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this post was submitted on 12 Apr 2024
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At this point, why even consider getting a Roku?
Note, I rarely, if ever, use a TV anymore, so smart TVs have never appealed to me. But Roku seems to be very anti consumer (between the forced arbitration and their ad policy), so I don't understand why someone looking to get a smart TV would actually want a Roku over an alternative.
Maybe I'm just poorly informed, but it just seems like almost anything else should be a better option?
I have used Rokus for a while. I have a stick, and a TV that came with it installed.
Pros: It's cheap, and it works. Their interface isn't perfect, but it's good enough. It's supposed to serve ads, but thanks to my pihole it's just a blank rectangle taking up part of the screen. The app is serviceable. My wife and I can simultaneously stream the audio to our phones, and both listen with headphones, which means we can enjoy a movie even when the kids are asleep.
When I chose the platform originally, the other options were Google, Amazon, and Apple, and at the time they were still fighting over licensing each app and proprietary software. I also had a KODI HTPC at the time, and it's still running 15 years later as a Plex media server. The Roku had a faster response time and easier navigation. Roku has a Plex app so I can still stream all the movies I have.
Cons: The stick is showing its age, and the new terms of service are just scary enough to put me on notice that I might need a new streaming device
If they ever show an advertisement or a commercial before or over top of something I'm watching, that will be the day I switch. Today, I would probably go with an nvidia shield, or maybe even a game console since they all run streaming apps now. But any system has the potential for enshittification.
You literally can’t buy a non-smart TV anymore
You literally can. They are called signage TVs.
Or just buying a regular TV and not connecting it to the internet. Signage TVs are specialized and will cost a lot more for a lot less.
Because nobody buys them? I have a reasonably nice 1080p60 dumb TV, and when I decide I want to upgrade, I'll be looking at 4k (or maybe 8k) signage displays. Being part of an app ecosystem at this point is a design defect on a TV, and the superior product costs more, so fewer people buy it.
I also suspect the usable life of a smart TV is a lot lower, to the point that paying twice as much for a signage TV may not equate to twice the price in the long run. Fewer parts outside the panel that can slow down or fail entirely
Because they're a specialty product sold to businesses not mass produced products sold to budget-minded consumers.
I also doubt they're technologically superior as they're just designed to display a static McDonalds menu for 18 hours a day, not play Dune in HDR at a massive bitrate. I'm no fan of tracking or similar corporate bullshit surrounding advertising but you're making a lot of (almost entirely) assumptions here about these signage displays. You'll likely be paying more than 2x the price of a comparable model considering these are likely equivalent to Black Friday TVs.
The prices are not bad on signage TVs and they sure as hell are not similar to Black Friday TVs. Black Friday TVs are known to have garbage parts. Companies are not going to put up with TVs that die quickly.
Then you will have to deal with their shitty, laggy UI. Signage TVs are not more expensive from what I have seen. They often have less features though like only 60 Hz and fewer inputs (mine only has two).
Are those signage tv have similar tech as normal tv? e.g. oled screen, low latency mode, etc?
Can't find one with an OLED screen and I doubt there are any since that would likely lead to burn in. I can't see a use case for low latency (assuming for gaming) on a signage TV so likely no. But for watching content, they work fine.
You could get an OLED monitor like the Gigabyte FO48U or the Asus PG42UQ and use it as a TV if you really wanted.
I bought a couple Sceptre TVs six years ago, been great.
Those ar ehonestly not priced as bad as I thought for them not being able to sell your data.
Interesting. My local retailers offer no such thing, but maybe I should start going out of my way to get a dumb one.
I got the cheapest 4k 55 inchers. I paid like $300 for it. My only complaint was the speakers, but a sound bar fixed that for me.
Those are LCDs at OLED prices. It's almost double what an equivalent smart TV is.
Because they are not getting any money off selling your data.
True, but you can (for now) buy a smart TV and never hook it up to the Internet/use the smart functions.
I have a little Linux micropc hanging off my "smart" LG TV - the TV is effectively a 52" monitor.
IIRC I've read the Roku TVs at least can be set up in an offline mode. Some of the other brands I've heard get obnoxious when not allowed to connect.
For the TVs where Roku/FireOS/others I'm forgetting are the primarily operating system, they subsidize the cost of the TV making it much cheaper compared to others, especially for the size. Of course, this lower price point comes at the cost of privacy and intrusion of advertising.