How smart is a smart TV ?

[JohnnyJazz]

There are a lot of promotion around and I may consider buying a new TV. Keeping in mind that I wish to integrate this TV in my home network, what can I expect from a "smart" TV beside a very large computer monitor ? Are these TVs able to run some applications ? do they support some kind of OS like Windows or Android ? As far as I know, the answer is no but the last time I bought a TV was five years ago so manufacturers may have made some progress since ...

[casualbiker]

Depends on the TV surely? Smart TVs are not necessarily web TV's.

Sent from my XT1032 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[GinBoy2]

Hmmm, depends on your definition of 'smart'. If they were really smart, the market for the likes of Roku, AppleTV, Chromecast and the like would dry up overnight. Might tell you something

[somchaismith]

Had a look at TCL 32" the other day. Seems that the internal memory is under 1GB, so you couldn't install many apps even if you wanted to. However, you can run videos, music, and so forth, off of a flash drive or external memory and can also download to the flash drive or external memory. Could also hook up a wireless keyboard via bluetooth. I would assume that you could also play online games such as. Counterstrike, which is very popular with the kids.

I believe that Smart Tvs have their own brand specifIc OS, so doubt that android or microsoft apps would be compatible - maybe someone can expand on this or correct me if I'm wrong.

Also, some Smart TVs seem to require the buyer to purchase a seperate dongle to receive wifi.

The TCL setup was under 9k BAHT.

Edited May 12, 2014 by somchaismith

[JohnnyJazz]

Hmmm, depends on your definition of 'smart'. If they were really smart, the market for the likes of Roku, AppleTV, Chromecast and the like would dry up overnight. Might tell you something

All these, including the Android TV, are just simplified and specialized computers. I plug my computer to the TV through an HDMI cable and I have the same functions and more.

When I first saw the advertisements for "Smart TV" I was thinking that these TV included some form of computer, but obviously not.

[ezzra]

I'm looking to buy a 65" UHD Led TV, not sure yes, Samsung or LG, both are superb

TV's and so smart, so smart infect that I was ashamed to stand next to them in shop....

[Jeffrey346]

Each manufacturer has their own OS. IMO, Sammy and LG have the best features. You can do just about anything you can do on a tablet on your Smart TV.

Your off brands like TCL do not offer enough storage and are not worth the price you will pay.

[JohnnyJazz]

Each manufacturer has their own OS. IMO, Sammy and LG have the best features. You can do just about anything you can do on a tablet on your Smart TV.

Your off brands like TCL do not offer enough storage and are not worth the price you will pay.

Do you mean I can load on a Samsung TV the same apps I have on my Galaxy phone ?

[Chicog]

I asked my Samsung 8 Series "What is the capital of Peru" and it answered "Caracas". Doesn't seem that smart to me.

[yanni]

sounds like u know what you are talking about

personally I got into computers in middle age so I struggle at times

this is not really answering your question but thought I'd share anyway

bought a smart TV last year from PowerBuy

I was given the impression that it would work using the internet signal sullpied by the condo building

it didn't - the signal was not strong enough

PowerBuy resited when I returned the TV but they had to give in when I reminded them that the info they gave me was wrong

[Rorri]

What does the rest of the family do, while you hog the TV... Use you computer and don't bore the family sh#tless.

[Rorri]

ezzra, on 12 May 2014 - 15:50, said:

I'm looking to buy a 65" UHD Led TV, not sure yes, Samsung or LG, both are superb

TV's and so smart, so smart infect that I was ashamed to stand next to them in shop....

UHD, nice for product promo. but no-one transmits UHD, no programs are recorded in UHD, I put it in the same basket as #D, a total waist of time and money

[Rorri]

yanni, on 12 May 2014 - 16:47, said:

sounds like u know what you are talking about

personally I got into computers in middle age so I struggle at times

this is not really answering your question but thought I'd share anyway

bought a smart TV last year from PowerBuy

I was given the impression that it would work using the internet signal sullpied by the condo building

it didn't - the signal was not strong enough

PowerBuy resited when I returned the TV but they had to give in when I reminded them that the info they gave me was wrong

"Smart" TVs, "smart" phones, "smart" anything is only as "smart" as the user.

[Headgame]

I have a Samsung Smart TV. I can surf the web, and utilise a lot of Samsung apps, e.g. games, health and versions of YouTube, Tunein radio, etc. You can also stream movies - some free but most for a fee. You need to set up a Samsung account w/cc.

It also has USB so I can play torrents that I have downloaded on my computer.

You can also stream from your computer to the TV with a Smart DLNA server app on your computer.

Samsung is constantly updating its OS and apps are regularly being updated as well. Good sign.

A lot of the functionality will depend on how good your wifi connections is - OK, in my case. Well worth the price and I am very satisfied.

[JohnnyJazz]

I have a Samsung Smart TV. I can surf the web, and utilise a lot of Samsung apps, e.g. games, health and versions of YouTube, Tunein radio, etc. You can also stream movies - some free but most for a fee. You need to set up a Samsung account w/cc.

It also has USB so I can play torrents that I have downloaded on my computer.

You can also stream from your computer to the TV with a Smart DLNA server app on your computer.

Samsung is constantly updating its OS and apps are regularly being updated as well. Good sign.

A lot of the functionality will depend on how good your wifi connections is - OK, in my case. Well worth the price and I am very satisfied.

DNLA, that's something that interests me.

First I thought it was just a gimmick, an answer from Sony to Samsung's "SMART" but actually Samsung is also part of the Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA).

For more details, one can check http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Living_Network_Alliance but here are some basic information :

DLNA Interoperability Guidelines allow manufacturers to participate in the growing marketplace of networked devices. There are over nine thousand products on the market that are DLNA Certified.^[14] This includes TVs, DVD and Blu-ray players, games consoles, digital media players, photo frames, cameras, NAS devices, PCs, mobile handsets, and more.

The Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) is a nonprofit collaborative trade organization established by Sony in June 2003, that is responsible for defining interoperability guidelines to enable sharing of digital media between multimedia devices.^[3] These guidelines are built upon existing public standards, but the guidelines themselves are private (available for a fee). These guidelines specify a set of restricted ways of using the standards to achieve interoperability and include almost no free audio formats and only the most common (free or otherwise) video formats, meaning that DLNA servers generally have to support transcoding in order to produce a useful service.^[4]

DLNA uses Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) for media management, discovery and control.^[5] UPnP defines the type of device that DLNA supports ("server", "renderer", "controller") and the mechanisms for accessing media over a network. The DLNA guidelines then apply a layer of restrictions over the types of media file format, encodings and resolutions that a device must support.

Edited May 12, 2014 by JohnnyJazz

[Thakkar]

I asked my Samsung 8 Series "What is the capital of Peru" and it answered "Caracas". Doesn't seem that smart to me.

Mrs T asked our TV if her new pants made her arse look big, and the TV remained silent, which Mrs T interpreted as "no." So I think our TV is pretty smart.

T

[somchaismith]

Each manufacturer has their own OS. IMO, Sammy and LG have the best features. You can do just about anything you can do on a tablet on your Smart TV.

Your off brands like TCL do not offer enough storage and are not worth the price you will pay.

What's the internal memory size of yours? Because I've put in a bit of time surfing and all of the Smart TVs which I find have an internal memory next to none. I'd appreciate you pointing me in the right direction as I intend to soon purchase a Smart TV. Here's an example:

"This smart TV doesn't have any storage space for your apps, so you'll have to use a USB drive to store them. LG recommends that you use a USB external hard disk of 1TB or less, or a USB storage device that is 32GB or less. Although you have the ability to download as many apps as you want, you'll have to store them separately from your TV."

http://internet-tvs-review.toptenreviews.com/lg-smart-pm4700-review.html

"

[rhythmworx]

They're smart enough for the NSA to watch you, watching TV.

[Crossy]

Personally, having been an early 'smart' TV purchaser (and being more than somewhat disappointed). Unless you're into waving your arms at the TV to change channel, I would set your budget, take about USD 100 off it and buy the best 'dumb' TV you can get for that money, make sure it has a sensible number of HDMI inputs.

Then spend the USD 100 on an Android TV stick and a wireless mouse, turn your TV into a giant tablet with all the functionality of Android, does everything and more that the smart TV will do.

[sandyf]

I have a Samsung Smart TV. I can surf the web, and utilise a lot of Samsung apps, e.g. games, health and versions of YouTube, Tunein radio, etc. You can also stream movies - some free but most for a fee. You need to set up a Samsung account w/cc.

It also has USB so I can play torrents that I have downloaded on my computer.

You can also stream from your computer to the TV with a Smart DLNA server app on your computer.

Samsung is constantly updating its OS and apps are regularly being updated as well. Good sign.

A lot of the functionality will depend on how good your wifi connections is - OK, in my case. Well worth the price and I am very satisfied.

I also have a Samsung smart TV, there are a huge number of apps available , most are of little interest to me in my twilight years, but the BBC World News and RT.com are quite useful. It has a web browser which would be useful to someone without a computer. There are quite a lot of free movies, mainly Asian or from times gone bye, great if you are into John Wayne and Sgt Bilko.

I am also well satisfied.

[Chicog]

Personally, having been an early 'smart' TV purchaser (and being more than somewhat disappointed). Unless you're into waving your arms at the TV to change channel, I would set your budget, take about USD 100 off it and buy the best 'dumb' TV you can get for that money, make sure it has a sensible number of HDMI inputs.

Then spend the USD 100 on an Android TV stick and a wireless mouse, turn your TV into a giant tablet with all the functionality of Android, does everything and more that the smart TV will do.

Sound advice from Crossy. Better still buy an Android box like an MX2 with XBMC on it and all the bells and whistles.

[sandyf]

Personally, having been an early 'smart' TV purchaser (and being more than somewhat disappointed). Unless you're into waving your arms at the TV to change channel, I would set your budget, take about USD 100 off it and buy the best 'dumb' TV you can get for that money, make sure it has a sensible number of HDMI inputs.

Then spend the USD 100 on an Android TV stick and a wireless mouse, turn your TV into a giant tablet with all the functionality of Android, does everything and more that the smart TV will do.

It all depends on what you want to do. I also have an Android smart box on my Samsung TV. There are hundreds of apps on the Android box but of no interest to me. All I would use is on the TV. I have no problems with controller on the TV but the controller for the Android box was thrown in the bin and replaced by a wireless mouse, a bit better but still problematic.

I only got this box for one particular TV app.

[RBOP]

Smart TV over rated. Some neat apps come on Samsung like videos and tv shows on demand but the shows are very old and not in HD (at the least the one I installed). Surfing the web and YouTube are really difficult as you are using the remote to scroll a screen keyboard. There might be a way to connect a blue tooth keyboard but haven't got that far yet.

[Thakkar]

A better solution is to get a standard HD TV with at least one HDMI input. A 47" Panasonic/LG/Samsung/Sony and other decent brands can be had for around 16-18k. No other bells and whistles necessary.

Hook the TV up to a Mac Mini (or PC which has HDMI). Even an older refurbished Mac Mini will do fine. Price 20k for latest brand new Mac Mini (though an updated model is overdue and may arrive any week now) .

With Bluetooth keyboard and mouse, you have the best of both worlds and no compromises - all at less than 40k.

T

[healthbkkbkk]

Everything that can be connected is connected to my home network.

Most smart TVs can do some sort of web browsing but this will be limited in the cheaper models.

A good model will do full web surfing and each brand incorporates a certain number of Apps but here they are almost all in Thai. You can download more apps online but the TV's memory is limited as is it's CPU power so it's no where like using a computer.

I stream everything from my computer to watch on the TV and the streaming is seamless and very high quality. I depass the TV to stream music directly to my sound system but one can also stream it to the TV.

The 3 main players are Samsung, LG and Panasonic. I personally think Samsung has a better picture but LG has a better interface and remote.

If you want a good experience with Samsung or LG look for model series of 600(0) or above.

You can also buy a dumb TV and connect it to a smart box or bluray player and get the same thing almost. This is the cheaper solution and is easily upgraded as a TV can not be upgraded.

You should also check if the TV supports Flash. My LG does buy my Samsung does not.

Edited May 12, 2014 by healthbkkbkk

[Chicog]

^^ 20K?

You must be barking.

Edited May 12, 2014 by Chicog

[astral]

Interesting thread as I am about to buy a new TV

I already have an Android player with all the apps I need so perhaps I should go for the dumb option.

BTW U-tube was advertising that it has 4K videos available

[JohnnyJazz]

A better solution is to get a standard HD TV with at least one HDMI input. A 47" Panasonic/LG/Samsung/Sony and other decent brands can be had for around 16-18k. No other bells and whistles necessary.

Hook the TV up to a Mac Mini (or PC which has HDMI). Even an older refurbished Mac Mini will do fine. Price 20k for latest brand new Mac Mini (though an updated model is overdue and may arrive any week now) .

With Bluetooth keyboard and mouse, you have the best of both worlds and no compromises - all at less than 40k.

T

Agree with you, I already have a 30" TV connected to my Mac for when I (officially) work on big excel files or (unofficially) watch the last episode of Game of Thrones, what I'm going to do as soon as I finish this reply ;-)

Here are some basic information about connecting a TV to a computer : https://us.en.kb.sony.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/42805/~/general-information-about-connecting-a-tv-to-a-computer-for-use-as-a-monitor.

[AnotherOneAmerican]

LG Smart TVs are smart enough to look around your home network and send lists of your files to LGs servers.

Better off buying a stupid Tv and an android box or media player, costs less and better upgrade paths too.

[Cloggie]

All electronic like laptops, desktop, TV's, cameras and other electronic gadgets are as SMART as the user who is using it.

I am a technical person so I can use all functions or I will find out how they work, if you are 'computer illiterate' - just skip it and stay with a normal TV with as less functions as possible as you will never be able to use them.

Edited May 12, 2014 by Cloggie