Amazon’s Alexa smart assistant seems to be everywhere. Since it was first announced in 2014 with the original Amazon Echo speaker, the voice assistant has gained thousands of new “skills” and comes in a variety of form factors – from miniature speakers to ones with a video camera and a touchscreen. Alexa has been integrated into a wide range of devices including cars, fridges, smartwatches, lights, and security cameras.
When dealing with an aging parent, Alexa was a great help — in both practical and emotionally important ways.
When Amazon launched its Alexa voice assistant, it envisioned a computer platform that could do anything for you. A decade later, the company is still trying to build it.
In another WSJ report about Amazon’s struggles to reinvent Alexa with AI, the newspaper says it’s now going backward:
In some tests, for example, it lost the ability to turn on the lights with 90%-plus reliability.
Merging the new with the old was always going to be a challenge. Amazon has now charged one of Alexa’s creators, Rohit Prasad, with solving this mess.
Basically, it’s just a better smart home device than the company’s Echo Show smart display, but there’s more to it. The Verge’s Jen Tuohy gives you the rundown. Be sure to check out her full review for more detail.
8
Verge Score
Amazon’s new control panel makes using an Alexa-powered smart home as easy as flipping a light switch (only better, trust me).
An all-in-one security camera with motion-activated light and continuous power, an outdoor floodlight camera is a simple way to add safety and security to your home’s perimeter.
7
Verge Score
JBL is the first to make Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant coexist on the same speaker, and it works quite well. But the price you pay for that convenience feels a little uneven.
While the new Alexa voice technology (dubbed “Remarkable Alexa”) is supposedly scheduled for a June 30th launch, a report from Business Insider cites sources who say early testing with 15,000 customers has not gone well.
Apparently, Alexa is “often giving unnecessarily long or inaccurate responses.” I am all for a smarter Alexa, but a hallucinating Alexa could be downright dangerous.
Amazon showed off some of what it planned for Alexa and generative AI at its hardware event last fall, where Dave Limp hinted it might come with a price tag.
From color-changing lights to gadgets that’ll take care of dinner for you and your pets, here are some of our favorite smart home gifts.
The new smart home standard finally arrived this year. But poor implementation, significant backpedaling, and glacial progress have left it broken.
It won’t cost you a thing, but that simple phrase sends $5 to your most recent Amazon delivery person and will ultimately require the company to pay its fleet of US drivers an extra $10,000,000. The return of Amazon’s tipping program began a few days ago and will continue until it gathers two million thank yous. You can also type “thank my driver” in the search bar on amazon.com or the shopping app.
8
Verge Score
Souped-up sound, widgets, and a Thread radio make for a good (but not showy) upgrade to Amazon’s best smart speaker with a screen.
