My concern about the "smart" TVs isn't things I can ignore, it's things I can't.
For example, I don't want a TV with its own network connection, a built-in camera and microphone, and hideously insecure firmware right in my living room.
Literally the only controls I ever use on my TV are power/standby, volume, and input selector. Everything else already comes from external sources like a set top box or PVR or Chromecast, and it's not like only A/V nerds have that arrangement.
I just want good video, good audio, and decent manufacturing quality and longevity. How on earth did we lose the plot as badly as we seem to have with the "smart" marketing?
Unfortunately, being able to see and hear the actual model you're thinking of buying is rather important if you care about audio and visual quality, and certainly in my city, even the relatively high-end stores have been full of "smart" models lately.
Also, the next logical step for "smart" devices is to establish their own wireless connections via alternative channels if they aren't connected to a household network. Privacy is fast becoming a thing of the past if you let anything with sensors onto the premises, and short of wrapping their home or office in a Faraday cage, there is disturbingly little anyone can do about it as more manufacturers reach agreements with network providers to handle their phone-home data needs.
So do what I did: don't connect the TV to your network. I bought the cheapest smart TV with a screen that I liked. That was some 50 Euros more that the most expensive dumb TV of the same size. It works well and I watch YouTube on my tablet, which has more pixels and at a arm length is as big as my TV.
For example, I don't want a TV with its own network connection, a built-in camera and microphone, and hideously insecure firmware right in my living room.
Literally the only controls I ever use on my TV are power/standby, volume, and input selector. Everything else already comes from external sources like a set top box or PVR or Chromecast, and it's not like only A/V nerds have that arrangement.
I just want good video, good audio, and decent manufacturing quality and longevity. How on earth did we lose the plot as badly as we seem to have with the "smart" marketing?