Smart gadgets you cary about, do you?

Pebble Steel and iPhone here.

Looking to invest in Nest for next winter. Also started a project to "smart" my electric roller curtain to with a timer that is linked to my calendar. I'd like to to installing anything smart I can get my hands on!

To be honest, smart is the wrong word, automation is the correct word. It isn't supposed to drive your life, it is supposed to make your life easier. Logitech Harmoney for example, it's not marketed as a smart remote, but it sure is one: you select the mode you want (TV, on-demand, music, etc) and it configures all your boxes for you. Nest: it automates your heating based on your living habits.

Technology is here to make our lives easier, I intend to embrace it :D

Now, where can I buy a Google Glass? Those VR headsets are also really tempting for long flights.
 
wuyanxu said:
Technology is here to make our lives easier, I intend to embrace it :D
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Yes, I agree but I get disappointed, frustrated and angry when new tech comes along and it's full of holes and doesn't work properly. Over the coming months and years it'll be fixed to some degree but it'll probably not get totally sorted and before it is it's replaced by the next semi working thing.

I know that there's pressure to bring things to market and I used to be part of the bringing stuff to market process but even so it can't be hard to do a better job than the big names currently do. Ideally I'd like to see products that are well developed and not the half developed buggy things so many are.
 
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I've got to totally agree with Alan on the above post, fix the thing on the market before moving on or better still fix it before it comes onto the market instead of trying to cram more and more half baked ideas into what ever it is.
 
Big Andy said:
I've got to totally agree with Alan on the above post, fix the thing on the market before moving on or better still fix it before it comes onto the market instead of trying to cram more and more half baked ideas into what ever it is.
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Nice to see I'm not the only one...

Back in my computer days a particular manufacturer used to get several hundred of a particular thing back every week and many of the returns were modification related issues, that is they weren't faulty as such (as in they were working and then blew up...) but needed modifying to iron out design issues and bugs. Over time the number going back dropped from several hundred a week to literally single digit numbers and then... they brought the next generation and guess what? We're back to hundreds per week.

Another example... Another manufacturer had a device consisting of 4 main modules, two of which never gave issues and two which were a PITA. When the next generation came out the two modules which gave constant problems were fixed but the two that never gave issue were now a complete mess and gave constant issues :D Such is progress :D
 
30+ years ago, I worked for a software house and the flagship product ended up having its release date put back by almost a year since the debugging kept revealing little snags. These days it seems that the customer is the debugging team.
 
woof woof said:
Yes, I agree but I get disappointed, frustrated and angry when new tech comes along and it's full of holes and doesn't work properly. Over the coming months and years it'll be fixed to some degree but it'll probably not get totally sorted and before it is it's replaced by the next semi working thing.
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Same can be said for smart phones. They are not smart enough to present all the information you need on one screen, it's a pointless exercise of jack of all trades, master of none. We are still operating a dumb computer with many inefficiencies.

I do agree with your point, but we are sooooo far away from an ideal smart connected environment. smart phones are just dumb palm computers, smart watch are just notification server, smart thermostat are just normal thermostat with week long habit recording, smart TV are just normal TV connected to the internet. None of those devices are actually smart, they are just predictive automation at best, there are no intelligence in them, marketed to be smart to sell.

Point of my rant is that I find many of our disappointments are due to marketing tricks. They led us to believe our "smart" device can do more. End of the day, we have to lower our expectations, the human race is still not ready for real intelligent smart devices.
 
So what is a smart device to you?
 
dejongj said:
So what is a smart device to you?
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dejongj said:
So what is a smart device to you?
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None at the moment. Amazon Fire TV is close, it attempts to predict shows you like to watch and preloads it. You can also talk to it and it plays. Siri is also quite close when it works.

Smart watch for example, when I look at it, it displays what I want to see at a glance (eg, walking out of the office, displays traffic and weather for tonight. sitting bored, it displays recent messages and news. It should do all those without you tapping/pressing it).

Smart TV should switch to channels shows stuff I like to watch when it is switched on. None of this EPG surfing, or browse for apps.

Smart thermostat does have simple learning algorithm, but it still needs you to setup too many things before the heat-home-before-you-comeback feature works.

My definition of smart device is to have it work for you, with minimal configuration. The first half of film Her would be my definition of a smart phone, it intelligently seeks out ways to help you.
 
dinners said:
Work means I need 'gadgets' but regardless I'd still choose to have the mobile in my pocket when I'm out and about so I can be contacted or contact somebody.

Every October I take leave from work, chuck the lot in a drawer and go to the cottage at Ardnamurchan. No gadgets, no mobile phone coverage, no land line, no ipad, no tv, no radio. Nothing.

It's odd to wake up of a morning knowing that I have 'missed' emails, texts, forums, calls. For the first few days I wonder what I may have missed. By the end of the first week I realise the world is still turning. After a few weeks I'm in my element.

Firewood, food, fishing, book, drink and camera.

Smartest thing I ever did.
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Sounds idyllic :)
 
wuyanxu said:
Point of my rant is that I find many of our disappointments are due to marketing tricks. They led us to believe our "smart" device can do more. End of the day, we have to lower our expectations, the human race is still not ready for real intelligent smart devices.
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In my own working life I've see some quite large changes. For example computers have gone from things the size of a wardrobe and plugged into the water supply to the palm sized devices we have now (I remember the boss of DEC saying something to the effect of "No one will need a computer at home.") and we've gone from rooms full of typists to the receptionist having a pc running an office suite and being able to easily produce professional looking documents. Even the boss can do it himself these days :D whereas in the past he'd have needed that room full of typists.

In our little photography world I suppose it's similar to the typist scenario and the amateur photographer has never had it so good IMVHO as we have gear and software which is affordable and capable of giving anyone who's even half way competent the ability to produce images that only the genuinely talented would have been able to produce (from a technical point of view) just a few years ago. Indeed I suppose we can do things now which would have been impossible a few years ago... a decent shot at ISO 25,600 plus, etc...

I'm generally a fan of technology and on the humanity bit and what we're ready for... a couple of things that I hope I'll see in my lifetime are the incorporation of technology into the human body not to enhance but to help, artificial eye implants, chips in the spinal cord and the like... and human looking robots which could help the elderly and infirm and maintain quality of life and dignity etc. Just as long as they don't start saying "I'll be back" and planning global domination :D

I've seen a lot of new kit and abilities come along and I'd like to see more. I do get frustrated at the lack of development and quality but I also realise that this is understandable as if anyone takes the time to do it right they'll be 2 years late to market and will have to charge a lot more.
 
dejongj said:
So what is a smart device to you?
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I'll tell you what it is not, insofar as "carry about" items are concerned .............. anything electronic.

What ever happened to small pocket knives, with corkscrew, bottle opener, mini saw and that other fold out thing for removing boy scouts from horses hoofs :D
 
arclight said:
I'll tell you what it is not, insofar as "carry about" items are concerned .............. anything electronic.

What ever happened to small pocket knives, with corkscrew, bottle opener, mini saw and that other fold out thing for removing boy scouts from horses hoofs :D
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Lol or like my utility breaker bar. No more bent hammers :) would be better if it knew I had to whip out those floorboard nails and got them out for me.
 
woof woof said:
I've seen a lot of new kit and abilities come along and I'd like to see more. I do get frustrated at the lack of development and quality but I also realise that this is understandable as if anyone takes the time to do it right they'll be 2 years late to market and will have to charge a lot more.
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Same here. And the last part is so true.

Unfortunately we live in a market driven world, where having the best doesn't get you anything. It's all about having the product on the market at the right time. Something Apple seems to be able to do.
 
Not sure I agree. If you take a look at the iphone for example. Many have done touchscreens before that. None were actually very useful likewise with app stores etc. They have also contributed a lot to open source unlike others who pursued proprietary protocols instead.

However regardless of that I do find the discussion around house smart smart actually is fascinating.
 
woof woof said:
I've seen a lot of new kit and abilities come along and I'd like to see more. I do get frustrated at the lack of development and quality but I also realise that this is understandable as if anyone takes the time to do it right they'll be 2 years late to market and will have to charge a lot more.
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wuyanxu said:
Same here. And the last part is so true.

Unfortunately we live in a market driven world, where having the best doesn't get you anything. It's all about having the product on the market at the right time. Something Apple seems to be able to do.
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Actually, thinking about it there is another way... instead of being first to the market with a buggy half developed half working product another way could be to wait until the technology is mature and then come along with a competent if unremarkable product at a good price. This is one thing that the likes of Amstrad used to do with Hi-Fi and computers etc. I'm sure it must be possible for someone to come up with a smart phone (for example) running a developed, debugged and stable operating system and lacking only the very latest bells and whistles which many people wouldn't miss... but no one would buy it except me :(
 
I've had a Galaxy Gear smartwatch for about a year now and bought it for a specific purpose.

I'm a student paramedic and we have formal assessments on CPR, one aspect of it is that rounds of CPR must only last 2 minutes +/- about 5 seconds. Outside of that is a fail. The Gear has a very easy to access timer which I can set to 1m50s which then buzzes and illuminates when it counts down to zero. At that point I know I have 10 seconds to switch the team around. I don't need to see it and it is always to hand. It also has a one touch reset and restart.
Yes, I could have achieved the same with a phone or stopwatch, but this was a very elegant solution to a very specific problem.

Since having it I have also found another very handy application called 'Look behind'. It activates the camera on the phone but displays the output on the watch. Not fantastic quality or refresh rate, but it is absolutely perfect for working on the car when I'm working blind in a recess or impossible to see space. I can just wave the phone around until I can see the problematic bolt/screw/fixing which often is half the battle won!

The other benefit is that if I get a message on my phone, I can glance at it discretely without taking my phone out in front of a patient (which I've seen colleagues do). I'd never use my phone in front of a patient under normal circumstances but do occasionally get calls/texts from managers, GP's or family emergencies that I then know I need to deal with at the next opportune moment.

It is still 100% gadget, but I find it certainly has its uses.
 
Sony Bluetooth headset MW600 for my commute, to listen to comedy and tech podcasts.
It's an AA battery sized gadget with a clip to attach it to my coat collar or shirt pocket. And a short lead to earbuds so it doesn't tangle.
It's paired with my smartphone. So I can take calls on it too without hastily digging the phone out of my pocket. As it has buttons for call, play, pause, skip fwd and back. And volume. The display shows the name of the podcast playing or the incoming caller name. It automatically pauses the podcast if a call comes in.
It charges off micro USB like a phone. And I charge it once a week to cover my 6.5 hours of listening. Very pleased with it.
 
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woof woof said:
Actually, thinking about it there is another way... instead of being first to the market with a buggy half developed half working product another way could be to wait until the technology is mature and then come along with a competent if unremarkable product at a good price. This is one thing that the likes of Amstrad used to do with Hi-Fi and computers etc. I'm sure it must be possible for someone to come up with a smart phone (for example) running a developed, debugged and stable operating system and lacking only the very latest bells and whistles which many people wouldn't miss... but no one would buy it except me :(
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Oh that does exist. Just buy any android phone and you'll be stuck in the past unless you are into modifying it yourself :) unfortunately you'll find that screen and battery life are equally bad.
 
wuyanxu said:
None at the moment. Amazon Fire TV is close, it attempts to predict shows you like to watch and preloads it. You can also talk to it and it plays. Siri is also quite close when it works.

Smart watch for example, when I look at it, it displays what I want to see at a glance (eg, walking out of the office, displays traffic and weather for tonight. sitting bored, it displays recent messages and news. It should do all those without you tapping/pressing it).

Smart TV should switch to channels shows stuff I like to watch when it is switched on. None of this EPG surfing, or browse for apps.

Smart thermostat does have simple learning algorithm, but it still needs you to setup too many things before the heat-home-before-you-comeback feature works.

My definition of smart device is to have it work for you, with minimal configuration. The first half of film Her would be my definition of a smart phone, it intelligently seeks out ways to help you.
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Isn't that called a wife?
 
Byker28i said:
How do you answer phone calls with the watch though? You still have to get it out your pocket.
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Not on all watches. Some are hands free kits, albeit everyone can listen in.

For others you can just quickly glance to see whether you should answer or whether it can wait.

Arguably when engaging with someone else already it should always wait. I hate it when people find the potential of a caller more important than the engagement they have with me in the here and now.
 
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dejongj said:
Oh that does exist. Just buy any android phone and you'll be stuck in the past unless you are into modifying it yourself :) unfortunately you'll find that screen and battery life are equally bad.
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Really? I've just swapped from iPhone 4s to galaxy s5 as a colleague was selling his very cheap. For the way I use it, it has slightly longer battery life, a bigger screen and wireless charging is brilliant. No more plugging it in.

On the car, it links via Bluetooth and reads my emails and text messages, which the iphone didn't. I also don't have to pay O2 an extra £5 a month just because I have an iphone. I pay £11 a month for 600 mins, 600 texts and 256mb data as I usually mostly use wireless. If I go over the data I just pay it.

I use a few apps on it, iplayer, podcasts, got an app that links to a chrono for shooting, another that links into the Tvr ecu for real time display and occasional browsing. Never had it crash, had no issues with it at all.

Simple to use, no need for iTunes, google play store is brilliant and whilst not a great app user I've not found any problem finding ones I need.
 
dejongj said:
Not on all watches. Some are hands free kits, albeit everyone can listen in.

For others you can just quickly glance to see whether you should answer or whether it can wait.

Arguably when engaging with someone else already it should always wait. I hate it when people find the potential of a caller more important than the engagement they have with me in the here and now.
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I guess that comes down as to how much you use your phone. If your a teenager constantly on your texts or social media I can see the use of a smart watch.
 
Byker28i said:
I guess that comes down as to how much you use your phone. If your a teenager constantly on your texts or social media I can see the use of a smart watch.
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Lots of business people have them as well. Especially for the scenarios as highlighted above.
 
Small gadgets - Swiss Army knife. Had it for about 30 years. Used to be a standard tool for photographs back in the 80s everyone seemed to have one. Useful for opening film cassettes, tightening up screws. Even cutting away a bit of foliage!
 
Byker28i said:
Really? I've just swapped from iPhone 4s to galaxy s5 as a colleague was selling his very cheap. For the way I use it, it has slightly longer battery life, a bigger screen and wireless charging is brilliant. No more plugging it in.

On the car, it links via Bluetooth and reads my emails and text messages, which the iphone didn't. I also don't have to pay O2 an extra £5 a month just because I have an iphone. I pay £11 a month for 600 mins, 600 texts and 256mb data as I usually mostly use wireless. If I go over the data I just pay it.

I use a few apps on it, iplayer, podcasts, got an app that links to a chrono for shooting, another that links into the Tvr ecu for real time display and occasional browsing. Never had it crash, had no issues with it at all.

Simple to use, no need for iTunes, google play store is brilliant and whilst not a great app user I've not found any problem finding ones I need.
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Sure as a said, get an android.

Now you do know that you are comparing different generations. And the S5 is also quite old now. Good news is, in context of where I made my comment, that future updates will be rare ;)

Ps. Sounds like you need a better car. The command system as put in by my manufacturer supports any system. My iphone, my nexus and my windows phone. I wouldn't suggest the phone is the limiting factor.
 
Old tech suits me fine, it's still an upgrade and at £100 it's not a huge outlay to have the latest and greatest.
Car, it's a newish mazda. I can't link the phone via USB like I could with the iphone, but there's more features under Bluetooth on the android.

No iTunes and £5 a month less are the biggest incentive for me.

As for knives, I always have my leatherman with me.
 
Byker28i said:
As for knives, I always have my leatherman with me.
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Useful, but doesn't the Leatherman fail the 'good reason' test for carrying in public? Mine would, because the knife blade locks.
 
I don't carry anything electronic on me. I don't own a smart phone - or any type of mobile phone. The only mechanical thing I have with me is a watch.


Steve.
 
MartynK said:
Useful, but doesn't the Leatherman fail the 'good reason' test for carrying in public? Mine would, because the knife blade locks.
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Without good reason. 3 inch locking blade is difficult to justify for always carrying but as part of a tool set is acceptable
 
Fully agree with JP about the person in front of you being the most important person at that moment. I've walked out mid transaction when a salesman has picked up the phone without a by-your-leave. Not quite so bad if he had asked if it was OK, as long as it was an important call rather than a chat with a mate.

I don't carry my Leatherman Wave with me since it's got a locking blade but do sometimes have a PST II in my pocket if I think I might need it. Almost lost a Micro by forgetting it was in my pocket - realised just in time so left it in the car at the airport car park!
 
Nod said:
but do sometimes have a PST II in my pocket if I think I might need it. Almost lost a Micro by forgetting it was in my pocket - realised just in time so left it in the car at the airport car park!
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What is a PST II or a Micro? New jargon for me.

Edit: I know! The PST II is the successor to the old PST I. And a Micro is just a smaller version of the normal one. Yeah Yeah!
 
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Nice to see a couple of you with multi purpose Swiss Army type things as a smart device :D

A while ago a girlfriend of mine wanted a Swiss Army knife but when I saw the prices I ran round to the Pound Shop and got us one each from there. They may not be up to the quality of the Swiss Army version but I still have mine and it's in perfect working order about 6 years later.

I always think that stuff that doesn't need plugging in is best :D
 
ianp5a said:
What is a PST II or a Micro? New jargon for me.

Edit: I know! The PST II is the successor to the old PST I. And a Micro is just a smaller version of the normal one. Yeah Yeah!
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PST II is indeed the newer version of the original PST (Personal Survival Tool ;)) with pliers, blades, screwdrivers etc. and the Micro IS the smaller version with scissors instead of pliers.
 
Yup, they're all Leatherman models.
 
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