I really, utterly and completely, fucking hate this.
Amazon Sidewalk
191–200 of 687 posts
Re: Amazon Sidewalk
#192Earlier quoted context omitted.
This. That move is just one step further in removing control. They now have sealed devices that can have who knows what functions but are confined to the network. Next step is to have a concealed upstream. After that they will somehow get a legal mandate to force such devices on you (like the EU did with cars). Maybe they will use smoke detectors or "emergency" services. In the end, this is exactly like in 1984.
Less 1984 and more Fahrenheit 451. There is no central authority imposing this to exert control on the masses: consumers are imposing it on themselves willingly and industry is just giving them what they want. Juvenal redux.
I don’t remember much backstory in 1984 for how the surveillance state came to be, but I think it’s totally plausible that a government could co-opt this self-imposed setup and use it for 1984-style control.
Re: Amazon Sidewalk
#193Is there some region lock/localisation happening here? I just see a product category "sidewalk bridges" which basically lists 4th gen Echos, but nothing else?
Re: Amazon Sidewalk
#194Earlier quoted context omitted.
IMO. There should be a market for: - Dumb panels (not monitors). Perhaps stripped down recycled smart tvs. - Smart tvs but with user replaceable firmware. Think OpenWRT for TVs. Maybe the same guy who does the dumb panels could sell those but with a raspberry pi in place of the logic board. Of course a monitor solves these issues but these are normally smaller and more expensive.
"Dumb TVs" would cost more. It's hard to market something that costs more and has what most people would perceive to be fewer features. They would cost more because post-sale content sales and advertising generate revenue for TV manufacturers, which they use to subsidise the device sale price, because it's such a competitive, low-margin, market.
I disagree that it's hard to market. There are plenty of privacy conscious people that would pay extra. I see billboards every day for duckduckgo that advertise their privacy features. I think a privacy focused TV or IOT device would do well.
Re: Amazon Sidewalk
#195This is a blatant attempt at using their market power to gain a dominant position in IoT connectivity by creating a parallel Network where Net Neutrality does not apply. If this succeeds, only Amazon approved devices will be allowed on this global Network connecting only to aws provided services thereby establishing a monopoly on non-cellular IoT connectivity. After Apples recent move in the same direction with their…
I’m not sure a parallel can be drawn to the Find My network. That one is purely designed for location tracking in an anonymous way, and does not have the ability to transfer data between devices or any other type of tracking.
Not yet, but it could have in a future generation, or even a future firmware update.
Re: Amazon Sidewalk
#196So - Amazon want to use 1/40th of my internet bandwidth.
Along with that goes 1/40th of the electric that the router and broadband modem use.
Then there were the costs for me setting up my own infrastructure with my own money.
At this point, I would expect Amazon to PAY me to use my infrastructure - not get it for free. After all, they won't send parcels to me without me paying for them?
This is a bad BAD idea. It will not garner any access over my network(s).
Re: Amazon Sidewalk
#197Joke's on them, my closest neighbor is a quarter mile away.
Re: Amazon Sidewalk
#198So, if I buy a so called Smart-TV (not because I like it but because traditional ones are getting harder to find) but don't set up it on my home network so it can't phone home, it could scan around anyway and find other open devices more than willing to participate in my personal data exfiltration? If the Amazon project succeeds, I would expect in a few months most home devices manufacturers, to partner to implement…
I read the wikipedia page on shellcodes a few days ago.
It said the first thing they do is find a way of phoning home.
Re: Amazon Sidewalk
#199Earlier quoted context omitted.
"Dumb TVs" would cost more. It's hard to market something that costs more and has what most people would perceive to be fewer features. They would cost more because post-sale content sales and advertising generate revenue for TV manufacturers, which they use to subsidise the device sale price, because it's such a competitive, low-margin, market.
> It's hard to market something that costs more and has what most people would perceive to be fewer features. I'd pay for privacy and control. The other option like I've said is to recycle and mod smart tvs and rewrite their logic so that the user can do wathever he wants. Maybe marketing the modding kits. That would be more akin to those people who install custom open source bios on IBM Thinkpads.
Recycling and modding would be great, but I'd also like to be able to buy a new high-end TV without smart features.
Re: Amazon Sidewalk
#200This is a blatant attempt at using their market power to gain a dominant position in IoT connectivity by creating a parallel Network where Net Neutrality does not apply. If this succeeds, only Amazon approved devices will be allowed on this global Network connecting only to aws provided services thereby establishing a monopoly on non-cellular IoT connectivity. After Apples recent move in the same direction with their…
I’m not sure a parallel can be drawn to the Find My network. That one is purely designed for location tracking in an anonymous way, and does not have the ability to transfer data between devices or any other type of tracking.
You're right but it is pushing their advantage from the phone sector onto another and forcing out their competition in Tile. That sounds to me like monopolistic activity.