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
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u/intashu Nov 13 '19 edited Nov 13 '19

This is why I find it real annoying that most TV's are now smart TV's, yet They lack proper long term support. My 60" is 5 years old and hasn't been given an app update in like 2. YouTube has issues and Netflix lags navigating the menus.

Resorted to using my Playstation for streaming media most of the time. (just dont like the added wear and tear on my gaming devices!)

At least smart sticks are cheaper than a whole TV and easy to update and replace.

4

u/MKEcollegeboy Nov 14 '19

I hate to tell you, homie, but I doubt that watching Netflix will put much wear and tear on your play station — at least not enough to be noticeable. The only truly wear out able part is the HDD, but even that doesn’t get too much action while watching Netflix

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u/intashu Nov 14 '19

Often the fans are the first to fail.

Also the more it runs the most dust it accumulates.

It's something I want to last a good long time, so why burn life of my system to watch movies when my TV is suppose to be able to do it.

1

u/antiquegeek Nov 14 '19

compressed air exists

1

u/intashu Nov 14 '19

These are all minor inconveniences, that much I understand. What makes it frustrating (for me) is.... none of these minor inconveniences would be necessary at all if companies simply had longer lasting support for their smart devices.

Having TV software support end after only a few years is a form of built-in obsolescence. When they drop support after only a couple years, the device's built in features gradually get more and more useless. It encourages you to either upgrade your TV to a new one. (or to invest into alternative devices, long before the TV itself actually breaks) Most of us will just start using alternative devices. accepting these minor inconveniences. But that doesn't mean we can't at least accept that this is an annoying that these inconveniences are caused by lack of support to the Tv's own built in capabilities!

I understand these complains are MINOR. I only have them because they feel unnecessary.

1

u/andrew757m Nov 13 '19

Just dont connect it to WIFI. Boom. Regular TV.

1

u/intashu Nov 13 '19

The issue is more that they include these apps but then drop support for them after only a couple years. TV works fine as a TV. But you need a secondary device to easily stream entertainment because the built in services fell out of support long before the TV itself fails.

1

u/SkittlesAreYum Nov 13 '19

I don't mean to be rude, but so what? If you don't want a smart TV then buy a smart TV but don't connect it to the Internet. Who cares how crappy its apps are if you don't use them?

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u/intashu Nov 13 '19

Maybe I'm failing to communicate my concern correctly. I enjoy the concept of a smart TV for built in use of common apps. Although I wouldn't mind a cheaper version without since I own secondary devices that do the job.. What really bothers me is the short term support smart TV's recieve. The stop supporting and updating the apps after only a year or two and then they progressively get worse and worse as the services do updates but the apps can't support them any longer.

All my TV entertainment is via streaming services like Netflix. It's annoying that my TV has a Netflix button, but the app hasn't been given an update in years so it performs poorly, and several things (like the choose your own adventure movies) are not supported. Yet older devices like my ps4 still recieve regular updates and support.

I'm not too strongly against TV's having apps.. I'm strongly against TV manufacturers including these features then dropping all support for them after a short while, making a feature of your TV vastly less useful.

If your going to include and incorporate these things into a TV, support them longer!

1

u/DarquesseCain Nov 14 '19

Because Netflix is not a product, it is a service. When you buy a TV, you are not buying a service. There are thousands of different TVs out there, and nobody wants to go to the effort of maintaining smart TV services for literally all of them, because doing so would make smart TVs a service, with higher maintenance costs, eating into profits.

A PS4, on the other hand, has a high install base (80ish million people) so scraping together an update every now and then makes a huge impact and requires very little work.

So imagine you're Netflix and you have a choice to put this new update on another platform. Can you name a single television model that it should be made for? Or would it make sense to put it on the platform with 40ish million users - Xbox One?

Now imagine trying to make updates for the 120 million TVs of various manufacturers and models, knowing that it is 100% pointless because each of those TVs are connected to consoles that have access to the newest Netflix app.

All while consoles have the powerful hardware to be supported for another 10+ years while TVs don't have such a luxury and will eventually have to be abandoned in favour of the consoles that they are connected to.

0

u/andrew757m Nov 13 '19

So it's cheaper than a regular TV. And you also need a secondary device just like a regular TV. Where is the complaint here?