Just had my old dumb LG TV die after 9 years of working just dandy. I lack the desire to root around for a dead capacitor so I am currently in the market for an approximate replacement to act as the display for my Linux media center in my living room. I figure this is the right crowd for finding a non-invasive TV so my Linux machine can be the brains. I trust modern Tvs less and less.

Desired features

55"
Non terrible audio
As dumb of hardware/software as reasonably achievable
  • False@lemmy.worldEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I believe the term you want is “digital signage”. Be prepared that they can cost twice as much as a regular “smart” TV.

  • Catsrules@lemmy.mlEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    If you really want a true dumb TV, you should look into the commercial TVs

    Personally I just get any TV and don’t connect it to the internet. I disable any popup interfaces/home menus as much as I can on the TV so I just turn it on and it goes to HDMI1 and that is all the TV’s interface needs to do.
    I also disable alot of the picture altering features as well. My LG TV has some true motion crap that just made everything a little bit off.

    For the most part the handful of TVs I have tried just work.

    • SpaceNoodle@lemmy.worldEnglish
      0·
      1 year ago

      This is what I do. My Samsung TV can be set to turn on to a specific input, and the “smart” features never get in the way; similarly, it remains permanently disconnected from my home network.

      • wmassingham@lemmy.worldEnglish
        0·
        1 year ago

        I’ve heard of them searching for open wifi networks and using them. If I had one and cared, I’d bet the wifi card was removable like in a laptop, and I’d open it up and remove it.

        But I own a dumb old CCFL TV that I got for free, and I’m going to use it until I can’t any more.

        • Catsrules@lemmy.mlEnglish
          1·
          1 year ago

          I have heard of this as well. But I don’t believe I have seen any reliable source actually confirming it. I vaguely remember some posted about it on Reddit years ago saying their Samsung tv would do it. That said it is clearly a possibility that the TV could do it if programed so it is good to keep that possibility in mind. Might be worth running a few tests if your worried about it.

          The good news is Open WiFi hotspots are very rare, so unless you live next to a cafe or something that provides free WiFI you don’t really have much to worry about.

          I have never seen a removable WiFi card on a TV board. They are always integrated directly on the main board itself along with the CPU RAM and other components. Just look up TV Main board on ebay and see if you can find any WiFi cards on the photos.

  • SpaceNoodle@lemmy.worldEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Dead caps are easy to spot and easy to fix. You can gimme your old TV :)

    Look on Craigslist or similar if you really want something truly dumb and affordable.

  • PanaX@lemmy.mlEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    IF you have the space, go for a projector. I got a nice short throw 1080 Benq with a decent 120 inch screen. And wow, it’s incredible. It’s amazing for shows, movies, and games. I paid 800 total for everything. There’s everything from 200 dollar to 5k dollars, depending on what quality you want.

  • Ratz@chatsubo.hiteklolife.netEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Buy a nice TV

    Give it a static IP

    Firewall it off from the internet

    Voila!

    Edit: Make sure it cant call UPNP on your router or any such tomfoolery

  • Audacity9961@feddit.chEnglish
    0·
    1 year ago

    Really the best options I have found is to get a device running android tv which has the dumb tv mode. That combined with either not connecting it to wifi or using a pihole for any residuals is probably the most practical option.