Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Why is the Oral-B iOS app almost 300 MB? And why is Colgate's app even bigger..?

twitter.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

191–200 of 247 posts

Re: Why is the Oral-B iOS app almost 300 MB? And why is Colgate's app even bigger..?

#191

Post by noman-land »

barbazoo wrote: post #59
eagerpace wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To collect data so they can do marketing and advertising to customers.

How does that work here? Say I have that toothbrush, the app, and say I had to sign up to use it. What they know is how long the toothbrush is on. How are they going to monetize that data?

Having an app on someone's phone is a huge attention and data opportunity.

You get permissions to whatever you ask for. The unsavvy user will click yes.

You get a push notification channel that can interrupt the user ANY time of day or night and get their immediate attention. Suggesting products and "deals".

Use your imagination. Think like an asshole.

Re: Why is the Oral-B iOS app almost 300 MB? And why is Colgate's app even bigger..?

#192

Post by Am4TIfIsER0ppos »

PlunderBunny wrote: post #177
SoftTalker wrote: post #171

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They need some reason to make you think that a $$$ toothbrush that is yet another device that takes up another electrical outlet and space on your bathroom countertop is better than a $2 brush you can keep out of sight in a drawer and that you will never forget to charge.

As someone that owns a $2 tooth brush, I've always wondered if it was better to put it in a drawer where mould etc might build up on the brush faster, but it was protected from the air in the rest of the bathroom (c.f. Mythbusters "There is poop on everything"). Perhaps the answer is to put the toothbrush in a different room!

The toilet belongs in a different room! Used to be called a water closet.

Re: Why is the Oral-B iOS app almost 300 MB? And why is Colgate's app even bigger..?

#193

Post by dyauspitr »

leipert wrote: post #169
dyauspitr wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s actually kind of cool. That’s exactly the sort of feedback that gets me to do things correctly. Detailed feedback has enabled me to consistently work out, wake up early and eat healthy. They’ve helped me keep those good habits going for 4 years now. I’m the kind of guy these apps are built for.

If you don’t mind me asking, how do you keep track of eating healthy?

It’s not one app but a mix of different things. Alarms to take supplements at meal times, Amazon subscriptions set to the right intervals so I always have oatmeal for my breakfast, supplements before they run out etc., alarms that tell me when to stop eating and start eating again after a 14 hour gap for IF, shopping in bulk at Costco and making sure there is nothing in the house that’s “bad” for me.

I’m not tracking my meals. I did use MyFitnessPal for a bit but I didn’t find it useful.

Re: Why is the Oral-B iOS app almost 300 MB? And why is Colgate's app even bigger..?

#194

Post by singleshot_ »

johndough wrote: post #86
barbazoo wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How does that work here? Say I have that toothbrush, the app, and say I had to sign up to use it. What they know is how long the toothbrush is on. How are they going to monetize that data?

> What they know is how long the toothbrush is on. How are they going to monetize that data? "We noticed that brushing takes you X seconds longer than usual. Do you want to buy new bristles for your tooth brush?" "We noticed you haven't used our tooth brush in a while. Do you want to buy our new tooth brush?" "We noticed that you started brushing your teeth earlier than usual. This probably means that you started a n…

Sneak a thermometer in there and I bet you could sell me some Tylenol or NyQuil.

Re: Why is the Oral-B iOS app almost 300 MB? And why is Colgate's app even bigger..?

#195

Post by dyauspitr »

jjulius wrote: post #175
dyauspitr wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s actually kind of cool. That’s exactly the sort of feedback that gets me to do things correctly. Detailed feedback has enabled me to consistently work out, wake up early and eat healthy. They’ve helped me keep those good habits going for 4 years now. I’m the kind of guy these apps are built for.

But "detailed feedback" isn't "accurate feedback". I mean, it's pretty 'neat' that it can tell you which teeth have been 'correctly' cleaned based on the amount of time you spend in a specific spot, but is that an accurate gauge? What if you (for whatever reason, doesn't matter) only ate on the left side of your mouth for dinner? You'd spend plenty of time on the left side, but the app might tell you you've done a ba…

Honestly it doesn’t matter, it’s gamifying the activity that makes the difference for me. At the very least I’ll spend the recommended amount of time cleaning each tooth.

Re: Why is the Oral-B iOS app almost 300 MB? And why is Colgate's app even bigger..?

#196

Post by doubled112 »

jjulius wrote: post #175
dyauspitr wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s actually kind of cool. That’s exactly the sort of feedback that gets me to do things correctly. Detailed feedback has enabled me to consistently work out, wake up early and eat healthy. They’ve helped me keep those good habits going for 4 years now. I’m the kind of guy these apps are built for.

But "detailed feedback" isn't "accurate feedback". I mean, it's pretty 'neat' that it can tell you which teeth have been 'correctly' cleaned based on the amount of time you spend in a specific spot, but is that an accurate gauge? What if you (for whatever reason, doesn't matter) only ate on the left side of your mouth for dinner? You'd spend plenty of time on the left side, but the app might tell you you've done a ba…

I can't even reach all of my teeth with my tongue. The ones I can always seem to feel the same unless I just drank a can of Coke. How do I know if I got them all?

Re: Why is the Oral-B iOS app almost 300 MB? And why is Colgate's app even bigger..?

#197

Post by ahazred8ta »

Bluestein wrote: post #147
wholinator2 wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, say the app requests access to your contacts... so you can link up with friends! Or your files... so it can save your data locally! Or your location... well i don't know. The app doesn't only check your bruhing habits, it's 300mb! At any point it could be updated to do any amount of spying and you'll never be able to tell

> link up with friends! Competitive brushing!

Oral Peloton

Re: Why is the Oral-B iOS app almost 300 MB? And why is Colgate's app even bigger..?

#198

Post by chemmail »

barbazoo wrote: post #59
eagerpace wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To collect data so they can do marketing and advertising to customers.

How does that work here? Say I have that toothbrush, the app, and say I had to sign up to use it. What they know is how long the toothbrush is on. How are they going to monetize that data?

China pays big bucks for the data so they know exactly when everyone is brushing their teeth and know exactly what time to attack.

Re: Why is the Oral-B iOS app almost 300 MB? And why is Colgate's app even bigger..?

#200

Post by anakaine »

ahazred8ta wrote: post #197
Bluestein wrote: post #147

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> link up with friends! Competitive brushing!

Oral Peloton

A group of cyclists is known as a Peloton. Do with that what you will with regards to "Oral Peloton".
Post reply on HN