Do you know if there is an alternative to GoogleTV or AndroidTV as the OS on the TV set? I’ve seen one or two projects but those are more oriented towards TV boxes rather than the television device itself.
I would like to replace the one that comes preinstalled, as as far as I have detected is turns on on low power every now and then to, and this is a guess, phone home for updates. I have connected it once to my wifi, and after that it updated itself and started to lag.
I would like it to connect to my network and play my local media streams, but I don’t like the idea of it going to the vendor’s cloud. I have it now disconnected from the network, but it would be nice not to depend on another device just to enjoy my arrchives
Edit: I am not looking for some solution to connect to the tv and stream, I have that covered. I am asking to replace the preinstalled OS on the tv and use it without needing external devices.
Adb.tv and projectivy launcher will make a sizeable difference as will rooting and disabling the telemetry/tracking/ other bullshit. I went that route on my current hisense tv and its been great so far. Not as good as a true dumb tv but its pretty close and it is easier for my family to use without babysitting them.
Yes. As I implied, my local arrchives are streamed via jellyfin
Maybe take a look at CanI.RootMy.TV. Seems to be mainly focused at LG WebOS but I’m not sure what vendor, model, and firmware you’re running.
I typically solve this by:
- Factory reset the Smart TV to take it offline.
- Install Android TV on a Raspberry Pi and connect it.
- Mount the Raspberry Pi to the back of the TV with some Velcro tape.
The result is most of the convenience of a Roku with none of the privacy concerns.
And as others have said, JellyFin is a great addition for watching home movies, or any other Mp3 or MP4 files.
But also, the most Android streaming apps just work.
As of when I posted this:
- Disney+ works now.
- DropOut.tv works now.
- Netflix worked last time I tried it.
- Amazon Prime worked last time I tried it.
- Paramount Plus doesn’t work no matter what I try. (But I’m not willing to add Google Framework Service, which would likely work.)
Paramount Plus also has more trackers in it than any other Android app I’ve used, so I tend to avoid sending them money anyway.
Interesting, but isn’t Android TV on the Pi still phoning home to Google?
There are de-googled builds for Raspberry Pi TV Android without Google’s stuff.
Konstakang has made a ROM based on LineageOS. I’ve only eyed it myself, but it should be Google-free (unless you install G apps).
That’s probably the one I’m running. My vision isn’t good enough for 4k video, so I never tried.
Meh, I’m just thrifty. 4K is for people with high bandwidth or too much storage space 😉
LibreELEC!
once you get past the idea that everything needs to look like a square icon it’s absolutely amazing.
i love kodi!
I doubt most Android TV boxes are open enough for you to replace the OS, I know my Android TV with Google TV with Chromecast HD 4K Streamer Box Stick™ (or whatever it’s called) isn’t.
Books.
