How do we feel about smart homes?

This
They're great in theory, but the reality is they're just ways to collect more data from you. Get rid of the data harvesting and I'd get a bunch of smart home shit.

ive had a xiaomi smart bulb for a year now and it's an absolute meme tbqh

It's absolutely stupid, relies on a constant connection to a server and also steals your data.

the tool shit actually makes sense since many bolts on the car need very specific torques.

surveillance freak's wet dream

holy fuck take me back

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Good idea in theory, pretty much every execution is poor though. Too many standards that don't inter-operate as well as just plain shit products.

While I agree that smart appliances are a meme they are helping the disabled which is something of a win since nobody ever makes shit for them.

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they're just a way to sell devices that spy on users. Tell me what benefit a consmer can get from an echo or google home that they can't get from the smart phone they already have and the bluetooth speaker they already have

I got Google Home in alpha and Amazon Echo in beta. I have two Nest cams, a SimpliSafe security system, and a couple of WeMo and Eufy light switches.

Here are my observations:
>Nest cams are nice for peace of mind, but not useful otherwise
>Echo is useless. It can sort of play music and set timers, but it will never do anything you didn't already know was supported
>Automatic lights are useless unless you get all of them so you don't have to do a round at night
>Google Home is the most useful. It keeps surprising me with what it can do. Yesterday I was playing and asked "hey google, how long is winter in Don't Starve Together" and it actually answered

I sell these at work and they're nowhere near accurate enough to replace a torque wrench.

Smart homes are a cool idea but having every device in the system connected to the internet is really fucking dumb. Especially when you're doing it over some company's spy box

>opens your front door in 5 seconds with pocket screwdriver

There's an episode of the x-files that sums it up rather nicely.

>You're gonna be spied and data-mined and you're gonna pay for it!

>washing machine
My parents bought an LG (half-) smart washing machine and it's utterly fucking stupid and retarded. It has no WiFi, but has an NFC reader. The way it works it that there's a dial on its controller with I don't know, maybe 12 programs or so. But the 12th program enables the NFC option. For this, you have to install a garbage app on your phone and in it you can select one from some the 20 or so pre defined programs (so in essence it means you have now 31 programs total, 11 and 20 additional in the phone). And you can't even make a personal program where you would define how long each cycle lasts or whatever else. No, you can only select one of the pre defined programs. And that's it. That's one of the selling points of that shitty washing machine. LG could have just installed a dial with 31 options on the machine itself, but no, you have to use your phone to select the additional 20 programs. I still can't wrap my head around it.

Cont.

Oh and the best part is, we use an older spare phone for this, but if you don't update the LG app for a long time, it stops working. It also needs Internet connection otherwise the app won't start.

Mine is like that but with a tumblr dryer. It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

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I've never felt so old until I saw this image, fucking hell I need to get my shit together.

neat if done correctly
this whole botnet of things is quite terrifying on the other hand

I don't see the point. I picked up a cheap TV today and found it is very insistent on making DNS requests to their home base. Funny thing was, I set it to use my DNS server, it continues to use 8.8.8.8 despite being told to use a different server. Just blocked that at the UTM to stop that shit.

Used to be a huge autamtization/smart home freak.
Then after I spent way too much money on it, and barely used it, I realized it's bullshit.
Still use it for light switches, but that's it

It's great, now I can re-order tissues and vaseline without getting off my worthless fat ass!

Alexa, call my doctor and schedule a house call, I need the bedsores on my ass redressed! Also, we need more paper towels!!

The entire concept is dumb, useless to me. If I want a light on I can flip a switch, I don't want to wait for a screen to boot. Waste of electricity compared to mechanically controlled.

I'd pay for a phone connected oven that I can set to cook from a distance such as when I'm coming home from work. But the sort of prices they require are retarded for what's essentially an electric oven with a $40 phone processor and screen on them.

I wash my clothes in a bucket. It's the only program I need. Washing machines ruin fabric.

Cool idea, but only if you build it yourself, and you know stuff about securing yourself from someone else accessing the system. Commercial systems are just a botnet.

>we
Form your own opinion, don't ask other people what you should think.

Botnet

The real use for connected homes is apparent when you're catering for someone with a disability that might impair function you're taking for granted for example, I setup a google based home for a client who was paraplegic and the ability to control his house allowed his social worker to focus on more pressing issues than turning on lights etc. For the average person it's probably gimmicky but I've seen it really help people so I have no real qualms as long as it's secure and actually being used.