Open Thread Update: Give Me the Analog Life – Round Two
We’re going to keep this topic going for a while longer because of all the heartfelt cries from my fellow Luddites. Like my friend, Terrie. “I don’t want to interact with my fridge!” she wailed. “My washing machine (pictured at top) has 20 settings!” The worst part was her microwave. “I don’t know how to set the clock,” she confessed, “and the microwave wants to know what ‘food class” I’m cooking, and how much it weighs.” And Terrie is no tech lightweight – she spent the bulk of her career at IBM – but even she is getting overwhelmed.
That’s why we’re giving this open thread a bit more airtime, because we’ve clearly hit a nerve. But which nerve? Take our short poll and let us know what aspect of overengineering you can most live without…and then read the rest of the column and the comments and add your own!
Give Me the Analog Life, Round One
I’ve decided when I travel I’m going to use hotels even though home rentals might save me money in the long run. Why? Because when I go on vacation I don’t want to spend any time downloading apps to turn on the dishwasher or change the temperature or figure out which remote does what on the TV, which also requires downloading an app and possibly watching a video. I go on vacation to get away from those things.
I want switches and buttons and knobs that give me instant, tactile feedback that whatever command I made was received, understood and complied with, regardless of the state of the internet, wifi, location or power source. Give me the analog life!
This became an issue for many people during the blizzards that are blanketing the nation and causing power outages. Imagine coming home during a blizzard only to find that you can’t get in the house because the IoT is down. No internet to open the garage door, open your front door, turn on the thermostat, turn on lights.
I don’t want a fridge with a screen that tells me what’s inside. That’s why I open the door. When I do laundry I don’t need 20 different cycles with a dashboard that looks like it belonged on the Apollo 11 and enough flashing lights to touch off a seizure. I am washing dirty socks, not splitting the atom. All I need is ‘Hot’ “Cold” “Normal Wash” and “Heavy Duty.” I do not want to have to watch a training video and download an app to turn on a dishwasher.
That’s not to say I’m against all sophisticated tech in home appliances…anything that makes it safer to operate is fine with me. But over-engineered appliances simply have too many possible failure points, and fixing them ain’t cheap. I want a knob or a dial and not a touch screen. A broken knob can be replaced. A broken touch screen? Please.
And don’t get me started on upgrades, AKA the “IT Full Employment Program.”
YOUR TURN
But that’s me. What about you? Are there household appliances with bells and whistles you appreciate? Ones you can live without? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Virge Randall is Senior Planet’s Managing Editor. She is also a freelance culture reporter who seeks out hidden gems and unsung (or undersung) treasures for Straus Newspapers; she writes frequently on Old School New York City and performs at open mic readings throughout New York City. Send Open Thread suggestions to editor@seniorplanet.org.
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Comments
An analog mystery: Back in the old days, we had a vcr that sat on top of the tv, and the on/off button was on top of the device. Our tv would occasionally turn on in the middle of the night, which was really creepy, until one time I was lying on the couch in the dark with a bout of insomnia going on. As I lay there, in strolls our cat Cujo (never was a name more appropriately applied to an animal, but that”s a story for another day) and guess how the tv turned on as i watched? Mystery solved.
i believe the aspect of analog life desire rests in the fact that many are simply afraid of “breaking” the devise so we. don’t try. Be Bold – give it a try – you may be surprised what you can do.
You forgot one. All this unnecessary tech encourages physical and mental laziness.
Our “old” gas oven/range has dials for the burners and for changing modes (broil/bake) but still works. Our “old” microwave was purchased in 1986 and it has no carousel – just a revolving wave source. Still works great! Our new refrigerator was supposed to be an “easy” set up, but we worked for 3 days to get it settled into the temperatures we need. We looked at new ranges with all the buttons on them and decided we’d wait till ours dies. Too many undecipherable options.
I bought a new washer with the least number of unnecessary features. Within days the melody that plays when the washer is done stopped working. The guide was no help, the on-line help was no help, there was no access to a human to help, my tech savvy friends were no help. I learned that several people have this issue. I discovered that it doesn’t qualify under warrenty covered services. So now when I wash my clothes in my new washer I must set my phone to alert me that the cycle is done.
thanks for the comments. What brand/make is the washer?