HACKER Q&A
📣 speeder

How I buy a TV that don't show porn ads to kids?


So I bought a LG C1 OLED tv... It has that shiny new WebOS 6 that seemly is plagued with ads even if you disable all permissions, and I heard reports it is circunventing pi-hole too (by putting ads on same server as content you actually want).

The Brazillian version of it insists in advertising content available on "Looke", with little filtering, it has no shame in just pasting there posters of splatter horror movies or adult stuff, for example ads for a documentary about Rocco or another named just "Porn" with a giant naked ass on the poster.

Anyone know how I buy a dumb TV? One that does not need internet, at all? Or if it does need internet to update its firmware, it won't spy on me or fill stuff with ads?

OLED TVs aren't cheap either, and I am very disappointed that even paying a ton of money I am still the product.


  👤 kllrnohj Accepted Answer ✓
There's a lot of unnecessarily complicated recommendations here. It's really quite simple.

    1: factory reset the TV
    2: don't connect it to the Internet.
    3: use a decent set top box for all your streaming needs. Be it a console, Apple TV, Chromecast, or Nvidia shield (avoid the cheaper Android TV devices, those are heavily ad subsidized)

👤 fsflover
See also:

What is the best dumb TV? (pointerclicker.com)

674 points by evo_9 on Oct 2, 2020 | 651 comments

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24666968

Ask HN: What’s the best TV to buy?

56 points by colpabar 88 days ago | 90 comments

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29343338

Ask HN: Are there any 4K “dumb” televisions?

436 points by luke2m 84 days ago | 500 comments

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29382643


👤 patrickserrano
I have an LG OLED TV and I use pi-hole to block all of the creepy ad-tech that's built into to. Whenever I want to check if there are updates to anything on the TV, I disable the pi-hole for 5 mins and manually check for updates.

This is a good starting block-list: https://gist.github.com/wassname/78eeaaad299dc4cddd04e372f20...


👤 ct0
DNS level filtering at the router has been my approach on my samsung tv from 2016. I can block using a service called NetDNS.

https://perflyst.github.io/PiHoleBlocklist/SmartTV.txt


👤 cure
Yeah, don't buy a TV, just buy a (very large) monitor. If you're happy with a 43", this one is a good choice: LG 43UN700-B - but it's not OLED.

👤 ianai
Does it need an internet connection to work as a display?

👤 qubitcoder
I've had an LG OLED C9 for almost 3 years. I don't believe I've ever seen an ad.

You can go into the Settings, poke around a bit, and turn off all the personalization/ad options. When I turn on the TV, it shows the last used input source. No ads or junk.

At least in my experience, and that of friends, WebOS is minimalist, fast, and easy to use. The settings are easy to adjust, with plenty of advanced options you can drill into--and all presented in an intuitive manner. Not to mention being orders of magnitude superior to the slower-than-molasses Android abomination on my previous Sony X900F.

If you're just using for Netflix, Amazon, etc. (or with an Apple TV--also built in now as an app), I'm not sure where you'd see ads.


👤 Sohcahtoa82
I have an LG OLED TV. I didn't connect it to my Wifi. Works perfectly and has never nagged me to connect and update.

👤 staticelf
Connect the TV to the network but block it in the network from internet access. That way, you can still use it to cast stuff to via wifi but you don't have to worry about the ads situation.

👤 secretsatan
As many others have said, just don't plug it into the internet....

But that might not be possible if you wanted to use netflix or something on it, as well as tv channels through an aerial.

I just run everything through my PS5 (Previously a PS4, I'm sure there are other options, but I think a lot of set tops have their own advertising channels)

The playstation doesn't show me any adds except if I go to the PSN store, you can download all the major providers like netflix, apple tv, plex etc

I never switch to the TVs own channel


👤 projektfu
Perhaps pitch the story to a news outlet and embarrass the company. I can’t imagine Brazilians uniquely like this “feature”.

👤 irskep
I use an Apple TV with my LG TV and it has a better UI with no ads.

👤 argsnd
Some (all?) LG webOS TVs are now rootable, and I think this enables you to remove ads.

https://github.com/RootMyTV/RootMyTV.github.io


👤 NortySpock
Have you been able to test if PiHole ad blocking works on your TV? Might be quick to give it a shot yourself if you have a 'spare' home computer to use as a server.

After all, you can't trust just any single comment on the internet.


👤 halo37253
You'd have to block it at the router level. Just block the IP addresses the TV is broadcasting too and receiving ads from.

Honestly while LG makes a good TV. WebOS sucks. And their need to push ads is crazy.

That's why I like Sony TV's, Google TV is a better interface. And The homescreen has no ads.

I would just use a fire tv stick, roku, or even better yet a Nvidia shield and not deal with WebOS at all. The Worst thing about LG and Samsung TV's have always been the Interface, but I'd take Samsung's over LG any day of the week.


👤 forgotpwd16
You shouldn't be looking for a TV that doesn't show porn ads but one that doesn't show any ads. I've a mid-priced Android TV that doesn't have any, neither in homescreen nor mid programme. But should mention, I read that Google revamped the homescreen within the last months and from screenshots it seems the entire thing is a big space to ad new content (similar to LG's WebOS and Samsung's Tizen).

👤 subjectsigma
If the TV has an Ethernet port, could you possibly disconnect the wifi card? That way you know whenever it's on the internet.

I don't know if TVs have detachable wifi cards or if they are soldered to the main board, but it might be worth a look.

EDIT at least some of them do: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TOOo3gN9BiY&vl=en-US


👤 Marcelovk
So, I have the same model, besides using a pihole another option is to use rootmytv https://github.com/RootMyTV/RootMyTV.github.io + edit the hosts file blocking looke calls.

I have successfully rooted my tv and will try to find which calls should be blocked, but might be only a few set of hosts


👤 thisispete
This was in my feed, seemed relevant. Father facing jail time in france for using a signal jammer to keep his kids off the internet https://hothardware.com/news/a-father-who-used-a-signal-jamm...

👤 umvi
I never allowed my smart TV to connect to the internet. I only let dongles I approve (like Chromecast) to connect to the internet.

👤 alexk307
I just got the LG A1, and I am also disappointed with how many ads they serve. I'm probably going to get an Apple TV to replace the shitty LG UI.

There is a setting hidden deep in a menu that will turn off ads. I was able to find it, and it no longer serves me ads, but it continues to show recommendations, so I'm not sure if that will help your issue.


👤 simonmales
I still have a dumb TV, and I hope to keep it for many more years.

I wonder if "Cloudflare for families" could help? https://blog.cloudflare.com/introducing-1-1-1-1-for-families...


👤 Retr0id
Related: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29938520 (Show HN: RootMy.TV)

👤 phowat
I'm not sure if it's possible to downgrade the OS, but I have an older LG model with WebOS 5 and I don't get any ads. So it might be something worth investigating.

👤 Frazo
I've got the same model but no ads. Where are you seeing the ads please? on the main interface when you turn on the TV? or while watching something?

👤 bni
Never connect any TV with Wi-Fi or Ethernet. It's a sad state thet there isn't any TV manufacturer that respects your privacy.

👤 zitterbewegung
Attempt to return the TV and then buy a monitor.

👤 post_break
My very expensive samsung tv let me use it without even agreeing to the terms of service.

👤 allisdust
Can't you sue them? Isn't adult content regulated when displayed on television.

👤 samarthr1
I wonder if there is a market for a libre tv? Something akin to framework but more open

👤 marcodiego
I have a more general question: How I buy a TV that don't show ads by itself?

👤 brightball
Simplest thing is to just buy Roku TV's. The Roku OS is fantastic and neutral as far as the various content provider services go. It's got everything and the phone remote controls are great.

Usually very well priced via Sam's Club too. It's the only thing I'll buy now.


👤 CynicusRex
Easy, discard TV's from your life entirely.

👤 newbamboo
Craigslist has non-spyware TV sets for free. With a 20 dollar antenna you can get real old fashioned tv. Or if you can accept that you are just going to be spied on anyway, maybe that’s a more sustainable position than trying to fight the capitalist social credit rating system/ad tech. Is it worth wearing a tinfoil hat all the time, even if it works?

👤 bradgranath
Projector

👤 codevark
Sceptre makes a 55" non-smart TV that only costs $400. Not OLED, but pretty nice.