I would buy the Tap if it was always on listening while on the cradle but then push button while portable. Doesn't look like it works that way from the description. I get that it takes too much battery to have 7 always listening microphones on, but while on the cradle, this should be a non-issue.
Amazon Echo Dot
261–270 of 410 posts
Re: Amazon Echo Dot
#262Earlier quoted context omitted.
The moment you clamored for MIT embedded Linux software and the "let's kill all the GPL it's bad for startups" meme came up. So now this cool audio controlled personal assistant is just another gadget to buy more stuff from Amazon, instead of something you control.
Is this voice recognition stuff based on MIT-licensed open source speech recognition? I have a project that would benefit from good quality speech recognition.
Well, no, that's the other thing: "let's put everything in the cloud so nobody owns anything anymore!".
Voice recognition is done on some Amazon server. If it goes down or changes API in five years, it will render this thing a brick.
Re: Amazon Echo Dot
#263Earlier quoted context omitted.
I really want an 'Alexa, stop listenting' command. There's a button on the top that mutes the mic and puts a red ring around them, but when I have people over, it's not a great environment to use voice commands anyways. 'Everyone be quite so I can shout across the room to change my music'
A workaround would be to mute the device itself, and then use the remote (which has its own mic, and works well in noisy environments since you just hold it closer to your mouth).
but then I just have to carry a remote while I'm having a party.
Re: Amazon Echo Dot
#264Somewhat related, but if I don't subscribe to any of the services listed, this is a pretty useless product for me. I don't listen to internet radio, I don't stream music, I don't order delivery, I don't use uber, there's already 10 million ways to check the weather, and my life isn't busy enough to need a voice-activated calendar. Is this the future of tech? Like do I need to have some kind of urban-go-getter lifesty…
What would you find useful? You seem upset that a product was designed for a user that is not you, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have a use. Subscribing to music streaming services, ordering delivery, using Uber; these aren't incredibly uncommon things just because you don't use them. It is rare for new and exciting technology to just pop out of nowhere. Almost all new products are reiterations of previous product…
Totally fair point! But would you buy an Echo Dot if you only used Uber and didn't use any of the other services? Or if you used 1 or 2 of the services? How many of these services do you need to use before the functionality of Echo becomes apparent?
I want to be a fly-on-the-wall when someone sets one of these up in their home. I can't picture it fitting in with my lifestyle, so I'm curious to see how others would actually use it. Or would it just gather dust and become a conversation piece?
Re: Amazon Echo Dot
#265Echo Dot ($89.99) is available exclusively for Prime Members through Alexa Voice Shopping. To order your Echo Dot, use your Echo or Fire TV and just ask: “Alexa, order Echo Dot.”
I nearly renewed my Prime membership on reading the first part but then stopped when I read the second part. Holy market segmentation, batman - why actively repel new customers and only make this available to those mini-me-philes who already have an Echo?
Re: Amazon Echo Dot
#266Echo Dot ($89.99) is available exclusively for Prime Members through Alexa Voice Shopping. To order your Echo Dot, use your Echo or Fire TV and just ask: “Alexa, order Echo Dot.”
I nearly renewed my Prime membership on reading the first part but then stopped when I read the second part. Holy market segmentation, batman - why actively repel new customers and only make this available to those mini-me-philes who already have an Echo?
[deleted]
Re: Amazon Echo Dot
#267Earlier quoted context omitted.
Couldn't legally the FBI get a court oder to be able to listen in on conversions in a room that has one of these? They already do that with car assistance services. [1] [1] http://www.cnet.com/news/court-to-fbi-no-spying-on-in-car-co...
Echo (supposedly) doesn't start sending audio to Amazon until you trigger it with a "wake word", i.e. "Alexa". Of course: a) it's not open source so we can't be sure (aside from monitoring network traffic, which is probably encrypted) b) if the FBI is successful in compelling Apple to develop a backdoor for the iPhone there's nothing stopping them from compelling Amazon to do the same with Echo. c) better hope you do…
b) if the FBI is successful in compelling Apple to develop a backdoor for the iPhone there's nothing stopping them from compelling Amazon to do the same with Echo.
No backdoor needed if they information is sent to Amazon. All that is needed is a court order for Amazon to hand it over.
Re: Amazon Echo Dot
#268There is something delightfully ballsy about making this only available to users of Alexa Voice shopping: "Echo Dot is available in limited quantities and exclusively for Prime members through Alexa Voice Shopping. To order your Echo Dot, use your Amazon Echo or Amazon Fire TV and just ask: "Alexa, order an Echo dot" Also, this makes me sad. I'd kind of like to try this out, but I have no Alexa voice service currentl…
Even though I own an echo, I wanted to get in early. Here's a link until they remove it: http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B00VKTZFB4/
Re: Amazon Echo Dot
#269My problem with Alexa is, I don't want to invest in a new ecosystem. I'm fine with Amazon being the hub that connects all of my services, but I don't want to use Amazon To-Do List, Amazon Prime Radio, Amazon Traffic, Amazon Sports, Amazon Calendar, Amazon Weather. That being said, they announce partnerships with more and more services every month. Things are looking up.
I like Echo because (after setup) I don't have to use my phone with it. And at this point, there's little reason not to be in Prime. $99/year is pretty affordable for most of America.
Re: Amazon Echo Dot
#270The transition from primarily visual UX towards an auditorial UX is really powerful. Looking at screens to get key information distracts me from my surroundings and seems archaic. My wife is a sound designer who has opened my eyes to the importance of sounds both in film and in the world. It's not that I was unaware of sounds, but I didn't realize how important they are to centering me in this world and the made up w…
Voice will become an important, if not the primary, interface to home/car audio/video.