HomePod mini great for RVing

[macnut]

I have one of Apple’s new HomePod Mini’s in our motorhome. The sound is great for the space and since it connects via a USB-C cable, we can use it when dry camping or anytime we want to take it outside! I’m sure the design team had RVing in mind when they did this. :-)

[Elkman]

And with its 4 microphones the people working for Apple and the NSA (and its thousands of independent contractors) will have no difficulty listening to your conversations. I prefer to protect my privacy as much as possible and not to worry about a SWAT team knocking down my door in the middle of the night as has happened so many times in this country.

[theSane]

My family tells me the IoT is great and I need to make my house "Smart", but I work in IT, and the IoT is terribly insecure. It is bad enough the NSA can call up AT&T (also other carriers) and listen in on me via my phone, I do not need to wire up my house as well to let Google and Apple listen in on everything that happens.

Try talking about a product you have never used before around these devices, then watch your web site advertising. The IoT is a scary level of privacy invasion.


P.S. We do love portable Bluetooth speakers and have them for listening to music around the house and RV. They are great products. Currently we use a Panasonic SC-NT10 and it has great sound.

P.P.S. I did give Google Home a try once and did not find enough value in it to keep it.

[macnut]

Actually Apple is much better at privacy than the others, but if it’s a concern I would wait on the devices. We are comfortable with Apples practices, but have turned off Alexa. Here’s a good article comparing them. https://www.the-ambient.com/features...eaker-data-338

[Wayne M]

Oh my gosh! The Government is spying on us! I think not. My personal opinion is that the paranoia associated with Alexa, or any other device is unfounded. Yes, if you mention key words associated with terrorism it MAY get picked up by devices that are designed to monitor for those key words, but there has to be a reason why any individual device would be targeted. JMHO

There is nothing I do in life that would require any agency to investigate me. So in that light, if they want to monitor me then let them do so...but it is just not done.

I retired from NASA as an Information Security Specialist, an prior to that I was in Communication Security and had an association with other agencies and I am not worried at all

I have Alexa hub and several Echo Dots in the house. I have friends and family that have the same. I can say to Alexa, "Drop in on (brother)" and it will drop in on their Alexa but only if they have previously allowed me to do it.

I'd like to have some specifics on any agency knocking down doors without a reasonable cause, or someone SWATTING a person.

Has anyone ever wondered how your phone number, email, etc., is acquired? Fill in a survey on-line, or just visit some sites, like a car dealer, and then you start getting calls. I'm more worried about what is happening to security on the Internet than any smart device I have in my home or on my person. My life is boring.

p.s., Government listening devices have been going on since the 60's and probably even earlier. Here is a good read for anyone interested.

ECHELON

[macnut]

Any privacy you feel you have is an illusion these days. That said, I believe each person needs to decide for themselves and I need not demean or chastise them when they choose differently than me. To each his own. I use the devices, but I have a friend in cyber security that doesn’t. We each need to decide on the benefit or risk for ourselves.