Amazon Echo Club

[OtinG]

[QUOTE=tubemonkey;3902109]Amazon Is Watching Your Home Security Cameras

That is why I never use cloud connected home security devices. I don't want anyone else to have access to the system. Besides, Amazon's idea of home security is to sell overpriced cameras which require a cloud subscription on top of that. You don't need to worry about being burglarized as Amazon is already robbing you with their prices and 3rd party services. There are much better cameras available at lower prices and without the need to use any 3rd party cloud. The system I put together in my home doesn't require, or use, the internet. It only requires ethernet and/or WiFi for internal (inside the home) connectivity. I can stream any camera over the internet if I want to, but I rarely do even if I'm away from home.

[Dylrob]

Originally Posted by ApK

So this just happened. Twice:
Me: "Alexa, announce."
Her: "What's the announcement?"
Me: "Alex, come down here."
Her: < a whistle, in the 'come over here' taxi-hail style> followed by my voice saying "come down here."

Wtf?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/custo...QLL3HFVRYKFD5C

[ApK]

Originally Posted by Dylrob

https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/custo...QLL3HFVRYKFD5C

??? I'm trying to figure out why you posted that link as a reply to my post. From my posting, did you figure I didn't know what the announcement feature was?
If so I think you missed the relevant anomaly. Nothing in that link explains why she WHISTLED instead of repeating my message verbatim.

[OtinG]

Alexa seems to be in one of her frequent "dumb down" cycles here lately. She has started messing up commands that were once executed well. Artificial intelligence my @#$! One step forward then three steps back! At this rate I predict she will be almost as smart as the guy below sometime after the turn of the century 80 years from now.

[cc_in_oh]

Anyone using the Ring? I was momentarily tempted by today's $99 refurb deal but $3/month for cloud storage for a doorbell seems ridiculous to me, especially since my router is shut down overnight. Why not work like my dash cam, keeping a rolling 128GB of video on a $20 SD card?

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by cc_in_oh

Anyone using the Ring? I was momentarily tempted by today's $99 refurb deal but $3/month for cloud storage for a doorbell seems ridiculous to me, especially since my router is shut down overnight. Why not work like my dash cam, keeping a rolling 128GB of video on a $20 SD card?

I haven't used the Ring or any of the cloud-based only security cams. I think all the Ring branded cameras and devices require a cloud subscription though, which means more money every month. There are much better, and less expensive, alternatives available that store the photos and videos on micro SDCards and/or NVR (Network Video Recorder) boxes thereby not requiring a cloud subscription or even an internet connection. A NVR is similar to a DVR but designed to store video and photos from security cams rather than TV shows. Most will require a WiFi or ethernet connection to set them up, but not a continuous connection unless you want to stream to a computer, tablet, or smartphone to watch the live feed or you want to record the videos and photos to an NVR.

[cc_in_oh]

Originally Posted by OtinG

I haven't used the Ring or any of the cloud-based only security cams. I think all the Ring branded cameras and devices require a cloud subscription though, which means more money every month. There are much better, and less expensive, alternatives available that store the photos and videos on micro SDCards and/or NVR (Network Video Recorder) boxes thereby not requiring a cloud subscription or even an internet connection. A NVR is similar to a DVR but designed to store video and photos from security cams rather than TV shows. Most will require a WiFi or ethernet connection to set them up, but not a continuous connection unless you want to stream to a computer, tablet, or smartphone to watch the live feed or you want to record the videos and photos to an NVR.

My dash cam acts as a standalone wifi host that the phone app connects to to download the video. Not that much more convenient than popping out the SD card to dump if I'm at home, but a nice fallback for use in the car.

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by cc_in_oh

My dash cam acts as a standalone wifi host that the phone app connects to to download the video. Not that much more convenient than popping out the SD card to dump if I'm at home, but a nice fallback for use in the car.

That is a nice feature. I don't think any of the home security cams I looked at had that feature, but then I wouldn't expect them to since they are designed to connect through your home/business WiFi system via WiFi or ethernet, so a stand-alone Wifi network wouldn't be necessary. A lot of consumer cameras now have stand-alone WiFi though so they can be wirelessly connected and/or controlled remotely via a smartphone, tablet, or computer. My Sony a7, a6000, and RX100M3 all have that capability. But like a dash cam, those kinds of cameras are designed to be used by themselves rather than in a home-wide security system.

[tubemonkey]

These 8 problems plague the Amazon Echo. Here's how you fix them

In a perfect world, when you give your Amazon Echo a command, it performs exactly the way you want it to. However, that's not always the case when it comes to the Alexa voice assistant. Often times it'll say "I'm sorry, I didn't quite get that" or it'll perform a different action that you didn't ask for.

These issues are frustrating, but rest assured, most of them can be fixed at home with some straightforward steps. Whether it's troubleshooting your Wi-Fi connection or trying to connect your smart lights to Echo, we've got you covered. Here are the most common Amazon Echo ($70 at Amazon) problems and how to fix them.

see article for solutions

1. What the Echo's light ring means
   
2. Alexa can't find your smart home devices
   
3. Alexa disconnects from Wi-Fi
   
4. Alexa doesn't understand what you said
   
5. Accidental activation
   
6. Alarms and notifications are too loud
   
7. Issues streaming music with Spotify
   
8. Trouble playing music on the proper speaker

[OtinG]

I get tired of that same BS fix for #2, “Alexa can't find your smart home devices”, and pretty much every device ever released by every manufacturer. That is the CS pat answer for everything: “Reboot, reboot, reboot...” So every time my Alexa devices poop their drawers, which is fairly often, I’m supposed to reboot the Alexa devices and/or the smart devices. Not gonna happen. What is the point of having a smart home when Alexa is too stupid to remember what it is supposed to be controlling, or simply cannot find it, even though my iPad and iPhone and computers can find the smart home device(S)? You cannot get much done when you have to reboot devices all the time.

[Catlady]

Is anyone using this sort of holder for a Dot 3 to hide the cord? Amazon has a bunch of them and I can't decide. I want to be sure the cord is easy to wrap so it's hidden, the Dot won't fall out, and the second outlet won't be blocked. If it can be plugged into both a horizontal and a vertical outlet, that would be a plus. Thanks.

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by Catlady

Is anyone using this sort of holder for a Dot 3 to hide the cord? Amazon has a bunch of them and I can't decide. I want to be sure the cord is easy to wrap so it's hidden, the Dot won't fall out, and the second outlet won't be blocked. If it can be plugged into both a horizontal and a vertical outlet, that would be a plus. Thanks.

I’m using a similar holder for my Dot 2, but mine isn’t designed to completely conceal the cord. However the cord is so short that it stays out of the way. With mine the Dot 2 is very secured and the second outlet is not blocked. But they are different designs so I cannot speak for the one you show.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by OtinG

I’m using a similar holder for my Dot 2, but mine isn’t designed to completely conceal the cord. However the cord is so short that it stays out of the way. With mine the Dot 2 is very secured and the second outlet is not blocked. But they are different designs so I cannot speak for the one you show.

Thanks. There are so many variations, and they all seem to have at least a handful of bad reviews and/or contrary info in the reviews. I should just close my eyes and pick one!

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by Catlady

Thanks. There are so many variations, and they all seem to have at least a handful of bad reviews and/or contrary info in the reviews. I should just close my eyes and pick one!

The reviews on retail sites are not very reliable IMO. I’ve seen people give 1 star reviews because the 3rd part shipping company took too long to deliver it, or because they got the wrong item. Others give out 5 star reviews if the item is shiny and bright. People are weird sometimes, so I never take those reviews with much confidence. I usually browse the bad reviews looking for specific issues that I’m interested in and ignore the dumb ones. Thankfully Amazon has a liberal return policy, so it isn’t too difficult to return items.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by OtinG

The reviews on retail sites are not very reliable IMO. I’ve seen people give 1 star reviews because the 3rd part shipping company took too long to deliver it, or because they got the wrong item. Others give out 5 star reviews if the item is shiny and bright. People are weird sometimes, so I never take those reviews with much confidence. I usually browse the bad reviews looking for specific issues that I’m interested in and ignore the dumb ones. Thankfully Amazon has a liberal return policy, so it isn’t too difficult to return items.

Yeah, that's why I was hoping someone here could give me a thumbs-up or a thumbs-down on a specific holder. It's silly, when they're not a lot of money, but I'm cheap.