Why avoiding Google and Amazon apps, services and devices

[Trell]

Google has a very long and infamous history of just leaving apps, services and devices. Anytime Google acquire a company we all know this is a kiss of death so users/owners should leave as soon as possible. Personally my usage of Google is restricted to some e-mail, search engine and Chromecast dongle (deprecated, as I understand it).

Amazon is not quite in the same "league" as Google, yet, but this is a d*ck move. Personally I've just Amazon Prime that includes Prime Video that I watch:

>>>In September of 2023, Amazon announced the Echo Show 8 Photos Edition. It looked just like the regular Echo Show 8 smart display/speaker but cost $10 more. Why? Because of its ability to show photos on the home screen for as long as you want—if you signed up for a $2 monthly subscription to Amazon's PhotosPlus. Now, about a year after releasing the Echo Show 8 Photos Edition, Amazon is announcing that it's discontinuing PhotosPlus. That means Echo Show 8 Photos Edition users will be forced to see ads instead of their beloved pics.[emphasis added]<<<

Amazon is bricking primary feature on $160 Echo device after 1 year

Smart display will soon default to showing ads after three hours.

arstechnica.com

 

[Hobbit]

It seems to me all the big players do this. How big their tentacles reach may make it appear that they do this more. Then there's company perception which makes us more tolerable to this with some companies compared to others. I suppose part of it is the price of high-tech marching forward.

As for Amazon, Just the other day (last weekend) my GF said that Netflix quit working on firetv cube for the tv in her workout room. Apparently, amazon recently quit supporting and updating some of their older devices. Before we blame Netflix, while I was there, she asked if I could install AppleTV. Nope, same problem. We then went to a TV in a room she doesn't use much also with an older Firestick it had the same issue. The newer 4k firestick on her main TV is doing just fine and just says it has the latest version of software when checking for updates.

I had a Fire cube years ago. One of the reasons I bought it was because it was marketed as an Android device which you could put apps on. One day amazon deleted my apps. The deal breaker was they deleted the app that had all my streaming channels setup similar like the Roku interface - clean and functional w/o a bunch of advertising and stuff I don't care about or use. Most bothersome was they went onto MY device that was marketed as being able to exactly what I was doing with it and deleted these apps!

I'll save going into a rant about the rise of add on monthly fees and paywalls for another time.

 

[Trell]

It seems to me all the big players do this. How big their tentacles reach may make it appear that they do this more. Then there's company perception which makes us more tolerable to this with some companies compared to others. I suppose part of it is the price of high-tech marching forward

Sure, all companies are abandoning products over time for various reasons but Google is in a league of it’s own. One crucial difference between Google and, say Apple or Microsoft, is that Google is first and foremost an advertisement company.

 

[Hobbit]

Sure, all companies are abandoning products over time for various reasons but Google is in a league of it’s own.

You clearly dislike Google! They haven't irked me..... yet!!! I've not had any misfortunes with google/nest products. They're still working as intended. If I need another CC dongle I don't mind buying a Wiim, or alike, for the CC functionality.

Even though your post was about something Amazon is doing you don't like, you wrote two paragraphs dissing Google first. With no explanation.Then answered my post dissing them more. I never mentioned google (I can't even say I'm a fanboy of them).

If your post was only about the echo article, I might have only brought up that I believe amazon removed apps from the firetv (STILL irks me) so they can generate more revenue via advertising. But it wasn't. So, I also mentioned that amazon stopped supporting older firetv products to the point streaming app can't be loaded or ceased working.

One crucial difference between Google and, say Apple or Microsoft, is that Google is first and foremost an advertisement company.

True. But I'm not sure your point or what's crucial about this? They each have a different portfolio. The core of Google's business is internet services, starting with their search engine. You can say they started as an IP company. Amazon started as an online bookstore. BTW, there are no ads on google displays. A main reason I bought one over the echo. Also, one of the reasons I replaced my firetv with a Roku. And, Amazon is working hard to increase ad revenues.