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The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

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Re: The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

#321

Post by figgis »

EADGBE wrote: post #300
figgis wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Personally I resent the fact that Amazon has done everything in their power as a company to make it so I cannot stream amazon prime to my chromecast. That alone has tarnished my opinion of the company.

Personally I resent the fact that [Google] has done everything in their power as a company to make it so I cannot stream [YouTube] to my [Fire Stick]. That alone has tarnished my opinion of the company. They had a nice YouTube app, too. Then, just took it away. Even has casting from the YouTube iOS app. __________________________________________ It's like deciding who gets to sit at the Cool Kids table at lunch.

If a competitor removed your products from their store and banned your applications/services from running on their product would you not consider doing the same?

It's amazing how once Google retaliated Amazon finally allows chromecast on their store (but no streaming!)

Re: The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

#322

Post by garybro »

I bought my parents five Dots for Christmas to use as intercoms. They live on a farm, with multiple outbuildings, so if something happened, they can yell at the Echo in the building they are in for help. Any other use they get out of it (my dad uses the music feature a lot) is just an added bonus.

Re: The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

#323

Post by Johnny555 »

jimmaswell wrote: post #295
Johnny555 wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They aren't that hard if you have an interface nearby to do it - my phone usually sits upstairs in my bedroom after I come home from work, so the Echo is a convenient voice interface to do exactly that set of things (timer, lights, playing music, etc). One thing it's super convenient for is when I'm upstairs and going to bed and I realize that I left the lights on downstairs, I can just call down "Alexa, turn off dow…

>my phone usually sits upstairs in my bedroom after I come home from work Why is it ever not in your pocket?

Because I'm at home, I don't need my phone at my fingertips.

Re: The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

#324

Post by JulianRaphael »

18pfsmt wrote: post #259
Kiro wrote: post #256

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I use HN comments as a predictor of future events, whether it be product trends or Bitcoin prices. Just take whatever is posted here and reverse it.

>Just take whatever is posted here and reverse it. Considering the myriad of viewpoints shown on HN, I don't think that is a reasonable take. I first learned about Bitcoin on HN in 2010, long before it became well-known. Also, when Apple announced the Homepod, the financial press was constantly comparing it to Amazon Echo, but HN knew it made more sense to compare it to Sonos. Not every comment on HN is spot-on, to b…

I fully agree that the signal-to-noise ratio on HN is better than elsewhere on the web, which is why I love coming here. HN shines when people share their sharp thinking, creativity and ability to reflect and adjust their strong, factually based opinions. That is exactly what led me to post my comment, because I've noticed that this community has grown in the past few years and with the growth the quality of discussions (sometimes) has become less informative and occasionally resembles a "typical" comment section on the internet.

I realised that I can influence this trend by participating more actively in the discussions. Hence, my resolution for 2018 is to more often post questions, rather than arguments to hopefully drive forward our collective creativity and intelligence. HN is a truly special place on the web!

Re: The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

#325

Post by coolso »

tkxxx7 wrote: post #319
coolso wrote: post #299

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm all for that, but the parent/GP took it a step further by stating a niece - the non-"typical" - would do it for "most", and I just don't think that's an accurate implication for most at all, based on anecdotal experiences in real life & on the internet, and also based on statistics.

I suppose that's a valid interpretation, but again, the purpose of the phrasing is to (slightly, help) change the status quo, so most of us are not batting an eye if it doesn't 100% reflect the status quo; the commenter may or may not have meant to collude 'most' with the non-typical, but it literally makes no difference.

> so most of us

Most of whom, and are you sure?

> but it literally makes no difference.

If it doesn't really make sense, it does make a difference, and certain wording can actually have the opposite effect and turn people away from the cause - even if they support it, like I do. I'm a huge proponent of "girls can do anything guys can do" and not pushing gender stereotypes on girls, but the GP's very presumptive wording came across as trying really hard to change the status quo, as well as exclusionary, when it could have been done much more naturally and subtly:

> "the techie niece/nephew will do it for most"

(being inclusive of both genders when obviously only the one gender, male, really reasonably applies; doesn't tend to offend anyone and brings them over to your cause because you're not making it look like you're trying to unreasonably exclude - this is probably the most ideal choice of wording)

or even just removing the "for most" (since it's completely inaccurate and very presumptive)

> "the techie niece will do it"

But I mean, techie girls do exist, but they're pretty rare. It's like saying "if most people simply asked their plumber, she'd agree to use more environmentally friendly chemical to unclog your drain". It's like really? Literally only 1.4% of plumbers are female [1], c'mon, stop trying so hard to push your agenda, it just turns people off and hurts your otherwise very worthy cause.

[1] https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat11.htm

Re: The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

#326

Post by api »

usrusr wrote: post #266
JulianRaphael wrote: post #121

Very revealing discussion. Most of the participants just argue about Amazon vs. Google here, some fear surveillance, some consider the devices useless, a few want to understand if the HN crowd finds it useful. This is something I notice here on HN in product-related discussions more and more: people just say what THEY think about product X (typically a negative opinion or complaint), rather being creative, constructi…

Buying decisions for gifts between adults who constantly buy stuff for themselves are governed by a very special set of rules. It can't be something they already have. It can't be something from a special interest hobby field, where enthusiasts identify deeply with every single related purchase decision. It can't be a commodity they would routinely buy anyways, that'd be like giving money. This leaves us with purely…

Give the gift of pervasive surveillance!

Re: The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

#327

Post by JulianRaphael »

jsz0 wrote: post #194
JulianRaphael wrote: post #121

Very revealing discussion. Most of the participants just argue about Amazon vs. Google here, some fear surveillance, some consider the devices useless, a few want to understand if the HN crowd finds it useful. This is something I notice here on HN in product-related discussions more and more: people just say what THEY think about product X (typically a negative opinion or complaint), rather being creative, constructi…

> Why do you think millions of people bought an Echo Dot or a Google Home? Probably because they emulate human conversation well enough to make people feel less lonely.

Unfortunately, for a large group of people this seems to be true. When I see these products, I often remember a talk of a Buddhist teacher titled "Loneliness is the ill being of our time." [1] I do believe that one of the next waves of technological innovations will evolve exactly around this topic: how can we make people feel less lonely?

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZ1x9bzl2Ww

Re: The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

#328

Post by mholmes680 »

StavrosK wrote: post #195
k__ wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interesting. We have an Echo and to this day we haven't found any use for it. Talking is broadcast and most of the time we search stuff for ourself on mobile. Also, it often simply says it has no answer.

I'm the same as IgorPartola, I use it for kitchen timers, music and smart home controls, but I've also written a few skills so it can play movies/shows on my Chromecast, tell me my last bank transaction, etc etc. Those are pretty useful, except the Dot fails to recognize my longer sentences way too often. Sometimes it'll even recognize the skill I want to launch but not the rest of it.

You seem like the person to ask, so... did you write a "Stavros Home" skill (to borrow from your SN) which can do all of that centrally, or multiple skills?

The problem I'm finding is I can train myself to remember about 5 skill names that can each do one or two things, but thats about it. I'm wondering when I write my own, if i should just have a central skill for my house. Also how did you link into the Chromecast? I have a chromecast buried in my Vizio Smartcast TV and i'm wondering how i can link it in.

Re: The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

#329

Post by [deleted] »

JulianRaphael wrote: post #121

Very revealing discussion. Most of the participants just argue about Amazon vs. Google here, some fear surveillance, some consider the devices useless, a few want to understand if the HN crowd finds it useful. This is something I notice here on HN in product-related discussions more and more: people just say what THEY think about product X (typically a negative opinion or complaint), rather being creative, constructi…

[deleted]

Re: The Echo Dot was the best-selling product on Amazon this holiday season

#330

Post by [deleted] »

JulianRaphael wrote: post #121

Very revealing discussion. Most of the participants just argue about Amazon vs. Google here, some fear surveillance, some consider the devices useless, a few want to understand if the HN crowd finds it useful. This is something I notice here on HN in product-related discussions more and more: people just say what THEY think about product X (typically a negative opinion or complaint), rather being creative, constructi…

[deleted]
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