5 ms·

Amazon and Ring create surveillance drone that flies around inside your house

59 points by slg 6y ago

AaronNewcomer 6y ago
I had never really considered anything by ring but this just looks super cool from a techy POV and would potentially make me look into their ecosystem.
- Shared404 6y ago
  I would stay away from Rings ecosystem. Especially since police have been given direct access to Ring footage, and that seems like a no-fly with this.
Ecstatify 6y ago
Idea is pretty cool, in reality I’m not sure how useful it would be. My house doesn’t get burgled that often to be honest.
NikolaeVarius 6y ago
I want one just to try and hack it and make it do cool things. Also remove any connection back to its overlords
rkagerer 6y ago
Initial reaction to headline: Do not want a police state in my home. After reading the article: Huh, that could be pretty handy. It's intended for use when you're away (eg. did I leave the stove on?), the docking station blocks the camera, and it's noisy enough that people would hear it coming. Of course I'd be a lot more comfortable if the video (and mapping) didn't go through these two companies. If their employee came to your door with a videocamera and said "hi, I want to film intimate interiors of your home" I'm pretty sure you'd tell them to creep off.
- AaronNewcomer 6y ago
  Think of the benefits! Combined with product recognition amazon could automatically help you from stocking out of your favorite supplies and even suggest things you don’t already have but may be interested in and better suggest media based on what you watch on other services! /s
- catsdanxe 6y ago
  God, imagine how fat we will become when we don't even have a reason to get up off of the couch. Just consume and consume.
  - kimjongtrill 6y ago
    That Disney robot animated documentary was spot on
- strawberrypuree 6y ago
  >Of course I'd be a lot more comfortable if the video (and mapping) didn't go through these two companies The obvious concern is the video itself, but there are many data streams adjacent to the core product, like behavioral data. https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/01/ring-doorbell-app-packed-third-party-trackers https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/01/ring-doorbell-app-pack...
zucked 6y ago
And give Amazon a method to map the interior of my house? Yeah, no. Heck no.
- catsdanxe 6y ago
  Sorry but the police want the blueprint of your home in case they need to perform a no knock raid. Please provide it or you will be fined $100 per day.
  - mpoteat 6y ago
    Don't you have to register your architectural plans in most all cities anyhow?
    - ksaj 6y ago
      I was just going to say this. You can get the blueprints for any home in any city just by requesting it from the local city hall records department. You typically have to pay for it, but it is not particularly expensive. It's part of the process if you plan on buying a property, in order to ensure everything is up to code, property lines are where you expect them to be, etc. Unexpected easements can be a real bitch if you buy a property only to find out part of it isn't actually yours, or that it is technically infeasible to update or rebuild a portion because of an undocumented/illegal code variance.
type0 6y ago
Maybe they could sell it to North Korea if it turns out not being popular in american homes
llarsson 6y ago
"Ring says the drone makes an audible noise when flying so it is obvious when footage is being recorded." Oh, I bet it does. Drone technology seemed much cooler to me before I heard them fly. No wonder drone videos always have sound replaced by music. Great way to tell burglars you are away!
acruns 6y ago
Remember Ring's partnership with 1300 local police departments? https://www.wired.com/story/ces-2020-amazon-defends-ring-police-partnerships/ https://www.wired.com/story/ces-2020-amazon-defends-ring-pol... Remember Ring's Android app being full of 3rd party trackers? https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/01/ring-doorbell-app-packed-third-party-trackers https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/01/ring-doorbell-app-pack... Remember Ring's implementation of E2EE? Neither do I. While I don't really care from the perspective of 'I don't do anything illegal', I don't own any ring / Alexa / Nest / Home automation. Mostly because I don't like the trend towards optimal laziness personally, and it doesn't provide much in the way of value. The video shows this, the guys house is already broken into, is a drone going to stop a burglar from taking your laptop off that kitchen table? I have a better deterent, a dog which is much more effective according to felons (https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/crime/we-asked-86-burglars-how-they-broke-into-homes/277-344333696 https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/crime/we-asked-86-burglars...) This is just too creepy to me. edit:formatting
- danepowell 6y ago
  > Mostly because I don't like the trend towards optimal laziness personally It's easy to characterize home automation this way, and certainly "optimal laziness" is part of the appeal for some people, but it's genuinely useful in so many other ways. For instance, hallway lights that automatically turn on and off in response to motion _and_ at a dimmer setting at night, so you don't trip over a dog toy or blind yourself in the middle of the night. That's very hard to replicate in other ways (nightlights waste energy and are still bright enough to keep me awake). Still a first-world frill to be sure, and maybe not worth it for everyone. But not without value, apart from "laziness".
  - scollet 6y ago
    Definitely don't need that connected to the internet. Would love to hear some useful features.
FandangoRanger 6y ago
Can’t wait until Amazon and Google and Twitter drones regularly patrol the neighborhood.
- samuel1604 6y ago
  Why twitter, probably would be fb first!
vmurthy 6y ago
While I can understand why companies need something more than hardware(* see below ) to have better margins, I really hate the trend towards companies gathering more and more data about me to essentially show me ads - so this is a no go for me personally. If the software is hackable and the device customised so that I don't have to associate with my Amazon/Google accounts, this gets really interesting. Electronic components tend to become commodities which means there's usually a race to the bottom for prices of finished goods - so hardware companies hope to hold on to the data so that a) you don't switch b) they get more revenue out of you by selling your data or selling you ads. In this case though, Amazon might be selling below cost so that they can suck you deeper into the eco-system :) . Interesting times indeed!
- kimjongtrill 6y ago
  Ugh I agree I wish companies were into making cool stuff like this that I actually owned and only dumped data on to my servers, skipping the whole “you and your data are the product” bullshit the entire tech industry seems to be mired in.
gerash 6y ago
This is a definitely an original idea but flying a drone indoors makes me nervous. I might hit an object or knock something over. The drone itself could get stuck somewhere too. It's hard to tell how much is this a toy and how much is it home security
finphil 6y ago
This is so cute and creepy at the same time (≧∇≦)
stuntkite 6y ago
This is the most 2020 thing I could have ever thought of. It's useful, horrific, and hilarious all at the same time.

59 points by slg 6y ago

I had never really considered anything by ring but this just looks super cool from a techy POV and would potentially make me look into their ecosystem.

Shared404 6y ago
I would stay away from Rings ecosystem. Especially since police have been given direct access to Ring footage, and that seems like a no-fly with this.

Ecstatify 6y ago

Idea is pretty cool, in reality I’m not sure how useful it would be. My house doesn’t get burgled that often to be honest.

NikolaeVarius 6y ago

I want one just to try and hack it and make it do cool things. Also remove any connection back to its overlords

rkagerer 6y ago

Initial reaction to headline: Do not want a police state in my home. After reading the article: Huh, that could be pretty handy. It's intended for use when you're away (eg. did I leave the stove on?), the docking station blocks the camera, and it's noisy enough that people would hear it coming. Of course I'd be a lot more comfortable if the video (and mapping) didn't go through these two companies. If their employee came to your door with a videocamera and said "hi, I want to film intimate interiors of your home" I'm pretty sure you'd tell them to creep off.

AaronNewcomer 6y ago
Think of the benefits! Combined with product recognition amazon could automatically help you from stocking out of your favorite supplies and even suggest things you don’t already have but may be interested in and better suggest media based on what you watch on other services! /s
catsdanxe 6y ago
God, imagine how fat we will become when we don't even have a reason to get up off of the couch. Just consume and consume.
- kimjongtrill 6y ago
  That Disney robot animated documentary was spot on
strawberrypuree 6y ago
>Of course I'd be a lot more comfortable if the video (and mapping) didn't go through these two companies The obvious concern is the video itself, but there are many data streams adjacent to the core product, like behavioral data. https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/01/ring-doorbell-app-packed-third-party-trackers https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/01/ring-doorbell-app-pack...

zucked 6y ago

And give Amazon a method to map the interior of my house? Yeah, no. Heck no.

catsdanxe 6y ago
Sorry but the police want the blueprint of your home in case they need to perform a no knock raid. Please provide it or you will be fined $100 per day.
- mpoteat 6y ago
  Don't you have to register your architectural plans in most all cities anyhow?
  - ksaj 6y ago
    I was just going to say this. You can get the blueprints for any home in any city just by requesting it from the local city hall records department. You typically have to pay for it, but it is not particularly expensive. It's part of the process if you plan on buying a property, in order to ensure everything is up to code, property lines are where you expect them to be, etc. Unexpected easements can be a real bitch if you buy a property only to find out part of it isn't actually yours, or that it is technically infeasible to update or rebuild a portion because of an undocumented/illegal code variance.

type0 6y ago

Maybe they could sell it to North Korea if it turns out not being popular in american homes

llarsson 6y ago

"Ring says the drone makes an audible noise when flying so it is obvious when footage is being recorded." Oh, I bet it does. Drone technology seemed much cooler to me before I heard them fly. No wonder drone videos always have sound replaced by music. Great way to tell burglars you are away!

acruns 6y ago

Remember Ring's partnership with 1300 local police departments? https://www.wired.com/story/ces-2020-amazon-defends-ring-police-partnerships/ https://www.wired.com/story/ces-2020-amazon-defends-ring-pol... Remember Ring's Android app being full of 3rd party trackers? https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/01/ring-doorbell-app-packed-third-party-trackers https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/01/ring-doorbell-app-pack... Remember Ring's implementation of E2EE? Neither do I. While I don't really care from the perspective of 'I don't do anything illegal', I don't own any ring / Alexa / Nest / Home automation. Mostly because I don't like the trend towards optimal laziness personally, and it doesn't provide much in the way of value. The video shows this, the guys house is already broken into, is a drone going to stop a burglar from taking your laptop off that kitchen table? I have a better deterent, a dog which is much more effective according to felons (https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/crime/we-asked-86-burglars-how-they-broke-into-homes/277-344333696 https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/crime/we-asked-86-burglars...) This is just too creepy to me. edit:formatting

danepowell 6y ago
> Mostly because I don't like the trend towards optimal laziness personally It's easy to characterize home automation this way, and certainly "optimal laziness" is part of the appeal for some people, but it's genuinely useful in so many other ways. For instance, hallway lights that automatically turn on and off in response to motion _and_ at a dimmer setting at night, so you don't trip over a dog toy or blind yourself in the middle of the night. That's very hard to replicate in other ways (nightlights waste energy and are still bright enough to keep me awake). Still a first-world frill to be sure, and maybe not worth it for everyone. But not without value, apart from "laziness".
- scollet 6y ago
  Definitely don't need that connected to the internet. Would love to hear some useful features.

FandangoRanger 6y ago

Can’t wait until Amazon and Google and Twitter drones regularly patrol the neighborhood.

samuel1604 6y ago
Why twitter, probably would be fb first!

vmurthy 6y ago

While I can understand why companies need something more than hardware(* see below ) to have better margins, I really hate the trend towards companies gathering more and more data about me to essentially show me ads - so this is a no go for me personally. If the software is hackable and the device customised so that I don't have to associate with my Amazon/Google accounts, this gets really interesting. Electronic components tend to become commodities which means there's usually a race to the bottom for prices of finished goods - so hardware companies hope to hold on to the data so that a) you don't switch b) they get more revenue out of you by selling your data or selling you ads. In this case though, Amazon might be selling below cost so that they can suck you deeper into the eco-system :) . Interesting times indeed!

kimjongtrill 6y ago
Ugh I agree I wish companies were into making cool stuff like this that I actually owned and only dumped data on to my servers, skipping the whole “you and your data are the product” bullshit the entire tech industry seems to be mired in.

gerash 6y ago

This is a definitely an original idea but flying a drone indoors makes me nervous. I might hit an object or knock something over. The drone itself could get stuck somewhere too. It's hard to tell how much is this a toy and how much is it home security

finphil 6y ago

This is so cute and creepy at the same time (≧∇≦)

stuntkite 6y ago

This is the most 2020 thing I could have ever thought of. It's useful, horrific, and hilarious all at the same time.