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Google is miles ahead in terms of a conversational assistant. There is a lot of friction in using voice activated services. If I have a choice of typing "Weath

Google is miles ahead in terms of a conversational assistant. There is a lot of friction in using voice activated services. If I have a choice of typing "Weather in XXXXX zip" in the address bar vs. asking an assistant, I choose the former. Therefore, every time I use anything else but Google, I am afraid it won't recognize my command and I immediately feel like throwing that thing out of the window. I need to be 100% sure that I will get a return on my time invested when it comes to searching or asking for information. When a Google search fails in a browser, at least I have something to bite on. For other things such as timers, calendars, game scores, home lights, music - assistants are nice.

notyourwork 9y ago
"Alexa, what's the weather?" This isn't too difficult. I know Google is well off in this space but Alexa is pretty damn good too.
- Washuu 9y ago
  "Alexa, what's the weather?" It proceeds to tell me the weather for a state over. "Alexa, set my location to XXXXX." It can't do that. Actually getting correct location details requires downloading a separate smart phone application and digging through its menus to figure out how to set the location for each individual Alexa device.
  - chaostheory 9y ago
    Alexa is far from perfect, but it has weather down. Things may have changed or my memory is imperfect, but one of the first things the iOS app asks you is for your home zip code. Even without that, "What's the weather in San Francisco?" works fine.
  - C14L 9y ago
    Same. Alexa insists to tell me the weather of the city I lived until a year ago. No idea how to inform her that I moved.
    - eecks 9y ago
      Gotta set it on your Alexa app or through alexa.amazon.co.uk / .com
  - slg 9y ago
    One of the biggest problems with voice assistants is that discoverability for their full feature set is awful. If you want to get the most of it, you are going to have spend some time digging through menus and learning what the device can do. I don't know why downloading an app would be a deal breaker for anyone, but all the settings and skills are also available on the web at alexa.amazon.com.
    - Washuu 9y ago
      It took six months to figure out how to get Alexa to change the temperature in the built in Echo of the Ecobee4 thermostat in my house. It would always respond with, "I didn't find any smart home devices." Turns out the Ecobee skill is not enabled by default for a device it is built into. Asking how to enable it or how to make it work lead no where as well.
  - nagVenkat 9y ago
    I was looking at an echo dot for the first time. my roommate is using it and our location is a small town 35 miles away. We tried to set the location through voice and then through the app but both didn’t work. We just gave up after wards thinking the weather should be similar.
    - StavrosK 9y ago
      For me, I went to the app and added my address, and it worked. I don't think it can set it through voice, though, you're right.
  - kodt 9y ago
    I don't think it is even possible to setup an Echo without that app, so I'm not exactly sure how downloading the app is an extra step. You would have already needed to do that to get it connected to your wifi network.
    - Washuu 9y ago
      Because I deleted the application from my iPhone after I finished setting up the wireless network. There was no reason to keep it around afterwards. I own a smart phone, but it basically just is used to make phone calls. Hacker News is the closest I come to a social network.
  - slantyyz 9y ago
    The locations and maps are a little peculiar with Alexa for me. Granted, Echo is new in Canada, so I guess it needs time. Alexa gives me my specific neighborhood as my location (as opposed to my city). The thing is, I don't really live in a big city, and I would bet that most people in my city don't know the neighborhood names. For me, it's too specific. As it relates to my city, the maps don't give common street names, but rural route numbers instead.
  - notyourwork 9y ago
    I'm not sure why Alexa doesn't support that. Funnily I tried the same when we moved states and it didn't work. For a few weeks I appended location to my intent, "Alexa, whats the weather in X?" One day complaining to my wife, and she asked Alexa how to change her location which Alexa provided a precise answer... goto Alexa app and update this setting. As others have pointed out the app is a requirement for Alexa anyway so I don't see why you are frustrated.
- pbhjpbhj 9y ago
  Hmm, works for me in UK.
discodave 9y ago
And Amazon is ahead in cash money dollars, market penetration and app/IoT integrations. Also, don't think for a second that they're lazing about and not trying to figure out how to surpass Google in the areas where they're behind.
- lern_too_spel 9y ago
  I think they're both barely better than useless, but the software for both is only going to improve. Amazon is going to hire the AI people and build up their own knowledgebase in the A9 team over the next few years, and Google is going to make the partnerships to reach third party skills parity over the next few months. The right way to choose between them is by looking at the hardware, and the reviews I've seen say that the Echo Dot is too quiet. That can't be fixed in software.
  - daveFNbuck 9y ago
    The echo dot is meant to be connected to a speaker. The built-in one is just there for basic functionality.
    - chaostheory 9y ago
      imo the Echo Dot is better for this very reason. You can hook it up to much nicer speakers compared to what comes fixed with the standard Echo.
      - portmanteaufu 9y ago
        The 2nd generation full-sized Echo has Bluetooth/line out support[1]. [1] https://www.amazon.com/All-new-Generation-improved-powered-design/dp/B0749WVS7J#compare https://www.amazon.com/All-new-Generation-improved-powered-d...
  - tedmiston 9y ago
    This is why the Echo Dot has aux out and Bluetooth built-in for external speakers.
adjkant 9y ago
When I'm rushing out of the house and would prefer to multitask tying my shoes and checking my phone, my new Google Home makes two things incredibly easy: weather and train times. That along with a good speaker connected to Spotify has been super worth it. Bonus points for connecting to Chromecast. I'm an iPhone / Mac person and the Chromecast / Home combo has made me consider what a life in the Google ecosystem would look like. Not yet ready to switch but it's priming me. Then I remember how terrible an Android is for my current setups. If they solve that issue for me, they have me.
- 659087 9y ago
  > the Chromecast / Home combo has made me consider what a life in the Google ecosystem would look like. Like living in a fish tank being filmed from all angles.
  - adjkant 9y ago
    Who cares if you're in a fish tank being filmed if the video is never viewed and the tank is in a sealed room? Where the fish tank is placed and where that video is going is important. Details matter and trying to dismiss technology with these taglines do those details a disservice. I'm an engineer myself, I am very aware of the dangers and watch closely. Right now, for my personal calculus, the benefit outweighs the risk.
- ehsankia 9y ago
  There are definitely certain things that are easier to do with voice, and certain things that are easier by touch. Voice will definitely never replace 100% of interaction, the trick is knowing where it's most useful. For example, one great example is, sometimes I'm watching something on my Chromecast and I want to skip a very specific amount. I can go "OKG, skip forward 48 seconds". Try doing that with the tiny track bar on your phone precisely...
- erikpukinskis 9y ago
  If you’re in any iMessage-only group chats, you can’t really switch to Android. Apple will just silently fail to deliver any further messages to you if you try to shut down your iMessage account. You’d have to coach each person (individually) in all of those threads to delete the thread and create a new one in order to be included again, which is a crazy barrier. Even more so if the threads are work related. I suspect Apple is in violation of federal law in this: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2511 https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2511
smileysteve 9y ago
I got a google home solely because it came w/ a hue package and tried to show it to my family. The Home couldn't hear me over itself (music) across the kitchen... My alexa can hear what I'm saying down the corridor with the shower on and much louder. It was embarassing
- adjkant 9y ago
  The mic quality is my only complaint with the Google Home (mini). I hope they fix that next model cause it's amazing otherwise.
- dawnerd 9y ago
  Interesting, I've not really had a problem with it picking up my commands from across the room when music is on, even when its playing on my nvidia shield.
- always_good 9y ago
  I'm curious, why did the package size matter?
  - dastbe 9y ago
    it wasn't a typo. hue is a phillips is a iot lighting system, and there are several packages that include a hue-enabled lightbulb.
    - deleted 9y ago
      [deleted]
  - smileysteve 9y ago
    A phillips hue bridge w/ 3 color ambiant lights + a google home.
- slantyyz 9y ago
  I find the Alexa is less accurate at recognizing commands when music or the TV is playing.
dilap 9y ago
Having to say "OK, Google" instead of just "Google" (or "Alexa") is a deal-breaker. Google's products don't feel like they are designed by humans.
- melling 9y ago
  “Hey Google” is the same number of syllables as Alexa.
  - steve_adams_86 9y ago
    Isn't it 'Okay Google'? Either way, I do find Alexa rolls off the tongue a little easier. That may be because I have trouble enunciating verbal transitions.
    - adjkant 9y ago
      It's both. It comes down to the keyword identification algorithm of course, not the design by Google. Google's decision choice was not picking a random name that can be identified but instead working in their brand name. My bet is that give it a few years and we will have custom activation words within some constraints.
      - dilap 9y ago
        Is it both? The Google Home I was playing with at my in-laws house a couple days ago definitely only seemed to respond to "OK" (people kept forgetting and using "hey", which didn't work).
        adjkant 9y ago
        Works for me, though I've trained my voice on it, so perhaps that helps. I'm 100% it's supposed to be both.
        Shoue 9y ago
        When you're setting up the Home during the training step it makes you say "Hey Google" and "Okay Google". It's definitely a bit hard to notice considering only a single word changes.
fortylove 9y ago
This sounds a bit extreme: >I need to be 100% sure that I will get a return on my time invested when it comes to searching or asking for information
- semperdark 9y ago
  It sounds extreme, but it's definitely necessary in order for a service to be treated like a tool. When was the last time your screwdriver decided to fail for undefined reasons? For that matter, how about your text editor? For something like a voice interface to become second nature, you need to deeply trust that it'll do what you expect. Work with screwdrivers enough and they become an extension of your hand.
  - fermienrico 9y ago
    I couldn't have explained it better. You've nailed the core issue - Reliability & Robustness. These attributes of a product disappear in the background when it just works. Voice activated devices, even Google assistant, are far away from the reliability/robustness we expect from a reliable tool. Therefore, they are not tools yet.
    - barrkel 9y ago
      They're completely reliable for weather, specific queries like will it rain, timers and music. That's enough to be compelling at the price level.
woolvalley 9y ago
I think a big reason why people chose the dot is the price. With a home mini you need to also buy a chromecast to use your speakers, while an echo dot has that aux out already. Music is the universal killer app of these devices. My relative after talking to me basically chose the dot because of the above reason. For myself, thats what I ended up using the dot for in my house. Music, weather, traffic & turning off some lights.
- slantyyz 9y ago
  >> while an echo dot has that aux out already. It can also stream to a bluetooth speaker.
- ehsankia 9y ago
  "I think a big reason why people chose the dot is the price." First off, while this may be true, we don't know yet. What this article says is that "Dot was the best selling product on Amazon". Google products aren't on amazon so it's not really a comparison. We'd have to get the numbers from Walmart and Target. As for AUX out, while I agree it's a shame, I don't think it impacts as many people as you imply. Chromecast by itself is also amazing value and it brings even more value to the Home mini as you can easily send netflix, youtube and music to your TV (which is connected to your sound system). While you can get away with the music, for the other actions, you would need a fire stick too.
blensor 9y ago
While those devices are far from perfect they are an evolutionary step in how people are able to interact with technology. My mother in law does not use a computer or smartphone at all, but she loves to use the Echo because it provides a familiar interface (speech) to services she would use (music, weather, casual information search). And interacting with voice assistants is a two way street in my opinion. They will get better at understanding what we want and we will adapt to phrase our questions in a way the software understands. And while I doubt us folks would use a voice assistant to query a solution for an error message on stackoverflow it still provides a convenient way to control music, lights, shutters while our hands are occupied in other ways (cooking, drawing, crafting, ...)
- k__ 9y ago
  Interesting. We have an Echo and to this day we haven't found any use for it. Talking is broadcast and most of the time we search stuff for ourself on mobile. Also, it often simply says it has no answer.
  - mcny 9y ago
    > We have an Echo and to this day we haven't found any use for it. I briefly played with the webhook in ifttt and I think the "serverless" aws or Google Cloud could use this as a custom dash button. Instead of going to a dash button and pressing it if you run out of tide, you simply say "echo, trigger detergent" or I'm thinking with custom programming, "echo, trigger [predefined post request here that starts a series of actions]"
    - rblatz 9y ago
      It also supports youbsaying Alexa order tide, or Alexa reorder tide. And she will ask you if you want to buy the most recent tide product you purchased again.
  - IgorPartola 9y ago
    Smart home control: “Alexa turn the lights on.” News. Kitchen timers. Music control. These are my most popular uses.
barrkel 9y ago
I trust Amazon more than Google, though; I both expect products to be less aggressively discontinued, and data collection to be less rapacious with Amazon. Amazon also have a known and reasonably moral means of making money. Advertising OTOH is mass manipulation. And Google have too much other information on me especially from search, I need to keep things distributed. I'm one of the people who bought my partner a Dot. It works very well for the things we've used for so far.
- xPhobophobia 9y ago
  > I trust Amazon more than Google, though I used to believe this, and I still do too some extent. Amazon won us over with a great online experience and best in class customer service. However, Amazon is on an explosive expansion phase of expanding their business and pushing vertical integration in all corners. They are rivaling any other company out there in terms of ability to mass manipulate as well. I have an undisclosed relationship to the man running Amazon India's fashion vertical, and it's easy to see Amazon's position rivaling Google in terms of that feeling of "Google having too much information". In the end, as I said I still agree with you with Google having to much information (I rely on Google apps and Android to this day), and that diversifying where that information is being gathered and classified is one of the few ways of both using these handy products and impeding companies knowing more about me than I know (a la Netflix video recommendations). Amazon is now yet another giant to be weary of.
- bsenftner 9y ago
  Trusting a corporation, any corporation, is a bad idea. There is nothing there to trust; any ethical behavior by a corporation is a calculated behavior, executed purely for the maximization of profits. Hell, working for a corporation should be viewed as a calculated behavior, as one is working for an entity with a legally mandated anti-human profit incentive. Speaking as a person with a graduate degree in economics, we're on a bad path that needs to be revised soon, or Fermi's Paradox of technological destruction will be our fate.
  - barrkel 9y ago
    Trust isn't binary. You need to trust a corporation to use any of their products that aren't solely disconnected goods that can be independently tested. That trust isn't absolute; it's relative. And that's my point: my trust in Amazon is slightly higher than Google.
jacksmith21006 9y ago
Agree. Had an echo since late 2014 when it came out and now several Google homes. The echo requires rigid language or basically commands you have to memorize to use. The Google home supports natural language for most things. I think of the Echo like a command line interface and the Google home like a GUI.

notyourwork 9y ago

"Alexa, what's the weather?" This isn't too difficult. I know Google is well off in this space but Alexa is pretty damn good too.

Washuu 9y ago
"Alexa, what's the weather?" It proceeds to tell me the weather for a state over. "Alexa, set my location to XXXXX." It can't do that. Actually getting correct location details requires downloading a separate smart phone application and digging through its menus to figure out how to set the location for each individual Alexa device.
- chaostheory 9y ago
  Alexa is far from perfect, but it has weather down. Things may have changed or my memory is imperfect, but one of the first things the iOS app asks you is for your home zip code. Even without that, "What's the weather in San Francisco?" works fine.
- C14L 9y ago
  Same. Alexa insists to tell me the weather of the city I lived until a year ago. No idea how to inform her that I moved.
  - eecks 9y ago
    Gotta set it on your Alexa app or through alexa.amazon.co.uk / .com
- slg 9y ago
  One of the biggest problems with voice assistants is that discoverability for their full feature set is awful. If you want to get the most of it, you are going to have spend some time digging through menus and learning what the device can do. I don't know why downloading an app would be a deal breaker for anyone, but all the settings and skills are also available on the web at alexa.amazon.com.
  - Washuu 9y ago
    It took six months to figure out how to get Alexa to change the temperature in the built in Echo of the Ecobee4 thermostat in my house. It would always respond with, "I didn't find any smart home devices." Turns out the Ecobee skill is not enabled by default for a device it is built into. Asking how to enable it or how to make it work lead no where as well.
- nagVenkat 9y ago
  I was looking at an echo dot for the first time. my roommate is using it and our location is a small town 35 miles away. We tried to set the location through voice and then through the app but both didn’t work. We just gave up after wards thinking the weather should be similar.
  - StavrosK 9y ago
    For me, I went to the app and added my address, and it worked. I don't think it can set it through voice, though, you're right.
- kodt 9y ago
  I don't think it is even possible to setup an Echo without that app, so I'm not exactly sure how downloading the app is an extra step. You would have already needed to do that to get it connected to your wifi network.
  - Washuu 9y ago
    Because I deleted the application from my iPhone after I finished setting up the wireless network. There was no reason to keep it around afterwards. I own a smart phone, but it basically just is used to make phone calls. Hacker News is the closest I come to a social network.
- slantyyz 9y ago
  The locations and maps are a little peculiar with Alexa for me. Granted, Echo is new in Canada, so I guess it needs time. Alexa gives me my specific neighborhood as my location (as opposed to my city). The thing is, I don't really live in a big city, and I would bet that most people in my city don't know the neighborhood names. For me, it's too specific. As it relates to my city, the maps don't give common street names, but rural route numbers instead.
- notyourwork 9y ago
  I'm not sure why Alexa doesn't support that. Funnily I tried the same when we moved states and it didn't work. For a few weeks I appended location to my intent, "Alexa, whats the weather in X?" One day complaining to my wife, and she asked Alexa how to change her location which Alexa provided a precise answer... goto Alexa app and update this setting. As others have pointed out the app is a requirement for Alexa anyway so I don't see why you are frustrated.
pbhjpbhj 9y ago
Hmm, works for me in UK.

discodave 9y ago

And Amazon is ahead in cash money dollars, market penetration and app/IoT integrations. Also, don't think for a second that they're lazing about and not trying to figure out how to surpass Google in the areas where they're behind.

lern_too_spel 9y ago
I think they're both barely better than useless, but the software for both is only going to improve. Amazon is going to hire the AI people and build up their own knowledgebase in the A9 team over the next few years, and Google is going to make the partnerships to reach third party skills parity over the next few months. The right way to choose between them is by looking at the hardware, and the reviews I've seen say that the Echo Dot is too quiet. That can't be fixed in software.
- daveFNbuck 9y ago
  The echo dot is meant to be connected to a speaker. The built-in one is just there for basic functionality.
  - chaostheory 9y ago
    imo the Echo Dot is better for this very reason. You can hook it up to much nicer speakers compared to what comes fixed with the standard Echo.
    - portmanteaufu 9y ago
      The 2nd generation full-sized Echo has Bluetooth/line out support[1]. [1] https://www.amazon.com/All-new-Generation-improved-powered-design/dp/B0749WVS7J#compare https://www.amazon.com/All-new-Generation-improved-powered-d...
- tedmiston 9y ago
  This is why the Echo Dot has aux out and Bluetooth built-in for external speakers.

adjkant 9y ago

When I'm rushing out of the house and would prefer to multitask tying my shoes and checking my phone, my new Google Home makes two things incredibly easy: weather and train times. That along with a good speaker connected to Spotify has been super worth it. Bonus points for connecting to Chromecast. I'm an iPhone / Mac person and the Chromecast / Home combo has made me consider what a life in the Google ecosystem would look like. Not yet ready to switch but it's priming me. Then I remember how terrible an Android is for my current setups. If they solve that issue for me, they have me.

659087 9y ago
> the Chromecast / Home combo has made me consider what a life in the Google ecosystem would look like. Like living in a fish tank being filmed from all angles.
- adjkant 9y ago
  Who cares if you're in a fish tank being filmed if the video is never viewed and the tank is in a sealed room? Where the fish tank is placed and where that video is going is important. Details matter and trying to dismiss technology with these taglines do those details a disservice. I'm an engineer myself, I am very aware of the dangers and watch closely. Right now, for my personal calculus, the benefit outweighs the risk.
ehsankia 9y ago
There are definitely certain things that are easier to do with voice, and certain things that are easier by touch. Voice will definitely never replace 100% of interaction, the trick is knowing where it's most useful. For example, one great example is, sometimes I'm watching something on my Chromecast and I want to skip a very specific amount. I can go "OKG, skip forward 48 seconds". Try doing that with the tiny track bar on your phone precisely...
erikpukinskis 9y ago
If you’re in any iMessage-only group chats, you can’t really switch to Android. Apple will just silently fail to deliver any further messages to you if you try to shut down your iMessage account. You’d have to coach each person (individually) in all of those threads to delete the thread and create a new one in order to be included again, which is a crazy barrier. Even more so if the threads are work related. I suspect Apple is in violation of federal law in this: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2511 https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2511

smileysteve 9y ago

I got a google home solely because it came w/ a hue package and tried to show it to my family. The Home couldn't hear me over itself (music) across the kitchen... My alexa can hear what I'm saying down the corridor with the shower on and much louder. It was embarassing

adjkant 9y ago
The mic quality is my only complaint with the Google Home (mini). I hope they fix that next model cause it's amazing otherwise.
dawnerd 9y ago
Interesting, I've not really had a problem with it picking up my commands from across the room when music is on, even when its playing on my nvidia shield.
always_good 9y ago
I'm curious, why did the package size matter?
- dastbe 9y ago
  it wasn't a typo. hue is a phillips is a iot lighting system, and there are several packages that include a hue-enabled lightbulb.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
- smileysteve 9y ago
  A phillips hue bridge w/ 3 color ambiant lights + a google home.
slantyyz 9y ago
I find the Alexa is less accurate at recognizing commands when music or the TV is playing.

dilap 9y ago

Having to say "OK, Google" instead of just "Google" (or "Alexa") is a deal-breaker. Google's products don't feel like they are designed by humans.

melling 9y ago
“Hey Google” is the same number of syllables as Alexa.
- steve_adams_86 9y ago
  Isn't it 'Okay Google'? Either way, I do find Alexa rolls off the tongue a little easier. That may be because I have trouble enunciating verbal transitions.
  - adjkant 9y ago
    It's both. It comes down to the keyword identification algorithm of course, not the design by Google. Google's decision choice was not picking a random name that can be identified but instead working in their brand name. My bet is that give it a few years and we will have custom activation words within some constraints.
    - dilap 9y ago
      Is it both? The Google Home I was playing with at my in-laws house a couple days ago definitely only seemed to respond to "OK" (people kept forgetting and using "hey", which didn't work).
      - adjkant 9y ago
        Works for me, though I've trained my voice on it, so perhaps that helps. I'm 100% it's supposed to be both.
      - Shoue 9y ago
        When you're setting up the Home during the training step it makes you say "Hey Google" and "Okay Google". It's definitely a bit hard to notice considering only a single word changes.

fortylove 9y ago

This sounds a bit extreme: >I need to be 100% sure that I will get a return on my time invested when it comes to searching or asking for information

semperdark 9y ago
It sounds extreme, but it's definitely necessary in order for a service to be treated like a tool. When was the last time your screwdriver decided to fail for undefined reasons? For that matter, how about your text editor? For something like a voice interface to become second nature, you need to deeply trust that it'll do what you expect. Work with screwdrivers enough and they become an extension of your hand.
- fermienrico 9y ago
  I couldn't have explained it better. You've nailed the core issue - Reliability & Robustness. These attributes of a product disappear in the background when it just works. Voice activated devices, even Google assistant, are far away from the reliability/robustness we expect from a reliable tool. Therefore, they are not tools yet.
  - barrkel 9y ago
    They're completely reliable for weather, specific queries like will it rain, timers and music. That's enough to be compelling at the price level.

woolvalley 9y ago

I think a big reason why people chose the dot is the price. With a home mini you need to also buy a chromecast to use your speakers, while an echo dot has that aux out already. Music is the universal killer app of these devices. My relative after talking to me basically chose the dot because of the above reason. For myself, thats what I ended up using the dot for in my house. Music, weather, traffic & turning off some lights.

slantyyz 9y ago
>> while an echo dot has that aux out already. It can also stream to a bluetooth speaker.
ehsankia 9y ago
"I think a big reason why people chose the dot is the price." First off, while this may be true, we don't know yet. What this article says is that "Dot was the best selling product on Amazon". Google products aren't on amazon so it's not really a comparison. We'd have to get the numbers from Walmart and Target. As for AUX out, while I agree it's a shame, I don't think it impacts as many people as you imply. Chromecast by itself is also amazing value and it brings even more value to the Home mini as you can easily send netflix, youtube and music to your TV (which is connected to your sound system). While you can get away with the music, for the other actions, you would need a fire stick too.

blensor 9y ago

While those devices are far from perfect they are an evolutionary step in how people are able to interact with technology. My mother in law does not use a computer or smartphone at all, but she loves to use the Echo because it provides a familiar interface (speech) to services she would use (music, weather, casual information search). And interacting with voice assistants is a two way street in my opinion. They will get better at understanding what we want and we will adapt to phrase our questions in a way the software understands. And while I doubt us folks would use a voice assistant to query a solution for an error message on stackoverflow it still provides a convenient way to control music, lights, shutters while our hands are occupied in other ways (cooking, drawing, crafting, ...)

k__ 9y ago
Interesting. We have an Echo and to this day we haven't found any use for it. Talking is broadcast and most of the time we search stuff for ourself on mobile. Also, it often simply says it has no answer.
- mcny 9y ago
  > We have an Echo and to this day we haven't found any use for it. I briefly played with the webhook in ifttt and I think the "serverless" aws or Google Cloud could use this as a custom dash button. Instead of going to a dash button and pressing it if you run out of tide, you simply say "echo, trigger detergent" or I'm thinking with custom programming, "echo, trigger [predefined post request here that starts a series of actions]"
  - rblatz 9y ago
    It also supports youbsaying Alexa order tide, or Alexa reorder tide. And she will ask you if you want to buy the most recent tide product you purchased again.
- IgorPartola 9y ago
  Smart home control: “Alexa turn the lights on.” News. Kitchen timers. Music control. These are my most popular uses.

barrkel 9y ago

I trust Amazon more than Google, though; I both expect products to be less aggressively discontinued, and data collection to be less rapacious with Amazon. Amazon also have a known and reasonably moral means of making money. Advertising OTOH is mass manipulation. And Google have too much other information on me especially from search, I need to keep things distributed. I'm one of the people who bought my partner a Dot. It works very well for the things we've used for so far.

xPhobophobia 9y ago
> I trust Amazon more than Google, though I used to believe this, and I still do too some extent. Amazon won us over with a great online experience and best in class customer service. However, Amazon is on an explosive expansion phase of expanding their business and pushing vertical integration in all corners. They are rivaling any other company out there in terms of ability to mass manipulate as well. I have an undisclosed relationship to the man running Amazon India's fashion vertical, and it's easy to see Amazon's position rivaling Google in terms of that feeling of "Google having too much information". In the end, as I said I still agree with you with Google having to much information (I rely on Google apps and Android to this day), and that diversifying where that information is being gathered and classified is one of the few ways of both using these handy products and impeding companies knowing more about me than I know (a la Netflix video recommendations). Amazon is now yet another giant to be weary of.
bsenftner 9y ago
Trusting a corporation, any corporation, is a bad idea. There is nothing there to trust; any ethical behavior by a corporation is a calculated behavior, executed purely for the maximization of profits. Hell, working for a corporation should be viewed as a calculated behavior, as one is working for an entity with a legally mandated anti-human profit incentive. Speaking as a person with a graduate degree in economics, we're on a bad path that needs to be revised soon, or Fermi's Paradox of technological destruction will be our fate.
- barrkel 9y ago
  Trust isn't binary. You need to trust a corporation to use any of their products that aren't solely disconnected goods that can be independently tested. That trust isn't absolute; it's relative. And that's my point: my trust in Amazon is slightly higher than Google.

jacksmith21006 9y ago

Agree. Had an echo since late 2014 when it came out and now several Google homes. The echo requires rigid language or basically commands you have to memorize to use. The Google home supports natural language for most things. I think of the Echo like a command line interface and the Google home like a GUI.