVs.
prenatal_confusion 1 point a year ago
As soon as I switch inputs they are at least for me.
bus_factor 0 points a year ago
They might nag you about connecting.
prenatal_confusion 1 point a year ago
Not really on the two smart ones in owned. Lg and Samsung.
CarbonatedPastaSauce 8 points a year ago
Shit out of luck…. unless you run your own router and know how outbound firewall rules work. Granted the general public does not do either of those, but this is Lemmy.
InFerNo 1 point a year ago
It's not that a dumb tv offers better viewing quality, it's that it needs to start an OS and an interface to navigate, injecting ads and whatnot, while a dumb tv will start in an instant and only outputs what is connected to its physical inputs.
SpacetimeMachine 0 points a year ago
My LG TV (not connected to the internet) lets you disable all startup icons and sounds. It goes from off to on in about 2 seconds and goes straight to the last used input. I think I've seen the home screen once in the 8 months that I've had it.
SidewaysHighways 10 points a year ago
i like controlling the TV with the various IP methods, so i just blocked it from being able to reach WAN and vice versa
cheers_queers 21 points a year ago
Where? Ive been looking everywhere and its like they dont exist anymore
q 15 points a year ago
Qb series Samsung are commercial displays but no Netflix or smart features. However, they are about double the price of a standard tv. Will last forever though. I would rather buy a less expensive and not connect it to the network.
NutinButNet 2 points a year ago
Fuckin a, you weren’t kidding.
This is from Amazon on the first two I saw in USD
I spent less than $500 for my 50” 4K Samsung but here is twice the price.
habitualTartare 11 points a year ago
They don't really as the "smart" subsidies the cost of the TV. Some commerical grade TVs and large monitors won't be smart or need Internet connectivity.
Glitterbomb 6 points a year ago
I've resigned myself to large monitors for the 'small TV' and projectors for the 'big TV'
codenamekino 3 points a year ago
Spectre makes a line of dumb TVs, but I don't think any of them are 4k. I spent about $600 on a 75" 1080p model last year.
shininghero 3 points a year ago
Given that you're using this for a laptop, you're looking for a monitor. Not a TV.
Anything suitable for office work should be good here.
MudMan 9 points a year ago
I mean... it depends on the type of TV you're trying to replace. If you're on a 65 inch OLED you're not going to replace that with an office monitor.
There are really good "dumb" PC monitors for media watching in the 24-42 inch range, though. They're just... often not cheap.
the_riviera_kid 9 points a year ago
Is your loss of privacy worth it to you?
GreenKnight23 8 points a year ago
should I unplug my smart _______ from the internet?
fill in the blank, it should always be yes.
ReginaPhalange 6 points a year ago
I feel I must clarify. I value my privacy, and my money. I prefer to disconnect it from the internet immediately, but if the vendor put a piece of code that measures offline time and then disables critical HDMI input functionality - it is a different story entirely.
What if after X months of offline functionality - I have to connect it again because of "You must connect to the internet to continue using this TV"
What if being offline for a very long duration of time - means that when connecting it again - the firmware update bricks my TV?
I know the instabilities that occurr when updating after a very long time of being offline.
I'm unsure about my specific model - but it is an LG WebOS OLED 48"
ikidd 9 points a year ago
If they disable stuff, call the manufacturer and tell them you have moved in a family member with sensitive medical equipment that needs to have no wifi in the area. Will they give you a code to disable internet or do you need to sue them for reckless endangerment?
pivot_root 6 points a year ago
I think we all know the answer to this.
bus_factor 1 point a year ago
Never threaten legal action to a callcenter. If they take it seriously (or just don't want to talk to you) they'll hang up immediately and demand all further communication goes through lawyers.
pinball_wizard 5 points a year ago
What if being offline for a very long duration of time - means that when connecting it again - the firmware update bricks my TV?
We don't see many updates that outright brick your product (yet). What we do see is updates that just happen to make your product run much slower than it used to. There's always excuses why it is necessary, but in the end those updates tend to lead to sales of new devices.
Keeping the device fully offline is a defense against such an update.
Myself, I don't see any reason for my TV to ever be online, so I take some comfort that it will not receive such an update.
maxwells_daemon 4 points a year ago
No one is obligated to have internet, and there are actually people who don't have it. The TV isn't sold as an "online only" product, they cannot block you from using something that works offline because you're offline.
MissJinx 4 points a year ago
I stoped using the smart function of tvs. I use one of that generic chinese things that you connect to the TV and it mirrors your phone. My TV is not connected it's like I'm watching netflix in my phone
edit: to make it clear I was afraid because my TV came with a fucking camera. Didn't like that so I disconected and also put a tape on the camera. WTF tv brands
Know_not_Scotty_does 4 points a year ago
Who makes your tv?
You can do quite a bit of tweaks to mitigate the phone home stuff and ads with projectivy and ADB TV.
AnUnusualRelic 4 points a year ago
You could buy but that will make it sad. Do you want your tv to be sad?
Do you?
MudMan 1 point a year ago
Why do you assume you're being less monitored on your laptop?
I mean, don't get me wrong, you probably should. I am logged out of all services on my TVs. If you don't use the built-in apps then why would you be online at all.
It's just... people that get in the (correct) mindset that smart TVs mostly run spyware can be too kind on the alternatives.
wildbus8979 12 points a year ago
Why do you assume you're being less monitored on your laptop?
Maybe because I can run Debian, Arch, or even custom Yocto or buildroot distros on general purpose computation hardware, instead of being locked into a walled garden purposely built to increase shareholder value?
MudMan -2 points a year ago
Sure, you can. But the point is it's only more private IF you do that AND you're not also using services on your laptop that report the same info like, say, Youtube or Netflix.
If you're only using a laptop with Arch to play back offline videos then by all means, carry on, you're good. But there's a bunch of people out there worrying about Smart TV spyware and plugging in a Chromecast dongle instead or streaming from their subscription apps from a laptop, which doesn't really achieve anything. I guess it may cut Samsung or LG out of the loop, if you have a particular grudge with them specifically, but that's about it.
scytale 7 points a year ago
I guess it may cut off Samsung or LG out of the loop, if you have a particular grudge with them specifically, but that's about it.
That’s what people are trying to avoid, the unnecessary data collection by the TVs themselves. I don’t think anyone is saying watching netflix on a laptop is more private than on a tv, and even then, using a browser with uBO can still block some tracking on streaming sites vs using their apps on a tv.
MudMan 0 points a year ago
Maaaaaybe? Like, it probably helps mitigate some ingest of data from trackers (because on a web app running on your browser they are probably mining MORE stuff than on your TV by default, depending on your setup), but they still know everything you watched and what you did in the app plus anything adblocking isn't successfully targeting.
I just don't know that I have a sliding scale on this. Once your data is out there it's out there. People will be buying and selling it. There is such a thing as partial mitigation, but ultimately I do stand by the point that a lot of people fixate on some vectors that are less subtle and still have massive holes, sometimes in setups built specifically to replace the more conspicuous snoopers.
I'm all for keeping your TV offline or logged out, but that's in the context of either not using streaming apps or having them tightly controlled wherever else you use them. Otherwise I may prefer to have them leak my viewing habits from a TV that only ever uses streaming apps than having access to my PC where I do a bunch of other stuff and log in to a bunch of services that may be subject to tracking.
I'm not being contrarian, either. I genuinely think this is a nontrivial issue and you'd need some heavy duty monitoring to get a good sense of what is going on between different configs.
I'll also say I'm not surprised smart TVs have an increasingly terrible reputation on this, though. Most of what my Pihole ends up blocking is smart TVs calling home. It's kinda nuts how frequent and persistent they are about it.
And hey, tell the guys up the thread about the data collection thing, apparently some didn't get the memo.
MudMan 0 points a year ago
The way they want it to operate is not monitoring them, presumably. You just added one extra step for the same thing.
I mean, if it's not for that reason then connect it to the Internet and have fun, who cares. Just give them all your data and hope for the best.
kent_eh 1 point a year ago
The way they want it to operate is not monitoring them, presumably.
Or pushing ads on the device idle screen, or inserted into other things you are trying to watch. (pre-rolls on HDMI sources...)
MudMan 2 points a year ago
What the hell kind of TVs you have, guys? I mean, home screen ads sure. You don't need to see them much if you're always on the one external source, but sure.
But what kind of TVs do you have inserting pre-roll ads on external sources? The one example of that I can think of off the top of my head was this one weird concept of a TV you'd get pretty much for no money and was primarily funded by acting as an ad service in your house, which was a crappy business model and that's probably nobody else is doing it.
Man, I wish people would get better at dealing with these types of issues well instead of making up new ones to get mad about. Getting your TV usage milked for data is a very real issue. And yeah, the enshittification of smart TV UX with targeted ads is as well. And it's hard to sidestep because a lot of it is also baked into the media sources you're paying for on the side, so even if you watch them elsewhere you get a lot of the same crap.
Is that genuinely not bad enough of a problem to solve to go into weird edge cases like HDMI pre-roll ads, self-destruct firmware updates or mandatory connection prompts? It is in my book.
ivanafterall -3 points a year ago
I'm going to be the voice of dissent here: nah.
GreenKnight23 2 points a year ago
ivanafterall 1 point a year ago
It's on me. I came on pretty strong.
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Yes.
Not only due to privacy concerns (my main concern), as the device will constantly ping home even when turned off. Other concern is it will download "updates", that eventually may render your tv browsing experience laggish.
Some tv sets have not only mics incorporated, but cameras, so it may depend on your level of concern.
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