My Sony Bravia has plenty of ports included on the back, and for the longest time, I was only interested in the HDMI ports. I use my eARC port as well as the other HDMI 2.1 port to get the most performance out of my Dolby Atmos sound system and Xbox Series X respectively. While it’s important to know what HDMI port is what, and what your eARC port is actually for, there are other ports you should be aware of.
Your Ethernet port is important, your headphone jack is important, and yes, your USB port is important. Most USB ports you find on a TV will be 2.0 ports, and while that’s not the newest standard available, it’s perfectly serviceable for a TV. I don’t need blazing fast speeds on my TV, but I’d like something that’s able to read a hard drive. Fortunately, the 2.0 port is more than enough for that, and I plugged in a portable SSD and fired up the de-specialized edition of Star Wars without a problem at all. It actually worked so well that I couldn’t believe I hadn’t done it earlier.
Smart TV trivia
The ultimate challenge
From streaming apps to display tech — find out how much you really know
about smart TVs.
BrandsTechnologyStreamingHistoryFeatures
Which company is widely credited with launching one of the first internet-connected
smart TVs for consumers, back in 2007?
Correct! HP launched the MediaSmart TV in 2007, one of the earliest
consumer televisions with built-in internet connectivity. It could stream content and sync with a home
PC, setting the stage for the smart TV era we know today.
Not quite — it was actually HP with the MediaSmart TV in 2007. While
Samsung and LG would go on to dominate the smart TV market, HP was an early pioneer in bringing internet
features to the living room television.
What is the name of Samsung’s proprietary smart TV operating system, used across its
modern television lineup?
Correct! Samsung uses Tizen OS on its smart TVs. Originally developed as
a broader mobile and embedded OS, Tizen became Samsung’s platform of choice for its televisions and
powers the interface across its entire modern TV range.
Not quite — Samsung’s smart TVs run on Tizen OS. WebOS is used by LG,
while Vidaa is Hisense’s platform. Tizen gives Samsung full control over the interface, app ecosystem,
and smart home integration on its televisions.
Which smart TV platform is developed and maintained by Roku, available both on Roku
devices and licensed to third-party TV manufacturers?
Correct! Roku OS powers both Roku’s own streaming sticks and boxes, as
well as TVs from brands like TCL and Hisense that license the platform. It’s one of the most popular
smart TV operating systems in the United States.
Not quite — Roku’s platform is called Roku OS. SmartCast is Vizio’s
system, Fire TV is Amazon’s platform, and Android TV is Google’s offering. Roku OS is notable for its
simple interface and broad app support across multiple TV brands.
What does the acronym OLED stand for in the context of premium smart TV display
technology?
Correct! OLED stands for Organic Light-Emitting Diode. Each pixel in an
OLED panel produces its own light and can switch off individually, enabling perfect black levels and
infinite contrast ratios — one of the reasons OLED TVs are prized for picture quality.
Not quite — OLED stands for Organic Light-Emitting Diode. The ‘organic’
refers to the carbon-based compounds used in the emissive layer. Unlike traditional LCD panels that rely
on a backlight, OLED pixels are self-emissive, which is what gives OLED TVs their exceptional contrast
and deep blacks.
Which smart TV feature allows a compatible smartphone screen to be wirelessly
mirrored to the television using a standard built into Android devices?
Correct! Miracast is a wireless display standard built into many Android
devices that allows screen mirroring directly to a compatible smart TV. Unlike Chromecast, which streams
content from the cloud, Miracast creates a direct peer-to-peer wireless connection between the phone and
TV.
Not quite — the answer is Miracast. AirPlay is Apple’s equivalent
technology, Chromecast casts specific content rather than mirroring the full screen, and DLNA is a media
sharing protocol. Miracast is the Wi-Fi Alliance standard that Android devices use for wireless screen
mirroring.
LG’s premium smart TV lineup, known for its OLED panels and webOS platform, uses
what brand name for its top-tier OLED series?
Correct! LG brands its premium OLED panels as OLED evo, a term
introduced to highlight improved brightness and picture processing compared to earlier OLED generations.
The evo panel is found in LG’s C, G, and Z series televisions and represents the top of the company’s
display technology.
Not quite — LG calls its premium OLED panel technology OLED evo.
NanoCell and QNED are LG’s LCD-based technologies, while LG Signature is an ultra-premium brand
umbrella. OLED evo specifically refers to the improved panel tech that delivers higher brightness than
traditional OLED displays.
Amazon’s smart TV operating system, found on its Fire TV Edition televisions and
streaming sticks, is based on which underlying platform?
Correct! Amazon’s Fire TV OS is built on a heavily modified fork of
Android. While it doesn’t include Google’s apps or the Play Store, the underlying architecture is
Android-based, which is why some Fire TV devices can sideload Android APK files.
Not quite — Fire TV OS is built on top of Android, though Amazon heavily
customises it and removes all Google services. This Android foundation means the platform shares some
compatibility with Android apps, even if access to the Google Play Store is not included by default.
What is the maximum refresh rate, in Hz, that the HDMI 2.1 specification supports at
4K resolution — a key feature for gaming on modern smart TVs?
Correct! HDMI 2.1 supports 4K resolution at up to 120Hz, which is a
significant step up from the 60Hz cap of HDMI 2.0. This makes HDMI 2.1 ports essential for gamers using
a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X, as both consoles can output 4K at 120 frames per second.
Not quite — HDMI 2.1 supports 4K at up to 120Hz. While HDMI 2.1 can
technically handle 144Hz and beyond at lower resolutions, the headline gaming spec for 4K is 120Hz. This
is why smart TV manufacturers specifically highlight HDMI 2.1 ports as a selling point for next-gen
console gaming.
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Your USB port is a nice way to watch things that aren’t on streaming
Don’t sleep on this port
What surprised me is that even old TVs have USB ports. I have a Samsung TV from over 10 years ago in my basement that I used to have a USB-powered Roku Streaming Stick plugged into. I kept getting a warning telling me there’s not enough power from the USB port, so I eventually moved it to a wall outlet, but the point is that these USB ports have been around for a long time now.
My Bravia is much newer than that Samsung, and plugging in an SSD didn’t give me any error codes. In fact, I was shocked by how easy it was to navigate to everything loaded on the SSD. It was as simple as plugging it in and hitting a few buttons. I don’t use my SSD often, but any of the times I have needed to use it with my TV, it’s been a breeze. If you have a flash drive or portable hard drive lying around, I would recommend putting something on it to watch on your TV. It’s as painless as it gets, and if you don’t want to bring your TV online for whatever reason, a flash drive is a good workaround for that.
I think it’s especially useful because it lets you watch things that you have in your collection that aren’t on streaming. In my scenario, it’s the theatrical Star Wars cut — although that one might be getting closer to an official release thanks to its re-release in theaters next year for the 50th anniversary. My point is that you can load up whatever you want on your flash drive or hard drive and watch it on your TV. It doesn’t even have to be movies or TV shows. You can make a slideshow of pictures to have played in the background during a party, or you could have a playlist of music going without having to use Spotify at all.
The downside is that unless you have an extra hard drive lying around, they’re sort of expensive to get these days. I was lucky enough to have a spare 500 GB portable SSD, something that costs $100 these days. You can always get a smaller flash drive and save yourself a fair amount of cash. I’d say that’s the better route forward for most people, especially if you don’t plan to use it for anything other than your TV.
TV ports have more uses than you’d think
More than an HDMI port machine
It’s shocking to know that your TV can do more than just display picture and play audio through your HDMI ports, but it’s true. The USB port is especially useful, and I was surprised to learn how versatile it can be. Not only can I plug in hard drives, but I can use it to power other devices. Some modern streaming sticks, like that Roku Streaming Stick I mentioned earlier, can be powered entirely by the TV.
A set of bias lighting is good for when your USB isn’t in use by a hard drive. The way these work is that a string of lights attach to the back of your TV and get powered by the USB port. Nice pairs can automatically adapt to the movie playing on the screen, and they compliment movie nights quite well. They’re not for everybody because some people find them to be too distracting, but that’s not the case for me. If you don’t like them while watching a movie, you can always turn them off. The downside is that you’ll have to unplug them in favor of a hard drive when you plan to use one, unless your TV has two USB ports.
