A homemade smart TV can be created by simply attaching a laptop to the back of the TV
With a smart TV equipped with Internet connectivity, you can use video streaming services such as YouTube and browse photo albums. Software engineer Carl succeeded in building his own smart TV by 'fixing a laptop to the back of the TV'.
Creating My Own Linux-Based Smart TV
Below is the smart TV that Carl built himself. In addition to icons for video streaming services such as YouTube and Netflix, there are icons for accessing the news sharing site Hacker News on the screen. The TV itself is a Samsung smart TV, but the built-in smart TV function is not used, and the screen of the smart TV system that Carl built himself is displayed. In addition, he bought a Samsung smart TV because it was on sale cheaply on Black Friday, and he didn't have any particular preference.
The identity of the smart TV system is as follows. A laptop is fixed to the back of the TV and the screen is output from the laptop to the TV. The Linux distribution Debian is installed on the laptop, and the window manager uses the tiled window manager
The laptop keyboard is said to be inoperable after Earl Grey tea was spilled on it a few years ago, which is why the smart TV system is called 'EarlGreyTV.'
Smart TVs are controlled using a wireless mouse called the WECHIP W3, which resembles a remote control. The WECHIP W3 is a device that allows you to control the mouse pointer by shaking the device like a Wii remote control, and it also has a keyboard on the back.
You can see how to actually operate a smart TV with WECHIP W3 from
Showing my custom smart TV - EarlGreyTV - YouTube
Using the HDMI-CEC adapter, you can also achieve the function 'When you suspend your PC, the smart TV screen turns off, and when you start your PC, the smart TV screen turns on.'
He also created a shortcut in the iPhone's 'Shortcuts' app that 'sends the URL of the web page you're viewing to your smart TV.' Carl boasts that this shortcut is a simple casting function.
The source code and configuration instructions for EarlGreyTV are available at the following link.
GitHub - carltheperson/earlgreytv: The guide and source code for my custom smart TV
https://github.com/carltheperson/earlgreytv
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