Where everyone runs Linux, probably has ADHD, and everything is the fault of capitalism. Now pull up a terminal and complain about landlords with us.

Let me pay for that chai tea using cash from the ATM machine and my PIN number. Would you also like some naan bread with it?

I have a 2012 Mac Mini. If you replace the slow internal HDD with a SSD it gives it a massive general speed boost. Maybe some extra ram will help as well. Both are easily replaceable.

I use it for retro gaming with OpenEmu on MacOS. But I’m sure there’s some good Linux distros for it.

You could close down all the AI data centres, all the crypto mining farms, all the private jets, and eliminate all the billionaires…and it would be a rounding error in global greenhouse emissions.

The vast majority of emissions come from the fact that 8 billion people exist and need food, transport, heating/cooling, and industries to support their lifestyles.

The focus should be on building towards renewable ways to support whatever we want to do. Purity tests around the worthiness of types of energy use is just a distraction.

I have an Ugoos am6b+, it’s a bit clunky with stuff like HDMI-CEC and the remote is cheap plastic trash. But it does its job at playing Dolby Vision REMUX files.

For everything else, I use an AppleTV 4K. It’s fast and reliable and the only box that doesn’t shove ads on the Home Screen.

AppleTV.

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/12/the-ars-technica-guide-to-dumb-tvs/

Thanks!

What’s the best alternative app?

That’s what the Pro Max models are for. They have a massive battery.

People had their chance to stop him last November. A third of those eligible didn’t even vote.

Now it’s up to the courts. The other branches of government are controlled by a deranged Authoritarian and his sycophants.

Just buy an LG and use an external media device. LG TVs work perfectly fine with no network connection and you can set them to power on and go straight to the last used HDMI input.

I never see the built-in OS on my LG OLED.

Scrolling is smooth, but does anyone else feel like the comment collapsing/expanding animation runs at a lower frame rate something?

That’s the privacy policy for the AppleTV app. Here’s the specific information on AppleTV device settings:

https://support.apple.com/en-tm/guide/tv/atvb66239fa1/tvos

You can share analytics data with Apple or app developers in order to improve their software. Sharing this data is completely optional

Seriously, buy an AppleTV. It works standalone without the need for other apple products. Has a fast processor, ability to disable telemetry, good track record of software update support etc. and NO.ADS.IN.THE.OPERATING.SYSTEM.

Using an Android box will result in the same issues you’re trying to get away from with SmartTVs.

If you’re technically capable enough you can build your own HTPC, but due to DRM you’re going to run into issues streaming 4K content from streaming services. And PC and Linux HDR and Dolby Vision support is a rabbit hole.

I just want posts or communities to have category tags for me to block by tag. So I can block all anime and every non-English community.

I have nothing against them. They’re just not of interest to me and I don’t want them on my feed. Blocking a community is mostly useless because there are so many of them it’s like playing whack a mole.

🏴‍☠️

Obligatory “just watch Andor” comment.

Seriously. Go and watch Andor. It proves that good Star Wars content can be made. It has a diverse cast. You just need good writing and a vision. That’s what’s missing from the new content.

I dont understand why you want to keep a TV offline for privacy/ad reasons, but also say you’re using a Chromecast or Roku media devices anyway? Thats like wanting to keep your windows locked but leaving your front door wide open.

Anyway, LG and Sony OLED TVs offer the best image quality and will work just fine without an internet connection.

I have my LG TV offline and use an AppleTV for everything. I never see the LG OS or Home Screen or any ads or logos once it’s configured to boot straight into external HDMI device.

The show wasn’t perfect, but it felt like something fresh and different. I really hope they can get more of it. I guess HBO would rather pump out something derivative.