Whenever I visit an electronics store and see the latest Smart TV models, I'm terrified by the amount of bloatware that comes preinstalled. Software engineer Carl Riis shares a similar feeling, but instead of giving up on the Smart TV concept altogether, he decided to create the EarlGreyTV project, an alternative interface based on Linux and Firefox, with direct links to the main streaming services.
We must admit it: Smart TVs have become stupid. How many apps can be loaded on a device? How much telemetry does its manufacturer need? The situation is so extreme that many users prefer not to connect their panels to the Internet. While that sacrifices some of the available features, it also allows escaping the madness of updates, pop-ups, and terms of service with horrifying clauses. In other words, the Smart TV concept works as long as you don't lose control, and that's how we get to the EarlGreyTV project by software engineer Carl Riis.
EarlGreyTV, a free and alternative environment for any Smart TV
The story behind the project begins with a 55-inch Samsung Smart TV purchased on Black Friday. The device uses Tizen OS, but Carl decided to reduce the influence of the operating system to a minimum and connect a laptop on the back. From a certain point of view, anyone could say that hardware takes on the role of an HTPC or a top-box, but there are more details. The laptop has a damaged keyboard (Carl spilled a cup of Earl Grey tea), and to turn it on he must short two pins. On the software side, we find a combination of Debian Linux with Sway, and Firefox as browser. The "interface" of EarlGreyTV is nothing more than maximized Firefox, and the icons are links to web services.
However, there are two essential devices we must mention. The first is an air mouse or air mouse with keyboard (its average price is 20 euros on Amazon). The second is a USB adapter with HDMI-CEC functions. This adapter allows expanding the functions of an HDMI connection, and Carl uses it to turn off the TV when the laptop goes to sleep, and automatically turn it on when it wakes up.
To finish, let's not fool ourselves: Carl admits that EarlGreyTV is complicated and demands a lot of debugging… but conventional Smart TVs are reaching absurd levels of ridiculousness. We need (and deserve) something better.
Official site: Click here
