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How the TV is becoming a control surface
For many households, the television is already the room’s most visible screen. Recent platform announcements position it as a place to manage compatible home devices as well as watch entertainment. Google says Google TV can provide an on-screen panel for compatible lights, thermostats, cameras, and blinds, with voice control and doorbell notifications described in a separate Google TV announcement. These are platform capabilities, not a guarantee that every device or feature works in every home. Google’s Google TV Streamer announcement and September 2024 Google TV update describe the approach.
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Adding control to an existing television
Google announced the Google TV Streamer on August 6, 2024 as a streaming device that also serves as a hub for Google Home and Matter devices, with a built-in Thread border router. Google described a TV-based Google Home panel for checking cameras and controlling compatible lights, temperature, and blinds. This may be relevant if you want streaming and smart-home controls without replacing a television; verify current regional availability and compatibility with your devices before choosing a setup.
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Samsung has described SmartThings features centered on its TVs, including device monitoring and a home summary. The practical idea is similar: the largest shared screen can show information about connected devices and offer a place to control them. The exact experience depends on the TV, connected products, and platform support.
#1 Best Overall
- 720p resolution - View your favorite movies, shows and games in high definition.
- Alexa voice control - The Alexa Voice Remote lets you easily control your entertainment, search across apps, switch inputs, and more using just your voice. Press and hold the voice button and ask Alexa to easily find, launch, and control content, and even switch to cable.
- Access thousands of shows with Fire TV - Watch over 1.5 million streaming movies and TV episodes with access to thousands of channels, apps and Alexa skills, including Prime Video, Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, YouTube, Apple TV+, Disney+, ESPN+, Sling TV, Paramount+, and other services right from this TV.*
- DTS Virtual-X Sound - An immersive sound format creates a three-dimensional sound experience with your TV’s speakers.
- Supports HDMI ARC - Sends audio directly from the HDMI jack to a compatible soundbar or AV receiver, removing the need for an extra cable.
AI changes how viewers find and display content
TV makers are announcing AI features that aim to make discovery more conversational and ambient screens more personal. These are vendor-described capabilities; the announcements do not independently establish whether they improve viewing choices or household experience.
Recommendations, summaries, and watchlists
In its August 2024 Google TV Streamer announcement, Google said its AI uses viewing preferences to curate recommendations across subscriptions and create watchlists for household members. It also described summaries, reviews, and season-by-season breakdowns. The same announcement stated that the Google TV product context included “700,000+ movies and shows” and “800+ free channels”; those are Google’s figures for its product announcement, not totals for the wider market. Google’s announcement provides the product details.
Rank #2
- Bright, clear picture: Bring entertainment to life on our 40" flat screen TV with bright 1080p Full HD—perfect for bedrooms, kitchens, and beyond. Roku Smart Picture cleans up incoming TV signals, optimizes them, and chooses the right picture mode.
- Seamless streaming: With fast Wi-Fi and apps that launch in a snap, Roku Select Series TVs get you to your entertainment quickly. You get excellent picture quality, clear sound, automatic updates, and more. It’s simple to use. Hard to outgrow.
- TV, simplified: With setup that only takes minutes, a simple-to-navigate Home Screen, and an uncluttered remote control that does all you need—Roku makes it easier to watch the TV you love.
- A world of free entertainment: Enjoy a huge selection of free live TV, news, sports, movies, shows, and much more—all just a click away.
- More streaming, less searching: With personalized picks right on your Home Screen, quick access to the sports and entertainment you watch most, and fast and easy search in one place—the days of endless scrolling are over.
Conversational search and ambient screens
At CES in January 2025, Google previewed Gemini features for select Google TV devices: conversational media search, custom artwork, smart-home control while in ambient mode, and a news overview. Google said rollout would begin later in 2025. That dated statement does not establish current availability, so check the relevant device’s current feature information rather than assuming the preview is enabled.
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Samsung also announced an updated Bixby experience for its 2025 TV lineup, describing more natural information discovery and SmartThings voice commands for controlling appliances. Its announcement specified a U.S. rollout beginning August 4, 2025, with expansion to France, Germany, Italy, and Spain planned during August. Because that is a dated rollout schedule, confirm current availability for a specific model and region. Samsung’s announcement gives the original timing.
Rank #3
- 1080p resolution - View your favorite movies, shows and games in full high definition.
- Alexa voice control - The Alexa Voice Remote lets you easily control your entertainment, search across apps, switch inputs, and more using just your voice. Press and hold the voice button and ask Alexa to easily find, launch, and control content, and even switch to cable.
- Access thousands of shows with Fire TV - Watch over 1.5 million streaming movies and TV episodes with access to thousands of channels, apps and Alexa skills, including Prime Video, Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, YouTube, Apple TV+, Disney+, ESPN+, Sling TV, Paramount+, and other services right from this TV.*
- DTS Virtual-X Sound - An immersive sound format creates a three-dimensional sound experience with your TV’s speakers.
- Supports HDMI ARC - Sends audio directly from the HDMI jack to a compatible soundbar or AV receiver, removing the need for an extra cable.
Matter helps devices work across ecosystems, but does not guarantee every feature
Matter is an interoperability standard intended to help compatible smart-home products work across supported platforms. Its specifications evolve, and product makers and platform providers still need to implement and certify particular capabilities. A Matter label alone does not mean every advertised function will work across every combination of TV, hub, router, and device.
What the standard updates cover
The Connectivity Standards Alliance announced Matter 1.3 on May 8, 2024. It described improvements to TV functionality and screen interactions, energy reporting, and additional appliance and energy- and water-management capabilities. The announcement said manufacturers and platforms could integrate and certify the features; it did not establish that all of them were already available in retail products. The Matter 1.3 announcement outlines the additions.
Rank #4
- Bright, clear picture: Bring entertainment to life on our 24" flat screen TV with bright 720p HD—perfect for bedrooms, kitchens, and beyond. Roku Smart Picture cleans up incoming TV signals, optimizes them, and chooses the right picture mode.
- Seamless streaming: With fast Wi-Fi and apps that launch in a snap, Roku Select Series TVs get you to your entertainment quickly. You get excellent picture quality, clear sound, automatic updates, and more. It’s simple to use. Hard to outgrow.
- TV, simplified: With setup that only takes minutes, a simple-to-navigate Home Screen, and an uncluttered remote control that does all you need—Roku makes it easier to watch the TV you love.
- A world of free entertainment: Enjoy a huge selection of free live TV, news, sports, movies, shows, and much more—all just a click away.
- More streaming, less searching: With personalized picks right on your Home Screen, quick access to the sports and entertainment you watch most, and fast and easy search in one place—the days of endless scrolling are over.
On November 7, 2024, the alliance announced Matter 1.4, including Enhanced Multi-Admin, certifiable home routers and access points, and expanded energy-management support. It said Matter products had reached “millions of homes around the world since its launch in 2022,” without giving an exact count. This is the alliance’s adoption statement, not a measure of how many living rooms use TV-based control. The Matter 1.4 announcement describes the update.
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Bridges and device compatibility
A bridge can bring certain devices from one network or product family into a Matter setup, but support remains specific to the bridge, products, and functions involved. IKEA announced that its DIRIGERA hub would become a Matter bridge for connected IKEA Zigbee products, including lighting, sound, air purification, controllers, and sensors. Treat this as an announced compatibility path, not proof that every product feature will transfer to every platform. IKEA’s announcement describes the intended bridge support.
Best Value
- 4k Ultra HD (2160p resolution): Enjoy breathtaking HDR10 4K movies and TV shows at 4 times the resolution of Full HD, and upscale your current content to Ultra HD-level picture quality.
- High Dynamic Range: Provides a wide range of color details and sharper contrast, from the brightest whites to the deepest blacks.
- All-in-one: Get right to your good stuff. With Fire TV, you can enjoy a world of entertainment from apps like Prime Video, Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max. Plus, stream for free with Fire TV Channels, Pluto TV, Tubi, and more. Access over 1.8 million movies and TV episodes. Subscriptions may be required. Feature and content availability may vary.
- Smart Home: Your smart home hub. Pair Fire TV with compatible smart home devices to see live camera feeds, use AirPlay, control your lighting and thermostat, and more.
- Free Content: Stream for free. Access over 1 million free movies and TV episodes from popular ad-supported streaming apps like Fire TV Channels, Tubi, and Pluto TV. Subscriptions may be required. Feature and content availability may vary.
Lighting and automations connect media to the rest of the room
Connected lighting can respond to entertainment, while automations can use events from devices to trigger actions. These capabilities make the living room feel more integrated at the level of control, but the announcements do not establish measured gains in energy use, wellbeing, safety, accessibility, or satisfaction.
Lighting synchronized with TV content
Samsung describes SmartThings support for syncing ambient Hue lighting with TV content. Signify announced in January 2025 that the Philips Hue Sync TV app would support LG TVs running webOS 24 or later, and described an AI lighting assistant as available in 2025. These are manufacturer announcements; check current app status, TV model and software version, required lighting products, and supported content sources before relying on a particular setup. Samsung’s SmartThings announcement and Signify’s announcement describe these examples.
Automations triggered by occupancy or media
Google’s May 2024 developer announcement describes Home APIs and automations that can use device signals, including occupancy events, appliance mode changes, or media events from a smart TV. In principle, an automation could react when a room becomes occupied or a media event occurs, but the available triggers and actions depend on supported devices and the platform implementation. Google’s Home APIs announcement explains the developer-facing direction.
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How to choose a setup for your living room
Start with the devices you already own and the job you want the TV to do. An added streaming device may make more sense than replacing a working television; a smart-home hub is not automatically necessary if your existing platform already supports the desired controls.
Quick Recap
- Compatibility: Check the TV platform, phone ecosystem, specific Matter features supported, and whether the exact devices and functions are certified or supported together.
- Setup: Compare using the existing TV with an added streaming device against upgrading the television. Check whether the setup needs a hub, compatible router, or Thread border router.
- Entertainment: Verify the streaming apps, services, search and recommendation features, and display and audio capabilities you care about, including regional availability.
- Control: Decide whether you want to use a remote, voice commands, an on-screen panel, a mobile app, or automations—and confirm those controls are available for your devices.
- Ambient lighting: Confirm supported TV models and operating-system versions, required lights, and whether syncing works with the sources you watch.
- Evidence: Treat manufacturer announcements as descriptions of intended or supported features, not independent comparisons of results.
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