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Vacuum bricked after user blocks data collection – user mods it to run anyway

tomshardware.com

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Re: Vacuum bricked after user blocks data collection – user mods it to run anyway

#81

Post by Mashimo »

SoftTalker wrote: post #61
StarGrit wrote: post #55

Whenever I read about robovac. I wonder gow good are these robot vacs really? Maybe it is just me, but surely would be less effort to hire a cleaner and they can do more than just vacuuming.

I think it’s one of the most idiotic devices anyone could own. Buy a normal vacuum cleaner for half the price, spend 10 minutes a week vacuuming your apartment, and you won’t come home and find that your cleaning robot spent the afternoon choking on a shoelace.

But what if I'm too lazy to vacuum 10 minutes a week and don't want to do it?

Re: Vacuum bricked after user blocks data collection – user mods it to run anyway

#82

Post by Mashimo »

charcircuit wrote: post #15

I suspect this is not the full story. Why would someone waste their time manually disabling a device? That makes me think that this device was doing something malicous to their servers, enough to trip an alert.

Might just be a "could not contact server for X days in a row" thing.

Re: Vacuum bricked after user blocks data collection – user mods it to run anyway

#83

Post by hulitu »

Sanzig wrote: post #7
homeonthemtn wrote: post #2

[flagged]

The owner did not hack the vacuum, he blocked the IP address on his network for the telemetry server. Same thing tons of people do with Pi-Hole DNS blocking, for example. There's no sane world where it is defensible to remotely brick a device because it can't communicate with a telemetry server.

> There's no sane world where it is defensible to remotely brick a device because it can't communicate with a telemetry server.

Just today: Setting up an old smartphone: "Google assistant cannot work on this device." The only choice was "back". Had to search on the internet the solution: do not connect to wi-fi.

Re: Vacuum bricked after user blocks data collection – user mods it to run anyway

#84

Post by Xelbair »

morsch wrote: post #77
bragr wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>If Amazon ever gets rid of the without ad version they will lose me as a customer overnight. Didn't they already remove the option for a completely ad free prime video experience or am I hallucinating that? They have such a ridiculous hold on the e reader market I feel like it is just matter of the next down quarter.

They seem to own 75% of the market, and I think you can get pretty much every book on every device, right? Of course your existing library is locked-in; ideally, that'd be illegal.

Worse - they actually can remove books that you've purchased. Not only revoke license for future downloads - but actually remove them from your device.

Ironically they did that to 1984 book.

Re: Vacuum bricked after user blocks data collection – user mods it to run anyway

#86

Post by krageon »

blueboo wrote: post #64
ethin wrote: post #62

IMO a company should lose all control over technology once you've purchased it. Doesn't matter if it's "smart" or not. If the company wants to do something like telemetry, they can buy a license from you for that data. See how they like it when the tables are flipped.

Can't you trivially reframe the initial purchase as being subsidized by that license? Your $200 smart knife sharpener would be $300 if it weren't recording audio 24/7 (for VAD, surely!) I don't like it either but here we are

It's not, things haven't gotten that much relatively cheaper (have you looked at phones? The biggest pieces of spyware you can buy?). This is a line corporations like to feed us so we feel guilty about being bad instead of putting that where it belongs: every CEO.

Re: Vacuum bricked after user blocks data collection – user mods it to run anyway

#87

Post by StarGrit »

Mashimo wrote: post #80
StarGrit wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But the cleaners do more than the floors. Vacuuming takes me about 20 minutes once a week. I don't really see the point when I live in a 2 bed apartment.

> I don't really see the point. You save the 20 minutes once a week. That's it. That is the whole point. A slight convenience. I use one in a 1 bedroom apartment.

Considering some of these things can cost almost £1000. This firmly then lives in the total waste of money pile then. I will stick with my £50 tesco vacuum thank you.

Re: Vacuum bricked after user blocks data collection – user mods it to run anyway

#88

Post by StarGrit »

Mashimo wrote: post #81
SoftTalker wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it’s one of the most idiotic devices anyone could own. Buy a normal vacuum cleaner for half the price, spend 10 minutes a week vacuuming your apartment, and you won’t come home and find that your cleaning robot spent the afternoon choking on a shoelace.

But what if I'm too lazy to vacuum 10 minutes a week and don't want to do it?

You could change your attitude. A vacuum cleaner is already a labour saving device

Re: Vacuum bricked after user blocks data collection – user mods it to run anyway

#89

Post by devn0ll »

blueboo wrote: post #64
ethin wrote: post #62

IMO a company should lose all control over technology once you've purchased it. Doesn't matter if it's "smart" or not. If the company wants to do something like telemetry, they can buy a license from you for that data. See how they like it when the tables are flipped.

Can't you trivially reframe the initial purchase as being subsidized by that license? Your $200 smart knife sharpener would be $300 if it weren't recording audio 24/7 (for VAD, surely!) I don't like it either but here we are

I do not think the value difference is $100 ;-) In fact, the longer you use it, the more money they can make off of you. (In that sense, that $200 is already WAY too expensive to start ;-) )

So yeah, reversing this would make the most sense. The default is: local data only and not connected. They need to pay me to get data.

Just like car companies, phones, etc, should be forced to do that as well.

Re: Vacuum bricked after user blocks data collection – user mods it to run anyway

#90

Post by StarGrit »

raphman wrote: post #79
SoftTalker wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it’s one of the most idiotic devices anyone could own. Buy a normal vacuum cleaner for half the price, spend 10 minutes a week vacuuming your apartment, and you won’t come home and find that your cleaning robot spent the afternoon choking on a shoelace.

> "most idiotic devices anyone could own" Ever been to Chesterton's Fence? Hypothetically, some people who own such an idiotic device might have pets that bring in lots of dirt from the fields, lose lots of hair, and get a little bit agitated by the normal vacuum cleaner but more or less ignore the robot vacuum.

Cats aren't that bothered by vacuum cleaners unless you come at them with it and they normally just run into another room. Never seen a dog that bothered by them.
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