[anonymousab]

> For all the hooplah about smart homes and Alexa and Thread and blah blah blah…most people have dumb lightbulbs, dumb garage doors, and dumb fridges.

For now. The profits to be made on microtransactions and subscriptions from internet-requiring features are too gargantuan to pass up, to not become the new norm. And, of course, unblockable ads and tracking.

A fun recent example is a motorcycle emergency vest that stops inflating when you stop paying the subscription. An outlier for now, but the average tomorrow; The slope is real and it's coated with vaseline.

[AnimalMuppet]

No, they'll only become the new norm if the majority of people buy them. And they cost more, because internet-enabled components aren't free. And most people really don't see the value in an internet-connected light bulb. Does it emit more light? No? Then why would I pay more for it? So if they have to sell the higher-cost BOM for the same price (because people see no reason to pay more), then where are the gargantuan profits?

So I really don't see internet-connected X taking over the market, no matter how much money companies could make if customers cooperated.

[perardi]

Or BMW’s attempt to sell subscriptions to CarPlay and heated seats.

https://www.thedrive.com/news/34547/bmw-is-planning-to-sell-...

But still…that’s high-margin subscriptions on top of a high-margin product. I am, currently, skeptical we will end up with low-end Internet of Shit for everything, because running that subscription service requires a big up-front investment that’s hard when you’re selling, I don’t know, toaster ovens.

[nitrogen]

There was recently a subscription dishwasher featured here. It turned out to be easy for the author to hack theirs, but it will get harder over time, just like ink cartridges.

[robocat]

“This Motorcycle Airbag Vest Will Stop Working If You Miss a Payment”

https://www.vice.com/en/article/93yyyd/this-motorcycle-airba...

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27054629