We've got some bad news for owners of Sony TVs sold from 2011 to 2013: Netflix will stop supporting its app on a lot of models, including the EX, HX and W series TVs, with effect from February 2024. It'll also be pulling support from some Sony Blu-Ray players too. According to Sony Support, the reason is due to "technical limitations".
This isn't the first time the best streaming service has stopped supporting pre-installed Netflix apps. It pulled support from some Samsung Blu-ray players, from older TVs made by Samsung, Panasonic, Sony and Hitachi and from the PS Vita in October. And as FlatpanelsHD reports, it had a big purge in 2019 too.
For now, the affected models only appear to be Sony devices – the source is a Sony Support document that lists all the affected Sony models – but it's unclear whether as with previous purges it'll affect other firms' hardware too.
Don't rely on built-in apps
The good news here is that the withdrawal of support shouldn't affect very many people According to NPD, the average person changes their TV every six and a half years – although in many homes the older sets then get passed on for use in kids' bedrooms and for other secondary viewing, so some of these models will still be in circulation.
But it's easy enough to use an Amazon Fire TV 4K Stick, Apple TV 4K box or one of Roku's many media streamers like the Roku Streaming Stick 4K to keep them current. Also, check out our roundup of the best streaming devices for more options.
Streaming apps are part of all the best TVs, of course, but I've learnt the hard way not to take them for granted. My last TV was packed with streaming apps and over a fairly short period of time those apps went from nippy and solid to sluggish and crashy. The apps were still officially supported (if infrequently updated) by both my TV manufacturer and the streaming services, but they were frustrating to use and increasingly unreliable.
I've been skipping my TVs' smart TV features in favor of an Apple TV box ever since. The current version of Apple's tvOS is compatible with Apple TV boxes going back to 2015, which suggests that I can expect my one to stay current until 2030. And the other big benefit of using a third party streamer is consistency: it doesn't matter if my next TV is a Sony or a Samsung, an LG or a TCL or a Philips or a Panasonic: the interface and experience doesn’t change.
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