How really slow is Android TV?!?

[rooobb]

I was really so sick about reading complain about "how bad is Android TV" and as matter of fact "how sloooow is it" that I decided to spend few minutes to record the main operation done on my TV (or at least the ones I use more): I don't feel they are so sllw at all!

I would like that someone could make the same recording with a different TV set just to compare how much Tizen, WebOS or Firefox are really Faster.

Please do not blame the image quality of my TV: I did not spent time setting correctly the camera (a Sony CX280 obviously ) so the autofocus was not able to adapt rapidly to the different lights on TV at each moment. I can assure image quality is really wonderful!!

Updated on Oct 2nd 2019: Oreo version

[darrenj11]

Because you have YouView disabled, that halves the speed of many functions, especially around changing channels, using volume bar, action menu, tv guide.

Unfortunatley YouView is needed for 4Player and ITV Player

[rooobb]

That's true. Probably it was not a good move to incorporate youview 

[Sony_98]

I have a brand new KD55A1 and quite honestly, the perfprmace of Android is absolutly terrible. For a brand new set, I don't expect lag, I also don't expect all the terrible content Sony thinks I'm going to use. But anyway, aside from that, great set.

[Kuschelmonschter]

You can gain some performance (and also usability) by doing some tweaking (like removing SonyShelf helps a lot which @rooobb did). But performance is still aweful. It always depends on uptime and what you have done before. But when the system runs out of RAM and starts swapping stuff (which it basically always does) things start to react pretty slowly. It can then take several seconds for the ACTION or DISCOVER menu to appear with initial scrolling being quite laggy. You can easily bias such a video. The TV can be acceptably fast. But most of the time it just isn't.

You probably feel like it is good enough if you haven't used anything else before. After having gotten used to an Apple TV 4K, Android TV on Sony feels like a total pain. I also used Tizen and WebOS on recent models (never used this Firefox OS though) and they feel a lot more responsive.

[Kuschelmonschter]

Even TV reviewers say that Sonys are a pain to use. And they tend to hide a lot of the bad stuff because they actually get paid (at least in some way) by the manufacturers...

rtings.com:

... runs Sony's version of the Android TV interface, which isn't as easy to use as some other smart platforms... The TV's main interface is unfortunately quite crowded, and often has moments of lag and choppy animations.

FlatpanelsHD:

However, the Android part of the TV still runs on the same Mediatek 5891 SoC that was introduced in 2016 and it can hardly be characterized as potent. The Android interface always feels a little laggy and slow

Forbes / John Archer:

Aside from the Android 7 platform being a bit less buggy than previous iterations, it’s disappointing how many of the issues I had when I wrote that initial Android TV review still exist. Including the fact that the system still runs more sluggishly than rival smart platforms, and seems to slow down the TV's main operating menus a bit too.

So whoever pinned that thread, it for sure does not deserve to be on top. Sorry. No offense. But that's just a fact.

[rooobb]

I did it just for an easy reference. It can be unpinned if nobody think It is useful 

[Kuschelmonschter]

From the just published review of the 2018 A8F on forbes.com (John Archer):

I need to spare a (harsh) word for the 55A8F’s operating system. For as well as persisting with essentially the same horribly laid out and ‘squishy’ remote control Sony has bizarrely persevered with for generations now, the 55A8F also continues Sony’s relationship with Android TV. Right down to the same overbearing menus, confusing navigation paths, and lack of customization options. Worst of all, having to power Android TV causes both the 55A8F’s smart and basic control menus to run painfully sluggishly at times.

[rooobb]

You can find everything on the internet, just one of the first listed by google and wrote by user not professional that you don't ever know if there are other reasons behind their comment

https://www.quora.com/Which-TV-software-is-best-Android-or-LG-WebOS-or-Samsung-Tizen?utm_medium=orga...

BTW, I got that you trashed your Android Tv so why are you still interested?

[Kuschelmonschter]

I am still a TV enthusiast. Have been one for more than a decade, so...

One more from TechRadar:

The Android TV system supports built-in Chromecasting, and recently had support for Google’s Voice Assistant software added. 

This still can’t save Android TV from being a typically frustrating smart TV experience, though. For starters, its full-screen menus look cluttered and confusing, and only support minimal amounts of customisation. It also erroneously seems to think in its layout that people will be more interested in playing often third-rate games on their TV than streaming video. And it’s horribly prone to needing regular and often pretty sizeable software updates. 

It runs sluggishly  and the processing power required to run it means the TV’s main operating menus can also react rather slowly to your remote control commands.

[rooobb]

Being a TV enthusiast which one you have chosen now? just out of curiosity

I've started thinking I am a little too Sony oriented but cannot resists... I helpd a friend of mine who is a Sony enthusiast too but he was offered an XE80 or a bargain for an LG C7.... being also an Oled fan, I directed him to the C7, and it is a wonderful set (and he is happy)... but when I went to his house to look at it and trying to use the mouse like pointer on the screen ... oh my gosh... I don't think is really fancy. But probably I'm too old