spotify giving away free Google Home Mini

tangoseal

[H]F Junkie
Joined
Dec 18, 2010
Messages
9,743
Check yer emails gals n guys seems Spotify accounts (paid subs) are getting (1) free Google home mini speaker box thingies. I ordered mine last night shipping and price was both free!

SmartSelect_20191210-103807_Email.jpg
 
Last edited:
Thanks for the heads up - will check mine later. They offered this last year (or the year before) and I was too slow on the draw then.
 
I ordered this around 4 weeks ago through Spotify and Google think I got a black one. I have it sitting in my pile of XMAS gifts and I'm not sure who to give it to.

I don't use these smart speakers because they don't respond to hey NSA.
 
Stuff like this really makes me wonder who is financially backing all this and for what purpose?
 
There is a huge push for these devices. Google and Amazon are fighting for in-home dominance.

I have a few Google Home Mini's and a dozen Echo devices. They are good for what I use them for. I'm more into Alexa than Google, though. The Google ones were cheap (or free like this one). They aren't bad at all, just already into Alexa for everything.
 
There is a huge push for these devices. Google and Amazon are fighting for in-home dominance.
Yeah, and once one of them or both of them 'dominate', who are they going to sell all the data to? And what will they be doing with it? And I guess because these systems would have access to cameras, they could possibly leak that over to 'big brother' too, but for what reason? I know it will be nefarious, so I'm just curious what I'm avoiding by leaving these things outside the home.
 
Yeah, and once one of them or both of them 'dominate', who are they going to sell all the data to? And what will they be doing with it? And I guess because these systems would have access to cameras, they could possibly leak that over to 'big brother' too, but for what reason? I know it will be nefarious, so I'm just curious what I'm avoiding by leaving these things outside the home.

A healthy dose of paranoia is fair. I can see it. You're putting legal wire taps in your home willingly.

If they wanted my and my info, they already have it. From every site I visit to my phone to my purchases (online and offline) to Alexa to whatever else. Alexa is a just a tiny part of everything else I do.

Now, if Skynet were to use them for their purpose, they'd have a massive surveillance network.

Pretty much comes to I'm already screwed. Might as well get some convenience and have fun with it and make little projects. At the least, they see my pp. At the most, it adds so much more noise to what I'm doing that it's hard to find the good stuff.
 
Thanks for the heads up - will check mine later. They offered this last year (or the year before) and I was too slow on the draw then.

Ya, I got mine last time they offered this. It was the free for 3 months deal and upgrade to family plan for 2 free months and got the free Home Mini.
 
Granted, these things "legally" eavesdrop on you, and you get what you deserve when you self-report/install, but how is this worse than having a cellphone within mic range in terms of capability to eavesdrop?
 
Granted, these things "legally" eavesdrop on you, and you get what you deserve when you self-report/install, but how is this worse than having a cellphone within mic range in terms of capability to eavesdrop?

Multiple, cameras, links into your home automation stuff (lights, cameras, shades, etc.), shopping, alarms, etc.. You can create one hell of a profile with that. It can be a huge deal if you're ever the target of anything.

Other than that - you're a consumer. You're going to consume. They are using them to make more profits and control what you see and hear (and try to control what you think). Your phone is one way. The home assistants are more of an extension of that.

Used in a bad way, all that data could be used against you easily. Used in a "good" way, they are selling you things. You get convenience out of it, but you're still not the end of it. They get more out of it than you do.
 
i got one too, it was free, gonna put it in my bathroom so the FBI can hear me pooping.

That's where I keep my Echo Dot.

I used to use it all the time to play music in the bathroom, but it doesn't work very well anymore. Wont play Pandora music but wants to play some other music service that wants me to pay to listen to music or some crap. Now I just use it for my morning routine (hey alexa, what's the weather like today") and that's about all.
 
Granted, these things "legally" eavesdrop on you, and you get what you deserve when you self-report/install, but how is this worse than having a cellphone within mic range in terms of capability to eavesdrop?
Better mic. :D
 
That's where I keep my Echo Dot.

I used to use it all the time to play music in the bathroom, but it doesn't work very well anymore. Wont play Pandora music but wants to play some other music service that wants me to pay to listen to music or some crap. Now I just use it for my morning routine (hey alexa, what's the weather like today") and that's about all.
Interesting. Why do you think it stopped working like that? Software bug? Hardware bug? Or Social Engineering beta testing? :eek:
 
Multiple, cameras, links into your home automation stuff (lights, cameras, shades, etc.), shopping, alarms, etc.. You can create one hell of a profile with that. It can be a huge deal if you're ever the target of anything.

Other than that - you're a consumer. You're going to consume. They are using them to make more profits and control what you see and hear (and try to control what you think). Your phone is one way. The home assistants are more of an extension of that.

Used in a bad way, all that data could be used against you easily. Used in a "good" way, they are selling you things. You get convenience out of it, but you're still not the end of it. They get more out of it than you do.

Apologies, I had no intention of providing the image that I would ever allow one of these in my home. I concur if you buy into the whole smart thing ecosystem.

My point was more along the lines of: every convenience has its trade-offs. Cellphones provide a similar (if smaller amplitude) capability if used "improperly". I haven't had time to sit down and figure out if it would be reasonable to explore open source google voice options that I could use to then GPS-fence my house and forward all cell traffic to voips so I could keep phones off / batteries out (or in a box for those with non-removables) while inside the house. I don't think going to that level would have a very high WAF, so it seems like I don't have a reasonable way to secure my house against improper monitoring.

If getting cellphones out of the house is not entirely reasonable then these objects are not too much further down the (privacy violating) road as long as they are kept on their own properly managed and isolated vlan.
 
Interesting. Why do you think it stopped working like that? Software bug? Hardware bug? Or Social Engineering beta testing? :eek:

I linked my sister to my prime account and it tries to use her music app, can't remember which one. Tried to change it, but I won't change for some reason. Gave up after about an hour.
 
My point was more along the lines of: every convenience has its trade-offs.
I think you hit the nail on the head as to why these type of things get appealing and even start to outweigh their downfalls in certain situations (like with elderly parents). The popular tradeoff is 'convenience for security', and is the usual goto model for almost anything coming out today--we'll give you convenience if you give up some safety and security.
 
You have to link your Google account to Spotify. Privacy stuff FYI:

Google
You agree that Google will be able to:
  • View your Spotify account data
    • The type of Spotify subscription you have, your account country and your settings for explicit content filtering
    • Your name and username, your profile picture, how many followers you have on Spotify and your public playlists

  • View your activity on Spotify
    • What you’ve saved in Your Library
    • Your top tracks and artists
    • Who you follow on Spotify
    • Playlists you’ve made and playlists you follow
    • Your collaborative playlists
    • Your personalized playlists
    • Tracks from your Spotify radio stations

  • Take actions in Spotify on your behalf
    • Add and remove items in Your Library
    • Manage who you follow on Spotify
    • Stream and control Spotify on your other devices
    • Personalize your radio stations
 
Ordered one, in Coral. Shipping is free but isn't scheduled until later December, early January. I figure I'll keep it off most of the time.
 
Requested mine will probably just give away but hey free is free
 
You have to link your Google account to Spotify. Privacy stuff FYI:

Google
You agree that Google will be able to:
  • View your Spotify account data
    • The type of Spotify subscription you have, your account country and your settings for explicit content filtering
    • Your name and username, your profile picture, how many followers you have on Spotify and your public playlists

  • View your activity on Spotify
    • What you’ve saved in Your Library
    • Your top tracks and artists
    • Who you follow on Spotify
    • Playlists you’ve made and playlists you follow
    • Your collaborative playlists
    • Your personalized playlists
    • Tracks from your Spotify radio stations

  • Take actions in Spotify on your behalf
    • Add and remove items in Your Library
    • Manage who you follow on Spotify
    • Stream and control Spotify on your other devices
    • Personalize your radio stations
Wow, that's unreal on the actions. Of course this is supposed to be linked to their device, but I wonder if this permission extends to someone working for the company with access.
 
Wife's studying out of town, sent her the one I got for Google Fi, might send her this one too :D
 
Unless you go way out of your way, which 99% if you don’t (contrary to how you act on here) you’re being tracked ruthlessly anyways.

mom going to put one in the workshop to play Spotify and that’s it. In an area that unless I’m out there, isn’t going to be used.
 
Unless you go way out of your way, which 99% if you don’t (contrary to how you act on here) you’re being tracked ruthlessly anyways.

mom going to put one in the workshop to play Spotify and that’s it. In an area that unless I’m out there, isn’t going to be used.
Tracking is one thing--being recorded is another. ;)

I guess it's not a bad idea just to use it as a speaker and turn it on and off as such. (y)
 
If anyone's getting a free one of these and doesn't want it, I'm looking for 2 more for cheap.
 
Back
Top