Amazon Echo
Alexa Can Enable Santa Claus Personality for the Holidays
This holiday season, Alexa users can tap Santa Claus himself in for free as a celebrity voice for the personal assistant. As first discovered by The Verge, the skill to enable Santa's voice is available and can be used simply by saying, "Alexa, enable 'Hey Santa.' Afterwards, the jolly man himself will step in and...
Former Amazon Echo Executive Miriam Daniel Now VP of Google Map Experiences
Google has hired Amazon's former Alexa and Echo executive Miriam Daniel to fill the role of vice president in charge of Google Maps Experiences. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports that Daniel had left Amazon during November after eight years and recently stepped into her role at Google to oversee the Google Map app and the "underlying...
Amazon Devices News Roundup for October 2021
There's a lot happening with Amazon devices in Canada this month, so here's a roundup of the latest news--check it out below: All-New Echo Buds Now Available Amazon's second-generation wireless Echo Buds became available for pre-order on October 12, and started shipping October 21. The new Echo Buds come in Black or Glacier White, with...
Amazon Launches Limited-Edition (echo)RED Ahead of World AIDS Day
Just ahead of World AIDS Day and Giving Tuesday, Amazon Canada has announced the launch of an all-new limited-edition (echo)RED to help customers put the impact into the purchase with a product that gives back. The limited-edition (echo)RED features an all-new sleek spherical design, premium sound, and smart home hub support for Zigbee, Bluetooth, and...
Amazon Echo Users in U.S. Can Now Stream Apple Podcasts
Starting today, owners of Amazon's Echo and other Alexa-enabled devices in the U.S. can now stream over 800,000 Apple Podcast shows by simply asking Alexa to play their favourite podcast. Users can also set Apple Podcasts as their default podcast provider in the Alexa app. Simply link your account in the Alexa app using your Apple...
How Amazon’s Alexa Plans to Take Over Your Car
A recent report by Fast Company features Alexa's integration with cars of the future. Amazon has a demo car to show off what Alexa can do inside a vehicle. Fast Company visited Amazon's Seattle headquarters for a preview of the company's Alexa-integrated concept electric car. Inside a car, Alexa Auto, of course, can do regular tasks...
Amazon Working on Hi-Fi Echo Speaker, Smart Home Robot: Bloomberg
Amazon is reportedly working on a higher-quality version of its popular Alexa-based Echo smart speaker to directly compete with Apple’s HomePod and other high-quality smart speakers. A new report today from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman says prototypes of the speaker are wider than the current Echo speaker, allowing the inclusion of additional components, including at least...
Samsung Confirms Smart Speaker Plans to Rival Apple HomePod, Amazon Echo
A Samsung executive today confirmed that the company is indeed developing its own smart connected speaker, similar to Google Home and the Amazon Echo family of devices. DJ Koh, the president of Samsung's mobile division, told CNBC that the company is working on a smart speaker, and said that the company may announce it "soon." "Maybe soon we will announce it....
Amazon Adds iCloud Calendar Compatibility With Echo Devices
Amazon today has revealed Apple iCloud users can now link their calendar to Echo and Alexa for the first time, meaning users can add new appointments or check their iCloud calendar schedule with voice commands to Alexa. The update means that users of the Amazon Echo – as well as the Echo Dot and Amazon Tap...
Amazon Launches ‘Echo Show’ with Touchscreen in the U.S.
Amazon has officially announced its latest Echo device, called the Echo Show. The new device will be the first Echo product to feature a screen and ushers in some new features previously unavailable on Echo devices. According to a new report from TechCrunch, Amazon will launch its new version of its Echo speaker that features a seven-inch touchscreen...
Apple ‘Siri Speaker’ May Launch at WWDC, Compete With Amazon Alexa: KGI
Both Siri and Cortana are strongly rumoured to be getting standalone devices before long to compete on an equal footing with the Echo-supporting Alexa and Google Home-included Google Assistant, but “Apple’s first home AI product” has only today become a near certainty, reads a new report from 9to5Mac. KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said in...
Apple Not Planning to Compete With Amazon Echo, Google Home: Report
The Amazon Echo and Google Home are both incredible AI-powered devices. The smart speakers both have the ability to answer your simple questions, give you directions, and stream your favorite music. They have both proven incredibly popular as well, with Amazon's Echo selling an estimated 11 millions units. So why doesn't Apple want in on...