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Comment by lb1lf | Hacker News Reader

-I actively tried to avoid IoT devices when I recently built a house, but wound up with quite the handful still.

a) Fire detectors. 13 units including the central. (Basically one in every room where something may conceivably catch fire.)

b) Leakage sensors in any room with faucets or washers in it - 7 units.

c) Kitchen appliances - 5 (Cook top, two ovens, fridge, freezer)

d) HVAC - 7 units (Central ventilation. Heat pump. A handful of electrical panel heaters.)

It quickly adds up - at least if you live in the boonies where land is effectively free.

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The kitchen appliances are a little weird. People keep claiming that it impossible to avoid, but I have yet to see any of them in stores. Not even a gimmicky smart fridge is available.

Is this not available where you are - https://www.samsung.com/sg/refrigerators/french-door/550l-bl... ? Just an example :)

Hey, it is available. At 20.000DKK ($3235) and in that double width I don't see many buyers, regardless if it's IoT or not.

Interestingly, at one of the largest Danish chains, it's listed under "American fridges", most of those DO have wifi. If you just pick: "Fridges", then none of them have wifi.

What does the IOT cook top do?

-Annoy the heck out of me.

That aside, I fail to see any reason why any user would want their cook top to be accessible via an app.

On the contrary, if the cook top is switched on, I very much prefer to be in the immediate vicinity.

A lot of modern designs have flat controls with no tactile cues that renders them unusable for the blind. Being able to connect with an app using VoiceOver makes the device accessible.

Even non iot kitchen tech is ridiculous. I tried to buy an oven with as few features as possible. I foolishly assumed that two knobs meant “mode” and “temp”. Nope. It has loads of features which you access by clicking and holding and twiddling one while opposite twiddling the other. Smeg.

Do your fire detectors still work if the power or wifi go out?

-Yes; I tried it to make sure after we moved in.

They have backup batteries and form their own mesh network which works independently of the main WiFi.

If the central unit disappears, the detectors still all go off if one is triggered. (Central unit offers app interface and optional 4G fallback network connection.)

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