Samsung has made a fortune coatailing the newest tech. It is not surprising that they are dropping more money into the newest trends. I'm not going to say that they are not good at what they do, but they are definitely not trend setters.
JohnBarnes 6/22/2016 7:46:32 AM User Rank Platinum
Re: Not Suprising
afwriter, and in light of Samsung's history and culture, isn't it kind of revealing that they see IoT as a way to assist the eldery and disabled? About the most conservative and non-innovative use this new field has?
Mike Robuck 6/22/2016 10:34:18 AM User Rank Author
Re: Not Suprising
I agree, not a company known for working with others and being an innovation leader. It will be interesting to see how this plays out with them focusing on the "human" aspect of IoT instead of other areas.
JohnBarnes 6/22/2016 7:50:59 AM User Rank Platinum
Of course, another way this can be looked at...
.... is saving money for families and society by having machines, rather than people, take care of old people. Human contact is quaint, and worse than that, expensive. If the couch makes sure you're still moving around and the fridge feeds you, you don't have to talk to anyone or hear about their lives (presumably the couch and fridge won't be very chatty), and need never be bothered with people at all. Lucky old people! Just what they need -- less human contact!
Re: Of course, another way this can be looked at...
@JohnBarnes though it sounds less than appealing, that does seem to be the direction that we're going in, particularly for older people who live alone. In fact, Good ran an article entitled, Why Robots Are the Future of Elder Care In Japan it is perfectly acceptable to offer a senior person a robot companion, and while some look like people, some come in the shape of baby seals as illustrated here:
The article says:
in2013 and 2014 especially, the Japanese governmentpoured millions into incentivizing eldercare robotics development. Many have looked at Japan's kawaii and cuddly droids and rolled their eyes, questioning whether or not such technologies could ever really gain traction with the rest of the world. But over the past couple of years, elder care robot research and development has grown more conventional and cheaper, producing products with greater functionality and broader consumer acceptance. And it's started to take hold in companies beyond Japan too, suggesting a growing wave of acceptance and support for the concept. So no matter how uncomfortable we may be with robots, it seems like it's high time for all of us to accept, if not enthusiastically embrace, the dawning of the Asimov era.
JohnBarnes 6/22/2016 10:18:01 PM User Rank Platinum
Re: Of course, another way this can be looked at...
Ariella, that quote is a perfect example of what's so silly in so much of tech journalism today. Collectively we don't have to accept a lonelier, colder, more isolated world just so the engineers can make more nifty toys. We don't even have to accept journalists who want us to accept it.
Re: Of course, another way this can be looked at...
<We don't even have to accept journalists who want us to accept it.> @JohnBarnes Ha! Journalists today are always pushing some agenda or other. If your throw all of that ilk at, we'd be left with maybe a tiny handful who believe in sticking to facts.
Mike Robuck 6/23/2016 10:24:28 AM User Rank Author
Re: Of course, another way this can be looked at...
@ariella, "tiny handful," that's a pretty big generalization of journalism. Not to get off topic, but I think that may apply more to bloggers than tradiitional journalists who at least went to college to study their craft.
JohnBarnes, I tend to think of newer technologies as a way to make people's lives better somehow. I do understand there are dollar signs attached, but the ones that are truly useful will win out in the end. But it's always good to question everything these days.
Re: Of course, another way this can be looked at...
@Mike perhaps so, but there is this: ". Rare is the news organization that doesn't occasionally jump on Twitter with half-baked facts, and rarer still is the one that refuses to gin up content about the day's major trending topics." from http://www.cjr.org/cover_story/who_cares_if_its_true.php
Mike Robuck 6/23/2016 11:52:31 AM User Rank Author
Re: Of course, another way this can be looked at...
Good read. From the article: "As I discovered in visits to newsrooms with varying histories and roles, what's new is what's always worked: In the minute-by-minute struggle for audience and advertising, old-fashioned notions about credibility turn out to be as essential as speed. Despite utopian rhetoric about the Web as a self-correcting mechanism, getting things right from the start turns out to have considerable value."
Re: Of course, another way this can be looked at...
@Mike yes, I agree. I also try to always make my titles accurate rather than overstate things just to induce people to click, but as the proliferation of clickbait out there indicates, that's not something everyone has scruples about.
mpouraryan 7/17/2016 3:43:55 PM User Rank Platinum
Re: Of course, another way this can be looked at...
The challenge is to rise above the "Clutter" and consistently work to add value--which is a struggle for many start-ups vying for that very space. It is true that the likes of Amazon, facebook & others are running "scared"--but the reality is that for now they seem to be just unstoppable.
JohnBarnes 6/26/2016 8:19:53 PM User Rank Platinum
Re: Of course, another way this can be looked at...
Mike, Ariella, please forgive a small attack of les mots d'escalier:
the thing is, because "information wants to be free" BUT "information wants to be expensive" (people forget Stewart Brand put those two statements next to each other), we end up with a situation where very few people pay to be informed (and when they do it's about very narrow areas directly relevant to their particular business) but many organizations want to pay for the right to do the informing (i.e. they are advertisers and marketers).
So while it is true that if you find a good brand of baby powder, corn flakes, or laundry soap (something you buy over and over) you stick with it and eventually they make money, it's also true that there's going to be a vast amount of information ranging from shaded to outright lies and it will be concentrated in fields where you make your economic decisions just once, or a few times, in a lifetime.
If Barnes's Weak And Stinky Detergent doesn't get your clothes clean, you stop buying it from me, and the market works. But if Barnes's Minimum Security Geezer Prison (now with robots!) gives your parents a crappy, lonely, depressing old age, there's a good chance that neither you nor they will be revisiting the purchase decision. So it pays me a lot more and better to convince you that robot caretakers are the wave of the future and the modern solution to care of the elderly than it does to persuade you that my lousy soap will get you clean.
Scott Adams made a similar point in a very NSFW Dilbert decades ago, about medical technology that would have cost about as much as the VCR to develop, and why as a society we "chose" the VCR.
mpouraryan 7/17/2016 3:45:31 PM User Rank Platinum
Re: Of course, another way this can be looked at...
Information management & curation is at the heart of it in the end--right? It is also about awareness and sustainability. Is it a zero-sum game in the end? I can't help but wonder.
Samsung along with many others have competitors so in order for them to stay in the game they need to step in up and come up with better products and technology or something or they will be wiped out.
Sounds like Samsung is only looking at healthcare as an application for IoT. Are they not exploring other applications? I would imagine similar functionality would be useful across other sectors as well.
Agreed that this sounds like a pretty limited view of IoT's potential. On the other hand, given that IoT crosses so many categories, maybe it makes sense to start strategizing around one and then build from there.
As a writer I always verify data from multiple credible sources before including it in any of my articles or media interviews. Credibility is key in any industry but especially journalism.
I don't consider bloggers to be journalists and many do not follow any type of standard when reporting content, factual or rumored content.
The goal is for new techology to improve customers lives but that doesn't always happen. Companies must find a balance between new technology and the cost to customers.
I am all for new technology but don't want to pay a mortgage for it.
Customers should question the cost associated with a particular service when shopping around for new technology, products and services. The benefits should always outweight the costs.
Good point and I agree.
I think it's important for businesses to give their customers fair prices. I sometimes feel like businesses cheat their customers with their high prices.
mpouraryan 7/17/2016 3:41:00 PM User Rank Platinum
Re: Overlooked
As we're looking at a healthy clip of 34 Billion devices, I am sure that the 1.2 Billion will be handsomely paid back!! I can't help but wonder @Bayte what is the forecast for Canada especially as I have seen your new PM working to jump start innovation with his new Budget--and who are the leading local players?
mpouraryan 7/17/2016 3:42:16 PM User Rank Platinum
Re: Overlooked
Your vision has in fact been realized--hasn't it? I can't help but remember when the first Kindle came out at $ 500+...and now the same Kindle with more power is at $ 49. We can't be "taken away" at the first sign of the latest and greatest.
<Your vision has in fact been realized--hasn't it? I can't help but remember when the first Kindle came out at $ 500+...and now the same Kindle with more power is at $ 49. We can't be "taken away" at the first sign of the latest and greatest.>
@mpouraryan that's the way it is with electronics. Back in 1968 a calculator cost $4900 http://www.vintagecalculators.com/html/history_of_electronic_calculat.html
@mpouraryan that's the great thing about science fiction: it can give you a glimpse into the future. Unfortunately, theough, I don't think we will be able to work out how to beam people from place to palce.
mpouraryan 7/17/2016 3:51:19 PM User Rank Platinum
Re: Purely healthcare?
Here is challenge for me to reconcile: iOT has been basically with us for the longest time--we're just seeing a more "concerted" effort here--it all began with things like "RFID"/etc. We're already there.
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