Comment by EvanAnderson

4 hours ago

The "couple a stepper motor to a shaft" API is so much better than any "smart" appliance API.

Speaking more seriously, I wish classes of appliances would expose some simple analog and digital interface pins in a standardized configuration to let users choose whatever automation or monitoring hardware they want. HVAC equipment does this with standardized thermostat terminals. I'd love to see that on other types of appliances, too.

The manufacturer's crappy "app" that will inevitably be abandoned and require keeping some old phone / tablet in good "health" lest you lose the "smart" functionality (or worse, any use of) the appliance.

Then current way of putting the "smarts" inside the appliance is just planned obsolescence and a recipe for all of us being eyeball deep in ewaste.

20 comments

EvanAnderson

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danudey  3 hours ago

It always kind of blows my mind that I keep seeing "smart TVs" which have a bunch of integration options for high-end AV installations (rich people's houses, etc.) but no API that you can integrate with to just handle toggling channels/inputs/power states/volumes.

(I did get my last Sony Bravia integrated with Homekit so that I could control inputs, volume, etc. via the Home app, but that's not really what I'm looking for).

Give me an HTTPS API, require me to authenticate devices on the TV itself before it accepts their commands, and just let me do whatever. Default it to off and make it a hidden setting, but yeah just let me do the thing without having to pay tens of thousands of dollars for some professional installation to integrate with hardware I don't have and can't afford.

  • closeparen  1 hour ago

    In the professional A/V integration world, it's normal for displays and projectors to have serial port interfaces that can be driven by commands from e.g. a Crestron controller or video switcher. Just not as much of a home/consumer thing.

  • dfxm12  3 hours ago

    Smart TVs don't exist for your convenience. They exist to track your behavior and serve you ads. If they happen to have some hackability, it's an accident or happy coincidence.

  • lstodd  3 hours ago

    It always blows my mind why those rich people even bother with TVs. I'm not rich by any measure, but still I can afford a projector, a screen and a couple KRK monitors.

    • rendx  33 minutes ago

      It always blows my mind what ideas people have what "rich people" have or want.

      I know a few 'filthy rich' people and some of them don't even own any TV or projector, because they're totally content with a laptop screen and don't want their kids to be exposed to TVs. You will not see their wealth unless you know where to look.

      Once people have money, most of them begin to think about what actually serves them and what doesn't; if you can afford anything you want, you usually become more humble and selective. There's simply no point in owning things for the sake of owning them any more. Displaying your wealth usually has far more downsides than upsides. What we see is the outliers.

ghaff  3 hours ago

When I had a kitchen fire, I told my electrician "no smart stuff" and he was happy to go along. (I had very little previously.) He did simplify and updated my electrical panel and switches which sort of accreted over time.

Rebelgecko  2 hours ago

Nowadays it's surprisingly easy to vibecode replacements to some shitty OEM apps (and fix bugs while you're at it). I've had pretty good luck with BT devices, even ones that dont use standard GATTs

QuercusMax  3 hours ago

Exactly.

I don't want a "smart" washer / dryer / fridge / toaster. I want a standard interface I can build my own system around, or use someone else's that they've already built.