LG reneges on AirPlay 2 and HomeKit for 2018 TVs

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in General Discussion
Despite a previous published commitment to bringing both AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support to selected 2018 TV models, LG now says that it has no plans to do so.

Credit: LG
Credit: LG


Despite recently bringing the Apple TV app to selected 2018 television sets, LG has now reversed its decision about supporting HomeKit and AirPlay 2 on those models.

Previously, LG committed to adding support to smart TV models including its "SK" and "UK" LED sets, plus the "B8" through "Z8" OLED ones. The support was due to come by October 2020, but now a support representative has told a user that no such support is coming at all.

Hi there, LG has no plans to update its pre-2019 TVs with Airplay2 or Homekit unfortunately. Apologies for the inconvenience caused!

— LG UK (@LGUK)


As spotted by MacRumors, this tweet dates from a week ago but is now being followed by complaints from owners of 2018 TV sets as the information spreads.

Reportedly, the initial promise on LG's website was accompanied by references within support documents. However, those were allegedly removed shortly afterwards.

LG made no public announcement about reneging on the HomeKit or AirPlay 2 support and as yet has not commented beyond its one tweeted response.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 18
    polymniapolymnia Posts: 1,080member
    Glad I didn’t buy one of these sets. My bedroom TV (older LG) died in late 2018 and the (reportedly) upgradable models seemed very appealing. 

    Fortunately, a family member bought a new OLES for her living room and gave me her old plasma for free. It’s not awesome, but it was free and I sidestepped this controversy. 
  • Reply 2 of 18
    foregoneconclusionforegoneconclusion Posts: 2,847member
    Not surprising. The processor/OS aspect of smart TVs is mainly a marketing ploy. The processors don't really change that much in terms of spec and the lack of software updates isn't due to lack of capability in older models. It's just a management decision based on their sales strategy for new models. 
    superklotonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 18
    flydogflydog Posts: 1,141member
    I'm reneging on buying an LG TV from 2020 onwards.
    kiehtanBeatsentropyslaytechspock1234watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 18
    linkmanlinkman Posts: 1,046member
    If LG had promised these features to potential buyers and they are now dropping them then LG is probably going to be hit with a class action lawsuit.
    dysamoriakiehtanScot1Beatswatto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 18
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 8,029member
    I have a Samsung Smart TV that began losing features it shipped with!

    A ton of them. There was a point when every time I turned it on I got a message saying this or that feature would be withdrawn and the date of service termination. 

    One of them was effectively DLNA! 

    No more Samsungs for me. 

    I much prefer a dumb screen and plug the box of my choice into it. 
    mbenz1962dysamoriamuthuk_vanalingamNaiyas
  • Reply 6 of 18
    superklotonsuperkloton Posts: 86member
    flydog said:
    I'm reneging on buying an LG TV from 2020 onwards.
    But the new models all have AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support. This is only about the 2018 models and earlier.
    kiehtanwatto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 18
    dysamoriadysamoria Posts: 3,430member
    Gee, what a surprise. “Smart” TVs are a damned scam.

    Reminds me of how I can finally upgrade my 2015 Mazda 3 to CarPlay... for $500+ dollars of work done to it at the dealer (no, I will NOT buy the parts for $300 and do the work myself).
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 18
    hammeroftruthhammeroftruth Posts: 1,354member
    dysamoria said:
    Gee, what a surprise. “Smart” TVs are a damned scam.

    Reminds me of how I can finally upgrade my 2015 Mazda 3 to CarPlay... for $500+ dollars of work done to it at the dealer (no, I will NOT buy the parts for $300 and do the work myself).
    You could probably buy a new head unit for that price. Although I have noticed car manufacturers have been routing other things thru it to prevent you from replacing the head unit. No more physical buttons for the ac/heat, proprietary cables for the stock backup camera etc. Yet no congressional hearing about that is there?
    Beatsspock1234watto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 18
    mjtomlinmjtomlin Posts: 2,690member
    Yeah that's pretty shitty for people who bought these sets thinking they were going to eventually get those features. I bought two models, because they were fairly inexpensive, but I have Apple TV's connected so having those features built-in isn't a big deal to me.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 10 of 18
    BeatsBeats Posts: 3,073member
    avon b7 said:
    I have a Samsung Smart TV that began losing features it shipped with!

    A ton of them. There was a point when every time I turned it on I got a message saying this or that feature would be withdrawn and the date of service termination. 

    One of them was effectively DLNA! 

    No more Samsungs for me. 

    I much prefer a dumb screen and plug the box of my choice into it. 

    My Samscum TV lasted 6 months. Looked it up online and turned out it was a common problem for my set. Anyone who had theirs working past 6 months was lucky.

    Of course Scamsung didn't care nor did the media bother with them like they do Apple.
    spock1234watto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 18
    chasmchasm Posts: 3,610member
    Hey gang, there’s an easy-peasy way to avoid the shifting sands, capricious whims, and massive data/security issues of “smart” TVs!

    Don’t connect it to the Internet at all! Connect your Apple TV box instead, and enjoy more services and features than any smart TV can ever offer you, futureproofing, plus unparalleled security, privacy, and complete freedom from “injected” ads!
    steve_jobsspock1234watto_cobra
  • Reply 12 of 18
    entropysentropys Posts: 4,312member
    Did LG actually promise these features for 2018 models at release, or was that a more recent thing they should have kept mum about? 

    watto_cobra
  • Reply 13 of 18
    AngmohAngmoh Posts: 26member
    entropys said:
    Did LG actually promise these features for 2018 models at release, or was that a more recent thing they should have kept mum about? 

    I have a 2018 LG TV and it was never advertised, promised or anything else. Nowhere in the documentation, website or press releases it was listed and I never expected it.

    I have never seen a promise until about a month ago when some sites claimed out of nowhere that it was now available.

    If they found a way to add it it would have been nice and appreciated, but not having it does not bother me because it was never supposed to be able to do so in the first place.
    gatorguywatto_cobra
  • Reply 14 of 18
    laytechlaytech Posts: 342member
    Why call a TV a smart TV if it can never be upgraded. Nothing smart about that if you ask me. Marketing fluff. If this is an attempt by TV manufacturers to want you to keep upgrading then its an utter shame on the environment with trying to make TVs on a regular recycle like an iPhone. Come on TVs get smarter not dumber.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 15 of 18
    juha otusjuha otus Posts: 41member
    I have a LG TV from 2017 and it stopped receiving updates like a couple of years ago. LG's long term support for their products suck and it was left buggy, for instance powers on for no apparent reason at random times. I'm never buying LG again, and WebOS usability sucks anyway. I'll just have to find some poor sucker who'd buy the old one from me.
    spock1234watto_cobra
  • Reply 16 of 18
    R_C__R_C__ Posts: 1member
    Angmoh said:
    entropys said:
    Did LG actually promise these features for 2018 models at release, or was that a more recent thing they should have kept mum about? 

    I have a 2018 LG TV and it was never advertised, promised or anything else. Nowhere in the documentation, website or press releases it was listed and I never expected it.

    I have never seen a promise until about a month ago when some sites claimed out of nowhere that it was now available.

    If they found a way to add it it would have been nice and appreciated, but not having it does not bother me because it was never supposed to be able to do so in the first place.
    LG officially stated early this year that many 2018 TVs would get the update in a press release that specifically listed the models.

    This press release was recently altered to quietly retcon that part for some reason, hence the issue.


    spock1234watto_cobra
  • Reply 17 of 18
    grom007grom007 Posts: 16member
    I normally keep my TVs for much longer than 3-4 years, which is typically the upgrade cycle of a cell phone. I normally keep my TV for about 10 years. I wish TV manufactures would at minimum support their product for  5-6 years. I spent an arm and leg when I bought my Lg 2018 OLED 77" tv. The 77" tv have fallen in price since then. Since owning the tv, I have seen the support that Lg provides. While I like WebOS interface, I hate Lg's and even Lg's support. I was actually surprised they gave us the apple tv app.  I will probably buy another TV for another room, but probably will not go with Lg. Looking at other manufactures, it appears that Sony as well as Vizio make OLED TV and their support appears to be much better.  Would love to hear people's opinion if they feel if these two other brands have better support.  

    If you support the cause, please petition Lg to bring Airplay to their older tv. I think Lg could provide Airplay 2, HomeKit, as well as eARC. 
    edited September 2020 spock1234watto_cobra
  • Reply 18 of 18
    DrTekDrTek Posts: 9member
    superkloton said:
    flydog said:
    I'm reneging on buying an LG TV from 2020 onwards.
    But the new models all have AirPlay 2 and HomeKit support. This is only about the 2018 models and earlier.
    And your point is? LG doesn’t future proof their TVs. Even as Vizio and others are going back 2 years or more. LG doesn’t give a crap about you once they have your money.
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