For the moment, Google TV is my favorite built-in smart TV platform. It has its flaws — it’s chock full of endless, sometimes pointless recommendations, for instance — but the benefits of Gemini, Google Home, and web search integration are hard to deny. I also consider YouTube Premium Lite my core streaming service, and Google is more than happy to cater to that.
One catch is that Google TV is frequently the most demanding platform, spec-wise. To keep your TV running as smoothly as possible, you may have to be more diligent than you would with the likes of Roku OS or Fire TV. Here are the big hazards that should be on your radar.
Maxed-out brightness levels and prolonged runtimes
Sides of the same coin
Brightness sets the boundaries for image quality. You need a base amount to reveal shadow detail, and high peaks for the best colors and highlights. It’s often these peak brightness levels that are the selling point of new TVs — some RGB mini-LED models can achieve a ludicrous 10,000 nits, over three times what you need to check your smartwatch in the midday sun.
The tech needed to produce bright images generates a lot of waste heat, however, wearing down components. With LCDs (including mini-LEDs), the weak point is the backlights. On OLED TVs, there’s a risk of permanent image retention — a.k.a. burn-in — and related long-term complications, such as color tinting. Current OLED models do use software and hardware tricks to counteract burn-in, but these can only do so much to fix bad habits.
Brightness levels are best capped at 80% or less, although you should never use your TV’s auto-brightness and energy-saving modes, which take things too far. In any event, avoid leaving your TV on in the background when you don’t have to. As much as you might like ambient nature sounds, or being able to pick up a paused game instantly, you’re accelerating panel wear while inflating your energy bills.
Poor environmental conditions
Monitor heat and moisture
Proper cooling is vital. Though the specs of individual TVs vary, the rule of thumb is that ambient temperatures should stay below 95F (35C), the ideal being slightly under 72F (22C). That’s relatively easy to achieve with central air conditioning. If you’re dependent on fans or window coolers, you may need to check that there’s enough air circulation, for instance leaving enough of a gap between your TV, the wall, and/or other electronics. Minimize direct sun exposure, too. Install curtains or blinds if you have to.
Moisture is often ignored when it comes to longevity. The key is balance — excessive dryness increases the risk of static shock, while excessive humidity will corrode components. Block unwanted sources of moisture, and consider buying a humidifier or dehumidifier if you can’t seem to get things under control.
Dust, lint, and other debris
It’s not just about aesthetics
You can’t have a completely dust-free TV. If a significant layer accumulates over vents and other surfaces, however, that can trap the heat I’ve warned about. At the same time, it worsens the chances of severe static shock, even if it’s dry air and friction that actually produces a discharge. For both reasons, you should be dusting off your TV several times per year.
Dust, lint, grime, and other forms of debris can also accumulate in ports, blocking signals. Inspect HDMI and USB inputs every now and then. Should cleaning be called for, swipe a port with soft-tipped tools that won’t leave any fibers behind. Remember to be gentle — if you damage contacts, the only way of fixing a port might be to replace it.
Shrinking storage, neglected caches, and background processes
How many apps do you really need?
Although a TV might throttle speeds if it starts to overheat, slowdowns are more likely to stem from memory-related issues. Google-based TVs tend not to have more than 16GB of storage, a good chunk of which is taken up by the operating system. If you install too many apps, you’ll encroach on swap space, forcing your TV to swap temporary files in and out more frequently. Deleting apps you’re no longer using (or never used) should smooth things out by keeping as much space open as possible.
App caches occupy storage too, but the main reason to flush them is to prevent issues related to corrupt, outdated, or otherwise redundant files. If those crop up, there’s a risk of glitches or outright crashes, never mind performance setbacks. On many Google TVs, you should be able to clear all app caches at once by going to Settings -> System -> Storage -> Internal shared storage -> Cached data. You should do this once per month, or more often if you feel like it.
You should also be rebooting your TV on a similar timeframe. That purges system-level caches, and restarts background processes with a clean slate. That second point is important, since processes can potentially get stuck, or hog some of your TV’s very limited RAM.
