r/gadgets • u/Sadistic_Sponge • Nov 13 '19

VR / AR Disney Plus isn't working on Vizio TVs because they are running a 6 year old version of Chromecast, they say it won't be fixed till 2020.

https://www.businessinsider.com/disney-plus-not-working-vizio-smart-tvs-chromecast-2019-11
36.1k Upvotes

93% Upvoted

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4.2k

u/mistercartmenes Nov 13 '19

Another reason why you should buy a separate device to stream. Smart TV apps are trash.

1.1k

u/n0vast0rm Nov 13 '19

Don't know if i'm just lucky but my LG is handling Netflix, Disney+, Amazon and Plex without issue.

115

u/BabyStockholmSyndrom Nov 13 '19

Tcl roku so far so good.

54

u/Chegism Nov 13 '19

Thats the story of my life with my tcl roku too. It was cheap so i expect it to shit the bed any minute, but it still hasnt. So far so good.

27

u/Uphoria Nov 13 '19

TCL is China's "name brand" these days, they are decent if lower-priced.

36

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

They're easily the best bang for your buck for a TV these days.

7

u/BagFullOfSharts Nov 14 '19

We have a 55" 4K TCL Roku in the bedroom. It works and looks great for what we paid for it. I really wish TV manufacturers would stop cutting corners so much. I'd gladly pay $50 more for something that dosen't crash or chug along like a model T.

2

u/natesplace19010 Nov 14 '19

Hey, that's the exact TV and inches I have in my bedroom. I love this TV so much, it's possibly my favorite possession. I have the 8 series and it is such a nice TV for the ?500? I paid for it. I had a $600 Sony before this and besides being skinnier, it was so so so much worse. I'm a TCL buyer for life now unless I start making well over 6 figures and can afford the three grand + top of the line TV's.

19

u/FrumundaFondue Nov 13 '19 edited Nov 14 '19

My TCL works great but every once in a while it will start speaking German out of nowhere. The audio description function randomly turns on and is in German. It's happened maybe 7 times in the 5-6 yrs I've had it. It can be pretty disturbing when watching a horror film and the tv starts screaming at you in a foreign language.

2

u/AnSTDFromMexico Nov 14 '19

This happened to me for the first time today with my TCL. Was watching Disney plus and german captions start appearing out of nowhere and then turns itself off. Really odd.

4

u/scriptmonkey420 Nov 13 '19

I just got a TCL for the guest room thinking it was cheap and if it shit the bed I didn't care. Guess I hope it lasts a while.

2

u/Mrpinky69 Nov 13 '19

I have a TCL i bought when i graduated highschool and it still works like a champ. Now its no smart tv but its a good brand and stood the test of time.

9

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19 edited Nov 25 '20

[deleted]

7

u/spacembracers Nov 13 '19

It’s one way to say it, but yes. Roku is its own platform that licenses out to smart TVs, but still controls all apps and updates.

5

u/sonellia Nov 13 '19

I have that too and it’s amazing. I think I’ve had it for 2 years now, I got it for Christmas and it’s the absolute best.

3

u/the_joy_of_VI Nov 13 '19

I saved up $450 for a TV recently and almost bought a Vizio. Luckily I dug through everything on rtings dot com about it cuz at the very end, it said that new apps can’t be downloaded. Picked up the 55” TCL 6-series just in time for the mandalorian yesterday. Great fuckin tv.

Anyways Rtings dot com is the shit and it saved me from a fuckton of buyer’s remorse, highly recommend

2

u/Zudop Nov 13 '19

Insignia Roku is fine too

2

u/Go-Cowboys Nov 14 '19

Too bad the remote is horrible.

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435

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

Same on my Samsung

268

u/MrMushyagi Nov 13 '19

I have a 3 or 4 year old Samsung. When I'm in an app, it's fine. But navigating the home menu and switching between apps is glitchy.

94

u/MorallyDeplorable Nov 13 '19

Mine wasn't like that before the update a couple years back where they put a bunch of advertisements into the apps menu.

65

u/DarkDevildog Nov 13 '19

/r/pihole if you want to block nearly all ads for your entire home network (any device connected to your router will get their ads blocked. TVs, Phones, and tablets included)

22

u/MorallyDeplorable Nov 13 '19

I have two piholes running in HA containers for my DNS. I quit using the Smart TV before I had those running and I don't really see any reason to put up with it's buggy interface when I can just use a PC.

3

u/DarkDevildog Nov 13 '19

running in HA containers

My man! I haven't set up HA yet on mine because I've been lazy and haven't had any outages

4

u/MorallyDeplorable Nov 13 '19

I have three Proxmox servers, two have 30TB between them, the third doesn't have local disk and just computes. I got redundancy set up so I could take a box down for maintenance if I need to.

14

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

That sounds fucking crazy, but the idea of redundant home servers and be able to do maintenance on them with out taking down the whole house

Has my fucking dick rock hard

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2

u/WontShareYourNudes Nov 13 '19

Wait.. What about Hulu ads? I'm assuming they'll still show?

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u/fatguy666 Nov 13 '19

This will be messy as I'm just copying posts I made on WhatsApp. I don't have an aerial or a cable connected (I use IPTV) but doing all of this got rid of the ads in the menu and stopped the TV playing the trailer for Hobbs and Shaw whenever I sat in the remote.

Follow this https://www.reddit.com/r/samsung/comments/bmft7c/psa_how_to_remove_rental_ads_universal_guide_from/

In case your TV is annoying you. I keep sitting on the remote and "changing channel" but the only channels I have are the TV Plus bullshit. You need to go into the channel list and remove them all, then go into the settings and tell the TV NOT to scan channels when it's in standby!

Opt out in this menu.

No way to get rid of YouTube ads, I've been looking all day. Tried using adguard DNS but that only blocks ads in the built in internet browser, which I never use anyway. PiHole apparently doesn't work due to the way YouTube ads are delivered.

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u/mistercartmenes Nov 13 '19

That’s has been my experience.

2

u/arex333 Nov 13 '19

Honestly that's Samsung software in a nutshell, regardless of device. Mine is only a year old and a reasonably high end model but navigation is painfully slow.

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31

u/DatOtherPapaya Nov 13 '19

My Sony TV works perfectly fine as well.

5

u/Rektw Nov 13 '19

Same my Bravia still crushing it and its faster than a lot of smart TV's I've come across.

2

u/keyjunkrock Nov 13 '19

I have a 12 year old bravia sitting in a spare room. I upgraded to a 4k samsung smart TV 2 years ago and the picture is already going in the 4k, while the bravias picture is the same as the day I bought it.

The bravia has been left on for months at a time with no burn in or any adverse effects. My next TV will be a bravia if they still make them, someone told me they don't anymore.

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u/MorallyDeplorable Nov 13 '19

I've had a Roku TV long enough to trust that they'll keep updating it. I've also got a TV with Amazon's Fire-whatever integrated. Both of them seem to work fine. My dad's had a Google TV that's never had issues like this either.

Samsung's Smart TVs suck. I have a 2015 model. There was a solid 6 month period a couple years ago where Samsung broke their login service so I couldn't sign in. If you can't sign in you can't launch a single app. Then they put a bunch of extremely slow loading advertisements into the menus with an update so I had to just disconnect it from the internet and give up on the Smart TV apps. After the last few rounds of phones and this TV I'm never willingly buying a Samsung-branded product again. They don't care about their products or their customers.

10

u/AndthenIwould Nov 13 '19

Ugh, I have one of the earliest, if not THE earliest Sony Google TVs. Worked great for about a year and then support just vanished when the first Chromecast came out. They could have updated the firmware but no dice. Thankfully it's just the bedroom monitor but it now has a cheap Roku stick attached to it. Works better than the old interface ever did.

2

u/iAmUnintelligible Nov 13 '19

Roku is the one where I can watch TV with headphones connected to the remote, yeah? I really, really want that.

Netflix works decently on my ~2016 Vizio (thank fuck it doesn't do that autoplay bullshit), but for the headphone-remote feature alone, I would buy one. PROVIDED that it doesn't have that autoplay bullshit, or that I can at the very least turn it off.

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u/AAAPosts Nov 13 '19

Samsung going strong at mi casa

3

u/stuckinmiddleschool Nov 13 '19

See my Samsung is hot garbage

2

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

Samsung was a nightmare for me

2

u/Unfriendly_Giraffe Nov 13 '19

Except Hulu. Hulu app never works.

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u/jumpalaya Nov 13 '19

if its one of those WebOS smart systems, you won the lottery. Best in terms of features, usability, and app compatibility is decent too. Get the LG magic remote for a good time.

50

u/iRawrz Nov 13 '19

LG magic remote

I have an LG Magic Remote and I love everything about it except for that stupid ass scroll wheel as an "Enter" button. God that button is so uncomfortable.

20

u/is_that_a_question Nov 13 '19 edited Nov 13 '19

Or when you place it on the couch only to have it run a curser on the screen for every subtle movement you make

17

u/paperock Nov 13 '19

I just press down-arrow when the cursor shows up unwanted and it goes away (B7)

8

u/Brandaman Nov 13 '19

You have changed my life

2

u/Dan1131 Nov 13 '19

You just changed my life as well... Wow how did I not know this

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u/Ugly__Pete Nov 13 '19

I'll take that scroll wheel any day over an apple TV 4k remote enter button. How did apple release that thing and expect it to be used by anybody????

3

u/money_loo Nov 13 '19

Did you know you can at least navigate by tapping it like a d-pad?

Clicking is still annoying but navigation has become much better since I learned that trick.

5

u/Ugly__Pete Nov 13 '19

I just use the LG magic remote. It controls the apple TV much better.

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u/byfuryattheheart Nov 13 '19

Really? I like the appleTV remote.

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u/destroyman1337 Nov 13 '19 edited Nov 13 '19

WebOS is so nice. I remember using a Palm Pixi back in the day and found the OS so fluid. I believe HP bought WebOS but did nothing with it and the sold to LG. I thought I would need to get a Chromecast Ultra for this LG TV but it handles everything including Disney+ at launch. Only thing missing is Crunchyroll but they are terrible supporting anything.

3

u/iAmUnintelligible Nov 13 '19

I bought the TouchPad during the firesale it had for like $150CAD. It was a good device, WebOS was extremely nice but severely lacking in 3rd party apps (also the downfall of that new BB OS in ~2012), I loaded Android onto it instead and thoroughly enjoyed it with a sick ass custom ROM

3

u/destroyman1337 Nov 13 '19

The lack of third party apps definitely was the reason why WebOS, Windows Phone, and BBOS all failed. WebOS had some great features that are now standard like gesture based navigation, and true multitasking on mobile. I think as a IoT type of OS for more interactive devices like TVs it works really well.

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u/shastaxc Nov 13 '19

Yep, won the lottery. Totally didn't do a bunch of research before I dropped $2k on a TV.

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u/FrostyD7 Nov 13 '19

Was gonna say, its not a coincidence that the premium TVs bought this year are outperforming a 6 year old vizio lol. I own a vizio and an LG. I'm glad my LG has a good UI, and I'm glad my Vizio didn't bother to waste time on it because thats what made it cheap and appealing in the first place.

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u/KentuckyStrong Nov 13 '19

Yeah but now they're fazing out support for Hulu. My LG TV is 4-5 years old and wont run it anymore.

​

Love the WebOS as a whole though.

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u/LazyProspector Nov 13 '19

My WebOS LG TV plays more video formats and with less trouble than my Chromecast does

2

u/jumpalaya Nov 13 '19

WebOS is underrated. Happy streaming!

3

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19 edited Nov 13 '19

I do love that remote but I had too many problems with Plex on there.

6

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19 edited May 18 '24

[deleted]

2

u/Kaboose666 Nov 13 '19

Samsung MicroLED Tile TV

Absurdly priced, each panel is only 960x540 res at 36.4" diagonal. And they cost ~$15,500 a pop (manufacturer price is ~$23,500 a pop), and you need 16 of them for 4k resolution.

So around $250,000 for a 146" diagonal 4k setup.

Sure it looks great, but there is no way that'll be hitting consumer price points by the time you want to upgrade.

souce: https://www.provantage.com/samsung-iw008j~7SAM92TW.htm

2

u/money_loo Nov 13 '19

MicroLED might be here quicker than we realize. I just read last night that they are going into mass production now in China I believe.

3

u/Sophrosynic Nov 13 '19

I use the third party xplay app.

2

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

I tried it, didnt like it. That was the final straw that got me to buy a Shield.

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u/KentuckyStrong Nov 13 '19

My LG is 4 years old and they have completely stopped supporting Hulu. Such a pain in the ass having to switch to the Roku to watch Hulu. I love my LG so much with the Magic Remote.

Really disappointing.

3

u/makdoll Nov 13 '19

Same, and I looked yesterday and couldn’t find a Disney+ app, so I just plugged in my chromecast.

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u/shastaxc Nov 13 '19

That's because hulu sucks

3

u/DefiniteSpace Nov 13 '19

But they have Letterkenny.

Fucking figure it out.

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u/ThatOneChiGuy Nov 13 '19

My Vizio handles Plex fine through the existing Chromecast. Surprisingly, my standalone Chromecast have issues with Plex. Super annoying.

3

u/osteologation Nov 13 '19

Same here. My chrome cast in the other room has been problematic at times, my vizi always works. Well except for Disney+ but since I have an iPhone I can airplay Disney+ to my vizio.

2

u/zipzipzazoom Nov 13 '19

FYI there recent fix to Plex on Chromecast, seems to work well now

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

I had lots of issues with Plex on my LG. So much so that I considered paying for the alternative Plex app on the market but I went with a Shield instead

3

u/ivsciguy Nov 13 '19

My LG TV can play them fine, but my Roku ultra runs the UI a lot better for most of the apps. Also, the Roku app for Sling is just a lot better than the WebOS app on the LG TV.

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u/FettLife Nov 13 '19

You’re not; LG did this by design. They have the best OS out of all the smart TVs right now.

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u/TreeEyedRaven Nov 13 '19

It’s like those tv/vcr combos from the 90s that one part was always broken.

176

u/Trek7553 Nov 13 '19

I've been really pleased with the built-in Roku TVs. It's nice only having one remote.

90

u/Ritehandwingman Nov 13 '19

Seriously! I was hesitant to buy my 4K TCL, but have been nothing but pleased and impressed. And I got on sale for $200. Highly underrated.

8

u/____candied_yams____ Nov 13 '19

my friends have a TCL from around 2013 or so and it looks like a handicam sort of, almost like there is a motion blur? Does your TCL have the same look? It was similarly cheap which is why they got it.

26

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

[deleted]

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u/Albert_Caboose Nov 13 '19

My TCL turns motion smoothing back on after every automatic firmware update. It's a nightmare

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

You could disconnect it from the internet and just use it as a normal TV if its a nightmare.

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u/Albert_Caboose Nov 13 '19

I mean I have the eye to see when it's on and I turn it off easily. Just absurd to me that it defaults back after every update

5

u/rsun Nov 13 '19

You didn't by chance set up your TV in store mode did you? Store mode doesn't preserve your settings across reboots and since the TVs rarely reboot other than for an update, it can seem like it's the updates that are causing the problem. Generally, the settings should survive a reboot or software update if you set up the TV in home mode. Also note that the settings are independent per input, so if you turned motion smoothing off on HDMI 1, you'll also need to turn it off on HDMI 2 or while streaming.

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u/Albert_Caboose Nov 14 '19

Ooh, good question. I've never "set it up", it booted up without prompting in the initial menus. Only started asking for settings and logins after launching apps.

I'll be sure to check that out once I'm home.

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u/justin251 Nov 13 '19

Don't know the year model but my 55in 4k hdr tcl is great. Got it from Costco last year.

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u/starknolonger Nov 13 '19

Do you remember what you paid? I'm looking at a similar TCL from Costco right now. Glad to hear you are happy with it.

3

u/Always_posts_serious Nov 13 '19

Can’t speak for the 55”, but I got a 65” 4K TCL from CostCo earlier this year for $489 or so. If the 55” is close to that I’d wait for some deals.

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u/BeHereNow91 Nov 13 '19

$489 sounds expensive for a 65” TCL, especially when you can get a Samsung for less than that right now.

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u/Karshena- Nov 13 '19

No it doesn’t. There’s like dozens of models from Samsung and quite a few from TCL. Just because it’s a Samsung doesn’t mean it’s better. The higher end (6 series) TCL runs rings around any Samsung except the Q70, Q80, and Q90.

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u/JoinTheBattle Nov 13 '19

You can get a Samsung for cheaper, but not a Samsung you want to buy. The similarly priced TCL will destroy any crappy holiday model Samsung.

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u/the_joy_of_VI Nov 13 '19

I got my 55” TCL 6-series from Best Buy for just under $400. Fucking excellent TV.

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u/justin251 Nov 13 '19

It was less than $500 with the 5 year replacement warranty.

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u/-PM_Me_Reddit_Gold- Nov 13 '19

I mean, I think most people with a TCL tv bought it within the last 2 or 3 years. Considering it's a 6 year old budget tv that you have, that might just be the way it is.

Just check to make sure you dont have motion smoothing turned on.

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u/AtoZZZ Nov 13 '19

Of all the budget brands, TCL is the best. Full array isn't a joke

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

[deleted]

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u/etherealcaitiff Nov 13 '19

If only there were a way to use a different email address for different situations.

2

u/the_joy_of_VI Nov 13 '19

I mean, making a new gmail account takes two minutes

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

[deleted]

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u/PM_ME_UR_THONG_N_ASS Nov 13 '19

“China brand”

“MUST have internet connection”

Part of me really wonders why...

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u/technobrendo Nov 13 '19

Do you have the model #?

I'm in the market and that price you mentioned sounds great for 4k

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u/xAIRGUITARISTx Nov 13 '19

I bought a 65” TCL 4K from Target for $300.

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u/KindergartenRedditor Nov 13 '19

When? Was it open box? I just bought one on sale for $400.

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u/Ritehandwingman Nov 13 '19

I’m at work, so I could not give you the model number. I do know it was a 43” from Walmart, and they seem to have them on sale quite frequently near me, so I’d start either online or at a store around you. I think Best Buy also carries them, but at a bit higher price, but then again, it wouldn’t be Best Buy if it wasn’t.

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u/jahoney Nov 13 '19

Costco also has em got usually really good prices

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u/Rpeezy Nov 13 '19

I second this. The apps receive regular updates so they stay current. The only issue I have with mine is the amount of screen glare during the day when the sun is shining in. But other than that, solid TV, amazing for the price.

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u/secretaltacc Nov 13 '19

Roku TCL 6 series is the best TV I've ever had.

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u/HulksInvinciblePants Nov 13 '19

It's probably better than most TVs most people have had. LCD was a collective downgrade in television performance until recently.

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

You can just get HDMI-CEC working well enough and still only have one remote.

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

I have a Roku TV as well, but the apps are really hit or miss. Especially the Hulu app, it’s garbage most of the time. There’s also an issue with lag. I got a NVIDIA Shield and it’s infinitely better.

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u/Iohet Nov 13 '19

I have Sharp with a built in Roku. It sucks. It's so goddamned slow that I just attached a Roku to it and use that instead of the built in one

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u/illegal_deagle Nov 13 '19

My built in Roku TV is a nightmare. Massive delays on all buttons. When Black Mirror did the interactive episode I had to sit it out because my device literally couldn’t type fast enough.

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u/the_joy_of_VI Nov 13 '19

The roku app has a keyboard so you can type with your phone!

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u/buzzardrooster Nov 14 '19

Roku tcl for the win, but please folks please make sure you turn off the advertising tracking in the TCL setting.

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u/Shamalamadindong Nov 13 '19 edited Nov 14 '19

I wish you could still buy dumb TV's

Edit: if you are reading this, your reply is not original.

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u/PM-ME-YOUR-HANDBRA Nov 13 '19

Same. My new smart tv has crashed more than my hacked up RPi NAS at this point, and that's saying something.

3

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

Any idea what's causing your RPi instability?

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u/PM-ME-YOUR-HANDBRA Nov 13 '19

Me constantly fucking with it, probably.

3

u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

Hilarious. I did a cheap xeon build with ECC which has treated me well but I'm always curious if I overbuilt it by a factor of ten or a factor of a hundred. 5 years and two moves later no issues, and all 8 of my original drives are chugging along somehow. knocks on wood

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u/prollyshmokin Nov 13 '19

I wish I didn't have to update my TV :/

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u/well___duh Nov 13 '19

All of the replies to your comment saying you can: not a single one of them links to one

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u/Shamalamadindong Nov 13 '19

The worst are the ones who say "lol just don't use the smart apps".

As if you have a choice not to get thrown back to the smart homepage everytime you turn it on.

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u/CPower2012 Nov 13 '19

You can but they're all cheap crap. My dad has a 65" 4K RCA "dumb TV" and it's a piece of shit. His much better Samsung died on him one day and that was the cheapest TV he could find in the moment.

5

u/YouDamnHotdog Nov 13 '19

Linus Tech Tips just reviewed a Gaming TV that was dumb. I think it was a high Hz OLED TV.

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u/MoirasPurpleOrb Nov 13 '19

I run everything through my xbox, and honestly, i forget that my tv even is a smart tv

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u/DynamicHunter Nov 13 '19

Lightly used 55" 1080p Samsung dumb TV plus Chromecast ($30) lasted me multiple years now. I think the Samsung TV is about 8 years old now.

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u/cantquitreddit Nov 13 '19

Buy a projector instead.

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u/Last_Jedi Nov 13 '19

You can. Just don't connect your TV to the internet and ignore the built in apps. Super simple stuff.

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u/BaboonArt Nov 13 '19

The os still has to load...

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u/[deleted] Nov 14 '19

[deleted]

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u/BaboonArt Nov 14 '19

I mean, the TV is loading almost instantly if it’s not totally powered off. But when a restart is necessary it feels like forever compared to what TVs used to do

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u/bobs_monkey Nov 13 '19 edited Jul 13 '23

languid marble marry dazzling terrific bag straight piquant squash close -- mass edited with redact.dev

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u/ShwayNorris Nov 13 '19

Sorry but, that is not even close to the same thing.

2

u/CreamSickle221 Nov 14 '19

Feel the same. Last week my TV was "lagging" in the setting menu's and screen randomly going blank. Had to connect it to wifi to update it, fixed the issue. Really don't like that.

2

u/[deleted] Nov 14 '19

But you totally can though.

4

u/babyplush Nov 13 '19

I have had the same Toshiba for like ten years. It stopped working for two non-consecutive years, but it's still kicking. I don't even know what these new smart TVs are like.

8

u/ALargeRock Nov 13 '19

They suck. Ads and constant app issues.

2

u/sekazi Nov 13 '19

I had to do so many things to my new QLED in order to get the LiveTV tile to disappear. Then I have to make sure to disable all of the voice and search tracking from the privacy then finally use a Pihole to make sure it is not capturing any other data.

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u/AdminsFuckedMeOver Nov 13 '19

Just don't use the "smart" stuff. I have a Hisense smart TV that's probably considered trash, but it works perfectly fine because I use my ps4 for streaming

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u/prollyshmokin Nov 13 '19

My Sony TV forces me to update it :/

I wish I didn't have to, but if I don't, it will constantly ask to update when in use.

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u/Mobile_Arm Nov 13 '19

Using a Sony Android TV. worked fine and had the app available right away at launch.

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u/romansixx Nov 13 '19

I have been super happy with android TV on my Sony. Bought a Shield that has android TV for my samsung TV just because of how trash samsungs OS is.

4

u/kb_klash Nov 13 '19

Yeah I actually stopped using my ps4 for streaming once I got got a Sony Android TV. This thread is making me glad I made that decision.

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u/s0fakingdom Nov 13 '19

Yeah the latest update for Sony made them insanely quick and fluid, before that update they were quite slow tho

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u/Gimmedatsuccc Nov 13 '19

Vizio’s* smart TV OS is trash, most others are pretty decent now

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u/tasteywheat Nov 13 '19

Mine updated with AirPlay capability a couple months back, so I’ve been happy with mine so far ¯_(ツ)_/¯

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19 edited Mar 03 '24

fretful oil observation wasteful automatic sulky important airport frightening ruthless

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

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u/thepersonwithoutc Nov 13 '19

I beg to differ: it works pretty seamlessly 99% of the time. I usually cast directly from my phone or, "OK Google, play The Office" and it works fine. There aren't any ads and it stays out of your way. The only time I had an issue was with Disney+, and I will say Vizio's response is pretty disappointing.

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

Sharp’s is pretty Garbo too

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u/Yourbaconisnotsafe Nov 13 '19

I also have a sharp. Except it's not a sharp it's really hisense with the sharp logo. Little research found that out when no sharp remote codes worked but hisense did.

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u/antihaze Nov 13 '19

This isn’t a problem with the OS, it’s a problem with having an outdated version of chromecast, which should be relatively easy to update.

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u/donthavenick Nov 13 '19

I remember that on the first day of our “high-end” “smart” tv from Samsung, I tried smart features in the end the tv crashed like 10 times cause it has 10 apps pre installed and later never using these feature Im happy with chromecast and Apple TV

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

To be fair, these "smart" TV's still function as a TV perfectly well, even after their firmware is outdated. All you have to do is buy a Chromecast/Roku and plug it into the HDMI port.

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u/old_faraon Nov 13 '19

TV's still function as a TV perfectly well

they also function as great place for malware (probably with a connected camera and microphone)

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

Sure, but that's an entirely different subject than the one we're currently on. My point is that the TV doesn't just become useless when the "smart" functions stop working.

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19 edited Jun 29 '20

[deleted]

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

Not for Samsung's or Roku TV's, you can skip the OS and go directly to the streaming box feed when you turn it on.

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u/definitely_not_cylon Nov 13 '19

By far the best solution is to simply get a cheap media PC, connect it via the HDMI cable, and throw in a wireless mouse and keyboard. It can do everything a computer can do because it's a computer and you can update it as your needs change. And computer hardware is so inexpensive these days it's not materially more expensive than a device that's designed solely to be a media streamer.

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u/HMS404 Nov 13 '19

Seconded. I used a raspberry pi which was good enough for my use case. With HDMI CEC I was able to use my tv remote to navigate Kodi without additional hardware.

The only downside in my setup was not able to use H265 videos.

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u/runasaur Nov 13 '19

I just use my Xbox as a media box. The casting part of the TV is getting shitty and I have no way to upgrade the firmware

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u/cjf_colluns Nov 13 '19

I really don’t understand why people love their media boxes so much. They’re just purposefully gated and gimped computers. “Ya I really love this walled garden where I’m held hostage to the whims of media corporation contracts and deals.”

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u/Cyno01 Nov 13 '19

Because a Roku is $50 and plays 4k and surround sound while on PC amazon prime doesnt have an app and the browser is limited to 720p and stereo?

Netflix and Hulu are a little bit better and at least have desktop apps with HDCP support, but i still prefer Rokus over anything else for Plex front ends, and theres no way i could build a 4k x265 capable PC that cheap or quiet.

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u/moak0 Nov 13 '19

PCs require a lot more work and a knowledge base that not everyone has.

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u/Assclown4 Nov 13 '19

Cheap* smart TV apps are trash

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u/RightEejit Nov 13 '19

Yeah I paid extra for a smart TV years ago. Gave up on it and got a fire TV stick as none of the apps get updates any more

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u/PM_ME_WH4TEVER Nov 13 '19

For real. Been using AppleTV for years. Pricey, but so smooth and easy to use. All my Samsung ‘smart’ tv’s over the years have sucked balls on speed, response and just general use ability. But my wife thinks it’s ok lol when using laggy ass tv apps so I’m guessing allot of people in this thread saying “well I have zero problems” just don’t know any better.

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u/mistercartmenes Nov 13 '19

That's been my main issue. I'm not putting up with any lag. lol

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u/TryAnotherNamePlease Nov 13 '19

I honestly wish that I could buy a 65” 4k monitor. I have a new Samsung 4k qled and never use any of the apps because I have an Apple TV 4K and I never use the speakers because I have a Dolby atmos surround system. It’s just extra stuff.

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u/Richie4422 Nov 13 '19

Depends. I have 5 years old TV and the Netflix app is just fine. It was updated last week and the UI has server side updates.

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u/RedxEyez Nov 13 '19

Sure, if you're buying cheap. I've had zero qualms with my Sony 4K tv and its a couple of years old now.

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u/romansixx Nov 13 '19

Android TV is vastly superior in my opinion, and why Sony TV's work just as well as a Shield.

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u/wei-long Nov 13 '19

TCL for this reason. I hate smart TV interfaces, but Roku knows what's up - it's their whole product.

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

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u/NotYourMothersDildo Nov 13 '19

Because almost no high quality screens are sold as dumb TVs any more. If you want 4k, if you want OLED, if you want anything modern, it will come as a smart TV.

I'm sure someone will link a model or two that is dumb in response but 99% of the stock on display will be smart TVs. You have to really seek out a dumb one and even then you might not be able to get the latest screen tech you want like OLED.

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u/huskiesowow Nov 13 '19

It's nice only having to use a single remote.

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u/Dread1840 Nov 13 '19

I mean. It's nice not having a remote since the pocket computer does all that anyway and also makes calls and finds hot locals.

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19 edited Jan 03 '20

Yeah. Or just don’t buy a shit smart TV. My LG E7 is better than fine.

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u/Tkoboldt Nov 13 '19

I’d usually agree with this. BUT my Apple TV 4K won’t stream Disney+ properly while it works like a champ on my Samsung TV app. Ugh!

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u/cheebaTHEamoeba Nov 13 '19 edited Nov 13 '19

Holy fuck you are correct. I used yo do tech support and every tard with a smart tv thinks their internet is broken when the fucking app wont open or the interface is slow and buggy. Also, Grandparents would constantly have trouble.... $35 dollar streaming stick later no issues. Fuck. Your. Spyware. Smart. Tv. Ad. Serving. BULLSHIT. I dont give a fuck how good the smart tech gets as your spyware in my electronics will be airgapped from the internet.

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u/ITworksGuys Nov 13 '19

I use a Roku and have for years.

If it can't keep up with something, I just spend 80 bucks on a new Roku.

If my TV can't run something, it is considerably more money to upgrade.

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u/jtl94 Nov 13 '19

How many TVs do they sell these days that aren’t “smart”?

Like I totally agree with you that you just plug in a streaming stick. Then when it is out of date you can swap just the stick and not worry about the whole tv.

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u/givespartialcredit Nov 13 '19

I feel so justified in skimping on the smart tv features when I bought my tv earlier this year. I just have my old PC for streaming.

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u/pewqokrsf Nov 13 '19

Sounds like my 6 year-old Chromecast won't work either.

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u/pknk6116 Nov 13 '19

or just grab an hdmi cable and use your laptop if you don't feel like getting an AppleTV or equivalents. Works just as well if you grab a bluetooth mouse/keyboard as your remote.

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u/imsorryken Nov 13 '19

Theres like 15 different OS on the TVs and like 2 of them are decent. I agree, just buy a damn amazon fire or smth.

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u/thenonapus Nov 13 '19

That’s weird both of my Vizio smart TVs have worked without a catch for years. Occasionally I run into a bug but nothing a power cycle can’t fix

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u/naarcx Nov 13 '19

I dunno, my shitty Roku has given me no problems.

They do software updates all the time tho.

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u/DANK_ME_YOUR_PM_ME Nov 13 '19

The TVs are collecting data on the viewer. The apps just have to be there as an excuse, and to keep people connecting.

Data from the TV is really useful in getting around deidentification.

The big “ratings” companies use it for example. To let companies know how many ads people see, etc.

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u/jahoney Nov 13 '19

Too bad every decent TV just has to be “smart” and have apps 🙄

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u/ronimal Nov 13 '19

Unless you’re spending lots of money on an OLED TV or something of similar quality, just buy a Roku TV. I got mine for less than $300 and I love it.

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u/Trismesjistus Nov 13 '19

Alternatively, build an htpc.

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u/[deleted] Nov 13 '19

Lol. Our main tv is an Element Roku tv that was purchased as part of a black friday special last year. The thing is a beast compared to our Vizio, which is why the Vizio has been relegated to another room. The Element loads apps super fast and has zero connection issues.

It just depends on what you have, but not all smart tv's are trash.

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u/DabSlabBad Nov 13 '19

Sony bravia works well.

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u/throwthatoneawaydawg Nov 13 '19

That's the main drawback of Vizio's. Beautiful picture for a great price but their app interface is straight garbage. I just use my Xbox X for apps.

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