Can I get a TV with full internet connectivity

[patsealey]

I have a wireless network in my house.This originates from the office block near my home where the computer (a desktoip)lives.
I have no computer in the house nor do I wish one.I would like to use the BBC i player and also download movies.Can I find anywhere a 42inch or larger TV with built in computer.It seems nonsensical to have to buy a laptop and fiddle around with connections to be able to watch a replay of a TV braodcast on a TV.If such a thing does not exist then why not?Is there a ploitical reason ?There cannot be a technical or marketing reason!?

[ChuckFickens]

yes and no!

there are TV available with internet access on them (samsung and LG make one for a start) but.... most of them run there own software and only allow access to a selected range of sites, also bear in mind that typing anything on a TV remote control is going to be a real pain!

I would (in fact I did) buy a decent TV without internet access on it and also buy a cheap computer with a HDMI output on it and a wireless keyboard and mouse.

[LeMarchand]

Do you have permission to use the wireless network? If not, even if it unsecured you could be committing an offence. Also, I don't think you can download via iPlayer (or there's a viewing window) and I didn't think they put movies on there. (Unless you mean downloading movies via various less-than-legal means).

[ChuckFickens]

oh I didn't see the "download movies" bit

Televisions do not have hard drives in them to store anything, you would not be able to download anything on a TV

(LeMarchand, there are several places you can download films perfectly legally, I use zune to rent and download films all the time)

[dothawkes31]

you don't have a wireless network in your house at all, it is in another building, how do you know the wireless signal reaches your house and how do you know you can use the signal without having to use a password if you do not have a computer to access it? If you have picked up a signal on an iphone that does not mean you can access the internet .

[ChuckFickens]

there is a slight irony in the statement

"I have no computer in the house nor do I wish one"

Followed by

"Can I find anywhere a 42inch or larger TV with built in computer"

surely if you do find such a TV you wouldn't want it in your house?

[LeMarchand]

Chuck, you're right about legal channels but my thoughts have been (possibly unjustly) coloured by the amount of requests here and elsewhere along the lines of "where can I download <insert name of film on or due to be on theatrical release> for free?".

Forgot about the lack of HDD though!

[ChuckFickens]

I will admit that the majority of requests for film downloads on this site (and most others) are from the "I want everything for free" brigade!

[ChuckFickens]

to get back on topic slightly

I wanted the same thing a couple of months ago. I investigated (briefly) internet enabled TV's and forgot about them straight away as they would cause more problems and frustrations then they solve.

I then looked at DLNA enabled TV's that would let you stream media from a proper computer straight to the TV (wireless if wanted). I discounted it because it looked very tricky to set it up to do everything I wanted (and I'm an IT tech and I work with digital streaming!!) and I couldn't find a solution that would actually work quite as I wanted it to.

I ended up buying a large full HD flatscreen TV and spent the £400 saved in buying either a internet enabled TV or a DLNA enabled TV to buy a powerful small form factor desktop PC with a HDMI output (system only, no monitor) and a wireless keyboard and mouse, the PC now sits in the TV cabinet and it's a great setup for watching Iplayer and the like on a large screen

(one thing I done wrong, I got a plasma screen, if you are going to be using it with the computer a lot get a LCD screen, purely because plasmas suffer from image retention (and eventually screen burn))