The Amazon Echo still reigns supreme in the world of smart speakers. These intelligent devices are now placed in millions of homes all over the planet and it’s not hard to see why they’ve been such a monumental hit. With Amazon’s Alexa inside, they can belt out music, set timers, read the day’s news, get weather alerts and even tell jokes just by asking. The current Echo range is tough to beat, but there could be two reasons why these intelligent gadgets may soon look very inferior.
Firstly, it’s not unusual for Amazon to hold a major launch event in the autumn, with the US firm often showing off upgraded speakers, Fire TV Sticks and tablets at this time of year.
It’s also been a while since we’ve seen any major refreshes to the firm’s smart tech. For example, the Echo Dot 5th Gen was released in 2022, and the Echo Pop came out in 2023. A quick trip to Amazon’s website also reveals that the standard Echo is currently out of stock, which could be a big sign that something new is on the way.
Hopefully, Amazon will announce a launch event soon, and it might want to be quick.
It’s thought that Google is also about to unveil a new smart device which might be powered by the very clever Gemini Assistant. Google already makes its Nest Audio products, but these haven’t been touched since 2020 – that surely means something better is on the way.
To add fuel to the fire, a device was shown off during last week’s Pixel event, with F1’s Lando Norris appearing to sit next to what looks like a mini smart speaker.
The team at Android Headline say this is Google’s next gadget and it could be one to watch out for.
Not only could it be ludicrously intelligent and answer a vast array of queries, but it might also connect to TVs and act like a mini soundbar.
Apple already offers this functionality on its HomePods speakers and it could make watching films via Google’s streaming devices sound a lot more immersive.
Other extras could include full smart home controls, the ability to play music from popular streaming platforms and a neat design that would help it blend in better with its surroundings.
There’s no word on a release for Google or Amazon’s new devices, but more news could be announced before the Christmas rush.
Watch this space.