Providing Market Intelligence for 40 Years

In The News

AI and smart homes: We may not notice the future

Security experts have always known that potential end users are not always ready for what is available to make their homes more secure. That dynamic often emerges from discomfort with what is new and unknown. Brad Russell, a research analyst at Parks Associates, based in Addison, Texas, describes that discomfort as “friction”—and he suggests that it has been around longer than we realize. Parks Associates is a market research company specializing in emerging consumer technology.

“New technology always comes with friction,” said Russell. From his perspective, however, the security industry has seen “a reduction in friction between technology and usage.”

The gap closes, he said, “If I can just call [my device] rather than use three or four buttons … now you’ve got the ‘wow and delight’ factor. It sounds cliché but it’s true—fun, easy, convenient.”

From the article "AI and smart homes: We may not notice the future" by Kenneth Z. Chutchian.
 

Previously In The News

What the CBS Blackout Means for the Future of Streaming

"The question is the degree to which consumers value content other than CBS, and whether CBS will be missing permanently from the AT&T lineup," said Brett Sappington, principal analyst at Parks Associ...

The Future of Entertainment Services Authentication

A leading area of innovation is in adaptive authentication. This technology determines the level of authentication needed for a given interaction with a service. So, each interaction comes with a spec...

Google's Super-Sized Nest Hub Draws Mixed Reviews

Google has included a hardware switch on the unit that shuts off both the camera and microphone. "The ability to shut off both the camera and the microphone will appeal to those who have privacy conc...

Fitness: The Sweet Spot for Smartwatches

In fact, 76 percent of respondents to a recent Parks Associates survey used their smartwatch to track steps. Sixty percent used them as a heart rate monitor, and 53 percent to track calories. Overall,...