dkhaley

franklinjackcon said:

...  they'd probably need to combine both the voiceprint and the location of the phone for this to useful in a multi-person home. ...

I completely agree. Beyond security, it could also be a convenience. For instance, my wife and I listen to very different music. So if I tell it to play music (generically) it should bring up different songs than if she did so.

Amazon's echo devices have "voice profiles" that you can switch. However, a system where anyone could speak and the Homepod could determine who was talking would far surpass this.

I'm not really sure this is allowed by regulators. If I were to rename a Honda Civic LX  to "Honda Civic Turbo V-8", it would still not be a V-8. I'd expect to get sued for deceptive trade practices.

From my perspective, it should be a hard case for Spotify to win.

1. Spotify has other distribution methods (i.e. a customer can sign up on their website and then download the app)
2. Spotify chooses to use Apple's App Store as one of its distribution methods
3. Apple gives Spotify the same terms as everybody else

Of course, the EC can be a little crazy with their antitrust decisions.

Both August and Apple have a role to play in this.

August (and other Smarthome manufacturers) need to realize that customers don't want to have 20 apps on their phone for the different devices they want to control.

Apple also needs to reconsider it's approach. Certain apps just have functionality that's not included in HomeKit. The August app can tell me if my door is closed (as opposed to locked but open). The Hue app allows me to fade in lights over several minutes. Apple must be more aggressive in enabling new functionality. As for supporting certain wireless devices, that seems like a no-brainer.

This seems like a decision made by accountants, and I doubt it will be a successful endeavor. Apple Pay (and other NFC payment methods) are just better.

From the consumer's point of view, Apple Pay is extremely quick, and it doesn't give out your credit card number.

The speed is also a benefit for high-volume retailers. Basically, it allows shoppers to complete transactions more quickly, allowing for additional capacity. If they also have a Wallet enabled rewards card, it speeds up the transaction more.

Kroger's welcome to try a method that has people fumbling with their phone to save the company a few cents. Doesn't matter to me anyway. I refuse to shop there, as our local Krogers have sub-standard produce and lack an in-house butcher.