ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
Hi guys
I would like yo know something more about the smart tv system of the new beovision avant. I know that there is the possibily to use spotify & deezer but i want to know something more about the usability of this product. Is it fabulous as it seems? And can you see like .. youtube videos or surf the web directly from the tv?
Thanks for your answers.
Hi,
You access the Smart TV function through your remote by TV > Webmedia
This brings you to the B&O Smart TV Interface. If you have your TV plugged in to the aerial then the TV will be playing in the top left and the bottom half of the screen is devoted to Apps.
There are: App Gallery, Facebook, 3, Meteonews, Picasa, Deezer, YouTube, Internet, Euronews, Concerts, and France 24. They are the options I have, I'm not sure if its region specific, however, I would never use most of them, as I find using a computer still easier to surf the web.
You have the option to remove apple, move or lock them and provide feedback.
The App Gallery gives you: Cloudio TV, Rockwap Adventures (arcade game), GameTreeTV, Email, Sudoku, eBay by Jaast, KIYA TV, Quiz Master, NFB, MyAlbum, Vroom.GP, The Weather Network.
My previous TV which was a Sony had heaps and heaps of Apps, but i never used them besides the movie channel. It is easier to use your phone, PC for most of those things, so I would never really use a TV for those, regardless of brand. But for some people they are important.
The internet app loads quickly and I typed in cnet.com no issues and loads very quick. The pad on your remote operates as a mouse and navigation is good. I sit about 3-5 metres away from the screen and its clear to read so you can surf the web directly from the TV.
Hope this helps.
Hi. I've had the Avant since launch last year. Both Deezer and Spotify work nicely but you do need a premium subscription for them to work on the Avant. The free versions don't work. Both of these apps show up as separate sources. Personally I would like a higher resolution for the interface. I don't even think they are HD. A refresh of the catalogue interface is needed too.
The youtube app is another separate source and works well too. I don't understand why they haven't enabled the app to handle the 4K content which is on YouTube. I presume they will enable this with a future update.
The rest of the smart apps show up under the Web Media source. You can find Facebook, browser etc. in here. They're terrible to use and very badly designed. I find the only app I use here is BBC iPlayer. I personally find it the only functional app in this section. It's as if B&O never intended people to use this section.
So I certainly wouldn't recommend the Avant solely on its Smart TV apps. It has so much more going for it and I love using it everyday but as far as smart apps, there is still a lot to be desired.
A small company like B&O relies on a SmartTV platform, that someone else provides. They decided to use the one of the SmartTV Alliance.
But things are moving fast - really fast - in the SmartTV-world. This platform is very much yesterday already.
Personally I used it only a couple of times on my V1 - far from regularly.
The browser is there, ok! - but if you are used to browsing on a tablet/laptop, you will not use that much.
Someone - on the forum - once told about a netradio website - with a rather good audio-quality and a picture slideshow running at the same time. He had bookmarked that, and he uses it from time to time.
However that is a rather limited browser-pleaure.
I like that you can access the Spotify/Deezer apps and the Youtube directly as a source (even per remote). That is probably the SmartTV part, that people use most. To me it is, and I never really missed the other 'things', that the fancy new platforms may provide. (Youtube can be accessed through cast also).
Don't buy (or not buy) the Avant because of the SmartTV functions. If you really need SmartTV, you surely will be able to find an external 'box' or a BluRay player, that has a more modern SmartTV platform, than the Avant. In most cases you will even be able to controll it with the B&O remote.
Note: if you are in a region with support for HbbTV, you are ready to go - it is certainly one of the internet services of the Avant/all new BV's, one might enjoy a lot.
MM
There is a tv - and there is a BV
The only thing I use there is YouTube. The rest is a nothing to have. I have Spotify premium but use it on tablets and smartphones and AirPort Express to ML. I have Smart TV in the bluray player as well, but never use it neither. I have a AppleTV to watch the Swedish play channels SVT and TV4.
I use XBox360 to stream movies, from Microsoft or via apps for ViaPlay and HBO Nordic.
Thank you very much guys. I'm just interested in the TV more than Smart TV.