The debate between Android TV and Smart TV has been going on for the past many years. For some, the simplicity of smart TV outweighs the features of Android TV and for the other lot, Android TV is the only way to consume online content on a larger screen thanks to all the cool things you can do with Android TV. So which TV platform is better: Android TV or Smart TV? Well, in this article we compare Android TV vs Smart TV side by side and learn about all the similarities and differences between the two platforms. So without further ado, let’s go through the article.

Here, we have enlisted the two major sections that we have covered in this comparison between Android vs Smart TV. You can click on the link below and move to the corresponding section easily.

  • Fundamentals
  • Differences
  • List of Popular Android TVs and Smart TVs
  • Frequently Asked Questions

Fundamentals

Before anything, we need to discuss the fundamental similarities and differences between Android TV and Smart TV. First of all, a smart TV is a TV set that can deliver content over the internet. So any TV that offers online content — no matter what operating system it runs — is a smart TV.

As for Android TV, it has carved a name for itself in the market due to its immense popularity and has almost become synonymous with smart TVs. Broadly speaking, Android TV is a type of smart TV that runs on the Android TV platform. While Samsung and LG have their own proprietary OS, it still ships many TVs with Android OS. Sony, on the other hand, is fully committed to the Android TV platform and since 2015, it has shipped all its TVs with Android TV OS.

In the above section, we discussed the fundamental difference between an Android TV and a smart TV. Here, we are going to talk about the differences at the OS level and which one makes more sense to consumers.

Coming to smart TVs that run Tizen OS or WebOS, you have limited app support. Except for some popular entertainment apps like YouTube, Prime Video, and Netflix, you won’t find many apps in its app store. The next point is that updates are hard to come by on smart TVs in comparison to Android TVs. On the other hand, Android TV development is quite active and developers regularly push new updates to a variety of apps.

That said, there is one advantage of smart TVs over Android TV. Smart TVs are relatively easier to navigate and use than Android TVs. You have to be aware of the Android ecosystem to fully take advantage of the Android TV platform. Next, smart TVs are also faster in performance which is its silver lining.

Here’s a list of popular Android TVs and smart TVs to give you an idea of the different types of TVs that we are talking about.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Can We Download Apps in Smart TV?

Yes, you can download apps in smart TVs. Whether it’s Samsung’s Tizen OS, LG’s WebOS, or Google’s Android TV OS, there are apps available on all these platforms. However, note that the app library is limited in Tizen and WebOS.

Q. What Device Turns Your TV into a Smart TV?

There are many Android TV boxes like Mi Box, Nvidia Shield TV, and dongles like Chromecast with Google TV,  and Fire TV Stick that can turn any TV into a smart TV.

Yes, you can use a smart TV without an internet connection but only for local media playback through a USB drive. Netflix, YouTube, Prime Video, and other streaming apps don’t support offline viewing on a smart TV or an Android TV.

Some of the best smart TV brands are Sony, LG, and Samsung.

Smart TVs are generally faster in performance than Android TVs and offer a simple and user-friendly interface. The boot time is also considerably better than Android TVs.

In my analysis, I found that Android TVs offer a lot more choices to the consumers hence it’s a better pick against smart TVs that run Tizen OS, webOS, etc. From app library to updates and upgradability, Android TV has your back covered.