17% of Americans Use Smart Speakers

AlphaAtlas

AlphaAtlas

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According to a report published by Strategy Analytics, about 17% of Americans use smart speakers, and most of them are from Amazon. The research firm claims that "satisfaction levels are typically in the 90% range, nearly two thirds of users expect to buy another one within the next two years, and voice control is now increasingly preferred to using touchscreens and keyboards." The Amazon Echo and Echo Dot are by far the most popular, taking up about 44% of the whole market, while other Google, Amazon, and Apple products have single-digit marketshares. Apparently, recent security and privacy concerns surrounding smart speaker devices and tech companies aren't scaring customers away, as the paper predicts that smart speaker usage will continue to proliferate.

The research also found that there is plenty of opportunity for other smart speaker brands: when asked to name one brand they would choose for their next smart speaker, 54% of users chose either Amazon, Google or Apple, leaving nearly half the market open to competitors. Bose, Samsung and Sonos are the most preferred alternatives to the “big three”. The online survey interviewed 1011 users of smart speakers in the US in July/August 2018.
 
Wasn't quite expecting that kind of adoption rate TBH. If I had to make a guess I had said 8~10%. Suprisingly big business in other words that should only keep growing.
 
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I'm going to bet that of that 17%, about 80% of the speakers were gifts during holidays/birthdays.

This is a novelty item that gets used for about a week and then forgotten about for anything other than periodically playing some music. A function that any bluetooth speaker could do without the constant surveillance that comes with "smart speakers".
 
Darth Ender said:
I'm going to bet that of that 17%, about 80% of the speakers were gifts during holidays/birthdays.

This is a novelty item that gets used for about a week and then forgotten about for anything other than periodically playing some music. A function that any bluetooth speaker could do without the constant surveillance that comes with "smart speakers".
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I use mine for alarms, timers, playing a few podcasts, music, weather, and so on. I could do all these with other device before but this makes it a little convenient. It helps me multi task a few mundane items so i can keep doing other stuff while having information provided to me.
I will say it is funny when i am talking on the phone and alexa pipes up saying "im sorry I dont know that". I yell at it then saying i wasnt talking to you.

All hail our amazon robot overlords!
 
I have a dot and just ordered a full size Alexa.

I didn't think I would use it often, but I do.... and I thought I would care about the constant spying, but I don't. I guess the brainwashing must be taking hold lol.

Edit: I do wish they would own up to the constant spying and let us talk to the units more naturally. I would much rather say "Turn on the lights Alexa" and "Thanks Alexa". Having to say Alexa first is just a feel good measure for users in denial and really messes up the flow of conversation.
 
Whats up with all the female names for these devices? Its like the designers were making their own version of a perfect female companion... kinda creepy.

I would have named it God, and called it the God Pod.

Think of the fun you could have with it! Ask, and ye shall receive!

And just to really drive it home, I would introduce a Trump Pod, Jesus Pod, Muhammad Pod, and a Hitler pod. Collect all 5 and you can link them together for some real fun! Guaranteed to offend anyone that is actually offend-able.
 
Darth Ender said:
This is a novelty item that gets used for about a week and then forgotten about for anything other than periodically playing some music. A function that any bluetooth speaker could do without the constant surveillance that comes with "smart speakers".
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For typical users, you might be right. However, both Echo and Google Home are big in the home automation market and they're adding capabilties all the time. More and more people are buying smart home devices which are compatible with these systems and I think that trend will continue, even among casual users.

I have a fairly large HA install and voice control is a game changer, especially when I broke my foot and had limited mobility.
 
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We purchased an Echo Show for my MIL who was using an old-ass Roku SoundBridge M500 for internet radio and it was starting to crap out (they dropped direct server support for it, constant disconnects, etc.). Works great and she loves it.

I can see how these are popular, I always thought they were dumb before using one, but for music they're actually pretty great if you don't have a dedicated system or an iPod + dock or something.
 
Wiffle said:
Whats up with all the female names for these devices? Its like the designers were making their own version of a perfect female companion... kinda creepy.

I would have named it God, and called it the God Pod.

Think of the fun you could have with it! Ask, and ye shall receive!

And just to really drive it home, I would introduce a Trump Pod, Jesus Pod, Muhammad Pod, and a Hitler pod. Collect all 5 and you can link them together for some real fun! Guaranteed to offend anyone that is actually offend-able.
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In our society all things female are considered less intimidating than all things male.

They want you to use it as much as possible, so they want it to be as unintimidating as possible.
 
I'm not surprised, I've got a few amazon devices now - I use mine to set timers, convert units in recipes (how many teaspoons is 50mL?), turn lights on/off, play bedtime music in my son's room, open/close the garage door, get the weather, etc.

Yes they're collecting lots of data on me, but so is my cellphone, my car, my grocery store, my bank, etc. AND I'm getting something of value (imo) in exchange for providing my data to Amazon. I'd rather trade my data for the convenience Amazon gives me than the ??? I'd get for being on facebook.
 
Does this potentially mean the other 83% are trying to use their own brains instead?
 
Kardonxt said:
I have a dot and just ordered a full size Alexa.

I didn't think I would use it often, but I do.... and I thought I would care about the constant spying, but I don't. I guess the brainwashing must be taking hold lol.

Edit: I do wish they would own up to the constant spying and let us talk to the units more naturally. I would much rather say "Turn on the lights Alexa" and "Thanks Alexa". Having to say Alexa first is just a feel good measure for users in denial and really messes up the flow of conversation.
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I think having to say alexa first gives the speaker something to listen for to turn it on and gives you a word to avoid if you don't want to trigger it. I also think it makes the most sense as humans if you want to get someone's attention you would very often say their name first then issue the command.
 
Am I the only one that thinks these things are stupid? All the spying aside, but there is such a thing as too much laziness. You already got the smartphone with the amazon app to order your damn tide pods. One more layer of convenience for your convenience.... there's a Xzibit meme here.

Getting up off my ass to turn on the lights is a good thing.
 
rudy said:
I think having to say alexa first gives the speaker something to listen for to turn it on and gives you a word to avoid if you don't want to trigger it. I also think it makes the most sense as humans if you want to get someone's attention you would very often say their name first then issue the command.
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That's what they want you to think to make you feel better. They have already admitted they are listening to you all the time. There is no technical reason they can't detect Alexa at the end of a sentence and then look back at the buffered sentence for the command.
 
The only way I'd have a smart speaker/whatever is if the smarts were hosted on one of my own computers.
 
This shit will not ever be in my house.

I've already told family members to not get me this shit unless they want to see how fast it burns in a burn barrel.

You want to spy on me, you do it the old fashioned way and park a van down my damn street, you lazy bastards!
 
oldmanbal said:
Nothing like having a fully enabled spying device in your household at all times.
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SamuraiInBlack said:
This shit will not ever be in my house.

I've already told family members to not get me this shit unless they want to see how fast it burns in a burn barrel.

You want to spy on me, you do it the old fashioned way and park a van down my damn street, you lazy bastards!
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Yeah, good thing our cell phones which we almost always carry in our pockets in and out of the home can’t be used to spy on us right? The ones that are typically connected to both a WiFi and cellular network, have a couple of microphones and 2 or more cameras? You know, the ones that everyone carries so you’re almost always in range of one?

It’s 2018, if you’re worried about your privacy you pretty much have to live completely off the grid.
 
Kardonxt said:
That's what they want you to think to make you feel better. They have already admitted they are listening to you all the time. There is no technical reason they can't detect Alexa at the end of a sentence and then look back at the buffered sentence for the command.
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They didn't tell me that I just knew it cause its how people speak, as for technical reasons, Sure its possible they could do it but on the other hand it greatly simplifies the ability to understand what people are saying by putting that simple rule in, lets be honest Alexa or another other voice assistant is no where near fluent in English yet putting in that simple rule probably take a lot of problems off the table.
 
I did not realize "stupid" was that wide spread. Makes me sad.

exlink said:
Yeah, good thing our cell phones which we almost always carry in our pockets in and out of the home can’t be used to spy on us right? The ones that are typically connected to both a WiFi and cellular network, have a couple of microphones and 2 or more cameras? You know, the ones that everyone carries so you’re almost always in range of one?

It’s 2018, if you’re worried about your privacy you pretty much have to live completely off the grid.
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Uh, not everyone carries one of those "stupid" smart phones. While they are all around us, it is not that difficult to avoid being captured in a screenshot as most are selfies from that goofy angle most use above their heads pointing down.

We do not go to people's homes who have those those things. The invasion of privacy aside, the people are just obnoxious. Seems they would rather talk to the "thing" than to the people around the "thing".

The whole, "I love to give away precious commodities, so others can make billions off of it!" is absurd. The hypocrisy of those bitching about the rich getting richer while they give away what the rich are getting richer from is,..well,..."stupid".
 
BSmith said:
I did not realize "stupid" was that wide spread. Makes me sad.



Uh, not everyone carries one of those "stupid" smart phones. While they are all around us, it is not that difficult to avoid being captured in a screenshot as most are selfies from that goofy angle most use above their heads pointing down.

We do not go to people's homes who have those those things. The invasion of privacy aside, the people are just obnoxious. Seems they would rather talk to the "thing" than to the people around the "thing".

The whole, "I love to give away precious commodities, so others can make billions off of it!" is absurd. The hypocrisy of those bitching about the rich getting richer while they give away what the rich are getting richer from is,..well,..."stupid".
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Apparently stupidity and I guess paranoia is indeed more widespread than I imagined after reading this post.

Do you ask people if they have a cell phone before you enter their house or they enter yours? Do you ask visitors to leave their cell phones in your mailbox before they come inside? Do you run away from someone in public the moment they pull out a cell phone?

Go put on your tinfoil hat. I agree that people’s reliance on smartphones is unfortunate and annoying; but literally avoiding these smartphones like the plague due to fears of spying is on a whole different level of crazy. There are billions of them in the world - good luck.
 
BSmith said:
I did not realize "stupid" was that wide spread. Makes me sad.



Uh, not everyone carries one of those "stupid" smart phones. While they are all around us, it is not that difficult to avoid being captured in a screenshot as most are selfies from that goofy angle most use above their heads pointing down.

We do not go to people's homes who have those those things. The invasion of privacy aside, the people are just obnoxious. Seems they would rather talk to the "thing" than to the people around the "thing".

The whole, "I love to give away precious commodities, so others can make billions off of it!" is absurd. The hypocrisy of those bitching about the rich getting richer while they give away what the rich are getting richer from is,..well,..."stupid".
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Uh... wow.
I'm guessing you don't use credit cards or have any store reward cards either. Copper mesh siding and shingles? Do you have a shipping container buried somewhere?

haz_mat said:
Am I the only one that thinks these things are stupid? All the spying aside, but there is such a thing as too much laziness. You already got the smartphone with the amazon app to order your damn tide pods. One more layer of convenience for your convenience.... there's a Xzibit meme here.

Getting up off my ass to turn on the lights is a good thing.
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Yes. Yes you are. And they actually make something that's way more convenient for re-ordering forbidden fruit: here

But you keep using your irrational fear of the future as an excuse to exercise.
 
haz_mat said:
Am I the only one that thinks these things are stupid? All the spying aside, but there is such a thing as too much laziness. You already got the smartphone with the amazon app to order your damn tide pods. One more layer of convenience for your convenience.... there's a Xzibit meme here.

Getting up off my ass to turn on the lights is a good thing.
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I have a dot. Use it for scores, weather, ordering essentials, package tracking etc...
 
I can't wait for the drone version of this with a projector, maybe it'll be the next Nintendo console, named Navi
 
BSmith said:
I did not realize "stupid" was that wide spread. Makes me sad.



Uh, not everyone carries one of those "stupid" smart phones. While they are all around us, it is not that difficult to avoid being captured in a screenshot as most are selfies from that goofy angle most use above their heads pointing down.

We do not go to people's homes who have those those things. The invasion of privacy aside, the people are just obnoxious. Seems they would rather talk to the "thing" than to the people around the "thing".

The whole, "I love to give away precious commodities, so others can make billions off of it!" is absurd. The hypocrisy of those bitching about the rich getting richer while they give away what the rich are getting richer from is,..well,..."stupid".
Click to expand...

Wow....

Alexa, please refill BSmith’s prescriptions ASAP.
 
exlink said:
Apparently stupidity and I guess paranoia is indeed more widespread than I imagined after reading this post.

Do you ask people if they have a cell phone before you enter their house or they enter yours? Do you ask visitors to leave their cell phones in your mailbox before they come inside? Do you run away from someone in public the moment they pull out a cell phone?

Go put on your tinfoil hat. I agree that people’s reliance on smartphones is unfortunate and annoying; but literally avoiding these smartphones like the plague due to fears of spying is on a whole different level of crazy. There are billions of them in the world - good luck.
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This is funny. No fear. Just pissed off at how companies steal data from us, make a ton of money with it, and do not compensate us for that data they steal.

Yes, I ask visitors to park their phones, at the power station, at the door.


capt_cope said:
Uh... wow.
I'm guessing you don't use credit cards or have any store reward cards either. Copper mesh siding and shingles? Do you have a shipping container buried somewhere?
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As a matter of fact, there are some store reward cards I use as they pay me for the data they are collecting. I do like the idea of the copper mesh. It would augment my tin foil hat nicely.


IndyColtsFan said:
Wow....

Alexa, please refill BSmith’s prescriptions ASAP.
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My tin foil hat does not need any drugs, thank you very much.

You guys all automagically think it is about "spying". It's not. It's about theft. Too many people are okay with that.

I grew up when you could go to a mall on a weekend and make $30 to $50 filling out surveys. Yes, they paid you to do it. Now, they just take it and give you the big fat finger and people just smile and walk away. Yes, I call that "stupid".

For me to be okay with that, I would need to be on a lot of drugs.

I cannot say 17% of Americans are ignorant. They know full well they are giving away a valuable commodity. "Stupid" fits better.
 
BSmith said:
This is funny. No fear. Just pissed off at how companies steal data from us, make a ton of money with it, and do not compensate us for that data they steal.

Yes, I ask visitors to park their phones, at the power station, at the door.




As a matter of fact, there are some store reward cards I use as they pay me for the data they are collecting. I do like the idea of the copper mesh. It would augment my tin foil hat nicely.




My tin foil hat does not need any drugs, thank you very much.

You guys all automagically think it is about "spying". It's not. It's about theft. Too many people are okay with that.

I grew up when you could go to a mall on a weekend and make $30 to $50 filling out surveys. Yes, they paid you to do it. Now, they just take it and give you the big fat finger and people just smile and walk away. Yes, I call that "stupid".

For me to be okay with that, I would need to be on a lot of drugs.

I cannot say 17% of Americans are ignorant. They know full well they are giving away a valuable commodity. "Stupid" fits better.
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So you’re the guy who once posted that when people come to your house, you make them put their phones in a box. The word stupid definitely applies but not to us.....

Speaking of getting paid for services, can you let me know how much Alexa users pay to use Amazon’s cloud infrastructure? Or how much people pay to use other services like FB?
 
IndyColtsFan said:
So you’re the guy who once posted that when people come to your house, you make them put their phones in a box. The word stupid definitely applies but not to us.....
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I'll give you this; Not an unexpected response. I would be lashing out (oh wait,..I have!) if my data was being stolen and I was dumb enough not to demand payment for it.

Yes, I am in the same boat as everyone else. The only difference is with some, I do not blatantly allow my data to be stolen and I do acknowledge it pisses me off and I am not concerned about calling people out on it.

Soooo, keep right on calling me silly names and making other references which redirect attention from the simple fact I am right. We are not getting compensated for the data that is being stolen. How you want to deal with that is up to you. Me? Well,..you can see what I do.
 
I can't wait until someone makes an alexa - enabled oven.
BSmith said:
I grew up when you could go to a mall on a weekend and make $30 to $50 filling out surveys. Yes, they paid you to do it. Now, they just take it and give you the big fat finger and people just smile and walk away. Yes, I call that "stupid".

For me to be okay with that, I would need to be on a lot of drugs.

I cannot say 17% of Americans are ignorant. They know full well they are giving away a valuable commodity. "Stupid" fits better.
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I think you're missing the key point - they aren't just giving me a "big fat finger" they're giving me convenience. And just like data, convenience is a valuable commodity. In exchange for collecting (and undoubtedly selling) my data I get the ability to check the weather while changing my son's diaper in the morning (so I know what clothes he should wear for the day,) having the sections of the WSJ I care about read to me while I drink my cup of coffee, reminders about any important items on my calendar before heading out. Those features alone would make it "worth it" for me, and that's not even counting a bunch of "novel" stuff too - like being able to turn off the lights in the family room, turn on the receiver and projector, and lower the projector screen with a single command.

Either way it's worth a damn sight more than any discount I've ever seen from a loyalty program. And just think about how much info they're getting from you - they know your name (unless you never registered the card and only pay in cash,) they know how often you visit, and what kinds of food you buy (as well as how much.) With that data they can build a pretty damn accurate picture of you and your household, I remember reading about Target's ability to predict when a customer was pregnant and start offering coupons for formula and diapers. All that data, for what? An extra 15% off a few items? No thanks.
Link

You call the idea of exchanging data for convenience stupid, but somehow think that saving $0.50 on hamburger buns in exchange for the same data isn't getting the shaft?
 
capt_cope said:
I can't wait until someone makes an alexa - enabled oven.

I think you're missing the key point - they aren't just giving me a "big fat finger" they're giving me convenience. And just like data, convenience is a valuable commodity. In exchange for collecting (and undoubtedly selling) my data I get the ability to check the weather while changing my son's diaper in the morning (so I know what clothes he should wear for the day,) having the sections of the WSJ I care about read to me while I drink my cup of coffee, reminders about any important items on my calendar before heading out. Those features alone would make it "worth it" for me, and that's not even counting a bunch of "novel" stuff too - like being able to turn off the lights in the family room, turn on the receiver and projector, and lower the projector screen with a single command.

Either way it's worth a damn sight more than any discount I've ever seen from a loyalty program. And just think about how much info they're getting from you - they know your name (unless you never registered the card and only pay in cash,) they know how often you visit, and what kinds of food you buy (as well as how much.) With that data they can build a pretty damn accurate picture of you and your household, I remember reading about Target's ability to predict when a customer was pregnant and start offering coupons for formula and diapers. All that data, for what? An extra 15% off a few items? No thanks.
Link

You call the idea of exchanging data for convenience stupid, but somehow think that saving $0.50 on hamburger buns in exchange for the same data isn't getting the shaft?
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I get what you are saying. You put a price on the covenience. Fair enough. I don't, at least in this context, I do not.

By the way, a weather radio will get the weather as well. Just saying. We do the calendar old school and have an event board outside the bedroom which we just update with notes to remind us of upcoming things. Granted, it may not sound very elegant, but it gets the job done with little effort and it is all private.

I still get what you are saying, I just think there are ways to do it without giving up any of your data.


Oh, I just saved $32.00 on a $75.00 (both are rounded to the nearest dollar) at the grocery store with thier card. I consider that fair trade for the data. You may not. At least it is something.

Again, this is not about privacy, although it could be. I just want a fair price for the data they are taking from us. Or, at least the ability to opt-out of the data collection.
 
I got mine as a gift, and it lives in the kitchen because it's useful there. I'm not the keenest on having a wiretap in my home, I'd prefer a local network solution, but let's be honest. How many people complaining about these devices carry phones in their pockets and use the internet every day? I suspect every one of them, at least with the internet and probably not using best practices when it comes to identity protection. Privacy is dead. The only way to remain anonymous is to live off grid, never use the internet, not use credit, and never go out in public, not have a cell phone, not post on forums like this. Even then, the data other people share that can be tied to you is likely too great. For example, criminals being caught because a third cousin submitted their DNA to 23andMe.
 
Well jeez.. I guess I better go buy one too since all the cool kids are doing it.. ;)
 
Aioeyu said:
I got mine as a gift, and it lives in the kitchen because it's useful there. I'm not the keenest on having a wiretap in my home, I'd prefer a local network solution, but let's be honest. How many people complaining about these devices carry phones in their pockets and use the internet every day? I suspect every one of them, at least with the internet and probably not using best practices when it comes to identity protection. Privacy is dead. The only way to remain anonymous is to live off grid, never use the internet, not use credit, and never go out in public, not have a cell phone, not post on forums like this. Even then, the data other people share that can be tied to you is likely too great. For example, criminals being caught because a third cousin submitted their DNA to 23andMe.
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Yeah, I got a few as a gift. They make great trotline sinkers. :)
 
BSmith said:
I'll give you this; Not an unexpected response. I would be lashing out (oh wait,..I have!) if my data was being stolen and I was dumb enough not to demand payment for it.

Yes, I am in the same boat as everyone else. The only difference is with some, I do not blatantly allow my data to be stolen and I do acknowledge it pisses me off and I am not concerned about calling people out on it.

Soooo, keep right on calling me silly names and making other references which redirect attention from the simple fact I am right. We are not getting compensated for the data that is being stolen. How you want to deal with that is up to you. Me? Well,..you can see what I do.
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Your data isn’t being stolen. That’s where you’re wrong. You’re compensated with free services. Now, whether you feel that the value provided by those services is worth it is entirely up to you, but it isn’t exactly a state secret why so many services are given to folks free - it is because the data you generate is a commodity businesses covet.

And about “name calling” - you’re the one that called people stupid to start.
 
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