this post was submitted on 08 Jan 2025
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Smart TV OS Alternative (lemmy.world)
submitted 1 day ago by Goombalover3000@lemmy.world to c/selfhosted@lemmy.world
76 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Good day! I am trying to find a good alternative as not to use the"smart" functions or using an Xbox to consume our media. I found a few options ie like plasma big screen but it's no longer in development. Essentially I would line love to have it running on an rpi4 and just hooked up to the TV.

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[–] Lumisal@lemmy.world 2 points 9 hours ago* (last edited 9 hours ago)

Currently I'm working on a Plasma Bigscreen build that still gives some privacy and 1080p Netflix/Disney+/Crunchyroll etc by using extensions/WebApps and getting S-Tube and other android apps (including tv web browser) via Waydroid + Flauncher, all controllable through a simple IR controller.

If you pm me I'll set it as a reminder for when I finish to share the package. It's designed for an Odroid C4.

As for dumb tvs or more privacy friendly tvs, you can find them if you know where to look. Here's some options from LG:

https://www.lg.com/us/business/digital-signage

They had a dumb 65" 4k OLED too but it's currently out of stock.

[–] smileyhead@infosec.pub 2 points 10 hours ago

OS ≠ user interface.

Use whatever OS that runs Kodi or some other user interface the best (with privacy also being considered to be best).

[–] Canuck@sh.itjust.works 9 points 18 hours ago (3 children)

I find having the full OS is useful, and this KDE environment proves great https://plasma-bigscreen.org/

[–] dingdongitsabear@lemmy.ml 3 points 11 hours ago

As of right now, Plasma Bigscreen isn't available for public use yet.

[–] yatzy@lemmy.zip 1 points 11 hours ago

Thanks for reminding about this project! Had a look a year back and it looked quite green at the time. Any first hand experience, how did you install it?

[–] PieMePlenty@lemmy.world 1 points 14 hours ago

This looks cool but having the shell feel good on a TV is one thing, having apps is another. If I open Firefox on theat thing, am I going to see the same app as I do on desktop... only 10 feet away? I immediately asked this after I saw VS Code in the screenshot there because what is the point in having an accessible 10 foot UI to use it to launch an app where I won't be able to read the menus and navigate around in an accustomed fashion?

[–] MaggiWuerze@feddit.org 28 points 1 day ago (14 children)

The main issue for me is not finding a device to play content, but a dumb screen that is not a potatoe. A 4k HDR OLED Screen without any smart features is basically nowhere to be found

[–] ikidd@lemmy.world 1 points 6 hours ago (1 children)
[–] MaggiWuerze@feddit.org 2 points 2 hours ago (1 children)

I won't go back from OLED, but a good source none the less. Thanks

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 1 hour ago* (last edited 1 hour ago)

Yeah there's no going back after OLED.

[–] SpiceDealer@lemmy.world 2 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

I also tried finding a dumb 4K TV some time ago and, yeah, they don't exist. 4K TVs were a good tech that came out at the wrong time.

[–] MaggiWuerze@feddit.org 1 points 2 hours ago

I guess there's just not big enough of a market there to have a decent selection or reasonable prices.

[–] tritonium@midwest.social 2 points 16 hours ago (2 children)

I mean... just don't connect it.

[–] MaggiWuerze@feddit.org 1 points 2 hours ago

Then I still have to deal with the screen not respecting my input choice and having to manually switch to my streaming box

[–] clmbmb@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 9 hours ago

Some devices will prompt you to upgrade the firmware and won't let you do it without internet access, AFTER you're logged in to their platform.

[–] boaratio@lemmy.world 2 points 19 hours ago

Look into commercial displays. They're dumb TV's.

[–] Guenther_Amanita@slrpnk.net 5 points 1 day ago (5 children)

You could maybe get an advertisement screen. You know, those you find at train stations and stores.

Maybe, you could even get something like those touch panels McDonald's uses, that would be nice!

[–] triptrapper@lemmy.world 1 points 8 hours ago

They have a handful of dumb screens, like you're describing, at Best Buy. Somehow they're thousands of dollars for a normal sized TV.

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[–] Osiris@lemmy.world 4 points 19 hours ago

Fwiw - I have both an LG C2 and a newer Samsung QLED. Neither have ever been connected to the internet, never pester me to connect, and the both turn on right to to my Apple TV

[–] Voroxpete@sh.itjust.works 24 points 1 day ago (2 children)

As others have suggested, OSMC is OK, but personally I prefer having Android so that I can use SmarttubeNext and access native apps for stuff like Jellyfin, Dropout, Nebula, etc. For years I played with various Linux options, but in the end I ditched it all for an Nvidia Shield and I couldn't be happier with the results.

[–] SuperSaiyanSwag@lemmy.zip 2 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

Is there an android box more powerful than Shield? I love my shield TV, but I wonder if it needs an upgrade in a year or two.

[–] Fisch@discuss.tchncs.de 2 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

My parents bought Xiaomi TV box (could search for the exact name if anyone's interested), which runs GoogleTV (Which is just AndroidTV, they renamed for some reason) and comes with a remote. It even has hardware acceleration for AV1 playback. Downside is of course that it has all the Google spying shit and ads in the home menu but at least it works well and you can use all the apps you want without issue. Idk if there's something like LineageOS for AndroidTV, that would be great.

[–] Voroxpete@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 hours ago

Idk if there's something like LineageOS for AndroidTV, that would be great.

Agreed, I would love this.

[–] tritonium@midwest.social 2 points 16 hours ago

I also think Android has the best apps... SmartTube, Tivimate, and S0undTV can't be beat and have no good alternatives on other platforms. I run 4k firesticks that I blocked from updates long ago so I could have my own launcher/home screen instead of the ad riddled default one, but want to upgrade eventually. Been wondering lately how well AndroidTV on x86 runs... couldn't find anything on YouTube.

[–] Andromxda@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 21 hours ago

LibreELEC

[–] sxan@midwest.social 9 points 1 day ago (2 children)

It's been years since I've shopped for a TV, but... can't you just not connect it to the internet? I have a little microPC running Linux connected to our TV; it's smarter than any other TV I've seen, but the TV itself is stupid.

Why can't someone just get a smart TV and just never let it get online?

I mean, sure, if I had my 'druthers, I wouldn't be paying for features I don't use, but if it's literally impossible to buy dumb TVs, what's the issue?

[–] AA5B@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago (2 children)

I used to do that but it would constantly nag until I connected it

[–] Auli@lemmy.ca 2 points 7 hours ago

Mines connected for home automation but can't connect to the internet. Blocking the Mac address from going out.

[–] sxan@midwest.social 2 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

Hmm. Just curious: did you try creating a tar pit subnet for it, which it could connect to but not escape from?

[–] AA5B@lemmy.world 1 points 9 hours ago (1 children)

Definitely curious as well, but so far haven’t gotten around to trying

[–] sxan@midwest.social 2 points 6 hours ago

I mean, someday I'll get a new TV, and I'd just been assuming I'd leave it disconnected... but I hadn't thought about the nagware, and that would definitely be an issue.

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[–] Azzu@lemm.ee 13 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I literally have a rpi4 and just put libreELEC on it

[–] sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 8 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Kodi is a great choice regardless of distro, whether that's libreelec, osmc, or just regular Raspbian.

I installed Kodi on my RetroPie setup, and it works well.

[–] mhzawadi@lemmy.horwood.cloud 15 points 1 day ago (4 children)

have a look at OSMC, you write it to the Pi SD card and it gives you Kodi all setup and ready use. you can even use your TV remote to control it

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[–] ProperlyProperTea@lemmy.ml 10 points 1 day ago (1 children)

As others are saying, OSMC might work. Most difficult part is making it so that the TV turns on when you turn on the computer since ARC isn't a thing for most computers.

I ended up giving up on OSMC and bought an Apple TV since nothing else got the "wife approval" factor. It's better than Google getting my data, has a Plex client, and let's me stream my Steam library.

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