Posted on 08/08/2016 9:48:33 AM PDT by C19fan
Amazon surprised a lot of people when its Echo, a $180 so-called smart speaker, became a hit, giving them a novel way to play music, turn on the lights in their homes and set thermostats with voice commands.
Amazon, though, has much bigger plans for the technology behind Echo. It wants the Alexa Voice Service, which powers Echo, to be an ingredient in devices around the home and beyond, even if they arent made by Amazon.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Star Trek? I was thinking more along the lines of Back to the Future II.
And then if she can drive him to the hardware store that would be gravy. THAT is a scary Mr. Magoo episode each time.
“No thanks. Not too thrilled to open up the house to hackers and surveillance.” and worse.
Two years ago we got new AC’s and heaters for our home, and our contractor recommended the Nest for the area we spend most of our time. He said never to connect it to our wife, or we would be inviting thugs/thieves and worse into our home re controlling its temps and knowing when we were not home.
He apparently had some drive by wifi thugs get control of the Nests in two house he had refabbed. They caused all sorts of problems from turning on the heat or ac when not needed.
Typos can be funny sometimes.
Auto correct with some apps can be funny or not so!
And then if she can drive him to the hardware store that would be gravy. THAT is a scary Mr. Magoo episode each time.
...
Is he driving? I remember Mr. Magoo driving in the opening credits. ROADHOG!
As we get more and more automated stuff in our homes centralized control gets to be a better and better idea. I spent 20 minutes yesterday trying to find the control for our irrigation system, nondescript grey boxes are everywhere. Of course that centralized control needs to be done competently.
That sounds like a problem with the Nest. They need to improve their security. Biggest problem with the internet of things idea is all the appliance companies have never thought about security before and see their connection as just another control surface.
Correct...this is a perfect way to setup a home infiltration.
Plus, since you are pass the router, you have access to anything on the WiFi.
Hmmm, does it come with photon torpedoes and phasers?
It’s an Imperial Spy Drone.
They always try to sell BIG BROTHER STUFF aS good thing why they spy on you.
today autocorrect spelling
tomorrow autocorrect thoughts
Just because Hillary can short circuit, doesn’t mean your wife will.
I just recently got a Rachio smart irrigation system. The physical installation took me 10 minutes. There are no buttons on the panel, it just hooks up to the wifi and everything is controlled thru the app. I even have mine linked up with our Amazon Echo and can command it to “water Zone X for Y minutes” or “don’t water today”...very convenient.
The app interface is great, and when you do the initial setup it asks a series of questions for each zone, such as hours of sunlight per day, lawn slope vs sprinkler head (away from, flat, or towards), soil type, grass type, etc. It can make seasonal adjustments automatically, and it uses data from the nearest weather station to determine whether to skip a scheduled watering if it has already rained (or is expected to rain) that day. I even get an app alert when the water starts and when it finishes, or if it is skipped due to weather. (Any of these features can be overridden.)
I just installed it ~3 weeks ago, but I’m expecting to see big savings...I bet it pays for itself in a year or so!
Ping me when it can handle commands like “Echo, electrocute that burglar”.
tomorrow autocorrect PC thoughts!
At times Google does this on what is not a PC search request.
Amazing how one wifi got through as wife and another was wifi.
My wife hates computers and texts with her Android smart phone to keep up with multiple family members and friends.
So, I’m responsible for maintaining her Android and its wifi for my wife.
No way, could we connect our Nest to my wife!:)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.