-- Leo's gemini proxy
-- Connecting to warp.geminispace.club:1965...
-- Connected
-- Sending request
-- Meta line: 20 text/gemini;lang=en
> The CEO of repair site iFixit, Kyle Wiens, said: "Vizio smart TVs are a trap!"
Yes indeed, they are! I recently had to replace a 32" Vizio SmartTV, and the only 32" TV I found at Costco was another Vizio. I didn't have any expectations against these Vizio TVs, as a matter of fact I have been using other Vizio TVs so far simply because the price and the sizes I needed at the given moments.
However something different there was, and not only for the Vizio brand but, apparently, the newest Smart TVs are becoming smarter with more sophisticated, android like, interfaces; just to make your life worsen — assuming that any fellow Geminaut thinks those web-spy-interfaces are atrocious nevertheless.
Conscious I would find shit, I thought that I could handle the shit dressing my "special ant-shit-gloves"; but I was wrong. At the very beginning, when I turned on the TV, this started the auto-setup but rather than asking for settings it was asking to accept various EULAs, in order to share your personal data, with the final goal to create an account and other crap to make your experience better — sarcasm… 😑
Honestly this was ridiculous, because I was already pissed off about that tormenting, so I skipped almost everything since the only thing I would was to connect the TV to the WiFi to have access to my streaming services.
> BAD MOVE!
A real bad move, because the TV one day decided to upgrade the system by itself without asking and it got stuck for a week in the process with nobody able to watch the TV. Apparently the upgrade was meant to make the SmartUI the only way to control the TV, overriding the basic control functionality. However without a complete upgrading I still had slightly hope to get the expected behavior. Eventually the TV was able to perform the update (or the upgrade) only be because my intervention — just a detail to describe the amount of shit — but even after finishing the update the software wasn't still optimal, most evident issue was the remote which stopped to work properly: it was working only inside the SmartUI while it was not working watching the digital passive antenna that I use to catch the local channels.
« Don't tell me that is the same old ugly vice… » however also the SmartUI had issues, and from time to time a screen was there remembering that if I was willing to create an account I would get a better experience.
> NO WAY! How that sounded so unexpected — sarcasm… 😑
I still have a spare FireTV that I used to enhance the previous Vizio but, surprise… Surprise… the FireTV remote couldn't work with TV and the TV wouldn't work with the FireTV either, therefore there wasn't possible up and down the volume from both remotes!
> What INCREDIBLE coincidence — sarcasm… 😑
I thought. After discovering that annoying issue I started to reset and reconnect the TV several times replicating that behavior all the time!
> I was already mad!!!
This really pissed me off further, I heard that Vizio had some issue infringing GPLed software:
but I never heard that was one of those companies that use technology against their customers. I would not say that it was good once, just I thought that selling TV was already enough to screw any customer but guess what?
> I WAS WRONG! 😩
At this point I was almost to give up and create an account with Boogle Mail, which is my free (as in beer) garbage email account, but an idea snapped in mind!
…I don't connect the TV to the WiFi? 🤔
Apparently if you don't connect the TV to internet it does not insist to create an account and it can't perform any update either, therefore starts to operate as any dumb TV, Vizio TVs included! What happened then:
the remote control started to work properly,
the FireTV was usable as well as its own remote.
After this experiment all the nasty thoughts against Vizio and its fucking SmartUI started to be more concrete. I didn't test what would be happened opening a full account but I collected a lot of experiences, starting from Android itself, where if you don't have a full or regular account those devices act against you and don't work properly; thus I didn't have any needs to test if my statement was true, I don't really care about it also because I have seen enough of this shit, and for me was already enough that any remote controls were been overtaken by the SmartUI OS, overriding the standard or basic underlying functions.
Today we have to add another company in the group of the ones that try, with any means, to steal your data and to control your equipment against you, deciding what you can watch and how you must watch it!
> CHE INCOMMENSURABILE ROTTURA DI COGLIONI! 🤬
I bought a couple of FireTV cause I found that folks from XDA were able to make a launcher that didn't require any "root" in order to get working. It was simple but nice, and it avoided all the useless and annoying commercial suggestions, and advertising, that the FireTV is constantly tossing upon you, making the daily experience extremely annoying!
The hack, which required some jump on the hoops, had been working for a while until in this late summer an update, which bypassed the anti-updates prevention, definitely made having any alternative launcher impossible or unfeasible to use. It doesn't matter that — as usual — I paid for the device, I paid for the Prime membership and I pay for my streaming services: I have to use the FireTV the way Amatson wants. Clearly having policies and behaviors against customers is nowadays a constant, companies believe that having a nasty attitude against their clients is right or authorized by their budgeting goals.
> Should I write another vulgarity?
The FireTV is working better — and is way more superior — than the Vizio SmartUI but is the same ugly and annoying, and I really hate it! I am so pissed off that I am thinking to buy only DVDs/Blu-Rays and close all my subscriptions if any appliances to watch such streaming services are built to screw you rather than make your life pleasant.
They are getting me to the stage of my personal "tolerance 0" and when I reach that point it is usually a no way back... 🖕
For comments or suggestion write me at:
-- Response ended
-- Page fetched on Wed May 22 01:38:03 2024