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45 lines
2.2 KiB
45 lines
2.2 KiB
---
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title: Smart TVs are not great
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summary: >
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I've been talking about smart TVs with other people recently and we all
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came to the same conclusion: smart TVs may spy on us (like our smartphones do).
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The thumbnail on the side shows the actual microphone that is soldered onto the
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main circuit board of my remote control; it is no longer than 4 mm.
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date: 2024-01-27T10:58:06+0000
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# lastmod:
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categories:
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- computerstuff
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tags:
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- privacy
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---
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Have you noticed the product recommendations on Amazon whenever its ~~spy~~ Echo device
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is in the same room as you and hears your conversations?
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I usually ignore these recommendations anyway because they are actually way off of what I'm
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looking for (or already have it) so there is no value in these personal advertisements.
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BTW, personalized ads is something that I opt out whenever I can. I do not want or need them.
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But Amazon thinks I need to see it anyway -- which makes me just more mad at them.
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Always worth a rant, Amazon. Haha. Now actually I wanted to note that I removed the microphone
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of my smart TV. I own that device since 2018/19 and it actually never came to my mind that
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these devices could also spy on your conversations -- but the possibility is there and since
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I never use the voice command function of my smart TV I decided to remove the mic.
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![close up pic of the hole in the remote control](remote.jpg "The hole for the mic on my remote
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control is located at the top")
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The mic is usually located very easily, though the elements below the hole are very, very small.
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I used a sharp cutting knife and a sharp side cutter to remove the tiny circuit board.
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![a picture of the circuit board and the shielding](mini-mic.jpg 'There is a very small hole in the shielding that surrounds the small
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components on the "microphone circuit board"')
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![picture of the cutter: a sharp triangle kind of blade](cutter.jpg "These are often used on electronics workbenches to cut all sorts of things")
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The microphone circuit board was connected on four points which I cut with this cutter slowly and
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precise.
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![for reference: same as before, but with the head of a match beside - they are like the same size](reference.jpg "A reference picture so you get a clue how small this circuit board actually is")
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