3 ms·
I also have zero interest and would also be alarmed to have a bunch of transmitters and protocols and services running, possibly invisibly, in my home. However
by rsync 11y ago
I also have zero interest and would also be alarmed to have a bunch of transmitters and protocols and services running, possibly invisibly, in my home.
However, I am not particularly worried and that is because there will always be industrial/commercial models. I know this because it is the case with flat panel displays.
We are certainly well over the transition to "smart" TVs and all of their accompanying features - you probably can't buy a single display at Best Buy that isn't "smart". However, you can also buy an extremely well built, completely dumb "signage display" (like those thin-bezel NEC models you see airports use for departure/arrival boards, or what video walls are made of).
They aren't even much more expensive, since the buyers (airports and shopping malls) need economies of scale when they are buying 200 of them at a time. They last longer, are more rugged ... and are completely dumb.
The same is true with commercial refrigerators and ranges, etc. - pro cooks in a kitchen can't be dealing with the wifi or the facebook integration.
I am very optimistic that this will always be the case and that "dumb" models will be available to smart people for a small premium.
It's also easy to predict that lack of smart features (and screens and lights and boopity-beeps) will be a subtle class distinction. When everyone in the trailer park has a flat panel on their refrigerator, you'll see them disappear from the highest end models.
- erelde 11y agoBut if that's the case, we run into a problem I saw someone write about with the ongoing Apple VS FBI case, only the "rich" would have access to strong encryption/privacy... If I remember who talked about that I'll edit this message.
- rsync 11y agoThat may be the case with privacy, or other intangibles like that, but we're talking about electronics. As I said, the airports (or the commercial kitchens, or the industrial lighting consumers) need to buy these things in bulk, so the prices get driven down. Yes, a brand new NEC displaywall panel purchased quantity 1 might cost 20% or even 100% more than a panel at best buy, but go backwards one revision and its as cheap as any electronics. In this case it's not "the rich" but rather the informed, or the savvy.
- erelde 11y agoOpinion: there's a lot of interlap between "rich" (not necessarily rich as in the "1%") and the "informed"/"educated". I think people with a will to learn often end up living comfortably, because they like learning and informing themselves.
- runjake 11y ago> you probably can't buy a single display at Best Buy that isn't "smart" I just bought a non-smart TV at Best Buy. It was somewhat difficult to discern, let alone find a non-smart model. It's do-able but your overall message is right: soon you won't. Worst, you won't even know one way or another.
- dragonwriter 11y ago> Worst, you won't even know one way or another. Perhaps there needs to be a move for mandatory labeling here. Certainly, a better case than for GMOs.
- linkregister 11y agoIs there a reason why one couldn't just buy a "smart" TV and just never connect it to WiFi? I have never used a "smart" TV, mine is a dumb TV with a Chromecast sticking out of it.