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And that’s basically it!
Never seen a washing machine take someone to the cleaners before.
My grandma used to say the shit you own ends up p0ning you.
My grandma told me to buy NVDA and I was like “yeah right grandma”
Git gud kid
My washing machine has wifi, but I have never even been slightly interested in enabling it. I set up a monitor to notify when done by monitoring the power consumption of the breaker. Once it drops back down to zero after a couple of minutes, it triggers a notification. I don't know what else I could ever need.
Some machines are now hiding specific features inside apps. At least that's the case for some dishwashers.
My washer and dryer both do that.
They still wash and dry, though. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
🫠
Remote start is what I want personally. Timers get 90% of the way there, but if you want to run your machine when power is cheap, needs a bit more granularity. Also, end notification is one thing, but getting a "remaining time" status is also useful for the particularly lazy among us :)
Ah, my power isn't cheaper at certain times, so I didn't think of that. I wonder if you could control and monitor all of it with an ESP32.
Probably could, but thats messy and out of reach for most of the general public. I'd consider myself capable, and I still haven't done it despite wanting to.
I'd settle for appliances providing a standardised port for control/monitoring, that you can plug in your own ESP32 controller. Harder to sell to the general public.
A tech-savvy San Francisco resident has sparked conversation online after he shared a perplexing discovery about his LG washing machine's seemingly voracious appetite for data on X (formerly Twitter).
In a post with more than 7 million views, Johnie Lee shared a screenshot of his machine's data usage, which showed around 3.6GB of daily data usage. For context, 3GB of data is the rough equivalent of streaming high-definition video for an hour on a device.
Results found that smart washing machines are collecting a significant amount of user data, including personal information such as date of birth, location, and even access to photos.
There is no evidence that the data is being sold to third parties, but the prolonged lifespan of washing machines has begun to raise questions about long-term data tracking.
There is no evidence that the data is being sold to third parties
Oh well, that's all good then. ^/s^
Why did you give it network access, you dumb cu-. Actually, never mind that: Why didn't you just buy a washing machine? You know, a machine that washes things.
Fair point, but OTOH we need people like that as whistleblowers.
I once listened to a 3h podcast about analyzing Amazon's collected user data (they have to send it to you on request). One could argue that the author shouldn't use Amazon so much, duh. But it was super important, revealing stuff and made big waves.
Bought a new dishwasher for my parents a couple of months ago and every single available model (at the store) had wifi/app connectivity. I could turn it off but there's no "simple" devices available. Some of them require the app to set the machine up or at least make it harder to do without it. I mean a washing machine needs to be emptied relatively quick after it finishes washing so I at least see some use to a notification but a dishwasher? Fuck that.
Why would it need to be emptied quick?
I usually set mine to work overnight (when power's cheaper) and take it out in the morning. Makes air drying outside more convenient as well, since it maximizes solar availability.
Not to mention, my machine is chugging along perfectly fine. 26 years and counting.
If you leave clothes sitting in a washing machine for more than a few hours they will start to mildew and smell terrible. Then you end up having to rewash everything. Or smell like mildew I guess, if thats your thing
People say this but I've yet to have that happen. Have had to leave it overnight sometimes, no issue.
Fair point.
Using laundry disinfectant and the self-cleaning program on the machine does help, however. If it gets so bad that it does get mildewy, I rewash on the quick cycle and do a thorough clean of the machine itself.
As far as I remember this was debunked and came down to faulty measuring? cabling? Nothing nefarious anyways
The fact that it was connected and downloading anything was the fault.
What was the actual amount? Importantly, was it more than 0?
Importantly, was it more than 0?
Exactly. doG, I dread the time when even used goods won't be available without IoT BS.
No argument there 😁
What's to even track that could use that much data? Audio alone seems like it would be less data.
Yeah, that seems like a bug. Even if it was streaming every sensor datapoint it had, it probably wouldn't be that much.
Who buys a washing machine with WiFi?
Nearly everyone now? About every f-ing thing with a cable (and sometimes without) comes with wifi to call home nowadays. There are toothbrushes with app-support!
Finding a reasonably modern appliance without apps and network is getting harder by the day. Sometimes you can leave the wifi unconfigured, but then you often miss a lot of functionality. Sometimes even core functionality.
Like I said in another comment, I had no problem finding a decent machine a year ago. My basement where it's located doesn't even have a signal.
I also never heard about tooth brushed with apps, I know it is an extreme example made by you, but I doubt there comes a point where you can't buy normal tooth brushed anymore.
I know enshittification is hitting hard these times, but there are still enough alternatives if you look out for them. Screens and internet in fridges and stuff like that I only know from Lemmy, never have seen that in the real world. I an based in the EU, but I think (hope) it's similar in the US.
I also never heard about tooth brushed with apps, I know it is an extreme example made by you
You know what, this is not made up! That toothbrush measures movement and pressure and stuff and tells you on-screen where your cleaning is lacking and how to fix it. Yes, it is crazy, but it exists.
It can actually be a little hard to find models from major brands without wifi. That said, there is no reason that you have to give it access to your router. I worry that they'll start saying that a wifi connection is mandatory at some point, though.
I bought a new washing machine a year ago, I really had no troubles to find a "dumb" one
I worry that they’ll start saying that a wifi connection is mandatory at some point, though.
Yep. However, never will it be phrased like that. Not mandatory, some things just won't work without it 🤷
Mafia talk.
The washing machines I use are controlled with an app, but that's because they're in the basement of my building and that's how we all pay to use them. I have to say, it's much better than scrounging for quarters, although those still work if the app is down. Our previous company's app would tell how many washers were available, so you'd know if it was worth lugging your laundry downstairs. The one we have now doesn't even have reliable "all finished" notifications. But it's simple to set an ordinary timer on my phone.
Convenience is how they'll get you. Combined with landlord greed in this case.