Sonos has entered the chat.

Youâ(TM)re spot on. Iâ(TM)m so sick of this modern monetize everything at the expense of the userâ(TM)s privacy. Dinâ(TM)t even get me started on subscription based/micro-transaction based crap.

"Bill Gates is also real, but manageable"

When the same bosses were asked if 3% raises in a time of 10%+ inflation was a factor in worker productivityâ¦

ânah, donâ(TM)t be silly!â(TM)

Worker wages have been disproportionately suppressed for years. People are tired of being exploited by employers.

Unfortunately after the economy tanks people will cave to employer pressure again to keep their jobs. Employers know this, and itâ(TM)s basically a short-term standoff.

Bad Dad joke - Iâ(TM)ll see myself out

I replaced a nest thermostat with an ecobee... because once google bought Nest they required a google login for the device. They wouldn't accept my paid google apps for business login as they only support personal google accounts for the device. I have no interest in setting up another google account (the google apps for business account is a personal account I have maintained for years).

Next up, my Nest Yale Lock will be replaced with a non-nest product.

I was an Google/Android fan, but over the past few years I replaced my Pixel C tablet with an iPad Pro, and my android phone with an iPhone.

Google can't seem to make a phone without a fatal flaw (I preferred vanilla Android). 3rd party phones can be ok (ex: Samsung), but they are filled with 3rd party garbage bloatware (ex: Samsung Bixby).

Google tablet software was never really on par with Apple. I liked the pixel C - but my now ~3 years old iPad Pro has been a better tablet in nearly every way and will continue to get OS updates long past the lifecycle of an Android product.

Apple won me over with a longer support lifecycle, more polished products, better stability with 3rd party software, and a well integrated ecosystem. I actually bought my first macOS laptop after 20+ years of using exclusively windows / linux.

I've bought an Apple TV and AirPods Max. The headphones seamlessly switch between all of my devices.

I liked Google (or at least what Google was before they lost their way), but now that I've switched my biggest issue is the black turtleneck that seems like it will swallow me whole.

Setup their own systems with common competitive games like Smash Bros. and live stream battle. Players rent to play, theater keeps a percentage of the bets. Prize purse for the winning player as a small percentage of the Theater's winnings as an incentive. Engages more people without putting them in physical proximity, and could be considered advertising for the theater.

I have had Android phones/tablets since 2011. I bought an iPad Pro this past year as my first Apple product since a 1st gen iPod touch, and was actually considering switching to an iPhone as Google vs. Apple has basically become Coke vs. Pepsi at this point. Apple lost a sale once it was confirmed that they would not be using usb-c. I'll probably hold onto my phone for one more year hoping Apple implements usb-c, but failing that I'll be getting another Pixel.

The workers can bearly stand the grizzly working conditions.

I apologize to slashdot readers in advance, and will see myself out.

Obligatory Rick and Morty reference. I, for one, hope it pleases our AI overlords.

Completely agree - without standards I expect companies like Comcast and Verizon to release a "free app", with a crazy permissions grab on the device.

push notifications (for service notifications, and of course specialized targeted offers)
read contacts
access GPS fine location
bind vpn service
camera
audio input
read log data
read / write storage
etc...

Permissions grab to be justified by:

The app needs these rights so you can host a geotagged live stream of your face while you are watching your favorite show, that people on your contacts list can access. Additionally, the video stream will be sent via a VPN tunnel established to the service provider for enhanced performance. Log data is needed because they need to troubleshoot the app after all.

Companies like Verizon and Comcast will of course only use these permissions for things that are clearly labeled in the EULA and not for their own gain... and if you believe that last statement... my sympathies.

I wonder what percentage of the population actually restricts perms on their IOS / Android devices for the applications they install.

*FCC FAIL*

It's a rigid air ship.

All aboard for safety and adventure on the rigid airship Excelsior, where the pampered luxury of a cruise ship meets the smoothness of modern air travel.

Magnetic stripe feature is basically useless this late in the game. After October 1st in the US, liability for card-present fraud will switch to merchants not supporting chip based transactions. I expect the move away from magnetic stripe transactions will happen very soon.

Craig? Is that you?

Is it just me or does this read like the intro to a Bioshock game or the backstory for a bond villain?

Years of HGH abuse twisted his mind and caused cellular mutation granting him super-human abilities while his body became riddled with cancer. He built a city to be free from regulation, he built an army to protect his city, and then...

Would you kindly license this story to Marvel?

I see your point, I suppose I should have reworded that as "I believe consumers would prefer...". I did not intend to offend via assumption. I had the prefix "Opinion:" on the article when I initially submitted it.

Everyone thinks you are over-analyzing the submission. (j/k)