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[misleading headline?] Nvidia Shield is getting Auro 3D audio support, full-screen ads
(www.flatpanelshd.com)
this post was submitted on 24 Nov 2023
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Technology
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Is there a good alternative to Google TVs? I recently bought a TV and absolutely hate Google on it.
I have a media server, is there a way to install a launcher for my TV that can access Netflix, YouTube, Plex and other services?
I love(d) my Shield, I first bought the original, and then the updated model. I use it every day, but the lack of hardware updates (still using USB 2, only has 12 GB internal storage, low RAM, etc...) and constant ads and "sponsored content" has made me fall out of love with it.
I asked a few weeks back about a replacement and someone recommended this one to me. It runs on Android 12, supports 4K Dolby Atmos and Vision, and has better hardware than the Shield. It isn't cheap though.
Same price as a shield tho, so might be equally worth it if it is good?
The person that recommended it to me said they love it and kept recommending other things I could do with it, like install an ARM version of Linux that runs Kodi as the frontend instead of Linux. I don't mind paying the money if it's of equal or greater quality than the Shield.
So it could get the same update that makes the launcher an ad-riddled cesspit?
How easy are these devices to root and install alternative roms? Are there alternative roms available to install?
I really wish these devices were more like desktop computers. I want the freedom to install anything I want.
What I posted is a generic Android TV box that you can switch launchers and stuff on. The Shield is so popular and is/was the only good STB that they pumped it full of ads, just like any other popular platform.
IDK the modability of it, but it's gotta be better than what I have currently.
Thanks, I appreciate the response.
My solution last weekend when I saw this post was to downgrade both my sheilds to 8.2.3, I never liked the adds on the sheilds main homepage tbh but have gotten used to the as time passed.
In this process though once I downgraded I noticed the adds displayed once again on both my sheilds. This was because the android tv launcher app downloads a update. To get around this I disabled auto upgrade of apps on my sheilds and denyed the upgrade of the Google tv launcher and removed the update. No more adds on the launcher.
I have a feeling this is how google will push full screen adds through their launcher app in the play store.
Here is a well written guide how to downgrade to 8.2.3 that I followed.
https://florisse.nl/shield-downgrade/
Took about 30min on my second sheilds once I figured out the first sheild after 2 hours.
Thanks - this makes me hate Google TV even more. You shouldn't have to go through that much work to keep your devices useful.
Do you have the playstore on it?
On the TV? Yes, I do.
I haven't tried using adb to install new launchers yet.
Try this one
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.spocky.projengmenu&hl=de&gl=US
Been using it for a year now, really happy with it.
Is it easy to set up as the default launcher?
It is! I use it as well.
Sorry, I don't see how to set it as the default. How do you do it?
I use that same one. I think granting it accessibility privileges let it become default.
Apparently TCL disabled that option.
I find LG TVs to have the best user experience. If you care you would want to look into a pi-hole to stop all the usual phoning home activities.
Lol omg LGs user experience is better? It's like it was designed by a toddler infused with meth, liquid capitalism, and hatred for graphic design.
Their settings suck, their remote sucks, their software sucks, their apps and app store sucks. The only thing LG does right is make the actual panel.
My personal experience has been the opposite. I have a C8 so maybe the software is different but I've found the settings to be decent, the remote to be far and away the best (magic remote) as you can use it like a mouse. Especially when you have to input something, rather than furiously mashing directional buttons to navigate the keyboard you just point and click. All the apps I use work great. The UI is responsive especially compared to the typical TV that runs Android which just feels like a massive lagfest. The software store does suck! Luckily I rarely use it after the initial setup. You can put apps in whatever order you want and quickly switch between them.
I'd only disagree that their remote sucks - I like it a lot, but I also don't know others! It especially pisses me off how it doesn't keep the apps in the motherfucking order I put them in.
It's strange because I've never had an issue with the app order changing. It's consistently worked for me since I bought the TV. It's an older C8 but still works perfectly well.
I don't know why it always moves some around randomly after turning off and then on the TV, but I gave up trying.
Maybe you know it, but is there a way to make the home screen the standard view after turning it on? I don't have cable and I cannot find anything to do that, and it's my only real gripe with it left, I just accepted the rest.
I'm mostly happy with it, I just hate that they collect all the fucking data they can about you through the TV and mobile app, and you cannot even use simple speech-to-text "without internet" (I blocked any and all traffic to LG so they can suck my nuts).
Maybe I should also add, regarding your point, that I did not have a TV before for many, many years and mostly only use it when people are over or to listen to Spotify while doing stuff around the house.
Which model do you have? Mine doesn't have a "home screen". It turns on to the last used input. There is a bar that pops up from the bottom with all the apps on it and that opens when you turn it on. Honestly I didn't realise how different the UI may be across different models.
Oh yeah, the UI in yours looks completely different. It's way higher-end though than mine!
Mine is apparently "LG 65UQ80009LB", for whatever it's worth :D I could probably make it better by letting it go to standby but that's not worth it for me. There is an option called "Home Auto Launch" but whether that's on or off it boots to HDMI.
Anyway, it's really not that big of a concern! Thank you for the replies though 😁
My issues with LG TVs is they're 1) still missing support for the ESPN app which is a big deal if you're into sports and 2) only allow casting to them from a white-list of sites. So your can't just stream anything from Chrome on your computer and cast to the TV. If the website isn't white-listed, you're out of luck.
I've also had issues with pihole interfering with the TV too. Not a pihole expert though so I'm trying to figure out how to work around it.
Have you tried casting your computer to the TV? With Win+K you can share everything and click around with your remote.
It's what I do when I do it, but I don't have any kind of device for that stuff.
I wish I could do this but I don't have a Windows OS. I wish it had ChromeCast built in because fucking Pixel doesn't even support MiraCast!
Yes this is a big deal. Some important apps are missing. While I'm not in an area that has ESPN I have noticed the lack of CrunchyRoll.
I can't even get cast support because my TV has MiraCast and AirPlay but my fucking Pixel doesn't support either, only ChromeCast.
I used to have a pi-hole setup working properly with the TV, i.e., blocking tracking but keeping functionality.
Real issues and definitely not perfect but when I've used other TVs it's the every action that is unbearable for me. Using a TV without a magic remote just seems obsolete and especially on the Android based TVs there's sooo much lag.
Get a dedicated streaming device like an Apple TV or Roku that can be swapped or upgraded independent of the TV.
Ironically, Nvidia shield is a dedicated streaking device that can be swapped. Don't kid yourself, Roku is just as bad with the ads. They recently updated their UI to pack more apps into their home grid, so that they could show ads for other apps and shows. Recently mine says "continue watching" Supergirl in one of them constantly.
We've never watched Supergirl and don't even have the app it's on installed.
AppleTV 100%. it’s 2nd really only to the shield when it comes to streaming formats , as the Apple TV doesn’t support some of the edge cases (as far as normal users go). Streams most things on my plex server. No ads , stellar performance. My 2017 4k is still a beast and I like the UI. You also don’t really have to deal with apps or services skipping your device because of some bullshit, and if you do it’s not long( hbomax, YouTube TV come to mind).
The only thing it really doesn’t do well is casting like chromecast or side loading but I haven’t had an app that I’ve wanted to install that I couldn’t so there’s that. It has airplay but it also requires you to have an iDevice/Mac but I generally wasn’t a huge user of the feature when I had my chromecast.
Sorry, you say casting doesn't really work well. Does it work at all from Android? We use that pretty heavily in our home. I guess the TV does have the Chromecast built in, so we could still use it.
I'm not in the Apple ecosystem at all, so I don't know if it is a viable choice. I guess I trust Apple not to put ads on everything, so it might be an option.
To my knowledge no but it wouldn’t surprise me if someone found a way to do it. It’s just that chromecast/Google TVs is a lot more friendly and open. You can cast iOS or android.