131–140 of 597 posts
I don't think any major appliance manufacturer has done any serious amount of work to figure out what those patterns are, or how they might apply them. They just want to add software so they can extract additional values from their customers by collecting data to sell.
Pro-tip: never connect any appliance, vehicle or device to the internet unless you really need the internet-enabled functionality. What you want is dumb devices that work reliably within their initial operating parameters and have a security air-gap. This prevents exploitation of their crufty software, but also prevents the manufacturer to brick or otherwise use them against you with unscrupulous updates. If a softwa…
[1]: https://www.zdnet.com/article/connected-cars-how-5g-and-iot-...
[2]: https://www.thalesgroup.com/en/markets/digital-identity-and-...
I can understand the appeal of most smart devices, but since a dishwasher can’t yet load and unload itself, what is the point of an internet connected dishwasher? You have to have physically loaded it. Why not just push the start button then?
We have one it’s great. The ability to start it, and confirm it’s started is a game changer. Especially because it’s preloaded with the chemicals. We don’t want to start it until we’re sure all the floating dishes actually got loaded. There’s a stray dish, a glass, life’s just a little chaotic getting dinner cleaned up and everyone to bed. We forget or we hit start but someone else opens it to add something. Without…
One can argue whether such a feature is actually worth having in a fridge (Added costs, security risks, complexity...) But at least it has a valid use case: notification.
I just can't imagine a dishwasher having such a use case. Notification for when it's done isn't useful. If I'm not home it makes no difference that it's done, and if I am home it could just beep. Starting it obviously isn't useful either. So what features does wifi offer in a dishwasher? The best I can think of is... Error diagnostics (So I don't have to google "E5" when the flood sensor triggers). But that doesn't seem like enough of a feature to warrant a wifi connection.
I have a GE Monogram dishwasher and it takes 2+ minutes to start! Just sits on the splash screen. I wonder if it’s trying to connect to wifi or something. I miss my old one where I could just push the start button.
It would have been trivial for them to flash a light or start the countdown (it has a timer display). But no; just sits there silently for a while.
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Notifications is the big reason: because cycle times are usually just estimates, you can't just set a timer for when it'll be done.
For a Linux user, you can already build such a system yourself quite trivially by getting a Piezoelectric Sensor, RPi, couple of resistors, and a clamping diode.
As a Linux user I know RPi pretty well but piezoelectric is something I used to light gas, resistors are something I studied at school (and things that heat), a diode... maybe, but clamping? I won't be able to put those pieces together.
I'd buy a smart plug with a http url to call to turn it on and off and make a web app running on a RPi at home to manage that plug.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
To be fair, it could also get functionality updates. For example they could upload a new totally different UX loved by the designers and that nobody else understands how to use ;-)
Another Tesla Model 3 owner with firmware v11? :)
My dishwasher needs no software. The dishwasher I buy will never need software. I am a software engineer and I love technology, but I love simple technology and when something doesn't need software, I don't add software just for the sake of having software.
But dude... How else are you gonna turn it on remotely? WOuldn't it be awesome to be able to load it, walk away for several hours then turn it on from a different room?! That feature alone is totally worth all the extra hassle.
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Are there any regulation barriers to selling "dumb" devices in the modern market? I've made the same point about pickup trucks--the 2002 Toyota Tacoma is a far preferable vehicle than the 2022 Toyota Tacoma for many truck owners, but when I've brought that up, people have pointed out that a number of laws make it impossible to sell a clone of the old version (must have backup cameras, must have X, must have Y, etc.)
All those things mandated for cars are related to safety. Back-up cameras are required to prevent drivers from running over small children. ABS and stability control to prevent crashes. Etc. And none of them, in a simple implementation, reduce the usability of the car/truck. No such mandates exist for home appliances. The connectivity/apps are purely a money-grab - either people like the general idea of connected dev…
I believe that the current EU mandate for cars is that they must have cellular connectivity, which is of course for calling emergency services in a crash.
I think "ostensibly for safety" is a better description of some of it.