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[-] half_built_pyramids@lemmy.world 224 points 1 month ago

Uhh, because of the heat of the raspberry pi & camera behind there

[-] LodeMike@lemmy.today 26 points 1 month ago

Ah yes, 10W of heat :3

[-] otacon239@lemmy.world 8 points 1 month ago

Suppose you were in this situation and suspected something. I’d imagine the space behind it would be totally dark, so what would be a safe way to check if there’s a gap in between without breaking the glass?

[-] vrighter@discuss.tchncs.de 21 points 1 month ago

there are no "one-way" mirrors. You just need to make your side darker than the other side (there's a reason the observation side of a two-way mirror is never brightly lit, but the interrogation room is)

Tldr: put your face right up against it and use your hands to block out as much light as you can

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[-] GuyFawkes@midwest.social 8 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

I read a long time ago that putting something flat against the mirror will show you. I think if the mirror is legit you’ll see the reflection directly on the surface, if it’s two way the reflection will look like it’s inside the glass.

But I’ve never had the chance to actually test that, so take it with a grain of salt.

Edit: Turns out this is incorrect; thanks to everyone for educating me!

[-] qupada@fedia.io 14 points 1 month ago

It would be the other way around, if at all.

"First-surface" mirrors where the reflective layer is on the front of the glass are quite fragile, so wouldn't typically used for residential applications (you'd remove the reflective coating by cleaning it).

A regular mirror has the reflective surface on the back of the glass (which is then is further coated with a protective paint), leading to the effect you describe.

I don't however know enough to say one way or the other whether a surveillance mirror would becessarily be a first-surface mirror.

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[-] TeamAssimilation@infosec.pub 13 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

This is ancient advice for two-way mirrors, IIRC nowadays even legit mirrors can reflect directly from the front instead of the back. In this age of spy cameras this is mostly irrelevant.

Another tip was shining a bright light to illuminate the supposedly dark room on the other side, which again, would be way more expensive than a smoke detector spy camera.

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[-] random8847@lemmy.world 7 points 1 month ago

Ahh yes, because that would produce exactly square shaped heat.

[-] ChogChog@lemmy.world 8 points 1 month ago

Why else would it be called the inverse square law?

  • Gets rid of fog
  • is in shape of a square

Makes sense to me!

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[-] philpo@feddit.org 98 points 1 month ago

Guessing this is a hotel bathroom by the looks of it.

Then it very likely has a mirror with integrated heating. I have one myself and love it.

[-] NigelFrobisher@aussie.zone 49 points 1 month ago

It’s heated.

[-] FaceDeer@fedia.io 46 points 1 month ago

There's a ghost in your house that's trying to tell you "rectangle", but it's illiterate.

Try to figure out what "rectangle" means.

[-] AliasVortex@lemmy.world 28 points 1 month ago

Nah, just means that the mirror can't render the Unicode character that the ghost has sent.

[-] funkajunk@lemmy.world 11 points 1 month ago
[-] AmazingAwesomator@lemmy.world 10 points 1 month ago

or the eggplant emoji. its placed after a shower.

[-] NuXCOM_90Percent@lemmy.zip 37 points 1 month ago

There are coatings /sprays for this

[-] bulwark@lemmy.world 59 points 1 month ago

I think in this particular case it might be an integrated heating element like this: https://clearmirror.com/products/shower-clearmirror

They're popular in shower rooms in Japan.

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[-] coldasblues@sh.itjust.works 36 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Don't believe any of the other comments, this is clearly a one-way mirror with a camera inside. That conspiracy theory you've been thinking about a lot lately is true, and even worse they know you are on to them. Remember that creak in the floorboards you dismissed as the house settling? Footsteps. The way your coffee mug was turned slightly counterclockwise this morning? Intentional. They watch you when you sleep, and know how much time you spend looking at your phone.

Or it's what the top comment said. Sleep tight!

[-] Asetru@feddit.org 7 points 1 month ago

Or it's what the top comment said. Sleep tight!

Writing this in the top comment doesn't help, like, at all...

[-] taiyang@lemmy.world 35 points 1 month ago

This comments section feels like schizophrenia.

[-] kSPvhmTOlwvMd7Y7E@lemmy.world 13 points 1 month ago

These are such a good idea. It works by having a heater behind the mirror which prevents the condensation.

[-] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 7 points 1 month ago

Wait until someone finds a screwdriver.

[-] kattfisk@lemmy.dbzer0.com 30 points 1 month ago

I had this happen in a hotel, and being curious I removed the mirror, and yes there was a hole in the wall behind it, no there wasn't a camera there. It was just were they had ran the wiring for the lights on the mirror.

It would make sense that it serves like an access hatch to a terminal block that feeds the whole room. It's simple, costs nothing, is easy to get to (compared to having it sealed in the wall), protected from splashing and prying guests, and close to where you want most lights and outlets.

[-] mathemachristian 37 points 1 month ago

being curious I removed the mirror
protected from [...] prying guests,

blobcat, googly, think

[-] kattfisk@lemmy.dbzer0.com 25 points 1 month ago

Nothing is protected from those willing to pry hard enough ;)

[-] maniacalmanicmania@aussie.zone 29 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

For anyone who wants to achieve the same effect take a dry bar of soap and rub some into an area of a mirror in whatever shape you like (circle, square etc). Then buff it out with a dry soft towel or cloth until you can no longer see the soap. Next time you take a shower that part of the mirror won't be fogged up. Reapply soap and buff out every couple weeks or so if you want it to stay that way.

[-] mnemonicmonkeys@sh.itjust.works 24 points 1 month ago

I'm going to draw penises the next time at a friend's house

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[-] Feathercrown@lemmy.world 22 points 1 month ago

These are such a good idea. It works by having a mirror behind the heater which prevents the reflection.

[-] nailbar@sopuli.xyz 18 points 1 month ago

Alright, but now the heater is in the way.

[-] Feathercrown@lemmy.world 17 points 1 month ago

Yeah, that's why it prevents the reflection

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[-] elgordino@fedia.io 21 points 1 month ago

These are such a good idea. It works by having a heater behind the mirror which prevents the condensation.

Ps. Excuse the multiple posts. fedia.io was having a moment. I’ve deleted them now

[-] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 11 points 1 month ago

Apparently no one here has been to a Home Depot or Lowe's in the last 15 years.

[-] FooBarrington@lemmy.world 7 points 1 month ago

You can achieve a similar effect at home by using your hairdryer on the fogged-up mirror!

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[-] logicbomb@lemmy.world 18 points 1 month ago

There is probably a hole cut into the wall there.

If you want an innocent explanation, then it's entirely possible that there used to be a medicine-cabinet-style mirror there. It looks like it's about that size and would fit in that location. Those medicine cabinets are recessed into the wall and so they require a hole to be cut in the wall. When they installed the large mirror, they didn't think it was worth it to repair the hole, since they were covering it up with a mirror.

If the hotel is fairly old, it might have had something like that in the past.

But since there is no way of knowing that for sure, if I was in that room, I'd assume there's a camera behind there, too.

[-] Mike_The_TV@lemmy.world 13 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)
[-] logicbomb@lemmy.world 10 points 1 month ago

Even so, there is no reason to downvote my comment. It is possible for there to be a hole there. Voting like that just makes you an asshole. And, yes, comment votes are public information.

[-] sexybenfranklin@ttrpg.network 20 points 1 month ago

This will never not be the saddest shit on this website, please go touch grass.

[-] logicbomb@lemmy.world 7 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Alternatively, you can go fuck off instead. People who downvote and then reply to the comment as if they want to have a discussion are a fucking cancer.

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[-] Adulated_Aspersion@lemmy.world 12 points 1 month ago

Just posting to say I was here when everyone replied with "These are such a good idea. It works by having a heater behind the mirror which prevents the condensation."

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[-] 0ops@piefed.zip 12 points 1 month ago

Maybe somebody's stashing delicious freshly baked goods back there?

[-] wabafee@lemmy.world 8 points 1 month ago

Your part of a TV show!

[-] Bonus@lemmy.world 7 points 1 month ago

Uninsulated heat leak behind.

[-] Zachariah@lemmy.world 7 points 1 month ago

that’s the two-way section

[-] ExtremeUnicorn@feddit.org 6 points 1 month ago

These are such a good idea. It works by having a heater behind the mirror which prevents the condensation.

[-] Lumisal@lemmy.world 6 points 1 month ago

These are such a good idea. It works by having a heater behind the mirror which prevents the condensation.

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this post was submitted on 24 Sep 2025
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