@Edent I wish it was that simple. Some will only work after you connect them to the internet. Others literally try to find an open WiFi or anything they connect to and then claim they are offline and still send all your data.
@Edent I bought a Roku tv and during setup it asks for a WiFi and there’s simple no option to skip that step. At least none I could find and I definitely tried. A colleague says he sees his TV making attempts to connect to his WiFi. Don’t know the details or the brand there though. Basically I think if you don’t want your smart tv to connect to the internet you need to let it connect to your WiFi, then block its traffic. That’s not something most people know how to do.
@_mochs
I'll concede that if you buy a device which advertises itself as primarily a streaming device and has a warning in its instruction manual that it can't be used without a connection then, yes, you have purchased something unsuitable.
@Edent@film_girl
Well for one thing, TV makers might all go down the same path as printer makers, to the point where eventually there are few if any good options remaining.
All these manufacturers seem to have decided to sell TVs at or below cost and make their money via data collection and advertising.
You are going to find people asking you recommendations for sets that don’t automatically log on to wifi networks, or brick themselves if they cannot get on Internet.
@Edent more and more of them give you no choice but to connect them, and some like the ones with Roku self connect to any open network near by automatically, I see this a lot from business free wifi portals catching Roku devices on networks I manage.
@Edent@film_girl Last I heard, if they don't have an ethernet connection, they will form adhoc insecure networks to try to make any sort of connection they can.
@apontious@Edent it isn’t that complex. If you don’t connect it to a wifi network and you don’t allow your apps to connect to other devices (easy to say no to or turn off), it’s literally a dumb terminal. If you want to use AirPlay or cast stuff to it, yeah, you’ll need to connect it to a network. That’s a trade-off and the super paranoid can get a pi-hole or similar DNS-level blocker service if so inclined. Or you know, don’t AirPlay or Cast to the TV but plug in a third-party box.
@Edent I saw a report some brands (Roku?) have started nagging or flashing LEDs when they’re not connected. You can obviously cover an LED but the software could start making things obnoxious for you if the manufacturers want.
@FuckElon
I mean, sure. And maybe they have snuck in a SIM card and cellular radio, or perhaps a satellite phone, or sending psychic signals back to the manufacturer 🤔
If you're at that level of paranoia, wrap your TV in tinfoil.
(Also, where in the world are you that your neighbours have open WiFi?)
@lanodan@Edent Yes, and in the case of Sony the last pre-Android TVs running Sony software were slower still. Best used as a monitor for a raspberry pi LibreElec client.
@Edent I have a much more petty complaint about ours smart TV's.
We do exactly that - not connect them to the net.
Unfortunately, because the manufacturers knew best, the remotes are each encumbered with a big fat Netflix button - easy to knock, and connectivity or not still flicks over to the preloaded bloat.
I did say it was petty.
I've heard of TVs though, that near constantly nag if they've not been connected to Wifi, so it's worth bearing in mind when shopping.
@ben@Edent A solution here is to block Netflix via Pihole or similar.
I do this while leaving TV online so "now and next" guide works for possible extra PVR capability via USB memory stick (rarely used; mostly use a LibreElec box for both PVR and live TV; w no data reported).
The TV's not connected to wifi - it can't access Netflix at all.
But, it came loaded with the netflix app by default (which, of course, can't be removed). When you knock the button, it opens the app (which the complains as you'd expect).
We watch TV via a HDHomeRun, so don't need now/next on the TV itself anymore
@Edent A lot of them bug you every time you turn them on if you do this. I suppose there's probably some way to fix this/jailbreak/whatever but... that's more than I want to mess with it really
@Edent the main problem I have with them is how flakey and slow the OS is for them these days. My TV takes ~30 seconds for me to be able to switch to a different input (on the times it actually works and doesn’t mysteriously close the input selection window).
But if I don't connect it to the internet, how is it going to update to the latest version of it's OS that protects me from attackers that come from the internet?
I also hate how it spies on me constantly, all I want from it is to learn my every preference and desire so it can suggest what show should I consume next.
And I need it connected to the wifi so I don't have to get up and plug a cable to show my guests the funny video of my private life that I shared publicly on my socials!
@Edent honestly wouldn't trust it anyway. Only a matter of time before they make you connect it for updates "for your own security" or does some other bullshit I can't even conceive of until it happen
@engravecavedave
How would that even work? If it isn't ever connected, how would it know there were updates?
What bullshit do you think a disconnected appliance can do?
Idk man. Any apple device automatically adds you to their interconnected mesh grid if you have either Wifi or Bluetooth. They even have a new feature where airdrop continues to transfer files on 4G even out of range from your friend who sent it. Amazon devices automatically do that. What if you got a Samsung TV, doesn't connect to internet but has Bluetooth capabilites on ... and it connects to other Samsung devices in your vicinity and sends it data. I don't trust these companies at this point
Edit: Look, I know it sounds incredibly paranoid and tbh I would've thought it sounded crazy myself a few years ago as well ... and it probably is tbf. We're just at a point in time where pretty much any out there conspiratorial tin foil hat surveillance theory that would've been laughed at decades ago keeps being revealed to the public or found out in studies.
I'm at a point where I just wouldn't want a smart TV in my home, disconnected or not
@falken
But if you buy a non-smart TV and don't connect it, they'll know that X% of their customers don't use smart features.
That's just as powerful a market signal.
@Edent it's mostly the boot time that bugs me. I should probably take that into account next time and go to a show room and turn on and off TVs to see what I can find that's basically instant access to the Blu-ray player.
@Edent I haven't bought a TV in almost a decade so my experience is probably a bit out of date. I also disabled fast start on the one TV I have since that is just a power waste.
I spent the early part of my engineering career working on ASICs for video projectors that had very strict startup timing requirements so I'm probably a little pickier than most 😁
@Edent I don’t like paying for stuff I’m not using, that adds fragility and obsolescence to the device, and that may be used to scam me if I’m not careful. I also don’t like signaling that all of the above is ok by paying for it. Maybe it’s just me.
@Edent also, me not liking a thing is not me saying I will not use it if it’s the only alternative, nor me saying I don’t know how to secure the thing. It’s me not liking it.
@adriano I mean... They're usually cheaper because the manufacturer has been paid to install the apps.
It doesn't add any obsolesce if you don't use that feature. HDMI is the same on a TV or a monitor.
And if it breaks - who care? You weren't using that feature anyway.
@Edent I'm not sure how much prices are subsidized here in Chile, esp. given that there are not many alternatives in any case. But I meant obsolescence of the hardware and firmware. The wifi subsystem. True, if the Netflix app doesn't support a tv anymore it's not a problem. If the wifi chip breaks, though, it very well could.
@adriano
I don't understand.
You're worried about the obsolescence of the WiFi subsystem? A system which you are never going to use because you will never connect it to the net.
Who cares if the Netflix app doesn't work? You're not going to use it.
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