Alternatively, dns block the update domains, wait a few months to few years for someone to discover an exploit for rooting, root and sideload.
Usually I require a root cert so devices can have their traffic inspected or be isolated into an unsafe network where most nonessential traffic is blocked by default. I suppose letting an iot device connect will become more risky in the future when I can't control the dns resolver or can't confidently block requests through dns alone.