> Plug in an apple TV and you are set.

https://tidbits.com/2020/01/16/why-is-the-apple-tv-constantl...

Those "ads" are not nearly as intrusive as the ones being displayed in the article, second I have found them to be mostly useful in that I've found a couple new shows because of those "ads".

Disabling them is also fairly easy, and if you don't use the TV app, they go away entirely.

> Just don't connect it to the internet.

Smart TV manufacturers are relying on the ongoing revenue from their software side nowadays, so they’ll usually mandate setting up an internet connection as part of the device setup process, and then only give you the option to change networks instead of disabling it outright.

If you’re tech savvy, you can take measures against this, but it’s not going to be simple for most folks.

You also have to worry about ethernet-over-HDMI unintentionally exposing the TV to the wider internet.

How "usually" is this, actually? I bought an LG TV about a year ago, and it did not force me to connect to the Internet. I just turned it on, skipped the crap, and it works fine over HDMI.

Can confirm that both Samsung and LG cheap LCD panels (~$400) that I got this year do not force a network setup and work without it.

I set up a TCL Roku TV in 2019 for my parents; it presented no option to skip connecting to WiFi.

During guided setup, it will scan for wireless networks, but one option is always "I do not want to connect" where the TV continues in unconnected mode.

If anyone else is dealing with this you can try temporarily setting up a new SSID (on your phone or existing network) and then getting rid of it after setup is finished.

If a TV doesn't work without internet, I'll just return it and let them know it's not working.