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Don't Want Google In Your House? Here Are a Few Home-Tech Startups To Watch
curtwoodward writes: Google bought Nest. Then Nest bought Dropcam. Then Nest opened up its platform to tech partners, including... Google. This may not creep everyone out, but for those who don't like the idea of Google's all-seeing eye owning their smart-home devices, there are some small, independent companies developing alternatives. Maybe they'll survive long enough to get acquired by a company that doesn't make 90 percent of its money from advertising — right?
So then don't buy and install these products.
Remember when people used to say that about GPS-enabled cell phones? "Well, if you don't want one, don't buy one."
Now every cell phone is GPS-enabled.
So much for that non-solution. Got any other ideas?
An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
I rather make my own devices and sensors. Much more fun and they will do exactly what you want them to do.
GP probably knows quite well where he is. The point is it's nobody else's business where he is and just because there's a little clicky on a menu in the phone that says the GPS is disabled doesn't mean that it's the case in all circumstances. Nothing that the big telecom providers, and Google and the like have been doing recently inspires our confidence.
Soon there may be websites with information on how to disable features you don't like on your eDevices. With informative pages that feature nice illustrations showing were to drill with a #44 drill bit and how deeply, to disable the GPS and no other function on the phone.
The time is certainly right for sites like that to emerge.
But yeah, duh, we're all luddites if we don't bow and kiss the ring.