Amazon’s Latest Innovation Will Understand You Better Than Siri Does
Have you ever poured the last bit of milk and thought, “Gotta add that to my grocery list,” but never did? Have you ever checked your phone to see the weather, but then get sidetracked on the Reserve app for Friday night’s dinner? Yeah, we’ve been there too. No matter how many reminders we set on our phones or how many productivity apps we download, there’s always something we end up forgetting. Having a personal assistant would make life so much easier, but it’d also be pretty weird to have someone following you everywhere just to remind you to get more milk. That’s where Echo comes in.
Echo is Amazon’s solution for your personal home assistant. Just plug it in, connect it to your WiFi and Bluetooth and allow it to become an extension of your brain. The machine is an interactive speaker that not only plays your jams, but can add new fall recipes to your tablet and tell you what the weather will be like tomorrow.
We know what you’re thinking — Amazon, just created their own version of Siri — and you’re right. The only main difference is that Echo is always on. Always. While many may find that creepy, some may find it useful. Either way, Amazon claims that Echo is only listening if you use the wake word: Alexa.
Unlike Siri, the more you use Echo, the more it familiarizes with you how you speak. It’ll even recognize you from across the room while it’s playing music. Let’s assume that the machine’s seven hypersensitive microphones help out a lot with that.
Even when you’re out and about, the Amazon Echo app allows you to set alarms or make new music playlists that you can listen to as soon as you get home. With a simple, “Alexa, play my ‘Chill Music’ playlist,” you can wind down from a long day at work as soon as you walk in. Echo ($199, $99 for Amazon Prime members) is currently available to order by invitation only. If your request for an invite gets accepted, then you will receive your very own Echo in the next few weeks. Somewhere, Siri is a little worried right now.
Where would you put your Echo? We’d loved to know in the comment section below!
