[SOLVED] is LTT a good channel?

"Quality clickbait" is the best description I have.

It's an entertaining channel, prone to reviewing flashy stuff, rather than useful tips as the name might suggest. But not completely stupid, those guys have some knowledge and skills to back it up.

I can't say how it changed over time, I've only watched them occasionally over the last 2-3 years.

I used to watch them, but overtime they've become super corporate with none of the authenticity of the older videos; and also basically everyone I used to watch for has left.

Then there was the whole situation with the sexual harrasment stuff that just put the final nail in the coffin for me.

Every time it appears now in my feed its just so clearly clickbait view slop with no personality. They haven't done anything like the large-scale projects like they used to in a long time.

LTT is not a serious tech channel. Its a guy doing anything he can to get views with tech themed content.

He hate unions. Doesn't pay his workers fairly. Drives a porsche. Has a private jet. Knew that honey was scamming him with the last click affiliate links switcheroo and instead of exposing them he quietly ended there sponsorship with them.

Also the 2 - 3 sponsor breaks plus the "at ltt store dot com" self promotion every 5 minutes really makes the videos unbearable to watch even with sponsor block.

Let alone all the non compete shit with his workers as well as the working atmosphere that was reported by some of the workers.

watch the video of linus buying a private jet and see if that's the kind of guy you wanna support

Most of the comments here are very wrong, assuming the worst, or deliberately have their head in the sand about some of the controversies and the reality of those situations.

LTT is casual-ish tech - not as mainstream casual as MKBHD ot UrAvgConsumer, but way more casual than say, Craft Computing.

I consume a ludicrous amount (and wide range) of TechTube and have seen plenty of controversies and have ditched plenty of channels due to scandals. GamersNexus used to be a favorite. Emphasis on past tense. They did a lot of deliberate hit pieces on LTT and it's rather well documented - Zip Tie Tuning/Tech by Alex has a fantastic video shedding light on the misbehavior of GamersNexus - plenty of other folks also covered their motivations and unfair approach. Linus is a character - and definitely can be emotional - but his dialogue attempts with Steve were commendable - Steve just decided to be a whiny baby instead. Self-stylized "journalist" one might say.

Controversies fanned by GN are what rendered a lot of people anti-LTT, and unable to rectify their views once the attacks impacted. LTT had plenty to criticize (and I do), but the GN attack topics were not them.

I almost ditched LTT and boycotted them after all those attacks. But once the smoke cleared and reality made itself known, I was pleasantly surprised to have not knee-jerk reacted.

LTT like all channels is beholden to nonsense algorithmic marketing that all channels suffer, so I've noted more clickbaity behavior in recent videos.

I'm a far-left, pro-union, Linux-loving, Windows-hating, Apple-hating, Big Tech-hating, anti-sexual assault, anti-billionaire, pro-little guy type of person.

I consider LTT to be edutainment with more good impact than bad. They'll suffer some of the pitfalls of capitalism with some aggressive marketing. They'll naturally need to compete in the YT space. But the characters running the show seem to have their heads screwed on right and their morals in a good place. They will make mistakes. The WAN show sheds light on it - including at times Linus' difficulty in handling blame. But he also often comes around - and all things considered I'm not too mad about that as his primary negative trait.

I don't love the private plane purchase but there's so much more nuance to that with an intended sell of it than others give allowance to understand.

Also I'd be remiss if I didn't highlight Linus' pro-trans (and broadly, LGBTQ+) approach - his support/ready defense of Emily when she came out was great to see.

LTT owns a private jet.

Since Dec 2025, it has emitted 339.6 t CO₂ — 71x the average person's annual carbon footprint.

Commercial would've been 7.1 t.

I'm pretty sure Linus doesn't know how to use a computer.
Hardware-wise, he knows how to put things together and modify it to suit his purpose but when it comes to installing and using software, he has no fucking idea what he's doing.

The two Linux challenges that he has participated in has made this clear for most of us Linux users...
But it's not just Linux he struggles with, he makes all the same fails with windows all the time.

"The Problem with Linus Tech Tips: Accuracy, Ethics, & Responsibility" (44:14mins) by Gamers Nexus on August 14, 2023: YouTube or Invidious or Internet Archive

This video is not monetized. This video covers our serious concerns regarding the data accuracy of Linus Media Group, including Linus Tech Tips, ShortCircuit, and TechQuickie, particularly as it relates to rushing content out the door to favor -- by staff's own admission -- quantity over quality. As the company continues to expand into its LTT Labs direction, the importance of accurate data increases; however, even as 'only' entertainment, there are still certain responsibilities to the consumer and the manufacturers to report fairly (and to have defined corrections processes in place). We tried to approach this as objectively as possible and hope that viewers are able to listen to the evidence we present, particularly as it relates to significant and frequent data errors that now present in nearly every technical review video.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - The Last 2 Weeks
01:40 - LMG is Rushing Too Much: Establishing the Premise
03:48 - LTT's Own Employees Agree
06:58 - This Isn't "Drama" & Risks
09:05 - Bad Data from Linus Tech Tips
10:12 - GPU Review Errors
15:02 - CPU Cooler Test Errors
19:09 - PSU Review Errors
19:53 - CPU Review Errors
22:39 - Asterisked Errors
26:15 - Ethical Concerns: Irresponsible Actions & Conflicts
28:21 - Ethical Concerns: The Review of Billet Labs
34:49 - Ethical Concerns: 'Not-Review' of Pwnage Mouse
36:53 - UNACCEPTABLE & The Community is Disturbing
39:22 - Unfair to Consumers, Manufacturers, & Reviewers

New video after Linus Tech Tips responds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3byz3txpso (only from 00:48 to 12:57 part)

I'd say there are better tech youtubers out there that you should watch instead, such as Jeff Geerling. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsd6hP-zzIkCpw8XGw7Osyw

No. Fell off a very long time ago.

A lot of people interested in tech end up watching at least one of his channels due to internet searches confusing 'best' with 'biggest'.

You will make your own mind up one way, or the other.

Linus is a trashtuber.

Thin education through entertainment, passing as tech and product reviews. Quality is subjective, but they are the bare minimum right after mkbhd/marques brownlee.

Its just tech entertainment with surface level knowledge at most nothing useful but the vids are fun to watch while I eat something

Good for entertainment. Never take anything they say seriously.

LTT always seemed like somebody who doesn't know wtf they're talking about, but pretends to and appeals to people who know even less to make them feel smart. I can't stand the dude.

I don't like Linus, the channel's content is half-assed at best, and there is so much sponsored content and self-promotion that it feels more like a 'skip-the-ads' game.

On the flip side I think it's good that they shit on Microslop regularly and steer their audience towards Linux. With such a huge 'normie' audience, they are helping introduce those normies to the existence of alternative operating systems and apps. Their videos can have momenta that make me smork (either because of something titanically stupid or something clownish). Additionally, I've seen some videos of them that have alerted to new projects, hardware or even situations in the tech environment (which I then research in other places, of course).

I have nothing to say about private jet, political views or orientations.

I have a relatively positive view on LTT compared to others here.

You can't succeed on youtube without engaging in some of their clickbait bullshit thumbnails and titles. Although they're relatively honest in actually covering what they say in the title..... So over dramatic titles, but not quite click bait.

No content can be all things to all people. LTT is relatively "casual techy". If you're techy enough to be able to manage Linux yourself, then it's probably not for you. You don't need then to show you how to put a PC together, or to break the news to you that self hosting or home network storage is a thing.

The content also aimed at a certain audience. If you want more academic hardware testing and analysis, then there's Gamers Nexus. If you want in depth gaming news/analysis then there are better channels for that too. These guys look at random tech at times too (car related or making craft art cushions or something). These guys are basically the "Top Gear with Jeremy Clarkson" of tech.

Things like the sexual harassment issue and things like that, I'm not as concerned about. If you work in big corporations then you know these problems exist everywhere, what matters is how you deal with them. The court of public opinion followed the drama and came to their own conclusions. This just plays out publically because they're very public with their content.

As for Linux specifically, they did some noob videos where uninitiated staff tried to jump into Linux and hit a bunch of roadbumps (which happens often in Windows transition, fine to be open about that, but it also isn't a big deal for the first adoption to need troubleshooting). They labelled Linux as no good for regular use at that point which angered the internet. Since then I think they've realised:

1. They were unfair to Linux
2. They've made no allies anywhere by hating on Linux
3. It's a free win for them if they say some good things about Linux.

So now they seem a lot more positive about Linux. But don't go here looking for anything Linux related.

I think you should just watch some of their videos from main LTT, short circuit, etc and see if you find it entertaining for yourself.

It used to be yes. No, not anymore really.

Imho they are first and foremost entertainment. If you take it as such, it's fun. Although as others mentioned it has a bit downward tendency. I think Linus, Luke and others are intelligent, reasonable people and that makes it easier to stick to watching them. True that Linus is sometimes impatient, we all saw his Linux challenges 😅 but they are ok

Despite all the criticism against them that I agree with I still personally like then and click in their videos every now and then.

What I appreciate the most is the are constantly pushing Linux often even if they are misguided, and they have a large audience of rather normal people.

I do think they are positively contributing to linuxs growth, and helps normalize devices like the steam deck.

We need more casual stupid users for Linux to ever hit the year of the desktop.

Linus ≠ Linux

Entertaining, sometimes.

Useful, not really.

It is very click-baitybas many others have said. I can't expect them to be the most knowledgeable on everything (or anything...) But watching their Linux videos they've been releasing have been nothing shy of facepalm after facepalm. Sure, there are a few useful nuggets of info in there but I wouldn't take anything they say aa gospel.

Its for entertainment purposes and not for in-depth information.

I can get behind them exposing Linux to new users through their channel. But they could do it better.

If you need a financing plan for a private jet, no.

I overall like it for entertainment. As far as I can tell, through the years of "scandals", Linus doesn't seem like a bad person. Just a person who means well but makes human mistakes sometimes.

They are more entertainment and light education. They are trying to target a very wide audience, so they can't really do deep on things. For actually learning I like LearnLinuxTV and LawrenceSystems.

It's fine as entertainment, I just don't take it too seriously

No, he's pretty much an idiot.

Linus Sex Tips

Eh. Entertaining but it's not informing relating to linux.

Like Pewdiepie, they simply know how to game the algorithm.

No.

I used to watch Emily's videos but she's gone now.

ABSOLUTELY NOT!!
He is a fraud who use hidden advertisement. Apart from that he is an idiot, who will push false information people fall for.
Almost the entirety of the content originally was product placement. Which is why if you go back to the beginning almost everything he reviewed was amazing!!
NEVER NEVER NEVER trust him.

Just his moronic ignorant approach to Linux should be telling that he is still a tech moron. Even now that he has economic independence to actually make quality content if he wanted.
Instead he is complaining that Linux doesn't support hardware, when it's the hardware that doesn't support Linux. He can't even understand basic logic. It is not up to "Linux" to write a driver, it is up to the hardware manufacturer. And that is also how it works on Windows. But "Linux" doesn't give him money. On Windows manufacturers even pay to have these drivers certified! So first they write the driver, then they pay Microsoft to certify them.

Just seeing his channel mentioned pisses me off, because his popularity is harmful to the industry. Watch LTT and leave worse informed than you were before watching that crap.
I have had ALL his channels blocked for years. Because everything he makes is worthless because you can't trust any of it, because he is both ignorant and 100% a commercial channel.

If you want real info, watch Gamers Nexus, Hardware unboxed, and similar channels, that are known for their integrity.

It's basically "I heart Carlie" but it's a dude in Vancouver...

My impression - not necessarily based on fact:

he used to do good, useful, interesting videos back in the day...

then he found he was getting a good income from yoochoob...

then he started chasing the click bait

If he's doing anything useful now, I'd expect it's because he's lost a lot of viewers (income) ... I don't watch his new stuff, the thumbnails still look clickbaity to me, but maybe he's going back to his original content...?

To answer your implied question, I don't subscribe to anyone. I just search around for whoever's talking about the thing I'm now interested in (usually Lemmy's the source of the new thing)... I check in with Tom Lawrence (Lawrence Systems) often, but that's about it.

I think it depends a bit on what you're looking for. If you want Linux content, LTT might not be your thing. Linus is a bit of a notorious Windows user. They did a few videos on Linux, but that's not really what the channel is about. I don't think they're bad people, though. I'm not aware of any constant controversies. There might be some drama here and there, idk.

It's a bit below my paygrade, so I don't watch them often. I'm not into building new computers every few weeks, gaming, or optimizing my Windows file transfer speeds. And I don't think I'm their target audience when it comes to explaining computers. I already know all the stuff they explain and some more. The episode featuring Linus Torvalds was great, though!

(Edit: But yeah, thinking of it, maybe skip their Linux videos. I remember disagreeing a lot with how they portray stuff. Especially the older videos barely scratch the surface and I think some stuff Linus says is plain wrong. They have one dude in the team who uses Linux and knows what they're talking about. But that person doesn't get a lot of screentime.)

For Linux? Not at all.
For PC related tech? Well, I find it entertaining, but I don't find their content useful anymore.

Just watch The Linux Experiment

Most of the hate comes from Gamers Nexus, which is an extremely self-indulgent, self-aggrandizing YouTube that seems to pick fights with everyone and treats the Rampocalypse like every board partner is at fault. He is an expert at making hay.

I wish someone could give him a hair scrunchy.

I got into following the channel rather late, like, around 2017.

Linus has absolutely said some cavalier things, and his channel has a strong history if admitting their faults when they are called out.

They mostly stay in their own lane and don't go picking fights, plus as a policy they don't sue people they don't have to, even when slandered, so being as popular as they are and being as passive as they are, thsts a pretty big bulls eye on their backs.

Tl:Dr - - nothing reprehensible about the channel, just very advertiser-friendly and easy to snark on.

They are run of the mill. Like other trash tech creators they removed out and actively avoid mentioning anything related to Israel.

If you want a good personality check out Eli The Computer Guy