What is the best alternative to tvOS?

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score 51 · Answer 1

Android TV

Top Con

Your privacy is for sale with this solution

A lot of data is collected about what you are watching - depending on your TV - your voice is recorded (if it has a microphone) or you are observed watching TV (if it has a camera). That data is sent to the manufacturer, Google and 3rd party companies that you never even heard of. This is all done by presenting you a wall of lawyer-gibberish that no one reads and everyone just agrees to because all they wanna do is watch TV. See More

Top Pro

Easy to use

It is bare and easy to use. See More

Top Pro

Sideloading of apps

You can sideload apps. See More

Top Pro

Can run Android apps

It can run all Android apps, however, you might need a mouse. See More

Top Pro

Built-in Chromecast

Android TV has Chromecast built-in. See More

Specs

License:Apache 2.0, GPL 2.0(Linux Kernel)

Based On:Android Open Source Project (AOSP)

Default Desktop Environment:Leanback Launcher

Init-System:Android init

See All Specs

51 2

score 4 · Answer 2

PlayStation OS

Top Pro

Some good exclusives

It has some really good exclusive titles. See More

Top Con

Remote must be bought seperately

A PS3 or PS4 remote must be bought sperately. See More

Top Pro

Content is available on other devices

PlayStation Store content like Movies is also available on android and iOS devices. See More

Top Con

Power demanding

The PS4 needs ~93 watts if you play something on netflix. See More

Top Con

Vendor lock-in

You have to use their services their app store and so on. There is no way to sideload apps. See More

Specs

License:Proprietary

Based On:FreeBSD

Default Desktop Environment:PlayStation UI

Init-System:?

See All Specs

4 0

score 12 · Answer 3

Google TV

Top Pro

Flexible Media Storage

You media can be stored on a variety of devices. The Google TV supports DLNA which allows for streaming from mobile devices, network attached storage (NAS), PCs, and more. Google TV can also access media from a simple USB storage device as well. See More

Top Pro

Cross Platform Mobile App

The Google TV remote app is available on for both iOS and Android devices, making it easy to control your TV with whatever phone, or tablet you have. See More

Top Pro

Extensible With Apps

Being build on the android operating system, the Google TV also has access to the Google Play app store eco system, meaning that any android app can be easily adapted for the Google TV, including direct apps from media providers and games. See More

Specs

License:Proprietary on top of Android TV

Based On:Android Open Source Project (AOSP)

Default Desktop Environment:GoogleTV Launcher

Init-System:Android init

See All Specs

12 2

score 39 · Answer 4

LibreELEC

Top Pro

Free and easy to install and use

Top Pro

Ease of use!

Ease of installation and small memory foot print. Boots straight into kodi. Lighting fast operation. Huge support network. Regular updates! Follows development of kodi closely. See More

Top Pro

Runs on a USB stick or SD card as small as 8 gb

Check here for full specs and requirements. See More

Top Pro

Runs well on a Raspberry Pi

Runs cooler than Kodi on a Pi. See More

Specs

License:mainly GPL

Based On:OpenELEC

Default Desktop Environment:Kodi

Init-System:Buildroot

See All Specs

39 12

score 7 · Answer 5

Fire OS

Top Con

Ads

There are plenty of ads for Amazon Prime or products. See More

Top Pro

Sideloading

Since it is based on Android you can sideload any Android app. See More

Top Con

Amazon account

Needs an Amazon account. See More

Top Pro

Cheap devices

Amazon FireTV devices are cheap and have often a discount. See More

Top Con

Focuses on Amazon content

The main purpose of the stick is to provide a portal to Amazon's various online services. See More

Top Con

Proprietary

The UI is proprietary software. See More

Specs

License:Proprietary on top of Android TV

Based On:Android Open Source Project (AOSP)

Default Desktop Environment:Fire TV Launcher

Init-System:Android init

See All Specs

See All Experiences

7 4

score 86 · Answer 6

SteamOS

Top Con

Hard to install

If you've installed Arch you're probably fine, but for those used to simple installs like (Ubuntu to name just one) you should prepare some patience, determination, and painkillers. Good news is, it's getting better (it's very young). See More

Top Pro

Native graphics processor support

The OS natively supports Nvidia, Intel, and AMD graphics processors. See More

Top Con

Not built around the desktop experience

SteamOS is, first and foremost, meant to act as a gaming console - it doesn't ship with even some of the most basic applications, such as a file manager or image viewer. As a result, using SteamOS as your primary operating system would require a fair bit of work. See More

Top Pro

Streaming service integration (under development)

Valve is in talks with streaming companies such as Spotify and Netflix to bring their features to SteamOS. See More

Top Pro

For entertainment, it just works

What media center software do for videos, it does for games (and later videos). See More

Specs

License:Proprietary on top of Linux

Based On:Arch Linux

Default Desktop Environment:Steam Big Picture, Kde Plasma

Init-System:Systemd

See All Specs

86 56

score 5 · Answer 7

Plasma Bigscreen

Top Con

Uses KDE applications

There are no Apps designed for the system, instead it modifies the way regular KDE applications are displayed. See More

Top Pro

Runs on cheap hardware

You can make any TV a smart TV with only a Raspberry Pi. See More

Top Con

GNU GPL

This License is much more restrictive than Androids Apache license, which will lead to less developers/interest. See More

Top Pro

A free (as in freedom) alternative

To all the proprietary set top box operating systems. See More

Specs

License:GNU GPL

Based On:Debian>Ubuntu>KDE Neon

Default Desktop Environment:KDE Bigscreen

Init-System:SystemD

See All Specs

5 5