I've looked at this pretty hard and concluded that, inexplicably, it is not an April Fools joke.
What's wild to me is that last year, it was: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4l6TwhVAHo
Amazon Echo Look
151–160 of 328 posts
Re: Amazon Echo Look
#152Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's not usually recording you while you are changing.
How do you know? Amazon says their camera only records you when you ask it to, if you don't trust them, then how do you trust that your cellphone or laptop isn't recording you illicitly?
That's true. I was more saying that it's not usually pointed in my direction when I'm changing. I have a cover over my webcam and my phone is usually looking at the ceiling or whatever surface it's on.
Re: Amazon Echo Look
#153The HN reaction to this device is what I expected: we're somewhere between suspicious and terrified. I'll be really fascinated to know how the wider market reacts. I was one of those who believed consumers would look at the always-on living room microphone with suspicion. But I think the lesson was pretty clear that people will trade privacy for convenience. (Likely an overabundance of trust or a lack of understandin…
Taking a photo of yourself is probably not a privacy intrusion like having someone else take a photo of you might be.
It's consensual or whatever, but I think the bigger factor is that people are not really aware of how much information can be gleaned from the photos and don't consider the implications of Amazon storing them forever.
Re: Amazon Echo Look
#154I'm not normally one to be creeped out by these kind of things. But this is a device that's designed to take photos and videos of you while you get dressed, and will be both connected to the internet and constantly communicating those images over the network. This feels like a device literature professors would use to teach dystopian fiction writing. edit: case in point - matthewmcg's comment https://news.ycombinator…
Is it any riskier than a cell phone or laptop computer with a camera?
Anecdotally I don't have anything pointing at me while I change, regardless of who's watching it.
My phone at rest is either looking at the inside of my pocket or the ceiling/floor.
Re: Amazon Echo Look
#155I am not the target customer. However, I really want to show this idea off to a bunch of people and see what they think. People want to look good and having an automated system that can give you a "once over" seems nifty. Yes, it sounds vapid and for insecure people, but people waste time on being anxious about how they present themselves.
Why is everyone saying this is for insecure people? I'm also not the target audience for this, but I don't think people who are concerned about the way they look are inherently insecure.
Yeah, that's probably true. My bad.
I am not insecure (I think !?!?) but it would be nifty to have Alexa tell me that "harshaw, those jeans you are wearing have a giant stain and you should get a clean pair out of the drawer".
Re: Amazon Echo Look
#156Missed opportunity to call it 'narziss'.
Re: Amazon Echo Look
#157Earlier quoted context omitted.
I can easily see this selling like hotcakes. I can see a lot of fashion conscious young people loving a history of what they wore every day.
There is zero chance of this becoming popular. Zero.
What makes you so sure?
I think there are some pretty compelling arguments for this device selling like hotcakes in this thread, and my experience with people very into clothes (e.g. not myself) would lead me to believe there are a ton of people that'd love any reason to make their morning/evening routines longer, and even more people that couldn't care less about a camera/internet-enabled device set up in the bedroom.
I imagine it will take off a reasonable amount at $200, and then really start selling when it comes down to $100, a la the standard Echo path.
Re: Amazon Echo Look
#158Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's not usually recording you while you are changing.
How do you know? Amazon says their camera only records you when you ask it to, if you don't trust them, then how do you trust that your cellphone or laptop isn't recording you illicitly?
How do I know my smart phone isn't shooting a video of me when I'm dressing? It isn't pointed at me. It doesn't sit on a stand with a view of the room. Sure the microphone might catch something interesting in the bedroom, but setting up an internet connected camera with a view is very different than than one that is pointed in a safe direction.
Firearms: never point it at something you don't want to destroy. Internet connected cameras: never point them at something you don't want the world to see.
Re: Amazon Echo Look
#159I've looked at this pretty hard and concluded that, inexplicably, it is not an April Fools joke.
As soon as I read a brief description I was checking and double-checking the calendar.
Re: Amazon Echo Look
#160Earlier quoted context omitted.
I mean, i love all these tools, i just don't want them to have any form of internet access. It's why i'm building my home cloud and automation system, but only doing so if the devices don't leave my firewall. I enjoy the tech, i enjoy the complication (to a degree) , it's fun gadget stuff, it's nifty. However i do not trust them to keep my information safe, even if i trusted them to not misuse it themselves (which i…
>> I mean, i love all these tools, i just don't want them to have any form of internet access. I've come to the realisation that the only way I will have a 'home of the future' is if I build it myself and keep it offline. I love lots of the IOT products and when they eventually come down in price they would be no brainers. But my privacy isn't worth the benefit they provide.
The home isn't a castle anymore. It's a SCIF.