Smart TVs are the norm these days, and it feels like you have to go out of your way to avoid them. Whether it’s Roku, Samsung, TCL, or Sony — any TV you buy and connect to the internet has some sort of UI for you to interact with. After spending a little bit of time with this interface, it’s clear there’s a lot to be desired. It’s slow and sluggish, and if you’re like me, it’ll become a hassle over time.
A lot of people gravitate toward streaming sticks and boxes like the Apple TV 4K to leave their default OS behind, and those are fine choices. I picked up an Apple TV 4K myself, and as a result, I disconnected my smart TV from the internet, and I now pretend it’s not smart at all. All I need my TV to do is display a screen, and with my receiver, I don’t need it for audio either.
Smart TVs still have a long way to go
The current class of TVs are not cutting it
I love a lot about what smart TVs offer, and I used one for a long time before moving on to an external streamer. I thought it was incredible that I didn’t have to rely on my Xbox anymore for streaming, and with everything directly on my TV, I thought that was the perfect world.
It didn’t take long for me to realize that’s not the case. It obviously varies by interface, but I’m not a fan of the Google TV overlay on my TV at all. The home screen is cool, but scrolling through the apps isn’t fun, especially since my TV moves a lot slower than I’d like. If it could be treated like a full-fledged interface instead of a half-baked idea, I’d be more inclined to stick with my TV as my main streaming platform. It really does offer everything I need, but the sluggishness is what holds me back. To be fair, I’ve never used a Roku smart TV, and if it acts and looks the same as my Roku Streaming Stick, that could be the answer I’m looking for. My main problems lie with Google TV, so maybe it’s a matter of me painting with a broad brush.
Another key thing is that Apple doesn’t have an interface on TVs. Of the major players, Apple has my favorite interface, and the only way to get access to it is through an Apple TV. The main draw here is the lack of ads, and that might play a big factor in its snappiness. I’m using a first-generation Apple TV 4K, and while my device is approaching a decade old, it’s still plenty fast. I can’t say the same thing about my Sony X90J, a TV that was released back in 2021. When I had to use that TV for apps, which happened after a botched Apple TV update, it felt awful. Don’t get me wrong, it works for what it is, but there are many better options out there. If you know any better, it’s difficult to go back and use these TV OSes. I’m not sure what the answer is here since TVs only have so much processing power, but there has to be some sort of middle ground.
Smart TVs have been around for a long time now, but I’m not sure if they’ve seen many improvements. What led to me using my Xbox in the first place was the lag, and it doesn’t feel like that’s ever been properly addressed. It can be excused when something’s in its infancy, but a decade in with the same problems is a lot harder to put up with.
There are some positives, but not enough
Too far and in between
I don’t want to sound like I think smart TVs as a whole are completely useless, because they very much aren’t. If you don’t have anything else available, I can’t fault the smart TV interface because it’s a big deal on that end. There are even some exclusive features, like the Sony Pictures Core app that came with my Sony TV. The app was part of the reason I picked a Sony TV in the first place, even if I don’t use the app nearly as much as I thought I would. That service has since become available for PlayStation owners, but for a while, it was a good reason to grab a Sony TV.
With high-end TVs being so expensive, often costing more than $1,000, it’s lame that so many of them come with OSes that leave a ton to be desired. I’m far from alone in this feeling, and it feels like everywhere you look, you’ll find people complaining about the clunkiness and speed of these UIs. Samsung’s TIZEN UI gets a lot of hate, and from the sounds of things, I’m lucky I’ve never had to experience that one.
The way around this is to obviously grab a streaming stick or box, and that might be why the market is so lucrative there. Google has its own smart TV UI, but there’s still the option to go for an external device. On paper, the UI should be good enough on the TV so we don’t have to do this, but that’s not how things have shaken out. With the price of a stick sometimes dropping to as low as $20 on sale, you can’t really say cost is a factor either. I’d like to see TV manufacturers step up and make the experience smoother so I don’t have to rely on an extra device. It’s kind of a punch in the face to have to plug something extra into my TV just so I don’t have to slog through a slow interface.
It’s a shame because, outside of the speed, there’s not much else to complain about. Sure, there might be concern about long-term support for the apps, but all I need to happen is for an app to open up. I don’t care about whether it’s up-to-date if it doesn’t affect anything. I’m glad these OSes exist in the first place because I would’ve had to deal with all sorts of audio sync issues with my Apple TV if they didn’t.
