Comment on I got this popup ad on my TV **while watching a DVD**
dual_sport_dork@lemmy.world 6 months ago
Even if you must own a smart TV (because it’s impossible to buy a large-ish TV anymore that isn’t), I see no reason to actually connect it to any network. But! I notice recent models will bitch at you on every single power on if you leave them disconnected. So you’re not even safe from being annoyed then.
If I found out a TV required internet access to function, I'd return it to wherever I bought it next day.
Luckily I have a old-ish flatscreen that doesn't require internet but does have a netflix and other channels I can setup if I want. The Netflix client is so old it won't connect to their servers any more. That's OK. My Roku still works.
I have yet to see one that won’t eventually let you use it as a dumb display after you dismiss one (or more) nags first. But I’m sure that’s coming eventually. The worst offender I found yet is the “cheap” Black Friday sale Amazon Fire TV my boss got to use as a security monitor in one of our satellite locations. That fucking thing won’t even show a picture until you dismiss its network nag, and then its sign-in-with-Amazon nag. At least I found you can disable the Amazon account nag in the options. The network connection one you can’t.
We’ve just resolved never to turn it off. You can’t dismiss the nag screen with the bezel buttons, either. You have to use the remote, so that’s now permanently double-stick taped to the desk the TV is on.
Next time he’ll just buy a fucking computer monitor like I told him to.
The TVs I’ve seen that do this have been smart enough to not get naggy about a lack of Internet until 30+ days after first power on. Then you get popups or autoplay videos begging you to connect it.
My Hisense has been pretty decent, surprisingly. But for my next TV I’m honestly thinking of going with a commercial display.
Right after you can’t return it anymore?? Evil
I bought a 65" HiSense last month. I was psyched the first time I set it up, and it gave me the option to configure it as a dumb TV without the Android TV experience or a network connection.
I’m tempted to do a master reset on mine to see if I got that option. I have the Roku edition and I know that I can specify what source it defaults to on power on. I can also turn off content recognition, which is what’s going on in OP’s case. But using it as just a dumb TV would be awesome.
Yeah, that's why I've come to just pay the premium for professional displays instead of consumer TVs.
How much more is it?
Wonder how much an 83" OLED would cost me for a premium professional display.
Are you serious?
My LG you had to scroll down (with no scroll indicator) below the screen to find the hidden option to not connect it to the internet on set up.
If I the TV nagged me every start up I’d get rid of it.
At least the LG TVs don’t try to pull any shit like OP posted about. At least mine hasn’t.
Mine hadn’t, built it’s a few years old and the enshittification has only increased each year.
I agree with you for the most part that there’s no reason to connect them to the internet, however:
Most modern TVs have Bluetooth and WiFi radios, therefore they’re never truly isolated, and finally that means if there’s a security flaw, it can potentially be exploited without physical access.
Now your priorities (and frankly, hardware) will obviously differ from mine, but that risk alone is a reason to connect things up in order to receive software updates, for me. Of course, the privilege of getting software updates for your telly is not ubiquitous, but most manufacturers can issue updates if there is a good enough reason to do so
If its never been connected to the internet…wtf are they gonna do if they hack it? what are they going to get? it will have no credit card information, no personal information of any kind.
The problem is that because the hardware is there, a determined person with physical access can change the settings to join a network you don’t control.
Ideally, you can open the TV and remove the wifi modules but I suspect that might be beyond the skills of most TV owners.
Tbh, I stopped owning a TV since college. I watch everything on my computer or phone now.
Wait…so the fear here is that they will take my tv, that i don’t have connected to the internet and…connect it to a network i don’t have? Whats the point of going through that trouble? Whats the gain?
They could connect it to the Internet, I guess.
There's microphones and even cameras in many of these TVs.
Those radios may have a flaw that allows someone to connect to them without direct physical access, wardriving is a similar idea. Particularly the Bluetooth stack, since modern TVs often use Bluetooth for their remotes, so it’s always going to be powered and active.
Then you’ve got to remember a lot of TVs have shit like cameras and mics now days. Even without that, if an attacker can take control of something with a WiFi radio, it can become a jumping point to exploit other devices near your TV. I mean it doesn’t even need to be an exploit, e.g. if your phone disappears from WiFi range, maybe you’ve gone out—that’s a good time to rob you.
Sure it’s all pretty unlikely, but it’s a non zero threat. Particularly when you consider that TV OS software is often like swiss cheese when it comes to security.
Another option for the even more security-minded is to physically disable the radios.
This article is a year old, but it's still possible to buy dumb tvs.
Thankfully mine (about two yrs old now) only whined for the first couple weeks then gave up on me.
Now the only issue I have is the time it takes for android to boot. It’s like having to wait for your tv to warm up all over again except without the high pitched noise old tv sets had.
I have mine connected so I can control it from Home Assistant. It’s blocked from WAN though.
Boozilla@lemmy.world 6 months ago
Some people get computer big monitors instead of a TV, because of shit like this.
SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 6 months ago
Where am I gonna get an 85" monitor for under $1k?
jayrhacker@kbin.social 6 months ago
Under the heading: "Digital Signage Display"
SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 6 months ago
For under $1,000?
cobysev@lemmy.world 6 months ago
That’s the route I took. I recently bought a 48" 4K monitor, hooked a mini PC up to it, and now I stream my movie and TV show collection through Plex. I still have Internet access on my “TV,” but I’m in control of what pops up (I block all ads on my home network). I just use a small wireless keyboard and mouse instead of a remote.
I haven’t actually owned a TV since about 2008. I have better media options through computers, and the technology just keeps getting better. Cable and public access television are a pain because you’re constantly bombarded with ads. With my own computer, I can circumvent ads and get a solid viewing experience.
WarmSoda@lemm.ee 6 months ago
I went the other way. My 75" TV is my PC monitor.
I fucking love it.
ivanafterall@kbin.social 6 months ago
I did a projector. Pretty close in price and I have a very modest, but serviceable 135" screen and no ads.