Comment by detrites | Hacker News Reader

Comment by detrites | Hacker News Reader

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Imagine a car, but the trunk is always locked, and possibly also filled with equipment that sends everything the owner does with the car to the manufacturer. The owner can't use the trunk, as the manufacturer has the key.

This would be an outrageous, almost impossible situation in car "ownership", surely resulting in class action - "I want to use my car's trunk!". But, in computers/phones it's begrudgingly accepted or sometimes even argued for.

I'm not grateful to the manufacturer that I've been graciously allowed to use all of the car I bought, and only after a team of amazing volunteer locksmiths worked day and night adapting the trunk so anyone can use it.

Sure, buy a different car, right? But this also happens to be the safest and easiest one available to drive. And this isn't because the trunk is locked. The owner could equally lock it themselves, just like the rest of the car.

Would be great to use it like any other car, and chuck that potential spyware I'm paying extra in gas to haul around with me. Not thankful that the manufacturer didn't put a stronger lock on it. Actually, I've contempt for them.

Yet most people end up liking that car and the balance of features, looks and price. Sure, they’d love to not pay for premium gas and have the extra trunk space, but in the end they’d much rather have a car that basically never gets stolen, gets updates for years, and does what they want 97% of the time.

Meanwhile, other people spend far more time maintaining and protecting their cars that can use cheaper gas and they have full access to. But they have to be much more vigilant about what neighborhoods they park in, and once two years comes around they can no longer get replacement parts, and if the lock has an issue, people can trivially steal their car.

Or maybe this is just a tortured analogy to start with. If you don’t like Apple, just buy something else.

FYI, cars do transmit all sort of info. Here’s Tesla for example:

https://www.tesla.com/ownersmanual/model3/en_cn/GUID-2E8E5E0...

> Vehicle Telematics Model 3 is equipped with electronic modules that monitor and record data from various vehicle systems, including the motor, Autopilot components, Battery, braking and electrical systems. The electronic modules record information about various driving and vehicle conditions, including braking, acceleration, trip and other related information regarding your vehicle. These modules also record information about the vehicle’s features such as charging events and status, the enabling/disabling of various systems, diagnostic trouble codes, VIN, speed, direction and location. The data is stored by the vehicle and may be accessed, used and stored by Tesla service technicians during vehicle servicing or periodically transmitted to Tesla wirelessly through the vehicle’s telematics system.

Mine does not. As its old, real car without modern "necessities" that helps no one but manufacturer extracting money from ad companies.

Just like the “Smart TV”, I fear your options will eventually be eroded until there is essentially no choice. On the upside, just like smart TVs now, if you buy an old car in the future then perhaps the manufacturer will have let the software rot sufficiently that the servers it reports to won’t be there any more.

That car is also so easy to drive that everybody and their grandmother uses it.

Meanwhile, real men/women drive sports cars they built themselves from scrap parts.

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