sumergo

AppleInsider said:

Amazon on Monday said it has reached a deal to acquire eero, manufacturer of a range of popular mesh networking hardware that helps users distribute Wi-Fi signals throughout their home.

Announced in a joint press release, the acquisition represents a successful exit to eero's startup activities, which began in 2014. Details of the deal have not been disclosed pending closing conditions.

It appears that Amazon will use eero to further an ongoing push into the smart home space that began with the e-tailer's line of Echo speakers. Loaded with Alexa voice assistant smarts, the smart speakers serve up answers to general customer queries and present another access portal to Amazon's online store.

"We are incredibly impressed with the eero team and how quickly they invented a WiFi solution that makes connected devices just work," said Dave Limp, SVP of Amazon Devices and Services. "We have a shared vision that the smart home experience can get even easier, and we're committed to continue innovating on behalf of customers."

Mesh networking solutions solve the problem of Wi-Fi dead spots by employing cooperative hardware nodes to evenly distribute consistent coverage over large areas like multi-level homes. The system presented by eero goes a step further than conventional mesh products with a streamlined setup and hardware management process, advanced user and parental controls, cloud connectivity for updates and other value-added features.

In 2017, the startup updated its lineup with a tri-band Wi-Fi base station and dual-band Beacon devices that plug directly into wall outlets for easy installation. Perhaps of interest to Amazon, the second-generation hardware features Thread radio components for communicating with low-power "internet of things" devices.

AppleInsider reviewed the first-generation eero system and found it to provide adequate coverage of a multi-story house.

Beyond Limp's statement on "innovating on behalf of consumers," Amazon's plans for eero are unknown. Amazon's Echo range would make a suitable platform for integration, potentially offering users both Alexa and enhanced Wi-Fi with a single device. In return, Amazon will likely retain unfettered access to eero users' internet usage habits.

The second-generation eero system is still up for sale on Amazon's website, with full sets -- one base station and two Beacons -- starting at $399.

Mike Wuerthele said:

ClarityToSee said:

I would agree with the lawsuit. The two factor authentication process is time consuming and inconvenient for the users.  
Apple should work on another way to strengthen security. What happened to simple and intuitive philosophy of Apple’s? 

Yeah, I can see where 22 seconds periodically would be a major drag on your day.

lkrupp said:

Do analysts ever explain how they come up with their “estimates”? As a retired person living on my IRA and Social Security I wonder how this all works. Seeing the blathering idiocy of analysts when it comes to Apple is not very reassuring to a small investor like me for my portfolio. I know I basically have to be in the stock market to have any chance of keeping ahead of inflation as interest rates on cash CDs are pitiful. I let Stifel Nicolaus manage my IRAs and pay them handsomely to do so but the roller coaster ride since 2012 (when I retired) has been quite a knuckle breaker. For every “Gloom and Doom" analyst there’s a corresponding “Unicorns and Rainbows” analyst. The two are 180° apart in their analyses so what’s a guy like me to think? 

normang said:

Climate constantly changes, to think we can actually have any impact on significantly altering the climate is the height of arrogance. It's been warmer in the past than today and its been cooler, we know this..... but somehow altering a carbon footprint is going to save us? This is not to say that we should not try and be prudent in the use of resources, but the proposed changes all mandate government control of your life and all that will do is make things worse for people, not better.

dysamoria said:

sflocal said:

dysamoria said:

maciekskontakt said:

Augmented reality is so garbage and useless feature for people who do not have anything better to do with life. Go on with wasting time. There is far more productive things to do woth mobile devices.

I'm not convinced one way or another. I don't like the constant attention to these kinds of fluff features but I think AR has to be potentially more useful than what they've done to iMessage (animoji being the most idiotic addition, next to making the thing a cesspool like the Windows system tray with "apps").

AR is great for things like medical procedures, surgeons being able to see in real-time what's going on inside a patient's body before going in with the knife.

This sounds like fantasy. There's no technology to visually show anyone what's going on inside anyone's body unless they're in an fMRI machine, and the actual imagery and their value is very limited.