Amazon has launched a number of new products including four new Echo models. The models include the Amazon Echo, Echo Plus, Echo Dot, and Echo Show 10. The new Echo is a combination of the previous Echo and Echo Plus models. However, the new Echo ditches the tower-shaped design of the previous models for a new spherical shape. Most of the surface of this sphere is a grille while the plastic underside has a glowing ring of LED.
The new Amazon Echo comes with an upgraded speaker system and packs a single 3-inch woofer and dual tweeters along with Dolby audio processing. The Echo senses the acoustics of your space and automatically tunes its audio for it.
Further, the new Echo also packs a built-in smart home hub which has support for Zigbee, Bluetooth Low Energy, and Amazon Sidewalk. You will be able to connect your smart home devices directly to the Echo without requiring a dedicated hub.
The smart speaker is powered by Amazon’s new first-generation AZ1 Neural Edge processor, which is designed to speed up machine learning applications and also includes an all-neural speech recognition model that processes Alexa requests faster.
Amazon Echo Dot
The new Amazon Echo Dot is available in three different versions. All the versions pack a 1.6-inch full-range speaker and apart from the smaller size, it has the same design as the new Echo, just smaller. One of the Echo Dot versions come with an LED display that can show the time, temperature, timers, and alarms.
A version of the Echo Dot is dubbed Echo Dot Kids Edition and as the name implies, it is designed for kids. It is similar to the standard Echo Dot except that it comes in two color prints – Panda and Tiger and has several features design for children, such as setting animal alarm sounds, getting help with homework, and calling approved family and friends. The Kids Edition also comes with a 1-year Amazon Kids+ subscription that includes child-friendly Audible books, interactive games, and educational skills. The device also comes with a 2-year worry-free guarantee. Alexa will also let you create a special voice profile for your child and when it detects a child’s voice it will automatically switch to that profile.
Amazon Echo Show 10
The Amazon Echo Show 10 is a fourth-generation model with an improved design. The device packs a unique rotating display that automatically turns to face you when you speak to it. The display can also track your movements and keep the screen facing towards you during video calls, recipes, or watching videos.
The Echo Show 10 packs a 10.1-inch display and triple speaker assembly which is placed on a rotating body that can spin 360-degrees using a brushless motor. There is a 13MP camera on the front to keep track of your movement and moves the display to face your direction. This feature is only active when the user is performing an activity on the device that requires your attention. Also, when a voice command is given, the device will recognize the direction the voice command came from and turn the display in that direction.
You also get a built-in smart home hub for connecting your devices on the Echo Show 10. The smart display comes with support for Spotify, Hulu, Apple Music, Prime Video and Music, and more based on the region. Amazon has also announced that support for Netflix and Zoom is coming later this year.
As regards the pricing, the Echo is priced at $100 while the Echo Dot at $50.The Echo Dot with a clock is priced at $60 and the Echo Dot Kids Edition is also on offer for $60. The Amazon Echo Show 10 is priced at $250 and will be sold later on. The other products are up for pre-order and will ship later this year.
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