Otmoor Yellow

21 hours ago, Otmoor Yellow said:

My understanding is that all LG TVs post 2016 will get the ITVX app, its just a case of when.

You can of course use the internet browser on your LG TV and access ITVX via its website .I've tried it and it works, albeit that LG browser is a pile of crap and very very slow.

Update 16/12/2022 - My LG Smart TV now has the ITVX app. The logo in the app still says ITV Hub, but the app is called ITVX and it has all the known content for ITVX. My TV is at least 5 years old, so most should get it.

7 hours ago, Chris Merriman said:

Wow. There's a lot here. Let me try and help you - but remember I'm just an LG customer like you - I work in the tech industry, but I'm not LG or ITV so I can only tell you what I know as a customer. The info I have comes from the @ITVxHelp Twitter feed. They reply very quickly if you wanted to try talking to them, but I warn you, they don't know a lot either!

First - the good news - ITVx has started to roll out to LG TVs. I got my update this morning. 

The bad news is that it isn't working properly! I've reported it to them and we'll see what happens. 

In terms of the wider point - "Smart" simply means it has an internet connection and can run apps. What apps are available has nothing to do with LG - they offer their platform (WebOS) to developers, but what actually gets offered on this, or any TV is entirely up to them. 

Browse through this forum and you'll find lots of "where is this" and "why is this" posts. The bottom line is that ITVx is available to devices that support it - that doesn't mean they have to make it available to every TV and every device, and it doesn't mean that they have to get it to all platforms on time - there are a lot of other devices that either don't have ITVx yet, won't ever get it, or have it and it''s not working properly - it has been an undeniably shoddy roll out. 

The reality is that no TV or smart device has every app - and there's nothing you can do about that. Some are better than others and unfortunately, many developers don't offer LG apps, or make them last of all.  LG is far from the best - but it's also not the worse - a lot of cheaper TVs don't have Disney+, for example, and that's been out for two years. Humax doesn't offer Netflix on its flagship set top box. That's just how it is, and there's no one TV or device that will get everything. As more and more streaming services come online this is only going to get worse. 

The thing about VPNs, specifically, is that they offer you a chance to watch stuff that shouldn't be officially available to you. Broadcasters and streaming services pay huge amounts of money for the rights to programmes, country by country, and therefore watching them from another country is a legal grey area. It would be lovely if LG offered VPN support, but VPNs are not a right either - in fact they're actually banned in many countries altogether. (For the record, I use a second router with a VPN built in and point my devices at that). The key thing to remember is that you don't have the right to anything - it's only false advertising if they specifically say "we offer this specific service or feature, on this model of TV" and then don't. 

The truth is that Smart TVs will never be as flexible as standalone devices like streaming sticks and computers. There are better options than LG for the sort of thing you want to do - especially as LG generally stop updating firmware after a couple of years - but just because something exists, it doesn't mean you'll get it and that's true of all devices, not just LG - and it's only going to get worse. I find it bonkers that we can't get Paramount+ on our TVs yet - but that's up to Paramount, not LG. 

I'm sorry if you feel you're stuck with a TV that doesn't meet your needs - look at other posts, you're very much not alone, it's the reason most people are here - but we live in an age where the TV landscape is changing all the time. Really, for the flexibility you want, you'd be better off with a separate device (FYI not a Roku - they don't support VPNs either!).  I know that's not what you want to hear, but that's where we are and I don't think, from what you say, you'd be entirely happy with a Samsung, Sony or HiSense TV either - they all have their drawbacks and missing services. 

I hope I've been of some help explaining. I regret buying LG too, but I can''t afford to rush out and buy another model either so I'm trying to make the best of it. On the plus side, at least it looks like the wait for ITVx is nearly over!

 

My understanding is that all LG TVs post 2016 will get the ITVX app, its just a case of when.

You can of course use the internet browser on your LG TV and access ITVX via its website .I've tried it and it works, albeit that LG browser is a pile of crap and very very slow.