I went all in once they dropped the Dot to $30. I’ve got four now, mostly so I can dictate the state of various lights from wherever and stream Amazon Music wherever. It mostly works.
I started during prime day: in total puchased 3 dots and got another 2 free making skills. I recently hooked it up to Logitech Harmony and Samsung SmartThings (which I bought specifically to play with Alexa). Paired with WebCore for SmartThings, the possibilities are endless.
@dave was the reason I pulled the trigger on the first two
I’ve had an Alexa Tap for a while and find it rather handy at times. Not always accurate, but handy. I got the Tap because I didn’t want it listening all the time, but then I enabled the “Hands-free” functionality and still press the button. I recently got a Google Home Mini and used it one day before putting it back in the box. Being quite paranoid, I found the app permissions extremely invasive. Without enabling all the spyware functions it wouldn’t work. I didn’t realize it wasn’t rechargeable and always needed to be plugged, which was somewhat annoying. I wanted to use it to play music, but when I asked it to play songs for a particular group, it played the genre from Google Music, which didn’t include songs from the group I was seeking. I found the touch controls on the sides to be too responsive, so every time I picked it up I’d inadvertently increase or decrease the volume. Since I didn’t appear to be gaining anything from the Google thingy, it went back in the box and I’ll continue to use my Alexa for now. Maybe the Google device is good for controlling home enabled stuff, but since I don’t have any it serves no purpose for me.
I have an original DECtalk DTC01 (the original artificial voice of Stephen Hawkings), connected via a DECserver 90M to the Alphaserver in the spare room. At night, when the housekeeping tasks and incremental backups run, it quietly sings of better days.
Seriously, it sings “Daisy” when the backup completes.
I used to have it set up to report weather, time and temperature, and the like on command (DTMF phone, no vocoder here…)
The following is not my unit but thats what it sounds like (except for the very last bit…):
I am a little paranoid of government, but have Alexa. Since I live alone with a dog, anyone listening would only be confused by the strange conversations I have with Molly.
P.s.BTC, LTC to the moon!
I had a dream that Bezos and I were eating breakfast together. He told me to get an Echo to help ensure world domination – something about having his tentacles (or is it testicles??) into everything.
My wife has an amazon echo and uses it more often than I ever thought she would. She uses it to stream music while cooking and grading papers, setting timers, bad jokes and to turn the lights on/off when she comes in from the garage. The last one has been a life saver for her; she has terrible night vision, there is no light switch by the entry door and the basement door is before the light switch.
I am not sure that I haven’t already said this, but I’ve got an Amazon Echo, but generally only use it for lights or as a kitchen timer. The timer is actually a better fit, of those two.
The sound quality is low enough to bother me a little, so I don’t use it for music, and the news thing is just podcasts, but without volume normalization, so if I turn them up loud enough to hear clearly, Alexa is then yelling at me.
For those who have both, is google better at answering questions than alexa? Because asking alexa for the answer to questions is like asking a magic 8 ball, except the answer is usually, “I don’t know the answer to that.”
1 Echo, 2 Dots. I do love laying in bed and telling my Amazon wench to turn off the lights so I don’t have to get my lazy ass up and do it myself.
Just got a major deal at Target for Google Home Minis and Wemo switches as a present for someone. The Mini was on sale for $29. They were offering $40 off the Mini’s regular price of $49 if you bought the Wemo. Unwittingly they marked the Wemos down to a clearance price of $15 from their regular $35 during this offer. Actual sale price if they hadn’t screwed up should have been $44 total, but after the Wemo markdown it would have come to $24 for the set. It was still ringing up as $44. When the extra $20 didn’t come off properly the cashier looked at the tag which said “$40 off when buying both” and proceeded to take $40 off on the register. I tried to correct him several times and let him know what the actual total should be. (Yeah, I’m karmic like that.) When it still didn’t sink in I gave up and handed over my Target card (extra 5% off) for a total price of $4.02 for the two items. So I bought a second set. What should have been about $93 total ended up costing me $8.
I’m a little paranoid about the listening, but the major factor for me is I don’t think I’d ever use it. I already have an old mobile device connected via BT to a receiver/stereo setup in my kitchen and a Harmony remote that effectively controls my home theater. The thought of choosing to speak to adjust the volume, change channels, or switch activities over simply pressing a button seems…really dumb. I rent my condo, so it’s not worthwhile for me to install any major home automation stuff (the utility of which seems questionable to me anyway).
I already have my phone with the full Google Assistant on it, so I can already say, “Hey Google” and have it do all the little things like reminders and timers (or, you know, use my microwave). The marginal utility over what I have already just doesn’t seem to justify pretty much any cost for me, especially with the privacy concerns.
i’ve got 3 google homes, and like them. easy access to music is great, and it’s nice to set timers and alarms with. most of my lights are linked, which i enjoy. GH also tells me the weather, traffic and streams selected news shows in the morning.
i really like the ability to search for info, most of which is easily findable. i can ask “what’s the driving time from greenbrae to fernley, nv” and get an instant answer. “what’s the population of dubrovnic” or “how big was the biggest sausage ever made” do, too.
recently, an upgrade allowed streaming TO the GH from a bluetooth device. the quality of the sound in the GH is very listenable, too. bass is suprising, especially on a wooden table. volume is more than adequate.
speaking of which, one of my favorite features is the voice control of how loud it is. best yet - THE VOLUME GOES TO 11!
I have a Google Home that I bought on meh and never took out of the box. Because while I was waiting for it to come in the mail I went shopping for “smart” things to connect it to and found them scarce and expensive. “Smart” things I can talk to directly with my phone were more available and cheaper.
“Alexa, how many batteries are stored in my refrigerator?”
Yes, and I mostly use it to play my music, or get weather, or news, or hear jokes. Bad jokes.
1960’s: “I better not say that on the phone or the government will wiretap my house.”
2017: “Hey Wiretap! Do you have a recipe for pancakes?”
@katbyter Alexa: Will this get me thrown in jail?
@PocketBrain “Alexa, contact my lawyer!”
I went all in once they dropped the Dot to $30. I’ve got four now, mostly so I can dictate the state of various lights from wherever and stream Amazon Music wherever. It mostly works.
@dave I have an Echo and a Dot. I got a special external battery for the Dot so I can carry it around if it suits me. She’s great for traveling, too.
I’ll get a voice home assistant if an Idris version becomes available.
@lordbowen I’ll get one when a GLaDOS version becomes available.
Not only no but hell no
I started during prime day: in total puchased 3 dots and got another 2 free making skills. I recently hooked it up to Logitech Harmony and Samsung SmartThings (which I bought specifically to play with Alexa). Paired with WebCore for SmartThings, the possibilities are endless.
@dave was the reason I pulled the trigger on the first two
I’ve had an Alexa Tap for a while and find it rather handy at times. Not always accurate, but handy. I got the Tap because I didn’t want it listening all the time, but then I enabled the “Hands-free” functionality and still press the button. I recently got a Google Home Mini and used it one day before putting it back in the box. Being quite paranoid, I found the app permissions extremely invasive. Without enabling all the spyware functions it wouldn’t work. I didn’t realize it wasn’t rechargeable and always needed to be plugged, which was somewhat annoying. I wanted to use it to play music, but when I asked it to play songs for a particular group, it played the genre from Google Music, which didn’t include songs from the group I was seeking. I found the touch controls on the sides to be too responsive, so every time I picked it up I’d inadvertently increase or decrease the volume. Since I didn’t appear to be gaining anything from the Google thingy, it went back in the box and I’ll continue to use my Alexa for now. Maybe the Google device is good for controlling home enabled stuff, but since I don’t have any it serves no purpose for me.
@heartny
Since you don’t need it, would you sell it? And if so, for how much?
@mflassy Sure I’d sell it. I paid $29, free shipping, no tax. It’s the charcoal gray one. No clue how much to ask. Make me an offer I can’t refuse
I have an original DECtalk DTC01 (the original artificial voice of Stephen Hawkings), connected via a DECserver 90M to the Alphaserver in the spare room. At night, when the housekeeping tasks and incremental backups run, it quietly sings of better days.
Seriously, it sings “Daisy” when the backup completes.
I used to have it set up to report weather, time and temperature, and the like on command (DTMF phone, no vocoder here…)
The following is not my unit but thats what it sounds like (except for the very last bit…):
Had some Alexa devices.
Played with them for a day or three.
Unplugged them.
Unregistered them.
Gave them away or sold them to people I know.
Not seeking more of same.
Cool tech, but serious Ick Factor.
So … NO.
No. By the time I get home I no longer wish to speak to anyone or anything.
I want meh to produce a Carl home assistant that does things like quote the mehcronomicon, and goes on drunk rants at various times.
And when I ask it to set the an alarm for 6am, it says, "That’s what you have a digital clock for you lazy fuck. Now fuck off!"
I am a little paranoid of government, but have Alexa. Since I live alone with a dog, anyone listening would only be confused by the strange conversations I have with Molly.
P.s.BTC, LTC to the moon!
I’m not sure the NSA gets confused, conversations either trip the “send in SWAT and call Guantanamo” trigger or don’t.
@aetris Hey Alexa, exactly how much salt peter goes into…nevermind.
I had a dream that Bezos and I were eating breakfast together. He told me to get an Echo to help ensure world domination – something about having his tentacles (or is it testicles??) into everything.
/giphy nope
My wife has an amazon echo and uses it more often than I ever thought she would. She uses it to stream music while cooking and grading papers, setting timers, bad jokes and to turn the lights on/off when she comes in from the garage. The last one has been a life saver for her; she has terrible night vision, there is no light switch by the entry door and the basement door is before the light switch.
No. While I think Google would be relatively benevolent overlords, I still don’t want them listening to everything I say.
I mean, unless they bribe me with a centrifugal bumble-puppy. That might be worth it.
I am not sure that I haven’t already said this, but I’ve got an Amazon Echo, but generally only use it for lights or as a kitchen timer. The timer is actually a better fit, of those two.
The sound quality is low enough to bother me a little, so I don’t use it for music, and the news thing is just podcasts, but without volume normalization, so if I turn them up loud enough to hear clearly, Alexa is then yelling at me.
I have multiples of both Amazon’s and Google’s ‘assistants’—but not Microsoft’s or Apple’s…
@fultonmartin I was also looking for the ‘have both’ option.
[X] Yes, those things creep me out.
/giphy a few
I went with the South Park version.
Missing Survey Answer:
We say something govt-nefarious in front of Google Home while Alexa is unplugged.
And then we say something govt-nafarious that completely contradicts that into Alexa while Google Home is unplugged.
Those NSA asshats are confused as hell… and move on to the next poor privacy victim.
You kids…In my day, we had Clippy. We don’t need nuttin’ else, just Clippy.
@therealjrn that was a sad era for Microsoft Orifice, just like Microsoft Bob and Hal for Lotus 123.
For those who have both, is google better at answering questions than alexa? Because asking alexa for the answer to questions is like asking a magic 8 ball, except the answer is usually, “I don’t know the answer to that.”
1 Echo, 2 Dots. I do love laying in bed and telling my Amazon wench to turn off the lights so I don’t have to get my lazy ass up and do it myself.
Just got a major deal at Target for Google Home Minis and Wemo switches as a present for someone. The Mini was on sale for $29. They were offering $40 off the Mini’s regular price of $49 if you bought the Wemo. Unwittingly they marked the Wemos down to a clearance price of $15 from their regular $35 during this offer. Actual sale price if they hadn’t screwed up should have been $44 total, but after the Wemo markdown it would have come to $24 for the set. It was still ringing up as $44. When the extra $20 didn’t come off properly the cashier looked at the tag which said “$40 off when buying both” and proceeded to take $40 off on the register. I tried to correct him several times and let him know what the actual total should be. (Yeah, I’m karmic like that.) When it still didn’t sink in I gave up and handed over my Target card (extra 5% off) for a total price of $4.02 for the two items. So I bought a second set. What should have been about $93 total ended up costing me $8.
@cinoclav
You misheard in the marketing, and your vision must suck first thing in the morning.
It’s actually an Amazon Grinch.
… But don’t look to hard at it up close, and you can keep your sweet morning dreams a little while longer …
I’m a little paranoid about the listening, but the major factor for me is I don’t think I’d ever use it. I already have an old mobile device connected via BT to a receiver/stereo setup in my kitchen and a Harmony remote that effectively controls my home theater. The thought of choosing to speak to adjust the volume, change channels, or switch activities over simply pressing a button seems…really dumb. I rent my condo, so it’s not worthwhile for me to install any major home automation stuff (the utility of which seems questionable to me anyway).
I already have my phone with the full Google Assistant on it, so I can already say, “Hey Google” and have it do all the little things like reminders and timers (or, you know, use my microwave). The marginal utility over what I have already just doesn’t seem to justify pretty much any cost for me, especially with the privacy concerns.
I have 5 echos and a Fire tv.
My spiders hear everything, so don’t feel so safe by not having an Alexa!
i’ve got 3 google homes, and like them. easy access to music is great, and it’s nice to set timers and alarms with. most of my lights are linked, which i enjoy. GH also tells me the weather, traffic and streams selected news shows in the morning.
i really like the ability to search for info, most of which is easily findable. i can ask “what’s the driving time from greenbrae to fernley, nv” and get an instant answer. “what’s the population of dubrovnic” or “how big was the biggest sausage ever made” do, too.
recently, an upgrade allowed streaming TO the GH from a bluetooth device. the quality of the sound in the GH is very listenable, too. bass is suprising, especially on a wooden table. volume is more than adequate.
speaking of which, one of my favorite features is the voice control of how loud it is. best yet - THE VOLUME GOES TO 11!
I have a Google Home that I bought on meh and never took out of the box. Because while I was waiting for it to come in the mail I went shopping for “smart” things to connect it to and found them scarce and expensive. “Smart” things I can talk to directly with my phone were more available and cheaper.