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Mother

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Re: Mother

#111

Post by notlisted »

I like the concept. Surprised so many here are bugged by the marketing and/or the technology. Maybe you don't have kids (yet)?

Above all, I like the neat interface of the apps (mockups?) and simplicity of the cookie sensors. No charging nonsense, because they measure and buffer stuff but don't transmit. 1yr battery life. 10 day memory.

Sure, I'd love to see additional, more advanced cookies that would require charging, e.g. with built-in LED or vibration (reminding me when I enter or leave, though my phone could serve that purpose), Data, GPS (though my phone could serve this purpose, need an app that intercepts an SMS after presence is detected to auto-upload GPS data), multi-mother stuff (one at work, one at home), integration with home automation systems (someone below mentioned frequencies indicate zigbee), Zapier/IFTT support and above all some sort of data input/output API so I can import my own data points.

By the way, $222 for a mother and 4 sensors seems quite affordable to me.

The only thing that prevents me from pre-ordering a set is that the NaBazTag history doesn't exactly instill much confidence in the makers' ability to support this thing in the long run; I also wonder where the data is stored and if it's remotely future-proof (data import/export/backup).

Re: Mother

#112

Post by angersock »

crbnw00ts wrote: post #84
cromwellian wrote: post #11

The way the thing is filmed with the smiley face and lighting up eyes, I could easily imagine a sci-fi horror film being based around it. :) More seriously, the idea of using cheap motion trackers to track usage of things in the home is very interesting. When Google acquires this, it'll make the Nest complaints pale in comparison. :)

> The way the thing is filmed with the smiley face and lighting up eyes, I could easily imagine a sci-fi horror film being based around it. :) Like this? http://i.imgur.com/W1s9crO.jpg In all seriousness, I feel it is only a matter of time before someone dies as a result of their home automation being hacked.

my god this is an accurate depiction of chef

Re: Mother

#113

Post by xname »

Watching the video. First I liked it..... Then I hated it. It's too much. I don't want that kind of life. I don't want Mother to watch at me everyday every moment.

Re: Mother

#114

Post by inglor »

nostromo wrote: post #30

Wait, is this real? It seems like commentary on the current zeitgeist, not a real product. > Mother. Mother knows everything. > She's like a mom, only better. > Sense: the meaning of life® edit: I see they are based in France, so perhaps the branding didn't translate well.

It's a shame too - the name is very catchy but I quit it after looking at it for 5 seconds and not "getting it". Not what a landing page should do.

Re: Mother

#115

Post by joseph_cooney »

Jun8 wrote: post #55

Same French company that created the successful Nabaztag rabbit and then couldn't cope with the traffic. I had my wife buy me one of those for Valentines Day (stupid, I know) and after trying to do something useful with it and getting frustrated I tossed it somewhere in my cube where it remains to this date. Apart from the super bad naming and Branding, this is another reason for me to stay away from this mother rabb…

Yeah, it looks just like a nabaztag without ears.

Re: Mother

#116

Post by rattray »

michaelwww wrote: post #3

First I've heard of it, but I had the same reaction as Cringley. Maybe it's an age thing. "Imagine v1 of Big Brother's -- or NSA director Keith Alexander's -- most inflamed fever dream: a sensorbot shaped like a Russian nesting doll wearing a Hindi-cow smile. Then terrifyingly name it "Mother" and build it specifically to monitor as many facets of your personal life as it can. Are you schvitzing yet?" http://www.info…

I'm 22 and had the same reaction, fwiw.

Re: Mother

#118

Post by avighnay »

This thread is a good example why name matters. If the same product was given any other name, perhaps it would not have been noticed that much. A set of motion sensors with a central comm hub.

The makers perhaps thought that the name 'Mother' would evoke care and love in the minds of their users. To their agony, it is revealing in the thread that though most people love their mom, they really do not want to be a 'watched over' kid.

I guess it gives all of us that creepy feeling of guilt as kids when we stole from the cookie jar and kept turning our heads with fear of being caught by mom :-)

Note to self: keep relationship names away from product names, too much friction ;-)

Re: Mother

#120

Post by Houshalter »

nilkn wrote: post #109
krz wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's all about measurable goals and improvements, not about importance.

I think his point is that this doesn't provide much in the way of meaningful measurements or analytics. It's not actually a better way to, say, track soda consumption--it's just more self-aggrandizing.

I don't know if that's actually true, I would like a tool to keep track of this stuff for me but I don't at all feel some "desire to be a celebrity with assistants." Yes I suppose I could carry a notebook everywhere. I have failed doing that in the past though and I don't know anyone that keeps such detailed statistics. Especially on things like the exact time they wake up, come home, get coffee, etc. I imagine it would be a hassle to manually keep track of it all.
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