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I don't trust Apple to do this well. Firstly, they cannot (or will not) make their devices multi-user, which is a problem in the home environment (eg an Apple

by amirmc 12y ago

I don't trust Apple to do this well. Firstly, they cannot (or will not) make their devices multi-user, which is a problem in the home environment (eg an Apple TV that's tied to only my account - and already exposes more info than I'd like). Secondly, Apple has a habit of abandoning things and shutting them down when it doesn't suit them. This is mostly ok for some services but would be disastrous for me as a user if I've put bought into the system. Finally, Apple doesn't play nice with others. Perhaps they've learned to be better since they've had to interface more due to the App Store but for the most part I don't see them caring about an ecosystem other than their own.

Someone 12y ago
"Secondly, Apple has a habit of abandoning things and shutting them down when it doesn't suit them." That is not the strongest of arguments; every company does that (google reader, HP and PCs (for a while), IBM and x86 servers, etc). I think your worry is more that they won't provide an open specification and won't ever sell their business so that, if they leave the market, you can't shop elsewhere.
- amirmc 12y ago
  That's part of it but I feel it's a stronger argument when you consider the lifetime of devices we put in the home (how often do you upgrade your TV vs your phone vs your fridge). I expect everything in my house to keep working regardless of whatever happens with the manufacturer/provider but in the new world order, some aspect of my home life might be drastically altered because Apple decides that feature/service isn't important enough. Apple could mitigate this by being open but I'm not convinced they care enough about that either.
  - mturmon 12y ago
    This is a good point. The light switches in my grandmother's house (two-button affairs from the 1920s) still work in 2014. My 1950s gas oven still works. Simplicity and longevity are valuable attributes in a piece of hardware (a house) with a 50-year design life. (I replaced most of my X-10 switches with photocells and manual dimmers after seeing the light on this one.)
shawkinaw 12y ago
I'd also like some examples of point 2. Apple's cloud services have been a game of musical chairs (iCloud nee MobileMe nee .Mac nee iTools) but overall I think Google has a much worse track record for neglecting and eventually shutting down products.
yalogin 12y ago
Interesting. I thought Apple really supports their ecosystem (hw + sw) for a long time. For example, they support old ipods even now. May be you are talking about it from an SDK perspective. Can you be a little specific about which functionality was dropped/abandoned? I am not sure making it multiuser is really needed in the home automation case. If it all links back to the touchID on the phone it will meet all requirements of user separation.
- niels_olson 12y ago
  > Apple supports their ecosystem for a long time Do you think they'll support a thermostat for 30 years?
  - coldtea 12y ago
    Those kind of thermostats are not for 30 years. To make it a viable market for large companies (as opposed to niche providers) you'd have to change it every 3-5 years. Heck, Nest shut its business in less than 5 years. So, it'd be you know, like a DSLR is not for life, whereas a film camera was. In exchange, you'd get innovation faster, and they'd have to keep you occupied with cool new stuff. Don't know how much you can add to a thermostat, but this kind of "market share" could lead to "the house of tomorrow" kind of future in 10-20 years (like mobile phones have completely changed personal communications in the past 20 years).
- makomk 12y ago
  The version of iPod car integration that predated CarPlay was pretty comprehensively dropped after a few years, with no support from new iPods. It took several years for them to even announce a replacement that offered the same capabilities and it's not backwards compatible with older cars.
dr_ 12y ago
Does it matter whether or not the device is not multiuser, as long as apps are multiuser. We have one Apple TV, but my wife and I can log into different netflix accounts pretty easily from Apple TV. That's enough for most people.
JumpCrisscross 12y ago
The FT reports that Apple is likely "to emphasise the privacy protections built into its smart home system... Apple considers privacy a key advantage over Google...since Google relies on targeted advertising as its main source of income" [1]. That is a valid and interesting contrast. Google, for openness and transparency; Apple, for control and privacy. [1] http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/1bef71b8-e433-11e3-a73a-00144feabdc0.html?siteedition=intl#axzz32qh8Bl8g http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/1bef71b8-e433-11e3-a73a-00144...
- gonzo 12y ago
  With Google, the product is you.
bluthru 12y ago
Apple has a pretty good history of working with a hardware ecosystem--think of the iPod. Perhaps ironically, Google is the one doing automation with a first party (Nest), and Apple seems to be working with others.

by amirmc 12y ago

Someone 12y ago

"Secondly, Apple has a habit of abandoning things and shutting them down when it doesn't suit them." That is not the strongest of arguments; every company does that (google reader, HP and PCs (for a while), IBM and x86 servers, etc). I think your worry is more that they won't provide an open specification and won't ever sell their business so that, if they leave the market, you can't shop elsewhere.

amirmc 12y ago
That's part of it but I feel it's a stronger argument when you consider the lifetime of devices we put in the home (how often do you upgrade your TV vs your phone vs your fridge). I expect everything in my house to keep working regardless of whatever happens with the manufacturer/provider but in the new world order, some aspect of my home life might be drastically altered because Apple decides that feature/service isn't important enough. Apple could mitigate this by being open but I'm not convinced they care enough about that either.
- mturmon 12y ago
  This is a good point. The light switches in my grandmother's house (two-button affairs from the 1920s) still work in 2014. My 1950s gas oven still works. Simplicity and longevity are valuable attributes in a piece of hardware (a house) with a 50-year design life. (I replaced most of my X-10 switches with photocells and manual dimmers after seeing the light on this one.)

shawkinaw 12y ago

I'd also like some examples of point 2. Apple's cloud services have been a game of musical chairs (iCloud nee MobileMe nee .Mac nee iTools) but overall I think Google has a much worse track record for neglecting and eventually shutting down products.

yalogin 12y ago

Interesting. I thought Apple really supports their ecosystem (hw + sw) for a long time. For example, they support old ipods even now. May be you are talking about it from an SDK perspective. Can you be a little specific about which functionality was dropped/abandoned? I am not sure making it multiuser is really needed in the home automation case. If it all links back to the touchID on the phone it will meet all requirements of user separation.

niels_olson 12y ago
> Apple supports their ecosystem for a long time Do you think they'll support a thermostat for 30 years?
- coldtea 12y ago
  Those kind of thermostats are not for 30 years. To make it a viable market for large companies (as opposed to niche providers) you'd have to change it every 3-5 years. Heck, Nest shut its business in less than 5 years. So, it'd be you know, like a DSLR is not for life, whereas a film camera was. In exchange, you'd get innovation faster, and they'd have to keep you occupied with cool new stuff. Don't know how much you can add to a thermostat, but this kind of "market share" could lead to "the house of tomorrow" kind of future in 10-20 years (like mobile phones have completely changed personal communications in the past 20 years).
makomk 12y ago
The version of iPod car integration that predated CarPlay was pretty comprehensively dropped after a few years, with no support from new iPods. It took several years for them to even announce a replacement that offered the same capabilities and it's not backwards compatible with older cars.

dr_ 12y ago

Does it matter whether or not the device is not multiuser, as long as apps are multiuser. We have one Apple TV, but my wife and I can log into different netflix accounts pretty easily from Apple TV. That's enough for most people.

JumpCrisscross 12y ago

The FT reports that Apple is likely "to emphasise the privacy protections built into its smart home system... Apple considers privacy a key advantage over Google...since Google relies on targeted advertising as its main source of income" [1]. That is a valid and interesting contrast. Google, for openness and transparency; Apple, for control and privacy. [1] http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/1bef71b8-e433-11e3-a73a-00144feabdc0.html?siteedition=intl#axzz32qh8Bl8g http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/1bef71b8-e433-11e3-a73a-00144...

gonzo 12y ago
With Google, the product is you.

bluthru 12y ago

Apple has a pretty good history of working with a hardware ecosystem--think of the iPod. Perhaps ironically, Google is the one doing automation with a first party (Nest), and Apple seems to be working with others.