need a new lounge tv! smart one or normal one??

[sideshowbob2]

i have a toshiba 32" HD ready tv with 3 HDMI ports and a PC port, unfortunately its developed mountains across the middle of the screen is the only way to describe them, which looks like a water stain travelling up the screen, so seeing as i am due some redundancy money later this year i'm looking to replace it, but not sure whether to get a smart tv or a normal one??
all help and advise welcome!!

[Cindy34]

Normal. Then add a smart stick like Amazon Fire TV or ChromeCast. That way you can easily upgrade again when the next technology gets released. The smart stick will only cost around £30-40.

[sideshowbob2]

yes i've heard about the chromecast sticks but don't really understand what they do??
all i know is that you connect to wi fi
can you give me more information please!

[OMGtwins]

Chromecasts work with android phones and allow you to cast the picture/sound on the phone to the TV. So you can use BBC iPlayer (and many more apps) and cast them to the TV screen via the Chromecast so long as it and your phone are on the same network.

[nannynick]

Amazon Fire TV Stick allows you to watch iPlayer, Netflix, Amazon Instant (prime and rental), controlled with a remote control (or you can use an App on a phone or tablet). It is designed for use with Amazon Prime Video, so if you do not have that then it may not be so useful.

Personally I have a Smart TV which for the last 18+ months has not had it's ethernet connection as I got fed up of it's remote control being so sluggish.
Instead I use an Apple TV box (I use it mostly for Netflix) and I use apps on an iPad which I 'broadcast' to the box - such as iPlayer, Amazon Prime Video. The stick things were not available when I brought my Apple box, so I view the sticks as being a cheaper version of the box (though they do the things most people including me actually use the box to do).

Why do you want a Smart TV and what would you actually use it for? Do you have subscriptions to any particular movie rental platforms currently?