How I Turned My Smart TV into a Privacy Champion for Just $50 with a Raspberry Pi
Modern smart TVs offer much more than just a display; they also gather user data. This can include tracking your viewing habits through automated content recognition (ACR), and even recording snippets of your conversations or identifying other devices connected to the same network.
To complicate matters, you often end up dealing with intrusive ads that appear on your home screen or during pauses while watching shows.
If you wish to restore your privacy without discarding your smart TV, consider utilizing an open-source operating system on a small computer like a Raspberry Pi 4 or 5.
Transforming Your Smart TV into a Basic Display
Using a Raspberry Pi
The most efficient way to disable your TV’s smart features is by bypassing its operating system. Utilizing LibreELEC, a lightweight Linux distribution, will allow your TV to boot directly into Kodi, a media player. This configuration offers library management, functional add-ons, and remote support—all without any tracking or advertisements.
Since both LibreELEC and Kodi are open-source, you can verify their operations if desired.
This essentially turns your TV into a display only. Disconnect the Wi-Fi and Ethernet connections, and link the Pi to the TV using HDMI-CEC, so you can still use your remote.
I chose a Raspberry Pi 4 with 8GB for this purpose, but a 4GB model would suffice. Using a Pi 5 would enable 4K video at 60 frames per second, though it lacks a hardware H.264 decoder. For 1080P video content, this won’t be a significant issue.
Alternative Options: Mini PCs or Laptops
A Raspberry Pi is convenient, but it’s not your only option. Many modern mini PCs can run LibreELEC effectively. Even an older laptop could serve this purpose, given the relatively low demands.
When choosing a device, consider fan noise; having a loud fan could interrupt quieter moments during viewing. Aim for low fan settings if possible.
Preventing Your TV from “Phoning Home”
Disconnecting from Networks
ACR technology works by periodically capturing screenshots to determine what you are watching. The best way to prevent this is to disconnect your TV from both wired and wireless networks.
Disabling network capabilities also helps avoid unexpected software updates that may introduce unwanted features or changes to your settings.
Advantages of Kodi Over Native TV Operating Systems
Choosing Your Own Hardware & Software
Smart TVs generally feature lower-powered system-on-chip (SoC) components, similar to those found in midrange smartphones. As a result, they may struggle with pre-installed bloatware.
By switching to the Raspberry Pi, I halved my startup time from around 16 seconds to under 10. Navigating menus feels quicker, likely due to the Pi running minimal background processes.
Kodi can play local media from USB drives or network-attached storage (NAS) and can integrate with media servers like Jellyfin or Plex, allowing for broader format support than your TV might provide. This is especially useful, as I’ve often encountered unsupported file formats while trying to use a USB drive.
You can customize your experience through various skins, themes, and input methods, choosing from phone apps, Bluetooth remotes, or IR remotes based on your preference. During my testing, I enjoyed using multiple controllers and ultimately preferred the Xbox controller, with the original Steam controller being a close second.
The Challenge with LibreELEC and Raspberry Pi
One significant drawback of using LibreELEC is digital rights management (DRM). Kodi doesn’t natively support services like Netflix or Disney+, necessitating workarounds that can be unreliable.
As an alternative, connect a streaming stick to your TV for times you need those apps, and only switch it on when necessary to limit data collection.
Investing $50–$65 in a small computer along with a free operating system can turn even the most intrusive TV into a simple monitor.
