im tryna get a mini pc and make it a streaming box, but i of course need a remote but the ones that actually look comfortable seem to have microphones in them, and i don’t think that i will take it apart to remove the microphone. So should i just not care since im gonna use it on linux or is there an easier way to remove/break the microphone?
also does the lg remote with the motion controlled cursor thingy work on every tv or does it need to be an lg?
thank guy
https://lemmy.world/post/51876426 - linking this here :)
The magic remotes work on Linux without an lg tv but require an lg tv if you’re not hooking them to Linux. That means you won’t have the gyroscopic cursor control if the remote is communicating directly with the non lg tv but if it’s communicating directly with your Linux computer then you will have gyroscopic cursor control.
If you don’t understand that distinction or how to handle it I recommend you don’t bet on having that feature.
You can’t remove or destroy the mic without taking the remote apart. Often remotes use many mics because it’s cheaper to use four shitty ones and run them into unused dsp channels than to use one good one, so you don’t even know if you got em all. The other benefit of many mics is that they work even when one is not in the optimal position to receive inputs like left handed holding or in a bin of other remotes.
Even if you did take the remote apart there’s no guarantee you would correctly recognize the microphones. On this very site is a highly upvoted post of a person triumphantly holding a resistor network and proclaiming they removed the mic from their remote. Next to the populated component labeled “m3”. M for microphone. 3 for the third one…
That person isn’t stupid and I’m not making fun of them. That resistor network may have been connected to the mic and removing it may have achieved what they wanted. My point is that it’s hard to read and interpret a pcb and it’s silkscreen especially when you don’t have specialized experience.
What you may have overlooked is the appletv4k. It’s really cheap and very functional. It is generally considered the most privacy respecting off the shelf streaming device. It doesn’t require any fucking around.
However you’d have to have your own jellyfin or plex server. Not that that’s hard, I got a sixteen year old pc in a closet that serves multiple streams very easily.
alright thanks! I’m not really interested in an appletv 4k since i feel like i can handle a linux box and i think it will be pretty fun too, and i also have my own jellyfin server so that wouldn’t matter anyway. I guess i should just look for a remote without a microphone?
The remote requires host device intervention in order to trigger recording so unless you plan on enabling recording functionality the lg remote should be fine. Assuming you like the lg remote.
Of course, there’s nothing wrong with using an ir receiver on your mini pc and your existing tv remote, especially if it has the device selection buttons at the top like “tv, dvd, etc”. In some ways that’s easier to understand and handle for an end user.
I have done Linux media pcs for the past 25 years. If you want a project you will indeed get a project. It is not fun. If you have a specific goal in mind for your Linux streaming box I can most likely offer experience and insight.
You definately shouldn’t worry about it.
You probably should remove it.
im getting mixed signals
Worrying about things wont fix anything and is bad for you - if you think that is a possibility then remove the microphone & problem solved.
Whether the microphone is an actual privacy risk is a possibility, Im guessing here that its over 50%.
The one thing you didnt mention (so I ignored) was whether you need or want that microphone there.
oh yea my bad!!! i don’t need the microphone at all
Realistically, the software doing the phoning home would have to run on the streaming box; the AAA batteries in a remote would be drained within a matter of hours or days if it were to continuously record and send it back. Software phoning home is a concern with off-the-shelf boxes, but on a Linux mini PC, it’s equivalent to plugging in an external mic. Still good practice to do away with it if you don’t need it.
And there was me thinking that my old google TV remote was just damaged in some way, causing battery drain…
Get an IR blaster and record the commands you care about. Then hook that up to esphome/home assistant for automations. Unpower remote once you record all the commands you need.
If you still want a physical remote make one with buttons and an esp32 + 3d printing hooked up to esphome/home assistant.
sounds a bit complicated for me but thanks
Fair. If you do get interested later your favorite LLM can walk you through the whole process from concept education to component selection to setup for whichever part you’re interested in.
You can also just get a universal remote to replace all your remotes.
Are you looking for a TV remote without mic, or a remote for the media pc? There are several on Amazon designed for use on a PC without mics they also have learning ir so you could use it for the TV too.
The lg magic remote doesn’t work on other TVs.
im planning on using it on a mini pc but on my tv, sorry if its a little confusing
The bigger picture question: why do you need a remote?
Since Mini PCs have WiFi and Bluetooth, you can just use an app on everyone’s phones who uses the TV.
Make it a PWA and host it on the Mini PC. Then anyone on the network can just point their phone browser at it and have an instant remote that does exactly what you want and nothing more.
You could even put a QR code somewhere visible that points the phones at the pwa page.
i like physical buttons and a remote is a bit more comfortable because its (most of the time) not a flat rectangle
Because an app on the phone sucks to use, has no tactile feedback, is difficult for older relatives who may baby/pet sit, is more difficult to set up, etc…
There is a reason autocorrect wasn’t really needed on physical micro keyboards but is 100% necessary on touch screen keyboards.
But hey, if people would rather have another service to maintain, tap on a slab of glass with no/shit feedback, have 30 minute explanations with their relatives and have to act as tech support on a holiday just to turn the TV on, more power to them.
just wanted to say that this tv is for me and me only, so the tech support problem wouldn’t really exist
Well first of all I would not use LG anything.
If it’s really just USB then it’s like any USB mic, and you can probably disable it pretty thoroughly in Linux.
i don’t know if the remote is technically made by lg but its for an lg tv
could i maybe like take a needle or something and poke it in the microphone hole?
Can you look harder for remotes without mics?
I’ve gotten used remotes at goodwill before
yea sure just wanted to know so i don’t waste time and stuff
