Last year was not a good year for the smart home security camera industry. In just over nine months, we’ve seen five major smart home security brands face extremely negative press following privacy and security related incidents. or thousands of dollars) home security products.
So what’s happening in the smart home security industry? As options for many savvy consumers, the five major players are virtually eliminated. Who else can provide peace of mind when you’re away from home? List of the best smart home security cameras. (opens in new tab) It seems to get smaller every month.
Sure, tech startups and Chinese companies don’t seem to be the answer at this point, but are tech giants like Google, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft really the answer we need? , we don’t want these companies to poke holes in yet another industry segment, but they could very well be the answer to the problems we’ve been looking at.
The Year of Smart Home Security Failure
It all started with Wyze hiding information about a critical flaw. (opens in new tab) A hacker could gain access to your camera without your knowledge. Instead of figuring out how to fix the bug, Wyze ended up completely discontinuing the affected product and releasing new hardware.
Later that year, Eufy was embarrassed when it was discovered that Eufy also had some security vulnerabilities. (opens in new tab) with that product.The company spent most of the next month dismissing claims, then changed its promises and policies. (opens in new tab) to cover its tracks. The company appears to have patched most (if not all) of its security holes, but the damage to its reputation after its messy response isn’t so easily undone.
Lesser known are EZVIZ and Lorex, two brands that offer great hardware options at competitive prices. I used to prefer products from these companies, but both are wholly owned subsidiaries of his two companies in question, Dahua and Hikvision. why is there a problem?Simply put, the FCC banned them in November (opens in new tab) About the suspicion of spying by the Chinese government.
I definitely don’t want that in my house, thanks.
The most recent and least offensive is Arlo’s recent actions. (opens in new tab)In a nutshell, many Arlo cameras sold before 2018 will be discontinued in the coming months and should be out of service in the next year or so. but does not receive security or firmware updates. This is a type of internet-connected product that should only be kept on the guest network. (opens in new tab).
Notice a pattern?
If you’re looking at the list and trying to figure out some kind of pattern here, know that I’ve been trying to do the same thing and have come up empty on every attempt. , subsidiaries of Chinese conglomerates, those owned by giant technology companies, or not all publicly traded companies.
Many of them are subsidiaries or spin-offs of large companies. Arlo came from Netgear, Eufy from Anker, EZVIZ from Hikvision, and Lorex from Dahua. Wyze technically he “started” at Amazon, but that’s only because his three founders happened to be working in Amazon’s Seattle office at the time. Wyze is not owned or funded by Amazon, nor is it a Chinese owned company as some have claimed.
If you were hoping for an easy link, stop. Not even one.
Plus, there have been scandals in the past with companies like Ring (opens in new tab), a wholly owned subsidiary of Amazon, is the first criminal in the drama of the modern smart home security scandal. Case in point, even Big Tech isn’t immune to problems and scandals, although most of the lessons Ring learned are solved by companies.
While some people think (opens in new tab) Arlo is said to be implementing a new retirement policy as the company faces mounting pressure from shareholders, but the reality doesn’t match the rhetoric here. are due to rising cloud storage costs, forcing them to move to Microsoft’s Azure instead.
If Arlo were to do this and squeeze a few more cents out of existing customers, it would either remove the local storage option from the hub, or something far more drastic. Everything that’s happening now hinges on the increasing cost of cloud storage. As a former IT administrator, I can attest to how cloud storage and computing costs can get out of control. And it’s not easy to reduce these costs just by “cleaning up” your infrastructure.
So, finally, what am I proposing? Beyond having a CCTV security system that doesn’t need to be updated because it’s not connected to the internet, I truly believe Microsoft could be the answer we’ve all been looking for.
Time for another Microsoft hardware experiment
Microsoft is no stranger to experimenting with hardware. We play with tablet-like laptops, AR headsets, giant touchscreen tables, game consoles, mice, keyboards, and anything else you can imagine. But while many of its products haven’t always been commercially successful, the company has always excelled in one key aspect of his: privacy.
I chatted with Daniel Rubino from Windows Central about this topic after CES 2023, and he likes the idea too. As someone who regularly juggles multiple devices running several different operating systems, Microsoft is often considered the most consumer-friendly large tech company in existence. One of his key tenets is the concept of privacy, and Rubino says he regularly wins awards for Microsoft.
Microsoft ranks among the most trusted technology companies and already has a competitive cloud infrastructure.
In fact, Microsoft is often considered one of the most trusted technology companies, generally second only to Google and Amazon. (opens in new tab) Several (opens in new tab) the study (opens in new tab) A lot of that may have to do with the fact that the company doesn’t sell user data to advertisers or other groups like other technology companies do.
It’s also important to note that nearly all of Microsoft’s rivals have been involved in most of the biggest tech scandals of the last decade. The Microsoft CEO rarely sees Satya Nadella testify before the Capitol, but many other tech CEOs have defended their company’s involvement in the recent scandal. It is often seen.
Another important part of the equation is Microsoft’s consistent design around open standards. As Rubino pointed out to me, Microsoft has regularly designed to open industry standards since Satya Nadella took over as his CEO. Microsoft’s acquisition of his GitHub (the world’s largest open source repository) is further proof that Microsoft cares more than ever about open source and trusted products.
Many Microsoft products are platform agnostic, especially the cloud-driven offerings, which fit the expectations of a home security suite very well.Not only that, the launch of Matter (opens in new tab) This year’s smart home interoperability specs meant Microsoft couldn’t have adjusted the timing of potential product releases any further.
Many Microsoft products are platform agnostic, and Matter’s interconnectivity makes them smart home agnostic.
The last is the cloud component, something that Microsoft has been working on for years. As Rubino points out, the company can incorporate the new security camera cloud storage plans into their existing Office 365 plans, further attracting customers who continue to rely on Microsoft as their go-to cloud service company for all their needs. can.
Not only that, but Microsoft already specializes in AI.
Is Microsoft’s one big problem here? Branding. Outside of Windows, Xbox, and Office, Microsoft has struggled to find a way to successfully brand its products, especially hardware products. On the software side, too, Microsoft regularly changes product names every few years to try and stick with consumers.
Can Microsoft save the home security cam industry? From my perspective, it certainly sounds plausible. I’m still very happy with Google’s latest Nest product, as it’s pretty much solved the problem, but a new set of similar products from companies like Microsoft has made the industry rock the boat right now. It may be what you need.
