[patwoz]

Just never connect them to the internet. I just use them as a display for my apple tv.

[hapticmonkey]

I think Apple’s strategy here is going to pay off. Provide a box with an actual fast processor in it, a simple Home Screen with no ads, and an OS with no tracking. Somehow this is a revolutionary idea in this industry.

But slowly I’m seeing more people recommending the AppleTV, even amongst enthusiast circles which tend to be rather anti-Apple.

[mkl]

How would that help? You plug your AppleTV into a smart TV (to be able to use it) and the TV takes tracking snapshots anyway.

[patwoz]

Yeah TV is not something everyone wants to play around with. Not even nerds. Especially if you have a partner which just want to watch tv. You just want to relax and watch tv without any issues.

[hollow-moe]

no obviously apparent tracking*

[Cpoll]

This is a very fuzzy memory, but I remember a report of a smart device that "helpfully" automatically connects to other devices nearby, forming a mesh network.

In other words, even if you never connect your TV to your WIFI, it might be enough that your neighbour does.

[trckdhsbr]

If anyone has any more info on this I'd be very interested in seeing it

[amelius]

Did you know that HDMI cables have Ethernet running over them?

[pmontra]

My TV is a Raspberry 3B+ with a TV Hat and TVHeadend on my Android phone and tablets. My disconnected LG smart TV sits in a corner connected to an old PlayStation. I can use it to watch movies with friends if I want to: I connect to it either my laptop or my tablet with a HDMI cable.

BTW: why a smart TV? Because for only an extra 50 Euro I got a much better screen (subjective assessment) than the best dumb TV on sale when I went shopping for them years ago.

[doublerabbit]

Meanwhile my 70 year old something mother wants to watch TV not having to rely on me for tech support when she does.

For nerds, brilliant. I love such setups myself but for the household consumer it's an no-go.

[joekrill]

They are making this increasingly difficult, though. I bought a Vizio TV years ago that came with a physical remote. At some point the firmware was updated in a way that the physical remote could only perform limited function, and to do anything slightly advanced (changing the input, brightness, things like that) you had to use their app. Which, of course, required connecting to the internet. Obviously this could have been avoided if I hadn't connected it to the internet in the first place and upgraded the firmware. But I didn't have that hindsight at the time. And I think some newer models don't even come with a physical remote. But, lesson learned: I will never even consider buying a Vizio ever again.

[pabs3]

Vizio are GPL violators too BTW:

https://sfconservancy.org/copyleft-compliance/vizio.html