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Amazon Dash Button

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Re: Amazon Dash Button

#321

Post by mikeash »

jakejake wrote: post #273
mikeash wrote: post #211

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it's ridiculous just because it clearly involved a lot of effort to solve a problem that doesn't really need solving. The choice isn't between a button and the massive hassle you describe. The choice is between a button and ordering the product on your smartphone in ten seconds, or picking up the product at the grocery store the next time you're there. How often do you need laundry detergent? Every two weeks?…

This does solve a problem, but just not the problem that you are mentioning. It solves Amazon's problem of how to get you to buy more stuff from them. One of the primary rules of running a business is to make it as easy as possible for people to give you their money. This makes it ridiculously easy.

I'm sure it's great for Amazon when someone gets one of these things. For a relatively small cost, you've likely permanently neutralized all possibility of switching brands or suppliers, and substantially reduced awareness of price increases. From that perspective, this is clearly the product of a diabolical genius mind. I just don't get why anyone else would care....

Re: Amazon Dash Button

#323

Post by blhack »

icebraining wrote: post #135
mcphage wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm guessing it's bluetooth low energy, which I believe you can run off of a small battery for around a year.

Even if it's Wifi, an ESP8266 only uses 78µA in deep sleep mode, which is how these buttons will spend 99.99% of the time, so it could last more an year on a single AA battery.

"only" 78 microamps is a LOT of current for ultra low power applications like this.

On top of that, ~~the ESP8266 doesn't seem to implement wifi, it's just 2.4ghz general purpose radio.~~

There is definitely some cleverness happening here that allows them to get this to where it is. I'd love to get one just to tear it down.

Re: Amazon Dash Button

#324

Post by schwap »

heywoods wrote: post #218
smoothgrips wrote: post #205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I definitely would not give up amazon for free education, health care, etc... Those socialists implementations come at a very high cost. Yes, our current system is not well, but it's better than the government taking 60% of my earned income.

I agree with what you are saying, but my effective tax rate this year in California was ~40%. All of the above benefits for an additional 20% sounds like a bargain.

I've never felt I got so little for so much tax as when I lived in California.

Re: Amazon Dash Button

#325

Post by fxthea »

javadocmd wrote: post #307
scott_s wrote: post #265

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This button isn't about saving time, it's about preventing the instances of not having something when you need it. The moment when you realize you need more of something is typically when you're using it. If you can literally just hit a button to order more, that's a significant change from having to do something else to order more.

> This button isn't about saving time ... it's about creating a barrier to exit so that your customers won't comparison shop for different brands of detergent.

The increased switching cost isn't by force, though. Customers are less likely to switch because of convenience -- you're paying for the conveniene which, I think, means that Amazon is providing a service that consumers want.

Re: Amazon Dash Button

#328

Post by kbenson »

mikeash wrote: post #211
kristofferR wrote: post #144

This makes me envious of you Americans. Here in Norway online shopping involves finding an online store that sells what you need (there's no site that sells everything, like Amazon, here), going through a cumbersome sign-up/payment process, paying a lot of money for the shipping costs, waiting several days and having to go to the post office unless the package is really small (or if you're willing to pay even more fo…

I think it's ridiculous just because it clearly involved a lot of effort to solve a problem that doesn't really need solving. The choice isn't between a button and the massive hassle you describe. The choice is between a button and ordering the product on your smartphone in ten seconds, or picking up the product at the grocery store the next time you're there. How often do you need laundry detergent? Every two weeks?…

I think the hardware component is a promotional item just to get people used to and eventually using a software component, such as a short list of essentials quickly accessible through the Amazon app. Getting people excited and changing behavior is hard through, and I think this may be purely for that.

Re: Amazon Dash Button

#329

Post by icebraining »

ahallock wrote: post #252
dogma1138 wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm pretty sure most Americans will give up amazon for free education, health care, paid maternity and paternity leave and the many other social benefits Norway provides to its nationals.

No thanks. I would like the freedom to choose where my money goes and not be forced by government or people lobbying government to allocate other people's hard-earned money to subsidize their preferences. Being able to withdraw money from something when it becomes corrupt, outdated, or inefficient is powerful. You don't have that power if government is taking your money by force. You are funding education even if the…

The fallacy in your argument is that it rests in the assumption that the US doesn't also take your money by force, when in fact they obviously do, so not having your money taken away isn't one of the choices.

Re: Amazon Dash Button

#330

Post by skorgu »

mikeash wrote: post #284
whateveracct wrote: post #251

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> How often do you need laundry detergent? Every two weeks? If this button saves you ten seconds each time, that's a total of 4.3 minutes per year saved It takes more than 10 seconds to go to the store and get detergent. I suppose it'll save the 30 seconds it takes to order detergent on a phone, but the big gain is that it's RIGHT THERE so you can't forget to order it and then find yourself dead in the water and have…

You don't go to the store to buy detergent. You go to the store to buy a whole bundle of items, and you go regardless of whether or not you need detergent. 10 seconds is IMO a decent approximation of the marginal cost of time for adding detergent to the stuff you buy. As for the big gain being that it's right there, I figured everybody's phones are right there too. Apparently not everybody does that. Seems like if yo…

10 seconds is the marginal cost /if you're going to the store/. It's entirely possible to make zero regular trips to the store under normal conditions. I'd use the heck out of a "cause more cat litter to arrive in a day or so" button, in fact I have a bookmark on my laptop for just this use. Mobile apps are (imo) universally horrible for this kind of directed action.
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