Smart TVs have evolved significantly in this modern era of technology and have gained popularity because of their rich features and functionalities.
Smart TVs enable you to browse the internet using a browser, enjoy multiple streaming services, and do many other activities.
Do Smart TVs Have Browsers?
Yes, Smart TVs do have a browser.
Most smart TVs allow you to surf the internet and go online using a default web browser that comes with the TV.
The browsers on smart TVs surf the internet in the same way as browsers on your desktop computer or smartphone, but they don’t function exactly the same as you are familiar with.
Browsers on your smart TV are compatible with almost all the standards required to meet the HTML of the browser.
These standards are essential elements to display and cover the pages effectively on a huge screen.
You must have your smart TV connected to the internet and updated to surf the web properly and avoid hitches and glitches.
Should You Use Your Smart TV For Browsing?
You can use the browser on your smart TV, which is very convenient and user-friendly.
However, you might get attacked by hackers as the security of these smart TV browsers is not that efficient.
This is because a smart TV browser lacks the additional security and antivirus settings you have on your smartphones or desktop computers.
Many cyber-attackers wait for you to start surfing on your smart TV browser to hack the data from your TV.
With no antivirus or safety features, it is easy for these attackers to breach the security levels on your smart TV.
For this reason, it is not a good practice to browse the internet with your smart TV browser all the time.
Cyber-attackers secretly keep an eye on your sensitive data when you surf the internet using the browser.
They can compromise the cookies managing authentication to online services such as social media accounts if you have installed them on your smart TV.
The browser on smart TVs is unreliable as it can get hacked easily and leak your credentials from several platforms.
Smart TV browsers are surely worth using if you casually use them for different reasons.
Remember that TV browsers are not as smart or efficient as smartphone or computer browsers because they lack advanced security features.
How To Use The Browsers On Smart TVs Without Facing Any Difficulties
If you want to browse the internet on your smart TV, you should have a browser installed on it.
Browsers are the default features in Smart TVs.
You may need to install the browser from the TV app store if you can’t find it in the installed app section.
Most of the sites have applications to browse their content, and it is easy in most cases to go through these applications to browse their website.
One benefit of using these applications is that their interface is easy to use compared to the browser on a smart TV.
Take a look at some key factors to using the browser on a smart TV.
1. Checking Internet Connectivity
If you have a poor internet connection, you may not be able to browse the internet on your smart TV using a browser.
Take a look at the steps below to check the internet connectivity on your smart TV.
- Press the Home button on your remote.
- Select Settings and go to the General menu.
- Choose Network and then select Network Settings.
It will take you to the screen where you can check whether your smart TV has an internet connection or not.
Also, on the home screen, you can check the Wi-Fi signal icon in the top-right corner of the screen.
If you still can’t figure out how to check your internet connection, open any streaming app like Netflix, YouTube, etc., and check whether you can access the content on it or not.
If the internet is working on these applications, it means that the issue is with your browser and not with your internet connectivity or hardware.
Follow the steps below if you are facing internet connectivity issues while using a browser on your smart TV.
- Restart the router by disconnecting it from the power source, and give it a one-minute rest. Then, plug-in back again.
- Change the DNS setting if you face issues even after restarting the router.
- Enter 8.8.8.8 manually in the DNS settings. It is a public DNS that google recognizes easily and enables you to use the internet when the default DNS fails to connect.
You can follow the above steps to solve the internet connectivity issues on your smart TV and browse the internet using the default browser without any issues.
2. Update Your Smart TV Browser
You can face difficulties when browsing the internet with a smart TV browser if you haven’t updated your smart TV browser for a long time.
Take a look at the following steps below to update the browser of your smart TV.
- Go to Settings from your home screen.
- Choose Support.
- Go to the Software Update segment and then select Update Now.
- After the completion of the update, select OK to exit.
You can also select the auto-update option on your smart TV to update all the apps installed on it automatically.
This is because it is difficult to update each application manually.
Having a good and stable internet connection also updates the app automatically.
3. Clear Browser Data
It is a good practice to clear the browsing data from your browser as the pieces of it accumulate in the browser and slow down the browser performance.
Fortunately, the solution is easy as you just have to follow a few steps to clear your browsing data.
Have a look at the steps below to do so.
- Open your smart TV browser.
- Go to the Settings of your TV.
- Choose Web Browser Settings.
- Click on General.
- Select Delete History.
- Click OK.
Simply follow these few steps to clear the browsing data on your smart TV browser.
Doing this enhances the performance of the browser and lets you browse without any issues.
4. Install Chrome On Your Smart TV
If your smart TV doesn’t have a default browser installed, you can install one from the app store on your TV.
Take a look at the steps below to install chrome on your Smart TV.
- Firstly, activate the voice assistant on your smart TV. Otherwise, it will take a lot of time to type using a TV remote.
- Speak Install Chrome, and it will take you to the App Store.
- Select Confirm with your remote cursor to start installing Chrome on your smart TV.
- After the installation completes, go to the app drawer and launch Chrome.
The above-discussed are the necessary factors that you should focus on to use the browsers on your Smart TV without facing any difficulties.
These factors will help you effectively solve all the problems you might face when browsing the internet on your smart TV browser.
What Are The Limitations Of Using Browser On Smart TV?
You can perform several operations on a smart TV, like browsing the internet, streaming video, and much more.
However, there are some limitations when it comes to browsing using a browser on a smart TV.
Let’s have a look at the limitations of using a browser on smart TV.
- Using a remote control to navigate through different pages can be quite hard.
- Smart TV browsers don’t allow you to download files from the internet.
- Some browsers are not capable of reading the languages of websites used on modern pages.
- Some web pages look odd on smart TV because of the optimization.
- It cannot access every website.
- You cannot play flash video files.
- Java applications are not compatible.
- Some symbols don’t display correctly, and limited fonts are available.
- Font color and size selection may be unavailable for writing messages or emails.
- Responds slowly to the remote commands.
- It doesn’t support copy and paste.
- Web pages may stop or delay depending on what other functions on TV are running at the same time.
These are some of the limitations of using a browser on your smart TV.
One good thing is that it won’t cover your storage on the TV as it doesn’t allow you to download stuff from the internet using a web browser.
Is It Possible To Delete The Default Web Browser On A Smart TV?
If you have a pre-installed web browser on your smart TV, there is no option to delete it.
If you have installed any other browser apart from the default browser on your smart TV, you can visit the app settings on your smart TV and delete it from there.
You can also consider restricting or blocking access to your default browser if you do not want the default browser to access the internet.
Just like there are options to block other applications like YouTube or Netflix, you can also block your smart TV browser as it is also an application.
Also, you can go to the Parental Controls settings to toggle different security settings for your browser on a smart TV.
You can select the default browser and set the security levels which cover restricting web browsing.
Is It Possible To Change The Default Browser On A Smart TV?
Changing the default browser is not possible on all smart TVs.
If you cannot change your TV’s default browser, you may also not be able to find a web browser in the TV’s app store.
Also, you cannot uninstall the pre-installed browser or install another browser without voiding your warranty.
If you are looking to load a third-party installer through a cloud service or a USB drive, you could still encounter trouble when loading it.
It can get even worse if the third-party browser you load is not compatible with the navigation controls of your smart TV.
Why Does A Smart TV’s Browser Fail To Connect To Wi-Fi Sometimes?
There are some factors involved when your smart TV browser fails to connect to the Wi-Fi.
Let’s look at some of the tricks to fix this issue.
- Firstly, you should check your smart TV’s firmware version. Look for any available updates and consider downloading them.
- Try restarting your browser or smart TV if the browser still fails to connect to the internet.
- Lastly, check your VPN. Most VPNs are incompatible with specific browsers. For this reason, it is best to check which system can work with it.
Following the above-listed steps will fix the issue of the smart TV browser failing to connect to Wi-Fi.
What Are Some Tips For Using Browser On A Smart TV?
Smart TV browsers are extremely user-friendly and offer advanced features.
However, most people are not aware of how to use them since they are somewhat different from conventional browsers.
Let’s look at some tips that can help you use smart TV browsers more efficiently.
- Use navigation keys on your remote control to move the cursor to the search bar. Pressing OK on the search bar will open a big digital keyboard on your screen.
- If you want to save time from typing on a digital keyboard, you can use a compatible web browser from your phone by linking it to your smart TV. Using a casting device like the Amazon FireTV stick or Google Chromecast will enable you to use a mobile browser on your smart TV.
- It is better to download a specific app if you want to watch the content from apps like YouTube, Netflix, Amazon, Disney, etc., rather than using a web browser for streaming.
- It is a good practice to stick to one tab at a time, as it gets very complicated when you start browsing on multiple tabs. The processing also gets slow.
Conclusion
Most smart TVs come with a pre-installed web browser.
It enables you to browse the internet on the big screen but is not similar to the one we have on our phones or desktop computers.
The browser on a smart TV requires a good internet connection and fast internet speed to browse the web.
Also, the browser needs to be up to date if you want a smooth browsing experience.
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