Roku TV

Long-term owners

I've been using my TCL Roku disconnected from the internet for 6 years

Mar 2026 · comment

What hackers pick instead

• LG smart TVOwners praise the picture quality and say the TV works well when kept offline; the most common caveat is intrusive software and data collection.57recommend
• Samsung TVRecommended for picture quality, simple remotes and long life, especially used offline as a dumb display. Common caveat: ads, data collection and forced updates.37recommend
• Sony Bravia TVOwners say the TV keeps working well for many years, especially when never connected to the internet. Critics agree the smart interface has ads, lag and no security updates.19recommend
• TCL TVRecommended for value and a basic TV mode; critics warn of tracking, Google terms and laggy input on some models.17recommend
• Samsung Frame TVRecommended for its matte, art-like look and casual TV watching. Main caveat: it shows ads in the app bar.10recommend

Every quote

The 40 most detailed of 50 comments. Each links to the original.

1. I would say the experience with my Roku TVs (TCL, Phillips, and Sharp) has been the best. Nothing slow about them.

   Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

2. Not great, I still see the Roku interface for ~2secs on startup but otherwise it's out of my way.

   Mixed · Dec 2025 · in “LG TV's new software update installed MS Copilot, which cannot be deleted”

3. The interface was so clean and pleasant to use and there aren't ads stuffed everywhere.

   Recommends · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

4. my goal of having a streaming TV without ads littering the interface was achieved

   Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “Newly purchased Vizio TVs now require Walmart accounts to use smart features”

5. It has never once been connected to the internet, and it doesn't nag me.

   Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Sick of smart TVs? Here are your best options”

6. I've been using my TCL Roku disconnected from the internet for 6 years

   Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “Newly purchased Vizio TVs now require Walmart accounts to use smart features”

7. I got tired of my TCL Roku taking so long to turn on and switch inputs

   Mixed · Apr 2026 · in “Your Smart TV is taking screenshots of your screen every 15 seconds”

8. the interface has gotten awful and interactions are sluggish

   Mixed · Oct 2026 · in “New Apple TV 4K”

9. The default isn't great, mind you, but it is ad-free.

   Mixed · Mar 2026 · in “Newly purchased Vizio TVs now require Walmart accounts to use smart features”

10. you get a fast fluid user experience

    Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Sick of smart TVs? Here are your best options”

11. It works fine as an HDMI display.

    Mixed · Dec 2025 · in “Why Your TV Will Probably Never Be Better Than It Is Now”

12. Your Roku had to "boot" for 10s - why? Would resume from standby in a couple of seconds, so you've chosen to slow yourself down.

    Criticizes · Jan 2026 · in “Floppy disks turn out to be the greatest TV remote for kids”

13. I get creepy intrusive popups telling me: "you could be watching this on other streaming providers!" all the time.

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Texas is suing all of the big TV makers for spying on what you watch”

14. Roku collects an insane amount of data on users. Basically everything that they can get their hands on

    Criticizes · Jul 2026 · in “Read This Before You Buy That TV Streaming Stick”

15. initial setup requires a Roku account. So the conclusion is do not buy a Roku TV, or Roku anything.

    Criticizes · Oct 2026 · in “An ad-free Android TV”

16. It still has annoyances here and there, like pausing for three seconds or so on every startup

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Nearly Half of LG Smart TV Apps Contain Residential Proxy SDKs”

17. Are you sure you want to open Jellyfin, it probably won't work without internet access

    Criticizes · Feb 2026 · in “Ring cancels its partnership with Flock Safety after surveillance backlash”

18. it won't even let you use the TV as a damned TV without connecting it to the internet

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

19. these are usually the cheap models, the kind that are heavily subsidized by spyware

    Criticizes · Oct 2026 · in “Root shell on Samsung TV”

20. Roku pushed this 'feature' and made it default without my knowledge/consent

    Criticizes · Sep 2026 · in “LG denies TV spying claims, says tracking and snooping concerns 'not true'”

21. I don’t want a display ad on the menu screen when I turn on my TV like WTF

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Roku LT Operating System open source distribution”

22. refuses to work as a dumb tv until you give it Internet access and sign in

    Criticizes · Jan 2026 · in “Texas court blocks Samsung from tracking TV viewing, then vacates order”

23. the one built into it is so slow and outdated as to be almost unusable

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

24. Obviously the situation has degraded in the recent years, and caused me to brick the functionality of a very expensive device.

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

25. They locked out their customers of their own devices by pushing updated firmware that forced agreement to new terms.

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

26. the 8GB or whatever TCL has decided to give you cannot hold the OS, Netflix, Disney+, and HBO at the same time

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

27. the built in hardware is simply not fast enough to play some streaming services

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Texas is suing all of the big TV makers for spying on what you watch”

28. my daughter's Roku TV from TCL got unbearable and was replaced after ten years

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

29. Looks like it's time to cut my TCL-Roku TV off from the internet forever now.

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

30. My TCL/Roku TV recently started showing popups during streams

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Texas is suing all of the big TV makers for spying on what you watch”

31. So potentially completely noncompliant if used in a business.

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Texas is suing all of the big TV makers for spying on what you watch”

32. Roku hasn't been 'agnostic' since RokuTV or the Roku Channel

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

33. I got a full page advert when I started up the TV one day

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Texas is suing all of the big TV makers for spying on what you watch”

34. literally tries to reach out every minute to home servers

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

35. as a Roku user, this snap shotting makes me very angry

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Texas is suing all of the big TV makers for spying on what you watch”

36. it's definitely trying to phone home with something

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Texas is suing all of the big TV makers for spying on what you watch”

37. they all had massive decay in performance over time

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

38. Roku has been doing opt-in ACR for a while now.

    Criticizes · Sep 2026 · in “LG denies TV spying claims, says tracking and snooping concerns 'not true'”

39. their OS couldn't even draw circle primitives

    Criticizes · Jun 2026 · in “Fox to Buy Roku Streaming Service in $22B Deal”

40. The Roku's minimum auto suspend is 4 HOURS.

    Criticizes · Dec 2025 · in “Sick of smart TVs? Here are your best options”