They get a few points if the on-screen keyboard is qwerty. But more often than not it’s an abcde keyboard because… that’s easier somehow?
It keeps the dvorak people happy less angry
They could just use the obviously superior keyboard layout instead
Colemak?
If you’re not using abcde on your physical keyboard you’re behind the times unc

I think when HBO max first came out for like a year it was not just ABCDE, but also all on a single line.

So you had to go back and forth over and over, which UI design asshole got paid 150K to shit that out through Figma?

I also remember the dark ages.
Oh yeah, you’re not gonna wanna do that.
But how else will you get exciting new offers on TV related products and services
I don’t even keep my “smart” tv connected to the internet these days. It’s entirely there to display whatever I plug into the HDMI ports
I truly love the freedoms of my htpc.
What sucks the most is when the TV doesn’t let you switch to using hdmi until you do setup/sign in
well that would be an instant return
I hope our TV never breaks, I am not prepared for this weird shit.
And when it does you buy a display, not a tv
Email addresses on the TV I can at least minimally tolerate. It’s when the TV makes me type in a password that I start to lose my cool. I’m glad that so many apps work around that nowadays with QR codes or by copying a code into an app.

Most tvs can use your wireless keyboard. And mine can use my phone as the keyboard.

It’s really not much is a problem when we ask have touch keyboard in our pockets.

It’s really not much is a problem when we ask have touch keyboard in our pockets

🧐

I’m referring to out phones. I use mine for mouse and keyboard for my pc and tv when I’m on the couch
Yup, I’m just amused by the autocomplete typos from a screen keyboard in a comment about the utility of screen keyboards.
Works really good for entering emails, way better than the remote.
beeecause the info brokers need an email to link to the file packet of data they have to sell about you duhh.
I like supporting the companies that manufacture products I enjoy using so if they want to show me ads or take my first born child to part out their organs I’m okay with it and I don’t know what everyone’s problem is with people making a bit of money.
I’ve only got so many first borns though. How do I prioritise my corporate overlords?
Please get up and shout “I love Samsung” to proceed with watching your program.
Please drink verification can.
I have never connected my TV to the internet, that’s what the Kodi box is for.
Isn’t that a thing yet? I haven’t bought a TV in a while.
I’m waiting for the toilet flushing app.

Once while setting up an Android TV the QR Code set up thingy kept error-ing out and plugging in a USB keyboard didn’t work so I had to type in both my email and password with the remote.
But I use a password manager. All my passwords are special character soup.
Guess who’s password had a backwards slash? And guess what onscreen keyboard didn’t have it?

Yea I had to change my password to login 🫠

Clearly peak UX.
This is MUCH better than requiring a second device to do anything
yep. in fact, I’ve actually been looking for a way to consolidate my TV and my tooth brush. it would save me a ton of time trying to do 2FA when before bed
I hate when my toothbrush refuses to brush my teeth before I tell it my social security number & give it a vial of fresh blood from my most recent sacrificial offering.
oh yeah that TV is going back to the store.

And then the next one does it…and the next one, and the next one…

Then you discover the only way to be a dumb TV is by buying through a commercial vendor and costs 10x as much and has none of the fancy features because theyre not meant to be used in home theaters but as digital displays in boardrooms or as fleet tvs for hotel rooms that have their own AV services.

I love the future!

Thank goodness for projectors.
Love my projector.
And computer monitors. I did buy a Samsung smart monitor by accident once though. Never again.
Computer monitors are the only thing acceptable to me nowadays. They are expensive and smaller but they come without all that crap. Get a suitable mini-PC with Linux on it and stream the way you want to.
Don’t discourage people. There are lots of dumb TVs out there that are competitively priced, you just have to look. Scepter has a whole line of displays with no built in bloat/telemetry that are priced the same as every other TV on the market.
I had to setup some shitty Roku tv for the break room at work and the P.O.S. wouldn’t even display over the air channels until you signed in.
I have a wireless mini keyboard/mouse for my tv. It’s one is the very small Bluetooth ones. Works wonders.
One forge few useful implementations of QR codes

Theres a thing called Plex and Emby and there are websites where people allow you to pay to access them, and they have every ounce of content you could want. They also work on a simple Android mini-pc or broken screened laptop.

Unrelated to this, heres one such example of a github repository, showing how github looks like:

embyshare.github.io

Welcome to EmbyShares UPDATED 08/21/25

[“A List of plex and emby shares”]

[“Emby Shares”]

The Roku app lets you type on the TV from your phone. It’s also great because it lets you search for content across all services.

Bonus tip: remoku.tv lets you control your Roku and type from your laptop.

Remoku

Control your Roku from any PC, Mac, Smartphone, Tablet, E-Reader or other web-enabled device.

If I ever have to enter/say one of my long, randomly generated passwords over the phone or with that type of onscreen keyboard …
Whatever happened to typing letters with the number keypad. I could do that with my eyes closed and phone in pocket with my Nokia. Could it be an immaterial right thing?
I get pissed when an app asks me to login… It’s like the one job you’d expect from an app