111–120 of 477 posts
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This pattern is pervasive. I also dislike needing an app and an internet connection for the most basic functionality with some purchased device. At some point, we need to own the things we buy and that line keeps getting pushed back further and further. Anec-data: I purchased a cooking device for my parents in December and it has a single button to turn it off. The only way to use it is with an app which requires a l…
Not interesting data. The real reason is that it's easier to connect things through a central service. I sometimes email myself for the same reason.
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Why don’t the customers use a tablet resting on the treadmill or wall-mounted TV to watch whatever they want?
That is not always practical. Also, why purchase a tablet or install a wall mounted screen, when there is a perfectly good screen right in front of you.
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Normally you can block any device's update if you figure out the server for the update content/update check, and block it out from your router and/or DNS.
The "solution" for that will be embedded 5G connections.
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Why don’t the customers use a tablet resting on the treadmill or wall-mounted TV to watch whatever they want?
Tablets can bounce around on a treadmill if you really get going, and 10" is not 32". And you think customers are going to wall-mount a TV in the garage where a lot of treadmills live, rather than just buy a built-in screen? I mean, yeah, that's exactly what I did, but not everyone (not but a few?) are even that handy. And on top of everything else, customers thought that they could watch whatever they wanted on thei…
Because unless the screen displays what you want it to, it's useless?
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The "solution" for that will be embedded 5G connections.
That would work equally well with LTE. It's not happening because it would increase cost.
My solution to this problem would be legislation that allows customers, if they wish to, to return devices for a full refund if the company that manufactures the device makes a change that removes functionality that the customer valued. This doesn't prevent the company from making the change, it simply makes sure that they incur a cost for doing so, and it makes whole any customer affected by the change.
However, we still need to tackle the subscription issue, I.e. That manufacturers can hide behind "you didn't renew the subscription for this printer/treadmill so now we brick it". Any ideas?
Remember Sony removing OtherOS/Linux from the PS3? Yeah? No? That's the reason I don't buy Sony hardware anymore. See, the issue is decades old. But somehow people keep forgetting.
This type of 'update' is one reason I tend to stay away from so-called 'smart' devices. If part of the product I've paid for is software, and the company can update it without customer consent at any time, then I can't rely on the product's features. Period. I experienced this myself on the PS4 version of Terraria. I bought a hard-copy of the game. I mastered the controls, and loved them. Terraria was updated one day…
Overreacting aside, control schemes can be customized again in 1.4.
Jeeze, I will stick with my modular solution: an ipad on a music stand. This is compatible not only with any commodity treadmill, but also bike trainers, ellipticals, and making vroomvroom noises on the motorcycle when it's too icy to actually ride. I could also swap out the ipad for a laptop, non-ipad tablet, or a collection of cute succulents should I desire it. snark aside, I'm a bicycle guy and I really like that…
> ipad on a music stand Thanks for the idea. I might get some kind of tablet so I can watch things without moving my (cheap) stationary bike in front of the living room TV.