No one buys a ring doorbell for the express purpose of being closer to Bezos or something. They do it because they want to be able to answer their door remotely - that it's on Amazon's server is a side effect of both not caring enough and not knowing how to host it locally.
> that it's on Amazon's server is a side effect of both not caring enough and not knowing how to host it locally.
Those situations happen, but I they're actually a significant minority. For most, how these things work is completely magic. It's not that they don't care, it's that they have no knowledge of how the tool works. They know that they press a button on their phone and their door unlocks, and so are satisfied that it works as intended. That there is anything more to consider isn't on their radar.
Everyone is different. Some people think that device and what it offers to them is useful. If you have a large house and get the occasional visitor that doesn't just come in anyway, I can see how this might be a convenient setup. And it's all about convenience. And non-tech people don't care about the "Amazon server" part at all.
Amazon knows exactly your credit cards, your names, your addresses, your front porch, your wifi SSIDs and pre-shared passwords, your purchases and their frequencies and amounts, your voices and accents, your photos, your music, your visitors and their frequencies ...
It's difficult to find a thing Amazon doesn't know about you.
Yes, so let's just also install their own security cameras and microphones in our homes for marginal benefits at best.
I'll make you an offer: i'll send you one of my microphones and cameras. Let's just assume that I already know everything about you, so let's don't worry about it. You won't even notice it's there. Would you have problems letting me see and hear your life?
Many people would like to be able to record snippets of people approaching their door. Good to know what's going on when you're not there so you can calibrate your fears with reality. Now you need to send the recording somewhere.
You have two choices: maintain your own recording equipment, or upload. The former is a major hassle. Ring smartly found an opportunity to make a simple service people want.
You say the "US is such a bizarre place" but that is simply untrue. Petty theft is a part of many cultures. For example, petty theft in the UK is far more common than the US.
Cameras linked to the database of a grocery store are not.
This is Douglas Adams level bizarro world.
Like Amazon Keys (can't remember the exact product name) to receive packages when you're not in, by letting total strangers inside your house with their own key.
Which is such an hysterical solution to a such a simple problem (retrieve undelivered packages at the post office) that makes me wonder if I'm the one taking crazy pills.
Simple problem? Not sure what you mean. In my neighborhood, the chance of an Amazon package being stolen is very high. The post office is not involved in many of the deliveries.
Because of my house's location, I have not yet lost a package. But I'd like a camera to see if anyone is checking out my porch when there are no packages just to see if I should worry. Previously, the idea that the police could just grab my video made me personally concerned about privacy. Ring providing logs alleviates that concern for me.
Your position is that it is "hysterical" that people don't want to be deeply inconvenienced by petty theft. I cannot fathom such an outlook on life, so I won't address this point.
On the facts though, you again misunderstand. I'm frequently not home to sign for things. I live near the Silicon Valley, yet my post office is a six mile round trip. My UPS delivery office is a 40 mile round trip. Amazon lockers do not accept large packages.
I feel that at this point you are clutching for straws to justify your original position.
I'm in the US and I agree. I was never a huge fan of Ring, and when they were acquired by Amazon that made it a deal-breaker. Amazon already knows enough about me.
It's probably no accident that Amazon doesn't tout Ring devices as being Amazon-owned. I imagine there are others who would be less likely to purchase if they were aware of the connection.