Sonja
We live in a world where technology is present in virtually every aspect of our lives, but as smart devices become smarter and more popular, it seems as though the technology is sort of taking over. Sure, having the power to turn on your favorite Lizzo song with just your voice while you are having a solo concert in the shower is awesome, but what if you couldn’t get into your house after a late night of partying because your phone is dead?
Smart Locks
In 2018, a group of New York City apartment residents took action and sued their management company. The crime: installing smart locks in the building. While some residents took to the changes easily, some had some serious qualms with the new security systems.
Firstly, some of the residents pointed out that they did not own smartphones, and therefore would have no way of using the locks or gaining access to the lobby or their units. Others pointed out that accessing the building would require them to constantly maintain a charge on their phones, something lots of us struggle to do. Residents also worried that, in the event of a power outage, their units would be left locked or unlocked with no way of fixing the problem.
In the future, smart locks could be a great product, but this version just wasn’t ready for the challenges that New York City apartment dwellers face, from dead smartphones to long power outages. The residents of the building won, and in this case, the people were smarter than the smart locks.
Smart Park
Okay, so only being able to access your apartment via smartphone isn’t the smartest idea, but what about cars that can drive themselves? This smart invention is one that has been highly anticipated for decades, even before people thought it could be possible. Tesla is famously the first brand to create self-driving cars for the consumer market, with many of their models including self-driving, self-parking, and automatic summoning features.
While it may sound like a dream come true to not have to traipse through a chilly parking lot after a good meal to find your car, and instead have it come to you, smart parking and summoning features may not be all they are chalked up to be. So far, Tesla owners have cited some pretty glaring issues with the smart park and summons technology.
The biggest problem: without someone in the car, there are no eyes to make judgment calls or note when unexpected obstacles pop up. Though the cars are designed to automatically navigate their way around obstacles and through traffic, putting all your trust in your car and closing your eyes for a nap is probably not a safe bet just yet.
Smart Doorbells
Smart doorbells like Ring have become super popular in recent years as an affordable alternative to more extensive security/surveillance systems. Though much of the time these devices work well, there have been some security problems raising consumer alarm bells. The biggest problem? The doorbell may be smart, but there are hackers out there that are smarter.
The hackability of Ring doorbells was demonstrated at Mobile World Congress last year by security researchers from Dojo. Live on stage, the researchers hacked into the smart doorbell, demonstrating how easy it would be for criminals and hackers to gain access to both the audio and video and potentially spy on homeowners. Yeah, we know, that’s totally the opposite of what smart doorbells are supposed to do!
What do you think? Are there some smart devices you can’t live without? Smart devices you would never buy? All we know is, we aren’t giving up listening to Lizzo in the shower.
