Turns out that smart TVs can be, well, pretty dumb. Even moderately priced sets can now connect to the Internet and run Netflix and other apps - that's the -"smart-" part. Yet many people are ignoring the built-in features and turning to Apple TV, Roku and other stand-alone streaming devices that often do a better job.
In an August report, the NPD Group estimates that roughly a third of smart TVs in the U.S. weren't actually connected to the Internet. That's down from about half two years earlier, but still not good. Researchers at Parks Associates found that even as more Americans are using smart TV functions, streaming device usage has grown even faster.
-"If you're a streaming media box (maker), you've got much more ability to push new features out into the market at an affordable price,-" says Barbara Kraus, Parks Associates' director of research. -"They're very stiff competition for smart TVs.-"
None of that is slowing down TV manufacturers like Samsung, though, as they continue to tout their newest and smartest models at this week's CES gadget show in Las Vegas.
In a way, putting brains in a device that most people replace only every five to seven years isn't the brightest idea. Chips get faster every year, so by the time you're ready to buy a new set, its brains will be really, really old, at least in technology terms.
The software, though, can present an even bigger problem. Smart TVs are frequently plagued with confusing interfaces, buggy functions and inconsistent updates. They are sometimes mysteriously unable to run new streaming services and may never be updated to add new features to the ones they do run.
Worse, some TV makers focus on bringing new features only to their latest models in an effort to persuade people to buy new sets. Samsung's 2016 models, for instance, implicitly inform anyone who bought last year's sets that they've already been left behind. Those earlier customers won't be able to use their Samsung TVs to set mood lighting or check security cameras in a connected home.
Among the new features in LG's 2016 models: Magic Zoom, which will let viewers zoom in on video while it's playing - using a digital magnifying glass - to make out small text and other details. But LG won't say when, if ever, older TVs will get that.
