Amazon Echo Club

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Amazon -- exp unknown

• $19.99 -- Alexa Voice Remote for Amazon Echo (list $29.99)

Looks like the Fire TV remote without the six navigation buttons.

Originally Posted by darryl

It's a Great White, likely been snacking on a few of those cute seals. It's a joking reference to my previous profession.

Exchequer?

[OtinG]

Reuters article about a human based security booboo by Amazon CS that allowed one Alexa customer to listen to the recordings from another customer's Alexa.

On the recordings, a man and a female companion could be overheard in his home and the magazine [German trade publication c’t] was able to identify and contact him through the recorded information, according to the report.

No matter how sophisticated the software and FW security is, there is always the human factor where a little honest mistake can reveal your information. Of course a disgruntled employee could also leak it for profit or political purposes. Or in the case of Google and Facebook, seek out buyers to sell it to....

[OtinG]

Yesterday I watched "The Man Who Invented Christmas" on Amazon Prime Video for free. Prime doesn't offer much worth watching for free, so this was a nice surprise. If you like Charles Dickens, this movie is based on his struggles as a writer and more specifically his struggle to create A Christmas Carol. It is very good and worth the watch.

[Alohamora]

"Alexa, let's chat."

How long has this been a thing? She seems to like to talk about books and movies. Even after I try to change the subject.

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by Alohamora

"Alexa, let's chat."

How long has this been a thing? She seems to like to talk about books and movies. Even after I try to change the subject.

Well Bezos makes money off of the sales of books and movies, so I’m not surprised if she rambles on and on about them.

[OtinG]

This is one of the reasons I like shopping at Amazon. I received this email from them today:

Hello,

A promotional discount of $0.63 on your order(s) #[redacted] was not properly applied. As a result, we have refunded you this amount plus applicable taxes. Refunds are issued to the original payment method and you will see the refund on your credit card statement in the next 3-5 business days.

We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to seeing you again soon.

Sincerely,

Customer Service Department
Amazon.com

I went to the Orders page at Amazon and searched on the oder number and discovered it was a small order for cat food and one other item totaling about $20 from February 2018. I guess they caught the mistake during year end accounting closures. I never knew I had this small amount due me, so they could have easily just kept it and I would have never known. Just $0.63 plus tax, but hey anything is better than nothing.

I used to buy a lot of electronics from Best Buy many years ago. Contrast them with Amazon though, and I still get miffed about how my BB bonus points always seemed to disappear whenever I went to make a purchase. I was also miffed when I found out BB got manufacturers to create special computer models just for them that had the same product ID numbers as models sold elsewhere, except the BB models were stripped down internally yet sold for the same price as other stores. Deceptive to say the least. I'm glad Amazon kicked their backsides in the retail business!

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by OtinG

This is one of the reasons I like shopping at Amazon. I received this email from them today:



I went to the Orders page at Amazon and searched on the oder number and discovered it was a small order for cat food and one other item totaling about $20 from February 2018. I guess they caught the mistake during year end accounting closures. I never knew I had this small amount due me, so they could have easily just kept it and I would have never known. Just $0.63 plus tax, but hey anything is better than nothing.

Whoa! $0.63! What do you plan on doing with your new found wealth? Stocks? Bonds? Endowment? a new Kindle or Echo? You're in the driver's seat, so spend wisely

[OtinG]

Tick tock, the clock is about to run down on Sears as they have until the end of today to file a legitimate bailout offer, and it doesn't appear they have the means to do so. If they don't, well, imagine Sears as a lone, sick, weak gazelle surrounded by a large pride of starving lions--it is not going to go well for them. The creditors will rip Sears and Kmart into tiny little shreds. I remember in the 1960s when my little home town would be all excited every time a new Sears catalog appeared in our mailboxes. It was known widely as the "Wish Book". It was the big retail store in my part of the country. But the times they were a changing and sears failed to change along with them. So while it is sad to see a 125 year old retail giant die, they get what they deserve IMO. I feel sorry for the employees, but not the stockholders/owners.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by OtinG

Tick tock, the clock is about to run down on Sears as they have until the end of today to file a legitimate bailout offer, and it doesn't appear they have the means to do so. If they don't, well, imagine Sears as a lone, sick, weak gazelle surrounded by a large pride of starving lions--it is not going to go well for them.

Where have I heard this before?
Oh, yeah....

[tubemonkey]

Alexa, Do You Work For the Government?

Published on Sep 16, 2016

Interrogating the Amazon Echo.

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Alexa, Do You Work For the Government?

Wow, I tried to watch it this morning but both of my Dot 3s kept trying to answer his questions, so I turned off mics and then I heard another Echo device in another room trying to answer them too! I gave up as it was too distracting. I'll try to listen later on with earphones.

My Dot 3s and my Echo Plus 2 have been really good about not activating when they hear recorded "Alexa" on TV or Youtube, but on Wednesday I was talking on the phone with a friend, never said the "Alexa" word or anything close to it, but both of my Dot 3s kept activating and yapping. Bad Amazon server day? Anyone else notice an issue on Wednesday?

[ApK]

Originally Posted by OtinG

Wow, I tried to watch it this morning but both of my Dot 3s kept trying to answer his questions, so I turned off mics and then I heard another Echo device in another room trying to answer them too! I gave up as it was too distracting. I'll try to listen later on with earphones.

My Dot 3s and my Echo Plus 2 have been really good about not activating when they hear recorded "Alexa" on TV or Youtube, but on Wednesday I was talking on the phone with a friend, never said the "Alexa" word or anything close to it, but both of my Dot 3s kept activating and yapping. Bad Amazon server day? Anyone else notice an issue on Wednesday?

Well, that video was three minutes of my life I'll never get back. I waited for some payoff that never came.
For the record, I played it in earshot of my Echo, and each time he asked, my Echo said "No, I work for Amazon."

[tubemonkey]

I keep the mics on my Dots (stereo pair) turned off. When I need Alexa to do something, I just reach over and turn the mics back on.

My number one reason for owning the Dots is music (Spotify). I frequently find it much easier to use the Spotify app on my phone versus voice commands.

What I found most interesting about the video was the way Alexa always answered "do you work for the NSA?" She said nothing and then exited.

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I keep the mics on my Dots (stereo pair) turned off. When I need Alexa to do something, I just reach over and turn the mics back on.

My number one reason for owning the Dots is music (Spotify). I frequently find it much easier to use the Spotify app on my phone versus voice commands.

What I found most interesting about the video was the way Alexa always answered "do you work for the NSA?" She said nothing and then exited.

The Alexa equivalent of the notorious CIA blurred photos!

My Dot 3s usually ignore TV commercials, but that Youtube video did have very clear audio so I can see how she could be fooled into thinking it was a live request. I leave the mics on since I do use them to control smart home devices (lights) and since they had been pretty good at ignoring electronic/recorded commands. I did occasionally turn off the mic on my Echo Plus 2 in the living room during the holidays due to the very high number of Alexa TV commercials, even though she did pretty good at lighting up but not answering. I usually leave that mic on though.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by OtinG

The Alexa equivalent of the notorious CIA blurred photos!

...sometimes I wonder about her

Still, I'm very impressed with the improvements Amazon made with the Dot 3s. They hit a home run with the stereo pairing, upgraded speaker, and low holiday price point.