Getting in a week earlier than the Made by Google event next week Amazon has shown off their latest products with some big changes to already established products along with a few new ones.
A spherical Amazon Echo
Remember the Nexus Q? Well, Amazon just changed the Echo to look extremely similar to that with a new spherical design. Inside Amazon have included an “AZ1 Neural Edge silicon module” which will use on-device machine learning voice recognition before it sends the command to the cloud.
Amazon say that this Echo is the best sounding Echo device ever with a size bigger than the Dot. The Echo uses its AI to adapt the sound of the device to the space.
The new Echo is now also a Zig-bee smart home hub and promises to be faster than previous generations.
The new design is available for both the Echo Dot and the Echo along with a Dot version that includes a clock or has even a caricature print on it to make it more kid-friendly (US only at this stage).
The Echo, the Echo Dot and Echo Dot with Clock retail on Amazon AU for $149, $79 and $99 respectively. All three are available now.
Echo Show 10
The new generation of the Echo Show 10 also brings with it a new design with the motorised base moving the display to face you as you move around the room. Google were able to get the camera to follow you in the Nest Hub Max but not the display. It will be interesting to see how successful Amazon’s solution is as it sure makes more sense than just the camera following you.
The Echo Show 10 follows you using computer vision technology and echolocation (radar or ultrasound?) from where it hears your trigger word coming from (“Alexa”). The new 13MP camera will work in conjunction with the motorised base to keep you in frame whenever you are on a call. You can turn off this motion just by telling Alexa to turn it off or closing the built-in camera shutter.
The display itself is a 10-inch HD display with the ability to not just swivel but also tilt to the angle you desire. Amazon have also included their AZ1 chip onboard speeding up command actions. Just like the Echo it also includes radios for Zigbee.
Oh and the Echo Show 10 is also getting Netflix support in the coming months. Priced at $399 the directional sound is premium and ideal for audiophiles according to Amazon, you ican register your interest at Amazon.com.au now.
Eero routers
We have covered the Eero routers in the past but the new routers are another upgrade on the current routers. They now support Wi-Fi 6 and have a built-in Zigbee hub. The Eero Pro 6 is now a tri-band router that can offer a single band for tech that uses 2.4GHz and two bands for 5GHz for faster connection speeds.
The Eero routers now have two ethernet ports and a USB-C port for charging for devices and are backwards compatible with older Eero routers. There is no word on Australian availability at this stage but don’t hold your breath any time soon.
Luna cloud gaming service
Hot on the heels of everyone else offering a cloud gaming service Amazon now have their own with Luna which as you would expect, powered by AWS. It will support a range of devices at release including Fire TV, PC, Mac and iPhone with Android support “coming soon”. At this stage it is US only like so many others — one day maybe we’ll be looked after.
The subscription service will offer more than 100 games via the Luna Plus channel with games such as Resident Evil 7, Assassins Creed Valhalla, Far Cry 6, Panzer Dragoon and the Surge 2 included. Obviously more games will be added over time.
Twitch streaming will also be integrated with a single button click providing a quick way to begin your stream. Just like everyone else Amazon have also included a new gaming controller in the package (for a fee) with the controller not going back to the streaming device via Bluetooth and then to the cloud but instead will connect directly to the AWS servers to decrease latency of commands.
There is also no word on Australian availability for this product and as with the Eero it is unlikely to make it here any time soon.
Fire TV Stick Lite
Amazon have also updated their Fire Stick Lite which supports Dolby Atmos audio and is capable of HD streaming with HDR colour. Amazon are looking to be extremely aggressive with its pricing here with it being priced at just $59 — it is available now on Amazon AU. Australia will not be seeing the 4K version anytime soon which is extremely disappointing.
If you like your Amazon products some of these are incredibly compelling but are they enough of an upgrade to get you to buy them?
No idea why we’re always not getting the higher end Fire Sticks. I refuse to get one based on that alone. The 4K was the one I was looking forward to due to the beefy hardware.
Maybe next time Amazon.
Bring on the Google’s Chromecast with Google TV.