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Wyze $20 Smart Watch

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Re: Wyze $20 Smart Watch

#31

Post by bhupy »

breck wrote: post #25

Apple was smart not to compete on the low-end for watches. Median income in the USA is $68,703. Why would someone spend 1/25 of 1 percent of their income on something that they wear 100% of the time? That makes no sense. I shell out $200-$300 each year for the latest FitBit (Apple Watch is promising, but that battery life :(. The sleep tracking is gold).

> Median income in the USA is $68,703.

Be that as it may, there's absolutely a non-trivial amount of revenue available at the low end of the market. Apple historically never participates in that market, but that's an opportunity for other hardware providers.

Re: Wyze $20 Smart Watch

#32

Post by ce4 »

fullstop wrote: post #8
dr_j_ wrote: post #4

As a runner, this is relatively useless without a GPS. Include that and sign me up in a heartbeat.

Look into the Amazfit Bip. A bit more than $20, but cheap and the battery lasts ~40 days. If you're using GPS a lot it will be less than 40. Even so, battery life is measured in weeks, not days.

The Bip S is great (or the Bip S lite without gps if you don't need it). It has all the necessary basics (gps, step counter, always on color display, heart rate sensor, notifications, weather forecast, time, alarms) and real 40-45 days between battery charging. I couldn't stand charging each day or a few times per week.

Edit: and it can be operated in a real un"cloud"ed mode if you use the 3rd party gadgetbridge app (born of pebble user needs and extended to support more watches since). That was the dealmaker for me.

Re: Wyze $20 Smart Watch

#33

Post by vorpalhex »

gm wrote: post #17
adkadskhj wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's funny - i avoid Wyze because it seems such a good deal. Something seems off about that, the price is simply too good - and i loathe being the product these days.

I hate being the product as well, but it's pretty much inescapable now. Paying for a service does not opt you out of being marketed to other income streams as a product (ie, combined stats, being part of a test group, etc). The best we can hope for by paying for a product is getting additional features and not being inconvenienced (ie, avoiding ads).

I almost bought an $80 pdf application (pdf expert) only to find out it phones home with my device details...

And now that company won't be getting my $80. I'll use the open source alternatives, even if they aren't as nice to use.

Use open source, write your own open source or just do without. You can't just accept the inevitable and bow into it - inevitability doesn't change morality.

Re: Wyze $20 Smart Watch

#34

Post by BostonEnginerd »

breck wrote: post #25

Apple was smart not to compete on the low-end for watches. Median income in the USA is $68,703. Why would someone spend 1/25 of 1 percent of their income on something that they wear 100% of the time? That makes no sense. I shell out $200-$300 each year for the latest FitBit (Apple Watch is promising, but that battery life :(. The sleep tracking is gold).

We had a terrible experience with Fitbit. My wife’s Versa delaminated just out of warranty. Screen and guts all fell out. Fitbit basically shrugged their shoulders and said too bad.

My experience with them years ago when they first launched was really positive. Any issues with a device, and another one was in the mail.

Re: Wyze $20 Smart Watch

#35

Post by dperfect »

miguelrochefort wrote: post #2

I often wonder how Wyze makes any money. They're usually 2-10 times cheaper than their competitors, while providing better features, better design, and better support. I love all of my Wyze devices and purchased another $100 worth of them just yesterday (3 bulbs, 2 sockets, 3 sensors, 1 camera, 1 SD card). I like how they go out of their way to add features to their devices. For example, they provide a firmware for t…

This may have changed, but in the past, I believe they were essentially just rebranded Xiaomi cameras (possibly from other suppliers) with different firmware. I originally thought the Chinese products were clones of Wyze, but it appears Wyze is actually just using existing low-cost hardware from overseas. Happy to be corrected if I'm wrong though.

FYI - for some camera models (Xiaomi or Wyze), you can flash them with this custom firmware[1], allowing for a lot more customization.

[1] https://github.com/EliasKotlyar/Xiaomi-Dafang-Hacks

Re: Wyze $20 Smart Watch

#36

Post by bigtones »

breck wrote: post #25

Apple was smart not to compete on the low-end for watches. Median income in the USA is $68,703. Why would someone spend 1/25 of 1 percent of their income on something that they wear 100% of the time? That makes no sense. I shell out $200-$300 each year for the latest FitBit (Apple Watch is promising, but that battery life :(. The sleep tracking is gold).

That $68,703 figure is the median HOUSEHOLD income that encompasses more than one bread winner on average.

Re: Wyze $20 Smart Watch

#37

Post by bluGill »

bhupy wrote: post #31
breck wrote: post #25

Apple was smart not to compete on the low-end for watches. Median income in the USA is $68,703. Why would someone spend 1/25 of 1 percent of their income on something that they wear 100% of the time? That makes no sense. I shell out $200-$300 each year for the latest FitBit (Apple Watch is promising, but that battery life :(. The sleep tracking is gold).

> Median income in the USA is $68,703. Be that as it may, there's absolutely a non-trivial amount of revenue available at the low end of the market. Apple historically never participates in that market, but that's an opportunity for other hardware providers.

In fact if you get "good enough" at the low end there is more money there than up top. Sure $200 isn't much compared to me income, but it is still more than an impulse buy. If you can get the $20 market it becomes an impulse buy for a lot more people. If you are good enough they compare with their friends and the friends also buy - those who would never spend $200 on an impulse buy, and those who already have and are looking to replace theirs.

Re: Wyze $20 Smart Watch

#38

Post by [deleted] »

breck wrote: post #25

Apple was smart not to compete on the low-end for watches. Median income in the USA is $68,703. Why would someone spend 1/25 of 1 percent of their income on something that they wear 100% of the time? That makes no sense. I shell out $200-$300 each year for the latest FitBit (Apple Watch is promising, but that battery life :(. The sleep tracking is gold).

[deleted]

Re: Wyze $20 Smart Watch

#39

Post by ghaff »

bhupy wrote: post #31
breck wrote: post #25

Apple was smart not to compete on the low-end for watches. Median income in the USA is $68,703. Why would someone spend 1/25 of 1 percent of their income on something that they wear 100% of the time? That makes no sense. I shell out $200-$300 each year for the latest FitBit (Apple Watch is promising, but that battery life :(. The sleep tracking is gold).

> Median income in the USA is $68,703. Be that as it may, there's absolutely a non-trivial amount of revenue available at the low end of the market. Apple historically never participates in that market, but that's an opportunity for other hardware providers.

Yeah, I have an Apple Watch but I usually just wear a $30 Timex because I don't need to worry about charging. When the band and/or battery give out after a few years I replace it with another of the same model.

I buy lots of cheap things even though there are "better" versions available for more money.

Re: Wyze $20 Smart Watch

#40

Post by knowaveragejoe »

miguelrochefort wrote: post #2

I often wonder how Wyze makes any money. They're usually 2-10 times cheaper than their competitors, while providing better features, better design, and better support. I love all of my Wyze devices and purchased another $100 worth of them just yesterday (3 bulbs, 2 sockets, 3 sensors, 1 camera, 1 SD card). I like how they go out of their way to add features to their devices. For example, they provide a firmware for t…

Has anyone done a thorough security analysis of any of their devices? Do they phone home or otherwise open some sort of back door? I agree that it does seem too good to be true
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