Amazon Unveils Two New Voice-control gadgets: Amazon tap And Echo Dot

Mark Sullivan March 03, 2016

This morning, Amazon introduced two new voice-controlled dwelling assistant devices—the $130 Amazon faucet Bluetooth speaker and the $ninety Echo Dot.

the 2 new devices are practice-united states of americato the unique Echo tool, which has viewed shocking success. All of those devices take the identical kind of Siri or Google Now personal assistant performance out of the smartphone context and position it in freestanding types around the home.

the actual brains and processing energy behind the devices is Amazon’s Alexa cloud-based platform, which does all the heavy lifting like processing voice commands and handing over content and information to the user.

0.33-birthday party corporations, like Uber for instance, can use an API to add their very own functions to the Alexa cloud, allowing Echo, faucet, and Dot customers to order a automobile the use of their voice. via these third-celebration integrations, Alexa is abruptly learning new talents, Amazon says. apparently, Alexa customers can now control their Nest thermostats through giving voice instructions to one of the vital Alexa-powered units.

The Amazon tap

The Amazon tap appears and acts very very like a Bluetooth speaker, with some introduced smarts built in. To “tap” into the Alexa brain (by means of a Wi-Fi connection) customers push a button near the highest of the instrument. Then they are able to order up Amazon tune tracks or songs from their Spotify account (or Pandora, or iHeartRadio), request climate or visitors knowledge, take heed to information, ask advert hoc questions, or order pizza—all courtesy of Alexa.

the faucet may also be connected and controlled the use of the Alexa app, which runs in a personal computer browser or on cellular (iOS, Android, or Amazon’s fireplace OS). it could actually additionally move track from a phone or tablet linked via Bluetooth, and play it back thru its twin stereo audio system, which Amazon says emit sound 360 levels around the instrument. it’s compact, stands just 6.25 inches tall, and weighs handiest 16.6 ounces.

the faucet, Amazon says, gets nine hours of play time, or as much as three weeks of standby time, on a single charge. It recharges by way of resting on a small spherical cradle on the bottom of the device.

The Echo Dot

The Echo Dot allows voice interaction with the user that’s extra like that of the Echo. as an alternative of pushing a chat button on the device, you speak a wake-up command (this can also be “Alexa” or every other word set by the user) to the Dot, then ask for this Alexa motion or that. As within the Echo, special microphone array know-how throughout the hockey-percent-shaped device can pick out voice commands via plenty of ambient noise in the room, or while loud tune is enjoying.

The Dot isn’t supposed to be a music playback instrument, but fairly connects by the use of cable or Bluetooth to no matter sound device is already within the dwelling. It does include a small speaker, however that’s just for handing over voice data and for alarm clock features.

The Dot can also be compact. It stands just an inch-and-a-1/2 tall, with a diameter of 3.27 inches across the top. It weighs eight.64 oz.. The Dot uses the identical circular mild rounding the highest of the instrument to point out when it can be resting, listening, and different statuses and states.

the identical Alexa app used with the tap is used to set up and handle the Dot.

it’s now not all perfect but. As folks commence shopping for the Dot as a secondary software to their Echo, there may be an opportunity that each gadgets may hear the user say the wake word, then each respond to the user request that follows. in view that each gadgets are end points to the identical brain, they’ll respond in the identical approach, however they won’t do so at the exact same time (this depends on their connection velocity), which may sound confusing. also, it can be now not yet possible to order one finish tool to play some piece of audio content material via a selected Alexa tool in a specific room in the house, however that trick could be added later on. And it is possible to provide room-explicit commands when the use of third-birthday celebration house control methods which have built-in with Alexa.

The Echo Dot is now on hand for pre-order, but best to individuals who have already got an Echo and a prime membership, after which only after they order it by means of voice during the Echo. The Amazon faucet can be available for pre-order lately—to anybody and thru customary order channels. both gadgets will begin transport March 31.

at last, Amazon mentioned it’s now promoting its Alexa Voice service (AVS) to other firms that want to make their products voice-activated. Amazon has made an enormous trade of marketing web server area to companies small and big with Amazon web services (AWS) and the corporate is promoting AVS in the identical means, said Amazon devices SVP Dave Limp in a up to date media briefing.