Monthly Archives: July 2015

Uncategorized — 4 Comments
21
Jul 15

How to Live in the Future – My 4 Experiments

Jetsons

The future is already here — it’s just not very evenly distributed. – William Gibson

I love that quote so much that I have it inscribed on my wallet; it’s custom work done by Moxie & Oliver.

I want to try an experiment, I want to live in the future. To do that, I’m trying to find those pockets of the future that exist today, and try them for myself. These are things that could be mainstream in 5-10 years but are niche today. I’ve already written a post about the Amazon Echo. I’m also trying the Apple Watch, and some lightbulbs controlled by an App.

Now I’m looking for ideas. What else can I do to live in the future. Here are some that I’ve thought of.

  • 23andMe – Map my genome. Not sure what to do with it, but mapping it will probably be common in the future.
  • Smart home stuff – Philips Hue, Amazon Echo, and maybe a Nest, though they aren’t really practical for apartment living in NYC.
  • Soylent – I am not really a believer in this, but I may give it a try.
  • Tesla – I want to rent one for a road trip and see how the charging stations really work.

What else? Well, I’m hoping you’ll tell me. What other experiments should I be running?

Gadgets / Living in the Future — 4 Comments
01
Jul 15

Amazon’s Echo: The Interface for the Digital Home?

echo

I’ve been using my Amazon Echo for a couple of weeks now and here are my thoughts.

  • It was the first device I made sure was working after my move on Sunday. That was a bit of a surprise to me since I wanted it working more than my Apple TV.
  • I’m listening to more music. I used to stream music through my Apple TV, but that required Spotify & turning on my TV.  Now all I have to do is ask for music.  This feels magical.
  • NPR –  I love NPR’s Marketplace. I used to listen to it on my drive home from work when I lived in San Francisco.  For some reason I don’t like it as a podcast during my subway commute though.  Now I play it as I get ready for bed.
  • I don’t use the App and hence the shopping list hasn’t worked for me.
  • My fiancee delights in asking Alexa random questions…

“ What is the capital of Puru?”

and trying to trick ‘Her’.

“Alexa, are you smart?”

  • She recently discovered this list of questions on Reddit, some are really funny.
  • I find myself asking about the weather a lot as well.

I think Alexa could become the operating system or interface to a connected home.  I already want her to be able to turn on my TV, to play shows and dim my smart bulbs. It may be the reason I go get Phillips Hue bulbs.

I hope Amazon opens the API and keeps working with IFTTT to add more functionality. I know they just launched a fund to back companies that are creating applications around their platform and I think this could be a killer app for them. Speaking to your smart home just feels like a magical interface and Amazon really got this one right on the first try. It is like living in the future.