
This tiny box snitches on rowdy Airbnb guests - NicoJuicy
https://thenextweb.com/plugged/2018/10/29/this-tiny-box-snitches-on-rowdy-airbnb-guests/
======
mnx
This is basically an advertisement for this product. Probably a press release
copy-pasted.

~~~
mturmon
True. TFA literally says, “will soon be available for pre-order.” Come back
when you have a product, please.

------
cafard
Now if there were one to snitch on loud neighbors of Airbnbs. We had people
making a great deal of noise into the small hours outside the last place we
stayed.

------
tomatotomato37
This still seems a bit of a bulky unit for what it does; a more boxy shape
would fit the boards & batteries better than this. I wonder if the round
design is needed for the acoustics or if it's just an aesthetic choice made to
match smoke detectors.

------
kirillzubovsky
Would this be considered as wiretapping? Sure you are not listening to the
conversation, but you can still deduce some of my behavior from this trigger,
so is it really any different than listening to the conversation itself?

~~~
turc1656
Pretty sure it's not the same (legally) as wiretapping. Wiretapping is
specifically described as recording the audio itself without the consent of a
party as required by law. If no recording is taking place, I don't think there
is any way for it to be considered wiretapping. This is more or less just
having a sound meter send an alert when the volume (sound pressure) remains
above a threshold for a specified amount of time. As for deducing your
behavior - I don't think a court would have an issue with this because I'm
pretty sure the AirBnb terms would indicate that such activity is not allowed
so taking reasonable measures to ensure that behavior is not taking place
would likely be acceptable. Renters/guests do enjoy certain legal privileges
that make that space more or less privately owned during their occupancy, but
this doesn't necessarily override contractual agreements.

Overall, this seems like a reasonable way of ensuring guests don't violate the
agreement, provided that there is no recording of audio taking place
whatsoever.

------
pavel_lishin
> _The indoor model is tiny, measuring 3.4-inches by 3.8-inches, and plugs
> into any open wall socket._

It's good to know that my future hosts will have no trouble re-installing it
after I unplug it, should I discover it.

------
ryanmarsh
Had beers with the head of sales for a short term rental company based in
Texas. These are in more properties than you'd think.

------
module0000
Would a dog whistle trip this alarm? Then you know it's there, and no pesky
humans are disturbed by your test.

------
LinuxBender
Do renters sign something stating they won't produce over {n} decibels of
sound?

------
collyw
Do landlord usually care? It usually complaints from the neighbours that I
hear about.

~~~
chipgap98
I think landlords don't want their neighbors complaining and this is to help
prevent that

~~~
joezydeco
Especially if you're not the landlord and the actual landlord doesn't know
you're subletting the apartment in violation of your lease contract.

