• Osan@lemmy.world
    25·
    3 days ago

    Wait why the fuck would a fridge be connected to the internet?

    Edit: where I come from we don’t have unlimited internet plans so this would just be taking up expensive bandwidth and monthly quota.

    • Aeri@lemmy.world
      6·
      2 days ago

      I’m not defending this practice because it’s remarkably awful but I will note that I have a router that lets me monitor the traffic that individual devices use and most smart devices like this actually use incredibly small amounts of bandwidth. Our smart water tank uses ~10 MB a month which is smaller than most images.

      And yes I do think a smart water tank is valid because it can do shit like tell me when it thinks it’s about to explode or leak or whatever and it can also like, be remote controlled, and it has a heat pump which is nice.

      • Osan@lemmy.world
        1·
        23 hours ago

        I’m also not against automation or making machines “smart” it’s just that what companies are marketing nowadays is just mostly overpriced shit.

        And by consuming bandwidth I didn’t mean for the indented usage I was mostly talking about the ads which will probably be filled with unnecessary metadata, trackers, unnecessarily large CSS files (if it was web based) and maybe high quality images. All of these things I find completely unnecessary.

        Also coming from a computer engineering background if I was living in a “smart households” I would probably want to set up my own firewall. And like I said while I like the idea of home automation I don’t want a corporation to be able to control or access my appliances too.

      • UltraMagnus@startrek.website
        2·
        2 days ago

        I suppose I’d want to know if my fridge was about to explode… /s

        In seriousness, though, you’re right - the problem isn’t with the technology, it’s how the technology is used

    • TigerAce@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      6·
      2 days ago

      Recently I read an article about smart devices uploading and downloading over 1GB per day. I tried to find the article again but all I can find is stores selling smart fridges etc. Search engines are broken. I asked chatgpt, which was able to find articles. How fucked is this. Boring dystopia. Anyway, here are some sources.

      https://www.tomshardware.com/networking/your-washing-machine-could-be-sending-37-gb-of-data-a-day

      https://www.reddit.com/r/smarthome/s/F5ETernz6f

      https://www.reddit.com/r/SmartThings/s/HY2E0uOBiH

      In the following article they talk about devices sending up to 19MB per week, but only text (so again insane amounts of data considering it’s only text).

      https://www.consumerreports.org/electronics/privacy/smart-appliances-and-privacy-a1186358482/

      The following is about researchers finding lots of thirst party domains when analyzing IoT traffic from Smart devices.

      https://arxiv.org/abs/1909.09848

      The following is an academic paper on how even encrypted data isn’t safe from Smart devices. Bit off topic, but still interesting.

      https://arxiv.org/abs/1808.02741

      • Osan@lemmy.world
        21·
        2 days ago

        I tried to find the article again but all I can find is stores selling smart fridges etc. Search engines are broken.

        I was able to find some links using duckduckgo including the same article from “Tomshardware” so at least that still works.

        Again I don’t know why a washing machine would need an internet connection it’s not like you can remotely load it.

        I mean I do understand the appeal and usefulness of smart homes and some IoT devices but companies are pushing AI and internet connectivity like it’s some kind of magic that makes any product better. I mean it would be nice to have a centralised panel to view your usage patterns and consumption but even then you don’t need all this overpowered tech stuff.

    • thatKamGuy@sh.itjust.works
      5·
      3 days ago

      The whole selling points was to track fridge contents via cameras so that not only could you ‚see’ inside without having to open the door - theoretically saving electricity, using AI it was supposed to be able to track expiry dates, and suggest shopping lists in order to have full recipes.

      Additionally it had all the usual „smart home” integrations on top of that.

      But let’s be honest, the whole point was just to put in yet another screen that vendors could sell advertisements on, as well as track/sell personal information.

  • mechoman444@lemmy.world
    46·
    3 days ago

    Appliance repair man here. You can turn the screen off from a cover you remove from the top of the fridge door. Do so. You don’t need a fucking android tablet on your fridge.

    Also don’t buy these kinds of appliances. They’re terrible!

      • mechoman444@lemmy.world
        5·
        3 days ago

        It’s a significantly better fridge in every way a lot of my clients have a really hard time understanding or believing that.

        • Raiderkev@lemmy.world
          3·
          1 day ago

          But it doesn’t have stainless steel or French doors. I can’t even talk to Alexa on it. It’s just like, a fridge. Who wants that?

      • odelik@lemmy.today
        5·
        2 days ago

        Bosch makes a few descent models.

        Things to skip on all brands.

        External water & ice dispensers, doesnt matter the brand. You’re cutting a fucking hole in the thermal envelope to put a faulty device that’s experiencing mechanical stress on parts every time you open/close the door. It’s not a matter of if it will fail, but when. Also, increased operational cost. Internal water dispensers and automatic ice makers are always the better option if you want those features.

        Smart features. Why the fuck do you need smart features on a fridge? Even if it’s using AI vision to scan for inventory… Just no, fucking no. That’s more personal data on you to be bought, sold, data breached, and utilized to fuck you somehow.

        Fridges that split the freezer and fridge on a vertically.

        • dil@lemmy.zip
          3·
          2 days ago

          I remember helping my mom buy a fridge and the main thing was we wanted a good ice dispencer that wouldnt break, and the dude was like sorry dude doesnt exist they are all equally shitty, its always going to break, pick any

        • well5H1T3@lemmy.worldEnglish
          5·
          3 days ago

          Fridges that split the freezer and fridge on a vertically.

          THIS. they call them french doors. Stay away from this bullshit. You don’t need it.

          • Malfeasant@lemmy.world
            3·
            2 days ago

            No, French doors just means two doors that meet in the middle, usually just the fridge (which is up top) has it, and they’re ok usually. Split vertically is called side by side, and they suck, can’t even handle frozen pizza…

      • Zanathos@lemmy.world
        5·
        3 days ago

        I just bought this one a couple months ago. It goes on sale frequently for $2K from Lowe’s: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Frigidaire-Gallery-21-5-cu-ft-4-Door-Counter-depth-French-Door-Refrigerator-with-Ice-Maker-Smudge-proof-Stainless-Steel-ENERGY-STAR/5013313509

        Pretty sure we got an RMA for the first unit as the door had a scratch and the compressor fan sounded high pitched. Got a next day replacement and no complaints on the second one. Was concerned about sqft as we were coming from a 25sqft but am surprisingly happy with this one.

      • mechoman444@lemmy.world
        4·
        3 days ago

        If you’re in the states you’ve probably had the ice maker replaced in that fridge.

        I wouldn’t expect it to last much longer definitely count on it breaking down at some point in the very near future.

      • Cricket [he/him]@lemmy.zipEnglish
        3·
        3 days ago

        I’ve heard that appliances in general and refrigerators specifically, from the last many years are crap. I don’t know what the cut off date is, but I hear that they’re generally made to break after a few years now and don’t have replacement parts for very long. @mechoman444@lemmy.world may have a more informed answer, but it seems to me that people are better off buying old fridges used from friends or relatives.

        • Zron@lemmy.world
          5·
          3 days ago

          I’m of the opinion that manufactures should be required to supply parts for appliances and equipment for a minimum of 10 years.

    • Psythik@lemmy.world
      3·
      3 days ago

      What the fuck do they even do? I thought they were supposed to scan the ingredients in your fridge, then tell you what’s about to expire and what recipes you can make. But apparently they can’t even do that, so what purpose do they serve that I can’t already accomplish by bringing my phone into the kitchen?

      Can they at least monitor the temperature across different areas of the fridge, or connect to my power meter like my thermostat can and optimize power usage to be lower when electricity is more expensive? Or are they literally just an Android tablet glued to a fridge?

  • LOGIC💣@lemmy.world
    280·
    4 days ago

    Imagine that. You not only paid for the refrigerator, but also the electricity and the internet access. And it uses all of that stuff to display ads to you. You’re literally paying for every ad it shows you.

    • Thurstylark@lemmy.todayEnglish
      110·
      4 days ago

      That’s exactly the thing that turned me off cable. I’m not interested in paying for a service that’s going to pipe ads into my home. OTA TV, fine, I’m not paying for that. When I can pay for services that don’t show me ads, why would I pay for one that does?

    • Cocodapuf@lemmy.world
      5·
      3 days ago

      You not only paid for the refrigerator, but also the electricity and the internet access.

      That’s a good point actually. You can eliminate these ads by taking it off the Wi-Fi.

        • humorlessrepost@lemmy.worldEnglish
          3·
          3 days ago

          I have my washer and dryer connected to the internet. I set up an automation that flashes the lights upstairs when a load is done, and turns on the laundry room lights. I suspect there are some fun automation opportunities with this fridge, too. But my washer and dryer don’t have giant touch screens or ads. I’d never buy this fridge.

      • Cocodapuf@lemmy.world
        5·
        3 days ago

        Yeah, I might accept that.

        Actually, I could use a new fridge…

        Ok, who wants to pay me a subscription fee to give me a fridge? Get in line, I’ll only be accepting applicants today!

    • Soup@lemmy.world
      271·
      3 days ago

      This is capitalism, they will stop making the normal fridges and only make these fucking things. The only power customers truly have is through regulation(though we should still boycott things because it still helps).

      • lightnsfw@reddthat.com
        10·
        3 days ago

        Then people will claim no one was buying the normal ones. *looks at light trucks and smartphones with a headphone jack*

        • Soup@lemmy.world
          2·
          2 days ago

          Or all the automatics in the states, or all the cars that only seem to come in black, white, or silver. Can also look at a lot of food, especially in food deserts, or public transit being gutted when ridership is low(because it was never funded in the first place).

          People need to pay literally any kind of attention. I feel like this information, with studies to back it up that also aren’t by conservative think-tanks, is so readily available and yet also there are people who have zero clue about anything, like you’re saying.

        • balsoft@lemmy.ml
          81·
          3 days ago

          Certain groups will lobby really hard to make it illegal and punishable.

            • balsoft@lemmy.ml
              6·
              3 days ago

              Yeah, true, but it certainly would add a lot of economic pressure on that industry.

            • Soup@lemmy.world
              2·
              2 days ago

              Yes, but most people would put up with it instead because they’re afraid of the consequences. As much as they use “hackers” for scaring everyone these corporations likely don’t actually care since they know it’s only a handful of people. They know they just need to be stubborn enough for someone to forget after even only a couple months, or to create a boogie man to discourage them from fighting back.

              It’s regulation or we’re fucked. Individuals do not have the necessary power to fight these large industries.

  • Nangijala@feddit.dk
    15·
    3 days ago

    I have seen a video about this shit also being implemented in cars. You can drive down the highway, with your GPS on and a pop up ad appears out of the blue, blocking the screen, not really allowing you to get rid of it before you remove your attention from the road to the screen, trying to figure out what button to push to get rid of the ad.

    And the fact that people pay extra for cars and fridges to show them ads is just so friggin stupid. If people buy these products after knowing that they pay extra to be bombarded with ads, its 100% on them.

    But in the case of the car, I do feel that shit should be illegal. It’s so fucking dangerous and irresponsible from the manufacturer to implement a “feature” that can cost lives.

    • Øπ3ŕ@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
      5·
      3 days ago

      Don’t worry, the fridge ones’ll have ads for kids soon, with a candy-coated Buy Now button. Go-o-o *society!*🥳

      Atwood’s a gawdamn fortune teller

      • Nangijala@feddit.dk
        1·
        2 days ago

        Only if people buy those things. I doubt the majority of people wants to pay extra for fridges with screens in them.

        I think this shit is a fad that will go away in the same way 3D and VR did despite everyone promising this was the future. It’s too expensive, too impractical and won’t hold up once the novelty wears off.

        • Øπ3ŕ@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
          1·
          2 days ago

          You realize that’s exactly what they said about video games in the early days, right? And the Internet. And gay sex.

          • Nangijala@feddit.dk
            1·
            2 days ago

            I’m comparing smart fridges to 3D and VR because that is the proper comparison. All three are tech gimmicks that are too expensive and annoying to implement into daily life and that is why I believe smart fridges are a fad that won’t last/spread. Especially not in these times where people don’t have any money.

            Using video games, the internet and gay sex as example of why smart fridges will become popular is both baffling and goofy to me, but maybe that was the point? If not, I’m not following your logic at all. Can you elaborate on where you see a link?

            • Øπ3ŕ@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
              1·
              2 days ago

              I was being somewhat cheeky with the third, yes, but the era of the other two doesn’t discount the historical fact that people of that time said similar: they were a fad, gimmicky, of little interest to gen pop, etc., so the cautionary analogy is still valid. 😜

              • Nangijala@feddit.dk
                1·
                2 days ago

                In the same vein, there are many things that were in fact fads that have since faded into obscurity because they didn’t make people’s lives easier and/or weren’t affordable for most os us. The smart home was one thing that was all the rage at some point back in the 2010s and they are probably still something that more affluent people invest in, but the rest of us, who can’t really afford it, don’t have smart homes.

                I can totally see a revised version of the smart fridge becoming popular longterm if they are designed to be useful and making people’s lives easier. However, the current designs of smart fridges are not helpful nor useful. They are a shallow gimmick and that is why they will not last unless manufacturers stop designing them for advertisement and start designing them to make people’s lives easier.

                • Øπ3ŕ@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
                  1·
                  2 days ago

                  While I can appreciate your optimism for the modern consumer, I feel that this stance ignores the underlying current of forced adoption via prolific visibility (ie. “everyone has one, might as well”) and/or market sublimation by said “features” no longer being offered as optional… 🙃

    • mrgoosmoos@lemmy.caEnglish
      611·
      4 days ago

      Samsung recently released UI 8 for Android, which had the astounding forward-thinking and innovative move of removing the ability to silence your phone by hitting the volume down button

      idk what phone I’m gonna buy next, but that’s the last straw with Samsung for me. I’m already sick of them changing features on the phone to make them worse, like how in order to do a partial screenshot (a feature I used to use a lot) you now need to click the button and wait a few seconds for the “AI” to think about what portion of the screen to select. you cannot skip this waiting period. you cannot disable this (that I have found). you cannot ‘undo’ when you draw a box around a section that includes text and it tries to helpfully extract the text for you instead of just fucking taking a screenshot of the highlighted portion of the screen

      fuck Samsung

      a guy at work said graphene has been going pretty good

      • vaultdweller013@sh.itjust.works
        7·
        3 days ago

        I like my Motorola it’s on the cheaper side but it has an AUX and a disturbingly good battery. Still android so you have to deal with BS, but hey the slightly better model has an microSD card slot so that’s good I guess.

      • Harvey656@lemmy.world
        2·
        3 days ago

        Oh thank fuck I disabled updates holy hell my phone would be in a billion pieces and my wife would kill me for destroying my phone.

        • mrgoosmoos@lemmy.caEnglish
          3·
          3 days ago

          • that doesn’t turn the phone on silent

          • yes, they replaced the partial crop with AI select. same method of using it, worse feature

          • I’m on a relatively new phone, so it must be because Samsung sucks

          • the OCR button doesn’t undo, it just flashes and then reselects the same thing with the text highlighted

          maybe mine is buggy. either way, it’s still because Samsung sucks and the feature doesn’t work.

      • AngryCommieKender@lemmy.world
        415·
        4 days ago

        If you’re that fed up, may as well buy an iPhone and root/flash the thing to a custom OS, or another Samsung, and do the same thing. Those brands have consistently had the best hardware, so if you’re gonna just nuke the software anyway, which is your best option, may as well get the hardware that you want.

    • Elgenzay@lemmy.ml
      112·
      4 days ago

      It’s a smart fridge; they didn’t even think once when they bought it

      • titanicx@lemmy.zip
        22·
        4 days ago

        I don’t know there are a lot of features on a smart fridge that are pretty cool a lot of things that actually can come in handy that I really appreciate it when I considered purchasing one. I’m glad that I didn’t make the purchase before they came out with this idiotic bullshit.

        • Threeme2189@lemmy.zip
          61·
          3 days ago

          A refrigerator has to do two things.

          • stay cold
          • turn on a light when I open the door

          I want my fridge to be as dumb as possible.

          • JohnEdwa@sopuli.xyz
            4·
            3 days ago

            I hate embedded smart stuff in devices in general as they always get support dropped way too soon (and often enshittified with updates as demonstrated), but as a concept a fridge that would keep track what’s in it, their expiration dates, and auto-updated a shopping list when something is used up would actually be really handy.

            Wanted to make some pasta few nights back but I was out of cheese and the cream had expired, so instant noodles for dinner it was. Again.

          • mrgoosmoos@lemmy.caEnglish
            1·
            3 days ago

            I would prefer the light didn’t come on tbh, too bright and people can see me through the front window looking for snacks in the dark

          • titanicx@lemmy.zip
            2·
            3 days ago

            I mean for me it was the fact that it was an embedded tablet the fact that you could trade shopping list and automatically send them to your phones so that way you remembered what to get at the store or while you’re at the store items to be added. Capability for attack actually keep track of when stuff is expiring so that way you knew hey you know what I better go buy this even though it’s not on my list because what’s in here is going to be bad things like that. Also do enjoy watching and looking at recipes online having extra counter space and not having a tablet or having to pull my phone out every 30 seconds while looking at recipes or listening to music or even watching a show while I’m cooking on days like Thanksgiving having the football game playing stuff like that. People that are opposed to advancements in technology are often the ones that hold us back. But luckily there are far fewer people that are actually opposed to it and most of them are concentrated to small forms such as this. we can see based on the amount of sales that the vast majority of people do want the smart fridge new on additional features besides just being able to open and close it and keeping stuff cold or frozen.

  • pyre@lemmy.world
    75·
    4 days ago

    i think eventually we’re gonna have to deal with the reality that audio/video advertising needs to be outlawed. keep it in print if necessary.

    • Honytawk@feddit.nl
      122·
      3 days ago

      Why does there still need to be advertisements though?

      I’d completely ban marketing altogether. Their only purpose is to hack human brains in order to get them to buy stuff they otherwise wouldn’t. They are the reason we have overconsumption.

      • tmyakal@infosec.pub
        5·
        3 days ago

        How would you even do that? Marketing is tied up into every single purchasing decision we make. The colors and fonts on the packaging; the perceived value or luxury of the store you’re buying it from; the placement of the products within that store; the price of the product itself. All of these signal things about the perceived value of the product and influence what people purchase.

      • pyre@lemmy.world
        1·
        3 days ago

        I think allowing print and physical media would enable using signs outside your building, use branding on your documents, etc. plus make it more valuable for the already dying media of print, and also pretty much make advertising an opt in situation since you can choose to engage in it, rather than having something like the fucking sphere blazed into your retina with the power of 15 suns in the middle of the night.

      • balsoft@lemmy.ml
        21·
        3 days ago

        Banning “marketing” in general is impossible. In order for humans to survive, we need to acquire means of sustenance. With social division of labor, you cannot acquire all the means of sustenance you need by yourself or within your immediate community. As such, a market is necessary to exchange commodities, including means of sustenance and means of production, and the mere act of bringing a commodity to a market is, by definition, marketing.

        Banning advertising in general is more possible, but probably a bad idea. Imagine you want to buy bread. How would you go about that? Look for a “bakery” sign? Whoops, that’s advertising, can’t have that. Your best bet then is, like, going into every single open door on the street until you find a bakery, which doesn’t sound good at all.

        What we should do is regulate advertising down to its minimum necessary function, which is helping people find what they are already looking for, plus maybe PSA type of ads (e.g. reminding you to get vaccinated and stuff). So yeah, most modern ads should be banned, but some should be kept because there is some actual use in them.

    • SpiderUnderUrBed@lemmy.zip
      42·
      3 days ago

      I disagree. I think that’s far too extreme, there shouldn’t be blanket bans because big tech ruins it for everyone, it harms stuff like minor indie creators or small buisnesses, that being said it needs to be HEAVILY regulated, like fridges should never have ads nor any smart appliance

      • FosterMolasses@leminal.spaceEnglish
        81·
        3 days ago

        How about… we go a step further and just stop making appliances “smart”?

        My toaster doesn’t need AI to tell the difference between a fucking bagel and a slice of bread. They already figured out solutions to this shit decades ago.

        • SpiderUnderUrBed@lemmy.zip
          4·
          3 days ago

          Lots of appliances doesn’t need to be smart, I agree, there are plenty borderline where I think there is some benifit, bulbs for example, I think things should be a lot more local, it’s a shame people use cloud solutions instead of home assistant or how much telemetry these smart appliances are allowed to get.

      • Pyr@lemmy.ca
        5·
        3 days ago

        I don’t think a content provider should be allowed to have more than 5-10% of their content be advertisements.

        Website screen space, newspapers, tv channels, etc

        Instagram shouldn’t have more than 1-2 sponsored post for every 20 posts. At the moment it seems closer to 10.

        An hour long TV slot shouldn’t have more than 3-6 minutes of advertisement. At the moment it’s closer to 20-30.

        • balsoft@lemmy.ml
          1·
          3 days ago

          Eh, I would say just ban all paid advertisements like ones you’re describing. Want to advertise your product? Send it over to some state-run hub, which then randomly distributes it to professional reviewers. They then publish their findings, and if your product is good and people are looking for your product category, they will find you.

          Get rid of stupid ads where the only reason they are shown to you is because someone is paid to stuff it in your face. Ads should be something you actively seek out, not something being shoved in your face.

    • Sv443@sh.itjust.works
      35·
      3 days ago

      To justify the constant upcharges. Touchscreens still feel much more luxurious than they’re actually worth. Car manufacturers do the same to save money.

      • redhorsejacket@lemmy.world
        16·
        3 days ago

        Could be I’m the minority here, but touchscreens stopped feeling like a value add years ago. Somehow I’ve wrapped back around to a good button or knob being the marker of quality. One of the reasons I chose my current vehicle was because they let the most common controls (climate, radio, etc) stay tactile.

      • Cyrus Draegur@lemmy.zipEnglish
        13·
        3 days ago

        You joke but Samsung fridge compressors ARE notorious for catastrophic mechanical failure.

        A fridge on fire is, like, literally the opposite of what a fridge should do >.>;;;

          • Cyrus Draegur@lemmy.zipEnglish
            1·
            2 days ago

            I for one like this fella’s takes.

            https://youtu.be/5n76TXuDcok

            He services these appliances. Which is to say, he is specifically doing business with people who want to repair and keep theirs, and he has hands on in depth experience not only restoring them to working order but specific direct observation of what their faults and failure modalities are. He bases his positions on how robust a machine is such that people actually bother to get it fixed instead of just replacing it with a “new” one as if whole ass several hundred dollar appliances are single use appliances.

    • Seefra 1@lemmy.zip
      91·
      3 days ago

      I would like to agree, unfortunately Samsung still gives the longest updates on sub 150 euro phones.

      But yeah, why does a refrigerator needs a screen in the first place? My white branded fridge must be nearing at least 15 years old, could use new rubber but apart from what still working perfectly.

  • Waldelfe@feddit.org
    22·
    3 days ago

    Oh no, who could have ever seen that coming?

    Now wait for the subscription service to get rid of ads on the fridge you bought and “own”. Oh, and that neat thing they do with cars now where you have to subscribe to get certain feature? That’s also next. "Only 5$ 10$ 20$ per month to keep your fridge cool enough so the milk won’t spoil! It’s not a normal function of the fridge, it’s our super special anti-bacterial option that costs extra.

    • Gremour@lemmy.world
      10·
      3 days ago

      Black Mirror season 7 (I think) has an episode about this. Surgery to fix a part of brain (not cheap) installing a chip. And after some time pay a subscription to get rid of ads. And subscription gets more expensive over time.

  • Cyborganism@lemmy.ca
    1173·
    4 days ago

    That thing would already have a broken cracked screen if that was mine and it started displaying ads.

    What a fucking dystopia