
Logitech will intentionally brick Harmony Link devices next year - Shivetya
https://www.techspot.com/news/71776-logitech-intentionally-brick-harmony-link-devices-next-year.html
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Matt3o12_
I still don’t get how this can be legal. I understand that it is up to the
consumer to repair the devices when they break due to cheap components (which
are only meant to last one or two years) and are out of warranty, but if a
company knowingly destroys your goods (via a software update) which is 100%
intentionally and there is no way for you to fix it (either via a self hosted
solution or any other solution) just sounds criminal to me.

I hope that one of these days, a laysuite will be filed against any of those
companies which sets a precedent how to handle those situations.

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ashleyn
I believe it's not quite an "intentional bricking" in the sense that Logitech
sends out a suicidal ROM update. What's going on is that the product depended
on a cloud service for its core functionality, and now that service is being
discontinued.

This is the double-edged sword of the convience that cloud-powered products
deliver. You're not buying something that will last decades. You're buying a
service and the hardware to utilise that service.

~~~
Matt3o12_
Maybe I'm not getting the function of this device but what does it need the
cloud for? This is just a fancy remote with app support. It really should not
rely on any could server expect for updates maybe. The app should just connect
to the remote using the locale network.

My Apple TV does not need internet either. I can still stream media to it
using any device on the locale network (which is what I use it for mostly
anyways). Sure the "apps" do not work without internet but I have never used
them anyways (I always stream them using my iPhone) so even if Apple shut down
the old Apple TV, I can still use it just like before and only use the
function partially.

If they have such heavy (and unexpected) cloud dependencies, they should warn
consumers and (even better) put an expiration date on them, and say which
functions are required for them to work. I remember that Nintendo games used
to have a disclaimer if the game needed internet to work with (either
partially or at all). This way parents (and the store clerks) can better help
the consumer understand what is required to play the game and understand how
it can be played without internet.

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jacquesm
What a terrible move. If I had bought it I would definitely want a full
refund, no discount.

This is really disappointing because I used to love Logitech the company, am
friends with the founders and in general always thought of them as an example
of a business done right.

I'll mail Daniel to see if I can persuade them to put the emergency brakes on
this decision, I can see a very bad PR debacle happening if they do not undo
this decision.

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dozzie
> What a terrible move.

The more terrible thing is the whole system's design made this actually
possible. An electronic soap dish lying under the TV should not depend on
internet access to just do its work. Though nobody thinks about it nowadays
and everybody is happy to switch songs played by music centre with their
iPhone.

~~~
ashleyn
Home automation suffers from the same problem. I'm hard-pressed to find a home
automation hub that doesn't require "the cloud." You mean to tell me turning
on the lights 5 feet away _requires_ I go through some North Carolina data
centre some 800 miles away? This frustrating trend is over-engineered and
insecure.

~~~
casenjo
I wasn't able to find a cloud-less home automation solution. Ended up going
the semi-DIY route and installed Home Assistant on a Raspberry Pi. It's not
plug and play, but it beats having to rely on some cloud solution that'll
disappear whenever the manufacturer feels like it.

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dredmorbius
As if I didn't already need another reason to absolutely distrust Logitech.

I've already seen the company's failure to honour warranty obligations.

[https://ello.co/dredmorbius/post/5y-ggnul129j7mogblrsmg](https://ello.co/dredmorbius/post/5y-ggnul129j7mogblrsmg)

