To be fed up with "smart home" technology already?

[Shitalopram]

Over the last year, various "internet of things" devices have found their way into this house (not my idea!) and one by one they have all malfunctioned, failed to talk to other smart things or just plain smashed to pieces (£90 smart bathroom scales )

There seem to be so many devices and apps competing for my time and attention and I find it all unhelpful, expensive and unnecessary.

Am I just an old gimmer?

[IvankaTrudeau]

YANBU. I think it's still in the gimmick stage and needs to become more useful and easier to use before I will buy anything.

[Shitalopram]

We had one of those things that allows you to control your heating from home. Why would I want to change the heating of a house I'm not actually in? (Yes I know you can set it to be warm for your arrival home but every house I've ever lived in has had a timer on the thermostat that does the job just fine...)

[KateDaniels2]

We dont have any of that (apart from smart phones). Definitely not getting Hive etc. No smart scales.

Would annoy me....so for me yanbu.

[Oysterbabe]

Yep you're an old gimmer. I quite enjoy the record of brushing my toothbrush Bluetooths to my phone

[bbcessex]

I'm hoping someone comes on this thread and tells what device or connected app has changed their life..i so want my fridge to order my shopping for me!

[specialsubject]

No mobile signal so much of it won't work. And given how crap most of it is, why bother?

Look at the regular stuff ups on this site alone to see how badly most code is written.

[crazymissdaisy]

oh bbcessex I would love a camera in my fridge linked to my phone, do they exist? How much easier when standing in Sainsbury's to know what is left after the teenage locusts have visited the fridge! And a camera/ weighted shelf with sensors to see how low the stash of loo roll now was. It would also need a camera in the larder cupboard, to avoid occasions when had a grope in there in the dark, convinced myself we had naan breads and therefore bought all the curry ingredients to go with them. It turned out to be a new ironing board cover still in its packet grr!

[GiantDuckRampage]

I love this kind of thing! Got lots of products and also make some of my own to use. Occasionally unreliable but for the most part everything works.

[bbcessex]

Crazymissdaisy.. the internet of things promises just that.... yeyyy.

GiantDuck.. tell us more...

[bbcessex]

I like the front door video doorbell one ..connected to your phone so you can see who's there.. brilliant

[straighttalker]

YABU.

It just has to be set up and managed properly.

I have Nest thermostats, Philips Hue lightbulbs (in some rooms), and Alexa. Also a Doorbird doorbell. Nests hard wired so backup if the wireless goes down. I'm planning on a few smart plugs next.
I'd love a roomba...

I do think the wireless scales, cookers, sprinklers etc are a bit gimmicky and not market-ready.

[nellifurtardo]

Yanbu, my husband decided to get the nest and hue lights installed, the nest is ok however my husband is constantly changing the temperature to what he thinks it should be even when he isn't in the house. I think the hue is a waste of money and its quicker to put the switch on. And every time he leaves the house the lights switch of and won't switch on again. I have threatened to throw the light bulbs out on a number of occasions.

[dementedma]

I really couldn't be arsed with it all. Our thermostat doesn't have a timer so if the house is cold we just turn the heating on when we get in ...a novel idea maybe, but it works for us.
There is no way I would have one of those Alexa things. After a friend of mine who is very very senior military told me what can be done via smart phones (and I'm quite sure he only told me the basic stuff) I don't even know I want to keep that!

[Shitalopram]

I have nest & hue as well, set up by someone else

And some things with "eve" written on

I loathe them

[Judashascomeintosomemoney]

I've got Hive and Alexa and love them both apart from when Alexa pretends she doesn't understand what I'm saying, cow

[RustyBear]

I have Hive and it's very useful. We are both in and out of the house at unpredictable times, so we just turn the heating up or down on the phone as needed and a wireless thermostat means you can have it in whichever room you want. I wouldn't say it's changed my life, it has made a least one part of it a bit easier.

[MiltopMighty]

I would never go back! Front door view on my phone, no more running to get the step ladder every time I cook (and set off the smoke alarm) - just deactivate it on my phone. Alarm system notifies us even if we are abroad. I don't have scales though.

[coldcanary]

It just reminds me of Skynet in the Terminator films. At some point it will all rebel against us and turn on us in our own homes...
(We watch way too much sci-fi in this house obviously!)

[WhooooAmI24601]

We've got a nest, an alexa and a couple of dots. The dots I use daily; for news, weather, music and to entertain the DCs (the higher/lower game is fun for them). DH has bought Hue stuff but not had time to install it. We also have CCTV at the front of the house I can access through my phone and it sends me a picture of faces captured as they approach the front door. That's cracking technology because DH works away often and there was a spate of cars being broken into so I feel better knowing it's there.

I don't care for the Nest as it means DH can dick about with it when he's working away. I do love our coffee machine; I can text it from bed to start grinding beans and by the time I appear downstairs there's the world's strongest black coffee ready to perk me up. We're a bit of a Gadget Twat family and DH loves anything with the word 'smart' in front of it. Most is total shite.

DH also installed a camera in the lounge that we can access remotely. He initially said it was to keep an eye on the dog/house when we're out but he tried a couple of times to speak to the dog via it while he was at work and it resulted in the dog going batshit and peeing on the sofa, so he's been barred from using it ever since.

[Jengnr]

I have Hive heating and plugs, Philliis Hue (colour, natch) and an Alexa. I love them all.

The Hive plugs are especially awesome!! When I get half way to work and shit myself thinking I've left the straightener on I can turn it off without either turning back or spending the day worrying I've burnt the house down!

[HirplesWithHaggis]

[OldGimmer] Show me the app that'll clean out, set and light my livingroom fire, and I'll buy it. [/OldGimmer]

[AlwaysHopeful]

I loathe it all too. I really resent that I can't switch on a light or turn one off because they're all on movement/daylight sensors. Or that I'll get a text from my husband when he's at work to say "the house seems warm today" because he's checking the effing temperature of all the rooms when he's not even there! And the burglar alarm? And the cctv?!

But... it's his house too so I just put up with it. The best gadget by far is the sonos speakers. I'd happily live without the rest of it.

[Elphame]

I don't have any of them and I don't want any of them! YADNBU

[reallybadidea]

YABU. These things pay dh's wages

[stumblymonkeyreturns]

I love this kind of thing...right now I'm sitting curled up with a coffee listening to an audio book on my Amazon Echo/Alexa.

I love having hall lights that come on as I approach the location of the house so I don't have to go into a dark house (and it knows only to do it after sunset).

I like being able to verbally add things to our shopping list as soon as I spot something that needs to be replaced.