Thread

ZuckOff is a free app that sees Meta glasses before they see you

400 points · 351 comments · choult

flexagoon · 1789991418 · focus · HN ↗
Not sure why you'd use this sketchy vibecoded proprietary app over the same thing that's open source and existed for a while
<a href="https://github.com/yjeanrenaud/yj_nearbyglasses" rel="nofollow">https://github.com/yjeanrenaud/yj_nearbyglasses
1. colesantiago · 1789992258 · focus · HN ↗
  Unless you're selling to grandparents over 50-70, nobody says yj_nearbyclasses or "Nearby Glasses".
  "ZuckOff" is a better quality marketing name for an app like this, vibecoded or not.
  The media and already consumers have talked more about "ZuckOff" than "Nearby Glasses" so a winner has already been chosen.
  1. gelly321 · 1789993335 · focus · HN ↗
    It's not about a winner. This isn't CNN, there's no reason, (if you know better) to use the vibe coded sketchy software like he said. We're better than this. Do you really think popular = automatically better?
    colesantiago · 1789994805 · focus · HN ↗
    > It's not about a winner.
    And it is not about being first here. ZuckOff is just a better packaged app, that's why it took off.
    > Do you really think popular = automatically better?
    If it gets the point effectively across better than the original.
    Yes.
    It is more supported than something that is OSS that will die in under a year.
    There are features that ZuckOff has that are more useful than the suggested one IMO.
    For a vibecoded app, it is well packaged with a great name.
    That is how you get people to use your app.
    pentaphobe · 1789995343 · focus · HN ↗
    I'd rather use software which was made to solve a problem than software that exists to "get" people to use it.
    justacrow · 1789996984 · focus · HN ↗
    Nearby Glasses has 100k downloads, while ZuckOff is sitting at 1k.
    getpokedagain · 1790016434 · focus · HN ↗
    Why use logic when you can use ai pixie dust and marketing and of course our good friend. Bullshit.
    pocksuppet · 1789997548 · focus · HN ↗
    popular != better but better == popular
    If you see something that is popular but you think it is worse, then your better/worse axis is not aligned with the majority.
    For example, X is better than Mastodon because you don't have to pick a server to use.
    orwin · 1790000198 · focus · HN ↗
    Untrue for sails, untrue for dinghys, untrue for foils, because price discrimination. I thought it might have been true for catamaran, but I looked it up and it seems that Hobie Cat 16 are still more popular than Nacras for some inimaginable reason, as for once it's not price related.
    If I go on another subject I invested time in, RPGs, D&D is the most popular system while inferior imho to a lot of others. Even if we have to keep the very flawed d20 system, the way forgotten chronicles handles everything is superior (and if in your bad opinion it's not the case because weirdly you like the class system, you probably would prefer pathfinder instead of dnd).
  2. dmantis · 1789993367 · focus · HN ↗
    It's a better marketing indeed, but that doesn't answers the op's question.
    Between something opensource and trusted, and a proprietary potential backdoor that can send the data back to the Zuck himself you'd probably want to choose the former (cause you never know with closed sources).
    I'm glad that he has shared the link as for me it's definitely useful. It's not a competition and I don't care what media talk, that's not about money.
    colesantiago · 1789994220 · focus · HN ↗
    There isn't any hope for something called "yj_nearbyglasses" if nobody outside of technical people know about it so OSS is kind of a moot point here.
    Outside of that, this project giving scary warnings is something I cannot recommend to others.
    > Between something opensource and trusted and proprietary backdoor that can send the data back to the Zuck himself you'd probably want to choose the former.
    Only HN veterans care about this, not people in the real world.
    dmantis · 1789994389 · focus · HN ↗
    You can expect exactly HN people to read a comment saying "why would you use smth instead of" on HN.
  3. XorNot · 1789993465 · focus · HN ↗
    I mean I'm going to install neither of these because going about my day obsessively focusing on something like this seems weird.
  4. nomilk · 1789993803 · focus · HN ↗
    ^^ this is actually a great lesson in the power of marketing. In this case, something as simple as a product name.
    pentaphobe · 1789995115 · focus · HN ↗
    Forgive me using your comment as a madlib, but one potential ending:
    (something as simple as a product name)... is enough to make someone ignore the actual point about software trust and instead argue that good marketing is what's important :)
    fc417fc802 · 1790003873 · focus · HN ↗
    Depends on the implied meaning. What technical reason? There isn't one, obviously. But what about the practical reason for the behavior we observe? That's explained by the name and marketing. And if your goal is to understand "why are people doing this" then indeed marketing is what's important and software trust only barely enters into it.
    Of course the irony there is palpable. Worry about the glasses while disregarding everything else.
  5. BonerWiener · 1789995493 · focus · HN ↗
    > so a winner has already been chosen.
    Decided by whom?
    This feels like astroturfing. The amount of new users recommending and hyping this proprietary product seems odd.
  6. axus · 1789997460 · focus · HN ↗
    Your comment shouldn't be downvoted for misunderstanding the hypothetical; you give a correct answer why "people" would choose ZuckOff. The question was why "you" (an individual from the Hacker News audience) wouldn't use yj_nearbyglasses instead.
    fc417fc802 · 1790004609 · focus · HN ↗
    True, but as far as that goes the question was a pointless one. Whereas the one that was answered has the potential to lead to productive conversation.
2. 0dayman · 1789993598 · focus · HN ↗
  [dead]
3. olkalakam · 1789995238 · focus · HN ↗
  Because I read about it in a place I trust that isn't github, and only care about the perverts, not the code?
  1. phoghed · 1789995524 · focus · HN ↗
    Where?
  2. orwin · 1790000272 · focus · HN ↗
    I mean, one app collect your usage data, the second doesn't.
4. cute_boi · 1789995695 · focus · HN ↗
  Vibecoders don't even bother to use google. They don't have a clue that there might be already better solution.
  1. RoryH · 1789996382 · focus · HN ↗
    LOL, in another generation or less it couold be:
    ____coders don't even bother to vibe-code, they don't have a clue that there might be a better solution /s
    smugglerFlynn · 1789999821 · focus · HN ↗
    You get downvoted but I remember the times when Google was carrying exact same sentiment, people who used Google were labeled 'lazy' etc
5. mcdonje · 1789996482 · focus · HN ↗
  According to the android app store, Nearby Glasses doesn't collect any data, while ZuckOff collects app activity.
  Why would I want a bluetooth scanner to phone home? Seems untrustworthy. Nearby Glasses wins from a data safety perspective.
  1. tadfisher · 1790012225 · focus · HN ↗
    Huh, I don't see that in the permissions list. I do see:
    - run foreground service with the type "connectedDevice" - discover and pair nearby Bluetooth devices - run foreground service - control vibration - Google Play billing service - run at startup - Google Play license check - have full network access - view network connections - ask to ignore battery optimizations - prevent phone from sleeping - connect to paired Bluetooth devices - show notifications
    I also see "In-app purchases" for "$9.99 - $24.99 per item", which is more of a turnoff for me personally.
    flexagoon · 1790030386 · focus · HN ↗
    It's not in the permission list, it's in the "data safety" section on Google Play
6. Trasmatta · 1789996911 · focus · HN ↗
  I love how even all the copy on the site is clearly AI generated. We're starting to completely lose even our ability to write a single paragraph of descriptive text.
  1. pocksuppet · 1789997489 · focus · HN ↗
    Because it works. This is at the top of Hacker News, and Nearby Glasses isn't.
    rplnt · 1789997750 · focus · HN ↗
    > This is at the top of Hacker News
    Twice.
    burkaman · 1789998737 · focus · HN ↗
    It was equally popular here, it was just a while ago: <a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47140042">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47140042
    netdevphoenix · 1789999016 · focus · HN ↗
    Yes, but part of the reason ZuckOff is trending now is because it is also popular outside tech circles.
    dylan604 · 1790000605 · focus · HN ↗
    The name is also much more engaging. As we all know, naming things is hard. While NearbyGlasses is simple and descriptive, it's not emotionally charged like ZuckOff.
    pixl97 · 1790001477 · focus · HN ↗
    The technical type tends to miss the power of the following algorithm.
    marketing > technical ability
    It's been this way ever since I've worked in the industry and will probably never change because of human behavior.
    rob · 1790004971 · focus · HN ↗
    No idea's original, there's nothing new under the sun It's never what you do, but how it's done
    - Nas
    wyclif · 1790002953 · focus · HN ↗
    But it's not at the top because of the AI ad copy.
7. CryptoBanker · 1789997013 · focus · HN ↗
  Nearby Glasses is also free on the iOS App Store while ZuckOff contains in-app purchases
8. grimgrin · 1789998020 · focus · HN ↗
  "even worse", I searched "nearby glasses" on app store, and it's 2nd, under the ad sponsored "ZuckOff"
  and so I leave this comment as off topic, but, is it pretty easy to get your new app to appear in that ad slot, above the main contender?
  1. lynndotpy · 1789998561 · focus · HN ↗
    Yep, exact same experience here. ZuckOff is paying to rank above NearbyGlasses.
    I think these concerns are on topic, given the larger concern is about how bad actors can wield technology for profitable surveillance.
  2. jacquesm · 1790001474 · focus · HN ↗
    Google has been doing this sleazy practice since forever, and yes, they even promote 'competitor campaign articles' through Google search, just google 'google competitor campaign' and you'll get articles like this:
    <a href="https://www.interteammarketing.com/blog/how-to-target-competitors-audience-on-google-ads" rel="nofollow">https://www.interteammarketing.com/blog/how-to-target-compet...
9. [deleted] · 1789998197 · focus · HN ↗
  [deleted]
10. [deleted] · 1789998451 · focus · HN ↗
  [deleted]
11. zobzu · 1790002361 · focus · HN ↗
  but the ads are nicer!
  1. jdiff · 1790003203 · focus · HN ↗
    And they've got merch for sale!

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