Smart Home?

[125cc]

Anyway, back on topic. My mate has motion-sensing lightswitches in their flat. As cool as this Star Trek/Red Dwarf-style stuff is I don't really see the saving or advances when all I can do is flick a switch on the wall...

 

Also getting up for a pee in the night is not good if you get blinded by the automatic lights... would rather have manual control!

[onesea]

1 hour ago, 125cc said:

Ahhhhh wireless printing, so useful and yet so utterly infuriating at times. The amount of bother I have at work with said devices does my blood pressure no good.

Modern Printers are the spawn of the devil, wireless or not...  A classic example of modern tech not working as it should. If the inks not dried your getting nags to buy more ink.  If you don't buy original cartridges you are in a whole world of pain.  Don't even start me I have thrown 2 HP printers our as it was easier and heaper with cost of ink to buy new ones.
 

2 hours ago, 125cc said:

 

I also fly privately, the aircraft I fly are 40 years old with minimal analogue instrumentation and a few switches. Navigation via ye olde 1:500k chart, compass/DI and clock. All good fun!

 

GPS takes the fun and skill out of it (Follow The Magenta Line) however it is handy if you cock it all up and get lost.

GPS on the boat View ranger used mainly to see how far I have sailed.  Google earth to see where the creek was likely to be when creek crawling (surprisingly accurate).  Oh and I do have waypoint at end of river so I can tell my misses how late home I am likely to be. If nav gets serious its paper charts and compass courses are much more efficient.

In the forest here I often turn View ranger on when I leave the car walk wherever takes my fancy (or the dogs lead me) the main use is to find my way from my meanderings in often featureless wood land to the car.  Saves counting streams gates fences hills to find position on a map or walking the same route in and out.

Car heating I have always errored to knobs and switches, initial however present car is brilliant. If the windscreen doesn't need de-icing it gets set to auto and hardly touched.   Good tech is brilliant bad tech is terrible.

Smart watches, I have one the biggest uses is contactless payment I no longer a carry a wallet (some how I never got on with it through my phone) great for paying for petrol on the bike.  Oh and if I feel particularly knackered I can see how many steps I have done and normally I have aced the day unknowingly most notifications are turned off.

I have battery powered automatic light in garage great in unpowered garage for putting bike to bed of a night.

Tech should be how it can make your life easier.

On the boat I don't have remote engine stop, much better to put hand in engine box and pull decompression leaver, I know the temperature its running at and its not leaking oil or water.

Edited January 15, 2021 by onesea

[125cc]

Printers are the bane of my life sometimes. Don't work, don't do what they're told, don't have the right cartridges installed, toner low, toner waste full, paper jams for no reason, non-existent paper jams...

 

Totally agree re: tech. It should serve to make life easier, not to replace people or to show off how clever some designer is. Good tech is valuable, bad tech is a curse worthy of landfill...

[MikeHorton]

11 hours ago, 125cc said:

We had Hive in our old house. It could be handy! Didn't really "need" it as such however, it was a freebie with a new boiler.

 

I'm a bit ambivalent regarding the concept of "Smart Homes". The geeky Star-Trek-fan part of me thinks its great, futuristic and dead clever, however the luddite part of me says no way. Not quite worked out what part is dominant yet...

 

I'm an airport engineer, and increasingly I get so sick of dealing with technology every day at work what I get home all I want is the basics... no computers, phones, technology, smart this or that, connectivity... its why I don't have anything "smart" at home, drive a basic air-cooled 125 and engage in hobbies with minimal levels of tech... hillwalking (map and compass), fishing (stick and line), flying model rockets (bits of cardboard/paper/balsa and black powder engines lit with a 9V battery)... simple pleasures.

I can relate to that.  Working from home for a few months and reliant on tech and online training for new systems is just nuts and doesn't make us any more efficient. I've missed taking my caravan away for the last year off grid no WiFi or TV !

[Tiggie]

When technology works it is amazing. It's when it doesn't that headaches appear 

 

Case in point for the pro technology side. We just had a new digital timer delivered and the instructions were completely in Chinese. As it was only a timer we could figure out how to use it so not an issue.

 

I got bored during a quiet spell and decided to play with the translate function on my phone. I think this is seriously impressive and I wish I could go on holiday somewhere abroad to play with it some more!  This is all done in real time, just hold the phone up to what you want translating and press a button

 

[onesea]

11 minutes ago, Tiggie said:

I got bored during a quiet spell and decided to play with the translate function on my phone. I think this is seriously impressive and I wish I could go on holiday somewhere abroad to play with it some more! 

 

 

I did this 20 odd years ago someone gave me a Portuguese to English translator, our company locally in Brazils (actually every where it was the same)  standard answer was always to any reequipments was that's that we can get its not available take it or leave it.

I got smart, local we where working with gave me contacts I translated my requirement using translator.  E-mailed off a copy to the the supplier, back came quotes.
I then gave original & translated quote to supplier, normally for half the price. My biggest success was getting absorbent rags not nylon rags.

Chatting with some one a few years later they actually complained about my success. They hated working there and they could no longer complain "even the rags a shit over here!"..  You cannot win.

[Six30]

On 15/01/2021 at 10:51, Slowlycatchymonkey said:

Having said all that I’m having a smart meter fitted next week cos our electricity bill is astronomical so I’m prepared to take the risk

Just turn your lights your not using off etc, smart meter wont bring your bill down, waste of time .

Plus i think the energy companies pay for them to be installed and maintained which is then  passed on to their customers , so will cost more, another green con .

Edited January 18, 2021 by Six30

[onesea]

Thought I should update this one...

Second Google Nest bought a couple of months ago.  Now we have coverage over the house.

 

Most used features:

• "Turning lights in and off"
• One programmed to come on and sunset and turn off later.
• A bedtime routine that turns lights on and off on delays so I can go to bed after late shift without clubbing about disturbing the better half.
• "add flour to shopping list"
• "Set reminder"
• Also have program that detects when I come home of night and puts certain lights on.
• Oh and broadcasting to other half when my glad is empty (this one is not so popular ).

 

All useful.

 

Latest toy is robotic vacuum bought on Amazon prime day at less than half price. It has remote control however this one also can be Google activated. 

I had one years ago but battery gradually died it was also noisy. 

This one is much quieter (we will be able to sleep through it) with auto docking.  Initial thoughts are it will not find docking station, (placed it out off sight under chair) however I used to have to find the old one which was never a problem. Means you empty it at same time.

They don't replace a proper Hoover, however sweeping hard floors is fine.  On carpet they take surface dirty (dog hairs) hopefully we will only need to vacuum every 2-4 days not every day.

 

Any items bought in future Google integration will be considered plus.

 

 

Edited June 24, 2021 by onesea