In this age of integrated media, the average television watching experience is filled with quick excursions into other channels and media to perform both complementary and unrelated activities. A commercial break during a broadcast programme is an invitation to wander off and check one’s email, surf through other channels, or to engage in completely different tasks. Normally this would entail running around the house between the television and the desktop computer, or fumbling between multiple hand-held devices – but with a smart television in your living room, all that can be done from one spot. With the many varieties of smart television brands and their unique sets of features, here are the top five brands of smart televisions to simplify matters for you.
Image Credit: LG
LG
One of South Korea’s largest family-run industrial conglomerate applies an especially high degree of innovation to their smart televisions – with their offerings including ultra high-definition capabilities displayed on unimaginably wide and thin screens. The aptly named Wallpaper TV boasts a 65-inch widescreen that is a mere 4mm thick. The Wallpaper TV and LG’s other smart televisions host version 3.5 of the Linux kernel-based WebOS platform to provide (arguably) the most stable access to the internet and streaming services such as Netflix in 4k quality.
Image Credit: Panasonic
Panasonic
The century-old electronics brand offers a series of smart television known as the Viera, which hosts Panasonic’s own version of Mozilla’s Firefox OS (known as My Home Screen 2.0) to provide a simplistic platform from which users can access the internet, video streaming services, and utilize Freeview Play – the broadcast television catch-up viewing service.
Image Credit: Samsung
Samsung
Samsung’s Q series of smart televisions utilize Tizen – a platform that was developed in collaboration with Intel, to provide connectivity to other devices on the same home network with relative ease. With the Q series, one can expect to be able to control and navigate through on-screen menus using gestures or voice commands. In lieu of using Samsung’s Smart Control, one could also turn a smartphone into a single remote control capable of governing the operations of any connected device including the satellite or cable decoders, Blue-ray or DVD players, and the Samsung Soundbar.
Image Credit: Sharp
Sharp
The Aquos series from Sharp comes equipped with Android TV, the operating system developed by Google to provide users with the entire ecosystem of Android apps, related services such as Google’s knowledge base, and connectivity with Google’s Chromecast line of digital media players – all accessible using the familiar cue of “Ok, Google” to activate Aquos’s voice-command feature.
Image Credit: Sony
Sony
Sony is another brand utilizing Google’s Android TV platform, their Bravia series of OLED televisions is equipped in much the same way as other Android-based smart televisions, providing users with the variety of apps and services expected of Google. The Bravia series stands out against other televisions based on the Android platform with access to Sony’s own set of apps and services through Sony Select. Unlike other Android televisions, the Sony Select ecosystem provides the Bravia with a broadcast television catch-up viewing service through the You View app.
*Brands listed alphabetically
