I’m really not a fan of TV’s getting the “it runs apps!” treatment. I understand the manufacturers are in an arms race to outsell the other guys, but a TV should be nothing but a dumb box that has a bank of inputs and shows me whatever picture comes in on that input. Leave the bells and whistles to stuff I plug into the TV.
But since it appears that ship has sailed, perhaps it’s time to start buying home routers that can filter outgoing traffic.
There’s no rule stating that you have to use the Ethernet jack that is part of the shiny new TV you just bought. Put a real computer next to it and feed the TV with an HDMI cable as God intended.
It’s for your own good. How else is LG supposed to tell you about fabulous products you’re sure to love and to let Comcast know that you’re watching pirated episodes of Game of Thrones? Why would you steal the milk out of the mouths of the babies of all of those employees and shareholders? Are you some kind of baby-hating criminal monster? I mean, that’s the only kind of creature I can imagine clicking through EULA’s without reading them!
So, this “Smart TV” thing is supposed to basically eliminate a set-top box? And will the TV accept another set-top box, so that you can bypass having your TV directly connected to your home network? If only there were a set-top box that you could actually trust not to pull this shit.
Someone should take the damned thing apart and hunt for a concealed camera and microphone, at this point.
Apps may or may not be useful, sure, but playback of networked files IS useful to a large number of users; I’d argue the majority. The fact that this TV displays the option to NOT send in viewer data, then does it anyway, is just cowardly,possibly illegal bullsh*t.
Any TV with modern inputs (HDMI and/or USB) will accept an external set-top box that uses those inputs, regardless of what internal capabilities it has. A set-top box merely pipes in audio and video, just like any other connected device.
We had to make a concerted effort to find a new LED TV that did not include wifi and apps and fast processors and all that other nonsense. Mostly I don’t need it because I have an HTPC, but also I don’t want to overload what is essentially a giant monitor that should just show me pretty pictures.
I like LG’s suggestion that the store should have warned him. Yes LG, let’s have all the stores warn customers about your TVs. In fact, lets have them put signs next to LG TVs saying “spies on you”.
I mean, if you’re going to pass the buck, then you might as well accept the end results.
Sometimes I get annoyed at my huge square tube television that cuts off the sides of movies, but now I feel better. At least it’s not spying on me.
Also, I’ve wondered for a while whether this hidden camera / mic question was indicative of personal paranoia, but now it seems like a reasonable reaction to the world around us.
So, LG thinks you should purchase a TV, read an on screen agreement, and return the TV if you don’t agree?
OK. Sounds like a plan. I think I’ll go buy one on credit so I can read the agreement for myself. And, if I do not agree, I will return the used TV.
I wonder how many people returning LG TVs it will take before the brick and mortar stores stop carrying them?
Someone should put out a PDF that we can print and stick on LG demo smart tvs in the stores.
And if it costs the same as its predecessor (comparatively) then you’re getting a lower quality TV for the sake of features that you don’t need.
I’m in the same boat, I use a Raspberry Pi for the smart stuff, let the TV be a TV.
At least I don’t feel so bad about what we ended up with (Samsung). I’ve heard that some of the fancypants smart tvs have slower start up times too.
“[I]t was something he had to take up with the store where he bought the set, because they should have told him about the spying before selling it to him.”
I’ll keep this in mind if I buy one of these TVs at my local CostCo, which has them in stock. I’d like to know if the person at the cash register is aware of this “feature”.
If anyone at LG is reading this I just want to go on record and note that the “lesbianfurrybondagesnuffporn.avi” file my TV reported playing was actually an empy test file like “midgetporn.avi.”
Gawd. There will not be enough walls to put all these jerks up against when the revolution comes.
I own an LG (not this fancy spying model). I bought it from a local Mom and Pop television shop, so yeah, the folks who sold me mine actually knew things about the TV. If it had been a spying model, I might have even been told about that. But I know my experience isn’t the majority of folks’ experience with TV buying these days. Most folks end up buying from the kind of stores that don’t have helpful knowledgeable sales people that are trying hard to get customers the best set for them. They end up buying at big box stores where no one helps them at all or chain electronics stores where the staff is trained in and interested in selling additional cables and warranties instead of televisions.
While if there’s going to be advertising I’d prefer it to be targeted advertising so that it at least has a chance of being for something I’m interested in, why is someone buying a television box that shows ads on its own? I get when you want free or cheaper than it should be content, you’re going to end up with ads from sponsors. That’s part of the deal. I’m okay with it. But the TV itself is paid for already. No one is sponsoring the content that I’m viewing so that my willingness to see ads is supporting the creation of the thing I’m watching. Is this particular LG TV dirt cheap in exchange for it displaying ads no matter what you do with it? I might be okay with the hardware itself instead of the content being the ad source if it meant that the hardware was a major major major bargain. But no way would I pay what a nice TV tends to cost and have it deliver ads.
