Ask HN: Which TV do you recommend for privacy?

Hacker News Discussion ↗

Smart TVs’ pervasive tracking and advertising are leading many privacy‑conscious users to conclude that there is effectively no truly trustworthy TV on the consumer market. Most recommend treating any modern TV as an untrusted display: never connect it to the internet, disable or physically remove radios where possible, and drive it via a separate device such as an Apple TV, mini‑PC, or rooted/cleaned Android box. Others suggest alternatives like commercial “digital signage” panels, large monitors, or projectors, while a minority argue for legal and regulatory fixes rather than elaborate technical workarounds.

Baseline advice: treat TV as a dumb display

  • Dominant recommendation: buy any TV with a good panel and never give it internet access (no Wi‑Fi, no Ethernet).
  • Drive it purely over HDMI from a trusted device: Apple TV, Nvidia Shield, Roku (de-bloated), game console, mini PC, or Raspberry Pi.
  • Some use “basic mode” / “hotel mode” so TV always boots to an HDMI input and the built‑in OS is never seen.

Alternative hardware: monitors, signage, projectors, old sets

  • Many suggest large computer monitors or commercial/digital signage displays (Viewsonic, NEC, Samsung/LG commercial lines) which are closer to “dumb” but pricier, sometimes with weaker TV‑oriented features (tuner, eARC, image processing).
  • Sceptre dumb 4K TVs are repeatedly cited as ideal but may be hard to find or discontinued.
  • Several people use projectors (esp. laser/UST) with no smart features; trade‑offs: brightness, setup complexity, lifetime, but good “cinema” feel.
  • Others keep older pre‑smart or early‑smart TVs (e.g., ~2010 Bravia, plasmas) and just add an external box.

Rooting, debloating, and custom setups

  • For LG WebOS, rooting plus tools like Glasshouse are praised to disable telemetry, ads, and run custom apps; must avoid newer patched firmware.
  • For Android/Google TV, adb scripts (e.g., CleanYourTV, custom launchers) can strip bloat and ads. TCL and Shield examples given.
  • Some physically disconnect Wi‑Fi/Bluetooth modules or antennas; others worry even that may not fully eliminate RF.

Network controls and threat models

  • Many place TVs on isolated VLANs or local‑only networks with firewalls, OpenWRT, DNS filters (Pi‑hole, NextDNS).
  • There is an ongoing dispute about whether TVs secretly connect to open neighbor Wi‑Fi, mesh, or cellular:
    • One camp insists this “must be assumed” and treats any smart TV as compromised unless radios are removed.
    • Another notes there is no concrete evidence yet, despite active attempts to detect such behavior.

Brand‑specific anecdotes

  • LG & Samsung: best panels but seen as most aggressive on tracking, nagging, and ads; multiple people block them at the router or root them.
  • Sony Bravia: several users report acceptable behavior offline or in “basic mode”, with ACR disable scripts available.
  • Vizio: strong negative example of dark patterns (forced Wi‑Fi screens, HDMI behavior crippled to push smart features).
  • Hisense, TCL: mixed but often usable as dumb panels when network is never configured.

Broader sentiment

  • Widespread frustration that “dumb TVs” have effectively disappeared and that buyers must hack, firewall, or physically modify expensive appliances.
  • Some call for regulation and privacy legislation; others have largely given up and accept tracking as a cost of modern TVs.