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Tokyo is my home planet.
Smart home tech
- Thread starter Chew Toy McCoy
- Start date
JayMysteri0
What the F?!!!
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Kind of wished I had gone to Tokyo and got 'stuck' there during the pandemic.
One food youtuber I watch got so stressed from being in the states during covid, he's temporarily moved to South Korea. He can afford to, and it's added fresh content for his youtube channel.
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User.45
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When we were visiting I read Murakami's Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World. So dark, so melancholic and just refreshing. It had such well-written cyberpunk elements I was shocked to read it was written in the 80s. In the USA, sometimes I feel like I should be ashamed of or at least being looked at weird for deeply enjoying melancholic stuff. I love the Shintoist temples. Centuries old wooden dragon carvings and the smell of the rain. The quietness of the world's largest metropolis.
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I watch stuff like that also. I’ve not been to Japan either and we’re keen to go. Good skiing to be had.
JayMysteri0
What the F?!!!
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When I'm not watching the walking tour videos of Japan, I've watched this series for personal inspiration. They cover a wide range of creators.
lizkat
Watching March roll out real winter
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About all I bother with is having my laptops announce the hour in case I've been stupid enough to sit around that long. Oh, and turn on Do not Disturb and some night shift lighting on my gear.
Short of that at least in winter I do need the exercise of going around to turn lights on or off and raise / lower the shades etc.
And... the way I look at demos of tech-assisted living has turned out to be mostly from standpoint of laughing at the go-wrongs of other people's more advanced cars than I ever owned. Stuff like windows in the rear that automatically roll down when it rains...
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User.45
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There's no remote for my kids unfortunately.:/
SuperMatt
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Alexa was secretly recording you until somebody proved it and Amazon stopped... but who knows if they just stopped for a while and started again when we stopped paying attention?
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Technically, they're "supposed" to show the light when it's recording but it seems obvious that isn't the case. I can't say whether I really trust these devices or not but one thing I do know for sure is that if listening to me tell my dogs to get out of the kitchen all day is the best use of their time, then so be it.
lizkat
Watching March roll out real winter
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With me about all they're gonna get from tuning into my studio activity is a clue that maybe someday I'll shift to ordering seam rippers by the case instead of the two-pack.... the recordings would run mostly to me addressing myself out loud in exasperation... like "Gee if you're tired of using the unsewing tool you could try stitching this stuff right the first time once in awhile..."
lizkat
Watching March roll out real winter
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Oh yes... that was me whispering through glass of the back door to a fledgie hermit thrush who popped into the interior of my deck outside the kitchen to have a look around. I was so astounded to see that beautiful creature (who definitely is not the type of bird to be investigating people's porches or decks) and so annoyed that my phone didn't happen to be on top the microwave getting charged up. Of course he was gone by time I returned! And good thing what I said then wasn't recorded.
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User.45
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It seems that we are embarking upon home ownership (again), and I want to install smart vents for our system. Does anybody have any experience with
Flair https://flair.co/pages/ecobee-smart-vents
or
Keen https://keenhome.io/pages/how-it-works
?
With the kids I desire much more significant temp gradients in the home. I like my bedroom as cold as it gets at night (like 60-62), but warm up 2h before waking up. For the kids I want to prevent temps to ever go below 68 in contrast.
Flair https://flair.co/pages/ecobee-smart-vents
or
Keen https://keenhome.io/pages/how-it-works
?
With the kids I desire much more significant temp gradients in the home. I like my bedroom as cold as it gets at night (like 60-62), but warm up 2h before waking up. For the kids I want to prevent temps to ever go below 68 in contrast.
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I have considered this but always wondered how one would keep them charged, I suppose batteries would last a while like they do in my smart lock. I do like that idea of the automation though, it would be fun to play around with for sure.
Temperatures here in the central valley in CA are often in the 110s and while we have great AC I still had to put a portable window unit in my office because I run 4 or 5 computers at a time in there. The AC can't keep it balanced enough.
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User.45
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The battery IS a concern. The reviews complained of 2 issues:
1) Batteries dying because of he heat they are exposed to
2) Smart vents disconecting all the time. Which make sense when they are embedded in a metal duct system, wifi signals are probably shielded and they require good signal distribution.
I dount think theres a good solution for the battery problem. Unless you charge these devices using 5G
DT
I am so Smart! S-M-R-T!
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I guess we could make a "yard" thread or something, but just going to drop this here ... I guess it's "smart-ish" 
I've had a Greenworks blower and then later picked up a string trimmer, and then later again, a [chain] pole saw, they all use their 40v battery pack. So it's cool, the initial blower purchase (for Dad's day, hahaha ...) had the battery and charger, so I got the other two as "tool only", so around $89 for each. The pack charges quick, has a charge indicator __and__ has bluetooth and an app, so I can check the exact state, condition, etc., from my iPhone
Well, I was out of gas for the mower, it was empty, the main can was empty, it's a decent little simple B&S motor'ed push mower (no bag, manual push) we've had for a few years (even just put on a new blade), but in an effort to green up a little more, not deal with starting/gas/oil/smell/noise, we just scored a Greenworks electric mower - from Woot! ~50% off, arrived today. It has two packs, a 4.0a and a 2.0a and another charger, so now I'll have 2/3/4 amp batteries, two chargers (hell, another battery and charger is $100 and we got the mower for $199). Plus this mower bags, and where we normally don't worry about it that much, we've had an excess of leaves fall this year, so one good bagging mow will be nice).
I've had a Greenworks blower and then later picked up a string trimmer, and then later again, a [chain] pole saw, they all use their 40v battery pack. So it's cool, the initial blower purchase (for Dad's day, hahaha ...) had the battery and charger, so I got the other two as "tool only", so around $89 for each. The pack charges quick, has a charge indicator __and__ has bluetooth and an app, so I can check the exact state, condition, etc., from my iPhone
Well, I was out of gas for the mower, it was empty, the main can was empty, it's a decent little simple B&S motor'ed push mower (no bag, manual push) we've had for a few years (even just put on a new blade), but in an effort to green up a little more, not deal with starting/gas/oil/smell/noise, we just scored a Greenworks electric mower - from Woot! ~50% off, arrived today. It has two packs, a 4.0a and a 2.0a and another charger, so now I'll have 2/3/4 amp batteries, two chargers (hell, another battery and charger is $100 and we got the mower for $199). Plus this mower bags, and where we normally don't worry about it that much, we've had an excess of leaves fall this year, so one good bagging mow will be nice).
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User.45
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In the process of buying a house again and after a 3-year break, it's time for me to delve into smart home tech again.
I'm planning to have meaningful smart tech installed, and since a lot of it is new, let me share some. This time around I'll create a guest network for my smart devices and use a Homekit router and limit the access of all these devices as much as possible. So I'm getting this setup:
1. Homekit router - Linksys Velop (there's no wifi 6 homekit router yet, and I decided to not wait for one)
2. There are new cheap smart lightbulbs that use Thread...tech that uses each light as a wifi range extender to improve responsiveness. NanoLeaf's bulbs are $20 a piece. Philips Hues (of which I have a dozen) are 2-3x more expensive and are marginally better.
3. This is a dirt cheap ($50) for a 32' lightstrip, which I'll use to wrap around the ceiling. This wouldn't be a brand I'd trust, but it has homekit and I'll fully restrict the network access of this.
www.meross.com
4. I have an ecobee thermostat and am planning to get matched door/window monitors. Ecobees sensors can also double as motion sensors.
www.ecobee.com
5. Ikea has smart blinds which I'lll use get my kids woken up by natural light.
www.ikea.com
It requires ikea's gateway.
www.ikea.com
I'm planning to have meaningful smart tech installed, and since a lot of it is new, let me share some. This time around I'll create a guest network for my smart devices and use a Homekit router and limit the access of all these devices as much as possible. So I'm getting this setup:
1. Homekit router - Linksys Velop (there's no wifi 6 homekit router yet, and I decided to not wait for one)
2. There are new cheap smart lightbulbs that use Thread...tech that uses each light as a wifi range extender to improve responsiveness. NanoLeaf's bulbs are $20 a piece. Philips Hues (of which I have a dozen) are 2-3x more expensive and are marginally better.
3. This is a dirt cheap ($50) for a 32' lightstrip, which I'll use to wrap around the ceiling. This wouldn't be a brand I'd trust, but it has homekit and I'll fully restrict the network access of this.
Wifi Led Stripe - Meross Smart Home Devices - MSL320
Meross wifi led stripe that support scenes with different effects.
www.meross.com
4. I have an ecobee thermostat and am planning to get matched door/window monitors. Ecobees sensors can also double as motion sensors.
Extended Coverage Bundle | ecobee
Motion sensors that secure your doors and windows and alert you of any unwanted entry. Get peace of mind and better home protection.
www.ecobee.com
5. Ikea has smart blinds which I'lll use get my kids woken up by natural light.
FYRTUR black-out roller blind, smart wireless/battery operated gray, 32x76 ¾" - IKEA
FYRTUR black-out roller blind, smart wireless/battery operated gray, 32x76 ¾" FYRTUR block-out roller blind blocks out all light from outside and completely darkens your room. Use with remote control or with DIRIGERA hub and IKEA Home smart app for more smart control options.
www.ikea.com
It requires ikea's gateway.
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