ByeBye Bluetooth!

Bluetooth sharing is SLOW, TIME-CONSUMING and FRUSTRATING. It Sucks! There was a time in evolution when people looked for mobile phones that have Bluetooth. We have come a long way from it being a USP to an essential/expected feature taken for granted to now getting vestigial. It still finds some utility in connecting devices (Phone to speaker, phone to headphones, phone to car etc.) but is losing very fast in the space of being a sharing medium for consumers.

For once internet is more accessible now and it is easier to multicast share on Whatsapp then the slow point to point sharing on Bluetooth. Many other technologies have evolved rather quickly helping new consumers adopt them as they get used to smart phones. Particularly in the family niche, where sharing is a frequent habit, more and more people are sensing a need to simplify sharing. Social media serves its purpose but for families people need something more private, simple and quicker.

I've come across some remarkable apps that are well on their way to replace Bluetooth based sharing:

1. Software Data Cable - Point to point direct wireless but great alternative to sluggish blue-tooth.
2. Dropbox - Secure sharing with friends and family. Who needs an introduction here, everyone has a Dropbox.
3. Snap Sync - Family Room has made sharing with the whole family just 1 touch distant. It makes sharing of already synced contents almost instant. It currently lacks multiple private groups inside family room that can allow sharing with selected members instead of all. But, overall still a great way to share with family.

It definitely is so damn cool for smart phone users to rise above the archaic Bluetooth based sharing. What do you think?

Disclosure: I work for Snapone
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed are solely my own and do not express the views or opinions of my employer or any organization, institution or business I am associated with. 

New data type - Family!

There is personal data - data that is useful only for an individual. One person has complete right and control over it and the person may want to keep it private and confidential, or may share it with the world. (S)he may be the only person that has stake/interest in that data.

And then, there is business data - the data may be useful for an individual or group but the ownership and control may be with employer or institution or business user is associated with. The person may still manage the confidentiality/sharing of the data but there are multiple stakeholders in it.

Behold! as there has always been a third type. It has often been ignored, probably because it is a little convoluted. It has characteristics of both individuals and groups. It is the FAMILY DATA.

The pictures that you take in family events, travel.
The old photo albums of your childhood, wedding, grandparents that you'd want to digitize and keep.
The not-so-funny home videos of your child's first steps.
Family Member's Insurance and other documents of importance.
The proud collection of music that you'd like your kids to inherit.

All these stuff have lots of emotions and memories associated with them and that's what makes family data PRECIOUS.

At the same time family data is different. All members want to access it, all want it to be safe. But, most are lazy to organize it or like to organize it in their own way. Also, not all want to keep all of it. They have their own preferences and priorities. This is where family data is DIFFERENT from business data.

The best available solution to safeguard any data is to digitize it and stash it in the cloud. But for the families, they need the ability to refresh it with new data, access it on-demand, organize it per their own liking, share it within the family or with the world and finally purge it with consent of every member. Technocrats need to take a holistic view of family needs and design solutions that cover storage, access, organization and sharing in a way that is easy to adopt by everyone.
       
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed are solely my own and do not express the views or opinions of my employer or any organization, institution or business I am associated with.