I remember when fridges with screens were first becoming a thing, and one way they tried to sell them was the convenience of being able to leave notes, shopping lists, photos, etc… for other members of the family. And even back then, before the advertising apocalypse, I remember thinking, what in the actual fuck makes this 1000 dollar feature any more useful than a 20 dollar magnetic white board and a dry erase marker?
And the ultimate outcome of that was, at one point Google enacted some kind of API change which necessitated Samsung to push out an update to remain compatible, otherwise all of your Google enabled features such as the calendar syncing, email, etc. would stop working. Samsung claimed to be developing a patch for this, and ultimately pushed out an update to… only some of their models. For the others, their response was literally just, “We recommend you buy a newer refrigerator.”
But since that was going on for ten years ago now, information about it on the Internet is a trifle difficult to find because the search results have largely been overshadowed by Samsung’s more recent smart fridge fuckup. Grand.
I actually think a multipurpose digital screen could be quite useful and fun on a refrigerator, not needed or necessary at all but I think in a less enshittified timeline an open source version of this, possibly even an e-ink screen, could actually be nice. It would make far more sense as a whiteboard type object that you attach to your refrigerator though and obviously this entire concept is predatory on so many levels it is mindboggling… but the idea of having a sort of communal digital screen on a refrigerator isn’t a bad idea itself I don’t think as hard as it is to imagine a reality where an appliance like this was designed in good faith.
But you can buy a tablet and use magnets… Cheaper and upgrable. Like there’s no reason to physically combine something that lasts but a fraction of a quality fridges life.
100%. It’s a matter of where does the technology stop being about “useful for us” and starts being “useful for them”.
A digital whiteboard would be a good feature (not ‘necessary’, but cool). It’s when they decide it needs to be connected to the internet that it becomes “is this technology serving us…or serving them” that’s the problem.
I’m not anti-tech at all. Quite the opposite. But I remember the mid-2000s when all of this tech was getting off the ground and it was being innovated and invented for OUR benefit, not for the corporations. That’s when this kind of stuff was fun.
It’s depressing to notice just how much pop culture from teh 80s onward was trying to warn us about this coming shittorm. It’s like, as soon as Reaganomics came on the scene, there were those who immediately saw it for what it was and started fighting. (Punk Rock, Literature, Movies, etc…) and it wasn’t enough. No one paid any attention and we are now where we are because as a culture we got sucked into chasing more shiny shit at the expense of our own good.
I remember when fridges with screens were first becoming a thing, and one way they tried to sell them was the convenience of being able to leave notes, shopping lists, photos, etc… for other members of the family. And even back then, before the advertising apocalypse, I remember thinking, what in the actual fuck makes this 1000 dollar feature any more useful than a 20 dollar magnetic white board and a dry erase marker?
And the ultimate outcome of that was, at one point Google enacted some kind of API change which necessitated Samsung to push out an update to remain compatible, otherwise all of your Google enabled features such as the calendar syncing, email, etc. would stop working. Samsung claimed to be developing a patch for this, and ultimately pushed out an update to… only some of their models. For the others, their response was literally just, “We recommend you buy a newer refrigerator.”
Yes, this actually happened.
But since that was going on for ten years ago now, information about it on the Internet is a trifle difficult to find because the search results have largely been overshadowed by Samsung’s more recent smart fridge fuckup. Grand.
Never buy a Samsung appliance.
Enshitifiction. It makes the line go up.
Speaking of enshitification, who wants to bet that the calendar app doesn’t support an open standard like CalDAV?
I actually think a multipurpose digital screen could be quite useful and fun on a refrigerator, not needed or necessary at all but I think in a less enshittified timeline an open source version of this, possibly even an e-ink screen, could actually be nice. It would make far more sense as a whiteboard type object that you attach to your refrigerator though and obviously this entire concept is predatory on so many levels it is mindboggling… but the idea of having a sort of communal digital screen on a refrigerator isn’t a bad idea itself I don’t think as hard as it is to imagine a reality where an appliance like this was designed in good faith.
But you can buy a tablet and use magnets… Cheaper and upgrable. Like there’s no reason to physically combine something that lasts but a fraction of a quality fridges life.
100%. It’s a matter of where does the technology stop being about “useful for us” and starts being “useful for them”.
A digital whiteboard would be a good feature (not ‘necessary’, but cool). It’s when they decide it needs to be connected to the internet that it becomes “is this technology serving us…or serving them” that’s the problem.
I’m not anti-tech at all. Quite the opposite. But I remember the mid-2000s when all of this tech was getting off the ground and it was being innovated and invented for OUR benefit, not for the corporations. That’s when this kind of stuff was fun.
Because you must consooooooooom. Don’t think, just spend. See shiny “useful” feature, open wallet.
It’s depressing to notice just how much pop culture from teh 80s onward was trying to warn us about this coming shittorm. It’s like, as soon as Reaganomics came on the scene, there were those who immediately saw it for what it was and started fighting. (Punk Rock, Literature, Movies, etc…) and it wasn’t enough. No one paid any attention and we are now where we are because as a culture we got sucked into chasing more shiny shit at the expense of our own good.
But how else will we learn about the evils of Goldstein?