I've lost the remote! Fury as Samsung yoinks TV control from its iOS app Samsung is taking heat after an update to its iPhone app removed remote-control features for many smart TV owners. Reg reader Robin was first to tip us off that the South Korean electronics giant's latest version of the Smart View App has removed the ability to use an iOS device as a wireless remote control. The Smart View …
I've got an older Samsung (non-smart) TV, I've had a Samsung BluRay player, I had a Samsung Galaxy S3 phone. I'd never buy a Samsung device again - they just abandon any form of support for them, even when they're still current models and they could update the firmware, or refuse to admit problems that they've caused with firmware on a faulty component on the phone. Other manufacturers make better products that they continue to support.
You seem to have missed (by more than a mile) the fact that Samsung as a hardware manufacturer makes money each time you buy a new device from them and than loses money each time they have to support it with software upgrades. And they are not the only one doing this.
You have my entire sympathy! Here, allow me to virtually wipe those tears from your eyes.
"Samsung as a hardware manufacturer makes money each time you buy a new device from them and than loses money each time they have to support it with software upgrades"
Okay for old non-connected TVs, phones and other devices. Not okay for connected "smart" ones. If they can't do updates for a reasonable time period after a device sale they shouldn't be selling smart devices as they are blatantly not being smart.
Samsung as a hardware manufacturer no longer makes any money from me whatsoever as I won't consider buying any of their products again. I have also dissuaded family and friends from buying their phones - hardly anyone I know has a good word to say about them once they've tried to use a Samsung mobile device for more than 12 months.
I have no tears, I've just moved on to manufacturers that make less shitty products.
@TheFirstChoice - "I've got an older Samsung (non-smart) TV - they just abandon any form of support for them, even when they're still current models and they could update the firmware"
Your's is a different experience to mine, I have a 2012 mid-level Samsung Smart TV, I have had may updates over the last few years, the most recent system firmware being April 2015 I believe.
The UI is still filled with many shitty needless apps (I only want a few - iPlayer, Youtube, All4 & Netflix) but gradually some of the bloat has receeded. What they haven't upgraded or even got close to working is the DLNA service. The TV can barely find anything on the network and the Samsung AllShare application is awful, didn't work at all - that application hasn't been updated since before I even brought the TV.
That said, Samsung do seem to be generally pretty awful at updating their software on most things, certainly a premium smartphone should be updated for several years after being discontinued, especially considering the sensitive personal data held on most phones, the frequency of attacks and the vunerability that using any moble device naturally entails (frequent use of untrusted networks, connections to untrusted devices, etc).
They aren't the worst company but aren't great and they have few excuses to be so much better than they are.
Freedom from privacy-defying, information-slurping dumbass "smart" TV's?
I'd buy that for a dollar!
Give me the good old days when the TV set itself was a one way (incoming) portal of information. If I want to be spied on I can always buy one of your suspiciously cheap add on boxes (foreword: I don't).
When we got a new TV, the major points were in order, "Non Smart" "Screen size" "Price" "Quality" "aesthetics"
Got a brilliant 50" LG tv for under 500, stuck a Pi on it, now its smart, under my control and if (it wont) the pi gets to old, I can replace it with something smarter / faster ;)
I hear all the problems with ads on smart TV's and I have to say I cant stand adverts I absolutely detest them, disgusting vile anachronistic things, in the days of easy search we don't need ad's. And thats what made me stay away from smart TV's, oh and also I like to control my own tech not get told what i can and can't do with it!
For goodness' sake. I have a Samsung Smart TV and I've given up using the smart features because they keep removing them. The model concerned was sold with the following features which have since been arbitrarily removed:
- 'On TV' - a fancy EPG with pictures. Presumably withdrawn because someone had to be paid to provide the pics/listings for it.
- This 'Smart View' remote software, that is no longer remote software.
These features were not described as time-limited when promoted, or at the time of sale.
Even if it isn't, this should be against consumer law. My TV was sold by the retailer with a 5-year guarantee. Wonder how far I'd get pursuing a claim on the basis that parts of the TV don't work any more?
Removing a feature often causes pain but what really sucks is not announcing the change. Existing users should have the choice of staying with the older version.
Moovit made the same blunder with their Android app earlier this year. A new version removed the widget displaying live travel times. I use manual updating of my apps to guard against such surprises but if the app provider fails to communicate properly then users get burnt anyway. (Their widget has since been reinstated.)
I haven't tried it for a while as I don't like using the iPhone as a remote unless I can't find the real one (touchscreen and fake buttons aren't for me) but I've always used mytifi instead.
The Samsung remote was never any good.
With the new Apple TV, air video and hopefully iplayer etc I'm planning on ditching the smart bits of my tv as well as the remote.
Bought a 2015 model Sammy smarty a month ago, and found that its official *android* app is no longer a remote (functionality withdrawn) . It in fact does nothing I give the slightest toss about (some casting bollocks remains, from my S3 that has shitter wifi than the telly; hmm, useful).
So don't feel too peeved, fruitsters: you're just late to the upsell party. Thank heaven for third party controller apps (until a telly update nukes those).
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