Google to Acquire Nest • Hacker News Board

Re: Google to Acquire Nest

#141

Post by azernik » Mon, Jan 13, 2014, 9:36 PM UTC

ericcumbee wrote: post #101

vasilipupkin wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

yeah, the last thing I need is my Nest thermostat and my Nest smoke alarm sending data about my house to Google / NSA

from http://techcrunch.com/2014/01/13/google-just-bought-connecte... Will Nest customer data be shared with Google? Our privacy policy clearly limits the use of customer information to providing and improving Nest’s products and services. We’ve always taken privacy seriously and this will not change. ----- is it just me or is that a non denial?

"Improving our products and services" is standard legalese for "to implement whatever new feature we want".

Re: Google to Acquire Nest

#142

Post by Fasebook » Mon, Jan 13, 2014, 9:36 PM UTC

taylorwc wrote: post #106

Fasebook wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Really? $200 for a predictive thermostat, with a lame excuse to stream energy usage data and proximity data (Nest detects humans) out of your home? Id rather pay $99 to tell health insurance companies how often I exercise, live. You could get the same benefit from a device for $30 of electronics. It's an overpriced gimmick to justify another selling off of your personal data forever in exchange for nothing but some m…

Does that mean you place no value on aesthetics or industrial design of a beautiful device? Don't get me wrong, I agree that it's overpriced, but I do at least place some value on a well-made device.

I don't like the aesthetics, no. From a engineering perspective, it is not much of an achievement of R&D, imo. They probably paid more for their Photoshoppers.

Re: Google to Acquire Nest

#143

Post by sliverstorm » Mon, Jan 13, 2014, 9:36 PM UTC

Karunamon wrote: post #119

sliverstorm wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Please don't include decimals on that kind of number, it's intellectually dishonest.

? Only if you're incapable of telling the difference between commas and periods, I suppose.

It isn't factually dishonest, because it is an accurate number, and anyone can make sense of it.

I say it is intellectually dishonest because it reads to me as a clear attempt to make the number appear more impressive.

Borrowing from Wikipedia, "intellectual honesty":

   Facts are presented in an unbiased manner, and not twisted to give misleading impressions

It would still be accurate to say it was a $3,200,000,000.000,000,000,000 valuation, but I hope you will agree this is misrepresenting information.

Re: Google to Acquire Nest

#144

Post by protomyth » Mon, Jan 13, 2014, 9:36 PM UTC

I was hoping Honeywell would buy them an experience a bit (at the division level) of a NeXT-Apple replay. I really am not sure about buying one given the implications of the data from this device being given to advertisers or used in advertising analytics.

Re: Google to Acquire Nest

#145

Post by ck2 » Mon, Jan 13, 2014, 9:36 PM UTC

Do they own patents or something?

Because with a $10 android chip, any Chinese plant could churn out Nest clones in a few months.

Re: Google to Acquire Nest

#146

Post by MrZongle2 » Mon, Jan 13, 2014, 9:37 PM UTC

addflip wrote: post #90

MrZongle2 wrote: post #11

Am I the only one who thought "well, good for the Nest guys" followed by "too bad, it looked like a good product"?

Damn, I really liked my Nest.

Well then, you're going to LOVE it once it's tied to your Google+ account! ;)

Re: Google to Acquire Nest

#147

Post by jmedwards » Mon, Jan 13, 2014, 9:37 PM UTC

jmduke wrote: post #12

The cynic in me shudders at the possibility of Google adding even more real-world data like temperature preference and lifestyle factors to their massive data portfolio. The idealist in me is incredibly excited at the possibility of Nest's fundamental strengths being bolstered by Google's coffers.

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Why might I be interes... OH MY GOD!!

Re: Google to Acquire Nest

#148

Post by smackfu » Mon, Jan 13, 2014, 9:37 PM UTC

ericcumbee wrote: post #101

vasilipupkin wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

yeah, the last thing I need is my Nest thermostat and my Nest smoke alarm sending data about my house to Google / NSA

from http://techcrunch.com/2014/01/13/google-just-bought-connecte... Will Nest customer data be shared with Google? Our privacy policy clearly limits the use of customer information to providing and improving Nest’s products and services. We’ve always taken privacy seriously and this will not change. ----- is it just me or is that a non denial?

It's a dumb question. There is no such thing as "shared with Google" if Nest is wholly owned by Google. Nest data is Google data.

Re: Google to Acquire Nest

#149

Post by dangrossman » Mon, Jan 13, 2014, 9:38 PM UTC

corresation wrote: post #109

VLM wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They monitor for presence. Combine the phone's attempt at geolocation with motion detectors or whatever to make even finer grained geolocation. So if your phone geolocates to the frozen north, and the thermostat indicates the furnace is working extra hard, expect to see warm vacation destination ads in your desktop web browser at work, or something like that.

Do you think Google doesn't already know who is in the "frozen North"? How could knowing how long your furnace runs add any value, at all, for you as an advertising target, if we must always go with that utterly simplistic analysis? Further people keep repeatedly claiming that the Nest device has some sort of presence detection. To my knowledge it has no such thing -- it simply allows you to program it by daily overr…

Nest has a motion sensor, which appears to be a passive infrared light sensor. It's behind the grill hidden in the bottom 1/4 of the device below the screen. It uses this for the Auto-Away feature for example.

Re: Google to Acquire Nest

#150

Post by lightbritefight » Mon, Jan 13, 2014, 9:38 PM UTC

sliverstorm wrote: post #82

chrisrhoden wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What about the ability to know when someone is in your home and when someone is not? If Google records that data (say, to be able to provide you with a handy chart of your energy use and some ways to improve it), the potential I am more worried about is the fact that the data exists makes it possible to subpoena.

I'm not really worried about subpoena of my data- if the courts want it, they will get it. I'd be more concerned about what private companies are going to do with it. I know the gov't is the big bogeyman in most people's minds, but sometimes I swear private corps. have even less accountability than the gov't.

This all breaks down to one thing. The government can detain you indefinitely and is equipped to kill you. No private enterprise can do either of these things legally.

The government holds deadly force. Private enterprise is going to do some horrifying things with your data, but barring a cyperpunk dystopia, it lacks the capability to end your life.