LG TVs’ unremovable Copilot shortcut is the least of smart TVs’ AI problems

LG says it'll let people delete the Copilot icon. But TV chatbots aren't going away.

See full article...

 

[Nillaz]

all tv's do that stock now thats why all HDMI cables have Ethernet on them sony if you don't connect the tv directly will use the internet from any connected boxes to get updates

No, full stop. You're spreading nonsense.

 

[Nillaz]

He wasn't factually correct but he was kind of on the right track.

______________________________________________

AI Overview



Yes, smart TVs can collect data from devices connected via HDMI
using Automatic Content Recognition (ACR), which identifies what you're watching (from consoles, Blu-ray, cable boxes) by analyzing screenshots, and sends it to the cloud for ad targeting, but this is usually opt-in via privacy settings and can often be disabled in the TV's menu. While the HDMI cable transmits picture/audio, the TV's internal software, not the cable itself, performs the tracking, often through its built-in Wi-Fi connection to the internet.


______________________________________________

So the key takeaway here is do not EVER connect your tv to your home wi-fi. If you absolutely must connect to the internet for setup or to get updates do it through hard line ethernet then disconnect it when you are done.

I get what you are saying but I question if he was really on the right track. The whole premise of his post was that if the tv is disconnected from the internet the tv is still going to get around it by accepting network traffic over HDMI. That is simply not true. HEC was never implemented in consumer products, though the HDMI pins that are designated for it still get used for Audio Return Channel.

 

[Nillaz]

I'm still not getting what people are failing to understand by my post. I specifically said he was factually incorrect. But that he was on the right track by suggesting that it is possible the HDMI connection somehow WAS in the loop of the data harvesting path.

Which as noted by others ITT it is entirely possible to harvest viewing data from HDMI. It is simply not possible to send such information OUT through HDMI. At least at the moment.

I don't disagree with you about ACR, though in this instance I do think the whole concept you're focusing on is a bit flawed. If the set is disconnected it isn't going to be phoning home to the manufacturer mothership over HDMI cables or via any other method.

All I did was point out to the other guy that his bullshit post was bullshit. Because it's bullshit. You, OTOH, made a reasonable post and I tried to respond in kind, complete with explanation of my thought process.

And just to be clear, I am not one of the people who has downvoted your post.

 

[Nillaz]

What is everyone watching? TV content sucks these days. My 90" Samsung HDTV sits there unused for years. I would get rid of it but the wife wants to keep it in case of some disaster (hurricane/war/ etc.). Smart home stuff is all Home Assistant, computers are all Linux, internet is a local provider and goes through a VPN. Everyone is paying big money for crap shows and giving away their private information in the process. No thanks.

For someone who currently has 8 fairly high end televisions I don't actually watch any traditional tv at all. Ads are not welcome in my home and I ditched DirecTV something like 15 years ago.

We do have several streaming services but I don't watch most of them. The wife spends her time on Netflix and Disney+. I watch some Apple TV+, Curiosity Stream, and the occasional educational piece on Youtube.

The vast majority of my watch time comes either from movies or some Prestige TV show. I have an enormous library to choose from so I'm rarely starved for content.

 

[Nillaz]

And I was saying don't count on that being the case if you ever put your home wifi password into the television.

Even if you somehow turned off wifi connectivity after the fact these companies are notorious for turning things back on through updates.

I totally agree. I have two rules about tv's:

1. Never buy a tv for what it may do tomorrow. Only buy one for what it already does today.
2. Never connect a television to the internet.

I've only ever broken rule #2 one time, but it was for a good cause.