Google TV seems pretty great to me. I explicitly chose a TV with it over roku

Google TV impressed me by having a "Basic TV" option for sets that come with it, that disables most smart features, which is useful in a pinch when you can't find a dumb TV (such as a Sceptre) or monitor usable as a TV. It's kinda weird to praise Google for implementing something that halfway respects privacy, but here we are.

Are you saying Google TV has a OTA channel option? This is exactly what I'm looking for, but I assumed since there wasn't an antenna input on the Google TV then there wasn't a way to watch OTA using it...am I misunderstanding what you meant?

*edit* Aha, I didn't realize Google TV was also included on some TVs and wasn't the just the Google TV dongle with a remote.

agreed

No they're not. In fact I'd even say their vastly superior to the closed Apple TV ecosystem. The ability to use SmartTube with Sponsorblick blows away anything on the Apple Tv.

To use what with what now?

Not trying to be snarky—or maybe just a little—but I own an AppleTV, it’s fantastic albeit very closed. I can’t parse your statement in part because I haven’t googled those things yet (I will) but also because many years of experience have led me to disregard statements like this.

Need not worry tvOS has ample alternative https://www.reddit.com/r/Yattee/comments/13d3lj7/how_to_set_...

I just installed Yattee on my iPhone and my what a horrible app. I then pasted a a valid YouTube link and got the error message that it "Failed loading video". If Yattee is the best you have on iOS then I truly feel sorry for people that have to endure with a subpar app and an even more subpar experience. SmartTube with Sponsorblock is the only way to watch YouTube.

SmartTube - a 1 person project that plays video files on Android devices

SponsorBlick = SponsorBlock - an ad blocker

Then you are doing yourself a disservice. Smarttube alone makes me stay on my Nvidia Shield over my AppleTV. It would have taken you a minute to google and you would have saved yourself some embarrassment. Doubling down on ignorance is a wild move.

I did look it up. It’s a 1-person project with many caveats about installation and functionality. It looks impressive for what is, but not an alternative to AppleTV, certainly not if I expect anyone else in my house to use it. I’d put Kodi as a lot closer.

SmartTube is a YouTube app replacement, not an AppleTV replacement. It has a far superior interface and functionality than the default YouTube app. This is relevant to this conversation because you cannot install an app like this in an AppleTV.