Comment on What are the pros and cons to buying a smart watch from temu?
skullgiver@popplesburger.hilciferous.nl 1 month ago
Pro: it’ll probably work well enough to get your notifications and maybe even your heart rate and stuff.
Con: it probably won’t arrive. If it does, it probably won’t look like in the pictures if it does, it probably won’t work like described. If it does, it probably has done kind of cheep, toxic chemicals it’ll leave in your arm. If it doesn’t, it’ll probably come with an app that drains your battery. If it doesn’t, it probably sells your live location and notifications to data brokers. If it doesn’t, it’ll probably never receive software updates. If it does, it’ll probably be broken by the end of the year.
There are actually a few relatively cheap smart watches that some people like to reprogram with open source firmware. You can get a Colmi P8 or a Kenboro K9 for less than $30 and flash WaspOS onto it. You have to get lucky and buy the right hardware revision but flashing new firmware onto those things can be as simple as downloading an app and loading a file into it. These devices are underpowered and software availability is limited, but at least with the open source stuff you can rest easy about your data not being sold.
hungryphrog@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 month ago
Exactly. Don’t buy anything on Temu if you about quality or human rights at all.
skullgiver@popplesburger.hilciferous.nl 1 month ago
All the terrible quality and human rights violations also apply to any other Chinese shop as well as Amazon or whatever your local Amazon equivalent is. I’ve found the exact same shit sold on Temu in physical store shelves for those cost-saving stores. The entire supply chain is fucked.
I do order shit directly from China, but only if I need something specific like phone parts or electronics that I see “local” shops carry with the exact same photos, descriptions, and pictures, for twice or triple the price. I’ve fallen for that trick too many times, I’ll go straight to the source now.
Elaine@lemm.ee 1 month ago
This! Some of my friends crap on Temu but have Amazon Prime and wind up buying the same stuff from Chinese manufacturers anyway.
hungryphrog@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 month ago
Yep. Go to flea markets and trift stores people.