Does anyone got any television recommendations for dumb tv’s or other words none smart tv’s? Or even a tv that is smart but the software is open sourced making it privacy friendly?
TV’s have become privacy nightmares in recent days.
One option would be any TV that works then simply keep it offline and stream from a device that allows you to have more control over your privacy.
If you’re wanting to actually use a smart TV’s functions, I think NextDNS can be set up to block most of the telemetry on whichever smart TV you have.
This is definitely the simplest approach, as you will be able to use any TV you come across.
As for a streaming device, some form of HTPC is likely to give you the best control over your digital privacy.
I’ve had some that actually will not let you use it until you have accepted the user agreement, sold your soul, created an account, verified the account, then signed in. That is also why I won’t buy any TV that uses Roku.
Can’t you just go through the setup process with some dummy account details then just disconnect everything when it’s done updating?
I heard that Roku TVs (not the sticks) disable HDMI until you have connected to the internet and registered an account. I also heard that their TVs are way chattier and force more ads than their stick.
Ironic because the one device I would want to connect to its HDMI is a Roku stick.
Not saying you’re wrong, but I never had to create an account on my TCL TV running the Roku TV software. You can even choose an input to start up to, so I never even see the home screen ads.
Wouldn’t surprise me if it varies by model, but I’ve had no issues just having mine start up to a Fire Stick connected to my home Plex server (though Fire Stick comes with its own problems).
I have several roku tvs in my house and I’ve never heard that, and I’ve never had to setup any type of account…
Dumb TVs have gotten hard to find these days. Your options are to either avoid connecting the tv to the internet, or to get digital signage display (but they are pricier).
Have you looked at big-ass computer monitors? They probably have a lot of things you don’t want, but I’ve yet to see a smart one. Maybe a cheap one would fit the bill?
