Greetings & Salutations All,
I'm thinking about getting an Android TV from Kogan but not sure if its going to be a complete waste of time/money or not. Here is the model I'm thinking about https://www.kogan.com/au/buy/kogan-40-full-hd-led-smartertv-… at $359 and approx. $10 delivery fee. Does anyone here have a Kogan Android TV? What are your thoughts? Pros/cons?
Seconding this just because TV software is going to move so much faster than TV hardware.
we bought one for our daughter around 4 years ago.
32" with a keyboard,
tv was slow to react, but the keyboard was pretty naf anyway.
would not recommend android side of it.
been happy with it as a TV though.
That would have been running Android for phones and tablets. Not Android TV which is a separate OS designed for TV specifically. It performs a lot better in many ways.
Kogan haven't specified the exact CPU that's running Android TV which can result in sluggish performance, incompatibility with apps and potentially a lack of updates. The other issue is that the RAM is only at 1.25GB that is both quite low and an unusual number to begin with.
As others have said, a standard TV with a Chromecast would be a good option for streaming even though the smart TV has one built in. Otherwise a Xiaomi Mi Box for more basic streaming or a high performance NVIDIA Shield. I personally would opt for the Shield as it has far superior specs/features and can do gaming if you're into that.
I came to the forums to ask the exact same question - but for the 55 model. Whether to go the tv or go a Series 8 non smart with Xiaomi Mi Box or Chromecast 4k. Although I don't think the mi box can turn the tv on and off via Google Home.
It all depends on what is important to you in a TV and what you care about. The TLDR is that cheap smart TVs suck, go a basic dumb TV or pay more for a better smart TV.
Cons
Picture quality is below average in my opinion and I wouldn't buy one
You may notice that a somewhat common streaming service is not mentioned "Support for all your favourite streaming services – Stan, YouTube and more" I'll leave it to your imagination to guess what that means
Pros
You can talk to it and sometimes it will do what you want. Impress your friends and annoy your neighbours
You get proper Android TV which is cool…. and then realise that it isn't really very good
I would probably get the 43" non smart TV and plug a chromecast / Mi Box in. Tying your TV hardware to a cheap Android OS feels risky.
Edit: Manual indicates it supports wireless AC and H265.. might not be as risky as I think. I'd still get the 43" regular as it's got 4k and has an LG panel